Elysia wasn't able to tell Richard very much about Edward at first. The echoes of screaming voices made it difficult to think about anything else. They huddled close together, trying to block out the horrible sounds but it was impossible. It was like listening to escaped souls that had been ripped out of their bodies and they were roaming around, confused and scared.

Elysia and Richard barely talked. They didn't eat much and it was impossible to sleep. The sounds went on and on, all day and night. There was a break every so often, when the echoing died down but it always picked up again. Elysia thought she would go mad if it continued any longer. She cried until she had nothing more in, her face streaked with dried tears.

She was angry with Edward again; angry that he was taking his sweet time coming to get them out of this nightmare. She looked over at Richard and cursed him for not being Edward then immediately felt bad for being so cruel. It wasn't Richard's fault they were in this situation. It wasn't his fault he looked so much like Edward; it was Edward's but it wasn't his fault they were there either. She started crying again feeling terrible for being upset with Edward for no reason. She was tired and scared. She wasn't thinking right and the echoing cries only made it worse.

Food was slid into their cell for them through a small opening at the bottom of the think door. Richard hesitated a second before finally giving in. Elysia could not be tempted to touch anything but she was not a growing teenager.

Looking at Richard always made her think of Edward and how much she missed him. She wasn't thinking when the words came out on impulse.

"You eat as much as Edward does."

Richard froze, a piece of bread held in mid air.

"I'm sorry," Elysia said, quickly apologizing. "I didn't mean to compare you to him but you do remind me so much of Edward," she added sheepishly.

"I guess it can't be helped," Richard said putting the piece of bread back on a plate. "It's not that I mind," he added quickly. "I just don't really know what to think about him. There's a lot I do know from what I read, like he has a younger brother named Alphonse and he's married, right?" Elysia nodded when he looked at her then continued. "But there's a lot I don't know such as how many kids does Alphonse have?"

Elysia smiled, grateful for the distraction of answering questions to avoid the constant echoes of pain which had diminished down to a whispering wind outside their cell. "Well, there's Little Ed, Trisha," Elysia began counting on her fingers, "Gloria, Little Al, Jessi, Sam and Sean, the twins, and Michael. Eight."

"Eight!" Richard exclaimed. "Wow, eight cousins," he whispered in awe a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "How about you? Will you have more?" He asked looking at Elysia then seemed to think twice about the question and turned away. "Sorry, that's too personal. You don't have to answer."

"No, it's okay," Elysia assured. "We will. We have a lot of years ahead of us so we're not in a rush."

"So do you think he had deeper feelings for my mom? I mean not now but back when they first met." Richard blurted out then blushed. "I'm sorry. Don't answer that. I shouldn't have asked."

Elysia couldn't help but smile over his embarrassment and because it was something she had often wondered about. "I think so. Edward doesn't act like he did or that he remembers much. But he was ambushed by Drachmans in North City during the war. He said he sustained a pretty severe concussion from it. I think he may have forgotten a few things or he suppressed it on his own until he did forget..."

"Ambushed? Mom said she checked the casualty lists. She made it seem he got through the war all right. His name would have been on the list even if he was wounded."

"He kept his name off the list. His brother doesn't even know."

"He tells you everything, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, though maybe a little too much," Elysia said amused. "Though it's my fault entirely; I'm too curious and ask too many questions."

"Will you tell me about it?"

"Sure, but remember this is second hand. The details will be a little sketchy."

"Okay," Richard nodded eagerly.

Elysia took a deep breath before beginning, trying to remember what Edward told her about the incident. "He said they had just retaken North City and he was out on patrol. Three Drachman deserters took him and his squad by surprise, killing everyone but Edward. They were hoping to use him as a hostage to get back to their own army. Along the way they ran into Jean's patrol..."

"Who is Jean?" Richard interrupted.

"Oh, Jean Havoc, he's a good friend of the family. He's known Ed since he was twelve; when he became a State Alchemist. Jean was his First Lieutenant, then Captain, during the war."

"Lieutenant Havoc," Richard said mulling the name over. "I think my mom may have mentioned him a couple of times."

"He helped Edward a lot. He's a Brigadier General now and he's like Ed's brother; he's over all the time though lately it's been with Rebecca. Anyways," Elysia continued, getting back to the story, "the fool thought he could take all three Drachmans on his own. He took out two of them and when he was trying to get away from the third he fell through a hole in the street. An explosion had exposed a water line and he almost drowned."

"Who got him out?" Richard asked intrigued by the story.

"Jean did. Do you like milk?"

Richard blinked over the odd question, momentarily confused by the sudden change of subject. "No. Why?"

Elysia smiled. "Neither does Ed. Do you get really rude and obnoxious?"

Richard laughed. "No. At least I don't think so…"

"I have a feeling you don't," Elysia said with a little laugh. "I worry about Erika being around Ed and his mouth."

"You seem really young, how old are you?" Richard asked, taking his turn to ask some questions now.

"Twenty four."

"That's what… a twelve year age difference?"

"Yeah but when you see Ed you'll be surprised by how young he looks. He doesn't look like he's thirty six."

"Really?"

"The two of you could almost pass as twins instead of..." Elysia paused.

"Father, son," Richard finished. Elysia nodded.

"Do you get sick very often?" She asked, dispelling the uncomfortable silence that fell between them.

"No," Richard said his brow furrowed as he sat quietly, deep in thought for a second. "Actually when I think about it I can't remember the last time I was sick."

"Do you heal quickly?"

"I guess, I never thought about it or noticed," Richard said looking a little confused. "Why do you ask?"

"It's something Edward told me when Erika was about five months old," Elysia said a little distracted. She didn't know if she should tell Richard. But he was Edward's son. She felt he had the right to know certain things regarding a part of his family. "Ed's father is a little unusual."

"Aren't most fathers?" Richard said joking.

"True, I'll have to tell you some of the stories I've heard about my own..."

The cries outside grew in volume and they both froze.

"... I'm not sure how to describe Ed's though," Elysia continued despite the horrible sounds. Her hands began to shake and she drew her knees up to hide them. "I know you've heard of Xerxes..."

"Yeah, you did mention it before."

"That's where Ed's father is from."

"Xerxes?" Richard stared at Elysia incredulously, though still distracted by the screaming voices outside their cell. "That's impossible unless he was raised in the desert or he's hundreds of years old."

Well, he's partly right, Elysia thought but said out loud, "Have you heard of the Philosopher's Stone?"

Richard shook his head, focusing his full attention on her now.

"Well, alchemists have folklore of their own. The Philosopher's Stone is one of them. It's said anyone can transmute anything without following the laws of alchemy. To make a long and complicated story short, Ed's father is a Philosopher's Stone. Because of that he's lived an unusually long time."

"Okay, I'm completely confused."

"I know. It takes time to understand, especially for us non-alchemy lovers."

"What does that mean, that his father is this Philosopher's Stone?"

"Well, like I said it's allowed him to live a long time. It will also enable Ed and Al to live a long time too, though not as long as their father and it's probably why they don't get sick. Ed's incredibly healthy for someone who has been smoking for almost twenty years and he heals a lot quicker than what is usual. He was shot five years ago..."

"Shot?!" Richard exclaimed.

"Another long story," Elysia sighed, not ready to go into the details of that ordeal. "Anyways, the doctor told me he could have let Ed out of the hospital early but wanted him to rest. A month and a half after the incident he was fine. The doctor said anyone else would have taken longer to heal, especially after having a fractured rib. The same doctor treated him during the war and said it was the same. Ed just heals quickly and he still looks so young. It's like his age process is slowed."

"Do you think it'll be like that for me?" Richard asked curiously.

"I think so. But because Hohenheim is your grandfather, his blood would be weakened by Trisha and your mom's blood."

"Your daughter too."

"Yeah," Elysia said sadly, leaning her head back. "I'll be the first to die."

"I don't think I can eat now," Richard said quietly, pushing the plate with the half eaten piece of bread away.

"I'm so sorry," Elysia said turning to look at Richard, full of concern. "I've said too much. I shouldn't have bombarded you with too much information all at once."

"No, it's alright," he said thoughtfully. "It explains a lot. Things I've noticed but didn't think it meant anything. It's nice to learn more about myself. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know but I don't mind so much now. How did he lose his arm and leg?" Richard asked suddenly. "I never thought to ask my mom if she knew and all I've ever read just said the same thing; civil war in the east. Was it from a mine, did he get shot?"

"Well, it wasn't from the civil war," Elysia said quietly.

"But that's what it says everywhere..."

"That's the official word," Elysia said stressing the last two words. "You should be finished with school now; do you plan on attending a university?"

"You're avoiding my question."

"I think there are some things Edward should tell you."

"That's if we get out of this alive."

As if to stress Richard's sentiment a loud, whaling cry reverberated and bounced around, outside their cell. The blood curdling screams were worse now than they'd been before.

"We will," Elysia said with as much confidence as she could muster once she got her heart to stop beating so wildly.

"Do you think so?" Richard asked his voice full of doubt and fear.

"Yes."

After a few minutes of silence between them, punctuated by the horrifying cries, Elysia couldn't stand it any longer; talking was the only way to ignore it. "So..." she began but her words caught in her throat and she tried again. "So, are you going to attend a university?"

"I don't want to," Richard said still focused on the terrifying echoes.

"What do you want to do?" Elysia went on, hoping to distract him

Richard blushed again and looked down at his shoes. "I want to join the military."

She was speechless. She had a pretty good reason to know why he would.

"It's silly really," he continued, looking extremely embarrassed. "My mom doesn't know but I would like to be an officer. I always dreamed about meeting him…"

"Yeah," Elysia pressed when he stopped.

"It's really embarrassing."

"Go on, tell me," she insisted.

"Well, I used to think about this when I was a kid, I'm more realistic now."

"Okay, I understand."

"And don't ever tell anyone I told you this," he said seriously.

"I won't," Elysia promised impatiently, wishing he'd just get on with it.

Richard sighed before he began. "When I found out I was the famous Fullmetal Alchemists' son, I began to imagine myself as an officer and I did something heroic and was awarded a medal by him, only he didn't know I was his son until he pinned the medal to my chest and looked at me..."

Elysia smiled the pain filled echoing outside nearly forgotten. "There's nothing wrong with that dream."

"It's just dumb kid stuff."

Elysia chuckled. "You sure about that?" She teased.

"Yes!"

Elysia tried not to laugh out loud. His small indignant outburst made him sound just like Edward.