Chapter 5: The Flame Returns

Disclaimer: I do not own FMA or any aspect of it (besides Seren Soulheart and any other OCs that I add).

She floated in a timeless void, yearning for contact with another being. She didn't know how long she had been in there, or even what her name was. Two doors stood before her and neither was open. Muffled sounds reached her as she raced over to one of the doors and heard cryptic voices whispering.

An emotionless voice stated right behind her, "Hello, my dear. Why are you back here?"

Her memories came crashing down upon her as Truth spoke. Seren gasped as her tumultuous thoughts flowed through her mind, filling in the empty spaces. She shuddered, remembering what had occurred at the bar, still not quite understanding what had happened.

Seren whispered in a quavering voice, "I-I.. I don't know! I touched the Flame Alchemists' arm, a purple light surrounded him, and I drifted off into unconsciousness after seeing that Al was safe."

Truth materialized in front of her, still sitting in midair. Its blocky teeth were showing as it grinned at Seren.

Truth's voice had an undertone of laughter as it stated, "You still don't fully understand just who you are, do you? A pity. You'll find out soon enough, though."

Seren glanced at Truth and murmured, "You know who I am? Could you tell.. No, don't. I need to learn this by myself. I seem to recall that you have a nasty habit of requiring an equivalent exchange for any knowledge that you give out."

Truth began to chuckle. "See! Things are already coming back to you! Now, are you ready to return back to your world?"

Seren placed her hands over her face and let out a deep sigh. "Yes, Truth. I'm ready."

A set of doors slowly swung open, the one that Seren had heard the voices behind. Sinuous black hands stretched out and wrapped around her legs and arms. As she was forcibly turned around, she felt a breath of air sliding against her neck.

Truth whispered, "I will tell you one thing: stay away from those who bear the mark of Ouroboros. They probably won't be able to hurt you too seriously, but there isn't any reason to dance on a knife's edge, is there?"

Seren nodded slowly and closed her eyes. She was dragged through the Gate. As the doors gradually closed, Truth dropped to the ground and traced two of the runes. They seemed to glow softly for a moment and faded back to dark stone.

Truth whispered, "Malkuth and Da'at is it? Maybe she can save them from themselves. Even I can't see that far."

-Spacer.-

Al rested his head against the back of the chair he was sitting in. His thoughts were still madly dancing around. Why, of all people, was it Seren who was able to channel alchemy without drawing a circle or clapping her hands? He shook his head, not wanting to think any further on it. A rustle from the nearby bed snapped him back to full attention as he jumped from his seat. Seren curled over on her side and let out a deep breath. I wonder when she's going to wake up, Al thought.

At least the kitten is safe. While walking away from the bar a little girl had been crying over her missing kitty. At the sound of her voice, the kitten began to squirm in Al's pocket, meowing. The little girl ran up to him in surprise, her eyes alight with joy. Handing the kitten over to her, he waved at the girl's mother. She curtseyed to him and went on her way, chuckling at the antics of the excited kitten. Thankfully, somebody was happy last night, Al fondly thought.

"Hey, Al. What happened?" Al stiffened upon hearing Mustang's voice.

He turned around to view the Colonel, trying to keep his face from slipping into a glare. Mustang sat part of the way up, toying with his silver pocketwatch.

Al sighed and said, "You don't remember?"

"Nope. All that comes to my mind is entering Madame Christmases' and sitting at the bar. Everything is a blur after that until right now."

Al thought for a second. Probably because of all that stuff that you drank. The door softly creaked open and Riza, Breda, Falman, Fuery, and Armstrong walked in. The four men stood grouped near the door while Riza walked over to stand near Al. Al shied away from her; her eyes seemed to be spitting out amber flame.

Riza leaned closer to Mustang and murmured, "Sir, what have you gotten yourself into this time?"

Mustang shrugged and replied, "I don't know. I was just asking Al here the same thing."

Riza glanced at Al, her gaze softening as she noticed his distraught visage. Motioning for him to follow her, they walked into a corner of the room.

Riza whispered, "Al, you seem to know what's going on. The three others who were with you claim to not be able to remember anything from last night." She glared at them for a moment before turning her face back to Al.

Al shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "It isn't my burden to.." He blinked as a thought occurred to him. Maybe I was protected from whatever Seren did? He continued, "I myself don't really know what happened. Mustang was about to light me on fire when Seren reached out and grabbed his arm. There was a purple light and once it faded, Mustang snapped his fingers. Nothing happened."

Riza stiffened, shock registering across her face. She turned around to view the slumbering Seren. Seren still slept curled on her side, her silver hair lightly falling over her face. She just doesn't look capable of that amount of power, Riza thought. Then again, I never thought that a young boy would be able to become a State.. Riza stopped thinking for a brief second, remembering what she had forgotten to tell Al.

"Al?"

"Yes, Lieutenant Hawkeye?"

"Your brother is also here."

Al's eyes lit up for a brief second. He excitedly said, "Really? Where is he?"

Hawkeye hesitated before answering. "Al, he didn't come here to meet you. He's down the hall, if you want to go see him."

Al's face froze as he faintly asked, "What happened to Brother?"

Riza gazed up at him, sympathy in her eyes. "You'll have to ask him. It seems as if yesterday was a day of secrets. However, I will hold what you told me about Seren to myself. No need for anybody else to know what happened until she herself can tell us."

With those cryptic messages, she walked back over to Mustang, softly talking to him. Al glanced at everybody in the room before rushing out, his face fearful. Armstrong peered at Riza out of the corner of his eye, catching her unspoken command. Nodding, he left the room and followed Al.

-Spacer.-

As the door slammed shut, Riza slowly drew her gun, so that everybody could see.

Staring into Mustang's eyes, she said, "With all due respect, Sir, you're going to listen to me once and for all. I can't let you go on destroying yourself."

Mustang closed his eyes and nodded. Breda, Fuery, and Falman glanced at each other, wondering what Riza was about to say. She beckoned them closer.

"Yes, I want you three to listen to me, too. Roy needs to know that his friends are there for him, even the Fullmetal Pipsqueak." As everybody glanced at her in amazement, she grinned and said, "What, I can't have a little fun at Ed's expense? I heard Al talking about how Envy calls his brother that."

The men let out a tense chuckle and sighed. Riza rolled her eyes and holstered her gun, pressing one hand against her hip. Mustang looked at her in curiosity; she had never physically shown her emotions like that before in front of others! Riza, feeling Roy's gaze upon her, snapped to attention and tried to ignore the question in his eyes.

She stated, "I have no wish to work under a man who puts his dead friend in front of the living. It just isn't healthy. I've known you for how many years now, Roy? You have never been the one to back down when it seemed as if all was lost. Remember that feeling. You need to break free of your sorrows and come back to us. You'll die alone in the end if you follow this path."

Mustang gave a start as she talked. The men glanced at each other in shock as Riza closed her eyes and sighed. No, she had never been this vocal about any other subject before! Riza seemed to have misgivings about what she had just said and turned away from Mustang, rubbing at her eyes.

Roy coughed slightly, bringing Riza out of her innermost thoughts. He grasped her hand and said in a clear voice, "I promise, Riza. I'm sorry for letting you down. I'll try to not let it happen again."

Riza sighed, pulling herself away from Roy. She walked to the door and opened it. At its threshold, she turned around to stare at Mustang with a penetrating look.

"There won't be a next time if you do. I'll see you at work tomorrow, don't slack off on the paperwork!"

Roy gasped once the door had slammed shut.

"Did she just say that?"

Breda grinned and said, "Riza has spirit, that's for sure!"

Fuery and Falman nodded in agreement. Mustang thought for a moment and nodded, too. He tapped his finger against his chin, a mischievous look etching itself across his face. Breda, Falman and Fuery backed away, not liking the new look on Roy's face.

Roy closed his eyes and said, "Want to help me with the paperwork?"

The only sound that there was in the room was silence, and then the door slamming shut. Mustang chuckled, pulling the pillow back over his eyes. Sighing once more, he fell back asleep. Seren stirred restlessly for a brief moment, shuddering at some unseen dream. She slackened for a bit and nodded back off to sleep.

Riza sure seems to be showing some emotion! What happened to Ed? Will we finally learn about Seren's past?