Sister of the Fullmetal Alchemist *FMA Brotherhood Fanfic* {Completed!}

Chapter 12

Hohenheim smiled and gently hugged Char as she threw herself in his arms. "It's been a while, Charlya," he murmured. He looked at Ed, who looked away angrily. "And Edward. My, how you have grown."

"What're you doing back here, you bastard," he demanded without looking round.

"I wanted to relax for at least one night." Hohenheim lifted his head and looked up towards the hill that the house used to stand on. "Why did you burn down my house?" he asked.

"To show our resolve," Ed replied. Hohenheim looked at him and gave a short laugh, causing Ed to turn to him angrily.

"That's not it. You couldnt bear to continue seeing the memories of your past, of what you did and failed to do. That isnt resolve, it's childishness."

"Shut up! How would you know, being gone for so long?!" Hohenheim didnt reply, but instead looked at the grave.

"It's sad to learn that Trisha died.." he murmured. He knelt down infront of it, gazing at it sadly. Char saw Ed tense but didnt say anything.

"Come on Char. Let's go," he muttered, grabbing her wrist and pulling her away.

Later on that night, the door to the room Ed was sleeping in opened, and Hohenheim looked in. He entered the room, standing next to Ed. He reached out as if to stroke his hair, then paused before drawing away and leaving the room. As the door closed, Ed opened his eyes.

Hohenheim stood at the door to Ed's room for a moment, then sighed and turned away, walking down the hallway. As he passed Char's room he heard a little cry and stopped, opening the door. Char was lying on her bed, tossing and turning while whimpering continuously. He watched for a moment, unsure what to do. The door to Ed's room opened and he came out, pausing when he saw his dad standing at Char's room.

"She's dreaming again, right?" he asked simply, then walked forward and passed him, entering the room. He sat down on the bed beside her and reached out, gently brushing her hair. Almost instantly she calmed, automatically reaching out and grabbing his hand. Hohenheim entered quietly.

"I guess she trusts you a lot," he said. Ed shrugged.

"She's been doing this for a while now, almost immediately after I picked her up from the orphanage. She just tosses and turns until I sit next to her, then she reaches out and grabs my hand. I dont know why, but I think it has something to do with her memories."

"Her...memories? I dont understand," Hohenheim said.

"Char doesnt have any memories. Well, she's remembered a few things, but only of when she was travelling around with you. I just wonder what she's remembering right now."

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She stood on one of the chairs at the table, watching with delight as her mum brought out a birthday cake and placed it infront of her and Ed. "Alright then. Make a wish and blow them out," she said with a smile.

She glanced at Ed and he grinned, then two of them linking pinkies and closing their eyes before blowing out the candles. Their mum clapped, as did their little brother Al. "That's it! You're now four!" their mum cheered, sweeping all three of them up into a hug.

The door opened and their dad looked in. "Oh..You blew out the candles already?" he asked with a trace of dissapointment.

"Dont worry, they havent opened their presents yet," their mum assured and the five of them went into the living room. The two of them gasped at the amount of presents around them, then hurried over to the piles and started ripping off the wrapping paper, grinning at the things they got.