Hello all and a happy Halloween to you. I am proud to say that I've finally fleshed out the details for the ending of this, and now I just need to get there. I no longer feel as though I'm trying to stay away from repeating myself and running in circles, so hurray, my spiritual journey of fan fiction is a success. With the way this is going and looking at the statuses of my other stories, this will probably be my first finished multi-chapter fic. Let's not look so far ahead though, we've still got a long way to go. So without further ado, on with the next chapter.

Chapter 17

The next few weeks were better then he thought they would be. It was becoming easier to avoid the police, simply because he started to actually figure out what he was doing, much to Pride's annoyance. Selim was sure that what bothered the voice in his head beyond all else was the way that his shadowy powers time and again helped his borderline captor.

They were just beyond useful though. They could slip through places with no one noticing, and at night it was possible to hide himself in some kind of dark cocoon like thing. Pride called these things humiliating and a huge abuse of his powers, but that didn't mean he was going to stop. Not in the least, if it was letting his live on his own.

He knew they were still searching though, so it was all he could do to not be noticed. After his last chase down by the police, he quickly barrowed (stole, Pride had told him bluntly, as there was no way for him to ever really return them) some new clothes. They didn't fit exactly, the short sleeved grey shirt a bit too big, and his pants needing a belt, but they would do. He also took a simple grey hat that he found sitting on a bench in one of the past towns. Some kid must of let it there when he went to play on the park, but Selim didn't waste any time in taking it. He didn't really where hats, and it wasn't exactly the right shade of grey to match, too dark, but that didn't matter. It hid his face, and that was all he needed.

The necessarily of his situation didn't make it any easier though when, three weeks after he had first left, he happened to hear a broadcast of his, no, Pride's mother, pleading for her son to come home, and if anybody had taken or seen him, to please contact them. The black haired boy almost immediately ran from the spot, into some alleyway before wrapping himself in his shadow cocoon before crying.

"What are you blubbering about this time?" The annoyance clearly dripping from Pride's voice, although Selim had also felt some sort of emotion from the sin when listening to the broadcast. It was hard to say what though, a bit like homesickness, or regret, but he couldn't be sure. It was hard to say when it came to Pride and his mother.

"I-I want t-to go home," He said, trying desperately to wipe away the tears. The scoff he heard from Pride was expected.

"Then go, I wont stop you," Selim just shook his head though as the water began to stop flowing. He was sad and lonely and tired and he wanted to sleep in a real bed and eat real, cooked food and missed his mother and hated how scary it got at night and the way he was constantly moving and just wanted to stay put, but he wasn't stupid. He hadn't found out much about the homunculus, but he wasn't planning on quitting his search anytime soon. If he went back, that Father person would quickly remove him, and although he wasn't entirely sure what would happen to him, it wasn't good.

"S-sorry Pride, not yet," he managed to say before lowering his cocoon and standing up. Besides, that wasn't really his home anyway. It was Pride's, and no matter what happened, he would never be Pride.

It had been a week since then, and a full month since he first left. A month since he died. How many people could say that?

"Seven, at least," The voice chimed in, and Selim just shook his head before trying to figure out what in the world that meant. He needed to focus. "Well actually, somewhere in the ten thousands or more. How many people were in that city? Ah well, they couldn't really talk anymore anyway. Although the ones in Envy do speak in his one form, but they hardly chat about how long it's been since they died," He rambled, and Selim shook his head again before ducking back behind the corner again.

"Pride, please stop, this is important," He said, although he could tell the voice truly didn't care about whatever it was he was planning. He hadn't told him, after all. It would be hard to think with him trying to persuade him agents it, or his outright yelling or complaining.

Glancing around the corner again, he took a deep breath. He was making a huge gamble here. They had already tried to send him home once, but that was before they knew anything. Not to mention, despite his constant planning to escape and fear to speak when they first met, he had looked up to them. Kind of like Pride said he acted, only genuine, and he was shyer in his praise.

"Just what in the world are you- Them? You're planning on getting assistance from them!" Pride asked, the shock clear in his voice. Selim shrugged and nodded, not sure what else to do. "No no no no! You can not- will not tell them anything! Do you understand me! Those are important sacrifices you twit! You. Will. Ruin. Everything." The voice continued, venom nearly dripping from every word, as well as panic. Selim tried best to block the ancient child's voice out, but that was sadly one of the things he hadn't figured out yet. That, and using those insane eyes on the shadows without getting a headache from the multiple perspective.

"Sorry, but you can't stop me Pride, and I need help," He said, before stepping out of the alleyway he'd been in after finally finding his targets after nearly a week of searching. He could still hear Pride's protest as he walked up to the two. It was going to be very hard to talk.

"Um, excuse me? Mr. Elric?" he asked, tapping the shorter one of the shoulder. He was standing behind them, and they were sitting on a bench discussing something, he'd been to far away to hear, and now Pride was screaming in his brain.

"Huh? Oh, hey there kid, do you need something?" The blonde asked, not recognizing him at first. Selim guessed that was a good thing. It meant his disguise was working, at least. The larger but younger brother turned around as well, and the black haired boy couldn't help but try to avoid his eyes. He was a bit intimidating.

"Do we know you?" Alphonse Elric asked, trying to get a good look at his face. Selim nodded before getting the willpower to look up. Pride had stopped yelling, but was now mumbling obscenities under his breath. He could still hear them though, and had to keep from wincing every few seconds.

"Y-yes, I'm Selim Bradley, I kind of… ran away from you guys a few weeks ago…" He explained, and the two brothers were almost instantly on their feet. They had most definitely known that he was still missing, and being very elusive, at that.

"S-Selim! Oh my, it is you! Everybody's been worried sick!" Al said, looking as glad as someone could while wearing a full body suit of armor. Ed nodded in agreement, although he looked more shocked than anything.

"Where've you been? How'd you even get here? We lost you in Blighton, right? How'd you get all the way out here?" The older brother asked, and Selim took a deep breath, here's where things started to get complicated. The questions.

"I walked, mostly…" He said. They weren't too bad so far, but that didn't mean things could change very quickly, not to mention the whole reason he came here was to explain his situation, but right now that was what he was dreading the most.

"Walked? How haven't you been caught yet? We heard they almost had you once, but you ran off again…" It was Al to ask his this time, and just as he though, it was about to get very strange, very fast.

"I forced Pride to help me," He said, quicker then the two brothers were probably able to comprehend. They quickly glanced at each other before turning back to the runaway.

"You forced who to help you?" Ed asked, suspicion and confusion in his voice. Before he could answer, the shadowy figure in his head started up again.

"Don't tell them don't tell them don't you dare tell them!" he yelled, and Selim subtlety shook his head before answering again.

"Pride… He's a homunculus…" the response was not something he'd expected. The shock at his words coupled with Pride's protest made it certain beyond any shadow of a doubt that they knew something of what was going on, and therefore perfect to help him out of his predicament.

"A… a homunculus?" The younger brother asked, and Selim nodded again. Ed whipped his head around looking for any sighs of a suspicious person, before turning back towards the black haired boy.

"Where is he?" He asked, and Selim took one more deep breath. He'd already explained the same thing to a few other people, mainly other homunculus, and of course himself multiple times, but this was it. Either they believed him, or thought he was absolutely insane and attempt to capture him yet again and send him home, only to be exercised and killed.

"He's stuck in my head."

Oh I'm so very sorry for the short chapter, but I was unexpectedly called into work this morning, and have to be there in an hour, so I didn't have all the time I wanted to actually write this, but really wanted to get a chapter up. Plus, I really wanted to end it there, for suspense purposes. Well, hope you liked it even if it was short.

Please review.