Chapter 4 – Friends and Family

Sara Elric, the Luminescent Alchemist, stood in the middle of the kitchen facing off with her mother. The silver pocket-watch awarded to all state alchemists rested in her pocket, the chain attached to a leather belt at her waist. Silver bracelets jingled softly on her wrists, transmutation circles and alchemic symbols carved along the insides of them. While she possessed her mother's slender curves, for the most part she was the spitting image of her father. The stubborn jawline, long, golden blond hair pulled back in a high pony tail, and bangs framing a pair of large golden eyes all mirrored the features of the acclaimed alchemist. She had also, not surprisingly, inherited a somewhat fiery temper.

"What?!" her shriek made everyone in the room flinch, save for her mother. "How come nobody told me about any of this?" she demanded, eyes flashing with anger.

"That's what happens when you cut off all connections with your family," Winry's tone was frigid as she stared her daughter down, arms crossed. "If you'd been here maybe you could have done something to prevent it."

"Excuse me?" Sara's tone was outraged, "You're blaming this on me? And I suppose it's also my fault that Al went crazy?"

"Sara," Winry began, but her daughter cut her off.

"Look, it isn't my fault that you and dad have a screwed up past. And what's Mina? Chopped liver? If she couldn't fend off the kidnappers then that says something," she snapped, "If anyone is to blame here it's you and dad and the rest of you for keeping us in the dark!" her tone was ruthless. Winry's jaw clenched, face pale as she stared at her daughter. There was a tense silence for a moment. Then Winry turned and left the room without a word. Elsie stared after her in concern before letting out an exasperated sigh as she fixed Sara with a disapproving look.

"Your mother feels bad enough about the situation as it is without you rubbing it in her face. That was uncalled for," the dark haired woman's tone was serious. Sara's expression grew mutinous.

"So is blaming the problems that you all caused on me," she retorted. Elsie shook her head in resignation and turned to follow after the blonde mechanic.

It was a moment before anyone spoke. Finally Sara let out a shuddering breath, raising a hand to her to cover her face as her shoulders drooped. AJ crossed the room in several swift strides and pulled his sister into a tight embrace. The blond girl made no move to resist, resting her face against his shoulder as she gripped the front of his shirt. Despite being two years younger than his sister, in many ways the brown haired teen appeared to be the older of the two. He was certainly taller than her, in any case. It was a moment before Sara finally spoke again.

"I swear, if they hurt a hair on her head I will kill them," the ferociousness of her tone was tempered by the sound of forcefully held back tears.

"You and me both," AJ's voice was soft but steely. After a moment she pulled back from her brother, swallowing hard and turning to face Elmina and Wrath.

"Tell me everything," she demanded, her expression grim.

"Why don't we sit down?" Wrath suggested. The blonde nodded and together the four of them made their way into the living room.

"I think I should start with what took place in Central," Wrath said once they had all found seats on the chairs and couch. He began his explanation with how he had met Envy and the Elric brothers at the train station in Central. Neither Elmina nor AJ had heard the full story and so they and Sara listened with rapt attention.

"I don't understand," Sara frowned when he finished, golden eyes puzzled, "How did this Dante lady take over Al? And why now?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Wrath replied. His gaze moved to his dark haired niece sitting next to Sara. Her expression was brooding as she stared at the floor. "I think it would be best for Mina to explain what took place last night," he stated. She lifted her troubled grey eyes to his calm blue ones before nodding. Gathering her thoughts, she retold what had taken place the day before, beginning with what she had felt earlier in the day when they'd walked together to the train station, then jumping ahead to that night, describing the kidnapping and the unnatural assailants. When she finished she stared down at her hands resting in her lap.

"I'm sorry," she said hoarsely, expression ashamed. She felt a hand rest on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. She glanced up and met the older girl's gaze. There was a frown on her face, but her golden eyes were filled with understanding.

"Don't beat yourself up," Sara advised firmly, "Everyone knows if there was anything you could have done you would have done it. We'll get her back," there was no room for argument in her tone, her expression filled with a stubborn determination. Elmina blinked, then her expression hardened with resolution and she nodded. Sara turned to Wrath.

"We need to go to Central," she said. The dark haired man nodded. AJ let out a tired sigh.

"There's no way I can leave mom to deal with all these orders on her own. I'll have to stay here," he told her, a resigned frustration in his tone.

"I'll go," Wrath stated, nodding in acknowledgement of the brown haired teen's comment.

"Actually, on that note, where is Titus? I thought you said he was coming with you?" AJ asked his sister. The blonde rolled her eyes.

"He's waiting back in town. To quote him: 'You're just going to come storming back here within the next half hour anyway. I might as well wait here and save myself the trip,'" she mimicked his tone sarcastically.

"He's got a point," Wrath murmured innocuously. Sara shot him an unenthused look but otherwise ignored his comment.

"We should go. The sooner we get there and start searching the better," she stated.

"We should grab breakfast first. Mina hasn't eaten since last night," Wrath pointed out.

"I'm not hungry. Besides, we can eat on the train," Elmina replied, rising to her feet. Her uncle studied her expression for a moment before nodding.

"AJ," he turned to the brown haired teen, "Could you grab some bags? Mina will need to pack and we should bring some stuff along for Adele as well," he said. AJ nodded.

"I'll be right back," he stood swiftly and left the room.

It didn't take long to make the necessary preparations for leaving. There wasn't much to bring, and everyone was eager to be on the road as soon as possible. They didn't have a number to contact Envy and Edward in Central since they didn't have room specific phones in the hotel they were staying at. The family had simply awaited the two of them to initiate the calls thus far. There was an unpleasant feeling of urgency to relay the terrible news to them and it wasn't likely to be taken well by either of them. With this in mind they said their goodbyes briskly as they stood on the front porch. Elsie looked her daughter over critically.

"Your dad isn't going to be happy to see you there," she pointed out. Elmina scowled. Unlike Sara, she possessed a reasonably good relationship with her parents. But at the moment she was thoroughly frustrated with both of them. More so her father, since he was the one the most at fault in her mind.

"I don't give a damn. None of this would have happened if we'd been allowed to go to Central in the first place," she replied bluntly. Elsie grimaced and nodded, then pulled her daughter into a swift hug.

"Be careful," she ordered, releasing her reluctantly and stepping back to stand next to Winry. Sara fixed her blond mother with a determined gaze.

"We'll get her back if it's the last thing we do," Sara told her firmly. Winry nodded but said nothing, blue eyes clouded with a mixture of worry and guilt. The young woman turned her golden eyed gaze on Wrath. "Let's go get Titus," she said. He nodded.

"I'll walk with you guys into town," AJ said, stepping forward. He had a bag slung over each shoulder.

"I can carry one of those," Elmina offered. He shook his head.

"It's fine. Let's go," he replied. The four of them turned and set off down the road towards town.

Several hours later…

The passenger train rumbled down the tracks through the countryside towards Central. The seats were set up back to back, meaning four people could sit together. Elmina sat by the window with Wrath sitting next to her. Sara sat across from Wrath, and beside her, across from Elmina, sat a young man. His name was Titus Mustang, and he often traveled together with Sara as the two of them pursued similar subjects of research. His burnt orange shirt and spotless white breeches were rather eye catching. Elmina was glaring at him darkly. His piercing, reddish brown eyes were fixed pointedly on the landscape out the window, ignoring her. His coal black hair was pulled back in a low horsetail, bangs trimmed to just above his eyes. He possessed a strong jawline, straight nose, and an air of absolute confidence that was both sexy and utterly infuriating. Finally his gaze shifted and he glanced at her.

"Can I help you with something?" his tone was cool, his expression unfazed by her hostility. Elmina ground her teeth in frustration, ignoring the butterflies inside her that always fluttered to life whenever she met his gaze. His comments from earlier still burned in the back of her mind, making her flush with anger.

They had reached the place where Titus was waiting not far from the station in Resembool. The first words out of Sara's mouth had been about the kidnapping of her younger sister. Titus's typically cool and collected demeanour had vanished and he'd turned on Elmina, who was rarely ever separated from Adele's side.

"You just let them take Adele? What the hell is the matter with you?" the young man's tone was harsh, eyes glittering with hostility.

"Do you think I wanted this to happen?" the dark haired girl snapped, voice raised defensively. She was slightly taken aback by his vehemence. Sure Adele was his friend's younger sister, but did that warrant an explosion?

"Either you were careless, or you don't care about her as much as everyone thinks," he retorted darkly. Elmina's eyes widened, reeling from the uncalled for accusation.

"Titus, lay off," AJ cut in, reaching out and pushing dark haired young man back a step from the younger girl. His tone was even, but his eyes were telling another story entirely. Titus's furious gaze turned on him but the brown haired teen's expression gave him pause. AJ was the least quick tempered of his family next to Adele. But that didn't mean he didn't possess one. It dawned on the dark haired alchemist that he must have crossed a line. He wasn't used to seeing such a threatening intent in the brown haired teen's gaze. He stepped back slightly, reining in his temper.

"Alright," his tone had grown significantly calmer, though he continued to hold eye contact with the mechanic unyieldingly.

"We don't have time for arguing. We need to get to Central. They said they took her there," Sara informed her dark haired companion. Titus nodded.

"Then what are we waiting for? Are they all coming with us?" He asked her, nodding at AJ, Elmina and Wrath.

"Just Wrath and Mina. I can't leave mom on her own with the shop," AJ told him evenly.

"Alright then. I'll go and get our tickets," Titus replied, brushing past the brown haired teen and strolling away. AJ turned to stare after him for a moment, expression unreadable. Finally he turned back to the others.

"I guess this is goodbye," he told them, his tone reluctant. Sara stepped forward to lock him in a hug.

"We'll be back soon. And Adele will be with us," she promised him, releasing him and stepping back. He nodded, passing her one of the bags hanging over his shoulders. Then he turned towards Elmina with the other one.

"Don't let Titus push you around," he told her seriously. The dark haired girl snorted, taking the bag from him.

"As if," she retorted. He smiled at her faintly, although there was concern in his expression.

"Don't worry," Wrath told him, "One of the reasons I'm coming along is to keep the two of them from killing each other,"

"Hey, I can keep Titus in line when necessary," Sara pointed out, slightly defensive.

"I know. It's not Titus I'm worried about," the dark haired man replied dryly. Elmina shot her uncle a glare.

"Very funny. Lets go," she muttered, turning and heading off towards the train station after the infuriating alchemist.

"Didn't your parent's ever teach you it's rude to stare?" Titus's voice jarred her out of her flashback, "Then again, I suppose I shouldn't expect social etiquette to be your strong suite. Not after being raised by a palm tree," his tone was aloof.

"Careful pony boy. My dad could break you in half," Elmina retorted sharply. The young man snorted.

"I'd like to see him try," his tone was unconcerned. Elmina's eyes narrowed.

"So would I," she muttered.

"You know, Titus, I forget how immature you are until I stick you and Mina in the same room together," Sara commented amusedly. Titus shot a rather offended look at the blonde sitting next to him.

"I'll have you know that for a man my age I am exceptionally mature," he replied indignantly. Sara rolled her eyes.

"You just keep telling yourself that," she replied dryly.

"Hmph," he made a dismissive sound before turning to stare back out the window. Elmina continued to glower at him, thoroughly irritated.

"Hey," Sara waved a hand in front of the younger girl's face to get her attention, "Let's play cards or something," she suggested, clearly trying to forestall any more comments.

"We need to be across from each other for that," Elmina grumbled. Sara turned to stare pointedly at the alchemist sitting next to her. When Titus finally turned to meet her gaze again he raised his eyebrows.

"What?" he demanded.

"Move," the blonde ordered flatly. Titus stared at her disbelievingly for a moment. Sara's expression made it clear her request wasn't up for debate. With a long suffering sigh the dark haired young man rose to his feet, allowing the blonde the scoot over next to the window. He sat down across from Wrath, shaking his head.

"Women," his tone was exasperated, "I'm never getting married," he muttered. Wrath smirked.

The rest of the ride passed slowly. Little was said. There was an anxiety eating at each of the four of them that wasn't very conducive to conversation. It was a relief when the train finally arrived in Central. It was late evening and the sun was low in the sky. Wrath led them out of the station and they continued on foot to the hotel near the hospital which Ed and Envy were staying at. It was an older building, decently maintained but weathered with age. As they neared the door into the lobby Titus tapped Sara on the shoulder.

"I'll meet you back here in a little while," he told her, before strolling away without further explanation. The blonde stared after him a moment, then shrugged and followed her uncle and half cousin into the lobby. She was used to the eccentricities of her traveling partner. One of which was his need to completely avoid Elmina's father. She'd never gotten a decent explanation out of him about why he reacted so adversely to the man. It was just something she'd grown to accept.

Envy and Edward were staying on the third floor of the hotel. Wrath led them up the stairs and came to a stop outside one of the rooms on that level. He raised a hand and knocked sharply.

"They might both still be at the hospital," he warned. Several moments passed. Then finally the door swung inward to reveal a rather groggy looking former homunculus blinking at them. As soon as the green haired man's gaze landed on his daughter however, all signs of sleepiness disappeared.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, grey eyes flashing dangerously. Elmina glowered at him, not seeing fit to respond.

"We need to talk," Wrath told him grimly. Envy's gaze moved to the dark haired man for a moment, annoyed but clearly puzzled. Then his gaze fell on the blond girl standing next to his daughter and he suddenly seemed to realize she wasn't his daughter's usual childhood friend.

"Sara?" he asked incredulously, "Where did you come from?" his eyebrow was raised. The blonde smirked faintly.

"Long time no see Uncle Envy," she replied. The green haired man shook his head slightly.

"You sure know how to time your visits. Your father is too tired and distracted to muster up any sort of half decent lecture for you," he commented dryly. Sara's expression grew grim.

"Unfortunately he's going to have more to distract him than just Al's condition," she told him. Envy's eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean?" he demanded.

"Let us in and we'll explain it to you," Wrath replied, tone serious. Envy frowned, but moved away from the door, allowing them to follow him inside.

It was a small hotel room with only a sitting area, a bedroom and a washroom. Sara and Elmina settled onto the old sofa against one wall while Wrath took a chair next to them. Envy sank into a chair across from his daughter and niece.

"Where is my dad?" Sara's tone was puzzled.

"He's back at the hospital. We've been keeping watch over your uncle in shifts. Not that there's really much point in it. He hasn't so much as stirred since we brought him there," Envy sounded tired. "Alright, what's going on? Why is my daughter here despite my order to remain in Resembool?" he fixed a hard gaze on Elmina. The dark haired girl raised her chin rebelliously, grey eyes meeting grey in an irritated stare-off.

"They kidnapped Adele," Elmina's tone was blunt, getting straight to the point. Her father's eyes widened in shock, clearly taken off guard. Then they narrowed.

"Who?" he demanded sharply.

"We believe they are creatures Dante summoned from the gate. They might be Homunculi. There are certainly similarities. But we can't say for sure," Wrath told him, meeting his gaze gravely. Envy let out a breath, sitting back in his chair and staring into space with an unreadable expression.

"Tell me everything," he demanded finally.

It didn't take long to explain. Envy remained silent with a very serious expression on his face as the story was told. His frown deepened when Elmina explained what the red haired assailant had told her regarding Adele's location if they wished to find her. When she finished silence reigned in the room. Envy sat leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees, fingers woven together in front of him and a calculating expression on his face as he stared at the floor. Finally he looked up, fixing his gaze on his daughter.

"I hate to point out the obvious, but this is a trap," his tone was flat. Elmina frowned, appearing to want to object, but Envy shook his head. "They don't want Adele. They're just using her as bait."

"How do you know that?" Sara asked, expression speculative. The green haired man smirked bitterly.

"Trust me on this. I know," he replied.

"Then what are they after?" the blonde demanded. Envy frowned, gaze moving back to his daughter. He had a hard expression on his face as he thought. Finally he shook his head.

"I can't say for sure at this point," he replied grimly.

"Well if they're using her as bait then they probably won't hurt her," Elmina stated cautiously. Envy's expression grew incredulous.

"Never make assumptions like that!" he snapped, "If these creatures are homunculi then the longer we make them wait, the more danger she's in."

"But what reason would they have to—" Elmina's protest was cut off by her father.

"Haven't you ever heard of sadism?" he demanded sharply. Elmina's jaw snapped shut, an expression of frustrated dismay on her face. "Homunculi aren't governed by any sort of moral code. They do what they want, when they want, and I can assure you they have no noble intentions. They enjoy making humanity suffer," his tone was severe.

"And you know this how…?" Sara demanded skeptically. "I thought homunculi didn't exist anymore," her tone was puzzled. Envy gazed at her flatly.

"I'm sure you've been told that both Wrath and I were at one time homunculi ourselves," his tone was unenthused.

"But…like for real?" Sara's expression was startled, "I thought those were just stories…" she sounded unconvinced. Envy rolled his eyes.

"True stories," Wrath told her dryly. Elmina was staring at her father intently.

"Why did mom say not to trust guys in crop tops?" she asked finally, her tone puzzled. Everyone else in the room stared at her, utterly taken off guard by the off topic question. Envy blinked.

"She said that?" he demanded. Wrath tried somewhat unsuccessfully to hold back a smirk.

"She's got a point you know," the dark haired man pointed out.

"Are you saying I'm not trust worthy?" Envy sounded slightly miffed.

"You weren't when you were wearing crop tops," Wrath's tone was grave, but his eyes glittered with amusement.

"Wait, you use to wear crop tops?" Elmina was floored, staring at her father with wide, slightly disturbed eyes.

"We both did," Wrath's lips had twitched into a grin at his niece's reaction. Sara was now staring at the two men with a very odd look on her face. The green haired man took in the expressions of both girls and he let out a resigned sigh.

"You're all so prejudiced against good taste," his tone was slightly rueful. There was an awkward silence.

"You are the only male I know who thinks skirts on men is good taste," Wrath's tone was dry. Envy turned to stare at him with an expression of utter betrayal.

"That was a skort," he snapped defensively. Wrath snickered. Elmina was staring at her father with very wide eyes. Was Wrath implying that her father had worn both a crop top and a skort? She momentarily tried to picture it, and then wish she hadn't. She shook her head and rubbed her eyes. Oh man…so disturbing…they had to be kidding…that was just…scarring.

"I'm sorry…..but I am never going to look at either of you the same way again," Sara's voice was slightly hoarse and she sounded like she was making an effort not to start laughing.

"You have a lot of explaining to do," Elmina eyed her father with a disturbed expression.

"Some other time," Envy muttered, shaking his head.

"In any case, getting back to the subject at hand, I agree with Envy. But we still don't know for sure that these are actually homunculi," Wrath pointed out.

"What else could they be?" the green haired man shot him an odd look.

"With Dante, who knows?" Wrath shrugged.

"Well regardless," Sara spoke up, "This simply reaffirms that we need to find her as soon as possible. I don't care if it's a trap," her tone was obstinate. Envy sighed.

"We need to talk to your father and see if we can come up with something. At this point we don't even know where to start looking. Although something tells me that they'll end up coming to us," the green haired man grimaced.

"Well let's go then," Elmina sounded impatient.

"I don't want you leaving the hotel room," Envy told her sharply, his tone leaving absolutely no room for argument. Elmina's expression lit with outrage.

"You can't tell me all that and then not let me do anything!" she cried in protest. Envy regarded her severely.

"I've told you these things because I want you to realize that you can't afford to be naïve when going up against this sort of foe. You'll remain here with Wrath. I will not lose you as well," he told her sternly. Everything about his words made her want to rebel, but she knew better than to argue with him when he took that tone. Her hands clenched into fists, nails biting into her palms while she seethed silently at him. Envy and Sara rose to their feet. "Let's get going," Envy said, turning and strolling from the room. Sara shot an apologetic glance at the dark haired girl still sitting on the couch, before following after her uncle.

-Author's Note-

Eheheh… Envy and Elmina usually have a better relationship than this... Envy's just…overprotective….for good reason I might add.

You know, Envy pulls off a crop-top and skort pretty well all things considered. But if Envy was your dad (and a 38 year old man at that)…..well...enough said.

So now you've met Sara and Titus. Any thoughts? Don't write Titus off just yet. The reasons for his behavior are somewhat complicated and explained at a later date ;)

Oh, I'd like to add that despite appearances I'm actually a Winry fan. She's just portrayed as a somewhat bitchy lady in this book. x'D This is due in part to the fact that in the 2003 fma, Winry was a lot...less likeable in some ways...than she was in Brotherhood. She's also currently an overstressed mother trying to run a busy business and look after and worry about her family during less than happy circumstances without her spouse around to help. That would bring out the less than pleasant side in all of us I suspect lol.