A/N:

Okay, Okay, here's the next chapter! –does the wave- Whee!

Disclaimer: FullMetal Alchemist characters, references, and other related indicia © Hiromu Arakawa. Only Alexandra, Jonathan, Alan, Sophie, and Yuki belong to me.

FullMetal Alchemist

Chapter 4: Enter, Elric Brothers

"Al, remember what I told you?" Edward (Ed) Elric asked, walking down the street and looking up at his brother.

"Yes, Ed. I remember," Alphonse (Al) Elric replied.

"What did I say, Al?"

"We're laying low."

"And why are we laying low?"

"Because the last city we were in banished us forever and pelted us with rice?"

"Good. Now, what else did I say?"

"No taking off my armour?"

"Okay, that too. But what else?"

"No accepting candy from strangers?" Ed snapped.

"Oh my fucking God, Al! You are such a moron!" He started chasing his brother through alleys and across streets.

"Okay, okay, Ed! You said that we can't tell anyone we're alchemists! Now stop chasing me!" he yelled. Ed didn't stop. "Ed, stop!"

"No!" Ed yelled back. "I'm going to keep chasing you until you stop!"

"Why?"

"Stop and you'll find out!"

xxXxx

"Okay, Ed, I think we're lost," said Al, scratching his head.

"No shit, man. I thought we were running around in circles. Where are we?" Ed asked, looking at the street signs.

"How should know? I've never been here before!" Al exclaimed. He pointed to a group of dirty looking soldiers. They were all wearing menacing expressions and smoking. "Why don't we ask those friendly looking people for directions?"

"Okay, Al, I really hope that was sarcasm, for your sake." As Ed looked around, he realized that they were on a tiny street, and the people in the gang were the only people there; on top of that, they were walking towards the brothers and cracking their knuckles… "Oh, shit. That can't be good." The guy that looked to be the leader stopped in front of Ed. He spat at his feet.

"What're you doing on my turf, squirt?" he asked hoarsely.

"Being lost. Look, can you help us – wait, squirt? Squirt?! Squirt?! Who are you calling a squirt? Next thing you know you be calling me a half pint, and a shorty, and a hobbit! Do I look like a hobbit to you, buddy?" Ed asked, getting up into the guy's face (which was actually pretty hard since he was so short).

A/N:

I am now interrupting the story to say that Edward Elric got mad at the author cough me cough and decided to step out of his other life and beat said author to a pulp.

This has been a message from your concerned author. I now return you to the previous story.

END A/N.

Ed's outburst towards the gang leader caused a downright riot. The alchemist had thrown a punch at the guy's face, but he had missed, and he (his name was 'Torre') punched back. Unfortunately, he had made contact with Ed's nose and he fell backwards. Ed got angry and jumped up, kicking Torre in the shins repeatedly and causing him to fall over. Al was busily fighting off the other gang members. There were 5 of them, but he was doing all right, pounding each one on the head and crushing them into the ground. Suddenly Torre pulled out a revolver and pointed it at Ed's forehead.

"Oh, shit," Ed muttered. He went cross-eyed and looked up at his forehead.

"Well, squirt, what're you going to do now?" Torre sneered.

"Something like this…AL, BAIL!" he screamed, turning around and bolting down the street, dodging bullets. He jumped over trashcans and ducked under awnings. Al was close behind, running like the wind, only much louder. They turned about 50 corners and finally came to a street where it looked like they had lost the insane gang. Ed doubled over to catch his breath. He straightened out a crick in his back and looked at his brother. "Do you think we lost them?" he asked.

"Uh, I don't know," said Al. He turned around and quickly pushed his brother forward. "Ed, RUN!" he shouted.

Ed dived just in time to get out of the way of a speeding bullet. He turned his head to laugh at Torre when he felt himself collide with something and then fly into a wall. Torre started laughing and he dropped his gun. Al walked up to him and kicked him in the ass and Torre flew down the street.

Alexandra lay on her back, spread eagled on the ground. Her eyes were closed, but she was still seeing canaries flying around her head. The boy who had crashed into her was lying in font of her face-down. He groaned and rubbed his head and lifted it up slightly, managing to look up Alexandra's skirt. He stared at her black underwear with his mouth open until Yuki noticed.

"Oh my God! Another pervert!" she yelled. She ran over to him and was about to kick him when her leg stopped in mid-air. "What the-"

"Calm down, Yuki," Alexandra said, rubbing her head and sitting up. She hadn't seen what the boy had done. "Ugh, did you have to hit me so hard?" she asked him with a small smile.

"Uh, yeah, sorry about that…I swear I didn't mean to…" he babbled, about both knocking her over and looking up her skirt. Yuki huffed and walked off.

"Nobody appreciates me," she sniffed. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed someone lurking in an alley close by. Her eyes widened. "Roy?!"

"Don't worry, I'm alive and whole…" she said. "For the most part, anyway," she added in a lower voice, looking at her arm.

"Uh, yeah, good…uh…" Ed was at a loss for words.

"What were you doing, anyway?" she asked. Ed stood up and brushed off his sleeve. He had switched his red cloak and usual attire for grey pants, a white collared shirt, and a blue jacket with a fur hood. He had brown gloves on his hands and brown boots. Atop his braided blond hair was a snug white hat.

"I was, uh, running away from these lunatics that called me short. Their leader's name is Torre or something like that," Ed muttered. "Me and my brother lost them, but we just saw them come down the street."

"But…you are short. And where's your brother?" she asked, looking around.

"Oh, here's over there," Ed said, pointing to the alley. He held out his hand and she helped herself up. "Hang on, did you just call me short, too? God! Everyone's against me! Are you people blind or something? I. Am. Not. Short!

"Um, sorry to break it to you, but you are short. And I don't see anyone in that alley," she said, squinting. Ed felt a vein in his head throbbing.

"I'M NOT SHORT!" he screamed. "AND MY BROTHER'S WEARING ARMOUR! HE'S LOOKS LIKE A TRASHCAN!"

"You're in fucking denial! You're short! So am I! I can live with it! You should too!" she yelled. "And why the heck is your brother in a suit of armour? Wouldn't it be easier to hide if he took it off?"

"Because-" Damnit! What can I tell her? "Uh, didn't you hear that it's the new fad to wear oversized armour?" he asked nervously.

"No. There's no such fad. You're obviously lying," she said coolly. "If you don't want to tell me, just say so!"

"Uh, yeah, I don't want to tell you," he admitted.

"Alright, then," she answered.

Yuki stared at Roy. What is that fucking pervert doing back here?! I'm going to kick his ass so hard- Suddenly her eyes darted towards another alley where she saw something moving. She inched closer to the trashcans.

"Is it safe to come out yet?" Al asked, stepping forward.

"Oh my fucking God! Demonic talking trashcan!" Yuki screamed, running away.

"Oh Mother of God and all that is holy," Ed yelled, "they're back!" He looked down the street at the advancing gang. "I think you should go," he said to Alexandra.

"Why?" she asked.

"Well…uh, because these guys are dangerous…" he stuttered.

"I can take care of myself. I can help you, too," she added.

"You? Help me? How do you plan on doing that?"

"I stopped Yuki from kicking you, didn't I?"

"Yeah, right, that wasn't you. She just stopped when you told her to."

"Sure, Yuki wouldn't listen to me if her life depended on it. Trust me, I can help you."

Torre was walking down the street, still looking for the Elric brothers. He couldn't find them, but he did see a girl in a bunny hat apparently trying to hide herself behind a streetlight pole. He walked over to her.

"Uh, you, girlie, have you seen a little short guy and a dude in armour around here?" he asked.

"Uh…could you describe them?" Yuki asked back.

"Well, the first one is short. The second one is wearing armour."

"Wow, you are the master of descriptions." She paused. "Are you by any chance talking about that little guy over there?" she asked, pointing towards Ed and Alexandra.

"Oh, yeah, that's him. Thanks."

"Okay, I suggest we run," Alexandra said.

"I'm with you on that," Ed replied. He grabbed her hand and started running down the street with her. She winced because he had grabbed her auto-mail arm, but she ran along with him. Suddenly they came to a dead end. "Oh, damn," Ed cursed.

"Yeah, this can't be good," Alexandra said. They turned around and saw Torre blocking their way out.

"Ha, ha, I finally found you, you little brat! You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find someone as short as you."

"I AM NOT SHORT! I AM NOT SHORT! I AM NOOOOOT SHORT! AHHH!"

"Right," said Torre, "well, I'm gonna kill you anyway. I-" He broke off and stared at Alexandra. "Oh my God…it's you! The little bitch from like 2 years ago! I'll murder you!" He lunged at her and lifted her up by her neck.

"Gah!" she choked. "I…can't…breathe…" She gasped for air and tried to pry his hands away from her. He just gripped her tighter.

"That's the point," Torre sneered cruelly. He was holding her so high that she couldn't use her powers – remember she has to be able to stomp on the ground to activate them. "Looks like I'll only have to get your little friend after this, and there won't be any live witnesses to what happened in that dinky little village of yours!" He was, of course, referring to Alan.

"You…mean…he's still…still alive?" she choked out.

"Unfortunately, yes," said Torre. "But he won't be for long." Torre used his other hand to help choke Alexandra. She was about 20 seconds away from losing consciousness when she heard the boy speak up.

"Hey! Leave her alone! This is between you and me!" he shouted. Damnit, he thought, I can't use alchemy here…oh, well. He kicked Torre in the shin and Torre dropped Alexandra. Ed dived and caught her.

"Uh, thanks," Alexandra muttered, rubbing her neck and blushing.

"Uh, yeah," Ed answered blushing as well.

Yuki walked over to Roy and kicked him.

"You're such a fucking pervert! Quit following me around!" she screamed. Roy lay twitching on the ground again.

"Look, I was just…" Then he stopped. He stood up slowly and looked Yuki over from head to toe. "I remember who you are! You're-" Yuki stared at him and ran away. "-gone," Roy finished. He had finally recognized her, and now she was gone. Again. He was about to run after her when he saw another girl walk by him. She was wearing a miniskirt. His jaw dropped. "Well, hello there babe. Nice skirt. Want to go out sometime?"

"Ew," she said. "Pervert!" She kicked him and walked away. He was left twitching on the ground, again.

"Ahh!" Alexandra screamed, running away from Torre. "No, get away! Get away!" She repeated, coming to a stop in front of a brick wall. She gulped and turned around, pressing her back against it. Torre came closer with an evil look on his face.

"Sorry, but I have to eliminate all my witnesses," he said meanly. "So, say your prayers, kid, 'cause you're dead." He pulled his revolver out and aimed it at her. Alexandra couldn't use her powers because she was under so much stress. She shut her eyes and tried moving away, but Torre followed her with the gun. He cocked the gun and put pressure on the trigger. "Say goodbye, bitch!"

"No!" Ed and Alexandra screamed at the same time. Ed slid in front of her with his arms out.

"Look, if you want to get her, you'll have to go through me first!" Ed yelled.

"Gladly," Torre said. He fired at Ed. Ed held up his right arm and the bullet bounced off.

"It isn't that easy, buddy. See, I'm bulletproof," Ed explained darkly. Torre stared at him.

"H-how did you do that?" he asked.

"It's a secret. Now, if you'll just hold still for one more second…" Ed stepped forward and aimed a powerful kick at Torre, hitting him square in the jaw with his left foot. He fell to the ground, out cold. With a satisfied smirk, Ed turned to face Alexandra, who looked as if she was about to faint. She was staring at the guy on the ground with fear.

"I…you…" she stuttered, her eyes wide. She covered her mouth with her fists, not able to find any words.

"Are you alright?" Ed asked, waving his hand in front of her face.

"Huh? Oh, yeah…yeah…I'm just fine, you know, he only wanted to kill me for the second time in my life…yeah…" she whispered, not taking her hands away.

"Right…well…maybe we should go back to where we were before…" Ed suggested nervously.

"Alright!"

"Where have you been?" Roy asked, seeing Yuki standing in the middle of the street, looking lost.

"Hiding from you! How the hell did you find me?"

"Uh, you're not very cleverly hidden," Roy pointed out.

"Oh, yeah, good point…well, I'm going to go now…" Yuki said, seeing Alexandra coming down the street.

"No! Wait, I have to tell you something," he said, grabbing her hand.

"Let me go, you pervert!" she yelled. He didn't let go.

"No! If you won't listen willingly, I'll have to tell you by force! Come on," he said, dragging her down the street.

"Ah! Alexandra! Come on!" Yuki grabbed Alexandra's hand.

"Ah! Come on, you!" Alexandra shouted, grabbing Ed's hand.

"Yikes! Al, let's go!" Ed yelled, grabbing Al. Now everyone was in a human chain, with Roy leading. When they go to the town square, he stopped and turned around.

"What the fuck? How did all of you get here?" he asked.

"Well," said Yuki, "see, you grabbed my hand, I grabbed her hand, she grabbed his hand, and he grabbed his hand. Yeah."

"Right, so…let go. All of you, except for you," he said pointing to Yuki. Alexandra pried her hand away from Yuki's and she let go of Ed's hand. Ed let go of Al. Roy dragged Yuki off farther. She shot a pleading look at Alexandra, who just shrugged. She looked at Ed.

"Look," he said with a smile, gesturing to the sky, "it's starting to snow."

"Oh…" Alexandra whispered. She looked up and smiled. "I love the snow! It's so pretty!"

"It sure is," Ed agreed. He wasn't looking at the snow, through; he was looking at Alexandra.

"Okay, what the hell do you want?" Yuki asked, staring at Roy.

"I know who you are," Roy said.

"Wow, congrats, do you want a medal? And can I go now?"

"No. You're a former State Alchemist."

"Ugh, why no – hang on, what did you say? How did you know?"

"I was your superior. I know you remember. Ah, those were the good old days…except you never wanted to wear a miniskirt. Even though it was uniform. I remember you jumped out the window to avoid it."

"Yeah, that was me…"

"You know," Alexandra started, "I used to think that snow was made of gold…it shone so brightly when I saw it the first time, I was certain it had to be gold…silly, huh?"

"No," Ed answered, shaking his head. "No, it's not silly at all…I used to think the same thing…"

"Oh…" Alexandra smiled. Al was laughing under his breath quietly. Ed smiled back and kicked his brother. Al fell over. "Um, my name is Alexandra," she said, blushing. "Alexandra Yuuzai. And you are…?"

"Edward. Edward Elric," Ed said quickly. Oh, no, he thought. Damnit! So much for keeping a low profile…she'll definitely recognize me now…

"Well, Edward…thanks for standing up for me back there…" she said quietly looking at her feet and fidgeting with the ears of her hat.

"Oh, it was nothing," Ed said with a grin. Well, it's a good thing she doesn't know who I am… Al cleared his throat. "Oh, right, this is my brother, Alphonse."

"Al for short," Al piped up. Alexandra smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Al." She held out her hand and he shook it.

"So, is there any place around here where we could stay for the night?" Ed asked hopefully.

"Oh, sure. There's a hostel near by…why don't I take you two there?"

"Sounds great. Come on, Al!"

"Right behind you, brother."

"Well then, what now?" Roy asked.

"What do you mean, 'what now'? I'm going home, that's what!" Yuki yelled, walking away.

"But I thought you wanted to go out with me!" Roy shouted after her.

"Dream on, pervert," Yuki muttered.

"Well, here it is," Alexandra said, stopping in front of the hostel. "I guess I'll see you guys around. Why are you here, anyway?"

"Oh, just here to relax," Ed answered truthfully. "Although there hasn't been much relaxation so far." Alexandra laughed.

"Here, hopefully this will make you feel better." She put her hand over Ed's and put something in it, then walked off with Yuki, who had caught up with them just as they had made it to the hostel.

xxXxx

"Ah, we're finally home," Alexandra said blissfully, walking down the corridor.

"Yeah, finally," Yuki said. She pulled out the key to the apartment and was about to put it into the lock when she saw a paper stuck to their door.

"What's this?" Alexandra asked, pulling it off and scanning it. "'Notice of Eviction'. … Yuki, did you remember to send the rent for this month?"

"Umm…about that…" Yuki said nervously.

"YUKI!" Alexandra screamed.

xxXxx

Edward was lying on his bed, staring at what Alexandra had given him.

"Mmm…" he mused, closing his eyes. "Alexandra…Alex," he muttered absently. Al looked over at his brother.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked.

"Huh?" Ed's eyes shot open. "What? Nothing's wrong…" A smile played across his face.

"Okay then…what did that girl give you anyway?" Ed held out his hand to show Al.

It really wasn't much. It was hardly the size of a pebble, but really, it was so cute that she had offered it to him. In his palm lay two small brightly wrapped candies. And right when she had given them to him, she had whispered, "Welcome to our town, Edward Elric."