Disclaimer - I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist

Chapter Twenty-Two - Nick's Stalker

Nick had been traveling to one small village after another, searching for clues, for several weeks but he hadn't discovered any leads. This fact depressed the boy immensely; he'd really hoped that his luck might turn around however in hind sight decided that he should have known better. He'd never been the lucky type.

As he walked down a dirt road, toward yet another small village, Nick heard what sounded like a girl screaming. The noise was coming from some distance off and there was a slight echo.

"What the hell was that?" Nick turned toward the direction the scream had come from. He saw some cliffs but no sign of a person. He scanned the area, searching for whoever had screamed. Suddenly he heard the scream again, yet softer this time. Deciding to check it out Nick dashed off toward the scream.

Nick ran toward the cliff and once he reached the ledge he gazed down and saw a young girl at the bottom. The girl was rubbing her ankle and Nick guessed that she must have fallen down the ledge.

Deciding that he should see if the girl needed help, Nick began to make his way down the cliff. The girl looked up when Nick jumped to the ground beside her and her eyes held a frightened expression.

"Don't be afraid," Nick said softly, sensing the girl's fear. "I came to help."

Some of the girl's fear was relieved by that statement and she gave the boy a tentative smile.

"So," Nick said, kneeling at the girl's side. "What happened? How did you end up in a place like this?"

"I was climbing along the ledge," the girl replied quietly. "Looking for flowers, when I lost my footing and slid down here."

"I see," Nick said. "Are you injured in any way?"

The girl nodded slowly and absently rubbed her left ankle, which appeared to be slightly swollen. "I twisted my ankle but it's no big deal."

As though to illustrate her point, the girl attempted to stand up but as soon as she placed weight on her left ankle it buckled and she fell. Nick caught the girl before she hit the ground and he steadied her by placing her arm around his shoulder.

"Easy. Don't push yourself."

At that moment the two kids heard the sound of distant thunder.

Nick gazed up at the dark clouds that hung low in the sky. "This isn't good. It looks like a pretty bad storm is moving this way. We need to get to shelter before it gets here."

Nick bent down low. "Climb onto my back."

"What?"

"We have to get to the village before the storm reaches it," Nick said, his gaze once again turning toward the sky. "And since you can't walk, this is the only way. So climb on."

A slightly red tint appeared on the girl's cheeks but she obeyed Nick's command and climbed onto his back. She wrapped her arms around his neck, for support.

"Now," Nick gazed around the cliff, looking for a path that he could follow back up to the road but there wasn't one. "How to do this? Guess we do it the hard way."

Nick walked over to the cliff and began to climb. He made his way slowly up the cliff, searching carefully for secure hand and foot holds as he went. Beads of sweat appeared on his face as he climbed up the side of the cliff.

"This is hard work," Nick thought to himself as he climbed.

"Are you okay?" the girl asked after awhile.

"I'm fine," Nick said, slightly out of breath from the exertion of the climb. "Just a little farther to go."

"I'm really sorry about this," the girl said.

"It's no big deal," Nick said. "Don't worry about it."

Nick finally managed to reach the top of the cliff and once there he stopped for a moment to catch his breath.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes," Nick said. "Now if you will give me directions then I'll take you home."

"I live on the outskirts of the village," the girl told him. "But you don't have to carry me all the way there. I can manage on my own."

Nick scoffed at that remark. "Yea right. You can't even stand up on your own so what makes you think you can walk all the way to the village? That's just stupid."

And with that Nick once again began to walk toward the nearby village.

"This is so wrong," the girl moaned as they moved toward the village. "It's embarrassing to be carried by someone who's smaller than me."

Nick's eyes narrowed and he growled low in his throat. "I CAN drop you."

Sensing that she'd said something she shouldn't have, the girl quickly apologized. "Sorry. I didn't mean anything by that, I swear."

"Hmph."

The two kids soon reached the edge of the village and when they were close the girl pointed out a small brick house. "That's where I live."

Nick nodded and walked toward the house that she'd pointed out to him. When he reached the house he knocked lightly on the door. Then he stepped back and waited.

Soon the door opened and a man stepped out. "Kaiya, what happened?"

"I fell down the cliff daddy," the girl said. "And twisted my ankle. But luckily this boy came along and helped me."

The man gave Nick a warm smile as he took his daughter into his arms. "Thank you very much young man. Why don't you come inside? It looks like there's a storm heading this way."

Nick nodded. "Thank you very much sir."

Nick followed the man inside the house and down the hall to a small living room.

"Have a seat," the man said, gesturing toward the sofa. He placed his daughter Kaiya down on one end of the sofa and Nick sat down on the other end. "I'll be back in a few minutes." And with that the man left the room.

The man returned about ten minutes later carrying a tray in his hands. He placed the tray down on the coffee table, picked up a cup and offered it to Nick. "Tea?"

Nick took the cup that the man offered him and smiled. "Thank you."

The man handed a cup to his daughter, took one for himself, and sat down in a chair across from the sofa on which the two kids sat. "Don't mention it. Consider it a small token of gratitude for helping my daughter. By the way, my name's Troy and this is my daughter Kaiya."

"Pleased to meet you. I'm Nicholas. Nicholas Elric."

"Well Nicholas," Troy said, offering the boy a warm smile. "I think you should spend the night with us, what with the storm and all." A clap of thunder accompanied that statement.

"Thanks for the offer," Nick said, listening to the sound of the rain on the roof. "I think I'll take you up on it."

"Wonderful," Troy said.

Nick awoke early the next morning with the feeling of the warm sun shining on his face. He dressed quickly and descended the stairs, searching for the kind people who had put him up for the night. He found his host Troy and the man's wife in the kitchen.

"Good morning," Nick said as he entered the room.

"Good morning," Troy and his wife Elena said in unison.

"Did you sleep alright?" Troy asked.

"Very well thanks," Nick said. "I want to thank you again for your hospitality, but I really should be going."

"So soon?" Elena asked. "Won't you at least stay for breakfast?"

"No thank you," Nick said. "I really have to be going. I should probably have left last night but the storm was so rough that I didn't want to. Thank you again for letting me stay here."

"You're welcome," Troy said, offering the boy a friendly smile. "Take care of yourself now."

Nick nodded. "Goodbye."

Troy and Elena waved as the young boy turned and walked away.

Nick left Troy and Elena's house and wandered around the village for awhile. As he roamed around Nick began to get the feeling that he was being watched. Nick turned around quickly only to find that he was alone in the deserted street.

"Must be imagining things," Nick muttered, continuing on his way.

Nick spent the day roaming around the village, questioning random people about Hunter or the homunculi. Unfortunately none of the villagers were able to give him any new leads.

When dusk began to fall, Nick walked to the outskirts of the village, to an open meadow. He knew that he could probably have imposed upon Troy and Elena's hospitality again but it was a clear night so he decided to sleep under the stars. Nick still had the feeling that someone was watching him and as he set about setting up his small campsite he saw the shadow of someone sneaking between a couple of trees.

"What the hell was that?" Nick wondered.

Leaving his things lying where they were, Nick slipped over to the trees. The boy quickly made his way over to the group of trees and he made it just in time to catch a man hiding in the shadows.

"Hey!"

The man froze and slowly turned to face the boy.

Nick was surprised by what he saw when the man turned to face him. "Uncle Al!"

The man smiled. "Hi Nick."

Nick's eyes narrowed and a tick mark appeared on his forehead. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

Al held up his hands. "Calm down Nick."

Nick clenched his hands into fists. "DON'T tell me to calm down. You shouldn't be here."

"Come on Nick," Al said in a placating voice. "Why are you so upset that I came? You and I used to be really close and you came to me for everything, even things you wouldn't tell your dad."

That statement was true enough Nick thought to himself. That fact had been proven on the day that his little sister Harmony had died.

(It had been several hours since Harmony's accident and Nick was finding it harder and harder to cope with what had happened that morning. Now unable to look his parents in the eyes, Nick waited until her was alone and slipped off. The boy hurried through the mountain pass trail, making his way to his uncle's house.

It took awhile but Nick finally made it to his uncle's house. He knocked on the door and waited but received no answer. He knocked on the door and waited but received no answer. The boy knocked again but once again he received no answer.

Sighing Nick sank down on the top step and leaned up against the door. He drew his knees up against his body, wrapped his arms around them, and lay his head upon his arms.

Alphonse Elric had been away from home, doing errands for a few hours, and when he returned home he was surprised to find his young nephew, sitting huddled in front of his door, his knees drawn up against his body and his head down.

"Nicholas," Al called out softly.

The boy slowly raised his head and gazed up at his uncle. Al saw that there were tears streaming down the boy's face. That instantly worried him because his nephew had always been a fairly stoic child.

Al bent down to the boy's level. "What are you doing here Nicholas? Does your dad know you came?"

Nick shook his head slowly.

"Nicholas! You shouldn't have came here without telling someone." Al's eyes widened. "Your dad will be worried sick. You have to go home."

Nick shook his head quickly and then spoke for the first time. "No! I. . .I can't go home."

"Why not Nicholas?"

"I've done something terrible," Nick said softly, tears streaming down his face.

Al offered his hand to his young nephew and pulled the boy to his feet. "What could you possibly have done that is that bad?"

Nick refused to answer as his uncle led him into the house.

Al gazed sadly at his nephew, wondering what was torturing the boy. With his intensive gaze he noticed that the boy looked exhausted, both emotionally and physically. He placed his hand on the young boy's shoulder. "I think you need some rest Nicholas. Come with me."

Nick followed his uncle without protest and Al led the boy to a spare bedroom that was located in the back of the house.

"Into bed kiddo," Al ordered in a kind voice.

Nick pulled off his shoes, climbed into bed and crawled under the covers, pulling them up around his neck. The boy closed his eyes and let out a quivering sigh.

"I'll be in the living room if you need anything kiddo."

"Okay," Nick said softly.

Al walked across the room, pulled the curtains closed and then left the room, closing the door softly as he went. Al went back into the living room and immediately walked over to the phone. He quickly dialed his brother's number and listened as the phone rang.

After several rings, and just as Al was about to give up, someone answered the phone.

"Hello?"

Al recognized his brother's voice instantly and he noticed that it was shaky, just as Nick's had been. "Brother, are you okay?"

"Al," Ed said, his voice definitely shaky. "I meant to call you but there are so many things going on. There was an accident this morning."

The tone of Ed's voice alarmed Al. "What happened?"

"The children went to those old caves outside of Resembool," Ed explained with difficulty. "Harmony was standing on a ledge when the ledge gave way. Harmony fell and. . .she didn't survive."

Al gasped. "Oh no! Ed I'm so sorry." He paused. "That must be why Nick's so distraught."

"You've seen Nicholas?" Ed asked.

"He's here Brother," Al told him. "I found him huddled on my doorstep when I arrived home today. That's why I called you in the first place."

"I was so preoccupied that I didn't even notice that he was gone."

"Brother," Al said quietly. "He blames himself for what happened."

"Did he tell you that?" Ed wanted to know.

"Not exactly," Al said. "He told me that he'd done something terrible but he refused to tell me what it was."

"Oh no," Ed said, a slight note of guilt evident in his voice. "I was afraid that might happen. I should have spent some time with him but. . . Al, I'll be there to pick him up as soon as I can."

"I don't think that's a good idea Brother," Al said in a thoughtful voice. "He needs a little time to work this out for himself. Why don't you let him stay here with me for awhile?"

"Okay Al. If you think that will help. I trust your judgment." Ed took a deep breath. "The service is tomorrow evening at six. We're burying her next to Mom."

"Nick and I will be there," Al said. "Take care Brother."

"You too Al," Ed said.

Al hung up the phone and walked down the hall, back to the spare bedroom. Now that he knew what had happened he felt the urgent need to check on his young nephew.

When he reached the room Al quietly opened the door and peered into the room. Nick appeared to have fallen asleep but it wasn't a deep sleep and tears continued to slide down the boy's face.

Al walked across the room and sat down on the edge of the bed. He placed his hand on Nick's back and rubbed it in a comforting manner. As he massaged Nick's back, tears formed in Al's eyes. His niece was dead, his nephew blamed himself for that death and his brother had suffered yet another terrible loss. He couldn't believe how much suffering his family was being forced to endure.

"When will it stop?" he thought to himself.

Al continued to rub his young nephew's back as the tears slid down his own face, but his hand was knocked away when the boy suddenly gasped and sat up quickly.

Nick's breathing was rapid and his eyes were wide and frightened as he gazed around the room wildly.

Al placed a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder. "It's alright Nicholas, it was just a bad dream."

"Harmony. . ." Nick choked out, his golden eyes filling with fresh tears.

Al pulled the boy into his arms and held him tight. He stroked Nick's hair soothingly. "It wasn't your fault Nicholas. You didn't cause it to happen."

Nick pulled away from his uncle and stared at him. "You know?"

Al nodded. "I called your dad as soon as you fell asleep, to tell him that you were safe, and he told me what had happened."

Horrified that his uncle now knew what he'd done, Nick pulled away and tried to run. It had been a mistake to come to his uncle's house, he knew that now, but in his grief he hadn't known where else to go.

"Nicholas!" Al grabbed the boy by the arm and prevented his escape.

"Let me go!" Nick yelled, his voice pleading as he struggled against Al's grip. "Please!"

Al once again pulled the boy into his arms, holding him firmly and preventing his escape. He rocked the boy gently back and forth, stroking his blonde hair in a comforting manner. "Shhh," he soothed. "It wasn't your fault Nicholas. You have to understand that no one blames you for what happened. It was an accident and you're the only one who thinks it was your fault."

Nick placed his head on his uncle's chest and sobbed.

Al held the boy close and stroked his hair, allowing him to vent his grief. "It's going to be alright. It will take some time but you'll be okay.")

Nick remembered that day well. The memory of what had transpired would haunt him for the rest of his life. But Al had made his point well. It had been him that Nick had sought out in his time of need. However that did not decrease Nick's anger over the current situation.

"That point, while good, is invalid," Nick said calmly. "If I need your help then of course I'll seek you out but I don't need someone following me around as though I'm some child who can't take care of myself. And don't think for a minute that I don't know who put you up to this. You can tell my dad that I can handle myself just fine."

Al winced as the boy mentioned Ed. He'd known all along that this plan wouldn't work, that Nick was too perceptive, but Ed had insisted that he try. And there was no arguing with Ed once he got an idea stuck in his head.

Nick continued to rant and Al held up his hands in defeat. "Okay, okay. Calm down kiddo. You win. Tomorrow morning I'll return to Resembool."

"Good," Nick said, slightly placated. "Incidentally, exactly how long have you been following me?"

Al took a deep breath, knowing that his reply would set the boy off again. "I've been tailing you since your last trip to Central."

Nick glared at his uncle. "I can't believe you've been following me around all this time!"

"Come on Nick, is it really that big a deal?"

"Yes," Nick said adamantly. "For a multitude of reasons. For one: bad things happen around me and I don't need the added burden of worrying about you. And for another: I DON'T NEED A BABYSITTER!!"

"You're so stubborn," Al said, shaking his head in exasperation. "You are definitely your father's son."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Why is it that every time people tell me that I get the distinct impression that they aren't meaning it as a compliment?"

"Because," Al said. "Along with your genius at alchemy, your dad passed along to you some less than desirable traits."

"That was harsh."

Al's expression was unapologetic as he gazed at his nephew. "I haven't said anything to you that I wouldn't tell your dad to his face. It's the truth and everyone, including Ed, knows it."

A/N - and there's another chapter. These updates are kinda fast but this story is pretty much finished already. It's just that I wrote it so long ago that I have to do some revisions before posting it. Thanks for reading. Hitsu-taichou