The Water Alchemist

Look Before You Leap

Welcome back to The Water Alchemist. I don't own any of the intellectual property of Fullmetal Alchemist.

Chapter Forty-Six

Look Before You Leap

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Three grueling days had passed since leaving Isabelle behind. We stopped twice since then, but I only departed the train that one time to freshen up at the station. I hadn't been allowed to leave my room except to use the restroom otherwise. A few hours had passed since our last stop, where I was kept in my room, and I was just journaling, unable to sleep. I looked briefly out my window, noticing how dark it had gotten. I closed the journal – my hand cramping from trying to write in cuffs – and I walked up to the window. There were bars over it, and I wondered how often prisoners were transported by train as I wrapped my hands around them, peering out into the darkness. Suddenly the train lurched as it had each time before we made a stop, and I gripped the bars a bit tighter, trying to look through the glass for any clues as to where we had ended up. My breath ended up fogging the window instead, and I tried to squint through it. A knock at the door pulled me from trying to wipe the condensation away.

"Miss Wayde, would you like a shower?" the familiar voice of the female soldier floated into the room pleasantly. I had been in the care of two separate soldiers it seemed, the grump who brought my meals and her, and they seemed to rotate shifts watching me. Her cheerful demeanor made the fact that I was under constant surveillance a bit more bearable.

"Yes, please," I said since it had been two days since my last. I turned to her, a bit surprised when I saw her. She looked a bit more... bundled up than I remembered. I brushed it off and followed her to depart the train.

"Watch your step," she instructed before opening the door, and when she opened it, I was assaulted by a frigid blast of air.

"C-cold," I said, shaking.

I stepped down from the train with a shiver, my sneakers sinking into the soft terrain. I let out a surprised gasp, my breath a visible cloud of air in front of me, looking down to see that I had stepped into snow. I hadn't seen snow in years. It didn't often snow back home— I'd seen it maybe twice as a kid, but that was so long ago. There was a brief moment of excitement stirring in my chest, seeing the shimmering crystals of freshly fallen snow until I shivered again. I was wearing a simple tunic and trousers— not ideal for the conditions. I clung to myself tightly, hoping that it would somehow provide me extra warmth. I hopped in the prints the soldier left in her wake, my arms shaking uncontrollably with the chattering of my teeth. We eventually entered the station, and I shuffled inside quickly, greeted by a drastic change in temperature. I was grateful for the slightly warmer inside, though it was still a bit frigid. Gaining my bearings, I watched as soldiers ran about, phones ringing off the hook in a constant stream of communication. Kimblee was at the center of the jumble, directing and receiving information. Beneath his palm was my father's journal. I scowled.

"Come on," she said, tapping my shoulder, and I quickly fell into step behind her as she led me to the showers.

Unfortunately, the locker room was a bit drafty, and no matter how hard I turned the faucet, the water wouldn't warm up. I debated briefly about using my alchemy to heat it, but I thought better of it. The last thing I needed was to declare myself an active threat. When I finished, just as cold as I had started, I was surprised to see a whole different set of clothes laid out for me, along with a pair of snow boots. I looked over the stall to the soldier.

"Thank you," I said, collecting up the clothes.

"Can't have you freezing to death," she said with a smile, which I returned, shuffling further into the stall to change. I unfolded the clothes and shimmied myself into some thickly lined trousers but was a bit startled to see a piece of paper float to the floor, soaking up some water. I mistook it for a tag at first, bending to collect it, but it was blank. I looked at it curiously a moment before turning it over, noting the scrawl on the other side. 'They're safe,' it said. I looked around the corner, noting the soldier, standing as she was before. I blinked back at the note, my heart skipping a beat, my mind racing. How did this get here? Did she leave it for me? I wondered, reading the small note over and over. "You alright in there?" I jolted, pressing the note to my damp chest, realizing I still hadn't changed.