Chapter 5: The Stone's Awakening


Clair's PoV

Tucker set his daughter down , reaching out to wrap five fingers around my neck, squeezing it in a death grip while the his other hand covered my mouth so I couldn't scream. I tried, struggling; however weakened from the choke hold, it sounded like soft muffles in the darkness. Unattainable. Once he contained me, and I felt like passing out, he started dragging me down the hallway. I had no choice with the lack of oxygen but to be pulled along, whimpering in panic.

"Daddy, what are you doing?" Nina asked in a gentle tone, though with bewilderment hiding under her voice. She tentatively followed along as her father dragged my struggling body.

"Don't worry, my dear," Tucker assured his innocent, sparkle-eyed daughter. "Tell Edward and Alphonse that I'm taking Clair on a walk when they're done playing with their new toy outside, okay, sweetie?" Nina quickly nodded, but confused showed clearly in her shimmering eyes.

As Nina ran off, I was glad that Tucker cared for his daughter, but that didn't mean he could use me instead! So, once she was gone, I bit his wrist in the hopes that he would let go; but that just made him grip tighter, almost choking me to death. I stopped struggling so much.

He led me into his basement, which I found filled with deeming chimera eyes bothered by my presence, coming in reds, blues, and a dark yellows piecing through the dim lighting. I barely managed to gulp at the sight with the man's hands around my neck, and I heard hissing and barking sounds coming from the cages. The dampness made the dusky place smell of mold and ammonia.

"Welcome to my secret lab," Tucker introduced roughly. "I wanted to show it to you earlier, but you insisted on skipping the grand tour. It gave me time to get it ready, at least." I could sense his chilling grin widen without having to see his face.

He suddenly turned on a light switch, revealing dozens of barking, roaring and squawking chimeras. In the middle of the floor laid a transmutation circle. He locked the small wooden door behind him before forcing me to the ground, chaining my hands and feet to the floor where the transmutation lay. The chains were loose, but they did their job; I couldn't get free.

As he was getting ready - doing who knows what over there - I rolled around on the floor, hoping to find something useful, like a knife, in my pocket. Instead, I found the cookie that Al had given me earlier. I slumped back and sighed. Really? I've died twice now and all I carry around is a cookie?! I'm so pathetic! ...Hm... Suddenly, I got an idea. I rolled myself into a position where my hands could meet and clap them, smirking as I thought, Guess Tucker thought I needed a transmutation circle to perform alchemy. Guess again. I rolled over the cookie without Tucker noticing me.

BOOM! The cookie exploded, bombarding the small, crowded room with smoke and...explosiveness. It filled with said smoke as the animals behind me went wild inside their cages. Some on top knocked themselves around and fell off the other cages. If I can't do anything else, I'll blow stuff up. I coughed through the smoke, trying to break the chains. I hoped they would be weakened, but even after the explosion they wouldn't budge.

When the dust had finally cleared, Tucker showed his face. He was standing over me with a deep grin. "I thought this might happen. So I stole these chains from a nearby prison. You're not going anywhere." He smirked, tightening the chains so I couldn't do that again. I cringed, puffing out my chest in irritation. Tucker placed Alexander beside me immediately afterwards.

"No!" I tried, coming up with a lie: "You can't do this! I-I'm God's helper. You can't do this!" Well, am I really lying?

"You're telling me that idiot actually exists?" he chuckled, obviously seeing this as a joke.

"I can prove it to you! Check my right shoulder!" I yelled.

He frowned, curious now, and leaned down to pull down my coat and some of my shirt - which was more than awkward - to see my tattoo. He scowled. "This doesn't prove anything; it's just some phony tattoo," he grumbled, and his dog barked at him. He actually seemed disappointed that it wasn't glowing or something.

"Fine! Make me a Chimera!" I screamed, mentally giving up. My voice dropped then, and I swallowed my pride. "At least I could save Nina."

"Nina?" Tucker half-gasped. He crouched next to my face. "What about my daughter? How did you 'save' her?" he asked frantically, a distracted look in his eyes.

"Well, if I wasn't here, Nina would be," I growled at the man. "You're that one son of a bitch that would do such a thing to their own daughter. How could you?" I cried. Did I just cuss? I guess now was a better time than any... "And don't say you wouldn't either, I know you!"

He laughed evilly at my claim with a suddenly crazed look upon his face. "Well, I guess I would if you weren't here. Alchemy is my life now, you see. I see no reason to give it up for a child, but if I use you, I can keep my own daughter and this house. Such a win-win scenario, don't you think?" He chuckled.

"Go to hell," I breathed, my eyes lighting up with a full-hearted glare.

He patted my head, smiling. "Possibly, but for now I'm going to live to the fullest. Thank you for your sacrifice."

My heart started skipping beats, while my stomach started churning with anxiety as he walked toward the circle's rim. I wanted to say more, but my thoughts died when Alexander started licking my face, then laid calmly on my stomach, unaware of what was happening before his eyes. The poor thing...

When Tucker placed his hands on the circle, my senses went numb, and I passed out before I knew what was happening.


Ed's PoV

Clair's horse thing was getting on Ed's last nerve. It had charged at him in rage, knocking snow in his face. The snow grew to have an icy color and texture as it fell, stinging Edward's face with the cold. The alchemist tried to block the horse's attacks, but the animal wouldn't budge. Every time Ed launched spikes, they shattered into a million pieces. Although, the horse did seem to be slowly falling apart, too. Ed smirked as his younger brother came over to help. "Al, I think this thing is made from some kind of icy granite!" he shouted, dodging a kick.

"Ed!" Alphonse gasped. "How did Clair do this?"

"That's what I'd like to know," the older brother growled in aggravation as his alchemy caused a pillar of snow to come sprouting from the ground under the horse. The beast quickly dodged, neighing at his incursions. Every time Ed looked at the horse, he sensed something wrong with it - other than the fact it was alive. Almost like it was frightened, in terror and panic.

Suddenly, as he clapped his hands again, a sound like a rush of fire hit his eardrums - and he knew what that sounded like with the boss he had. When he turned toward the house, he saw a beam of white light shooting up from inside the house, cutting through the roof and into the sky. It reminded him of his own alchemically created pillars, only it was light.

This concerned Ed. "Where's Clair!" He voiced it as though it wasn't a question, screaming through the falling snowflakes. The horse stopped making noises to stare at the light in shock. Al did the same before turning to Ed in silent shock. Not getting an answer from Alphonse, Ed ran inside to find Clair.

"Wait, what about the horse?" Al pointed out as he followed his brother inside.

"Leave it," Ed snarled, wondering what the hell that girl had gotten herself into. "We'll get it later, but for now it's not our priority." His voice echoed through the afternoon sky as he ran inside, shouting at Nina to tell him where Clair went. "Where is she?"

"I dunno," the little girl replied innocently. "Daddy took her on a walk." She spoke with a smile on her face as she kicked her feet under the kitchen table.

"Are you lying? This is a serious situation, Nina," Ed warned roughly, but the toddler just stared at Al for some reason. "Are you even listening to me?!" Ed rose his fist angrily.

"Nina," Al began softly, holding up a warning hand, "your big brother and little brother need to know what happened to our friend. Where did your daddy take him?" Al asked in his nicest tone.

Nina laughed, "You're so much nicer than little brother."

Ed tried to hold his irritation, but he'd just been called little. "Who you calling small!?" he screamed near-completely out of habit. The girl simply giggled, making Ed that much more annoyed. "Nina..." he said in his most threateningly dangerous tone.

The little girl got the message and held a finger to her lip thoughtfully. "Well, I'm not completely sure, but daddy hangs out in his lab a lot..." She spoke with her head bowed.

"Where's that?" the brothers questioned at once.

"In the basement, but daddy says it's danger-"

Ed dashed down the hall before she could finish. He easily found the stairs and rushed down, desperate; he felt, with not a little anxiety, that Clair was in serious danger, and that Tucker was to blame. The alchemist wiggled the knob on the locked door, while his brother started rushing down the stairs. Before Al made it to him, he used his alchemy to open the door, blowing it inwards without the finesse he was more capable of.

Inside was the obvious source of the light-beam: a large, round bundle of whiteness just...gathered there in a perfect cylinder. Strangely, it reminded Ed of the Gate's bleakness - which was a very unique thing, not something he would easily be reminded of. Just another clue... he thought, wondering now if Clair really had been there...

Tucker sat in the corner with his legs squeezed against his chest. Blood fled from his skull and down his cheek to form a small puddle underneath him. His eyes widened, and Ed noticed how his lips kept twitching insanely, almost as though he wanted to smile...

Edward grabbed him by the collar and bellowed, "What the hell did you do?!"

Tucker's pupils dilated from behind his broken glasses. "I didn't do anything!" he insisted, but Ed saw otherwise underneath his terrified gaze: triumph.

"Liar!" Ed shouted, spit shooting out of his mouth and hitting the antagonist's face, but he didn't care. "What did you do!" Ed shouted again with desperation straining his voice. He slammed the man's neck against the wall, causing the sound to reverberate through the room. "Tell me!"

The fright in Tucker's pupils started to grow dim, showing the insanity in a clearer light. He laughed, "Wouldn't you like to know? I turned your little friend into a chimera for science. I just know she'll be a talking one!" He giggled, "Just what I need! And you know how that is, don't you, alchemist? After all, your brother was done for science, wasn't he?" The man had clearly been driven mad.

Ed put pressure on the neck fretfully; his eyes screamed at Tucker. How dare he compare himself to him? How DARE he suggest Alphonse was... How dare he talk about that! "I'm nothing like you!" he shouted, his voice going rough. "Al isn't some experiment! I saved my brother!" Thoughtlessly, he made a fist and punched Tucker in the jaw. He did it again. And again. Soon, the man's glasses fell on the ground, breaking what little there was left of the lens. Ed forced into every blow the built up anger from the passed few months - about Liore, about Clair, about this stupid Pure Stone and his goal: the Philosopher's Stone, and about not knowing anything that he wanted to. He put it all into the anger he felt toward this man, and he didn't hold back.

Edward had no idea how long he was venting, but Al eventually grabbed his arm, using the strength his armored body allowed him to stop Ed's powerful automail. "Stop, brother! You're going to kill him!"

The man fell silently to the floor, blood spilling from his nose as he coughed up bits of the red substance from his throat. He looked pathetic.

"I'm sorry, Al," Ed murmured, leaving the body. He stood still for a moment, breathes coming in slow gasps, before he moved over to the beam of light shooting into the ceiling. He frowned and wondered, Can I touch it?, then reached out to poke it with his right hand. The light acted as a force field, throwing him violently against the open door in the reaction.

"Brother!"

"I'm fine, Al," Ed muttered, standing and gripping his head painfully. Then, he looked up and spotted a man by the door, looking as though he'd just arrived. He was very well-built, and the X-shaped scar across his face told Edward that he'd seen some serious battles, but Ed knew he could take him if he had to. "Who are you?"

The man stared blankly for a few moments, then spoke in a rough, growly voice. "Well, look at that, the Fullmetal Alchemist. I feel blessed; I get to hit two birds with one stone this night. As an answer to your question, many call me Scar. Now," he looked over at Tucker. "I'm going to make this easier on myself." He bowed his head and sighed. As he trudged forward, his hands underlining his pockets, he stepped toward Tucker. Ed wanted to stop him, but by this point he was more interested in what the mysterious guy was up to than what happened to Tucker. Swiftly, the scar-faced man pulled out one of his hands, clawing it, then placed it on Tucker's face, lifting him against the wall. "This is for your sins, alchemist. I'll give you a moment to pray to God."

There was a slight hesitation before alchemy sparks few from his head, flying in random direction across the room; Ed's expression turned into a glare full of anticipation, but he got this sick feeling in his gut at the same time. When the light faded, blood poured from the back of Tucker's skull. A deadness swallowed his whitened eyes when he began to fall to the ground.

Ed's heart sank, but he didn't speak. Instead, he stood up to this foe in his fighting stance, waiting to take him.

"Why did you do that?" Al screamed, his voice shaking in unadulterated horror. "He didn't do anything to you!"

"I don't need to explain myself to you, child," Scar growled in a low tone. Then he turned to Ed. "You, State Alchemist, have had plenty of time to pray." What? Ed thought disapprovingly as the man spoke. "Now die!" 'Scar' launched his clawed hand at Ed; the boy dodged, swiping the man's leg from underneath him. Scar quickly regained balance. Al came into the fight, trying to kick Scar in the head, but he failed to land his hit.

Ed noticed something in the background as they fought; the light coming from where he'd already guessed Clair was (Though why a chimera transmutation would do that was beyond him) was starting to fade, dying until her body appeared without any deformations. I thought she was turned into a Chimera? Ed thought confusedly - but with relief. His eyes trailed away from his foe thoughtfully, and Scar took the advantage, swiping Ed's legs out from under him. Ed immediately regained his focus with Scar, but his mind still wandered...

Ed's eyes flickered as he heard the sounds of footsteps tromping around upstairs, probably MPs wondering what the hell was happening. Hearing this, and before Ed could round-house kick him, Scar leapt away from him and ran upstairs. Soon after, Edward heard breaking glass.

A moment passed. Ed struggled to his feet, muttering, "I don't know what that crazy bastard was doing here, but I'm glad he's gone."

"Brother!" Al shouted to get his attention. Ed looked over and saw that he had Clair's head lying in his lap. "I think she's waking up!"

Ed ran over, for once hoping that damn Pure Stone had done something. Clair's coat and shirt were filled with holes the size of golf balls, and her eyes didn't flicker open like how Ed thought they would; instead, they shot open, showing a different color than normal: They were a bright white. But a moment later, they changed back to their usual coloring. Here's strike number two, not including the other strikes... Wait, when did I start counting strikes?

"Ow. Ow. Ow. Shhh!" she shushed for some reason, tensed, then moaned. "Make it stop! Make it stop!"

Al leaned forward at her screaming. "Make what stop?" She laid motionless as though she couldn't hear him. "Clair, we want to help!" Still no answer.

Ed turned then at the sound of more footsteps to find Colonel Bastard and his usual crew running down the stairs, wanting to know what happened. "Fullmetal, explain this," Mustang growled. "Everyone in the city saw that beam."

Ed sighed, got to his feet, turned to the Colonel, then jabbed a thumb at Tucker's bleeding body. "I would have that bastard over there explain this, but someone with an X-shaped scar on his face came in and killed him. Before that, Tucker tried to turn Clair into a chimera for his selfish gain." Ed spat out the word 'selfish.'

"Tried?" Mustang murmured, and Ed could see it in his eyes that the man had just become even more suspicious of Clair just like him.

"Sir," Hawkeye stepped forward slightly, "shouldn't we take the girl to the hospital?"

The Colonel nodded. "Yes, the doctors can take care of her for now. Go use a phone upstairs; I'm sure Tucker has one," he commanded, then turned his expressionless face to Edward. "/You/ will explain this to me in my office. I only hope that bastard didn't cause Clair any lasting damage."

"Shut up! Shut up!" she repeated over and over again as she laid in her hospital bed. Within two days, her voice began to die, and sweat practically drained from her face. The doctor said she was going insane - hallucinating, talking to herself - but Ed and Al refused to believe it, trying their best to take care of the situation.

Ed explained everything to Mustang about what was happening to Clair, even telling him about the Pure Stone, the horse, and well...everything he knew about her. Somehow he thought the Colonel could help them somehow - that was just how desperate he was - but Mustang couldn't do anything.

It was only a few hours after the event that the Fuhrer came to pick up the ice horse. Ed wasn't sure what he did with it, probably killed it by dicing it into little pieces - either that or it melted - but he couldn't seem to get a hold of the classified information that stayed hidden from the public.

Nina was taken to an orphanage for lost children. The poor girl was asking what happened to her father the whole time.

"Do you think Clair will be okay?" Al asked quietly, his armor reverberating with a frightened sadness.

"I don't know..." Ed replied honestly. He clapped his hands and touched her jacket, repairing it instantly, then held it up. "At least I could fix one thing."


Clair's PoV

A million voices traveled through my head, bickering uncontrollably. One said something, another contradicted it, I shouted at them to stop, then I was screamed at by a hundred more.

The only thing I could guess was that the Pure Stone was filled with souls, just like the Philosopher's Stone, and, somehow, during Tucker's transmutation, the stone released them in my head. Otherwise, I was just going insane, but for some reason I doubted that. Why does this happen to me of all people?

'Because you're an idiot,' one of the voices assured, which started another feud between them. I swear every ten minutes I heard a new voice join in with the fighting.

I thought a serious tone, If you guys don't shut up, I'm going to end up killing myself.

'Good luck, sweetie. With that stone, I don't think you can,' a woman chuckled.

Just shut up, okay? How 'bout this: I will get some peace and quiet even if it kills me! I thought, my tone filling with aggravation. I wanted to ignore them, but it was a bit more difficult than just sitting on a bus seat and tuning them out with headphones. No. They bombarded me with questions I couldn't answer; they drove me to the point of thinking about jumping off a bridge. And guess what? They bickered about that, too.

"Do you think Clair will be okay?" I heard Al's voice say. Yes! Someone from the outside world. I had watched them put me in the hospital, but I couldn't speak because of the voices digging at my consciousness. I felt as though my brain overloaded, forcing my nerves to shut down so I couldn't move. But now, things became a bit clearer.

"I don't know..." Ed answered from somewhere in the room. I heard some alchemic sparks, but I couldn't see what it was. Then he murmured something to himself, but, again, I couldn't tell what it was.

"I'm fine," I coughed, struggling to focus on the real world; it was getting steadily easier. The brothers both perked their heads up, apparently happy to see me speak. "Some water would be nice." My voice sounded rough, making it obvious that I needed it.

Al stepped forward a moment or so later and handed me a bottle of water; I sat up to take a few slips. My back popped in a couple of places. Guys, look, give me one hour, please? No comments from all 100 some of you.

'There's 414 of us,' corrected a nerd.

"What!" I shouted without meaning to, water pouring out of my mouth and onto the bed. Just calm down... I breathed in and out deeply. Okay, now you guys, 414 of you, keep your comments to yourself, please.

"What's wrong, Clair?" Al questioned, his voice panicked.

I sighed. "Oh, nothing, just talking to the 414 souls trapped inside the Pure Stone invading my unconscious. It's all good," I assured them and shook my head, half-smirking.

"What?" Ed shouted, eyes widening. "What the h-hell...how-what do you mean?" His expression was almost comical right then; apparently, I'd shocked him pretty bad. Hehe.

"Well, the stone's energy comes from somewhere, right?" I shrugged. "It just happens it's 414 souls...so, yeah. When Tucker did human transmutation on me, it must've unlock that part of the Pure Stone. I've finally got them to stop fighting for a good hour. Hopefully." I sighed, breathing in deeply again. "So...how long has it been?"

"You've been out for two days..." Al answered hesitantly.

"Wow, it really has been forever." I rubbed my tired eyes. "Not being able to see for forty-eight hours isn't the best thing for your health..."

"So..." Ed started, but never finished, still confused.

"I know, I know. This is a lot to take in, not just for me, but please, bear with me on this." I gave him a half-smile.

"So...other than...that, you're fine?" Al questioned.

"Yeah! I'm fine. Wait, I didn't miss the exam, did I?"

Ed frowned. "You're still going to take that thing?"

"Of course! Do you want me to get kick out of the country?" I reasoned, giving him a 'uh, duh' look.

Ed crossed his arms in his seat. "Your test is in five days."

"Good, guess it's time for me to study." I smiled, though Ed didn't seem very thrilled. Maybe I shouldn't blurt stuff out like that, but how else could I have told them? Nice and slow? Either way, Ed was gonna get pissed at me because he was just like that. Stubborn boy.


Al's PoV

It took an hour of talking for Al to understand what Clair meant by '414 souls'. Every once and a while, she'd shout something like "SHUT IT!" or "I TOLD YOU ONE HOUR!" at seemingly random times, but after a while it quieted down completely. He was glad for that; it creeped him out a bit...

The doctor came to talk to them a while later. He wore a white coat, had hazel eyes, brown hair, and a scruffy beard to match. "She's seems perfectly normal now," the doctor announced nicely as he shut the door behind him. "Her head is fine..." he turned the page on his check-board, "Her heart is beating normally. If you're lucky, she'll able to go home tonight..."

"Really? That's awesome!" Al stood up excitedly. The doctor nodded.

"Can I leave now?" Clair asked anxiously.

"Well, everything seems to check out, so I don't know. Why not?" he replied, hesitating at first, but then he smiled. "I'll get the paper work for you to sign." After that, he left the room and shut the door behind him.

"Where are you guys staying now, anyways?" Clair asked them.

"We're staying at some crappy hotel that bastard Colonel told us to stay at," Ed answered, leaning back in his chair, pausing to stretch and yawn. "Can't wait to get back though; I've been here for way too long."

"How long have you've stayed with me?"

Ed sighed, seemingly exasperated. "Well, during the first night, Al insisted we watch you as your 'bodyguards', so we stayed all night. We went out yesterday when you hadn't spoken in a few hours to find the hotel and food."

"Wow, you stayed with me all that time? I'm flattered." She smiled, and Al wanted to smile back to her. Clair's optimistic personality was quite enriching sometimes.

The doctor came in a minute later with the paperwork in his hands. Clair signed a few papers before stretching herself and getting out of bed, then, after Clair grabbed her coat and nearly empty water bottle from earlier, they headed to the hotel.

On the way there, Al could hear Clair muttering to herself: "What did I say about fighting? Calm down, now!" She stood a few steps from them as she spoke, probably thinking they couldn't hear her.

Al turned to Ed. "Brother, do you think she'll be talking to herself a lot now?"

"I know I would..." Ed murmured, snorting, "It's still crazy."

"I know." Al bowed his armor. Clair's such a nice person, so innocent. Why did this happen to her? She trusted us even before she knew who we were...

When they arrived at their room, Clair's jaw dropped. "It's so...big! I would ask you how can you afford this, but do I need to, Fullmetal Alchemist?" she smirked, knocking her elbow at Ed's arm in a friendly way. Al noticed how his brother took great pride in her comment. He watched as Clair sped off through the house. "You have your own kitchen, dining room, living room, two bedrooms, and a bathroom all in one! It's like your own little house, only better."

"Well, we're not staying very long," Ed shrugged. "Just until you can take the exam."

"Fine by me, but for now I'm taking a shower!" She hurried off down the left hall, only to turn around and run the other way once she realized where the shower was.

Later that night, Al came into Clair's room, wanting to ask her some questions. The room was outstandingly clean and tidy. Mustang sure knew how to pick a great hotel. Clair's bedroom consisted of a walk-in closet, a twin-sized bed, and a nightstand with a lamp lighting the area. Al stepped in. "Clair..?"

"Hm?" she hummed, rolling over to see him; there were tired bags under her eyes.

"What do the voices say to you?"

"Um...well," Clair started, pushing herself up slightly. "just about everything. Now they're bickering about...I don't even know anymore. They argued when I was in the shower so much, I almost didn't take one. I'm trying to ignore them, but it's not easy." She yawned.

"...It's been so strange finding you," Al murmured, thinking about how not long ago their only real objective was finding the Philosopher's Stone - then here's the Pure Stone, and a strange girl to come with it. He sat beside her night stand, his hand poking above it. "Here we've searching for a Philosopher's Stone our entire lives, and you're basically like one. You couldn't happen to change our bodies back to normal, could you?" he asked, totally forgetting that she didn't know about that.

Clair laughed, "I wish I could, but..." She shrugged. "I promise you'll get your body back sooner or later." Al wanted to smile at her comment, but he stayed quiet, trying to think of another good question. "Well, good night, armored friend," she murmured tiredly, cutting off all thoughts on the matter, then turned out the light, rolling back towards the wall.

That was when Alphonse realized something. "Wait, how did you know?"

"Hm?" She flipped back around. "Know what?"

"How did you know that I didn't have a body?" Al tilted his head up, which made a quiet /clank/, to look directly at Clair's sparkling eyes.

The girl's eyes widened. "Uh...um... I just know these kinds of things. Good night!" She hastily turned, almost like she was hiding something...

Al bowed his head and spoke in a warning tone. "Clair. You shouldn't keep secrets from us."

She sighed, then turned her head back again. "I'm sorry, I knew because I peeked inside your armor once when you had your chin turned up at the sky. I saw that you were hollow inside. It scared me, but I guess I'm fine to talk about it now."

"Oh." Al sensed she was hiding something deeper than that, but he decided to just accept it. "I'm glad it doesn't disturb you."

"Nah, I have a stone that gives me voices in my head. I'm surprised you don't think I'm crazy. Equivalent Exchange really does work, huh?" Clair giggled. "Hey, do you think you can keep me company all night? Because I don't think these voices are going to let me sleep." She paused before yelling, "Stop arguing already!"

"Yeah, sure," Al replied, unsure of how to respond besides agreeing. She turned on the light.

"Awesome!" she exclaimed happily.

"Clair, how did you make that horse?" Al asked abruptly; he couldn't hold off asking it any longer.

Clair hesitated for a long time before answering. "According to the voices, a few of them say I stole one of them and stuck his soul inside the horse. That's why they were screaming at me earlier...no wonder..."

"Oh," Al deadpanned; he didn't know how else to react, "that's...a little insane."

"Yeah, you're telling me," Clair grumbled and rolled her eyes - but she was obviously bothered by it.

Al felt like he was frowning internally as he spoke next, "Do you know how you did it?" She just shrugged. He made a little sighing noise. "We need to learn more about this Pure Stone." She nodded quickly in agreement.

"So what does Ed think about this?"

Al cocked his helmet questioningly. "About what?"

"About...everything."

"Oh." Alphonse paused, thinking, for a moment before answering. "He's inconclusive. He's very suspicious of you."

"Yeah, I noticed that much," she smirked. "Like, does he ever tell you that he doesn't trust me? I feel like he doesn't."

"I noticed that too, but no, he's never talked about it. You know how brother is," Al responded.

There was silence for a moment, then Al detected something in the corner of the room. Turning his head, he was shocked to find that it was a girl! She looked a bit like Clair - about same age, too, maybe a year older or younger - only...different, and with bright, emerald eyes. She had blonde hair and a sweet, apparently random smile spread across her face. She wore a white dress with lace outlining the bottom. Al turned back to Clair. "Hey, uh... Do you see that girl in the corner?"

She looked over and shook her head, giving him a weird look. "I don't see anything. Maybe you're imagining things."

The girl in the corner of the room gasped, her voice coming out squeaky and high-pitched. "You can see me? Oh, thank God!"

"Why shouldn't I be able see you?" Al questioned, not really sure what she meant.

The girl leaned against the wall, which was useless since her shoulder just faded through. "I'm a ghost. Or a desolate soul. Or dead person. Whatever you wanna call me."

"Al, is someone actually there?" Clair sat up and looked over at where the girl stood, then she scowled. "Again, shut up, voices, or I will- Wait, you guys can see her? Why can't I?" She screamed outright, talking to her voices again. Al liked it better when she didn't...

Al didn't know what to say to that, so he started talking to the random 'ghost' instead. "What's your name? I'm Alphonse Elric."

"I'm Yuki Tenshi." She giggled and made a peace sign with her fingers, smiling.

"Nice to meet you! So why are you here?"

"Um...I'm not quite sure how I got here," Yuki replied, frowning. "I just randomly woke up as a ghost in Amestris..." she trailed off, then shrugged. "Guess I have some amnesia issues, but I'm really surprised Clair is here. I'm really, really glad."

"You know her?"

"Yeah, she's my best friend! Her name's Clair Aragon, she plays the flute, her favorite color is yellow, and she loves Pokemon," Yuki listed off randomly, her face focused as though she were having trouble remembering.

"Pokemon?"

"Okay, never mind that..."

Clair's eyes popped out and she leaned forward. "Wait, wait, wait, I heard Pokemon. Al who is this?" She looked at where Yuki was, murmuring, "I know her. I just have to know her," under her breath excitedly.

Yuki stayed quiet while Al explained everything to Clair. Al had to repeat himself a few times because of the voices making it hard for Clair to hear, but once everything was clear, her eyes widened with happiness. "I can't believe it!" she shouted, practically giddy with glee.

Al spent the rest of the night playing messenger between Yuki and Clair; it was a bit tiring, but he didn't mind much. He was glad to see to cheerful faces. As it turned out, Yuki had been looking for them for weeks, but since she passed through every mode of transportation there was when it started moving, it took longer than what she expected.


Clair's PoV

The next few days passed by quickly. Al told Ed about Yuki, I worked on my alchemy - since Ed didn't carry a library with him like we had at Tucker's - and Yuki stayed on the sidelines thinking of ideas for me to use when I was tested. A day before the exam, we rode a train to Central. I ignored the screaming souls the best I could. It was like being in a cafeteria, only I was afraid to talk to anyone in the fear that they'd scream at me and everyone would gain up in a bullying riot.

Then, finally, the day came. I felt as though my entire life was being pushed in this test, even if I'd been studying for only one small month. Somehow, I felt that I deserved to pass because of all the hell I'd had to go through since I'd gotten to Amestris.

"You ready?" Al looked down at me, a smile in his voice.

"Yes! I'm as ready as I'll ever be!" The voices in the back of my head didn't agree, but I didn't care. "So, Yuki is coming with me, right?"

Many of the voices kept saying, 'Of course, stupid,' and 'Duh.'

'I don't even know why you're taking this test. I hate dogs of the military.' Hush.

"Yeah, she'll be with you all the way," was the better answer from my armored friend.

"Let's just get this over with." Ed's attitude came off as highly annoyed when he spoke.

"Good luck!" Al offered brightly, giving me a thumbs up.

I smiled at him, then headed into the Central Headquarters. At first, I couldn't find the room where they tested, but eventually someone saw me walking into random rooms and was nice enough to guide me where I needed to go. A woman with nice glasses and brunette hair led me into a ginormous room with hundreds of participants; she seemed shocked by the fact that someone so young was taking the test - again - as she left.

When I sat down in one of the comfy chairs, another women came around handing out pencils and a piece of paper each. When I started glancing around the room, I noticed everyone had a different test. Is mine easier or harder than everyone else's? Knowing Wrath, he'd want to test me.

The women stood on a pedestal beside a large countdown timer. I started to get butterflies in my stomach after looking at all the older men and women taking the test. Only one or two of us would get in, right? Gulp. "You'll have two hundred and forty minutes, or four hours, to complete the test," the woman announced. "If, by the end of this time, you have passed, you may test your abilities with the Fuhrer. You may begin!"


Awesomeness right there. If you see or know my beta a Mysterious Illusion, you should thank her. :D

Question of the Chapter: What is favorite Pokemon? Random, I know. Mine is Manectric!

You know, I've never answered any of these questions, so I will for my other ones.

Favorite song: ...There's too many to chose from! I like The Fray, 30 Seconds to Mars, Breaking Benjamin, Three Days Grace, Nickleback, Black Veil Brides, My Chemical Romance, Shinedown, Offspring, Green Day, Seether, Matchbox Twenty, Imagine Dragons, Daughtry...etc? I think I named most of them. It's hard to pick just one out of all of those...

Favorite Fanfics (Some I haven't gotten time to read all the way through, though): The Glitch Switch, The Blood Alchemist, The Game Has Just Begun, The Angel Test, FMA- This World What the Heck, The Ultimate Punishment, Fullmetal Adventure, Just a Game, Soul Partners, Apple Pie, When Life Gives you Lemons, Shades of Grey: In Truth, None of it was Fiction, Just One of Those Days, Hello! This your Conscience Speaking!, 500 Ed's Short Rants (C'mon, who wouldn't? XP)...etc. If I forgot to name your story, I'm sorry, but those are some of the good ones I've read.

Romances Fluffy or not-so-fluffy: *Shrugs* Either or, but in writing I like Fluffy better. (Strangely that made me think of a kid nickname Fluffy for weighting over 1000 pounds, I swear.) In movies and TV, to be honest sexy stuff so much better - just not too old. *gags thinking about it*

Okay, well I'm ending off here. Remember to tell me your favorite Pokemon of read of the fanfics above, which they're pretty good. This is what I found in a year (and that's not all of them), so just imagine how many I'll read in the following year! Hopefully one of them will be yours someday! :)

Remember, thanks for watching! ~ Vsauce

Uploaded: 12/3/13

Words: Roughly 7,000; 6,946 exactly: 23 pages.