Chapter Two: Anemone

Anemone on a darker note indicates fading hope and a feeling of having been forsaken. On a positive note it symbolizes anticipation.

"Here you go."

A tray holding three cups of tea was placed on the coffee table in front of Edward and Alphonse. Kaiser calmly placed the cups on the table and put away the tray.

"Ah, no, you shouldn't have troubled yourself!" Alphonse said quickly. He couldn't drink anyway, and he didn't like the idea of Kaiser's efforts going to waste.

"Nonsense," Kaiser smiled. "If you are going to help try getting back the lost people this is the least that I can do."

Edward took a cup and sipped. "This is good," he said with a smile. He didn't drink much tea, but this one had a welcoming feeling that made him feel comfortable at once.

He cradled the cup in his hands and took in the view of the room. The walls were a shade of clean cream-white. A lamp hung overhead, casting its lights to every corner of the room. A fireplace stood conspicuously at the wall, embers still emanating warmth – nights at Faeburn often get chilly, according to Kaiser, and it was common for people to light the hearth every evening and let it burn through the night to keep the house warm, even in the middle of summer.

But it was the framed pictures standing on the stone fireplace that drew Edward's attention. Still carrying the tea, he stood up and approached the fireplace to take a better look at them. A rather old picture depicted a clearly younger Kaiser in wedding attires, hand locked with that of a pretty blonde with dark eyes in a wedding dress. Another depicted them sitting next to each other with interlocked hands – Kaiser was staring at the woman's swelled stomach with a gentle smile on his lips. Another was that of Kaiser, holding a small baby in his hands, a tender yet sad smile adorning his face. The next pictures showed either the child alone or her with Kaiser as she grew older. The biggest photograph, standing at the dead center, showed the blond girl with twinkling green eyes grinning and hugging Kaiser, who was smiling wide, green eyes laughing.

"Beautiful, isn't she?" Kaiser sighed from his seat. "Her name is Cadie. Many men have tried to court her, none has succeeded. Often, people describe her as 'one with hair of spun gold and eyes of young spring leaf'." He chuckled at that. "I see that the description suits you even more, though, Mr. Elric. Particularly about the hair. Your hair looks strangely golden."

"I blame genetics for this, as well," Edward shrugged.

"You might want to be careful," Kaiser sipped his tea, "Fairies love shiny things. They favor blond women and children, even more so when they have blue eyes. You are by no means a female or a little kid, but your hair might draw their attention."

"What? Are you saying these fairies have preferences, now?" Edward's eyes were wide. He found the whole situation ridiculous, and it was getting even more so by the passing moments. "What is it with you people? Why do you believe in fairies so much? They're fictional!"

"Brother!" Alphonse chided at once. "I'm sorry, Mr. Lotus. Brother can be really rude sometimes – "

"Hey!"

" – though I'm also wondering why everyone believes fairies are real?"

Kaiser looked away. "We weren't like this before," he muttered. "We used to think that fairies weren't real, ourselves. We thought wrong." He turned to them. "I suggest we all rest for the night. I'm sure the two of you are tired after that train ride." He stood up. "Let me show you your room. I'm afraid you'll have to share."

"It's okay, we always share rooms anyway," Alphonse answered calmly.

Kaiser's smile was that of relief. "Let's go, then. Better not waste any time."

They walked through the house's dimly lit corridors and climbed the stairs. Soon they were led to a dark green door, and Kaiser opened it with a swift, fluid motion. He turned on the lamp, and they saw that the room was painted with the same shade of cream-white the whole house was painted with. A dresser stood on a corner, next to the window overlooking the road. The bed had no frame, instead it was only a mattress with layers upon layers of blankets and multiple pillows that seemed more than ready to drown whoever slept on it with fluffy squishiness. Next to it another mattress was laid down, but it had less blankets and pillows on it, clearly put later to accommodate more people.

"Sorry about the beds," Kaiser exclaimed. "Cadie has always preferred it that way, and I see no point trying to tell her to use bed frames. After all, I, myself don't use it." He smiled fondly, but it was swiftly replaced by a serious expression. "It would be better if you keep the window locked. It never really stopped the fairies from coming before, but it's better than nothing. Though…" he glanced at Alphonse. "Maybe you'll be safer compared to most." He smiled politely. "Please make yourself at home. If you need anything, my room is just across this one, and the bathroom is in the end of the corridor. Good night."

"Good night, Mr. Lotus."

"Yeah, 'night."

The door was closed with a dull thud. Edward flopped down on the mattress with less blankets, sighing. "Well, we better rest then. I'm pretty sure we're gonna have a long day tomorrow."

Alphonse nodded. "Right." He paused before saying, "Maybe you should take the other bed, Brother. It looks more comfortable."

"Hell no, it'll drown me in sheets!"

"Just try it out at least!"

"Fine, fine." A shift and a flop, and Edward's eyes widened in pleasant surprise. "Holy shit, this is so comfy!"

Glares.

That was what they met when they walked around the ridiculously small town the next day. Glares from all direction. Apparently all people had already thought of him as a faeling. If they weren't outright glaring, they were sending him suspicious glances at all times.

"What's he doing here?"

"Goddamned faeling must be spying to look for new victim…"

"But if he's a faeling how come he's fine going around with that man in armor?"

"He's still half human, stupid. That part probably protects him from iron. What a pity."

"Didn't he say he was from the military? I saw him bringing around the alchemists' pocket watch."

"Probably just a leaf with some glamour casted on it."

"A dog and a faeling. What a joke. He probably also used glamour to make that kind of appearance."

"What even is a glamour?" Edward grumbled in annoyance as he tried his best to ignore all the hostile whisperings around him. He was used to walking into crowds where people would mutter things about him, but not like this – most of the time they didn't even realize the Fullmetal Alchemist was walking right under their noses (both literally and figuratively) and never were they accompanied by eyes that seemed to be screaming for him to get lost. And certainly none of those were ever this menacing.

"Don't pay attention to them, Brother," Alphonse whispered to him. He walked closely behind the older Elric, as if trying to guard his back from whatever attack might come from behind. "Where's the house?"

"Just ahead," Edward muttered. Just another minute or two of walking later, they reached a small house with black roof, and Edward knocked the door, silently praying that he could go in and investigate the scene as soon as possible.

The door swung open and a young woman about the age of Lieutenant Hawkeye stepped out, only to freeze and scowl upon seeing them. "What do you want?"

Edward pulled out his pocket watch. "Excuse me, Ma'am, but we need to look at – "

"I'm not letting a faeling into my house."

Edward struggled to keep his temper in reigns. He was not a faeling. He wasn't even aware of their supposed existence until the day before.

"Please, Ma'am," like always, Alphonse immediately took over while Edward tried to calm himself. "We just want to help. We need to find out who took all the missing people so we can stop the disappearances and return them."

"We already know who took them. The fairies did!"

"We don't know that for sure," Alphonse shook his head. "And even if the fairies did take them all, some clues would really help us getting them back."

The woman stood by the door, seemingly contemplating Alphonse's point. "Fine," she said at last, "but he's not coming in."

"Can he at least check the window and the surrounding from the outside, please?"

The woman opened her mouth to protest, but soon she closed it again and nodded begrudgingly. "My daughter's room is over there," she pointed to the side of the house.

Soon, Edward and Alphonse were both investigating the house; Alphonse from the inside and Edward from the outside. They weren't hoping they could find some relatively useful hints since the girl from this house disappeared over a week before. Not many clues could have survived that long.

Fortunately, they had an idea what to look for. They had investigated Kaiser's house earlier, particularly Cadie's room and the outside of its window, as well as another house where a child was taken. They were met with strong resistance in that house much like this one, but they managed to convince the parents to let them investigate. Even though much time had passed some clues weren't so easily wiped away by the passing days. Edward started to search at the window – the closed wooden shutters and the rock solid walls they were built upon. His eyes narrowed in concentration as they roamed around in attempt to find something. Then they widened when they finally noticed it.

"Al, I found it!" he said, knocking the closed shutter next to the one he was staring at.

Alphonse quickly came over from the inside, opening the shutter he had knocked at. "Where?"

Edward pointed at the shutter. It held patterns of squares overlapping with each other, and it was something that all alchemists knew all too well. "This looks just like the one at Lotus' house. And the Davis house, too. We definitely have a pattern right here." He looked up to search for the woman of the house. "Ma'am, did you see anything out here the night your daughter was taken?"

"Shouldn't you be more knowledgeable, Faeling?" the woman spat her reply scathingly. Edward bit his tongue to keep himself from screaming obscenities at her – it wouldn't help him at all in here.

"Ma'am, please," Alphonse's soothing voice flowed to his ears and he could feel himself relaxing to it. Alphonse's voice had always had that effect. "We need as much clue as possible."

Apparently Alphonse's voice didn't just affect him, but the woman as well. "Well," she began somewhat reluctantly, "I saw some blue lights, like lightning. But isn't it just a kind of fairy magic?"

"We're not sure yet," Alphonse answered. "We're still trying to figure it out."

Edward poked his head into the room through the window, ignoring the woman's poisonous glare. "Can you tell me how the room was when you checked it out in the morning? Was it colder, stuffier, full of weird smell, anything?"

"The room was slightly cooler, as if the windows had been opened." Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "But you've known all this, haven't you. Why does a faeling like you even need to go around asking for information about the missing people?"

Edward's eyes darkened. "I'm not a faeling," he stated firmly. "I'm an alchemist of the state. I'm here to help."

The woman snorted and looked away. "As if a dog can help us more than a half fae."

Edward opened his mouth to retort, but Alphonse held him back. "Thank you for your time, Ma'am," he said calmly, though his voice adopted a chilly tone. "We'll be taking our leave."

Edward practically stomped away from the house. He stepped out of the gate and looked around the neighborhood, inwardly wondering if there was any villager willing to help him at all. He sighed, crossing his arms across his chest. If this went on he'd have to call Mustang to send him some help, since someone who looked fully human would most likely receive a much warmer welcome.

He snorted at the thought. Looked fully human. Sure he was short of two limbs, but did he resemble an imaginary creature of any kind?

The sound of clanging metal drew his attention away from his musings. His head turned to take in the view of Alphonse walking closer.

"So all three houses have the same pattern on their windows, and the parents all found the room was slightly cooler than usual," he mused as soon as Alphonse stopped walking.

Alphonse nodded. "Not to mention the blue lights," he added.

"It's definitely an alchemist, if not many of them." Edward stroked his chin in thought. "They know enough of the fairies to know what strings to pull. Convincing these people that fairies are the ones taking away their children is easy with the help of alchemy."

"But why…?"

"We're both asking that question, aren't we, Al?" Edward's response was more of a statement than a question. "Come on – "

"Mom, is the fae here to take Kelly and Tahlia too?"

They two Elrics turned to the side of the road to search for the one who spoke. Their eyes met ones that belonged to a young boy of ten, hands holding two younger girls, most likely his younger sisters. Beside him, a woman stood and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, Nolan, Dear. No one's going to take anyone." She glared at the brothers as if challenging them to do something before she ushered her children away. She refused to look at them anymore, while the boy kept on giving them warning looks. The girls, however, looked more curious than anything.

Edward sighed. "How many times do I have to say I'm not a faeling until they remember, I wonder? I almost missed being scorned for being a military dog."

Alphonse didn't say anything, but he put his hand on Edward's shoulder. The older alchemist strained his neck to look at his brother and smiled. "Come on, Al. I heard fairies like forests, maybe we can find something in the woods."

When they were finally away from the glaring people and towering houses, Edward gave a sigh of relief. He never knew that being stared at with such hostility could be so tiring. The vacant woods gave a sense of peace and quiet, since there was no one around.

"I think we should go into the forest," Alphonse said. "If there are people hiding in there, there has to be some marks or something."

Edward nodded in agreement. "Good idea, Al."

Before they could take more than five steps, a voice called to them harshly, "Hey!"

They froze in their steps and turned to see a young man walking to them with a frown in his face. His dark brown hair waved along with the wind and his brown eyes were full of disagreement with their action. "The woods' off-limits," he said with a tone that suggested that it was common knowledge in Faeburn.

"Sorry, we didn't know," Alphonse apologized.

"Oh, right, you're the newcomers," the young man scratched his head. "Did no one tell you?"

Edward shook his head. "Everyone's been too busy calling me faeling or dog of the military to do that," he stated, a hint of bitter anger seeping into his voice.

"Not even Mr. Lotus?"

"Must've slipped his mind." Edward stared at him. "Why's the woods off-limits?"

The young man stared into the shadows casted by the leaves of the trees. "We don't want to offend the fairies," he said. "Fairies love nature. We don't want to accidentally break something. We can't risk having the missing people treated badly, or worse, have another person missing." He gestured at them. "We understand that sometimes it's necessary to go there though, so as long as you don't go in too deep you'll be fine. Come on, I'll accompany you. I often go here so I know the place enough not to get lost."

Edward moved closer warily. "Most people in the town don't trust me."

The young man stopped and stared at him. "You may be a faeling," he started, slowly, as if contemplating the right words to use, "but you're also part of the military. You're still half human at least. And even though you might have grown with the fae folks for all I know I believe you'd still sympathize with the people that are taken at the very least. So I choose to believe you."

Edward froze, staring. It was almost too good to be true to even imagine someone trusting him like this in this town aside from Kaiser. He couldn't find any word to say to the young man.

He smiled and reached out his hand. "I'm Ives. Ives Fennel. I never did manage to catch your names."

"Edward," he shook the outstretched hand. "Edward Elric. And this is my brother, Alphonse."

"Nice to meet you, Edward, Alphonse."

"Ed and Al's fine. So how deep exactly are we allowed to go in…?"

The three were just barely past the outmost tree when they heard breaking twigs and shuffling feet. Edward turned to see who was there, and he was surprised to see Chrysan walking closer, bringing something in a small basket covered with a napkin. She didn't see them behind the trees, and Edward wasn't keen on changing that because of his previous encounter with the woman.

Chrysan set down the basket on the ground, a few feet away from the woods, not noticing the three onlookers at all. She took the napkin off of the basket and laid it on the grass, then she reached into the basket and put a freshly baked cupcake on it. She also took a handful of white and pink flowers from the basket and set them around the napkin, creating a circle around it, along with a few pinecones. Then, she reached again into the basket, heaved a sigh, and took a few things and set them on the napkin alongside the cupcake. Edward's eyes went wide when he realized them to be gemstones.

"Please," she said quietly towards the forest, "please give me back my child. I beg of you. He's my everything. I'll give anything, just let me be with him again."

Edward felt his heart clench with every word the mourning mother said. There was something painfully familiar in the way her eyes glistened with tears and in the desperate prayers she spoke. He felt all hostile thoughts he had ever directed at her vanishing into smoke, and replaced by sympathy. He knew how she felt. He understood her perfectly. After all, he once had to go through the same thing. The difference was that he managed to bring back his everything, and he didn't know if Chrysan could have hers.

Chrysan stood up and heaved another sigh, shaky this time as if she was trying hard to keep herself from crying. She turned and stumbled away, sounds of stifled sobs following her steps.

Edward felt Alphonse's presence by his side and turned. The living suit of armor was staring at Chrysan's retreating back. "I wonder if Mom would do the same for us," he whispered softly.

Edward felt his heart clench once again. "Al…"

Alphonse looked at him, and Edward got the impression that Alphonse was smiling sadly at him. "Well, it's not like it's possible anyway, now that she's gone. Come on, Brother, we should go find some clues." He started towards the woods, clanging plates creating a ruckus as he waded through soil, roots, and bushes. Edward quickly followed, and realized for the first time how lucky he was that Alphonse rarely turned and went his own way without prior notice like this. Being so much bigger than Ed, the elder Elric had difficulty aligning his steps to the younger one.

"Hey, guys?"

The two stopped immediately. They turned to look at Ives, whose presence they had forgotten completely. The older teen simply smiled at them. "I think it's better if I lead," he said. "Let's not take any chances of getting lost, shall we?"

Edward's brows wrinkled. "Actually… we know how to make our ways in woods. I don't think we'd get lost so easily."

"Sorry for not telling earlier," Alphonse added sheepishly.

Ives shook his head dismissively. "No harm done," he said. "But really, it's best if I lead. Fairies can cast glamour and create spells that makes you lose your way." He reached into his shirt and produced a small pouch he wore around his neck. "I have many four-leaved clovers here. They break fairy glamour."

"That's another thing," Edward gave a tired sigh. "What's a glamour?"

Ives stared at them as if they had suggested the most ridiculous idea the world could offer to him. "Well," he licked his lips, "it's an illusion magic. Fairies can enchant dead leaves to look like fresh apples, an ugly face to look pretty and vice versa, so on and so forth. As far as I know, only four-leaved clovers can break through the magic."

Edward's eyes glanced to his right pocket, where he kept his pocket watch in. So not only did the townsfolk think of him as a half fairy, they also doubted the credibility of his status as a State Alchemist. He took a deep breath. This case was tiring him out already.

But he planned to finish this without a hitch. That general from the North would see!

Edward's eyes met Ives', and he nodded. "Well then. Lead the way."

Ives' brow went up immediately. "Sir, yes, sir," he answered sarcastically as he made his way past the brothers. "What exactly are you two looking for anyway?"

"Anything," Edward answered. "Any clue, any indication that can point us to the ones who took the missing people, the location where the missing people are hidden, a way to get them back somehow."

"I see," Ives nodded. "Well, considering that this place is supposed to be forbidden, I guess if there is any clue it wouldn't be disturbed."

"Wait, if this area is forbidden then why are you here?" Alphonse asked in confusion.

Ives shrugged. "I'm looking for my sister. She often wanders off on her own around here, so I need to find her soon."

"Is it even safe for her to wander off here?"

Ives waved his hand, clearly not thinking of it to be serious. "Fairies like her, I'm sure of it! She leaves offerings here and there all the time. The fairies like being treated like that, so I'm sure they'll leave her be."

Edward and Alphonse didn't know what to say to that. They chose to keep their mouths closed.

"By the way," Ives turned to look at them, "are you sure that you want to get back all the taken townspeople?"

"Of course we do," Edward stared at him with indignation clear in his eyes. "Don't you want them back?"

"It isn't so much about wanting them back or not," Ives shook his head, "it's just… I don't think you'll be able to do it. It's pretty much impossible."

"What do you mean?"

"Once someone enters the realm of the fairies and ate or drank something from there, they will be trapped in there forever with no way out." Ives' dark eyes glimmered as he stared at them, pausing his steps on top of a large root. "And we all need to eat and drink. At least one person went missing in one week, and much time has passed." A grim tone shrouded his words. "How long do you think it has been since the first victim was taken?"

A/N: I planned to have this uploaded a few days ago but... at that time this hasn't finished being written yet, sigh. The past few days have been really busy for me, and I apologize for not being able to upload this earlier.

I plan to have this fic uploaded at least once a week. If it's not possible, I hope I can have a once every fortnight update.

Anyway, like I said, these past few days have been hectic, and goddammit I'm so tired. I think I'm going to fall asleep the second my head hit the pillow. Excuse me if this chapter has some typos or whatnot, I'll have them fixed tomorrow morning if I found any.

I hope you enjoyed this, and please leave a review!