FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, GOLDEN EYES

By Born of Starlight

:Sobs: I did it again! I lost the notebook again! I didn't get ANY writing done over Christmas Break, so I feel really guilty. I meant to, really, but... I did come up with a plot or two. And I worked on my doujinshi quite a bit. Oh! And I learned how to juggle! Just last night, in fact. Our last day of break, and I spent it trying to juggle. I finally got it down pat at...one in the morning. So, yeah, I got three and a half hours of sleep last night, and I've had only four cups of coffee today. Did anyone else watch the Naruto marathon on Toonami? I did, plus two hours of anime BEFORE that. I sat there, watching the pretty moving pictures while folding paper into... PAPER THROWING STARS! So, yeah, I have a whole collection of shuriken now, as well as (drumroll, please) a kunai! I didn't have a pattern for the kunai. It was completely off the top of my head, which is why I'm so proud of it. Its balance is nearly perfect too! I can put my finger at the base of the "blade" and balance it on my finger and it's exactly level! Not bad, huh?

The following chapter was actually written mostly on my birthday last year. My birthday is still four months away, but it was fun to see what I was doing on that date last year. :grins: Valuable way to spend time, isn't it. Yes, I think so.

Disclaimer: Go suck a tree!

LONG story. (That's line -- "go suck a tree" -- is dedicated to Adora. lol. Don't kill me, Adora-san!)

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Chapter 8

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Korin was released just a few hours later with the military's apologies. Ed suspected Roy of having something to do with such a prompt reaction. His suspicions, incidentally, were correct.

Hawkeye found Roy smirking in a self satisfied sort of way. She raised an eyebrow at him. He raised one right back.

As she turned away, a smile slipped past her otherwise guarded expression.

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Ed flexed his arms, then touched his toes. He rolled his neck and shoulders.

Across the parade grounds Korin was stretching out as well. She folded over backwards into a bridge, before standing back up and sinking down into the splits.

Both teens had cool grins on their faces. Ed was confident that no matter how good Korin was, he was better. But Korin knew she had an ace up her sleeve.

Hawkeye was standing in the middle of the field. With a glance in both directions to make sure they were ready, Riza fired one shot into the air. Then she ran off the field in as dignified a way as she could manage.

Ed broke into a run, transmuting his arm as he did. Korin stayed in one place, but quickly drew a circle on her metal arm. She also bent down to draw a circle in the dirt at her feet. She placed her hand on the circle, giving it the mental jolt necessary to activate the alchemy.

Ed didn't know what hit him -- or what tripped him!

Roots had suddenly lifted themselves from deep beneath the earth. Ed went sprawling unceremoniously.

Korin didn't even give him time to breath. She placed her left hand over the array on her other arm and nudged with her mind.

Air spun around Edward with hurricane force winds. All those who were watching could see was a short, red-haired girl, and a dusty funnel of wind.

Korin dropped the winds just in time to see the light of a transmutation fading away. There was a rut in the ground where the tornado had spun. In the center of that rut was a hole. Ed was underground.

She ran towards the hole, only to discover it was more than that; it was a tunnel.

The girl shook her head. "Trapped…" she muttered.

Some quick drawing, and soon there were alchemic runes all around the hole's entrance. A fast mental push later and the hole was filling with water.

Seconds later a soaking wet, muddy, gasping, and extremely ticked off boy burst from the ground a way off. Water gushed out around him, and his turned cold golden eyes on the girl. No more hesitation. If she got hurt, too bad. She had asked to fight him for the physical portion of her exam, so it would be her own fault.

Ed pulled himself out of the tunnel. He hurriedly slammed his palms together and sank them into the mud.

A wave of brown much rose up. It rushed mercilessly towards Korin and Edward followed at a run behind. He knew Korin would defeat his wall of mud, but he would be ready when she did.

Korin smirked. Mud? Please. She started to draw a circle, but had misjudged the distance and speed of the brown tidal wave. Her alchemy didn't awaken until it was nearly upon her. By the time her flames backed the mud solid, it was most of the way past her. The flames vanished. A face, a hand, and some fingers were sticking out of the wall of mud.

"Damn it!"

Now Ed smirked. He walked over to her. "Stuck?" Mocking, false sympathy filled his voice.

"Not as stuck as you might wish."

Ed jumped. Korin's voice was coming from behind him! He whirled around, only to find an automail blade pressed to his throat. Korin smiled.

Ed backed up. "But you were in the wall!"

"You don't have to have a soul to have spirit, Edward. The final element. Air, Earth, Fire, Water, and Spirit."

"I'm still lost, Korin." How he hated admitting that…!

"She was a double. An alchemic double. A doppelganger, Edward." Korin smiled at him and stepped back a few feet. "And I win."

Suddenly Ed became aware of the roar of the crowd. The had all just…seen him defeated. He looked at Korin.

"How exactly did you manage to avoid my wall of mud, then?" he demanded.

"Easily. I don't actually need circles. You don't make the Philosopher's Stone and not see the Gate."

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Ed's got just a touch of a...prideful...streak, doesn't he. I just noticed. Just...? Wow, I'm blind. Or...maybe I'm imagining it...:::is confused:

Are there any details, such as Korin's alchemy, that need going over? Trust me, I did my research and twisted things to fit the FMA world, so there's an explanation for just about everything. Even Ed mentions the use of the four elements (okay, and the three priniciples, but whatever) in alchemy. Well... He mentions it in the manga at least... Can't remember if it's mentioned in the anime or not... Anyway, any confusion, just review and I'll try to set things straight. Unlike Friar Roger Bacon... That idiot couldn't write in plain English if he tried. He wrote the Mirror of Alchemy, which, by the way, can be seen in the second opening (Ready Steady Go) of the anime. Sheesh. I go from reading ancient texts to learning to juggle. Is this what public school does to one's mind? (I used to be homeschooled. Started going to public school for my freshman year of highschool. That's where I realized there were locals who ALSO were insanely in love with anime. Just imagine my relief...!)

Delightfully Wicked: Personally, I like Al as a suit of armor too. However... Well, Ed would have gotten pissed off if I'd left him that way, and Ed's gonna be sad enough later--- Um. Forget I said that. Longer review next time. Onegai? Maybe then I'll explain what I just almost said! Lol. Great. Now I'm bribing people. I've fallen so low in my desperation for reviews.

Lady of the Storm: I'm glad you're hooked! That was kinda the aim. :grins: Unfortunately for me, I'm as hooked as you. Probably more so. Korin's working her way into a whole series of stories. An original (no fanfiction elements to it at all), an RPG, and many short "minutes-in-the-life-of" kind of drabbles. It's annoying because it means I have to keep three different versions of her seperated in my mind. They've all got slightly different back-stories and personality traits. God... What have I gotten myself into...?

Just two reviews again...? How depressing. Please, people, review! The more often you review, the more I'm reminded to look for that blasted notebook and type up the next chapter! Will it help if I wave vague hints about my next long(ish) story I'm going to post...? It's not nearly as long as this, and it's comedy. It has sparkles in it. Please review...:::gives watery kitty-eyes to her readers, hoping for pity: