Chapter Ten

The blonde-haired boy with stunning golden eyes stared at his blood-stained white gloves. He was kneeling down on the ground next to a puddle of deep red blood; the source of which was nowhere to be found.

"She trusted you," he said almost inaudibly, "and you betrayed her."

Standing a few yards away from him was a strangely dressed man with long green hair and amethyst colored eyes. He said nothing in return.

"She protected you," The blonde went on, "Chose you over me, even. And you killed her."

Still, the other green-haired man did not speak.

"And now," the blonde said quietly, "now I'm going to kill you."

The girl gasped and shot straight up. Her old clothes were tattered and her long, blonde hair ratted. Her blue eyes stared widely into the distance.

"Rachel," said the small, perhaps ten year old boy next to her, in a tone of concern. He had unruly black hair in desperate need of a cut, and matching blue eyes. They sat in the back of a truck, filled with other gypsies, heading toward the Eastern part of Germany.

"Rachel," the boy repeated, "what did you see?"

"The same boy," Rachel answered. "With the golden hair."

The young boy bit his bottom lip, worried. "Did he do magic again?"

"No," Rachel answered hesitantly. "It doesn't matter, Jed."

"Yes it does!" he retorted impatiently. The other gypsies shot him a look of disdain, so, quietly, he spoke again. "Maybe we'll find him this time."

"He's not real." Rachel said irritably. But Jed knew Rachel better than that. You see, his sister had a gift. She saw things, and then, much later or sometimes in the very near future, they came true.

"We'll have answers soon." He said confidently, grasping his sister's hand. She said nothing, but leaned her head down on the side of the truck and closed her eyes once more.

"What the hell?" I gasped, staring up at the balcony where the wrench had just flown from and then back at Edward, who was on the ground, holding his head and moaning in pain. "We should get out of here right now." I said, looking once again at the balcony. No one was there.

Alphonse laughed. "Don't worry, Nem, that was nothing. These are our friends."

"Some friends," I muttered.

A girl, taller than me, with almost the same hair color, came running out of the house and toward us. "Edward Elric where have you been?" she shrieked, pulling him forcefully to his feet and hugging him. I blinked, and looked away quickly.

"Sorry, sorry," Edward laughed, pulling away from her. "Look, Mustang sent me back here for a bit so you could look at my automail before our next assignment."

"Alright," the girl said brightly, looking in my direction and seeming to notice me for the first time. "Erm," she began awkwardly, "Who—"

"This is Nem." Alphonse cut in quickly, "we're protecting her from the homunculi."

"oh," the girl said, narrowing her eyes and continuing to stare at me. I felt uncomfortable under her gaze and looked down at my feet.

"Nem," Alphonse continued, "This is Winry."

"hello," I mumbled, still staring intently downward.

"Hello." Winry repeated slowly, finally looking away from me and back at Edward. "Well, lets take a look then." She said, turning abruptly and heading back into the house. Hesitantly, I followed the Elrics behind her.

"What do you mean, you've found nothing?" asked Mustang furiously. Lieutenant Hawkeye, unwavering, said, "exactly that, sir. No birth records, school enrollments, hospital visits, I've found absolutely nothing on a girl named Nem."

Mustang said nothing, rubbing his brow with one hand. "Great," he muttered, "then I've just sent Fullmetal back home with a suspicious character."

"Not to be rude, sir," Hawkeye said, "But I'm sure Ed can handle himself just fine against a girl."

"Not necessarily." Mustang replied gravely, "I'm not quite sure if she is just a girl."

I sauntered around the small town Risembool slowly, alone with my thoughts. It didn't take much to realize I wasn't particularly welcome in the Rockbell home, so I politely excused myself to take a walk.

Though it had only been a short time since I left Dante's manor in Dublith, I already felt homesick. I thought I would enjoy being out and on my own, but this assignment was stressful and I, to be completely honest, was afraid.

I sighed loudly, stopping and looking around at my surroundings. I rolled my eyes. This place sure seemed to be a bore. There was nothing around for miles. All I could see in the distance was a small market, a train station, and a cemetery. I bit my lip, considering, and then decided to make my way toward the cemetery.

I walked up and down the rows of graves, blankly reading the names carved into the stone. Only after I had taken a few steps past it, did one name seem to stick out at me.

I backtracked.

Trisha Elric.

Loving mother.

My eyes narrowed. Was it a coincidence?

"Did you know her?" though it was kind, the voice behind me startled me and I gasped, jumping and spinning around.

A tall man with dirty blonde hair tied back in a ponytail and glasses smiled at me. I took a few seconds to regain myself and then, slowly, answered, "No, not really."

I stared at the man curiously, but he had looked back at the grave now. "Did you?" I pressed, watching him.

"Yes," he murmured. "But, things change, I suppose."

"I'll say," I muttered in agreement, thinking about Envy and the others, and if I'd ever even see them again. I looked down at the grave again.

"Everything is different," he said quietly, "But, then again, everything is the same."

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and I looked up, only to see that the man had disappeared. I gasped, spinning around, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Hey!"

I looked up at the source of the shouting, only to see Edward, his automail arm in a sling, standing outside the graveyard.

"Damn it, Nem, how are we supposed to protect you if you go running off like that?" he complained, beginning to walk toward me, but I darted away from his mother's grave and toward him before he could see what I had been looking at.

"sorry," I said quickly, "I didn't mean to."

He rolled his eyes but said nothing, turning around to head back to Winry's house.

"So," he said, "When are you going to tell us what the homunculi want with you?"

My breath caught in my throat. "I don't know what they wanted." I answered immediately.

He scoffed. "They wouldn't attack you for no reason, you know." He said. "What are you hiding? You don't have to be afraid. Al and I can protect you."

His offer seemed sincere, but I could hear the smallest bit of interest in his tone. I frowned, upset with myself for thinking for just a second he actually just wanted to help me. No, of course not. He assumed I had something worth hiding and he wanted it.

"Like I said," I replied bitterly, "I have no idea what they would've wanted from me. I'm just a normal girl."

We walked for the next few minutes in silence, until Edward asked pointedly, "Are you an alchemist?"

"No." I answered truthfully. It wasn't from lack of trying, either. Dante had tried to teach me simple alchemy when I was young, but I unfortunately never got the hang of it.

Edward said nothing.

"Look," I said, lying through my teeth, "You're treating me like I've wronged you. I think you forgot I'm just a victim in all of this. I didn't ask for your help, okay. I was attacked and that isn't my fault."

Edward sighed. "Okay. Fine. You're right. But once we go back to central, you're going home. And if Mustang disagrees, he can find someone else to babysit you. Al and I have a lot to do and we can't be slowed down."

I stared at him, and couldn't help but be offended. "Thanks." I said dryly. He didn't reply. The remainder of our walk was in silence.