Chapter 3: Recertification
…
Mustang sat in his office late that night. He sent Hawkeye home, saying he was just going to sign some papers then go home, which was unlike him, he knew. But after a strong smile and a wink in her direction, she scowled and turned in for the night.
He lost face the moment the door to his office closed behind her. In his desk, he pulled out a sheet of paper he had been given by Hughes earlier that day.
It was a simple piece of paper, folded into quarters. On it, words painted black stared blatantly in his face. He put it on the wax plate on his desk, slipping on his flint gloves. His eyes focused on the writing. He held his fingers up to the sky, fighting the tears that tore through his body. "Why did it have to be her?" He whispered, dropping his hand. The urge to burn the paper was strong, so strong, but he could not find the strength to snap his fingers. He just stared at the writing.
Crystal Light is ours.
…
That morning, Edward sat in a room provided by the military with his younger brother Alphonse. His golden eyes blazed furiously as he paced the room. "Maybe he is doing this for her more so than you, brother," Alphonse said.
"Knowing that smug bastard, he would do something just to piss me off!" Edward shuddered. "And she called me short!" The suit of armor chuckled. "What do you find so funny?"
"Nothing, brother." Edward shook his head and lay down in his bed, thinking of the fight that was to come.
"I'm not going to go easy on her," he grumbled. Alphonse looked at his brother.
"Why, brother?"
"There is something about her," he shuddered, "something that that bastard Mustang has. I just can't figure out what it is."
"Brother, do you think that maybe you are just angry because she called you short?" Edward shook his head.
"No. There was something about her." He looked out on the parade ground. "Something that is too much like Mustang." He shook his head. "And it's pissing me off because I don't know what it is!" Alphonse sighed, his own mind racing to understand what his older brother was saying.
…
Morning came to Crystal Light and she was not at all happy with it. She growled and blew her scarlet hair out of her eyes and slouched over the side of her bed. "You are not a morning person, are you?" Mustang asked, poking his head into her room.
"I'm going to kill you," she grumbled.
"You've never killed anyone before, Shivna," Roy growled, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning on the side door frame.
"There's a first for everything." He scowled. "What?" She looked up at him. "What's got a stick up your ass?" He shook his head.
"You're language skills amaze me," he mumbled.
"Why thank you, dear Uncle," she rolled her eyes and crawled out of bed, straightening the black tank top and gym shorts. Roy's eyes looked at the brutal and puffy red scar on her shoulder and they locked on it. His fists clenched. His heart lurched. "What?" Her eyes caught sight of his stare and she quickly touched the transmutation circle and it disappeared from sight. No. Roy knew it was still there. She only used her alchemic ability to cover it up. "I need to take a shower." Her eyes bore down on him.
"Sorry," he turned and walked away. "I'll meet you on the parade grounds in twenty minutes." She waved her hand and walked into the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror and burst into tears. The alchemy she used to cover her scar on her shoulder dissipated and the scar reappeared on shoulder.
She knew there was nothing she could do to escape the flames of her past.
…
Roy sat in the kitchen with a book in his lap. It had been so long ago he had been reading about Human Transmutation and why he had the sudden urge to open that book up again, he did not know. His fingers trailed the long closed pages of the book. His ebony eyes stared at the pages.
Was there anything he could have done different that wouldn't have left such a brutal scar on both of their souls? "Why did it have to be her?" He whispered, covering his face with his hands. "Why did it have to be her?" Inside the book was the paper, now crumbled and folded into quarters. He shook his head, fighting again the tears that threatened to tear him apart once more.
Staring up at him were the words that were beginning to haunt him in his sleep and his life.
Crystal Light is ours.
…
The parade grounds were crowded with enlisted men and officers, state alchemists and soldiers. Crystal Light stood at the far corner of the field, the wind blowing her red hair around her face. The shimmering green translucent cloth around her waist also flew in the wind. The tinkling of the chain at her side filled the air. Mustang and Hawkeye stood behind her. The Flame Alchemist stepped forward. "Be careful, Shivna," he grumbled in her ear. "Don't push yourself too hard."
"You're the one who put me up against this shrimp, so I don't want to hear anything like that."
Mustang growled and shook his head. "Just be careful." He walked away. Hawkeye gave her back a hard glare and walked behind her boss. The Crystal Light Alchemist turned to Full Metal. Across the field, Edward stood tall with his brother standing behind him. He wore his trademark red jacket and large boots.
"I am not going to go easy on you!" He called out over the grounds. The girl on the other side smiled.
"I hadn't planned on it," she replied smugly. She touched the crystal hanging on her wrist. "Just because you're a kid, don't expect me to go easy on you as well!" The crystal burst into a vibrant silver light, shining on her face. A wicked smile pulled at her lips.
Then she disappeared.
Edward gasped, stepping forward. It was true. She completely disappeared.
Gasps echoed through the crowd surrounding Edward. His eyes darted around the field but he could not see her. "What?" He gasped. "How can you do that?!" Her chuckled filled his ears as if there was a ghost behind him.
"What's the matter?" Her voice asked. "Having trouble?" Something shoved Edward forward and he landed on his face. "I would have thought someone of your caliber would have put up more of a fight."
"How do you do that?" He gasped, his golden eyes searching the land.
"I am surprised you didn't do a little research yourself." There was another kick at his side. "Use your alchemy!"
"Fine," he growled. He slapped his hands together and hit the ground. Blue lights cracked the ground, sending shards of rocks into the air. He heard her begin to cough. "Is that better?" Her coughing stopped momentarily.
"Much," then the coughing began once more. Dust collected and froze in midair. It formed the shape of a girl hunched over.
"There you are." He jumped up and transmuted his automail arm. The figure gasped and jumped away to the side just in time. A transmutation circle formed in the dirt then disappeared. He lunged that way and found nothing. "So that's how you do it."
"Do what?" Her voice chuckled, once again forming the voice of a ghost sound.
"You bend the light waves around you using that crystal transmutation circle," he chuckled. "But you can't bend matter." He slapped his hands and held it to the dirt. It warmed around him but he could not find the collection of dust.
"I'm sorry." She apologized with a wicked laugh. "But I expected you to try something like that." The dust settled. Her laugh echoed throughout the entire field. Something kicked him in the back of his knees. His body slammed on the ground, knocking the dust back in the air. "So I moved the light waves of the particles." He smiled. "What do you find so funny."
"You can't bend the sound waves," he chuckled. He swung his leg out and connected with something. He heard her gasp and then a loud thunk. Dust jumped into the air. Edward leapt onto his feet and pointed his blade into her throat, or at least, where he thought it was.
"You are disgusting."
"What?!" Two legs cupped his face and flipped him on his back. "How did you do that?" He grunted, looking around.
"You pointed that at the wrong end, Full Metal," her voice growled. He found two footprints in the dirt that was moving and launched his feet up, connecting with something. Her grunt was loud and it sounded painful. Blood appeared out of thin air and puddle on the ground. Crystal Light reappeared on the ground, coughing and hacking, clutching her stomach.
"I found you," he growled, standing up. The feeling of victory he felt when he had defeated Mustang the previous time did not appear as he stared down at this girl. He only gasped and fought the urge to vomit. Crystal Light lay on the ground, her shirt ripped, revealing multiple puffy pink scars. Blood trickled out of the corner of her mouth. She coughed and she hacked, making more blood ooze out of her mouth.
"Crystal Light!" Soldiers flooded over towards the girl sprawled on the ground. Major Armstrong, Lieutenant Colonel Hughes, and Hawkeye were a couple of them. Mustang flew over and threw Edward halfway across the clearing. "Shivna, I told you to be careful!"
"Just shut up," she hissed which only resulted in her coughing up more blood.
"Major!" Mustang hissed, turning to the large man. "Take her to the infirmary. Now!" He nodded with a grunt and gently picked up the aching girl, running towards his ordered destination. "Hughes, go with her." The Lieutenant Colonel nodded and ran after the Major and the crippled girl. The Colonel stood up and marched over to Edward.
"What the hell is the matter with you?" Mustang hissed his eyes feverish.
"I was just fighting," Edward barked back, "Like you told me to."
"If she dies," he turned his heal and stormed away, barking for Hawkeye to follow.
"What is she to you, Mustang?" Edward yelled. The Colonel froze and Hawkeye shot the boy a dark look but it didn't last long. Mustang whispered something, far too low for Edward to hear and continued his sprint back into the building. Alphonse marched towards his brother as the crowd began to disperse. "What's his problem?"
"How hard did you kick her, brother?" Alphonse asked.
"Not that hard," he said, brushing the dust off his coat arms.
"You should go make sure she's OK."
"I think Mustang would kill me if I got anywhere near her again," Edward grumbled shaking his head. Alphonse sighed. "What? Do you honestly think he'll let me get close to her?"
"Just make sure she's OK, brother." Edward sighed, knowing that his brother would not let him go otherwise and ran off towards the infirmary.
…
"You just had to go and give Roy a heart attack, didn't you Shivna?" Hughes laughed.
"Shut up," she grumbled as the Major laid her on a hospital bed. "I'm fine guys," she tried to sit up, but the big man pushed her gently back down. "Really."
"Did you see how much blood you coughed up?" Hughes grew serious. Armstrong grunted.
"I felt it, Maes," she shook her head, regretting the action as her head began to swim. "I'm fine, really guys. I just need to get back home and wash up." She pushed against Armstrong's hold but failed miserably.
Mustang burst through the doors and rushed to her side. "What the hell is the matter with you? I told you to be careful and what do you do?"
"I fight the boy you put me against," she growled back.
"Your sharp tongue is back," he complained, "so apparently you are well enough to go home."
"I was just telling the Major that but," she tried to sit up, "but he won't let me get up."
"No, you need to stay here," Mustang added.
"I thought you just said-." He cut her off.
"Never mind what I just said. Do what you always do when I talk!"
"What has got your glove in a knot, Roy?" She hissed back. Hughes and Armstrong wisely took a step back. "You are the one who set me up against him. You are the one who refused to allow me to take the written test or let the Fuhrer watch my skills!" Her voice steadily grew. "Don't you dare try and pin any of this on me." Mustang's nostrils flared in fury as he stared down at the girl whose anger was as fiery as her hair.
"If you would have been more careful-," It was her turn to hut him off.
"If my father would have been more careful, he would still be alive. If my mother would have been more careful, I would not be in the predicament! If it wasn't for the damn war, I would still be living with my family but no. I don't see that happen. So I won't be any more careful than I have to be only because I know nothing I do will save me from death."
"Beautiful," he growled, "you should be a poet."
"I'm a spy," she growled back. "Risk comes with the job."
"But your sickness-,"
"I will not allow my sickness to stop me from doing what I love, Uncle." Her eyes blazed furiously. Two knocks sounded from the door. "What?"
"Am I interrupting something?" Edward Elric asked, poking his head through the door. He noticed the furious expressions of the Colonel and Crystal Light. "Yes, I am. I'll be back later."
"Full Metal!" Mustang called after him. He pointed a finger in Crystal Light's face. "I am not through with you." He bolted after Edward with Hawkeye on his tail.
"I'll
kill him," Crystal Light hissed. Hughes grumbled.
"Come on,
Shivna, just think for a second," Hughes growled. "You may
be his niece, but he still treats you like a daughter because he
doesn't have any." He shrugged. "You should give him more
credit than you do." He smiled. "And be more careful. That little
speech of yours really set him off." Crystal Light sighed. "You
should apologize."
"No way in Hell."
"Shivna," Armstrong grumbled. "He was really worried about you." The young girl sighed and looked at the white scratchy sheets she had been laid upon.
…
"Full Metal," Mustang grumbled in his office. "Crystal Light is going on another mission as soon as she is out of the infirmary." Hawkeye sighed. Mustang ignored her.
"What does that have to do with me?" he growled.
"I want you to go with her. Keep her safe."
"With her alchemic powers, she can do that herself," Edward said. "And what is she to you?"
"That is her place to tell you. Not mine." He stood up. "You will go with her, Edward." Edward looked as if he was about to object but sighed. "I'll get Hughes to inform you."
"Gee, you're such a great guy," Edward growled sarcastically.
"I know." Mustang smiled wickedly. "I know.
…
Alright…a nice long chapter…I will not have computer access for a couple of weeks because I am going to go visit my grandfather for a while and I'm not bringing my laptop. But please review! I like reviews! I like them very much!
