'Okay... where am I?' thought Ed. He scratched his head. Ed looked down the hallway, no one. He looked down the other one, no one.

Ed sweatdropped. 'Okay I'm lost.' You would think after being in this school for a few weeks, he would, at least, have a basic idea of where he was... Okay so he had no idea. He didn't even know which floor he was on and there was no one to ask; no pictures, students, not even a ghost. Ed let out a sigh. How was he suppose to get to the library now?

Fate seemed to be on his side today. Nearly Headless Nick decided to float by. (Ed had found out why the ghost was called Nearly Headless the first night, it wasn't a pleasant memory to remember when he was eating.) "Nick!"

The ghost stopped. "Oh hello... Ed was it?" said Nick.

Ed nodded. "Do you know how to get to the library from here?"

"Yes."

"Great! Can you show me," said Ed.

"Yes. Follow me," said Nick. He floated down the hallway. Ed followed. Suddenly Nick passed through a wall and Ed ran right into it.

"OW!" Ed fell down to the ground. He glared at the wall as he rubbed his head. It seemed Nick forgot that mortals couldn't walk through walls...

=A few corridors away=

Nick looked around. There was supposed to be a student following him. "Ed?" he called out. "Where did you go?"

=An hour later=

"It's about time you got here. I thought you were coming an hour ago," said Roy.

"I got lost," mumbled Ed. He rubbed his sore forehead again. At the moment both he and Roy were standing in the restricted section of the library. Roy pulled a dusty old book from the shelf. He handed it to Ed.

"So how did you get the bump?" Roy asked.

Ed glared. "Don't ask."

"I presume that a note with a teacher's signature is present."

Both Roy and Ed froze and slowly turned around. There, standing behind them, was the head librarian, Madam Pince. She was a tall old lady who reminded Ed of Professor McGonagall, just slightly more menacing when it came to books.

Roy shoved Ed around the corner. "Of course Madam Pince. I was just helping him get it." Madam Pince looked at her assistant with a questioning look. Roy just smiled nervously.

"Just be sure that he returns it," she said. Then she walked away.

Ed came around the corner holding the book. "What was that about?" he asked.

Roy pointed to the book. "Student aren't allowed in the restricted section without a note from a teacher. Both you and I would have gotten into big trouble if Madam Pince found out that you don't have a note. Not that Dumbledore would do much about it." He scratched his head and sighed.

"Oh."

Then something decided to land on Ed's head, bounce off and leap onto Roy's shoulder. Roy picked up whatever it was. He twitched. "Shinka?" he questioned, half glaring at the kitten.

Ed looked up to see his cat. "Shinka, why are you here?" Shinka just meowed. Roy handed Shinka back to Ed, who went and perched herself on top of Ed's head. Ed scowled. Shinka must believe she's some sort of queen or something, sitting up on Ed's head.

"You two make a real cute picture," teased Roy. There was a playful smirk on his face. Ed merely glared at his superior. Shinka meowed.

"I hear you had flying lesson this afternoon," said Roy, changing the subject. They walked down the aisle.

Ed nodded. "Yeah, with those Slytherins and that bastard Malfoy," he said.

"Yes. I saw."

Ed paled. "Y-you w-were w-watching?!" Roy smirked and Ed's hand slapped his forehead. Of course you would too if you just realized that you made a fool out of yourself in front of the person you li— errr... your superior.

=Flashback=

Madam Hooch, a lady with short, gray hair and yellow eyes like a hawk, started the lesson. "Everyone stand by a broomstick. Come on, hurry up."

Ed looked down. His broom was a very old one with twigs sticking out in different directions. He gently nudged it with his foot. It rolled over like good dog. Ed wasn't feeling very confident about flying anymore. Not with this old thing as his transportation.

"Stick out your right hand over the broom," called Madam Hooch at the front, "and say 'Up!'"

Ed wondered it that would work since his right hand was an automail one. Oh well, only one way to find out. "Up!" His broom hit him on the forehead. "Ow!" Ed glared at the broom this time. Well, at least it moved. He looked around. Harry's went straight into his hand. Ron got it about the second try. Neville's didn't move at all and Hermione's just rolled over.

Ed tried again. "Up!" This time the broom jumped into his hand. Then Madam Hooch showed them how to properly grip and mount their boom. Ed had been delighted when Madam Hooch told Draco that his grip was wrong and had been doing it wrong for years. He wasn't the only one. Harry and Ron were probably delighted as well.

"Now when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard," said Madam Hooch. "Keep your broom steady, rise a few a feet, and then come straight back down by leaning forward slightly. On my whistle—three—"

Ed watched as Neville suddenly pushed off hard before the whistle was even blown. 'Idiot,' he thought. "Neville Longbottom come down here right now," demanded Madam Hooch.

Neville came down alright, just the wrong way. He fell off. WHAM!!! In seconds Madam Hooch was at Neville's side, checking to make sure the poor boy was alright. "A broken wrist," she mumbled. She then turned to the class, "None of you is to move while I take this boy to the hospital wing! You leave those brooms where they are or you'll be out of Hogwarts before you can say 'Quidditch.' Come on, dear." She led Neville back to the castle.

Ed sat down on the grass and pulled out a book. That's when Harry got into a fight with Malfoy. Malfoy took Neville's Remembrall and took flight. Harry followed. Ed snapped his book shut and scrambled to his feet. "Harry, you're going to get in trouble!" Harry didn't listen. Ed was about to grab his broom and go after him when Malfoy dropped the Remembrall. Ed stopped heading towards his broom and ran towards where the Remembrall was falling. Harry was too...

And Harry got there first...

Then Professor McGonagall came.

"HARRY POTTER! Never— in all my years—," she started. Her face was red, presumably from anger. "—How dare you—might have broken your neck—"

"It wasn't his fault," protested Ed. Professor McGonagall didn't listen. "Malfoy—"

"That's enough Mr. Elric. Potter, follow me, now," she said in a strict tone. Harry followed her glumly back to the castle. Malfoy and his goons, Crabbe and Goyle, had looks of triumph on their faces. Ed glared at them.

&=====&

Madam Hooch soon came back and the lesson continued. Many of the Gryffindors weren't paying attention, half distracted from wondering what happened to Harry. Whether he was worried about Harry or not, Ed wasn't having much lucky on a broom anyways. So far his broom seemed to have a mind of its own and threw him off a couple times.

'I wonder if I'm allowed to set this thing on fire,' he thought darkly glaring at the broom. He could hear Malfoy's snickers from here. 'I wonder if Colonel would let me transform Malfoy into something... a frog maybe? Actually better yet, I'll take a leaf out of Scar's book and just kill the guy.' (Yes, in Ed's mind, Malfoy was so annoying that he was willing to kill him, but that won't happen in this fanfic.)

Ed got back onto his broom only to fall off again. As he silently cursed, he never noticed a certain flame alchemist, watching from the tower behind him with a dreamy look and a smirk on his face.

=End of Flashback=

"So what happened to Harry?" asked Roy.

Ed shrugged. "I don't know. I skipped dinner to come here. So I don't know if this is his last night or not." Ed felt sorry for Harry if it was his last night. It wasn't his fault; it was Malfoy's.

"Halloween is coming up," Roy said suddenly, changing the subject completely.

Ed blinked. That was right. Halloween was just around the corner. Ed smiled. "I wonder how they celebrate Halloween here," he wondered. Roy shrugged. Ed smile turned into a smirked. Either way, he was going to have fun this Halloween...

&-----------------------------------&

You were persistent, you know.

That calling...

A voice, but not a voice.

I couldn't help but hear

I was rather annoyed. So I simply took you with me.

-Koumyou Sanzo, Saiyuki Vol 3 'Calling'

&--------------------------------&

&-------------------&

Yoake Mae

&-------------------&

Chapter IV

Denying Destiny; Troll Trouble
&--------------------&

Yaru dake son suru yona, mainichi wa
Sha ni kamaeteta hou koso, raku ni naru

More effort, more damage--this is my daily life.

Taking a cynical attitude may give me some comfort...

Atsukute, tsurai jibun wo kakushite, mijikai toki wo ikiteru

Hiding myself, heated and irritated; living only a short time.

&-----------------------&

Ed later found out that Harry ended up as the Seeker for the Gryffindor team. Professor Dumbledore bent the rules a bit and allowed Harry to play. So the next day, Harry received his broomstick, a Nimbus Two Thousand. (“You’re joking right?” –Ed “Does it look like I am?” –Harry “You’ve got to be the youngest Seeker in a century!” –Ron) Malfoy was in shock and could only stare in disbelief and horror much to Ed and Ron’s delight. (Harry was still wishing that Malfoy would change his attitude...)

Then Halloween came...

It was a bright and early Halloween morning. The sun hung low in the sky, having just risen a few hours before. The sky seemed to be colorless, just barely a light blue. A few clouds rolled by. The sunlight was just pouring into the room when Ron felt something poking him.

“Mmmm... go away... five more minutes... mmm...” mumbled Ron. He batted the thing away. The poking didn’t stop. Finally Ron gave up and turned over. Groggily, he opened his eyes, screamed and then fainted. All the other boys in the room woke up with a jump.

“Ron?” asked Harry. The redhead didn’t answer, having fallen unconscious and out of his bed. Standing by Ron’s bed was a small creature. Its face was twisted and deformed. There were small trickles of blood dripping down its face. It had a black body that seemed to float in the air.

“What is that thing?” asked Dean. Harry pulled out his wand just in case. He didn’t know if that thing would attack him or the other boys and it was good to have his wand handy in case Harry needed a spell and fast. Then something attacked him, well... leaped at him, at least.

“AHHHHH!!”

“Harry!” said Dean.

Harry managed to pull off the thing that atta—err... jumped at him. Then he blinked, recognizing the small thing. A small reddish, brown colored fluffball. It was Ed’s cat, Shinka. “Shinka?” asked Harry, wondering what the small kitten was doing, jumping at him.

Then the creature started to laugh, drawing the attention of the boys again. The creature pulled off its face to reveal the laughing face of Ed.

“You should have seen your faces,” laughed Ed.

Harry just stared in shock. “What-why—“he stammered, near speechless. Ed smiled.

“Happy Halloween,” he said. After all, part of the fun on Halloween was scaring people. It’s too bad that Harry and rest of the boys had to be Ed’s unlucky victims. On the ground, Ron slowly began to recover from his shock. That was until he saw Ed’s head floating in midair, where the creature’s head used to be. Ron fainted again.

&------&

Charms Class

“Sorry about that Ron,” apologized Ed. He had to make sure Ron wasn’t angry about the stunt Ed pulled this morning. Although it was funny to hear Ron shriek like a girl. Ed would remember that for a long time.

“It’s okay,” said Ron. He didn’t blame Ed, just wished that next year Ed would choose someone else to scare.

“Now, don’t forget that nice wrist movement we’ve been practicing!” squeaked Professor Flitwick, perched on top of his pile of books as usual. “Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the magic words properly is very important, too— never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said ‘s’ instead of ‘f’ and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest.”

Ed glared at the feather that refused to move. They were trying to levitate the feather. He was paired up with Harry while Ron (who was sitting right next to them) was stuck with Hermione as his partner. Ed felt very sorry for Ron. He didn’t want to put up with Ms. Bossy anymore then he needed to.

Ed poked the feather with his wand, seeing if prodding the feather would get it float in the air. Suddenly it went ‘BOOM!!!!’ It burst into flames. Both Harry and Ed went into a panic and started to put the fire out with their hats. It left a black ring of ashes on their desk and Ed was covered in soot from the neck up. He let out a weak cough. “Remind me not to do that again,” he told Harry. Harry nodded in agreement and went to grab another feather.

“You’re saying it wrong,” snapped Hermione. “It’s Win—gar—dium Levi—o—sa, make the ‘gar’ nice and long.”

Ron glared at her and snarled, “You do it, then, if you’re so clever.” Hermione rolled up the sleeves of her gown, flicked her wand, and said, “Wingardium Leviosa!”

Their feather slowly rose into the air, hovering a good four feet off their desk. “Oh, well done!” cried Professor Flitwick, clapping. “Everyone see here, Miss Granger’s done it!” Ron was in a very bad mood after that.

&------&

“It’s no wonder no one can stand her,” Ron mumbled darkly as he, Harry and Ed walked through the crowded corridors.

“Ignore her,” said Ed. “She’s just being a bossy know-it-all who’s getting on everyone’s nerves.”

Suddenly someone pushed past them. It was Hermione. “I think she heard you guys,” said Harry. The three of them were stunned to see her in tears.

“So?” said Ron, but he looked a bit uncomfortable. “She must’ve noticed that she’s got no friends.” Ed nodded in agreement, but couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty.

&-----&

Dinner came faster then Ed could imagine and he was happy about it too. The Great Hall was decorated in the Halloween spirit. There were Jack-o-lanterns everywhere- on the tables, on the corner of the hallways and on the stairways. Thousands of bats swooped down from the ceiling; they seemed like black clouds.

Ed was about to ‘dig in’ when the door of the Great Hall suddenly burst open. In stumbled Professor Quirrell in a frantic state. His face was pale, his robes a mess. “Troll—in the dungeons—thought you ought to know.” Then he fainted.

Panic broke out through the Great Hall. Whispers about the troll and what they were going to do, raced like wildfire throughout the students. Dumbledore’s purple firecrackers from his wand managed to silent everyone. “Prefects,” he rumbled, “lead you Houses back to the dormitories immediately!” Everyone began to move.

Ed got in line with the other Gryffindors. Just as they were leaving, he spotted Ron and Harry sneaking away. He quickly caught up with them. “Where are you going,” he hissed.

“Hermione doesn’t know about the troll,” said Harry.

You have no idea how much it tempted Ed to just say, ‘leave her there’, but he knew that it wouldn’t be right. No matter how much he hated her. “Fine. But I’m coming with you,” he whispered. He really doubted that Harry and Ron could take on a troll alone. Then again he wasn’t sure if he could take on a troll alone.

&-------&

Roy scanned the crowds to see if Ed was with his house. He didn’t see the young alchemist anywhere. ‘He didn’t go after the troll, did he? That baka. What part of ‘return to your dormitories’ didn’t he understand? I don’t care whether or not if he can take on a troll, why isn’t he with his house?!’

Roy left the other teachers to go in search of a certain blond boy who had a tendency of getting into trouble. Before he did that, he slipped on a single white glove with a certain circle design. He had a feeling he was going to need it.

&-------&

Ed let out a curse. A rather loud one, mind you, but it didn’t really matter now, did it? The problem? There were two trolls, not one. The other problem? They were stuck in a confined space, in the girls’ bathroom. ‘This is bad, real bad,’ thought Ed. ‘I wonder if this counts as ‘direct circumstances’?’

He jumped out of the way of the swing of the troll’s club. ‘Too late to think about it, if I don’t want to get killed I better do something about it now.’

“What are we going to do,” asked Harry. There was a small trickle of blood flowing down from his forehead. He had gotten a cut from a piece of rock that flew when one of the trolls smashed his club into the wall. Those trolls weren’t very smart creatures were they?

“This is all my fault,” mumbled Hermione. She shivered behind the three boys, soaking wet from the water that burst from one of the broken pipes, caused again by one of the trolls waving his club.

“Damnit,” cursed Ed. “I’m going to get in trouble for this, but I consider this direct circumstances. Plus, I don’t have much of a choice.” Harry, Ron, and Hermione just stared at him, confused at what he meant. Ed didn’t say anything. Instead he clapped his hands together, the air around him sparking a blue color. He touched his right arm, transforming it into a sharp blade. The white glove he normally wore on his right hand tore into many pieces.

“W-what,” stammered Harry, not understanding. How did Ed do that? All he did was touch his right arm and it turned into a blade. There was no incantation, so it wasn’t a spell. Was it a higher type of magic? If so, then how did Ed learn it? They were first years, there was no way this type of magic was in their range.

His only answer from Ed was, “It’s the reason why I’m called ‘Fullmetal’.” Then Ed leaped at one of the trolls, his blade cutting into its skin. He dodged the other troll’s club only to see the first one heading towards Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Ed clapped his hands again and slammed them onto the ground. A wall suddenly appeared between them and the troll’s club. It didn’t matter much. The troll smashed through it. Ed cursed again.

“Wingardium Leviosa!”

Ron’s quick thinking just saved all of them. The troll’s club floated in midair before landing on the troll’s head with a ‘BONK!’. That took care of one troll. That left one more. Ed tensed, ready to attack when a burst of flame came out of nowhere. It hit the troll head on, knocking it into the wall. Dust flew as the impact was heard, shaking the entire bathroom.

Ed shielded his eyes from the dust. When it cleared, it showed the first person and the last person that Ed wanted to see. There in all his glory, much like a knight showing up to rescue the damsel in distress or princess, was Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist, with his spark glove ready and aimed at the unmoving trolls bodies as a precaution. (Seito: -smile-)

“Roy,” said Ed. He didn’t realize that he had just called his superior by his first name, something he had never done before. Then again, Roy didn’t notice either. If he did, the Flame Alchemist didn’t say anything or show that he did.

“You always were getting yourself into trouble, Fullmetal,” Roy mumbled. “You and I are going to have a long talk after this.” Ed gulped and nodded. Roy lowered his hand, sure that both trolls were out for the count.

“Get out of here,” he ordered. “Unless you want to get in trouble with the other teachers.” Ed nodded and helped Hermione up. They slipped past Roy and headed straight for the common room. Just as they went around the corner, the footsteps of the other teachers could be heard, heading straight for the bathroom. Roy slipped his spark glove back into his pocket. It would seem the teachers heard or felt the noise of the fight. Now what story should he make up to explain this scene to them?

“Roy! Did you do this?” demanded Professor McGonagall. The girl’s bathroom laid in ruins, water dripping out of broken pipes and sinks. The walls were covered in soot and the bodies of the two trolls were in the center of the room. One troll had horrible burn marks; the other had a big bump on its head. There was debris everywhere.

“Ummm... Yes. Well, ummm, part of it. The other half was caused by the trolls,” said Roy half truthfully. There was a bit of anxiety in his voice. ‘Why am I taking the blame for Ed,’ he wondered. He hoped the other teachers wouldn’t be too angry at the damage. To tell the truth, he only did the burn marks. Anything else was a result from the trolls smashing. From what he could tell, Ed only created one thing, a wall, which the trolls smashed through pretty easily. So in reality, most of the damage was the trolls’ fault, not his and not Ed’s.

“How did you do that?” asked Professor Flitwick. “You cast a fire spell didn’t you? Which spell? I have never seen such a powerful spell.”

Roy sweatdropped and smiled nervously. ‘How am I going to explain this?’ “It was nothing” he started.

&------&

Once inside the common room (which was near empty), Ed returned his hand back to normal. Harry could only stare in wonder and in shock at the automail hand. “Ed,” he started. Ed cut him off.

“Not now, Harry,” he said. Ed didn’t want to explain about his automail hand and his alchemy skill now. He had other things to worry about. Ed was already dreading seeing Roy again. The colonel wasn’t going to let him off the hook so easily nor was he going to put this matter to rest. He could just hear the teasing from Roy about how he was nearly beaten by a troll.

“Ummm... thank you,” whispered Hermione. “For coming to rescue me.”

“Psh,” blew out Ed, “Look I have this rule I live by. It’s called ‘Exact Trade’. I saved your life, so in return stop acting like a bossy know-it-all. You’ll make friends a lot easier. Well, it’s not an exact trade, but it’s close enough.” He smiled.

Hermione blinked, stunned by the speech. She had a lot of thinking to do tonight. Ed had made some really good points. Then Ed went upstairs to his bed. He was tired. Shinka meowed a hello to him as he let out a yawn. Ed scratched her ear, put on a new glove for his right hand and then fell on to his bed, falling asleep instantly. Halloween had been a long and busy day

&-----------------&

May the lost lambs have peace...

May the wolves no longer bare their fangs...

And may this demon feel the crushing blow of DEATH!

-Rosette, Chrono Crusade, Vol. 1, Chapter 1

&--------------------------------------------------------------------------------&

&-----------------&

Yoake Mae
&-----------------&

Chapter V

100th Special!

A Doomed Fate? Quidditch Season Begins

&-------------------&

Hitori de wa, tooi ashita wo

Yoake no mama de, koesou de

When I'm alone, tomorrow feels far away.

And I must go over still into the darkness of dawn.

&-------------------&

November quickly came and several things happened. First, to Ed’s relief, he and Roy didn’t have that ‘talk’ for a long time. The rest of the professors were still trying to figure out how Roy knocked out two trolls, burned half the bathroom, create a lot of rubble, and come out unscratched from the fight. Of course that didn’t mean Ed got out of that meeting... but we’ll go into that later. Second, it took her awhile, but Hermione took Ed’s advice and slowly began to change her attitude. She also began to hang out with Ron and Harry. Third was that Quidditch season started, leaving Harry swamped with practice and homework. Fourth was that as winter came, the air grew colder. The last thing was Harry, Ron, and Hermione ‘almost’ forgetting about Ed’s automail arm and his unusual abilities.

Anyways, at the moment, everyone was at the Quidditch field watching the match between Gryffindor and Slytherin. Well, everyone but Ed and Roy, who were currently in the library, discussing certain matters.

“I can’t believe you went after that troll! I knew you were reckless, but that was crazy!” Roy paced back and forth. He was angry, not because Ed disobeyed him, but at the thought of what could have happened to Ed. The boy could have killed himself and Roy would have never forgiven himself if that happened.

Ed was silent, just watching Roy pace back and forth. He interpreted Roy’s anger as him disobeying the Professors and him. Ed didn’t notice that Roy was genuinely worried. Roy continued to rant on, blaming himself for reasons he didn’t know while thinking the worst possibilities that could have happened.

Finally Roy ended with a sigh and said, “Try not to be so reckless, Fullmetal.”

Ed only nodded in understanding. Then another thought dawned on Roy. “Those kids, Potter and his friends, how much did you tell them?”

“Nothing,” said Ed. He shrugged, “I think they forgot about it. I didn’t really want to explain about my automail limbs and alchemy.”

Roy nodded. “Yes. That’s why I said not to use alchemy. The wizarding world has no idea about alchemy. Often, it is mistaken as magic or a form of it. Plus, I don’t think the muggle born kids would be comfortable if they knew you were a part of the army.”

Ed nodded in understanding. Just then he spotted something very strange. Something was jerking around, tossing like a wild buffalo at a rodeo in the sky. What was that? “Is that Harry?” Ed asked.

Indeed it was. Harry’s broom was jerking around, trying to throw Harry off.

“He’s going to fall from that height,” said Roy. He grabbed one of the telescopes that laid near by. He peered through it, looking at who would cause such a thing. It had to be someone, one of the teachers who were jinxing the broom with dark magic. “Either Snape or Quirrell is the one responsible. They’re both chanting something,” he said.

“Unless we want this to turn into a murder scene,” said Ed, his golden eyes growing hard, “We better get down there and stop them.” They raced out of the library and down to the field.

&-------------&

“Does Snape or Quirrell have a grudge against Potter?” asked Roy as they ran. They made a sharp turn around the corner, skidding a bit.

“No,” said Ed. “Well, Snape does seem to hate Harry. He’s always picking on him during class.” He leaped down a few steps, skipping across the stones as he landed. They were almost at the Quidditch field.

“But why would Snape do such a thing?” asked Roy. “It’s not everyday a teacher tries to kill one of their students. No matter how much the teacher hates the student.” The Quidditch field was just around the corner at the end of the hallway.

“Dunno,” said Ed. There, the Quidditch field. Harry’s broom was still jerking around, out of control. The game was at a halt as everyone could only stare in wonder and amazement. “How do we stop Snape?” asked Ed.

“We have to break his eye contact,” said Roy. Ed blinked and stared. Roy noticed the look. “What?” he asked. “I read it somewhere.” Then under his breath he mumbled, “There’s nothing else to do in a library.”

“I guess it’s would be a little too obvious if I go and transfigure something,” said Ed.

“Yes, it would be,” said Roy. “But fire is a little less obvious.” He pulled his spark glove over his hand. There was a smirk on his face. Ed, catching onto what Roy was implying, began to smirk as well.

Roy took off towards the teacher’s box. “Stay here and be ready to catch him if he falls,” instructed Roy.

Ed blinked. “So does that mean?”

“Yes. If Harry falls,” said Roy. Ed turned his attention to the sky. Harry’s broom was still out of control, tossing and turning like crazy. ‘Get there soon, Roy,’ thought Ed. ‘ I really don’t want someone else I know die.’

&---&

Roy raced up the stairs to the teachers’ box. ‘Why does there have to be so many stairs?!’ Soon he reached the top. ‘Which one is Snape’s coat?’ Roy soon found it. He snapped his fingers lightly so that there was a small spark. Slowly that spark grew into a flame. Roy quickly left as confusion ran through the teachers’ box.

“Severus! Your cloak!” yelled one of the teachers. Snape started to put out fire, knocking down several of the other professors in his frantic state; Quirrell was one of them.

Meanwhile, Harry was speeding towards the ground when the crowd saw him clap his hand to his mouth as though he was about to be sick—he hit the field on all fours— coughed— and something gold fell into his hand. “I’ve got the Snitch!” he shouted, waving it above his head, and the game ended in complete confusion.

&--------------------------------------------&

Winter was slowly coming. The air had an icy touch and many students dished out the warmer, thicker clothes. Snow began to fall as everyone could barely wait for Christmas break, which was still a good three weeks away. (Ed was sure his automail limbs were going to freeze on him in such cold weather.)

Harry, Ron, and Hermione started searching the library. They were trying to research someone called Nicolas Flamel. Hagrid had mentioned him to them and they believed Flamel had something to do with whatever was on the third floor. They were constantly searching the library, but it was hard to do so with Madam Pince breathing down their necks and Roy’s watchful eyes. (“I swear he’s got eyes everywhere! We think he’s sleeping, he’s actually watching us; we think he’s reading, he’s actually watching us. How does he do it?!” –Ron)

So one morning, in early December, the three of them were in the library once more, searching for Flamel. With Ron and Hermione standing just down the aisle, reading, Harry slowly wandered into the restricted section.

Leisurely, Harry moved towards the shelves. No sign of Madam Pince or Roy yet. Harry was just about to pull one of the books free from the shelf when someone’s voice scared him

“Harry? What are you doing here?”

Harry turned around. There was Ed dressed in a red coat and black clothes instead of his Hogwarts robes. Tucked under his arms was a dusty red covered book. His white gloves were turning a brown color from the dust that covered the books. Harry looked at Ed’s right hand, briefly wondering about Ed’s metal hand.

“Harry?”

Ed’s voice snapped Harry out of his thoughts. “I’m looking for something,” said Harry. He couldn’t think of a better excuse.

“Then you’re in the wrong section.”

From behind Ed, Roy appeared. Harry blinked, surprised at the sudden appearance of the assistant librarian. Harry was starting to believe Roy had eyes everywhere.

Footsteps were heard. Roy looked down the aisle he just came from. Ed quickly grabbed Harry and pulled him out of the restricted section and around the corner.

“Roy? I heard voices,” came Madam Pince’s sharp voice.

“No one here,” Roy lied. He gave a small smile to reassure the head librarian.

From around the corner, Harry blinked rapidly. Did Roy just lie for him and Ed? Why would a teacher do that? Slowly the footsteps faded away and Roy appeared around the corner again.

“She’s gone,” he said. He ran his hand through his black curls of hair, mumbling incoherently under his breath. Then he turned to Ed and asked, “Did you find what you were looking for?” Roy walked back to the restricted section. Ed followed. Harry took a hesitant step, but followed too. Ron and Hermione quickly followed as well. Maybe they could grab a few books....

Ed handed the book he was holding. “No. It’s not in here.” Roy put the book back on the shelf.

“Have you tried the Dark Arts section?”

“Yes. It’s not there either,” scowled Ed.

“Spells and Potions Section?”

“Nope.”

“Great Achievements?”

“Not there either.”

Harry, Ron and Hermione stared in silently as Roy listed off the titles of books and the sections they would be in as Ed continued to say no to every single one.

“Did Ed read all of those books?” asked Ron in amazement.

“That can’t be,” said Hermione. “Over half of the ones Mr. Mustang are listing are in the restricted section. There’s no way Ed could have gotten them without a teacher’s note.”

“Maybe he doesn’t need one,” said Harry. “Ed knows Mr. Mustang and it seems they know each other quite well. Maybe Mr. Mustang is letting Ed read in the restricted section and not telling Madam Pince.”

Hermione stared in shock. “That’s against the rules and abuse of privilege! Not to mention it’s unfair to the rest of us students!”

“They’re good friends,” said Ron. “Friends do things for each other, even if it means breaking a few a rules. As long as Madam Pince doesn’t find out, both of them are okay.”

Hermione looked mad. “That’s not right. We should tell her!”

“Still like sticking to the rules, Hermione?”

Hermione turned around to see Ed standing behind her. “The difference between you and me is that ‘Mr. Mustang’ trusts me. I’m only looking for one thing.”

Hermione was about to protest even further when Harry cut her off. “Ed when you were reading, did you ever come across someone named Flamel?”

Ed blinked and thought about. “Flamel,” he mumbled, racking his brain to see if he remembered. “Sorry. Don’t think so,” said Ed. “Why?”

Harry shook his head. “Never mind. It isn’t that important.”

&----------------&

A few days later Professor McGonagall came around with a list asking who would be staying at Hogwarts for the holidays. Ron and his brothers were staying as his parents were off to visit one of Ron’s older brother who had graduated already. Harry signed up immediately. There was no way he was going to go back to the Dursleys for Christmas. He didn’t want to see them any sooner then he had to. However, Hermione was going home for the winter break. Now Ed was stuck with a decision. To stay or not to stay, that is the question.

So both him and Roy were sitting in the library wondering if they should stay or go home.

“Well, if we stay, you can use the library to its full use because Pince isn’t going to be here,” said Roy. He casually tossed a small ball up.

“But I also want to see Al,” said Ed. He leaned back in his chair. On the floor Shinka was playing with the ends of his black robes. In front of him, another dusty, old book was opened.

“Other than those back at headquarters, there’s nothing for me to do back there but paperwork and no one to celebrate Christmas with either,” said Roy. The ball slipped out of his fingers. Before he could pick it up, Shinka attacked it and claimed it as hers. Roy twitched and then glared at the cat.

Ed sat straight, just remembering something. “By the way, are those rumors true? The one about the stone being right here, in Hogwarts,” he whispered.

Roy shrugged. “Good question. I haven’t heard a single thing from anyone. Then again, the library isn’t the best place to get information from anything other than the books. I’ve skimmed just as much books as you and still I haven’t found anything. The professors here aren’t the most gossipy type for those kind of things anyways.”

Ed slumped back down in his chair. “Figures. If anything, only a few professors know if it’s here or not. Dumbledore isn’t going to tell his entire staff if they have nothing to do with it. It’s probably his most trusted professor like McGonagall or Flitwick.”

“That still leaves us with the question of whether or not we stay,” said Roy. He managed to reclaim the ball from Shinka until Shinka decided to bite his leg. With a small ‘yelp’ he dropped the ball again. Shinka quickly snatched it. As his superior and cat fought, Ed paid no attention to them, much less noticing what was going on. (“My ball!” –Roy “Meow!!!! Hiss!!!” –Shinka)

This was going to take a lot more thinking. Ed wanted to go home but he wanted to stay here and find out more about the philosopher’s stone so he could restore Al and himself.

To stay or to leave...?

&--------------------------------------------------------------------------------&

...... If someone did that to me...

I’d find him, no matter what.

And then I’d tell him to shut it and pop him in the head

-Kouryuu, Saiyuki Vol 3, ‘Calling’

&-------------------&

Yoake Mae
&------------------&

Chapter VI

Threads of Fate; Snowball and Friends

&------------------&

Hottokeba, hashiru omoi yo

Yume mo mata, sure chigai

If I let my emotions free,

My dreams will once again not go well.

&-------------------&

The holidays were just about to start and with a guilty heart Ed signed up to stay at Hogwarts. Then he went up to his room and wrote a long, detailed letter to Al telling him what he found and that he wouldn’t be coming home for Christmas. Roy had no problem telling his subordinates that he wouldn’t be coming back for the holidays. (“Damnit, why does the Colonel get to stay in a big school with tons of food?” –Havoc. ‘He just doesn’t want to do the paperwork.’ –Hawkeye)

The day before the rest of the students left to go home, it snowed several feet. Ed was shaken awake early that morning, disturbing his slumber.

“Ed! Wake up!”

Ed turned over sleepily. The blurry outline of Harry came into his vision. Ed turned back over and fell back asleep. Harry didn’t stop. “Ed!” Shinka, who just sleeping seconds earlier, let out a small hiss for being waken from her sleep.

Finally Ed gave in. “What,” he snapped.

Harry just grinned and pointed out the window. Ed stumbled out of bed and looked outside. His eyes widened. Outside was a winter wonderland. Everything was covered in snow. The lake was frozen and there was a chill in the air. Ed could even see his breath.

“Nice isn’t it,” said Harry.

Before Ed could even respond a snowball flew into his face. As he brushed off the snow from his face and looked down, a familiar laugh reached his ears.

Dressed in a long black coat and white gloves, was Roy. The Flame Alchemist was laughing. As Ed glared down at him, Roy’s laughter subsided and he smirked. “Good morning Fullmetal,” he said.

Ed growled. In a few minutes he was dressed and outside. Seconds later Roy was dodging volleys of snowballs, laughing all the while. “You’re going to have to do better than that,” teased Roy. He threw another snowball at Ed’s face.

“WHY, YOU?!?!!!!!”

Harry and Ron soon joined them outside, but wisely avoided Roy and Ed’s battle. Ron and Harry had a snowball fight with Fred and George instead. In the background they could hear Ed’s yells a hundred yards away.

“What?! I am not short!!!”

Hermione soon joined Harry and Ron. She blinked as she heard the yells. “Do they always fight like this,” she asked. Ed ran by, throwing another snowball, which missed Roy again. Harry and Ron shrugged. They still didn’t understand how Ed knew Mr. Mustang in the first place.

Roy dodged Ed’s latest snowball. He really enjoyed teasing the younger alchemist. ‘He’s so cute when he’s angry,’ he thought. Realizing what he just thought caused Roy to stop and think. ‘Wait, what did I just think?’ Before he could ponder on those thoughts, a snowball hit him in the back of his head.

“Got you!” shouted Ed.

Roy pushed aside those thoughts and threw another snowball. It hit Ed on the back. Ed growled and resumed his chase as Roy took off. Roy would ponder about those thoughts later. He had a snowball fight to win.

&------------&

“What is this,” demanded Ed.

“A snowman,” Roy answered casually. He patted the snow on the snowman. Ed glared at the snowman before glaring at Roy.

“This is an insult!” yelled Ed.

Roy looked at him. “Why?” he asked.

Ed’s glare grew fiercer. The snowman Roy was building stood just an inch taller than Ed and the assistant librarian wasn’t making any movement to change the size of the snowman.

“What?” asked Roy. There was a small smirk on his face as Ed continued to glare at him. Just rub it in that Ed is short, why don’t you Roy? Ed maintained his glare as Shinka, who followed her master out, decided to perch herself on top of the snowman’s head, declaring it as her territory much like everything else that Ed owned.

&-----The Next Day-----&

Harry, Ron, Ed and Roy (for some odd reason) were down at the train station to say goodbye to Hermione who would be leaving to go home for the holidays. “Have a safe trip,” wished Ron.

“Bye,” said Ed.

“Goodbye,” said Hermione. She was about to get onto the train when something decided to hug Ed.

“Nii-san!”

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared in bewilderment as Ed and Roy blinked in shock. Who wouldn’t? A giant suit of armor came out of nowhere and hugged Ed. “Al,” asked Ed. “What are you doing here?”

The suit of armor let go of Ed. “Your headmaster sent a letter saying I could stay here for the holidays.” Ed blinked trying to understand what his brother just said before it hit him.

“That’s great!” shouted Ed.

Roy smiled until he heard someone speak very softly. “Colonel.”

Roy turned around. There behind him was First Lieutenant Hawkeye, Second Lieutenant Havoc, and for some reason, Major Armstrong. Hawkeye was the one who addressed him. “Hello, Colonel.”

Before Roy could even say anything, Hawkeye handed Roy an envelope. Roy blinked and asked, “What is this?”

“Your paperwork sir. Well, part of your paperwork,” Hawkeye explained calmly. She then pointed to the boxes that Major Armstrong and Second Lieutenant Havoc were holding. “And that’s the rest of your paperwork, sir.” Roy could only stare. How on earth?! When did his paperwork pile up so high?!?!

In the background Ed and Al were chatting up a storm. They were happy to see each other. All the while Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared in shock; the three of them, speechless.

“Ummm, who are you people?” asked Harry.

Everyone stopped what they were doing. (Roy was grateful because it just saved him an earful from Hawkeye.) Al walked over to them. “Nice to meet you. I’m Alphonse Elric.”

Hermione blinked once, twice, three times. The suit of armor just spoke. How was that possible? The ones in Hogwarts couldn’t even do that! Then Al’s words sank in. “Elric? You’re Ed’s brother?!”

Harry and Ron were still too shocked to say anything. Al nodded. “That’s right. I’m Ed’s younger brother.”

“But how?! You’re just a suit—“ Hermione found her mouth covered by Ed’s hand.

“He likes wearing a suit of armor, okay?” whispered Ed. “It’s insulting if you say he’s just a suit of armor.” Hermione nodded.

“So who are they?” asked Ron, temporarily recovering from his shock. He pointed towards Hawkeye, Havoc, and Armstrong.

“Just some of my friends,” said Roy quickly. “No mentioning of rank, alchemy, or military,” he whispered to the three standing behind him. The three looked at him, confused at what the Flame Alchemist meant. Havoc was about to ask ‘why’ when Roy shot him a look that said, that’s-an-order! Havoc immediately shut up and didn’t say a word.

Hawkeye decided to speak up and introduce herself. “Hello. I’m Riza Hawkeye. You can call me Riza.” She held her hand out. Harry realizing what she was doing, shook it.

“Hi. I’m Harry Potter and these are my friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger,” said Harry.

Armstrong introduced himself and Havoc next. “I am Alex Louis Armstrong and this is Havoc.” Harry, Ron, and Hermione were trying to get over their apparent shock, but nodded in understanding and as a hello.

&-----On the Train-----&

The only heir to the Malfoy name sat inside of the train compartment. He stared outside the window as the scenes went flying by. Crabbe and Goyle were somewhere else, since Draco sent them away. Draco was trying to figure out what happened two days ago.

&--------Flashback--------&