Years passed, and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar; an air bender named Aang….just kidding. Enjoy.
Weeks passed, and I hardly saw Ed and Al, save for mealtimes. I kept myself occupied as best I could during this time, despite my tension. I felt…frustrated by my lack of involvement, and finally faced with the exam looming in the future, I really began to wonder just what I thought I would be doing while Ed and Al worked as State Alchemists. Would I just be a burden, following them around as they went about their research and did whatever it was that State Alchemists did? Would I even be able to stay with them once they passed, or would they be put in military barracks, leaving me behind to figure out what to do with myself? I just didn't know. None of us had planned beyond passing the exam, and Ed and Al were so consumed in their studying that we didn't get much time to talk. I still trained my body every day, but the inactivity was taking its toll. Nina was a balm for me during this time.
"Alex," her sweet voice asked. After a couple of times being called 'Alexander Two' I finally convinced the girl to call me by my nickname. "Can I play with your hair?" It was late afternoon at the Tucker Estate, about three weeks after we had arrived. We were lying in the grass in the garden, enjoying the warmth of the early winter sun, despite the cool bite in the air. I turned my head to smile at her, gazing through the grass blades. "Sure."
Nina and I would often spend our days together in this manner. She had also been lonely because her father would spend most of his time on his research, and had little time for her. Tucker had explained to me that in order to keep his State Certification, he had to pass an evaluation every year. It was because of that certification that he was able to live such a luxurious lifestyle. This assessment happened to be around the same time as the State Alchemist Exam, so both Nina and I spent many days together as our Alchemists studied away the season. In this time we became very close, and I began to consider Nina as a little sister.
Time went by unnoticed as Nina carded gently through my hair with her delicate fingers. The movements soothed me, and reminded of my mother. My real mother. Melancholy swept through me as I thought of my home, and everything I had lost. The memories were fading. I could no longer remember just the way my mother laughed, or the feel of my lover's fine black hair… God I missed them.
"What's wrong?" Nina asked, peering into my eyes, concerned. I realized with a jolt that my green eyes had brimmed with tears as she braided my hair. I wiped my eyes and smiled forlornly. "You braiding my hair reminds me of my mother. We used to sit for hours in front of the mirror as she taught me how to braid it in different ways. I miss her."
Nina patted my face affectionately, and I held her small palm to my cheek. "There, there. Daddy says that when you miss someone a whole lot, they are thinking about you too, wherever they are. That way we are all connected, no matter how far apart we go."
My eyes widened a bit. "That's very wise of him."
"He says that when I get too sad about my mommy." She gave me a cheerful smile.
With a welling of emotion, I pulled Nina into my arms. "You are such a good girl." Children really were wonderful creatures. They could have such powerful insights into our hearts, and yet still remain innocent of all the evil of the world. Shaking out of my funk, I playfully ruffled Nina's hair and stood up.
"Come on. Let's go bug those studying knuckleheads. It's just about dinner time."
"Who are you calling a knucklehead," Ed asked, suddenly poking his head out the door.
"Who do you think," I shot back, a wide smile on my face.
"Hey!" Ed stepped fully outside and jabbed his finger at me. "Braids are my thing! You copycat!"
I flipped my braid that Nina had given me earlier over my shoulder. A couple flowers fell out and drifted to the ground. "You don't want me wearing a braid? You're going to have to fight me for it," I snarked.
"You're on!"
FMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMA
Fall came and went, and winter settled into Central in a soft blanket of snow. Ed and Al had finally taken a break from studying and Ed, Al, Nina and I were playing outside.
"I wish you could stay," Nina said as we all cooled down from a rather intense snowball fight. "I mean after you take the test. It gets lonely with just dad."
Ed furrowed his brow. I could tell that lately, the boys had been more cheerful staying at the Tucker Estate then normal. It was like having a home again. And just as I had, Ed and Al had created a special bond with Nina. We would all be sad when the time came to leave.
Ed sat up with a smile, inspired. "What are you drawing, little big brother," Nina asked, walking over curiously. "It's a transmutation circle," Ed said, swiping a stick over the ground with practiced ease. It was still amazing sometimes how he could draw a circle so perfectly like that. He drew as an experienced artist, with graceful arcs achieving something most could not. "When I draw this circle, it will help me make my wish come true." Ed pressed his gloved hands to the ground and a familiar blue light flashed in the yard. From the center of the circle grew a wreath of little yellow flowers, which Ed placed on Nina's head. She giggled in delight.
"Not bad Ed," a man complimented from behind us. We turned to see a familiar black haired and bespectacled figure strolling through the gate.
"Major Hughes," Ed said in surprise. "What brings you here?"
"I couldn't let you study through your birthday Ed. What kind of friend would that make me?"
Ed blinked in surprise. "He's right, Ed! That's today!" Al piped. This was news to me. It hadn't occurred to me to ask. Guiltily, I wondered if that made me a bad friend, like Hughes said.
"How did you know? I haven't told anyone about that yet."
Hughes grinned. "I'm in the investigations department. Wouldn't make much of a Major if I couldn't find that out. Come along now, I'm throwing you kids a party to celebrate!"
"Welcome everyone." The walk to Hughes' house was a short one. It was only a few blocks away. When we went inside, we were greeted by a woman with short brown hair, pretty green eyes and a warm smile. "I've heard so much about you."
"Kids, this is my beautiful wife Gracia."
"Your stomach's a melon!" Ed exclaimed. And indeed, Gracia was round with child, her pink dress hanging off her large abdomen.
"Yes, yes," Gracia said with a blush. "I'll be having a baby any day now. There is a huge fuss in my tummy telling me she wants to come out and see the world!" A slight pang of jealousy jabbed at my heart but I brushed it aside easily at her heartfelt happiness. This was a joyous occasion.
"Would you like to touch," Gracia asked. Ed and Al immediately backed away, "Eeeh?" "Heck no". I snorted. Men.
"Can I?" Nina asked timidly. When Gracia nodded, the little girl gently patted the older woman's stomach with a sense of awe. "It moved," she giggled.
Large, warm hands timidly rubbed my stomach, as if afraid even the slightest touch would harm it. My love gazed lovingly into my eyes, wonder etched into his fine features. "I can feel her," he breathed, and he slowly leaned in for a kiss.
"It feels funny." Violently I shook the memory away and returned to the present.
"Come on, Gracia has made a lovely dinner for us all." Hughes smiled, gesturing us inside. Right, it was Ed's birthday. We were there to celebrate.
The party was everything a thirteen year old could ask for. We played games and had a huge meal of the home cooked and comfort variety. Gracia had baked a cake decorated with pink and blue frosting and thirteen glowing candles graced the top. Ed seemed embarrassed by all the attention, but Al and I could tell he was secretly pleased. It had been a while since any of us had celebrated anything, and we all had a great time. There was no stress and no strife, if only for just a little while.
And then it all came crashing down.
"Ooooh!" Gracia exclaimed. She fell to the floor clutching her stomach, as if in pain. Alarmed, Hughes rushed to his wife's side.
"Gracia dear, what's wrong," he fretted, hands fluttering uselessly.
"She's here," Gracia gasped, clutching her husband's jacket tightly. "The baby is here!"
Jaws dropped and hearts stopped. "What do you mean she's here! The doctor said next week!" Hughes yelled.
"Well the baby says now, and I think she gets to choose," Gracia grunted, sarcasm thick.
Al looked outside. "It's a blizzard out there! How are we going to get to the hospital?" His voice shook. "I'll just have to get the doctor myself!" Hughes jumped up and grabbed his coat. "You boys help Gracia," He commanded on his mad rush out the door.
"How do we do that?" Ed shouted in despair. He looked over at me, as if I knew the answer. I shrugged, my eyes wide. I had never delivered a baby before either!
"Alphonse, could you help me to the couch? Ed, get some hot water, and Alex, could you get me some sheets?"
"Right!" We all snapped to as Gracia began giving orders. Ed and Al bustled to do their appointed tasks, and I did as well, my heart pounding in trepidation. If the doctor didn't make it on time, we might be the ones delivering this baby!
We got Gracia settled into her couch and covered her with a blanket. I discreetly helped her remove her underclothes with a blush as the soon to be mother got as comfortable as she could.
"I brought the hot water!" Ed walked carefully into the room holding a round pan full of steaming liquid. "Is there anything else we can do for you Mrs. Hughes?"
"Thanks Ed. Well let's see, I guess I'll need a lot of fresh towels–Ooooh!" She groaned, clutching the sheets in pain. "Ooow!"
The wind howled heedlessly outside the window as we waited in panic and worry through Gracia's contractions. I held her hand through the pain and said words of encouragement. "It's going to be ok, Gracia, you're doing so well! She's going to come out just fine." I intoned, over and over again. Ed, Al, and Nina all stood in the corner, cowering in the face of what was happening.
"It hurts so much, oh I'm dying," Gracia moaned. She panted a couple more times and then seemed to pass out. Nina and Al screamed, but I quickly shushed them, brushing Gracia's drenched bangs out of her eyes. "Shush, she's just resting."
"What do we do, what do we do," Ed panicked, pacing back and forth frantically. He clapped his hands in front of his face forcefully, as if praying. "Damn it all, Alchemy is the ultimate science and it can't do anything to help her."
"Edward," Nina said, sticking her hand into the water, "the water is cold."
Ed quickly bent over to grab the pan. And something amazing happened. As soon as he came into contact with the metal, the unmistakable flash of alchemy lit the room and the water instantly became piping hot.
"Agh!" Ed shouted in surprise.
"Ed," Al said in awe, "that was alchemy! How did you perform alchemy without a transmutation circle!"
"I dunno, I just used my head!"
Gracia screamed, interrupting them. "Aaaaaah I can feel its head!"
"AAAAAAAAA!" we screamed in panic.
"Move out of the way!" We all jumped aside as Hughes burst into the room, white haired doctor in tow. Gratefully we all stepped back.
It was over quickly after that. We stood in the hall waiting to hear the news. "It's funny," Al said as Edward paced, "Alchemists have been trying for hundreds of years to do what Mrs. Hughes is doing right now."
"Yeah, and our mother did it too. Can you believe it?"
"Yes," I said softly, "It truly is a miracle." Ed paused in his pacing and gave me a strange look. He opened his mouth to say something, but the doctor exiting the living room interrupted him. Blood speckled the front of his coat, but he had an elated expression on his face. "You kids can come in now. There is someone who wants to meet you."
With huge grins, Ed, Al and Nina rushed through the door. I followed slowly.
Gracia leaned heavily on the couch, slumped in exhaustion, but sporting one of the most serene expressions I had ever witnessed. Hughes stood behind her with the grin of a man on top of the world. Clutched in Gracia's arms was a tiny squawking baby. It's little face was red with indignation as it screamed its displeasure to the world. Nina and the young alchemists crowded around and Gracia held the babe up for all to see.
From where I stood a slight distance away I could make out every detail of it's face. Her hair was dark, sticking out in odd tufts. Her cries had died down to small hiccups and she opened her eyes for the first time, gazing around the room.
My heart stopped and I ceased breathing. Her eyes were green.
"What are you going to name her," Nina asked, poking her finger into the newborns small hand. It curled around her digit and she giggled.
"Hmm," Gracia considered. "I think I'll call her….Elicia."
Agony like I had not felt since the day I was ripped from my old life tore through me like bullet wound. I clutched at my chest as my face crumpled in grief, scars I thought had healed ripping open and bleeding out. She was going to call her green eyed baby girl Elicia. It was just too much. I can't take this anymore, I can't–
"Do you think it's going to be a girl?" The man I loved asked as we lounged on the porch, my head in his lap and his hand on my abdomen.
"Definitely," I replied. "I dreamed it after all, so it must be true." He chuckled.
"What should we name her?"
"Hmm. I think I'll name her…Alyssa."
Ed was smiling from ear to ear. He pumped his fist. "Awesome! Awesome, awesome, awesooooome!"
"Is that all you can say, brother? We just witnessed the miracle of birth and all you can say is awesome?"
"Well it is!" Ed turned his exuberant eyes to me. His face dropped in confusion and worry. "Alex…?"
My mind whirled and my vision blurred. I had to get out of here. Now! I spun on my heel and ran. "Alex!" Someone called out behind me, but I didn't stop. I slammed open the front door and plunged into the freezing night, the storm finally subsided. I didn't stop until I reached the Tucker house. Desperately, I pounded on the door until Tucker answered.
"Alex, what–" I brushed past Tucker and sprinted up the stairs. I entered my temporary room and collapsed on the bed. I sobbed. I can't, I can't, it hurts too much, please make it stop– Images of my past life and what could have been flashed before my eyes, each one a new knife wound in my heart. I cringed in agony for hours until darkness finally took me.
FMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMAFMA
Edward and Alphonse raced after their adopted brother as he pounded blindly through the snow. "Alex, wait!" Ed shouted, but the distraught boy didn't seem to hear him. They followed him to the Tucker Estate, the cold moon the only light to guide them.
They found Tucker standing at the open entranceway, gazing up the stairs in confusion. Ed skidded to a stop, panting to catch his breath, a white mist hovering in front of his face. Al clanked to a stop beside him. Wordlessly, Tucker pointed up the stairs, and the two brothers raced up them.
They came to Alex's room. Ed was just about to start pounding on it when a small sound stopped him. Heart racing, he gently pushed his ear against the cold wood of the door. His breath hitched and his pale gold eyes widened in horror.
"Al, he's crying!" Sure enough, over the sound of Ed's gasps of air a heartbreaking sobbing could be heard. Ed moved away from the door as if burned. "Why…" He looked over to his younger brother for answers.
Al stood absolutely still in the hall, the moonlight filtering through the window giving his smooth planes a soft glow. His eyes were downcast, and Ed could not even see the red spots that represented his soul.
"I've been wondering this for a while," Al said softly, "but do you remember what Pinako said about Alex?"
"Yeah," Ed responded just as quietly. "We stole a soul from another world to fill the void we accidentally created in your body."
"Who do you think that soul was, Ed? We took Alex from his home and forced him into an unfamiliar body and world."
"I don't know. All Pinako would say was that he was…a woman…" Horrified realization spread over Ed's washed out features, pale in the night. "You don't think…"
"Yes." Al said, his voice weak. "I think Alex might have been a mother. Maybe even pregnant."
Ed looked stricken. The gold haired boy wordlessly leaned his head against Alex's door, his hands curled into fists beside his face. "We were just trying to bring mother back…but instead we ended up tearing another child's mother away. What have we done Al…"
"We have to make this right, Brother."
Ed clenched his fists tighter and turned around. When he looked up at his younger brother, his eyes were brimmed with unshed tears, but fierce with determination. "Right," he said. The only sound left in the cold night was the sobs that filtered through the door.
Wow guys, that was a tear jerker. I had a really hard time writing this one, but in a lot of ways, it was one of the easiest chapters I wrote. If you feel just as sad as I do right now, it means I've done my job.
The scene with Ed getting mad about the braid is dedicated to Shiloh, since that was mentioned in one of Shiloh's reviews. Hope you liked it! Next Chapter: The Exam, and something none of the boys saw coming. Please review! It helps me write chapters like this one! And please let me know if I make any mistakes. I literally write and then post without proofreading much.