Same, But Different (A Fullmetal Alchemist fan-fic)

...Life

Eclair

"Edward!" I shouted, hugging him as I landed. He was happy to see me alive. Of course my auto-mail was screwed up, but it didn't matter to me much.

"Eclair, you're okay, right?" He asked, his eyes filled with sympathy and understatement.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just don't know when they're gonna disappear" I glance at my wings, with Winry checking out my metal wing.

"They'll go in time" Ed says. I nod, and they vanish.

"I hope to never have to do that again. I enjoy alchemy alot more than flying."

"Alchemy is horrible in ways though"

"Yet it's the only thing I know so I live by it." I smile, as we all head to the hotel.

~~~/~/~~~

Some time later. . .

"So..." I began as the group of us stood at the train station, "I guess this is it. It's time we all go our separate ways."

Ayumi nodded, "I guess...we're all just going home..."

"Hey, we'll see each other again sometime soon. Besides, you're all welcome anytime to come drop by the shop and visit." Trevor smiled to everyone, "if you're in one piece." He ended up turning to glare at me.

I shrugged, "Can't guarantee that but I'll make sure to stop by to say hi to your father."

"So where are you off to now? I didn't see you getting a ticket to come with us back to Freemont." Vapor asked me.

I looked down to my ticket, "I decided to go on a lead I had a while back. Not sure it will pan out, but I'll take any lead I can get, considering those stones are kinda off-limits from now on..." 

"Well I wish you luck, and if you find anything let us know too!" Alphonse told me with a smile.

"Yeah, will do. Won't be too hard to find you, just have to go find an outraged beanstalk and I'll know I found the right place. I'm sure it won't be hard to find despite its small stature-"

Edward began to fume, "Why you good for nothing--man--!" 

"Hey, it just makes it easier to find you if I do find something in the future." I told him as I shrugged.

Ayumi had turned around behind her, "Hey, I think our train is going to leave soon. Let's get going you two!" She had tugged on both Trevor and Vapor's shirts before the three of them turned around and began to head off. Ayumi then turned around once more and waved, "See you again soon! It was nice meeting all of you!"

I waved back before looking back to my ticket again, and then Edward and Alphonse. "So...I guess this is goodbye." 

"We'll probably meet again someday." Alphonse suggested.

"Who knows, that idiot Mustang might have some stupid schemes up his sleeves now that we're allowed to meet. Wonder why we were even forbidden to meet each other in the first place." I questioned.

"Eh, who knows what that idiot thinks. All that matters is that we're still moving forward." Edward threw his hands behind his head.

"Ed! The train's leaving! We should go--"

"Relax, we have enough time." Edward told his brother.

Alphonse began running to the train, "Fine I'm leaving without you! Bye Eclair!"

"Bye!" I waved back before picking up my own suitcase with my right hand, "Since it seems we're still after the same goal, we're bound to run into each other again at some point. Let's make it simple, a year from now let's meet back at Freemont. Trevor's father is going to be sad if he doesn't get to see the only 'friends' I've ever seem to make." I raised my left fist up beside me as to give him a side fist bump.

"Only if you agree to go back to see Winry so she doesn't whine that I don't bring my 'cool friends with auto-mail' around." Edward raised his right fist as I did my left.

"You know she's only doing that to study what Trevor and his father have been up to for her grandmother."

"And you know Trevor's father is only studying what Winry and Granny are doing."

"Look like we got ourselves an equivalent exchange." I smiled back.

"Deal?"

"Deal." We agreed as we bumped our fists together. As we did I saw a flash and quickly turned to see what was going on.

Mustang had a camera.

"Oh don't worry, that one's not going to be in the paper, this one already is." He held out the day's newspaper. I had made the front page again...with Edward...

The two of us were eating lunch earlier that day and going through my notebook discussing some alchemy techniques. 

And some hot-headed idiot got the bright idea to take a picture.

What a creep! 

And he decided to call out to us. "Halfmetal, Fullmetal" Mustang called over to us. My happy facial expression dropped low and pathetic, and rather irritated.

"What is it now?" I griped. 

"Look who made the cover again." It was exactly what I thought he was going to say. The cover of the newspaper was titled Fullmetal And Halfmetal: Together!

"That's it!" I shouted. I clapped my hands changing my left arm into a dagger, charging after him. He snapped his finger shooting flames at us, but Ed was quick enough to put a barrier of the ground in front of us. 

"Don't even THINK about fighting back" I shouted, as we nodded and ran off to tackle him from all the problems he had caused. We didn't get too far though because Edward's train actually was leaving this time, and so was mine at this point.

The two of us walked back into the train station side by side, looking ahead to the trains.

"See you in a year?" I turned to him and gave him a smile.

Edward nodded, turning to face me, "Yeah. In a year."

The two of us began walking off before we both turned around and marched ourselves back to where we stood in the train station. I began to take a scrap piece of paper out of my notebook and began writing out the date that we were supposed to meet in Freemont, he began to write out a date we could meet up in Resembool on a scrap piece of paper he had. In unison the two of us threw our pens and notebooks aside and offered up the piece of paper to the other, "There! That way you have no excuse to forget!" We told each other. We took the piece of paper from each other before starting out on our own ways again.

"In a year!"

"In exactly one year!"

For two people who were supposed to never meet each other, this sure did end well. And for two people with such sameness, we still did have our differences. Same, but Different.

~~~/~/~~~

Continued in the direct Sequel - Kiomi & Eclair Destroy the world.