It took a couple of hours to calm Mustang's nerves, and before then, Sandra had left with Alphonse on a search for answers. That left much to be desired, as Sandra's very presence had caused major confusion and rose highly important questions.
Who exactly was she? Could she be trusted? Is she a spy? What the hell was she talking about when she said "Manga?"
Mustang could have asked many more questions, if only he could focus on arranging his worlds correctly in his already troubled mind.
Sandra on the other hand was just hell-bent on creating confusion. And much confusion she did create, as not only Mustang was trying to shake off her effects, but his entire team.
Riza shook herself. "Sir, you can't spend time worrying about her."
"There's so many things to worry about here" he retorted. "Where did she come from again?"
Falman cleared his throat, always ready with an answer. "She did say 'universal.' It's most likely she was talking about a parallel universe."
Mustang snorted distastefully, the image of a child jumping through space floating through his mind. "As if."
Breda nodded slowly. "No, he's right." Mustang stared at his subordinate, wondering how he could believe such a thing.
"She said that Japan was this world's version of Xing. If that's the case, her world is exactly like ours, but at the same time, it's different."
Mustang pondered over the thought, connecting dots and creating links. Jeez, this was going to be a confusing job.
"Elaborate."
Havoc began to shake himself as well, tossing away the lost shine in his gaze. "Think about it." He said slowly. "When you two drew the countries, you redrew Amestris, but she created something entirely different."
"But-"
"You called it a whale, Mustang! Of all things!"
The colonel was still skeptical of Sandra. Just how do you travel from universe to universe? He traded glances with the rest of his subordinates, finding the same look on each of their expressions.
Face it, Roy. This isn't Ed.
"You all believe this kid?" he said, even though he knew the answer himself.
Havoc stood from his chair and leaned on his desk. "She shamed us with barely a few words, she embarrassed you," he pointed an accusing finger in his direction. "With just a sentence, and that's not something the chief can do, easily for that matter."
"Come to think of it, she went from explosive to calm very quickly. We all know the cheif's the opposite." Breda continued.
"Alright, alright. I get it." Mustang relented, rubbing his temples. "It's just so hard to wrap my head around this."
"Then don't."
Mustang faced his subordinate, Riza, with wide eyes. "How do you expect me to do that?" Voice incredulous.
She sighed, as if calming a wild spirited pup. "There are some things people can handle, Sir. Some things are either too large to grasp, or too subtle to see."
"Speaking of subtle, no one's going to take the news of Sandra very lightly if word got out." Havoc pointed.
Following his words, Mustang could only wonder what would be in store for Sandra if she was discovered. Drugs? Interrogation? He felt a shiver go down his spine as the thought of torture...
No, they wouldn't do that. Not to a child. He shook the thought away from his mind, itching for a distraction.
RING
And there it was, the small, almost insignificant sound that saved him from paperwork. He picked up the phone, and held it to his ear.
"Yo! Mustang!" the voice cried eagerly.
Shit. Paper sounded much more appealing now.
"Hughes. This better not be about your daughter."
The rest of the team groaned inwardly, knowing what was to come. Gushing, anger, sarcasm and the threats. Number one was coming up, much to the others disappointment.
"Don't be so heartless, Roy. She's the most beautiful girl ever known to man."
"Yeah, yeah. Just like the last thousand times you said that." Mustang growled. His grip tightened on the phone handle. He didn't have time for this. Not after what happened...wait. Hughes didn't know about this, Roy would have to tell him later. The phone was too dangerous.
"Hughes, something's come up. I need you to get here now." Jokes over.
"What? Proclaiming your love to Riza?" Try as he might, Roy couldn't but feel his cheeks flush with heated embarrassment. The damn phone was audible as hell, considering the stream of snickers he heard behind his back as he whipped his chair around to hide his still flushing face.
"Hughes." He growled in a lower tone, gritting his teeth. Over the phone, he heard a soft thump, and small mumbling was heard through the other end.
"Hughes?"
"Just in the library. Lookin' up disappearances over the past couple of months."
"And?"
"There's just too many articles for one person to read." Another thump in the distance and the thought of Hughes rubbing his chin popped up in Mustang's mind.
"I'd much rather switch to something more enjoyable." Hughes sighed.
"That makes tw-" Switch. Sandra, and Fullmetal. He almost forgot about those two kids, and just the thought of them churned his guilt even more.
"Roy? You okay?" Hughes asked concernedly.
Mustang shook his head. "I'm fine, I just remembered something. Hey, can you pull up anything on red water?"
The rest of the team perked up considerably, aching to hear the response.
"Sure. What for?" the family man asked.
Mustang snorted, "Trust me, you'll find out when you get here." Ending his reply, there was a slam on the other side of the phone, and then a swear.
"Shit, alright. I'll talk to you later." And then a click on the receiver.
Mustang turned his chair to his desk and put the phone down. Oh you'll find out.
"So when were you born?" Al asked, strolling with his new-found companion, nudging her with a slight pressure.
"I don't think you should be asking a cat that, Al." Sandra said with a laugh. Originally, Alphonse had thought the young black cat was male, until Sandra had instructed him to reconfirm her sex after glancing at the feline with a questioning stare.
"Well." He said after the cat had nudged him back with a running purr. "Who should I ask that question to?"
"Well, me, I suppose." She said with a shrug. Al laughed louder than she had, as they walked down a street filled with stores. An occasional murmur from a shop keeper reaching their ears in a plea for a purchase.
"Okay, really funny. Brother was born on the year 1899, and you're two years older than him, making your year either 1898 or '97."
Sandra nodded. "Right, because it depends on the month I was born. But," she raised a finger and stared at Al with the same little smirk she gave the soldier in the hallway. "Take 1898, and add one hundred years to that." she turned back. "There you have it."
Alphonse grabbed his smaller companion, peering deeply into the liquid golden eyes. "YOU'RE FROM THE FUTURE!?"
Sandra sent a panicked glance around the street, where some were starting to stare with unabated interest. She began to feel bad vibes in the air, turning to see an empty stand. She glanced around more, trying to find the source of the unrelenting malevolence, but found none. She turned to Alphonse hesitantly.
"Nice acting skills, Bro Bro, but you can't just say that out loud in public." she said boldly. She nudged him close, walking forward. "As long as I'm here, I can be a threat. There could be anyone after me, besides, I already told you about the year in my world." she whispered low enough for only Al to hear. The bad vibes continued, like crashing waves.
He nodded. "Oh, right." His thoughts trailed away to the day of the accident. Can it even be called that? Al thought. It was all planned, but what if the outcome wasn't what the enemy wanted?
The lady with the wolfish smile, imitating the motion of tipping a hat that was never there. "Sorry to be blunt but we're going to go away for a while." Walking towards the window on her side, all the while smiling as Ed lay helplessly on the ground after the alchemical reaction faded.
She opened the window and looked out, waving her hand out the side as the train slowly came to a stop. "Take care of the child." Others started to swarm through the windows, smashing through, and crunching glass beneath their feet as they landed swiftly.
Without thought, Al stiffened his stance, prepared to fight at whatever cost. Multiple clicks sounded through the car, all guns pointed at the limp form of the young alchemist. "I'd suspect you to behave yourself." The woman said, her own pistol gleaming in the sunlight, slanted downwards. "You wouldn't want to lose your brother, would you?"
Silence hung in the air, the crumpled glass has seemingly disappeared. She woman replaced her pistol. "Good. Now we'll just be on our way." She moved towards the side.
"You're not taking my brother." Al growled lowly. The lady smirked from Al's side view and continued walking away, waving her arm in the air. "We don't need him. Since we already have him."
"What?"
"Move out."
Much to the younger Elric's surprise, the strangers began to move expertly at a quick pace. "Chello" - as he was called - was lifted from where he had been laying, and dragged out from farther down the last car. Some had literally climbed out the windows from which they crashed through like quick nimble cats.
Speaking of cats, a certain someone had to be careful before,
"Look out!" All attention was guided towards to the side, where unfortunately Sandra had collided into an old man that was tripping on his feet. They were both sent windmilling to the ground, while Sandra had already encased the elderly man in a protective hug. They both landed on the ground with a thud, and few painful groans.
"You dumbass, look where you're going!" Someone yelled. Sandra paid no mind and began to help the elderly man up, who had begun shaking with fear. She kept a steady grip on his arms as he slowly stood up.
"Are you okay?" she asked. She frowned to herself when she heard snickers from the surrounding shops. The man looked up at Sandra with fearful eyes, showing no intention that he had understood. Another man spoke up. "The boy asked if you were okay, old man. Show some respect."
Sandra scowled and opened her mouth to retort. Who the hell did they think was a,
She smacked her forehead, forgetting the vital fact that she was in a boy's body. She got so wrapped up in her thought's that she didn't hear the old man's reply.
"What you say to me old man?" The man spoke again. He took a step forward and the elderly man raised his arms to shield himself. "Lo siento!" he yelled. Sandra snapped to attention and stood in front of the man, shielding the other with an extended arm.
"He said he's sorry!" she defended. Everyone stared at Sandra in surprise, switching from the old man to her. The man stood in front of her and narrowed his eyes. "You understand this old guy?" Sandra stared at the others, confused. "Don't any of you?" she asked back.
Everyone shook their heads. "No. We all thought he was insane." Sandra scoffed at the idea. "Yeah, and I guess coffee's made out of apples." She retorted sarcastically.
Few men sent glares towards Sandra, but slowly went about their business, muttering softly to one another.
A few minutes later, the trio were sitting comfortably with the elderly man, who still seemed to quake with fear. Sandra and Al stole a glance at each other. Sandra cleared her throat.
"Are you okay?" She asked. Al gasped softly, surprised by the fluent words Sandra was speaking. The elderly man glanced sharply at her with wide eyes.
"You speak-"
The men who criticized the old man began to gawk at Sandra, switching from the old man to her.
"No way!" Someone said.
"He can talk the same way!" Another cried. Sandra sighed and shook her head. "Why is this a surprise?" The elderly man eagerly reached over and pulled Sandra's hand in a firm shake.
"My name is Daniel. I haven't had someone to speak to for years, and now-" the man started laughing, shocking Sandra and the others.
"He's obviously insane." The shop keeper said. Sandra shook her head and turned. "He's said he hasn't had anyone to speak for years." Some of the men looked down at their drinks, ashamed.
"He's relieved." Sandra finished.
"What is your real name, child?" Daniel asked. Sandra's eyes widened and she slowly turned back towards the old man. His eyes showed no sign of laughter before, just the curious glint of a victim.
"What did you say?" She whispered. Al picked up the tone of Sandra's voice and tensed. He couldn't understand her, but he knew the way she was feeling. The old man narrowed his eyes.
"Your real name. I know the one you use around them," he gestured around the public. "Isn't your real name. So what is it?" Sandra looked around the room, where some people cast furtive glances to her and the old man. She looked at Alphonse, who took note of her nervous stare. Sandra sighed.
"The name of this boy's body," She laid a hand on her chest. "Is Edward Elric." Alphonse paid more attention to Sandra's word as he recognized his brother's name. He became confused when he saw Sandra's gaze become hard and focused.
"My real name is Sandra Lawrence."
"Sandra Lawrence, huh?"
"That's what she said, Hughes."
"And I'm guessing you all believe her?"
Mustang's team groaned, surprising Hughes. "Just what did she do?" he asked, looking around the room. Everyone had either covered their faces or just rubbed their foreheads. Riza supplied Hughes with a simple, "She... surprised them."
Hughes raised an eyebrow. "How exactly?"
All attention was directed to the door when the loud clank of Al's armor sounded through the hall way. The doors slammed open and Sandra ran in with an urgent look on her face, while Al was still behind.
"Wait for me!" His voice echoed. Sandra paid no mind and ran towards Mustang's desk, slamming her hands on the top. "I'm not the only one!" She yelled out loud. Mustang leaned back on his chair, shocked by Sandra's behavior.
"What?"
Sandra stood back, breathing heavily. She pushed the bangs away from her face, her eyes wide. "I'm not the only one to switch bodies with someone." She wrung her hands together, showing her nervousness. Hughes coughed into his fist to get Sandra's attention.
"It seems we haven't met yet." He held his hand out, waiting for Sandra to put her own in his. She eyed it warily, and looked up at him.
"I already know who you are, Hughes." She said with a questioning tone. Hughes continued to leave his hand in the air. "But I don't know who you are." Nonetheless, Sandra continued to leave his hand in empty air. Mustang traded glances with the others.
"It's just a handshake, Sandra." Riza calmly said to her. Sandra blinked. "I know. But I feel like he's gonna pull me in and force me to see pictures of his daughter."
Perhaps it was the way Sandra had said it, or the way she gazed the hand with mistrust, but Hughes began to laugh. He raised his hands in mock surrender. "Alright, you got me."
Mustang stared at Sandra with a curious hint. "How did you know?" Sandra turned to look at Mustang with a look that purely rang of "Seriously?," and said, "Well, for starters, it was that glint in his eyes." She took in a breath to continue her explanation, but thought better. "That's not the problem though."
Mustang nodded. "Right. This whole...body switching problem."
Sandra also nodded her head and began to relay all that she could remember in their encounter.
"What happened to you?" Sandra asked. The old man looked around with wary eyes before answering Sandra's question.
"Something evil." Sandra sat back in her chair, pondering over the man's words. He had to be exactly like her, but there was something terribly wrong if she wasn't the only one dealing with this type of issue. She pressed on, determined.
"Who did this to you?" The old man shook his head and sighed.
"I don't know, but I know that they don't care for people like us." He coughed into his fist. "I spent years trying to get someone to help, I felt like eyes were following me," he looked around and leaned in close, "Ever since I stepped into that demon water."
Sandra felt her eyes go wide, her jaw slacken as her memory flashed to the day in the cemetery, her hands went limp on the table. The old man nodded in understanding. "See, I told you. We're the same."
Sandra couldn't fine her words, until a she heard a commotion outside the small cafe she was in, and she stood to her feet. The commotion was brought inside as men clad in white began to look around the room, and their attention was brought towards the old man and Sandra.
"Here he is." The men made their way towards Sandra and the old man while one of them gingerly held a bag in his arms. Sandra jumped forward and stepped between the old man and the two men dressed in white. Both shared a glance before speaking calmly to Sandra.
"Kid, he has to come with us." Sandra held her stance and continued blocking the men.
"Where do you want to take him?" She asked pointedly. The room about them had a cold, empty feeling as all attention was guided towards them.
"Please, he's going to be taken care of. There's a -"
"They want to take him to a nut-house." Someone abruptly said. The male nurse winced and held his out his hand. "Kid, he's clearly sick." Sandra shook her head.
"He isn't sick. He's foreign." When no-one dared to stop Sandra from her explanation, she continued. "He's from far in the east. No-one understands him because he speaks another language."
"After that, they made me prove that I could understand him by talking to him in that language." Sandra chuckled nervously and laced her fingers around her neck. "You should've seen the looks on their faces when I spoke to him in Spanish."
"Is that what it's called? Spanish?" Hughes asked. Sandra nodded her head enthusiastically, and she dropped her hands on her side.
"Although, I'm confused he spoke Spanish." Sandra pointed to herself. "I'm from America, and Amestris in my world would be Germany, which is halfway across my world."
Mustang arched an eyebrow. "Which would mean...?"
"Why does it feel like I'm still speaking English and not German? Better yet, what if Edward is speaking German in my world, and not English like my mother would expect me to?"
"Hey mom?" Ed asked. Sandra's mother slightly turned her head to look at the face of her daughter. Seeing that look of motherly love made Ed squirm because he knew it wasn't for him.
"Yes?"
"Can you tell me when buildings got so huge?" His question was met with laughter, and her grip tightened on the steering wheel. She continued laughing and Ed slowly felt himself smiling. It felt good to see Sandra's mother act so happy after her whole episode in the hospital. The thought of that place made Ed's smile disappear. The size of that place alone was huge, and the drive home was promising even larger buildings.
"I'd like to think that large buildings started to be built in the 19th century." Sandra's mother said. Ed sat in his seat surprised and disturbed. It seemed to him that he would only feel shock and surprise today, because he was just dealing with random things at random points of time. Like the first time he saw the woman's car.
Or the time when he gazed more clearly at the tiny date on the cell phone, the date that read, "July 10th, 2015."
That would explain a lot of things. Like why the hospital was different, and why clothing also seemed much more different as well. Like, seriously, A mouse for a design on a shirt!? Who in their right mind would wear that!?
It didn't mean that Ed had accepted the change of atmosphere and time, far from it. He was completely shell-shocked by what he tried to wrap his head around and it did scare him to some degree to think that he could have been an old man during this time.
All the more adding to his determination that he should get his body back and home, so far he seemed stuck. Alchemy couldn't even be a subject to consider because it seemed Sandra's world's version of alchemy was just used for transmuting base metals into gold. Not that it worked anyway.
His situation pissed him off to no end, and he hated it. He even tried clapping his hands together to test his abilities, and even that much was considered null and void. No sparks. No transmutation. There was nothing wrong about it. He was stuck, and all because of a stupid body switch.
Just perfect. Wait 'till Mustang heard about this indeed.
Thanks for reading and please review ^_^