To Mend That Which Is Broken

Edward's eyes snapped open when he heard glass shattering and screaming from below him. Without a word, he lept to his feet and dashed into the hall, his brother a step behind. People were running to get out as fire raced up the wooden walls and stairs.

"What's going on?"

A man paused long enough to tell them that the English had thrown a bomb into the common room. Ed ran toward the stairs as Al stayed back to make sure that all of the patrons that were upstairs got outside safely.

The inn was fast becoming an inferno. Whoever had started the fire had broken as many windows as they could, letting air rush in to feed the blaze that was steadily eating away the floor above Ed. His eyes burned from the thick black smoke, and he could barely hear over the roar of the flames.

BAM!

Ed jumped back into a burning support post, yelping as the flames caught on his clothes and began to devour the shirt as readily as they did the building around them. He pulled off the burning garment and flung it away and squinted toward the sudden sound and breeze.

Where the door had stood, there was a shadowy figure of a girl. He watched for a moment as she took three steps into the burning inn. The hot air whipped her hair up behind her and tore at her long skirt. Ed lurched forward, preparing to grab her and get out of the building. There was nothing he could do now…

"Get out of here, you'll get killed!"

The girl turned her face toward him, a ghost of a smile on her lips.

"I don't speak German."

She spoke in heavily accented English. Not bothering to wait to see if he understood, she raised her hands and held them in front of her. She smiled at the fire that was catching on her skirt.

"Away with you now, little German. You don't want to get hurt, do you?"

Ed's eyes widened. Who was she to say he was little?! She only reached his nose, he was sure. He opened his mouth as he took a step toward her, intending to berate her as he carried her out. He stopped again when her eyes flashed his way as her hands were enveloped in a blue light.

"I said leave!"

Ed almost refused, but changed his mind when he saw that liquid was starting to seep out of the floor. Whatever she was doing, it was going to be big.

Ed ran out the empty doorframe and watched as plants around him withered into dry black husks and the dirt under his feet dried rapidly, forming large cracks.

"Who was that Brother? Why didn't you bring her with you?"

Ed tipped his head and watched as the shadowy girl lifted her arms over her head and a great wall of water formed around her. As she pushed her arms out to her sides, keeping them straight with her palms facing outward, the wall blasted away from her. Crouching down, she placed her bare hands on the burned wood below her and turned her face toward the ceiling. Ed felt the air around him turn dry and sharp as winter wind.

"She's pulling water out of whatever is closest. But she isn't touching any people or animals that I can see."

Al nodded, his glowing eyes still on the girl as she summoned more water to bathe the ceiling. After a few minutes, she stood and ran out of the building, shoving past Al and his brother without looking at them. All that watched the spectacle heard her voice as she continued to run away, but Ed and Al couldn't understand her words.

"We need to follow her Al."

"Right."

The two dashed after the fleeing female, Al soon falling behind. His size and the fact that he was made out of a suit of armor didn't give him any speed to think of. Ed glanced over his shoulder to make sure that Al was still following before laying on more speed. He was surprised that she had not slowed, staying far enough ahead that he was constantly on the brink of losing her.

When she turned down another alley, he laughed. He remembered that this was a dead end, and he was sure that he would be able to keep her there until she answered some questions that he had. Turning the corner, he started to smile, then a growl of frustration tore out of his throat.

The girl was gone. He glared around a few trash cans and found nothing. He swore loudly and slammed his fist into a brick wall, creating a few cracks. He looked at his false arm and smirked.

Oh well. He hadn't caught her this time, but no doubt the other people in the town knew who she was and where she could be found. He would ask them.

He heard Al come up behind him and turned. His brother held out his jacket, which he took and pulled on gratefully. He had forgotten that he no longer was wearing a shirt and was glad that few people were out this late.

"How did you lose her, Ed? She couldn't have gone… wait…"

Al looked up and Ed followed suit, waiting for his brother to speak.

"You don't think that maybe she's the Sister that flies…do you?"

"I think she is an alchemist, like us. If she is, I want to ask her a few questions. We'll ask around tomorrow. C'mon Al, let's see if any of our things survived."