Welcome to the story! Before we begin, there are a few things to know before we begin. In this story, Van Hohenheim left the boys with Trisha when they were very young and was never seen again. Foreshadowing, anyone?

Also, this is based on Dungeons and Dragons. There were actual dice rolls when I made this story. If the character rolled a high number, they did well. If they rolled low, they did poorly. If you don't play, it won't make a difference when you are reading. Just know the dice determined some of their battle actions. You won't really notice this until the second chapter. Oh look! More foreshadowing.

Now let's dive in and see what my brain has created this time around.

It was so damn hot in Rush Valley. Sweat ran down Edward's face as he walked down the street with Alphonse, whose metal body glistened in the harsh sunlight. They had come for Edward's automail maintenance appointment, which had revealed that some repair work was needed.

Winry was currently working on his arm at Garfiel's shop. She got tired of Edward hanging around the shop so she sent him out to get groceries so that she could cook them a meal.

They came back to the shop with paper bags filled to the brim with ingredients. Edward only had his flesh arm so he needed Alphonse to carry most of the load. Winry noticed Edward and called out to him. "Edward, I have a message for you."

"Who called for me when I'm way out here in the middle of nowhere."

Winry picked up the wrench with a threatening look in her eyes.

Edward backed away, and in doing so, made himself seem shorter than he actually was.

Winry kept her cool this time. "Well, Mr. Mustang called for you."

Edward groaned as he rolled his eyes back.

"He said to stay in Rush Valley. He's going to meet you here," Winry informed him.

"What the hell is he coming here for?" Edward grumbled.

Winry continued "He didn't say. But he should be here tomorrow on the 2 o'clock train. He wants to meet you at the Military Police office at half past 2."

Edward went off muttering as he put away the groceries. Alphonse was curious as to why the Colonel would come all the way here when he could just call or send a telegram.

'It must be that important,' Alphonse thought with concern.

The next day Winry had gone off to retrieve some different parts around town for another client. She had reattached Edward's arm that morning. Edward hated the reattachment process. It was incredibly painful. An almost electrifying sensation between his arm and his spine as the nerves from his body were connected and sending signals to the automail wires. Not only was his body sending signals but the automail was also retrieving and sending signals to his body.

At least it was a very short sensation. And the reward of having his arm back was worth it. He rotated the arm in his shoulder socket as he familiarized himself with the appendage once again. He was grateful for the arm despite the pain it caused. The few days he didn't have it reminded him just how difficult many tasks were with only one arm.

Edward and Alphonse walked to the MP office and were shown to an office where they met with the MP chief and of course, Colonel Mustang. Edward wasn't surprised to see Second Lieutenant Hawkeye there also. At least she could help keep the colonel on a tight leash.

Colonel Mustang was the first to greet them. "Good afternoon Fullmetal. Alphonse. Glad you could make it on time."

Alphonse said his salutations with respect.

Then there was the older brother. "What are you doing all the way in this dust bowl?"

The MP chief growled at his town being called a dust bowl. He was becoming quite cross.

Mustang however went straight to business, ignoring Edward's attitude. "Well, Edward, it seems you're very popular. An alchemist is requesting you to come see a demonstration of his alchemy that could prove to be quite useful to the military. And he is here in Rush Valley."

Edward's ears perked up. "So, what kind of alchemy?"

"It's transportation alchemy. Apparently, he can put an object on a transmutation circle and when the circle is activated, it's transported to another area that has the same circle."

Alphonse was excited. "That's incredible. Just think how much we could save on train fare and time if we were able to transport food and materials so quickly."

Edward was impressed, if it was true. "Well then, why did you come all the way down here when he asked for me?"

Riza answered "It seems rather suspicious that he specifically asked for you. Usually, it's a general request for a state alchemist to come observe an form of alchemy that could be useful for the military. We wanted to be here for backup in case something goes wrong."

"We also know this man has had a troubled past. He's been in jail several times for violence. Just scuffles in bars. But I also want to see this alchemy because it almost seems too good to be true," Mustang replied. He was hopeful that if this alchemy worked, then another promotion might be in line for him.

Edward rubbed his chin with his hand intrigued by this alchemy. "Right. Well, give me his contact info and we'll set up a meeting for his demonstration."

Mustang gave him the information, and Edward called the man, whose name was Ramsey Sinclair. Ramsey had a demonstration set up in an old warehouse on the outskirts of town. Roy and Riza would be outside on backup in case something went wrong while Edward and Alphonse went to view the demonstration.

The next day at 6 pm, Edward and Alphonse went to the warehouse and were greeted by several people in robes, their faces hidden in the shadow cast by the robes. There was one person not hiding his face, and he introduced himself as Mr. Sinclair.

Edward and Alphonse already had an uneasy feeling caused by the people in robes. This looked more like an occult than an alchemical demonstration.

"Good evening gentlemen, we have quite a show for you to see. I'm glad to finally meet the Fullmetal Alchemist." Sinclair held his hand out to shake Alphonse's.

"Ummm.. I'm not him. It's my brother right next to me," Alphonse explained as Edward fumed. The steam was visibly leaving Edward's ears.

"Oh, I apologize. It's a pleasure to meet you," he shook Edward's hand.

Edward calmed down, and Alphonse was grateful that Sinclair had made no comments on Edward's shorter than average stature.

"Though our demonstration is going to be a little different than what I promised," Sinclair said.

"How so?" Edward asked, putting his hand on his hip showing his irritation. He didn't like being deceived.

"Well, it's still transportation alchemy. However, we will be sending something to a different world."

Edward and Alphonse were confused.

Alphonse asked, "Could you explain?"

"You see, we met this woman here. Her name is Morgana and she said she is from this other world and can easily go back and forth between worlds. We can go to hers and learn about her world's powers. Apparently, they have incredible sorcerers and wizards. We could learn so much from them. I'm willing to sell you the runes that are required to do them."

Edward scoffed "This sounds more like a fairy tale than anything else. Let's go, Al. This isn't worth our time."

Edward started to turn away from Sinclair when he heard Morgana shout.

"It is no fairy tale! Bring the girl!" She lifted her robe off of her face and revealed tattoos on her left side of her face. She seemed livid that Edward was about to leave.

Edward turned around to face Morgana and was horrified. A cloaked figure brought a blond-haired girl whose mouth was gagged, and hands were bound behind her.

"WINRY!" Ed cried out. Alphonse held him back but was just as distraught.

The cloaked figure put a knife to her throat and tears fell from Winry's eyes. A drop of blood trickled down her neck. She sucked in a breath through her nose trying to stay as still and as far from the knife.

Sinclair asked in a dark tone "Are you interested now?"

Edward growled "Fine, show us. Just don't hurt her anymore."

Edward and Alphonse followed them. There was a circle but with weird markings around it. These markings looked like ancient writing rather than the usual markings for a transmutation circle.

Sinclair directed them to stand on the opposite side of the circle of him and the cloaked figures. Winry looked distressed as she was still being held hostage by a cloaked figure next to Morgana.

"Now gentlemen, in order for me to activate this, I will need something of monetary value. An incentive. This is an incredibly valuable discovery," Sinclair said with a conniving face.

'Of course, this is about money,' Edward thought but money didn't matter as much to him. He had to get Winry out of harm's way.

Edward threw his wallet on the circle. He then threw his state alcehmist watch there. "I don't carry a lot of cash on me. But my watch is proof of my state alchemist license, and you can have access to my grant money in the bank."

"Well, I guess it will do," Sinclair reluctantly agreed.

Before the deal could be accepted, Morgana demanded "What about your spell book?"

"My spell book? What the hell is that?" Edward asked. Then he realized there was one possibility.

"Do you mean my alchemy journal? Even if I gave it to you, you wouldn't be able to read it. It's in code," Edward explained.

The woman glowered in rage. She yelled at Sinclair "You said I could learn his spells from his book! I came here to gain more spells so I could become more powerful. But they are in a secret code! He is useless!"

The woman pulled a dagger from under her cloak and ran to Winry and stabbed her in the neck and then swiftly pulled the blade out. Winry's eyes went wide.

Sinclair was appalled. This was his first time taking a hostage. "I didn't want you to kill her!"

The woman said, "The runes work better with blood from a virgin."

The cloaked figure that had been holding her was shocked and let go of her. Winry dropped onto her knees in the circle, blood pouring in a steady stream from her neck.

Edward and Alphonse screamed "WINRY!"

Winry fell to the ground and the Elrics ran to her. Edward put his gloved hand to the wound on her neck applying pressure. They heard gunshots around them and screams. Alphonse laid his metal body over Edward and Winry to protect them from any other harm.

Then there was stillness. Mustang came up behind Edward. He took out a knife and unbound Winry's hands. She was still breathing though looking pale as the pool of blood around her hair was growing. Riza came over and saw the tragedy. She took off her coat and covered the young girl.

"She's going into shock. I've radioed in for an ambulance already. Elevate her legs," Riza told them. She stayed calm. Alphonse lifted her legs up so the blood would stay near her central body where it was needed more.

Edward was crying as he and Winry stared at each other.

Winry started saying "Ed, I …."

Edward pleaded "Don't talk right now. The ambulance will be here soon. You have to hang in there! Just a little bit longer!"

Edward was honestly more afraid of Winry saying goodbye. Then the circle around them began to glow red. They heard a muttering, and it was Morgana from the other world. She was chanting something before she had the time to bleed out from her wounds.

The five Amestrians saw black tendrils growing out of the circle's edges and ensnaring all of them. Edward grabbed onto Winry and held her to him, the tendrils wrapped around them as a pair.

Edward whispered in Winry's ear. "I'm so sorry."

He felt the familiar pull of his body being taken through a portal. He could hear the screams of Mustang, Hawkeye, and Alphonse. Then he yelled in pain and held her tighter. Edward could see in Winry's eyes that she was still in pain too and yet he still held his hand to her neck.

Then Edward saw tiny creatures with differing hair. Some had hair of flames and some had hair of light. Some had hair that was green and more like leaves. And some had wavy blue hair that flowed like water. They were flying all around them as they went through this portal. Edward realized that this was not the portal that he knew to the gate and Truth. This was vastly different. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was one of these creatures with light for hair was going to Winry's wound, and it was pressing its tiny hands onto her. A warm soft light glowed from underneath his hand that was covering her wound. Then Edward went unconscious.

Edward hadn't opened his eyes yet but he could tell it was very late at night or very early morning because it was dark out. He could feel a cool breeze as he lay on the grass. Grass? Edward didn't remember going to sleep outside.

He slowly opened his eyes. The sky was starting to turn pink. The sun hadn't creeped above the horizon yet. Then the events that had transpired flashed through his brain. Winry had been bleeding out in his arms and then they went through some sort of portal.

Edward sat up quickly, and swiftly looked for Winry. He was in a clearing and he looked over by the tree-line of a dense forest. His eyes finally focused on a mass of blonde hair. "Winry!"

Edward slowly rose to stance noticing that he felt heavier than normal but that didn't matter right now. All that mattered was that she was okay. He didn't care if he was potentially injured or not.

Edward ran over to her. He knelt down beside her and rolled her over. He inspected the side of her neck but there was no sign of any wound. He let out a sigh of relief. Winry moaned some more as she was a little disgruntled at being woken up and her hand rose to rub her eyes. Then her eyes opened to reveal her sapphire orbs.

"Winry, your neck. It's healed! There's not even a scar," he said in awe. But how was there not even a trace of such a massive wound. "Are you feeling okay? Are you hurt anywhere? "

Winry then remembered that she had been stabbed. She gasped and rubbed her neck where the wound had been. "Oh my god! My neck!"

"There's no wound there! It's like you were never hurt. Don't worry," Edward said trying to console her panic.

"I can't believe it. I feel perfectly fine," Winry smiled and looked up at him. He helped her sit up.

"Take it easy," he told her. He put his arm around her shoulder as she was sitting up. Winry swayed a little, but her eyes began to focus.

Then, Edward and Winry stared at each other because they noticed some big differences.

"Ed, your ears are different," Winry breathed out and sat up to touch them. They had a slight pointy end, and her fingers lightly grazed the ends of each of his ears. Edward put his hand on hers and moved them down so he could feel his own ears.

"So are yours!" Edward said as he rubbed her much longer ears that had a sharp point on them.

Winry felt a tingling sensation throughout her body and started to blush as Edward rubbed her ears.

"Edward, stop it!" She batted his hands away from her ears. She looked down at what she was wearing. She was wearing grey, white, and yellow robes over chain mail. She also noticed she had a large hammer that could be used as a weapon. There was also a book with a lightning bolt and storm cloud on it.

"What happened to us?" Winry asked.

"I have no idea. But you look awesome!" Edward was enamored by her new appearance. Winry looked away as her cheeks reddened. It was the first time he had complimented her appearance.

Edward looked down and noticed he was wearing something completely different than anything he ever owned. He had a chest plate on along with other armor that was covering other areas such as his legs. And he had a long sword and shield. He stood up and drew it out of its sheath. It glistened in the morning light.

"Badass!" He exclaimed. Winry giggled at his response.

He sheathed his sword and noticed his red cloak. At least, he still had his sense of style. Edward then stood up and offered her a hand up. She took his gloved hand and he helped her up. Then he noticed another change as he looked down on her.

"Ed, you're tall," Winry tilted her head to look up at him. He didn't notice earlier but now he could compare himself to Winry. She also noticed that his shoulders were broader, and his arms were more muscular. She was surprised at this feeling of warmth in her chest.

"I don't know where we're at but this place is incredible," Edward said. There were waterfalls of tears coming down from his eyes. He was finally tall! He no longer had to endure all the negative comments about his height. His fantasy had come true.

In the process of confirming that Winry was okay, Edward had neglected noticing all the changes in him. And the greatest change he was about to discover. The leather gloves on his hands. He realized he could feel the material in both of his hands. He took the leather glove off his right hand. It was a flesh hand. He took a sharp breath in."Winry, my hand. It's returned."

Winry was astonished. She took his open hand in hers and felt the warmth coming from it. He then closed his fingers over her hand and held her hand in his. "Edward, this is wonderful!" She cried out and she let go of his hand and embraced him. He returned her embrace and picked her up off the ground for a few seconds. He was overwhelmed with joy. Then he placed her back on the ground. They inspected his right leg and found it to be flesh too.

Edward and Winry took in their surroundings and saw a river nearby. Winry walked to it with Edward following her. She looked down at her reflection. Her ears were much longer than Edward's. They both saw the changes in their appearance. Their hair was the same but their physique had changed as well. Edward took in his broad shoulders and muscular arms while Winry had a similar physique as before, yet she felt stronger. Her arms were more toned than before but that was it.

After accepting their new appearances, they took in their new environment. They were by the river which had a clearing next to it. There was a dense forest that was past the clearing.

Edward heard someone shout "Brother!"

Edward noticed a figure sitting up further down the riverbank. It sounded like Alphonse shouting but it wasn't the hollow voice that he had grown accustomed to. And the figure didn't look metal at all.

"Al! We're here!" Edward shouted as he and Winry ran to him.

"Brother, I have a body!" Alphonse cried out.

Edward and Winry knelt down to him. He had the same golden hair and eyes as when he was a child. Alphonse was crying. He could feel the grass in his hands, and the cool breeze the would gently sweep his hair as it grazed him. He was so happy that he couldn't help the tears falling down his face. Alphonse even enjoyed that sensation of the warm wet tears.

Winry took his hand and couldn't help her own tears falling. She sobbed "Al, it's you!"

She couldn't help but throw her arms around him. She held him so tight. He choked out "Winry, I can't breathe."

Winry released him and apologized quickly. But he dismissed her apology.

"I like being hugged. And even this feeling of breathing again," Alphonse said. He was thoroughly enjoying every sensation he had missed.

Edward didn't know how this had happened, but he was so relieved. After all this time, they had achieved their goal of getting their flesh returned, though he wasn't sure how. He put his hand on Al's head and ruffled his hair. "It's good to have you back Alphonse."

Winry remarked "All of those senses that you've missed. Even the act of breathing is something we take for granted every day."

Edward and Alphonse were surprised by this comment but they both agreed. Just the simple act of breathing was a joy to someone who hadn't breathed in so long.

Alphonse then remembered that Winry had been stabbed but was kneeling and breathing in front of him. No one could explain her spontaneous healing.

Edward also noticed that Alphonse actually had clothes on. He was wearing a green tunic but had leather armor on his chest and shoulders. There was also a staff and shield next to him.

However, their awe was halted when Alphonse stood up, and they noticed something wasn't quite right. "Why am I so short?"

He was about half of Edward's height. Winry noticed it too. She thought out loud "Maybe he's a child but he doesn't look like a child. He has more of an adult body, it seems. Just shorter."

Edward was trying not to laugh but failed. He burst out laughing, and Alphonse became angered. "What's so funny?"

Edward laughed and would try to catch his breath but failed several times. This made Alphonse even angrier.

Edward caught his breath eventually. "All these years, I've been the small one and now the tables have turned. I'm finally tall!"

"I may be short, but I can still fight!" Alphonse yelled as he kicked Edward behind the leg. A place where his armor didn't cover. Edward yelped in pain.

"Damn you!" Edward snarled and shook a fist at his brother threatening to hit him.

"What's all this racket about?" Said a familiar female voice though was a bit groggy sounding.

"Second Lieutenant Hawkeye!," Alphonse shouted as he saw her emerge from the forest.

They took in her appearance, since it changed dramatically also. Her hair was down, the clip missing that normally held it up. Her uniform was absent, and in its place was leather studded armor that covered her chest and shoulders. She had a quiver of arrows on her back along with a long bow. Riza also had on a green undershirt and brown pants.

Edward and Alphonse gulped. They hadn't seen her in tight clothes before. Her feminine figure was more obvious.

Riza looked at Alphonse in disbelief. She had never seen his real body. "Alphonse, is that you?"

Alphonse nodded. Riza kneeled down to his level and put a hand on his shoulder. "It's good to finally be able to see you."

Riza then saw Winry and was reminded of the tragedy that had taken place. "Winry, you survived!"

"She's better than that. She's completely healed. It's like it never happened," Edward shared.

He was hoping that Riza would be amazed by his sudden growth spurt but all she did was do a quick glance at him. She made a small remark "I see you finally grew."

Edward was disappointed in her reaction. But Alphonse regaining his body, and Winry being healed were outshining his growth spurt. He was grateful Winry had been ecstatic about his sudden change in height, and that was the one person he really wanted to be excited about his growth spurt. Edward pondered 'But why would it matter if only she noticed how tall I've become?'

Winry then commented that Riza had the same ears as her. Riza then felt her ears and realized how long and pointed they were. Winry guided her to the river so she could see her new appearance. Riza flinched when she saw her new image but quickly regained composure. She was the adult in this situation and had to stay calm.

Riza then began to wonder where the other adult was that had been in the circle with them. "Have you any of you seen the Colonel?"

The three teenagers shook their heads. Alphonse told her "We've only just woken up not that long ago."

Riza sighed but her head went into investigation mode. She asked where they woke up at. Alphonse at the river side while Winry and Edward were in the clearing near the tree line. There seemed to be no pattern, but they had all hadn't been far from each other. The teens went with her, and they searched just inside the tree line since the river and clearing didn't have anyone else visible to them.

Winry saw someone lying on the ground wearing black robes and a small red cloak with the symbol of a salamander on it. Lying next to him was a crossbow. She called out to her party, and they gathered around him. They turned him onto his back, and Riza started smacking his face lightly and calling out "Colonel, can you hear me?"

Roy groaned as he became conscious. "Stop slapping me…"

"Well then wake up bastard. We've been searching all over for you," Edward crossed his arms.

Roy opened his eyes and jolted back. "Who the hell? Wait, Fullmetal? Is that you?"

Roy was stunned by all their appearances.

Riza used a calm tone as she approached him hesitantly. "It's us Roy. I know we all look different."

"Your ears…" Roy said to her as he looked at her new image with fascination. Instead of touching her ears, he touched her cheek. Alphonse and Edward turned away from the intimacy while Winry was adoring it. She knew something had to be going on between them.

"I'm glad you're okay," Roy told her.

"Me too," Riza said as she stood up. Roy got up and stood next to her.

Roy asked everyone "So Ed is finally tall, Alphonse has a body, and the ladies have different ears. And somehow Winry is miraculously healed. Do you notice anything different in my appearance?"

The four of them gazed at him and Riza walked around him in a circle investigating. When she rejoins the teens, they all look at each other and nod in agreement. Riza told him "Well sir, besides your attire, nothing has changed."

Roy's shoulders jerked up. "Seriously?! Nothing has changed about me?! Everyone else got something but I didn't. How is this fair?!"

Edward snickered "Well, maybe some of us got what we deserved."

Winry elbowed Edward in the arm. "Gloating isn't going to help the situation. We need to figure out what happened to us and how we return home."

"Winry's right," Riza said. "We all need to focus on the task at hand. We also need to learn how to survive in this new world. This may be our most difficult mission yet."

First chapter is done! I hope you enjoyed it. Please comment below as this helps motivate me to write. Or leave a kudos or follow. If you would like to see a certain creature, comment below and I will think of a way to put them in. I already got some ideas for creatures from my Dnd campaigns, and a Discord group that I am in gave some terrific ideas for creatures.