Hello! Lila here!
I know I haven't been constant with my updates, but thank you so much for the nice comments you put up! They really do make me feel more confident that people like this story, and for that here's a longer chapter! I hope you like it!~

~ Saturnthehero

Scarlett's P.O.V.

"I'm so glad to be back in Central!" I yawned and stretched. it was a long ride back, but at least I got a decent sleep for the first time in a week or two.

"So am I." Ed admitted at my side as we walked out of the train station. "Don't tell Granny, but being back in Risembol was getting boring." I chuckled at that fact, because he seemed to learn a significant fact about human transmutation.

"So, Risembol was a good place to go?" I asked, and Ed nodded. He didn't have a smile though.

"How long have you been having these nightmares?" Ed said casually, but it made me surprised. I honestly didn't think he cared to ask about them. Of course, I've been distracting myself instead of facing the nightmares head-on. "I mean, I know you haven't been sleeping well the past few weeks, and I didn't know that you've been having nightmares until our trip to Risembol so....yeah...."

"I've been having them for awhile...." I admitted, but I wasn't happy about doing so. There was a pregnant silence as we walked the streets, and I couldn't bear to look him in the eye.

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"I wonder what Al and Winry have been doing whi-"

"Don't avoid the question." He grabbed my arm and we stopped walking. I really didn't want to talk about them. "You're sleep deprived because of these dreams, aren't you?"

"...." Goddamn it, Ed, "...I'm fine. We have bigger things to worry about."

"Well, you not sleeping is a big problem for me!" He yelled.

"It's my problem, alright! I have to figure out what the message is myself!" I yelled back at him, as if it were a contest.

"So you think these nightmares are some kinda message?" He raised an eyebrow, and my eyes widened at my idiocy. He's such an asshat!

"Ya know what? I'm done talking." I huffed. "I have to go see Mustang, anyway." And for the first time in two days, I let my fingers slip from Ed's. "Go meet up with your brother; he's probably worried sick."

"Scar-!" Edward tried to call out to me, but I was already walking away.

Edward's P.O.V.

Goddamn her, sHE NEVER LISTENS TO ME!😡

Anyways, I knew that pushing the subject of her sleepless nights wasn't a wise decision.

God, what's wrong with being
C O N C E R N E D.

I couldn't seem to shake what Scarlett said. I walked to the hotel in complete silence as I contemplated her words.
"It's my problem, alright! I have to figure out what the message is myself!"

I have no idea what kind of message could be hidden, but-
...
I just thought of something. Truth. The blank space in the dreams. Seeing my brother in the other side. I have no idea what's going on in her head now a-days, but I wasn't going to let her just suffer because of these so called "messages". Perhaps she went through a dream like I did with Al.

I arrived at my hotel door and used the spare key I had to open it.
"Winry, Al, I'm back-"

"Brother! You're back!" Alphonse was sitting with Winry on the couch, and I decided to join them.

"Where did you go?" Winry asked, "I was so worried.."

"I can't really state," I murmured, but while I was gone, I think I figured out how Alphonse's body is still functioning even though it is with the Truth. "

"What? How?!" Al leaned over the coffee table; intrigued.

"It's me. I think Al's body and mine are somewhat connected. That would explain why I sleep longer, and I'm always eating like I'm eating for two." I explained. There was an awkward vibe to the air, and- oh. I should've thought before I spoke.

"Ed, that's a sentence Scarlett should be saying sometime later down the road, not you at the age of 15." Winry spoke as she wiggles her eyebrows. NO NO NO. Thoughts not now!

"Duly noted." I stated bitterly.

"Brother, your nose is bleeding again!" DAMN YOU ALPHONSE.

~*~

"Hey ya big lugs." I grinned as I entered the hospital room with Jean Havoc and Mustang.

"Hey, I didn't know you and Fullmetal were back in Central." He struggled to sit up in bed, to which I helped him.

"Yeah, well, we got off the train only an hour ago." Informing him as I fluffed his pillow. I turned to greet Jean Havoc, who was in the other bed, but he didn't reply. Just kept staring out the window absent minded.
"What's his angle?" I asked, and Mustang just shook his head.

"Leave him be." I didn't wanna do that, but what Mustang said next caught my attention.

"Be careful; the homunculus are looking for sacrifices."

"What the fuck?" I said softly. A nurse passed by the door, and I didn't want her hearing our conversation.

"You, Fullmetal, and Alphonse need to watch yourselves, because you never know when they'll strike. I assume Alphonse is telling his brother at this very moment, and since you decided to grace me with your presence first, I thought I'd warn you."

"Golly, you're welcome! I know my presence is one of magnificent beauty.~" I bowed deeply in front of the colonel.

"Yeah, her beauty only preceded by her unwitting sarcasm and skill in pissing off the enemy." Ah, I recognize the midget's voice from a mile away.

"So glad you could join us, Ant Man, Metallica." I greeted Ed and Al, respectively.

"Wow, and here I thought we were getting along pretty well." Ed pretended to be hurt by my comment, but I could tell he was pissed to be called 'Ant Man'.

We all pulled up chairs and kept the Colonel and Havoc company for awhile, talking about what Lust had said about Ed and Al being prime "sacrifices" for whatever fucked up plan they had.

Sometime during the hours we sat, I began to slowly drift into sleep, and laid my head down on Ed's shoulder for comfort. I don't know what material his coat was made out of, but it was soft! Though, in my daze, I lost track of what the hell anyone was talking about.

"....Well, I think the three of us need to see what this 5th laboratory has to offer us in answers." I heard Ed state, then my head being hearted violently.

"What the-!?!" I sat ya straight in my chair and looked around at Al and Edward putting the chairs back where they found them. "What'd I miss?" I felt my cheeks go red with embarrassment as I sheepishly asked.

"Oh, nothing, just where the Philosopher Stone is." Ed nonchalantly stated. I jumped up from my seat excitedly.

"Seriously?! Damn, that was easy."

"No, you daft...." there was more of that sentence, but Edward muffled it with his hand. "We're headed to the laboratory. Care to join?"

"If you insist," I sighed dramatically, and put my chair back in the corner of the room. "Bye Mustang! Have fun!"

"How much fun could I have in a hospital bed?" He asked, and I shrugged. I mean, if Riza comes by, I'm sure he'll be having the time of his life so.....

I left with Al and Ed, still worried about the quietness of Jean Havoc, but I can't help him.

"So Scarlett, have you and Brother made up? I know you two weren't talking after..." Al asked, and I looked up at him. There was an air of anticipation, like if I said no, it would be too awkward.

"Yeah, I guess so." I replied. For anyone else, it sounded like a half-hearted comment, but Al seemed to be relieved after I said it.
Ed, walking ahead of the big tin can and I, flinched at my comment. If I were to state my honest opinion, I was still very much hurt by what he said on the way to Xerxes. It wasn't called for, and no amount of helping me with my nightmares will make me forgive him.

"Scarlett, Al, stay outside. " Ed looked around the brick wall to the laboratory.

"Heh," I let out a small laugh, "how about fuck no? I'm a General. If anything, it would make sense for me to go in with you."

There were a few minutes of mildly quiet debating before he gave up and I happily skipped along side him into the laboratory.

"I knew you'd see my way eventually." I said with pride.

"Yeah, Yeah, fuck you too."

Alphonse's P.O.V.

It had become pretty dark now. The street lights came on, and the moon was high in the sky. After half and hour or so, Brother and Scarlett came out, but they seemed pretty annoyed.

"Find anything?" I asked, and Scarlett Sighed as she shook her head.

"Nothing of substantial evidence." She added.

"We did find traces of sketchy alchemy in certain places, but we couldn't just start blasting walls in hoping to find anything." Ed started pulling us to walk back to the hotel with him as he spoke.

"Sadly." Scarlett grumbled under her breath. She was angry, and I'm guessing breaking in a wall was her idea.

"Hey, We're so close! Don't go and lose your logic now." Ed tried to cheer her up. The two were walking ahead of me, and I silently cheered as Brother grasped  Scarlett's hand in his own. "Not that you had much to begin with, but nonetheless, whatever amount of logic you have left is in dire need."

"FIGHT ME, ANT MAN!" She screamed in his face, but I looked down and noticed their hands were still locked together.

"ANYTIME GINGER!" He screamed back, and I chuckled. Yeah, everything is going good for them. Whatever happened on that trip with Armstrong seemed to help the two grow closer and more understanding of each other.

"Edward Elric! General Reems!" We looked forward to the soldier running frantically up to us. While he was catching his breath, he kept shoving a rolled up paper towards Brother. Wonder what that's about?

"Sergeant? What's going on?" Ed asked, taking the paper and opening it up for Scarlett and I to lean over his shoulders to read.

"Instructions. You are to get to your hotel rooms right now." He stated, and with that wild concerned look in his eyes.

"Scar's back." Scarlett gasped.

"I see...so Scar's the one that did it." Ed looked like he had a grim revelation.

~*~

"Hold up, hold up, you think Scar killed Winry's parents?" Scarlett asked. She didn't know how the Rockbells died, but she seemed to get how ludicrous the assumption was.

"It's just a theory, but we won't know unless.."

"Please tell me you aren't going to say what I think you're saying." I groaned.

"We have to confront him." Ed finished. Sadly, he didn't have his joking face on, he was totally serious.

"Stupid says what?" Scarlett quipped, only to be replied with Ed saying:

"What?"

"It's STUPID! I'd like to continue living, if that's alright with you, ya suicidal bastard." Scarlett stood from the couch next to me and sized Brother up.

"We're all supposed to be precious sacrifices to the homunculi, right? If we put ourselves in danger, they'll have no choice but to come out of the shadows and reveal themselves to save us!" Ed rationalized. That does make a lot of sense. I think I can go along with that kind of plan-

"That's great and all, but we don't know how many of us they need. For all we know, they could only need one sacrifice, and the rest of us are fucked!" Scarlett debated. "There are too many variables to just go around poking the killer with a stick right now!" Oh, she makes a good point too... who should I agree with? Uhh...I don't know how I like having these conflicting viewpoints.

"WILL YOU S H U T U P?" I watched the adjoining door fly open and a wrench land squarely on Scarlett's and Brother's head.

"Ok ok! Ah! Just no more wrenches!!" Scarlett cowered behind me as Winry entered further into the room.

"I need to get sleep for my train tomorrow!" Winry glared back. Oh yeah, she is going back to Rush Valley tomorrow. I lean forward and begin to tell her goodbye, just in case we don't see her in the morning, but Brother cut me off.

"Uh, actually, could you stay in town for a few more days?" He cautiously asked. Of course, she gave him an incredulous look.

"Why?"

"Well, Uh.....I just think you'll be needed in the next couple of days." He murmured.

"Are you going to do something rash that gets your arm broken??"

"Well, I wouldn't say broken.....but what's wrong with sticking around for a few days more?"

Winry sighed for a long time.
"Fine. But keep your voices down! I'm still trying to sleep!" Then she promptly left. Ed turned to the two of us.

"Alright now we need to grab his attention, which means tomorrow, we do some goddamn good deeds for he people." Oh, I see. If we continue to grow our name as a good alchemist, it'll grab Scar's attention and cause him to come after us. Clever, Brother.

"So let's sleep then." Scarlett stretched and yawned.

"That means you actually have to sleep, Scarlett." I said, "I heard from Brother that you haven't been sleeping very well, and you'll need your strength tomorrow." She waved me off as she tossed her black coat onto the bed she claimed. Kicking off her shoes, she fell onto the bed.

She fell into a deep sleep in minutes, all curled up in a ball and cute!

"I'm getting worried about these nightmares she's been having." Ed stared at Scarlett's sleeping figure. "She's been screaming, and I don't really know how to stop it unless I wake her up."

"Brother, has she told you what the nightmares are about?" I asked, but he shook his head.

"It feels like the dreams are connected to the Truth, like how I saw your body on the other side in my dreams." Perhaps, she did state she saw the Truth as well. I had one nagging question:

"But why would the Truth show her something painful and scary?" I asked, looking over as Scarlett's body stirred, then rolled over.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Ed whispered, but we both turned as Scarlett began to kick around. She whined with her eyes tightly closed.

"Stop..it hurts.." she choked out, and it honestly broke my heart to see er like that.

"Guess that's my cue to get to bed." Ed stood up, kicked off his shoes and jacket, then slipped into bed next to Scarlett.

"Please stop.." she was crying and thrashing about now. I'm not lying when I say I was scared.

"Hey.. shhh... you're ok." Ed whispered as he pulled her closer by the waist. "I've got you."

Soon enough, she stopped and slept soundly next to Brother. A few tears stained her cheeks, but Ed was brushing them away while humming quietly.

"Night, Al."

"Night, Brother."

I turned off the lights for the two and contemplated what tomorrow would bring. Not just for me, but for Scarlett and Brother as well.