The Small Girl Lit Up At This, Beaming At The Other Alchemist. Oh, Thank You! Youre So Kind, I Cant Even

The small girl lit up at this, beaming at the other alchemist. “Oh, thank you! You’re so kind, I can’t even begin to describe how thankful I am that you’re willing to help me,” she chirped, following after the ‘Fullmetal’. She was all smiles...until he asked for her name. She looked away for a second, but continued to follow him.

“M-Mr.Elric, I... I don’t remember my name, I thought I mentioned that... sorry if I forgot to. I mean, Cornello called me ‘Aurora’, but that was mostly to go on with his lie that I was the daughter of Leto, ‘the Goddess of Dawn’, or something like that...” she explained, sighing softly. She knew it wasn’t her name, and it felt odd, using the name he gave her only to fit his con.

‘It’s impossible to transmute something without a circle; it’s the conduit for the energy necessary for a transmutation, it focuses and dictates the flow of energy pulled from the earth and matter itself. Simply understanding the sequence of transmutation and the laws of Equivalent Exchange aren’t enough, circles are integral for a transmutation to work. No circle, no transmutation. It’s impossible to transmute without drawing one,’

That’s what they’d told the unnamed girl in the last town she’d passed through; she knew that this sorcery she could now use was called ‘alchemy’, and that it was no easy feat for any common person to achieve (it requires study, innate talent, and an understanding of chemistry and the world around you), but she didn’t know how other alchemists did it. Cornello had told her that her ability to transmute without a circle, or a stone like he’d used, had meant she was a god. Now, she’d doubted that she was anything but human, no matter what the conman had made the citizens of Liore, and in part, her believe (she had taken his word on being a holy man, but not quite on his claims of her godhood)...but she still didn’t know why all she needed to do was clap to perform a transmutation. According to the few alchemists she’d run into after fleeing the desert, you needed a circle, no ifs ands or buts... unless you were her, and that boy with the red coat who’d gotten rid of the faux priest, apparently. The teen hadn’t been able to catch him, or his massive armored companion before they’d left Liore. Wanting to know more about what was going on in this strange world around her and why she could do these things, she’d decided to track him down for answers. Having sold the golden crown Cornello had made her along the way for food, she’d mostly traveled on foot with naught more than a suitcase to hold what little she had, and the clothes on her back to find him. Traveling for weeks had garnered nothing... until today.

Walking down the streets of East City, the girl sighed to herself. It felt like she’d never find the mysterious alchemist at this rate, but as she was turning a corner... she spotted a silhouette cloaked in red ahead of her, a golden braid down his back. At last, she’d found him! The dark haired girl ran as fast as her legs could carry her to catch up to him.

“Hey, guy in the red coat! Please, Hold up a second!”

@fullmetalhexrt

Mary nodded slowly, bashully smiling up at him. “Y-Yes, I am! Thanks to you! Honestly, I don’t think I needed another blow to the head; my memory’s been effected enough as it is, so thanks for the save,” she spoke, her cheeks red as she rubbed the back of her head. This had actually been the first time Mary had been in a man’s arms at all; she had whacked her head and been knocked unconscious during a battle around the time of the Múspell conflict, but Commander Anna had been the one to carry her back. Ever since then, her memories of people from her world had started to fade; not that she’d really had anyone to begin with, but still...

“Here’s one of the books, by the way,” she added after a moment, holding a worn, leather bound book with a startlingly familiar flame array on the cover. Now, it wasn’t a guarantee that the book was from an alternate, or past Amestris, but the contents would be similar enough. It was likely that these were the remnants of another flame alchemist’s research that was left behind upon death...

A Summoner’s Tale (closed FEH AU with traceofalchemy)

rxinbowtrxveler

“Get my hands on them? They were already here when I arrived, actually. I guess they wanted to be prepared for whatever their summoner turned out to be, so they put a whole lot of different books in here. That and I think the prince mentioned that alchemy isn’t as common here anymore, as their last summoner hundreds of years ago summoned quite a few, but they eventually all passed, including the summoner, and they hadn’t passed the knowledge to use it on, only leaving the books…. so they kind of stored most of them in here to make room for the books they’d need more in the main library. From the looks of it, you’re the only one around now. That honestly might get you a room upgrade…” she prattled on as she spotted a book on the list, struggling to reach it (and being fresh out of ladder, this was going to be a task). Puffing her cheeks out in annoyance, Mary stood on the tips of her toes to grab it.

“I found one! It’s the one on flame alchemy! I’ve almost…got it…!” the girl told him, her balance wobbly as her fingertips just barely brushed the book. “S-So t-tell me, Ed! Is….is alchemy c-common where y-you’re from? I-If I recall, w-where I’m from, alchemy was brushed of as pseudoscience c-centuries ag-OH!” Mary had begun to ask, but as she got the book… she fell off the ladder.

The information she had to share about alchemy dying off was both saddening and a relief at the same time. It was good to know that he wasn’t up against many other alchemists and maybe alchemy would benefit him well. On the other hand, it was sad to hear that it was stowed away in some room away from everything else.

He wasn’t sure what all he would tell her about his alchemy knowledge. Clearly she could tell he had an interest in it from the obvious topic of books, but he thought it’d be best to keep any bragging about his abilities a minimum.

He watched her reach for the book and held onto the ladder when he noticed her instability. Just when he was about to answer some of her questions, he saw her slip on the ladder. With his quick reflexes, he was able to catch her before she could fall into anything, “W-Whoa! That was close, are you alright?”

Naturally, the room was rather...empty, save the bed, a dresser and the desk. A door to the right lead to a small bathroom, and on the bed sat a change of clothes. White, blue and gold, just as Mary had described. He too had a long, hooded coat, but as she said, he likely wouldn’t be forced to keep it up. A white tunic, and pants were similar to Mary’s sat beside it, but his boots were shorter than hers, and had golden metal bits wound around them. There was also a layer of scalemail like the three warriors Ed had already met wore, same golden color.

The desk already had blank paper, an ink well and an iron dip pen sitting on it. A few books sat there too, one of which, ironically enough, were alchemy books. Not that it was intentional, likely someone forgot them there when setting up a room for the new arrival...

A Summoner’s Tale (closed FEH AU with traceofalchemy)

rxinbowtrxveler

The summoner wore a rather…simple outfit; a white coat with a hood, and gold Askran embellishments (much like the alchemist’s red coat back in his heyday, but much larger to completely cover her head and face), loose pants that matched the coat, a blue tunic also trimmed with gold, a brown belt, and brown boots with golden accents, plus a black and gold mask that covered her eyes. It was as if the outfit was meant to erase all sense of identity and self outside of being the summoner.

“Right? Can’t mess up hair like that, it’d be a tragedy,” Mary joked along with him, before answering the questions she was sure he had. “I don’t think so, your clothes will likely be a lot closer to what the royals and Commander Anna wear. Only I’m not allowed to have my hood down, unfortunately. I’m pretty sure at this point those three have forgotten what I look like without it, and like it that way. Can’t say I’m anything but what they want me to be if I don’t have a sense of autonomy or identity, right?” She joked, but it was easy to tell how much it wore on her. All you could really see was a few of her dark chocolate waves, really. Nothing else that defined her as Mary.

“Alright… I’ll be going, then. Knock on my door four times, so I know it’s you.” Mary instructed before turning away from the man and leaving for her own private rooms. Oh, if only she could change these awful, ugly clothes, even just a little! Maybe then she’d feel herself again…

It saddened Edward to hear her explanation on her outfit. To know that she had been forced to do such silly things in order to please them was fueling his fire even more. There were definitely somethings in this place that needed changing, and there was no way he was going to let them change him. If anything, the more he learned the more motivation he had to get moving already.

“Alright.” Ed nodded and watched her walk to her room. He made sure she was inside safely before checking on his own room to find out what he was in for. It was quiet when he entered the room and he let out a deep sigh. What an interesting day it had turned out to be… 

Honestly, now that Mary was calmer not that anything was calm in this kingdom of crazy, but she digresses, she could notice things about the poor guy she accidentally kidnapped; he did seem strong, and intelligent and too fucking gorgeous to be remotely human, and she hoped to be able to talk to him at some point. Mary hadn’t been able to figure out herself how to get the hell out of Askr, but maybe if she and Ed put their heads together...

Maybe they could escape...

A Summoner’s Tale (closed FEH AU with traceofalchemy)

rxinbowtrxveler

Shareena paused at that, beads of sweat running down her neck. It had been someone else’s idea, she couldn’t recall with the nerves at the moment, to find the summoners and summon heroes for the war effort. Mary, however, finally spoke up finally, someone who makes sense!.

“That’s exactly what I said! They completely dodge the question every time you ask, though…” the summoner grumbled towards the end. “So I wouldn’t bother…”

The summoner earned a glance from Ed. He was interested to learn more about what all she’d tried, but he’d wait for a chance to speak with her alone, “Of course they do.” He muttered and looked back at Shareena next to him, “I’ll give you some time to think about it.”

“I...have my doubts, but perhaps,” Mary murmured before stopping at the door to Ed’s room. Sighing softly, the summoner lowered her gaze before pointing down the hall. “I’m five doors down, left side of the hall. If you have any ideas, or want to talk to someone sane, I’ll be in there. Otherwise, the war room is a couple halls to your right,” she informed him quietly, drained from the day. Happy, that she finally had a true ally, but worn all the same from the guilt of another kidnapping.

“Do you need anything else before I leave you in peace? Prince Alfonse likely had clothes left for you inside, and the castle is magically heated, so you should have hot water available for bathing...”

A Summoner’s Tale (closed FEH AU with traceofalchemy)

rxinbowtrxveler

“A word of caution, Ed. Many of the ‘heroes’ here are on board with this mess, so be careful who you talk to about not wanting any part of it. Some probably want to go back to their own worlds too, but I’m not sure which ones are which,” Mary explained, starting to lead him inside of the castle.

Usually, the more important you were to the ‘war effort’, the bigger and nicer your rooms. Since Ed was newer, and no one really knew how valuable an asset he was just yet, his room would likely be pretty simple; a bed, a desk, and a bathroom. Mary’s was nicer, and more stocked because of her ‘summoner’ status. Closer to that of what the commander was allowed as the order leader, but not nearly as nice as those belonging to the prince and princess. All the beds were wide enough for two, as it seemed that in this world, marrying someone somehow made you collectively stronger. Thus, the beds were more spacious then one would expect to accommodate for that….

“Right…” Ed noted her comment. It was both surprising and not surprising to hear what she had to say, “Maybe without meaning to, we’ll bump into others like us.” 

He was hopeful, but wasn’t counting on it as he followed her into the castle. He had to say that he was impressed by the scale of the town and the castle, but nothing could change the fact that he wanted to leave. There were no expectations for what he would get as far as a room went, he was glad to hear that maybe he’d have a bed to sleep in and that was about all he cared for.

The summoner wore a rather...simple outfit; a white coat with a hood, and gold Askran embellishments (much like the alchemist’s red coat back in his heyday, but much larger to completely cover her head and face), loose pants that matched the coat, a blue tunic also trimmed with gold, a brown belt, and brown boots with golden accents, plus a black and gold mask that covered her eyes. It was as if the outfit was meant to erase all sense of identity and self outside of being the summoner.

“Right? Can’t mess up hair like that, it’d be a tragedy,” Mary joked along with him, before answering the questions she was sure he had. “I don’t think so, your clothes will likely be a lot closer to what the royals and Commander Anna wear. Only I’m not allowed to have my hood down, unfortunately. I’m pretty sure at this point those three have forgotten what I look like without it, and like it that way. Can’t say I’m anything but what they want me to be if I don’t have a sense of autonomy or identity, right?” She joked, but it was easy to tell how much it wore on her. All you could really see was a few of her dark chocolate waves, really. Nothing else that defined her as Mary.

“Alright... I’ll be going, then. Knock on my door four times, so I know it’s you.” Mary instructed before turning away from the man and leaving for her own private rooms. Oh, if only she could change these awful, ugly clothes, even just a little! Maybe then she’d feel herself again...

A Summoner’s Tale (closed FEH AU with traceofalchemy)

rxinbowtrxveler

“I…have my doubts, but perhaps,” Mary murmured before stopping at the door to Ed’s room. Sighing softly, the summoner lowered her gaze before pointing down the hall. “I’m five doors down, left side of the hall. If you have any ideas, or want to talk to someone sane, I’ll be in there. Otherwise, the war room is a couple halls to your right,” she informed him quietly, drained from the day. Happy, that she finally had a true ally, but worn all the same from the guilt of another kidnapping.

“Do you need anything else before I leave you in peace? Prince Alfonse likely had clothes left for you inside, and the castle is magically heated, so you should have hot water available for bathing…”

“Maybe I’ll swing by later.” Ed said. His eyes darted over her outfit and he wondered what in the world he’d be forced to wear. The idea of being left alone in a completely new world was definitely strange, but he knew a few hours alone might do him some good. “I’ll be alright. I hope I don’t have to wear a hood up all of the time too, it’ll mess up my hair.” he joked.