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Alphonse wasn't sure what woke him up, the dull headache blossoming in the back of his head or the discussion occurring above him, but regardless, he steadily became aware of his aching body and a soft groan escaped him.

"See what I mean? That transmutation must have caused it."

"It might be a coincidence, but I can't imagine how else this could have happened."

Neither of the speakers seemed to have heard Alphonse while the younger Elric wondered where he was. He felt a mattress under his back and cotton bedsheets covering him, but what was he doing in bed? Hadn't he just been outside?

"Maybe you were working on something and there was an accident."

Alphonse's thoughts stuttered, the teenager recognizing his brother's voice, and for some reason just hearing him talk was a relief. But why was that?

An image of Ed reaching for him, vibrant lights flashing eerily across his face and highlighting the desperation in his eyes, suddenly popped into his head.

Alphonse stiffened while the rest of the memories came pouring in and fear stirred his heart once they'd settled. Was Brother hurt? He couldn't remember anything after the transmutation, but Ed would be reckless enough to take them back to the hotel without getting his wounds checked by a doctor first because Brother was an idiot, a selfless idiot, who needed to take care of himself for once!

Worry driving him, Alphonse fought to get up and succeeded in lifting his head for a second before it flopped back onto a pillow. It couldn't have risen more than an inch, but the motion was clearly noticed as the room's occupants abruptly hushed.

"Do you think he's awake?" A young boy who sounded oddly familiar whispered.

In response, Alphonse again strained to lift his head and open his eyes. He didn't manage to move his head this time, but his eyes fluttered and he caught sight of blurry red and silver figures. He sluggishly blinked a few more times until his vision cleared and he found himself staring straight into eyes of molten gold and a mouth curved into a worried frown.

"Al..." Ed's voice was hesitant, uncertain almost. "Alphonse?" His pronunciation was awkward, the syllables more forced than they should be.

"Brother." Alphonse's tongue struggled around the word since his mouth was dry. He must have been sleeping a while in that case, which made him all the more worried because his brother might have left his injuries unattended for hours.

"A-are you okay?" Alphonse struggled to sit up again, wanting to see for himself because Ed had a terrible tendency of hiding his wounds. However, his brother stopped him by gently pushing down his shoulders, Ed's eyes lingering on the rise and fall of his chest beneath the navy blue t-shirt he'd borrowed from him earlier. Alphonse smiled gently, aware Ed still marveled over his restored body—he did too—but he thought his brother would be over the staring phase by the time Central Hospital released him.

"I think I'm the one who should be asking you that." Ed teased lightly, though there was something off about his tone—perhaps due to his brother attempting to hide his pain from a wound.

Alphonse turned his head to examine Ed's right arm, knowing it was the more vulnerable one. Yet Ed was so close all he could make out was his face and upper torso. "Is your arm okay?" He frowned, recalling the man who had interrupted their evening. "And what happened to the alchemist? Did they arrest him?" Depending on how long he'd been asleep, that alchemist might have derailed their plans to return to Resembool tomorrow, and some childish part of Alphonse was upset he would have to go an extra day without Winry's apple pie.

"What time is it? Can we still catch the train?" Alphonse waited expectedly for Ed to explain, but his brother's eyes were dull with confusion.

Finally, though clearly hesitant, Ed said, "My arm is fine...Al..." His speech was slow and carefully crafted. "What do you mean—"

Alphonse stopped listening because it was now he realized his brother's face didn't look quite right. Ed's mouth was surrounded by round, almost childlike cheek bones that hardly resembled the adult angles Ed had gained once he turned sixteen. Furthermore, his brother was standing up straight, but after his growth spurt Brother needed to lean over or be seated to be at eye level with Alphonse whenever the younger boy was laying down. He would know since he had spent the majority of the past two months laying in a hospital bed, Edward hovering over him constantly. Also, the hand that still laid on Alphonse's left shoulder was gloved.

Yet Brother stopped wearing gloves months ago.

"Wait!" Ed cried when Alphonse lurched forward, grabbed his right arm and gripped it firmly.

Alphonse stiffened, eyes widening while his hand tightened around the arm and instead of his fingers sinking into tender flesh, rigid metal pressed against them.

The younger Elric released the arm like it was on fire, snapping his hand back towards his chest while his eyes narrowed. "You're not Brother." His voice was low as he studied this person who looked so much like Ed, but couldn't be him.

"Who are you?" Alphonse asked while trying to keep his face schooled, but he must of failed because the imposter eyed him like he was expecting Alphonse to bolt at any minute.

Was this Envy? Alphonse immediately dismissed the thought because his brother had told him he watched Envy die himself. Still, he couldn't think of anyone else capable of imitating Ed so well.

"Al, calm down." Concern shimmered in the vibrant eyes of the Ed look-alike and perhaps Alphonse should do as he asked since it was getting hard to breathe as he panicked over the possibility one of the homunculus survived and he was trapped with them, his true brother nowhere to be found. Had this imposter done something to Ed? Hurt him or worse—

"Al!"

Alphonse's hand slipped over the bed edge, which he had unconsciously been dragging himself towards in an effort to protect himself, and his eyes closed reflexively as his body tumbled after it.

Only for his back crash into metal, jarring his bones slightly, though his head was thankfully cushioned by the leather of a gauntlet hand.

"Are you alright?" A tinny, youthful voice asked from above and Alphonse looked up to meet a pair of soul-fire eyes emitting from a metal helmet.

Alphonse choked on a scream and for a moment just stared in a complete lack of understanding, but then instinct took over and he threw himself out of the metal arms. The living suit of armor that shouldn't exist released a surprised cry while Alphonse rolled into a low crouch and stopped under the room window, panting with his legs trembling as he hadn't done anything so strenuous since getting his body back.

"Teacher taught us that move..." The fake Ed stared at him with large eyes. "You really are Alphonse."

The younger Elric gazed back at him, noting the imposter was wearing Ed's old red coat, which had disappeared after the battle against Father. Also he was shorter than his real brother, something that was only emphasized by the tall suit of armor behind him, which Alphonse knew was hollow.

"W-what is this? Who are you two?" Alphonse gripped the wall to stand, but his legs gave out so he ended up falling on his hands and knees.

The imposter took a step towards him, expression concerned, yet Alphonse forced himself up and quickly clapped his hands. The fake Ed gaped as Alphonse's palms hit the ground and lightning sparked around the wooden floorboards while they stretched up and curved over the younger Elric, forming a wooden dome around him.

The world was blanketed in darkness while Alphonse slumped against the dome, chest heaving and bony legs sprawling out in front of him.

"Did he just—"

"N-no way... He must have scratched a circle on the floor or something..."

Alphonse ignored the two voices, focusing on calming his racing heart and finding a way out of this mess. He doubted he could fight these people and running away probably wouldn't work even if he transmuted himself a crutch, so retreating was his best option.

"Hey!"

A knock resounded on the dome and Alphonse twitched, realizing the fake Ed was right outside. What if the imposter was an alchemist? He could draw a transmutation circle and deconstruct the dome at any minute!

"I know this is confusing, but we can expla—

Alphonse clapped his hands and touched the ground, lightning flashing as he created a hole in the floor beside him. He peered down, scanning the hotel room and grinning when he saw no one in sight. He pulled his legs into the hole and let them dangle, calculating how to swing himself over to the bed below when alchemy flashed on top of his dome and he whipped up to see the wood splitting open like an orange being peeled.

"Are you listen—" The imposter froze, his gaze falling on the hole in the floor before darting up to Alphonse's wide eyes. "Al, don't—"

Alphonse shoved himself through the hole and dropped, but he didn't make it a foot down before an automail hand latched onto the back of his shirt. He gagged, his shirt collar strangling him as he was yanked up and out of the hole and deposited on the floor. Yet he couldn't move as large metal arms embraced him from behind, pinning his arms to his sides and keeping him seated on the ground. He wrenched back to see that familiar suit of armor crouching over him.

"Please, calm down," the armored boy said, and Alphonse flinched, recognizing his own voice and not understanding how that was possible. Yet he couldn't clap his hands in this position and he knew he wasn't strong enough to break free from the armored boy while the Ed look-alike transmuted the floor back to normal, cutting off his quickest exit.

Alphonse's heart sped up and his breath grew ragged as the imposter turned back, looking like he was going to yell. However, his mouth snapped shut at seeing Alphonse's pale face and his brow furrowed in concern. He stepped towards him and Alphonse jerked back, but only managed to hit his head against the metal chest behind him and he winced.

The fake Ed stopped, frowning. Then he gazed past him to the suit of armor and though Alphonse knew he wasn't really Ed, he was reminded of all the times he and his brother would just glance at each other and know exactly what the other was thinking. Unable to stop himself, Alphonse asked, "Why do you look like Ed?"

The imposter broke off his silent conversation with his companion and his golden gaze bored into Alphonse. For a second, he hesitated, yet soon he said, "This is going to sound crazy, but if your name is Alphonse Elric." He paused, exhaling harshly before admitting. "You're not in the year you think you're in."

Alphonse blinked, his mild headache intensifying with his confusion. "What?"

The imposter briefly closed his eyes, and when he opened them he looked grim while he said, "The year is 1914."

Alphonse's eyes widened. "No, it's...that's impossible..." His voice died away as he recognized not only the implications of the other boy's words, but the fact his claim made sense. Somehow Alphonse was being held by a bodiless boy who had his voice and wore the exact same armor he had when he lost his body, and the Ed lookalike sounded identical to his brother too.

Alphonse couldn't be dreaming, for he'd felt pain when he fell off the bed and landed in metal arms. Yet to believe he had traveled through time...

"We think it had something to do with the transmutation we saw before you appeared." The armored boy spoke up, and Alphonse jolted at hearing his own voice originating from somewhere outside of himself.

"So was it an accident?" Ed asked, snapping Alphonse's attention back to him. "Were you experimenting and it rebound..." He trailed off, noting the lost look on Alphonse's face.

"No," the younger Elric shook his head, his eyes squeezing shut while he slowly wrapped his head around the fact he might actually be in the past. "I didn't activate the transmutation circle." He shook his head. "It was that alchemist."

The brothers shared another look, clearly not following, yet Alphonse just stared at the wooden floorboards while recalling the last time he saw his brother. Edward reaching out, but unable to come closer lest he get caught in the array with him, and Alphonse felt infinitely guilty for putting his brother in such a position.

Alphonse heard footsteps approach him, but couldn't convince himself to look up as the memories overwhelmed him.

"Tell us." Ed's voice was gentle and Alphonse looked up to see his brother—younger than he should be, yet still Ed—crouching in front of him. Alphonse searched that face for something familiar, and it didn't take long to notice his eyes held that same determined glint that was only softened by a tenderness Ed reserved for the ones he held dear.

Alphonse nodded. "Okay...Brother." Ed stiffened ever so slightly at the title. However, he recovered quickly and a small, pleased smirk came upon his face.

The younger Elric smiled back until he remembered what had led to his current predicament and his mouth dipped into a frown. "My brother and I were out late, we needed to buy a few things before leaving Central."

"I'm fine." Alphonse grinned, but with beads of sweat running down his face and a noticeable wheeze, his brother wasn't fooled.

"You're exhausted," Edward said sternly, an almost parental look of disapproval on his face as he appraised Alphonse who was leaning heavily on his crutch. "I knew I should have made you wait at the hotel." He muttered, turning away while he released a long, exasperated sigh.

Alphonse opened his mouth to respond, but his reply turned into a gasp as his feet were swept up and off the ground while hands braced him under his knees and back. "B-Brother!" He dropped his crutch in surprise and scowled when the elder Elric started chuckling with Alphonse in his arms. "I can still walk!" He protested, knocking a bony fist against his brother's torso.

Edward smirked. "What? I was just testing your reflexes!"

Alphonse's scowl deepened as his brother bent down and picked up his crutch, tucking it under his elbow before resuming his walk down the street. "Besides, I promised the doctors I wouldn't let you strain yourself." He glanced down with a cheeky grin. "And I always keep my promises."

The younger boy's ire melted away, realizing his brother meant well, and he smiled a little. "I know, Brother." He sighed, and resigning himself to being carried, leaned his head against Edward's chest. "Do you remember which vitamins to get?"

"Don't have to." Ed checked both sides of the street and then crossed it. "I brought your prescription with me."

They rounded the corner and a small pharmacy came into view near the end of the street, but the elder Elric stopped halfway there and Alphonse looked down to see an empty bench.

"How about you wait here? I should be in and out."

Alphonse nodded and Edward carefully lowered him onto the seat, setting the crutch by the bench while Alphonse melted into the wood since he was still a bit winded from all the walking he'd done earlier. However, a cool breeze disrupted the peace and Alphonse shivered, his short hair fluttering with the strength of the wind.

Edward frowned. "Stupid, you forgot your jacket." Without preamble, Ed took off his hoodie and slipped the prescription out of its pocket.

"I'm fine, you don't have to—" Alphonse was cut off as his brother draped the hoodie securely around his shoulders.

"But you won't be if you catch a cold." Edward asserted, straightening up.

"But what if you get a cold?" Alphonse countered, yet the eldest shook his head.

"Your immune system hasn't had to deal with a chilly night for years, mines has, so you need it more, got it?"

Alphonse couldn't think of a counter argument while Edward tossed back a goodbye and strode down the sidewalk towards the pharmacy, the bell chiming as he pulled open the door and disappeared inside.

The younger Elric shook his head in exasperation over his brother's stubbornness while pushing his arms into the hoodie's sleeves. Another breeze rolled by, but protected by the extra clothing, Al simply smiled at feeling the brisk night air against his face as he pulled out a letter from his pants pocket.

"I wonder how she's doing." Alphonse muttered, staring at the curvy handwriting of May Chang. It was a rather short letter and he'd received it over a month ago, but Alphonse kept finding himself rereading it and pondering when he would hear from her again.

A loud clang against pavement made Alphonse jump, and he hastily stuffed the letter into the hoodie's pocket before turning back to see a stray cat perched on top of a trash can in an alley.

"Oh." His heart relaxed when he realized the kitten must of knocked over the trash lid and he chuckled as the tiny white and gray feline struggled to drag out a half-eaten fish twice its size from the garbage. He was thinking of going over and petting the kitten when a hand slapped over his face and he inhaled sharply, gasp muffled by a white cloth while a sweet smell invaded his nostrils.

He quickly reached up to tear the hand off, but a second hand caught his wrists midair. His eyes darted over to see a tall man wearing a black cloak, his face obscured by his hood. Alphonse tried to shout, but suddenly the world swayed and seemed to slow while his arms grew heavy. His hands went lax in the man's grip and his head lolled against the cloth covering his face. Chloroform?

Alphonse noticed the chemical scent permeating the cloth right as the world turned black and his thoughts faded away.

The younger Elric woke up sluggishly with barely enough strength to raise his head. He saw nothing as he opened his eyes, so blinked until his vision adjusted to the darkness and he soon made out the concrete walls of a spacious basement, its musty smell making his nose wrinkle while a lone lamp across the room emitted a hazy, orange glow. A hooded man in a cloak was crouched beside the light etching something onto the floor. Alphonse squinted at the ground to see what he was drawing and started at seeing a blood red circle surrounding him.

"You're awake."

Alphonse looked up at the man with wide eyes, unable to see into the depths of his hood, but guessing he was male from his deep voice and broad stature.

"Where am I?" Alphonse asked, only to find he could do little more than mumble through a cloth tied around his mouth. He moved to untie the gag, but his arms hardly budged before hitting something cool and hard. Alphonse twisted around, and saw steel bars jutting out from the floor that were twined haphazardly around his arms, forcing them to stand upright and rooting him in a stiff sitting position.

"There's no point in struggling, I used alchemy to bind you."

Alphonse turned back to the man—this alchemist—while his breathing quickened. Yet the cloaked man was no longer looking at him as he continued to sketch symbols on the floor with a piece of chalk. "I don't have time to answer all your questions, but I suppose you might be more compliant if I tell you some things." A lazy drawl stretched the vowels in the man's words while he announced. "I am a bio-alchemist, a great one."

Immediately Alphonse understood it was arrogance making him sound like that, and now he knew he was in serious trouble.

Because arrogance and alchemy never mixed well.

Also, Alphonse was pretty sure he was sitting in the middle of a transmutation array.

"It's a shame the state didn't think so," the alchemist continued, mild frustration coloring his voice. "No matter what I did, they never let me pass their little exam."

Alphonse tuned out the man's rant and tugged at his arms, yet he could hardly move a finger. His legs were free, but that wouldn't help him since the man was a few yards away and the lines of the circle weren't close enough to reach either so he couldn't destroy the array.

"You'll be the first living organism transported by alchemy."

Alphonse's attention snapped back to the alchemist who was staring at him, his teeth gleaming in a wicked grin from under his hood. "Just think of the implications. No longer will we need cars, trains, or perhaps even walking. Why use any of those when my array can transport people miles away in a matter of seconds?" The man rose and lifted the lamp as he glided over to Alphonse.

"It doesn't cost much either. You merely need an alchemist, a piece of chalk, and some blood." The hooded man crouched beside him and reached within the folds of his cloak. Alphonse tried to lean back, expecting the flash of a knife, but the man merely pulled out a vial containing a thick, red liquid. He swished it in front of the lamp before popping off its cork lid.

"We grabbed some of your blood while you were out." He dumped the liquid around Alphonse in the shape of an arch and stood. "It will help direct the flow of the transmutation, so it will know to transport your specific organic composition." He splashed the last drops of blood onto Alphonse's black shoes and shirt. "And hopefully your clothing too."

Alphonse watched the blood—his blood—spread out to the white lines and symbols surrounding him. However, the bio-alchemist lifted the lamp higher before Alphonse could fully examine the transmutation circle.

"There is no time to delay." The man bared his teeth in another grin before returning to the circle's outer edge and bending down.

Alphonse writhed in his bindings, breath hitching as the alchemist placed his hands on ground—

A door slammed open, and Alphonse flinched while the alchemist jumped to his feet with a growl, undoubtedly about to shout at whoever had interrupted him. Yet a flash of silver spun in the air and clocked the man upside his head, the alchemist collapsing and the lamp falling from his grip to shatter on the ground while what sounded like a metal pipe clattered beside it.

"Al!"

Alphonse's heart skipped a beat at the sound of Ed's voice and he turned towards the basement door, but couldn't see anything now that the lamp was out.

"Al, are you in here?!"

The younger Elric saw the shadowed figure of his brother enter the room, and his shout of joy was muffled by the gag, but loud enough to be heard.

"Alphonse!" Edward ran into the circle and barely stopped in time to avoid trampling him.

"Brother!" Alphonse tried to say, now able to make out those warm golden eyes peering down at him.

"Al, what—" Edward suddenly noticed his trapped position and quickly dropped to his knees. "Never mind, we'll talk about this later." He clumsily felt around the back of Alphonse's head before finding the knot to the gag and pulling it apart.

He tossed the cloth aside while Al moved his tongue around his mouth to regain feeling in it before asking, "Brother, how did you find me?"

"Those idiots were dumb enough to drive off in the oldest car on the planet and left an oil trail." Edward smirked, but frowned when he spotted the metal twisted around his brother's arms.

Ed cursed. "I can't undo this without another—"

Light flashed like a firework going off in front of his face and Alphonse was blinded briefly by the eruption of blue sparks around him.

"Now we make history!"

Alphonse's eyes snapped open to see the bio-alchemist activating the circle as Ed swiveled towards him in horror while the ground lit up beneath him.

The younger Elric heard the hum of electricity, tasted it on his tongue, and knew he only had a second to do something, so he forced every bit of his strength into his legs and kicked his brother back.

Edward's eyes widened as he tumbled away, and Alphonse felt bad when he landed harshly outside of the white circle, but not for what he'd done.

"Al!" Edward scrambled up, throwing out his hand towards him from behind the ring of light. "Alphonse!"

Because he'd do anything to keep Brother safe.

"ALPHONSE!"

"You idiot!" Ed shouted in his face and Alphonse reeled back against the armor behind him. "What's wrong with you?! I could have gotten you out of there!" His brother looked livid, and Alphonse was surprised to have such vehemence directed his way, but refused to budge in his decision.

"There wasn't any time." Alphonse insisted.

"Time?!" Ed scoffed and rose to his full height. "It takes like two seconds to transmute metal!"

Alphonse blinked until he realized his brother was right. In this time period, Ed could have gotten him out. However, in Alphonse's time, his brother couldn't perform alchemy anymore, and he could only imagine how his brother's past self would react to that detail so he kept his mouth shut.

Ed's expression grew sterner as he misinterpreted Alphonse's silence. "So you didn't think it through?" He hissed, looking like he might punch a wall.

"Brother." Ed and Alphonse turned to the armored boy who released Alphonse and straightened up, gaze on the eldest Elric. "You don't know if there really was enough time, and if you had been added to the transmutation when it was only balanced to transport one—"

"It might have rebounded and killed us both." Alphonse concluded, shooting his younger self a grateful look.

"Or it could have sent us—I mean, you and him through time." Ed added, his face smoothing out as he began to consider the possibilities.

"True, but I didn't get a good look at the transmutation circle and I doubt my brother did either, so if we both had gotten transported, we might have been stranded in this time for a while, if not forever."

Ed gained a troubled look as he saw Alphonse's point while Al chimed. "See, Brother? He made the best choice because now his brother can examine the circle and find a way to get him back." His voice filled with cheer as he gave Alphonse what was probably supposed to be an encouraging look.

Ed gazed thoughtfully at his younger sibling for a second, but soon he smiled. "I hate to admit it, but I guess you made the safest choice, Al." He sounded reluctant to say it, yet there was no denying Al's choice was logical. "I guess we don't have to wait long then. My future self will probably figure out what that amateur alchemist did wrong and then create a transmutation that can reverse it soon enough."

He looked down to send Alphonse a smile, but his face fell when he noticed the younger Elric's troubled expression. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Alphonse shook his head and forced out a grin to chase away Ed's unease. "Oh, nothing, I just think it might take Brother more than a few hours."

Surprise flashed over Ed's face, but soon he scowled. "Are you doubting me? Of course I can figure it out in a few hours!" He puffed out his chest, clearly offended.

"It's not that!" Alphonse waved his hands rapidly to show he wasn't doubting his brother's intelligence.

"Then what are you implying?!" Ed glared, noticing the way Alphonse looked like he wanted to say something, but stayed quiet.

Meanwhile, the younger Elric struggled to think of an excuse to explain that it would take Edward some time to call another alchemist who could perform the reversal transmutation.

"I'll explain later," Alphonse finally said. "It's late and I think I've had enough of talking." He kept his tone flat and hoped his words didn't sound like the excuse that they actually were.

"He's right, Brother." Al looked up at the clock ticking on the cream wall above the bed. "It's past midnight and you have to be up by seven if we want to visit the library before the train arrives."

Alphonse cocked his head. "Train?" The Elric brothers turned to see his curious expression. "Where are you heading?"

"Liore." Ed shrugged. "We heard a rumor about a man using a philosopher...stone... What is it?" He eyed Alphonse with concern as the boy from the future had paled considerably.

However, Alphonse's features quickly turned neutral. "It's nothing." Both of the Elrics stared at him in disbelief, so Alphonse added. "I was just remembering something that happened there."

He couldn't tell them how confident he and his brother had been upon leaving Liore, believing they'd freed those people from that power-hungry man, only to hear of the bloodshed and destruction that came upon the city shortly thereafter.

"Is it something bad?" Al asked, seeing the worried slant to his future self's brow.

"No, nothing like that." Alphonse doubted he convinced his younger self, but felt saying more would lead to negative consequences, so he laid his palms on the floor and pushed himself to his feet. Yet his legs instantly crumpled and Ed lunged to wrap his arm around his waist, saving him from falling.

"Are you alright?" Ed glanced worriedly at Alphonse's legs. "I didn't see any injuries on you. Did I miss something?" Guilt saturated his tone and Alphonse quickly shook his head.

"No, it's not an injury... I'm guessing my crutch didn't come with me?" Alphonse, seeing Ed's concern magnify, explained. "I—well, let's just say my body isn't in full health and my muscles haven't fully recovered from my condition."

"Condition?" Ed looked even more concerned, but Alphonse didn't want to explain how his muscles had atrophied during its time in the Gate, so stayed quiet.

"Is that why you're so thin?" Al stuttered, also sounding worried.

"Yes, but the condition isn't permanent." Alphonse beamed. "I'll be fine soon."

Ed observed him uncertainly, and Alphonse knew more questions were on the tip of his tongue, so he tried to shuffle forward and almost tripped when Ed didn't anticipate the movement and go with him.

"H-hold on!" Ed scowled as if angry, but Alphonse knew he was really just worried so quietly apologized and allowed Ed to guide him over to the bed.

They worked together to get him on the mattress, Alphonse ignoring the soul-fire gaze following him, which lingered there even after Ed turned off the lights and left to get changed in the restroom.

Alphonse laid back and stared at the ceiling while the armored boy—or Al, he supposed—continued to stare until the silence became intolerable.

"This must be strange for you." Alphonse exhaled, dropping his gaze to the mattress while he pulled the covers over himself.

A beat passed, and then he heard the creak of Al's metal head titling his way. "Actually," Al gently began, his voice sounding so much like Alphonse's own it was somewhat disturbing. "I think it's nice."

Alphonse's head shot up in surprise.

Al noticed his expression despite the darkness and went on. "Brother wasn't very hopeful before you showed up, and now I think he'll be happy." He twiddled his thumbs bashfully. "It means a lot to me too...seeing my body—or your body I guess."

Alphonse smiled, understanding. If he recalled correctly, he hadn't even been sure his body still existed until Edward told him he'd seen it in the Gate. It had been such a relief to have that verbal confirmation, but if he had actually seen his body and soul rejoined in a future version of himself, Alphonse would have been ecstatic back then.

"I know." Alphonse nodded, and though the armor was expressionless, he sensed his past self grinning back at him.

A more comfortable silence settled in the room, and emboldened, Alphonse said, "So you're taking a train tomorrow... That's funny, me and Brother we're taking a train tomorrow, and we were in Central too."

Al perked up. "Oh, that is a funny coincidence. Don't tell me you were also heading to Liore?" A giggle sputtered from the armor, and Alphonse chuckled at the joke.

"No, we're going back to Resembool..." He frowned, growing serious as something occurred to him. "Speaking of coincidences, where did you guys find me?"

Al, noting the change in mood, quickly replied. "The transmutation happened right in front of us, about a street away from Central Library."

Alphonse's eyes narrowed in concentration. "By 'right in front' you mean...?"

"Really close, you almost ended up right on top of Brother." Al noticed the contemplative expression on his older counterpart's face. "What is it?"

"I'm not sure." Alphonse shook his head. "But I think it's strange that out of all the places in Central, or even Amestris, I ended up right next to a younger version of me and my brother."

There was a pause, a moment where both Erlics fell into deep thought, and then in unison they gasped. "The blood."

Alphonse blinked and his younger self regarded him in shock. "My blood was used in the array—"

"And instead of guiding the transmutation to take you to another location in 1915—"

"It honed in on the only person in 1914 with similar DNA in their blood."

"Brother." They finished simultaneously, and Al felt the oddest sense of kinship fill him. It was like conversing with Ed, but even deeper, and peering into the eyes of his older self he could tell Alphonse felt the same way.

"What..."

Both twins turned sharply to see Ed standing in the bathroom doorway, hair loose and wearing nothing but a shirt and boxers while he stared at them with a baffled expression.

Ed opened his mouth, closed it, and then opened it to say, "That was one of the freakiest things I've ever seen." His voice was so solemn Al couldn't help except chuckle. Ed glared at him, but didn't say anything as he went over to the sofa chair in the room corner, and Alphonse suddenly realized he was occupying the sole bed in the room.

Concerned, Alphonse sat up on shaking arms. "Brother, you can't sleep on the couch. You'll wake up sore."

Ed waved him off while he flopped back on the cushion, his legs swinging over the sofa arm. "It's more comfortable than a desk and I fall asleep at those all the time."

Alphonse wanted to protest, but hearing Al release an exasperated sigh, knew it was pointless. "Fine..." He conceded, settling down. "Goodnight, Brother." He sunk back into the mattress and Ed muttered a reply before going silent.

His younger self moved to sit in the room corner by the window to search for constellations in the night sky and then probably pull out a book to read under the moonlight. Alphonse knew because it wasn't that long ago he spent every night doing the same.

That was why Alphonse closed his eyes and pretended not to hear the boy trapped in armor whisper. "It must be nice..."

His younger self trailed off, but Alphonse knew what he meant, and he wondered if it was compassion or selfishness to pity him.

In the morning, Ed managed to find a thick, sturdy piece of scrap metal. He clapped his hands in the middle of the hotel lobby before placing them on the metal, making it elongate into a thin pole. Alphonse watched in fascination, having not seen his own brother use alchemy for over two months.

Though his awe quickly turned into exasperation when the transmutation was completed and Ed grinned. "There! I bet you've never seen a crutch this perfect, right?"

Alphonse stared at the black crutch with a red goblin face gleaming from the top while red and orange flames patterned the crutch like flower wallpaper decorating a bathroom wall. He didn't want to hurt Ed's feelings, but there was no way he was stepping outside the hotel with such a gaudy object.

"Brother..." Al shook his metal head in dismay and saved Alphonse the trouble of finding polite words to spare Ed's ego.

The older Elric rounded on his sibling. "What?! It looks awesome!"

"That's debatable."

"Are you judging my style?!"

"I'm not even sure that is a style!"

Ed stomped his foot, huffing. "You, Winry, and nobody else understands how amazing—"

Alphonse clapped his hands and brought it upon the crutch. The goblin melted back into the metal because it had to go and the flame pattern faded into a simple black all around.

Satisfied, Alphonse looked up from his creation, only to meet Ed's wide eyes while his younger self hunched over to examine the crutch more closely.

"H-how did you do that?!" Ed screeched, causing the hotel receptionist to glance up from his newspaper before deeming the trio unimportant.

"I..." Alphonse suddenly realized in this time period he still had to use a circle because he hadn't regained his memory of Truth yet.

"You can do it too!" His younger self cried, a mixture of shock and excitement pitching his voice. "I knew you couldn't have drawn a transmutation circle that fast!" He recalled Alphonse transmuting the floor yesterday while his older self debated what to tell them.

Last night Alphonse had been able to deflect Ed's curiosity and his younger self seemed too polite to bombard him with questions at such a late hour, but the Elric brothers had always been curious about everything under the sun so he doubted they would let this go. However, being vague was probably for the best right now, according to the faint recollection Alphonse had on time travel theories, which he planned to study extensively in the Central library.

Alphonse turned to his younger self. "You won't understand this." He rotated towards Ed and quietly admitted. "I remember Truth and the Gate."

The eagerness died on Ed's face and he paled. "You mean—"

"Yes," Alphonse interrupted, not wanting his brother to say more than he should in front of Al. "You weren't the only one who saw him, we did the transmutation together after all."

Understanding filled Ed's golden eyes and Alphonse felt a little bad for destroying the levity they'd shared a moment ago.

"What are you two talking about?" Al observed him and Ed in confusion. "Brother?" He was clearly fishing for information and sounded more than put out at being left out the conversation.

Yet Ed looked away, gaze hardening. "It's not important, Al." He gravely appraised the crutch Alphonse was leaning on, now viewing its transformation in a different light.

"But if he could show me how to perform alchemy faster, I could help you better in fights." Al pushed.

"Well, clearly you will one day." Ed nodded in Alphonse's direction. "So don't worry about it." He tossed back as he hurried out of the hotel's front doors, making both Alphonses scramble to catch up with him.

Al easily reached the elder boy and swiftly engaged him in conversation. However, Alphonse was still walking out the door when the two started heading down the sidewalk. Fortunately, Al looked back, and noticing his older self was behind them, stayed put and waited for him to catch up. Once Alphonse was near though, the two Elrics continued on at a brisk pace while animatedly discussing something.

"Hey!" Alphonse called while his crutch clacked rapidly against the sidewalk to match his rushed steps. It was the closest Alphonse could get to running in his condition, but if he was being honest, he was doing little more than walking. "Ed, Al, wait!"

It didn't help that the morning crowd was more chaotic than the afternoon rush hour as shop owners placed OPEN signs on their front windows and cars honked and hummed all over the streets. Also, people were flooding the sidewalks, so it wasn't long until Alphonse lost sight of the other Elrics in the crowd.

Though Alphonse wasn't worried since he had memorized the path to Central library ages ago. Therefore, he rounded the street corner confidently. Yet his crutch nearly fell out his grasp when his face collided into a blue uniform.

"Woah, there!" A hand landing on his shoulder steadied Alphonse before he could collapse. "You alright, kid?"

Disoriented from the collision, Alphonse didn't recognize the voice. However, as he opened his mouth to thank the man and go on his way, his golden orbs met hazel eyes behind a pair of glasses and he froze.

Alphonse's face twitched, contorting with half-horror and half-joy while a harried looking Maes Hughes stared back at him, his brow raised curiously.

Yes, I went there.

In the next chapter, there will of course be Alphonse's reaction to Maes and more interaction between the trio of brothers as they take the train to Liore.

See ya!

Revised: 4/21/21