Gingersnap

Camping!

“Are we there yet? Huh, are we, Ed?” Ginger asked, again.

“Not yet.” Ed responded.

“I’m sure we’ll be there soon, Ginger!” Alphonse chimed in. They were in the backseat of Yuki’s car on the way to their vacation spot for the weekend.

“Don’t worry, Kanami said we’re about half an hour out from the campsite!” Yuki announced from the driver’s seat. Next to her was a brown boar, a new friend of hers, who was giving her directions to the site.

“See? We’ll be cooking s’mores in no time, Gingersnap.”

“Hooray!”

“That’s right! After we set up our tents and get a nice fire going.” Al added. “But it’s too sunny and hot out now to be thinking about a roaring fire…”

“Don’t worry, the cars in this universe have advanced air conditioning, check it out, Al. Yuki, can you turn up the AC?”

“Oh sure, I’m getting a little too warm myself!” Yuki turned up the AC and Al marveled at the technology that wasn’t available in their own world.

-

When they arrived at the campsite, they unpacked and set up several tents in a small clearing in the woods along with some other friends who met up with them. Once everyone was set, they took a nature walk as a group and hung out at the lake nearby, they settled in and started a fire to cook dinner and later s’mores once the sun had gone down.

Alphonse shared some of his meal with Ginger, while Edward made a tiny s’more for her out of crumbs. Now that it was properly nighttime and there were owls swooping through the forest around them, Yuki decided it was time for ghost stories around the fire. When Ginger got too scared, Ed and Al took her into their tent so the others could continue their spooky stories. The three of them sat together in the glow of some battery powered lights hanging above them.

“So, Ginger, where are you sleeping tonight?”

“Well look, there’s a Ginger-sized pocket for you right here!” Ed gently lifted the ocelot into a little zipper pocket in the canvas tent wall.

Ginger giggled. “It’s like a hammock!”

“Here, I’ll do you one better.” Ed gathered a pile of supplies and transmuted them into a miniature tent complete with mini air mattress and other accommodations.

“Wow, my very own tent!” Gingersnap ran inside to explore her new space. “It’s perfect, thanks Ed!”

“Glad to see your gaudy alchemical style hasn’t changed a bit, brother.” Al snickered.

“Shut up, Al. I’ve got good style!” Ed laughed. “I’m glad you like it, Gingersnap. Will you be okay sleeping in there tonight?”

“You betcha, Ed! I can’t wait to sleep in my very own tent!”

“Are you ready to go to sleep now?”

“No, I’m way too excited!”

“Well you should still change into your pjs just in case you fall asleep, okay, Gingersnap?”

“Okay!” Ginger closed the flaps on her tent so she could change into her favorite strawberry patterned pajamas.

Ed turned to Al to chat with him for a little bit until…

“Ed, do you think Ginger is done changing?”

Ed turned back around and called out to Ginger, but there was no answer and no movement from within her tiny tent. When he checked inside, he found the ocelot already asleep on her itty bitty mattress.