Ahhh, sorry it took me so long, guys. I was on an epic, far-away journey that forced me to discover my greatest strengths and fears, involving laser guns and Michigan.
…Too out there? Okay, I've just been really busy. Halloween kept me on my toes all of October and then we started Christmas shopping when November started. On top of all this, there's school (which makes me feel sick, just hearing the word), Thanksgiving (with family who was up here for the week from Florida), Anime Day, and every other anime event going on this month.
I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween, whether you celebrated it or not! And Happy Thanksgiving. x3
Among other news, I've taken on the ever famous 100 Theme Challenge. I've finished three challenges pretty quick, so hopefully I'll stay on this roll. Wish me luck!
Oh, and word of advice; don't use scotch tape to rid yourself of what you think is an oncoming uni-brow. It doesn't work… It just hurts. Duct tape on the other hand, kind of works… But you will most likely shout during some point, "Oh my God, is that my skin?" (Walks away, muttering about the pain now experienced when raising eyebrows.)
The Lovely Daaaarlings!
YumiXjaganshi: Haha, it's very Riley-esque. XD
I think the majority of the people don't want to look like Winry! A disturbing thought, indeed. Ohh? And what did you dress up as for Halloween?
IceFire Dragon Alchemist73: Oh, you know she will. XDD Hah, it sure took them a while to realize it. Riley's just oblivious like that.
Rainbowdragongirl101: Ohmai, I'd never taken that into consideration before. Then again, I'm sure she already wants me dead for all the stuff I've made her do. What could a couple disclaimers do? XP
Really? I'm not far into Brotherhood yet! But just wait. Wnk, Wink.
DaiFoolz: Thank you! I'm glad you think so!
Haha, well that's awesome. I like the number too. It's the biggest number of chapters I've reached out of all my stories. XP
Thanks again. =D
SummoningShadows18: I forgot until the day was almost over. It was too late to finish up the chapter, unfortunately. Oh well. Next year will be the 101st anniversary! …Not as good as an even century, but still good!
They're both so naïve, it's cute. XD
Yes, it's definitely proven by now. Poor Riley.
Oh-You-Know: Lawlz, don't you just love getting WTF stares? XD Thanks! And me too. I do not want my main OC to look like a Winry doppelganger.
Well then, goal achieved! I wondered who'd be surprised by the beginning of that chapter.
XjipushiHotaruX: Really? Thanks! I practically cringed while I wrote that line. XD
Lani: Haha xD It was a lot of fun. We watched the entire first season.
England is awesome, yeah?
D; Poor America.
Ausumist: Thank you! I'm glad you like it! Aww, haha, I want them together after that too. But we'll just have to wait and see. ;P
Leenaluvsanime4eva: Thank you! ;D
BladedancerOfIce: Yay! I updated again! ;B
Tis the life of a writer. -pats back and wishes luck-
katsekala: Hehe, thanks! Ed doesn't stand a chance.
Bloody Bonez Alchemist XD: You can bet your ass he loved to see that. ;D
Poor Riley. All exposed like that.
TheSteelFlameAlchemist: Yay! I'm glad.
Poor Ed. He'll be the butt of short jokes for a long, long time.
I don't know why, but I loved writing those moments with Ed's dad! So I'm happy you liked them. =D
fma gal: She can be so oblivious, yeah? XD
AnimeVamp1997: Thank you! =D
ToshiroHitsugayagirlfriend: Hehe, she's cold and doesn't even realize why.
I don't know, actually. I don't really plan out the length of a story when I start it. But I can at least tell you that I plan on writing the movie, as well. There's probably a few more chapters of the series left, and then I'll move onto the movie.
TallerThanThou ShorterThanThou: Ohh, thank you! I've been meaning to ask my friend for some Chinese titles, but I keep forgetting. =w=
Yachiru Hatake: Haha, yay! I'm glad you like it. ;B
Silver Wings of Eternal Light: Haha, really? Riley's like quite a few people, it seems!
Wow... Six words just for snow? o.o;;
B.P: Thank you for comment! I appreciate the time you took reading and reviewing my story.
The correction's been made. Thanks for that, I don't know much about other languages.
If you ever do think of what you feel is lacking, please let me know. I need to improve as much as I can.
Thank you again for the review!
Inktail097: Yay, thank you! I love it when people like Riley.
Scaaagirl: This review kicked my butt back into gear! 8D
Want to Be a Lovely Daaaarling? Review! Bwahaha...
ilu gaiz. Rlly.
(Feels bad.)
For the life of me, I can't remember if Riley has already had an encounter with Sloth. I'm positive she hasn't. If she has and you remember, let me know and I'll tweak this chapter.
I really hate the beginning of this chapter, though, so I may tweak it anyway. Kinda slow-moving at first.
No owny FMA-..y.
Yes owny... Riley..y.
Chapter Forty-Three:
A Confession at the Wrong Time
"For the love of… Will you shut up?" Hannah refused to stop laughing after the little 'incident'. We were still up in the hotel room so I could put some clothes on. The entire time, Hannah sat on the bed. Laughing.
I was this close to exploding on her ass.
Finally, Hannah managed to speak. "I can't help it, Riley… It's – It's so funny!" She panted out, holding her sides. My head shifted out of the bathroom so I could glare at her. She wouldn't think it was so funny if it was her that jumped out of a window naked. Trying to ignore her, I walked back into the bathroom and finished with my boots. I looked into the mirror and sighed as I began to clip my hair up. What was Lust planning? Was she even planning anything? Whatever she was doing, I had to stay alert. For all of our sak-
"So do you think Ed enjoyed the show?" W… What?
My face turned a bright shade of red. Hannah's head was peaking in from the main room, looking up at me with a Cheshire-like smirk. I spun around on my heel and glared down at her. "What kind of question is that? You pervert!" I shouted, only making her snicker in return.
"Like you're one to talk," She murmured, holding a hand over her mouth to hide the fact she was still snickering. Hannah ignored my worsening glare and went back to the room, plopping down on the bed once more. "I hear those comments you make to Ed." I turned back to my reflection in the mirror, shaking my head in exhaustion. A breath of air slid from my mouth as I let my shoulders droop, trying to relax before we continued our adventure. My eyes even found their way shut. I turned to leave, when I heard Hannah's voice again. "Speaking of Ed…" My eyes snapped open and I stopped in my movements. What now? "When are you going to tell him?"
It was a vague question, but I knew what she meant.
I was silent of first. The open door stood in front of me and I could see the plain colored floor. Hannah's shadow was cast on it, sitting still as she waited. "…When the time is-"
"Right?" She interrupted me sharply. My eyes shot to the ground directly below me, partly in shame. "And when is the right time, Riley? When all this is over? You know as well as I… You know better than I do, what might happen to us," She lectured in a firm voice. This was one matter Hannah wasn't going to sit idly by on. After a few seconds, she spoke up one last time. "For all we know, you or Ed or the both of you could… What if this is your only chance to tell him, Riley?"
At first, I didn't reply. She was right, but could I really… Tell him? I couldn't even admit it to Hannah, much less Ed. Sighing, I walked out of the bathroom and glanced over to her. "Let's go. We're keeping them waiting," I muttered out, avoiding the topic Hannah insisted on talking about. I heard her sigh in annoyance just before I left the room.
We made it outside as Lust and Ed conversed. "Isn't he too considered immortal, then? It's the same, Edward…," She said softly, looking to him with a blank expression. I didn't know what they were talking about, but I knew it was heavy. And Ed didn't like hearing it. But Lust turned away, and faced Hannah and me. "Let's go."
. . .
Ed knelt down on the ground, rummaging through the scrap parts around him. I stood nearby, hands clasped behind me as I tried counting the tiles on the floor. Every time I reached the double digits, a clang or transmutation would distract me from my task, sending me back into grim thoughts. Once Ed had finished creating a makeshift auto-mail arm, he stood as he tested the arm. Feeling a glare, he looked over and blinked curiously when he saw the large pout and glare combo on my face. "…What?"
I remained quiet and stubborn at first. A few seconds passed and I sighed, letting the expression drop as I looked away. "It's nothing," I grumbled out, trying to smash a rock with my boot and failing.
"Riley?" He asked, brows furrowing in concern. I looked back toward him to repeat myself (only louder and more irritated), but a door to our left opened. We both looked over and saw Al and the Furher's assistant. Lust had explained to Hannah and I earlier that her name was Sloth. Ed had apparently already encountered her. His face immediately contorted into a deep scowl. "Of course it was you... Step away from him!" He exclaimed, glaring at the woman.
Al paused. He looked to the woman before turning back to Ed, raising his hand in defense. "Brother – you don't understand!"
"Yeah," The blond snapped out, "She got to me, too, Al. But it's lies. She's not our mother."
"I know what she is, alright? But still-!"
Ed didn't give him time to finish his sentence. "She's using our memories to manipulate us! That thing doesn't have a soul…," Ed growled out.
From behind him, I could see Sloth smile a small, empty smile. "You weren't always so cruel, Edward dear."
I glanced to Ed nervously, and saw his angry expression. He was like a rock. Hearing footsteps, I looked to the source of the sound and saw Tucker nearing Al. "Please, Alphonse, once more…," He rasped out, reaching out toward the boy in desperation.
With narrowed eyes, Ed spat out, "Tucker – you could've killed Al by bringing him here alone!"
Al turned around to face us, and our eyes widened at what we saw. The left side of his abdomen was gone, a deep purple light emitting from inside of him. "It needs equivalent exchange after all," Al commented, "He used it, Ed. And this is what it took."
Ed grew more tense, and angrier. "He tricked you into coming here and then did this? Damn it, there are so many idiots whose asses I have to kick! I'll have to start carrying a list just to keep track of them all!" I knew, in time, I would laugh at this remark, but now wasn't appropriate. "Come on Al, let's get moving."
"You don't need to worry, Edward," Sloth soothed out.
"Why? You plan on bringing Al back to his real body for me?" He questioned sarcastically. "Or are you just going to bring him back to your master to use him till there's nothing left?" She said nothing and he quickly clapped his hands together. "Al, step away!" His arm transmuted into a gun and he began rapid fire upon Sloth. Al dodged to the side to avoid any damage.
Sloth began disappearing, turning into a water-like substance to avoid the bullets. Al stepped in between and Ed stopped shooting. "Don't!" Al shouted, holding his arms up in defiance.
"Don't be stupid, Al!" Ed responded.
The woman formed from the water as she pleaded. "Edward, you're hurting me…"
"Nice try, but I know it takes more than that to kill you!" Ed shouted before turning and running.
I had to dodge to the side when Sloth took off after him. She quickly enclosed him in her transformed arms. "Your mother was talking to you," She mused out with a tiny grin. Ed looked at her from over his shoulder with his own smirk. Her eyes widened as she looked down to see a transmutation circle etched into the ground underneath them. "What is this?" She asked harshly.
"It's designed to seal a homunculus, isn't it?" Ed replied, trying to remove himself from her grasp.
"That's very clever of you. But you're going to have to do more than just that," She retorted.
He once again smirked. "Oh, I know. You need the remains of the one you tried to bring back, right?" He reached into his pockets and slid out a small box. Gunshots suddenly rang out, ripping into Sloth's extended arms. This allowed enough freeway for Ed to turn and lunge forward. He shoved the box into her stomach and she began to 'melt'.
Al began to shout at Ed for digging up their mother, but I tuned it out as I walked down the path behind me. Getting to a corner, I stopped and turned around it to see Hannah, still aiming her gun in the direction of everyone. "Hey… You can come out now," I muttered out, looking down at her.
She remained still at first, staring at the boxes in front of her. Suddenly, her eyes grew big. Her face became pale and she looked up at me shakily. "I-I didn't shoot Edward, did I?"
My expression went deadpan.
"No… You did not shoot Ed. Really, it's not like he's too big to miss," I replied in a dull fashion.
Hannah shook her head, "It's still a possibility! He could've been killed because of me!" Her words struck me, quite harshly in fact. He could've been killed… Without knowing. "Riley? Let's go!" I jerked out of my thoughts to see Hannah waving her hand in my face.
"R-Right… Let's go, then," I said, nodding as I turned back around. We both made our way back to the area, to see Lust slashing into Sloth. The latter continued to reform after every attack. Ed was nowhere and at first, I began to panic, but soon he came crashing through the window. Even though that wasn't particularly a good thing, I was relieved nonetheless.
He landed, and I noticed Wrath on top of him. The homunculus jumped up and looked toward us all. "Mom!"
Al spun around at the new voice. "Mom?"
"Funny, that's what I said," Ed retorted, standing up as well, "Guess he wanted a mom so bad, he's picked out a new one."
Wrath ignored the brothers, glaring at Lust as he screamed, "Get away from her!" He ran forward and began transmutation all the guns beside him. Lust's eyes widened and she took off as he began shooting at her. I dodged back behind machinery, Hannah following suit, and spotted Sloth transport herself into Al's body. Al became stiff as she took over, and forced him to turn and walk away.
Growling in annoyance, I looked to Hannah. "Stay back here and try to help Lust!" I shouted before taking off. She shouted my name in protest, but it went by ignored as I ran after Ed and Al.
There were so many turns to take, I lost them at first. When I finally found them, Al was stumbling back, a blue substance covering his armor. "Al?" Edward asked in worry.
"Mom… S-Stop," Al pleaded, trying to control his movements.
Ed stepped forward, and Al slammed his arm into Ed's stomach. My eyes widened when I saw Ed fly across the room. "Ed!" I shouted, running out of hiding. Reaching him, I leaned down and grabbed his arm, helping him back up. We both stood straight as we looked to Al, who shook in resistance.
"Don't bother trying to come near us, Edward," Sloth's voice rang out from Al's body. I scowled at the arrogance of her voice. She was getting irritating. She lunged toward us in Al's body and Ed and I dodged out of the way, going in separate directions. My feet hit the ground and I stumbled slightly, only to back into the wall. Al turned toward me and began to step forward. The closer he got, the more he shook. "You must be Riley… My boys seem to care quite a bit about you and your friend, dear," She mused.
Frowning, I glared at him… Er, her. "Go suck it," I spat out. Al ran toward me and I once again jumped out of the way, rolling forward when I tripped. Again. Ed came at us to distract Sloth, causing Al's armor to go after him. Soon enough, Al began striking at us back and forth, giving either of us little time to perform alchemy. It didn't help that I couldn't touch him. If I did, I'd probably wind up killing us all.
"What if this is your only chance to tell him, Riley?"
What? Why did that… Maybe I should…
"E-Ed!" I exclaimed just before ducking the swing of Al's arm. Seeing Ed look over, I frowned, "I need to tell you something!"
An incredulous look crossed over Ed's face, but my expression didn't budge. He stopped moving at first, but quickly had to ump to the side to avoid a hit. "Do you really think now is the time for that, Riley?"
Shrugging, I paused nervously. I stepped back, leaning away from the fist that aimed at my face as I replied, "Apparently, it's the perfect time!"
A small scowl and twitch came from Ed as he shook his head, "What is it?"
"Concentrate on this fight!" Sloth shouted irritably as she swung at us both. We dodged, getting further apart from one another.
"I love you!"
Ed stopped. He stared across at me with wide eyes. It felt like time had frozen… Like everything was moving slower. Until Sloth slammed her extended arm into his face, that is. Instinctively, I covered my mouth in shock and, well, guilt when Ed flew back through the air. "Ed!" After a few seconds, Ed sat up, rubbing the bruise on his cheek. "S-Sorry!" I nervously shouted.
Ignoring me, Ed looked up to our opponent. Sloth was no longer inside Al's body. The younger Elric fell to the ground as Sloth explained her 'reasons' for killing them. Her memories were her chains, or some shit. I wasn't paying attention and I don't really remember anymore. My mind was only on one thing; I just confessed to Edward Elric. That I loved him. Did I even love him? I mean, I hadn't even admitted that to myself yet!
When I tuned back into the real world, Ed was blocking Sloth's attacks using alchemy on the ground. "What do we do, Brother?" Al asked, uncertain.
"It's just like you said, she's our responsibility!" Ed shouted before transmuting his automail into a blade. He ran forward and sliced her, but she only came back. The process of blocking her constant attacks started up again; this time, Ed using his blade. Al and I could only watch from the sidelines.
"Mom!"
Turning around, we saw Wrath run in. My eyes widened for a moment when I realized Hannah wasn't with us. She's okay… Right? Looking back to the fight, growing only more anxious, I saw Ed's blade piercing Sloth's chest. The blade began to glow, and Sloth exploded into mere droplets of her watery substance. Assuming they had the situation under control, I took off out of the building to find Hannah.
I ran into the building Hannah and Lust were in, and began to look around. "Hannah!"
As I weaved in and out of piles of rubble, I heard Hannah's voice, "R-Riley…" Stopping, I turned and ran in the direction of the voice. Finally I reached the clearing we were originally in. Hannah sat there, panting but unharmed nonetheless. It was Lust that was the concern.
"I tried to stop him… But I couldn't," She muttered out, glancing down to the lifeless body.
"…" Sighing, I walked over and helped her stand. "It's not your fault, Hannah. Let's… Let's just go back to Ed and Al." She hesitantly gave an almost unnoticeable nod in return, letting herself be picked up from the floor. It was slow, but we walked to the exit in silence as Hannah tried to overcome what happened. As sad as it was, and as much as I felt bad for Hannah, I couldn't stick to it. My mind was somewhere else.
Ed.
Did I really just tell him… That?
Be Responsible. Don't Flame and Drive! Rawr.