CHAPTER THREE-PAST:

Ed stared at Claire from the corner of his eye. She was a little taller then he was. Her hood had fallen off while she was running letting her long black hair spill out.

Wow…she is so cute…Ed thought.

He eyed her curiously, she looked liked she was deep in thought. As if she could feel he was looking at her, she looked up and met his gaze steadily.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked as Ed turned to look at her fully. "Did you perform the forbidden?" she stared at him closely. She noticed the change in his posture.

"I will take that as a yes." Claire said looking up at the setting sun.

"What do you plan on doing about it?" he asked suspiciously.

"Nothing." His eyebrows rose a bit.

"What do you want me to do something about it?" she said sarcastically.

"That isn't what I meant." Ed said. He paused for a moment. "How did you know?"

"While I was fighting you I noticed that your arm and leg was made out of automail, I figured that it must have been some accident but when I saw into you brother armor, I also saw that the seal was made out of blood. That and you not needing to need a transmutation circle it only had to be one thing." She looked back at Ed, he looked a little surprised.

"What?" she asked.

"You got all that from that little of time?" he asked. She shrugged like it was no big deal. Ed noticed there was a light blush on her face.

"So…why in the military after you?" Ed asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." She replied after a moment.

"Try me." Ed said crossing his arms. She watched him for a moment.

"The only thing I can tell you is that it isn't really the military after me…"

"Well who is it then?"

"Homunculus…" she said waiting for him to tell her she was crazy but he was just surprised. She suddenly felt tired.

"Well I'm going to find a spot to sleep, goodnight." She said turning around. Ed was just about to say something went Al burst through the tree line, carrying a big arm full of wood.

"Here brother." Al said handing Ed a bunch of wood. Ed turned and looked back at Claire. She was sitting on top of a bolder rubbing her lower back. He wondered if he or Al had hurt her or if she had gotten injured when she jumped off the train. Ed turned and helped Al build the fire.

"Brother?" Al asked as Ed stood up. "What are we going to do about her?"

"I don't know yet but I want to go talk to her, I'll be back." He said then stared to walk towards Claire. By know she had climbed off the bolder onto the ground and was leaning against it. He rounded the rock and looked at her. She looked exhausted. She had purple smudges under her eyes and was a bit pale.

"Are you ok?" He asked sitting down next to her, but not to close.

"Ya. Fine."

"So you figured out some of what happened to Al and me. Can you tell me what happened to you?" After he asked she stayed silent for so long he thought she wasn't going to answer.

"How much do you want to know." She sighed.

"Everything." Ed said trying not to be to nosey or mean about it. She just shrugged.

"Well…oh, alright." She looked up at the stars. "When I was about six my mother took me to the edge of town to the train station. We walked out onto the platform and then she turned to me with a sweet smile on her face. I remember it all in detail what the weather was like, what she was wearing…everything." She paused.

She looks so sad…Ed thought watching her face, listening intently.

"She took me over to the bench and told me to sit down and not leave that spot no matter what. I nodded, waving and smiling as I watched her get on to the train. She didn't even look back at me. I sat there for days waiting for her but she never came back. I had become abandoned. I wondered the streets for a long timed it seemed. Everyone passed me; no one gave me a second glance. I lived on the streets for years when I met Kelly. I don't know how but we became friends, she was the only person I new…my only friend. She taught me all she new about Alchemy., it was one of her favorite things.

"About a year later she stared to get very sick. She died of kidney failure later that year. I tried to bring her back but as you know that doesn't work." Claire paused, rubbing her back.

"It went so wrong so suddenly…I had both my kidneys ripped out of my back. I had screamed so loud I could have sworn God could have heard it." She laughed bitterly. "I was in the basement of an abandoned apartment, the people who lived next door must have heard me screaming and came to see what was going on. I was rushed to the hospital and put into surgery immediately. I had died three times on the operating table but they were able to bring me back." She turned as looked at Ed. She couldn't quite read his expression. It looked like it was a mixturer of pity, anger, horror and something else. She pulled her hood up over her head to cover her face.

"Claire…" Ed said reaching out to her.

"Don't touch me. I was willing to share some of my past with you, so leave me alone…and let me go" she said mumbling the last part. Ed was about to say something when they heard a loud crash. He spun around to see Al had slipped of the top of the bolder and hit the ground.

"Were you listening to our conversation?" Ed asked annoyed and embaressed, blushing faintly. Al stood of quickly and bowed.

"Yes, I'm sorry." Ed just shook his head and looked back at Claire. "You should come and sit by the fire or you will get cold."

"I'm fine." She said sternly.

"Suit yourself." Ed said standing up. He looked down at her for a moment she looked cold, maybe even shivering a little bit. He pulled off his red coat and draped it on her. She looked up surprised but he and Al had already started to walk back over to the fire. She looked at the cloak for a moment then pulled it tightly around herself.

It smells like him…she thought. He smells good.