Jessica came back the next day. I saw her coming. I was climbing a tree, which was both easy and hard. Easy cause I'm strong and flexible and I climbed lots of trees before, but hard cause the metal is heavy and I'm not used to it.

She didn't see me in the tree. She looked around and then she heard my left leg clunk and looked up. "Hey," she greeted me, "I was planning on leaving town and wondered if you wanted to come with me. I'm asking for your company in exchange for which you'll have mine." It seemed simple enough and I had nothing better to do, so I agreed and we left town together.

She didn't have any particular place she wanted to go to. Neither did I. I did have a list of places I wanted to avoid: Dublith, Central, Resembool and Lior. She didn't want to go anywhere near a town called Landis which is way over west. This left of most of the country to explore. The first town we headed to, I kind of regretted after I found out Fullmetal had been there. If I could I'd want to go somewhere I would never have to hear of him. But he was famous everywhere.

At first Jessica got most of the food. When I'd been by myself I'd tried to survive on as little as possible. I ate food out of the trash when I could find some. Jessica needed more food then me. She, like everyone, just assumed I was human and I needed it too. I didn't want her to find out the truth. Jessica stole food daily from markets whenever she could get away with it. I don't like stealing because I know there is no equivalence. One day something will be taken for all I've stolen. But I didn't like making Jessica provide all the food. So I started taking my turn, stealing if I couldn't find it elsewhere.

We traveled together for awhile. In the beginning it was odd; I'd been alone for awhile. But eventually I got used to her. She liked to talk which worked out well, cause I was usually pretty quiet. She'd tell me stuff, explain things to me. I liked having someone else there. I tried not to like having her near so much. If you cling to tightly too someone, you'll lose them. I learned that lesson the hard way. I told myself that if she left it wouldn't bother me at all.

The first time I lost her, it was me who left. We had what I guess you could call our first fight. She wanted me to use alchemy to fix something that had broken.

"I'm not an alchemist." I told her.

"But you can draw alchemy circles. I've seen you do it"

"I can't do alchemy."

"What about your mother, did you learn them from her? Was she an alchemist?"

I felt my back stiffen. "Sloth mommy couldn't do alchemy either." A little voice in the back of my head was whispering but Sloth isn't your real mommy. I tried to ignore it.

Jessica wouldn't let the subject drop. "Equivalence, that's an alchemy thing. Who taught that to you?" She was looking expectantly at me. She wanted something from me but I didn't know what it was.

"I learned it myself." This was true and also a lie.

"You told me you lived with Sloth mommy in Central. Who did you live with before Sloth mommy? Was she an alchemist?"

An image came into my mind. Sharp features, stern mouth, but eyes that were almost pleading- no, I don't want to see it. I tried to block it out. "She was nobody," I yelled. "NOBODY…she wasn't…SHE WASN'T MY MOTHER!" I had to get away. I took off, away from Jessica and away from her questions but no matter how far I ran I couldn't get away from the image of that woman.

Jessica found me later. I was by myself in an alley throwing stones at a brick wall, trying not to think of that woman. Jessica sat down nearby me and was real quiet.

"I'm sorry," she said at last. "I didn't mean to pry. I should've kept my mouth shut."

I still couldn't get her out of my head. Maybe if I answered Jessica I would be able to. "She was alchemist." I said softly still trying to erase her image from my mind. "That woman," I wouldn't call her mommy "she's an alchemist."

"Okay," Jessica said. She was quiet for a bit. "My parents were farmers." she blurted out. She looked at me expectantly. "That's how it works right? Equivalence? You tell me something- I tell you something about me."

We sat in silence for a long time. Just thinking and remembering and trying not to remember. Eventually Jessica stood up, "It's getting late and I think I'm going to find some dinner. Want to come with me?" She was looking almost hopefully at me. She wanted something again and this time I knew what it was.

"Okay." I told her. I followed her out of the alley. And the next day when she left town I followed her still.