Edward does not like this woman. She shows little emotion and seems to have a superiority complex. At least, it seems that way to him. However, he answers all of her questions truthfully, but when she speaks to him about this world-mentioning things new to him such as computers, America, planes.. he is completely lost.

"I told you, I don't know what an America is!" He groans, putting a hand to his face. He's starting to get cranky. Why? His stomach growls loudly, and Ziva blinks.

"When was the last you've eaten?"

"Well.. before I arrived here.. Half a day before I arrived. Can I have some noodles? I'm starving." He groans.

"Yes. I'll go get you some. How much would you like?"

"Ten bowls at least." He rubs his empty belly, and looks up to see Ziva's curious face. "..What?"

"Ten bowls?"

"At least. I'm really, really hungry. Go!" My my, pushy.

Abby turns to call Gibbs, but he's just walking through the door. "Great timing, Gibbs!"

"What do you got, Abs? Tell me it's good news."

"Sorry, it's not. I ran the prints on the gun; they came back-but they're not Edward's. We have a new suspect now!" She says cheerfully, then points at a silver pocket watch with a strange emblem. "This, however, is Edward's, and I got a few prints off of it. But when I ran it.. there were no matches. In any database."

Gibbs nods and looks at the picture of the new suspect, but his mind is still on Edward. "Have you run his blood test yet?"

"Yes, I have. And the results are here." She picks up a paper and hands it to Gibbs, who just looks at her.

"He's completely normal. Well, except for slightly elevated adrenaline levels. But after what he's been going through, can you blame him?"

"Do we have any idea where he's from?"

"Not a clue, Gibbs. Oh! Can you get me a small scrape of his metal prosthetic? I want to know what it's made of."

"Sure thing, Abbs." He pats her on the head absentmindedly and walks out, leaving her looking at him in concern.

"Poor Gibbs.."

Just as Gibbs is heading toward interrogation, his phone starts ringing. Ziva. "Yeah?"

"Gibbs, don't talk to Edward right now. He has not eaten in over a day, and he is very temperamental. I am in the building, bringing his food right now."

"Did you discover anything new?"

"Only that he knows nothing from our world. He does not even know what America is."

"..His bloodwork came back fine. After he's finished eating, I want him on a polygraph." Gibbs closes the phone, looking through the glass at a grumpy Edward, arms crossed over his stomach, leaning over in an attempt to quell the hunger.

"I want answers.."

Ziva arrives in the elevator, carrying two large bags of asian-style noodles. Very large.

McGee looks up from reading on his computer. "Ziva, do you need help with those?"

"Yes, I do. Thank you, McGee. Tony! Get over here and help me," she commands, Tony jumping up from his lazy position.

"What? But McGee offered!"

"Yes, and he is working. You are doing nothing. Move, now."

"Yes, mom." He gets up and goes to help Ziva, and McGee just grins.

"Ziva? Can you give this to Gibbs?" McGee gets up and hands Ziva a small note. "Please."

"Sure, not a problem. Come Tony, let's go." She picks up one bag, leaving Tony with the other.

"These are heavy.. how did you get them both in here alone?"

"Because, Tony, I work."

"Ooh.. that's a low blow."

The food arrives, but Gibbs can hear Tony and Ziva before they arrive.

"There's a lot of food here! It's not hard to drop one of the containers!"

"I have not dropped any of mine, Tony."

"Boss! Hey, we have the kid's food. Ten bucks says he'll never finish half of it."

"Thank you, DiNozzo. Go clean up that mess you made." Gibbs takes the first half of the food in, after shaking his head. [Why did she buy so much?]

Edward looks up, and jumps to his feet enthusiatically, practically drooling at the smell.

"You must be hungry." Gibbs sets out the first styrofoam container, lifting off the plastic lid. He then grabs the utensils the chinese restaurant had included; fork, spoon, chopsticks.

Ed grabs the chopsticks immediately, sitting down to his food. He looks up at Gibbs, says a quick 'thanks' and starts going at it.

After Tony is finishing up the mess-incuding spraying carpet cleaner, which he had found in a cupboard nearby-he returns to the observation room, only to see Edward starting on the second half of his large order of noodles. "Whoa! How the-where does it all go?"

Ziva has been watching, both amazed and disturbed, but unable to look away. "He eats one bowl so quickly, then sets it aside and starts on another one before you blink. I have never seen anybody eat this quickly."

"No way.."

"Tony?"

"Yeah Ziva?"

"You own me ten dollars."

After 25 minutes, Edward finishes all of the noodles, even looking around for more-but realizes that's the end of them. He leans back, metal hand on his stomach, which is bloated from all the food. "Ahhh. Thank you, Agent.. what was your name again?"

Gibbs stares at Edward, waves Tony in to remove all of the food containers, then sits across the table. "Gibbs."

"Gibbs. What exactly is NCIS, anyway?"

"Naval Criminal Investigative Service. We investigate crimes in the US Navy and Marine Corps."

Edward frowns a little bit. "Navy? Marine Corps? What are those?"

"The Navy is branch of the military that operates in waters. Boats, submarines. Marine Corps is similar, but more focused on special ops."

"Our.. military doesn't have either of those."

"Army, Air Force, Coast Guard."

"..No. What are those?"

Gibbs stares at Edward, scanning those strange golden eyes for anything. Anything except the confused, but curious, look behind them. "What is your military like?"

"The person in charge of the entire military is Fuhrer Bradley. There's your different military ranks.. general, colonel, major, private, and of course the sub-ranks among them. There's also the state alchemists, who join the military for better research opportunities.. but really, they just become the military's dogs and do their dirty work," he growls, looking put off by the idea.

"You sound like you've had experience with this."

"Damn right I have!" Edward jumps up. "I'm always sent off to to either the stupidest things or the things no human should ever have to do!"

Gibbs raises a brow, but takes this into consideration. [Maybe this is where his stories come from? Past trauma?] "So you're one of these state..alchemists?"

"Yes." Edward puts his hands on the table in front of him, sighing. "Don't you have alchemy here?"

"We have heard of it, but you speak of it like it's a tool, or a weapon even, not just a simple science."

Edward frowns down at Gibbs, searching the other man's eyes, something dark hidden behind his own. "You have no idea." He claps his hands, putting them to the table. The room seems to darken as violet electricity crackles from the spot, Edward using his left hand to lift a long spear from the table, complete with a little winged chimera at the blade end. The electricity leaves the room, and Edward has the blade touching Gibbs' neck in less than a second. "This is simple alchemy, even a child can learn. There are much more dangerous kinds, used for war." He pulls the blade back, just before Ziva gets in the door, gun pulled on Edward.

"Ziva, put it down," Gibbs replies, staring at the spear in Edward's hand, and at the despression in the table in front of him.

McGee had come down after Edward had finished eating, and was now staring from behind the glass-along with his friend, Tony-and dumbstruck, none of them could even move to check on their boss. Now, however, they run for the door, after the danger is gone, to see. Tony to see the spear, McGee to get into the technical side of it.

Edward sets the spear on the table, sitting back down in his chair. "Due to an accident I had when I was younger, I am able to perform alchemy without a transmutation circle. Not a lot of people can do that."

"A what?"

"Got pencil and paper?"

Edward takes them when McGee offers, drawing a perfect circle, then the simplest of all transmutation circles. "Who wants a quick alchemy lesson?"

"I do!" McGee almost yells, startling the others in the room.

"Look at McEager," Tony comments, and watches with mild interest. Ziva as well, doesn't seem too interested; Gibbs however, is watching like a hawk.

Only five minutes later, Edward has everyone step back; McGee does as he's told, focusing, and the crackle of alchemic electricity is heard; soon, created from the table, is a small knife, if not a little crude.

McGee gasps, his eyes widen and his face opens into a big grin. "I-I did it! I did it! That's amazing!" He picks up the knife, noting every imperfection, but still incredibly pround of it.

Gibbs draws the circle himself, activating the circle using the same knowledge taught to McGee, and forms, for loss of anything else simple, a small boat. The ease of this alchemy suprises Gibbs, and he lifts up the boat, looking it over for a minute. He turns his attention to Edward, who is just clapping his hands together. "Edward."

Edward pauses. "Yeah?"

"Why did you begin studying alchemy?"

Edward's face visibly takes on a darker look to it, the happiness gone from his face. "It doesn't matter."

Gibbs narrows his eyes, looking at the others to leave. After they're gone, he speaks again. "You said there was a dark side to alchemy. Was it something that happened in your past, that you wanted revenge?"

"No! I didn't want revenge, I just wanted to make mom happy after that bastard left!" Ed yells out, speaking rather freely, figuring what the hell, this isn't even his own world. He grabs the edge of the pockmarked table, trembling, eyes beginning to water. "He didn't even come to her funeral when she died.."

Gibbs watches Edward's eyes, watches as Edward's mind leaves the room. Standing, he walks over to Edward, gently pulling him from his deathgrip on the table.. and pulling him into a firm, comforting hug.

Even at eighteen years old, Edward can't help the sudden surge of emotions that hit him, and he just leans into the embrace as he starts sobbing. Will the pain never fade...

Apologies for the OOC with Edward here. I know I did wrong. D|