The Golden Alchemist (An FMA Fanfic)

Chapter 13

I take Elicia to her bedroom and put her to bed. I go downstairs to see a conversation between Maes and his wife that sounded like it was pretty stressful. "..treated like dogs," I hear Maes say.

"It's her choice, and she said she had a good reason to," Gracia suggests. Oh god, they were talking about me. I clear my throat as I walk into the room, and they both turn towards me with their expressions changing immediately. I hate when people do this–talk about you and then act like nothing happens. I feel like I'm being cheated when that happens; lied to.

I let out a deep sigh, releasing all my anger that had come into my thoughts. I can't stay mad at these two... They're everything I have; they saved me from numerous things. I said calmly, "Elicia fell asleep, so I put her to bed. I should get going soon. See you tomorrow."

I gave a small smile of reassurance for the concern that they would never let me know that they were feeling.  They were a little reluctant to let me leave, but I made my way out. I then went to my makeshift house in an alleyway. I know, it's so safe. It wouldn't be my first choice, either; I just don't have the money for an actual house. And there's no way in hell that I'd live with the colonel again. Not unless I had to.

Now that I think about it, he didn't even look for me when I had ran away. Five years and he hadn't thought to look for me? Such a fantastic "father." He was probably drinking and flirting with women and didn't even notice that his other daughter was gone. Oh well. I don't want to even be near him.

I will have to see him in the future, though. That much I'm certain of. Will it suck? Definitely. Do I want to? Not one bit. On the bright side, if Riza is still in the military, I might be able to see her. I laid down on the sheet I call a bed, and throw another blanket over me. It's a little cold, but I've been through worse. To hide my "house," I made a wall in front of it with alchemy. I also made a roof so rain wouldn't come in. It's not the best thing, but it is my home.

So many thoughts raced through my mind as I fell asleep. I woke up to the slight commotion I always heard as shop keepers groggily open their shops. This was my time to train; morning was the best time because it woke me up, and I'd be used to fighting when tired. After changing, I left the alleyway, and saw the usual shopkeepers doing their job. There was always one shopkeeper's son who liked to flirt with me, but he flirted with any girl that passes through.

Needless to say, he's a huge pervert and it kind of pisses me off. I signed in annoyance as I passed that booth. I've been polite to him only because I feel like I shouldn't blow up at every person I meet. One of these days, I'm going to say something and crush any and all of his dreams. The thought made me laugh, which sounded more like a giggle. I don't giggle, though. I'm not girly.

I tied my hair up into a ponytail and started sprinting. No destination lied ahead, but I love to do it. Plus, it's part of my training. The more I sprint, the longer I can run later on. Or, something like that... Having my auto mail fixed professionally is amazing. Running never felt better. Winry does her job well. I kept running. When will I be ready to go? It'll have to be a couple of days, as I promised Edward and Al. Tomorrow? I run faster. Today? I run even faster. Every thought drives me to run and keep running. I thought of how Maes said I'd be like a dog. I don't care. I will find him even if I have to go through a hell. "Woah, Kate. Keep your thoughts together," I mentally scold myself.

Once I started feeling a bit out of breath, I stopped and turned around. I'd gone further than usual. Pushing the thought aside, I started to jog back. I didn't want to strain my body more than needed. At the halfway mark, where there's no booths or townspeople to look at me strangely, I stop and do push-ups. Yesterday was fifty. Today I would do sixty. At the fifty mark, I start to clap between each one. This how I tried to train daily. Some days, I'd oversleep and wouldn't have time.

"Sixty," I said, finishing my last one. I pushed myself of the ground as I finished, trying to stand normally, but I had to take a step back to balance myself. Then, I continued jogging back. Once I hit the place where all the townspeople start showing up, I slow to a walk. My calves had already started to hurt from running, and my breath was a little heavy.

I walked back, changed again, and put my hair down. One thing never changed with my outfit: Aralyn's necklace. I don't think I'd be able to ever give it up. Now I wore my usual black tank and jeans that I may have stolen from a couple of booths one time. Maybe I bought it? Frankly, I don't remember and don't care. I then went back to the Hughes's household. I knocked on the door and Elicia opened it with a wide smile. "Kate! You're home!" she screamed and gave me her usual hug. It took me a while to hug her back because of the shock. You're home. I almost teared up.

This kid almost made me teary with a simple sentence like that. Wow. I'm a wimp, aren't I? I gave a little chuckles and returned her hug. "Mr. Hughes, Mrs. Hughes! I'm back," I said into the house, but they already knew I was going to be here. This was my usual time I got here every other day. The days might have varied, but never the time. I liked to keep a good schedule.

I walked in with Elicia and closed the door behind us. Today wasn't going to be as long as it usually was. The actual reason I came is because I wasn't sure if I'd see this little goofball again, and I don't want to leave and not say goodbye. Gracia walked in and gave me a big smile, "Hello, Kate."

"Hi," I greeted back. "I won't be able to stay too long today, but I wanted to spend some time here since I'm leaving tomorrow." I say it cheerfully, so Elicia wouldn't get sad, but Gracia knew exactly how much pressure that one statement presented. Even though Elicia was really smart, she wouldn't understand the same way her mother did. Before she could say anything, I looked down to Elicia. "What do you want to do?" I asked cheerfully.

She gave a big smile and led me to the backyard while yelling, "Let's play castle!" I froze in my tracks. She's so much like Aralyn, it hurt; at the same time, they're so different. I realized I was standing there too long when she asked if something was bothering me. I told her nothing was wrong and we went outside. I could feel Gracia's concerned eyes looking at me as we went outside.

When Elicia and I were done playing castle, we went back inside to find a little surprise. As soon as I took my first step inside, I smelt it. Gracia had baked cookies. Her cooking is the best thing I have ever tasted. She smiled as she always did, "I thought I would make you some cookies before you left." I got so excited that I jumped in place which earned a chuckle from her.

"Thank you so much!" I take some cookies and make my way out. Before I left, I made sure to give both of them a hug. "Make sure to give Mr. Hughes gets a hug for me," I say as I exit and wave. Elicia didn't know what was happening, so she was smiling. Both of them were, like they normally do. It was as if everything was normal. I suppose today was going to be my last "normal" day. I'm glad I spent it the way I did. I even left time for me to go back and practice some alchemy.

___I'm really sorry this was so late and a filler(sorta) I've had a lot going on recently, and.. eh, I don't want to make stupid excuses. Sorry again. I thought it'd be cool to put Kate's daily routine in.~Anna-Marie___