"Argh, me hearties?" Yeah, I fail at this.

[Guest]

Doo... dee... doo.. dee.. doo. Well, there went that plan. Singing to yourself in your head was supposed to be a GOOD way to combat boredom! Euphemia sighed softly, and sat back in the chair - they were somewhere in Jack's base. If he was such a glorious pirate, why was she stuck in this building... without a ship? Then again... Amestris was landlocked, so it would be a pure waste of time for them to have a ship anyway. Euphemia yawned, unable to contain her utter boredom anymore. Sal and Jack were out somewhere in Central, and that other crew-mate was somewhere else too!

What was his name... She thought it was Celestial, but that wasn't right. Um... Celestine? No, that was a woman's name. C'mon... It was escaping her! Euphiemia smacked herself on the side of the head a few times, still trying to remember! She couldn't place the name... But that face... Boy, he was cute. Had that sort of "roguish charm" to him, nothing like Jack's roguishness... But certainly just as nice in her books. She giggled drunkenly, and fell over sideways off her chair.

FUCK THAT HURT! She groaned, and clambered back up to her feet, looking around the room. Y'know, usually there was someone coming in through the door about this time - it happened in all of the TV shows. Not that the girl watched much TV these days. Euphemia climbed back onto her chair, and leaned back to think more on this cute guy who's name was completely lost on her.

Cells? No, that's not it.

Selling? Nope, that's just silly.

Celes... I know there's something... ugh.

This continued on, until someone entered the room...

[Guest]

"Yo ho ho and a bottle of honey with a cherry on top and sprinkkllees~~" Celesto sang at the top of his lungs as he descended the wooden stairs that creaked vividly under his bare feet. He waved his arms like a drunken bird and yet somehow remained completely sober. Then he inexplicably reached the bottom and to his surprise, encountered a beautiful young girl who had joined their dysfunctional crew after him. How odd. He grinned sheepishly at her and held a thumbs up signal. "Yey~" His pale thumb protruded from his white, fingerless/knuckless biker gloves in a rather elegant, sort of pampered curve. Celes was also without his usual eye patch. Instead, he had a pair of light blue goggles on top of his head that matched his identical eyes despite the fact that he was blind in his left. He had a plain white shirt on that was covered by an open white jacket adorned with thick light blue straps of the same shade. The buckle around his collar was bound tightly while all the others remained undone. Celes' sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing the same light blue hue that lined the inside of his windbreaker. Below his coat were white pants tight against his hips and buttoned up the sides to his knees with gold ornaments. He had on white cowboy boots with pointed tips, strapped under the heel and around the front and back with the same blue as always. This was just Celes' unique style that he loved to show off despite the fact that he was just inside reading a book. This was him. And not Karis.

Without stopping, he continued into the kitchen. He frowned. And also couldn't cook. There was nothing to eat. A shame really... "Ne ne~ Euphie-chwan~ Do you know of any good noodle places around?"

[Guest]

"Yey~" That suddenly noise shook Euphemia out of her stupor, and she fell off her chair... yet again.

"EYAHHHH!" With a soft groan, she stood up onto her feet, albeit shakily, and looked over at the person who had woken her up... her heart skipping a beat. She blinked at the man a couple of times, and then put a finger to her lip. had he maybe heard her thoughts? Nah. That was impossible! Another couple of dongs to the head, and she walked over to him cautiously, still trying her hardest to remember his name.

"Hmm... Hold on a second..." She grinned, and licked her lips. She remembered the name of this delicious-looking man all too well, now. She smiled brightly at him...

"Noodle places, Celesto?" The girl blinked innocently, almost as if she wasn't trying to imitate her own masculinity anymore. Then again, it's not like any of Dietrich's men were here... were they? Euphemia looked left and right, completely sure of her own safety... for now. But if they went out in the open...

Her mind began to race. Every thought was about what could be around the next corner, who could be waiting for her. All that she thought about was Dietrich, Dietrich, Dietrich, CELESTO! Wait, Celesto? Why was Celesto in her thoughts about Dietrich? She hated Dietrich, why would she have thoughts about this guy? She blinked, and wiped down her black outer coat, and making sure that every piece of gaudy fashion was still attacked. All of her golden bits and pieces were still there, and so was the read shirt that she wore. No, it seemed like everything was in order.

Maybe she could go out for noodles... Was he asking her on a date? No, that couldn't be it! But then again... No, yes... ARGH! She smacked herself in the side of the head again, recollecting her thoughts. He wasn't asking her out on a date... He was just hungry, and from her experiences... he couldn't cook.

Not that she could either. So... Noodles, noodles, noodles. Ah~! She smield at him and nodded.

"Noodles it is, Celesto." She was going to say his name often. She didn't really want to forget it.

"I know just the place, too! It's not far from here. I don't think Jack will mind if we lock up and leave. He has a key." The pirate woman shrugged, and then beckoned for the man to follow her. Heheh... Time for some~~~~~

Noodles.

[Guest]

Oh she was coming? Celesto tilted his head so far to the side that he tripped over himself and smacked his forehead into the corner of the vent that hung rustily over the burners. He fell backwards into the wall, a palm flying to cover the dent in his skull. "Itttee..." he muttered under his breath to himself, still listening to her strange sentence structure. He flew over to her side as if the trickle of blood sliding down his nose was nothing. "Celes is fine to call me~" he chimed in a sing-song voice like the little sparrow that sat on his windowsill every morning and made so much noise that he occasionally threw his alarm clock at it.

But he hadn't invited her; she invited herself... That took the fun out of him forcing her to go. All well, he would just have to make do with what was left of the boring situation. At least he knew he was going to get noodles out of it. He felt his empty pockets and grinned sheepishly. The Eat-and-Run specialty was being served tonight full-throttle. He couldn't wait to see her expression--or maybe she was more of a pirate than he was. It was exciting to wait and see the outcome. "Lead the way~" he sang, wiping the blood from his forehead carelessly, and swaggering after her like a college boy drunk for the first time.

[Guest]

"Celes..." Her thoughts went back to the ramble that had gone on inside her head just before she was shocked into a fit by the man. Yeah, that sounded about right. So she had gotten something about his name, after all? She giggled lightly, and lead the man out of the building, and into a crowded street. She tried to squeeze her way through the civilians, her overbearingly gaudy clothes separating her from the rest of the crowd. It was a good thing to wear garish clothes, it meant that nobody could say you weren't who you were.

And the bright clothing made life really interesting! She laughed, and looked behind her for the blond mop of hair that she called Celes. There he was... she waved, and then turned back, trying to get out of this massive crowd! She was being jostled everywhere, and she was pretty sure some pervs had tried to cop a feel before... But that was nothing compared to the feeling of being just one person in a massive crowd. She felt like she was just a part of the machine - a spinning gear in it all - and that was not something she wanted to be.

She may have cast off the royal title, but the royal heart still existed. She still wanted to be unique, she wanted to be known as a single person in the world, rather than a piece of the puzzle. The woman sighed again, and was suddenly jostled out of the crowd, falling on her ass.

Ow, ow, ow... The girl rubbed the sore spot, and then stood back up, looking out over the crowd to see where Celes was. Really now, why was this dingy little side street so crowded? The woman sighed again, and made sure she still had her mon--

Fuck.

FUCKFUCKFUCK!

"Fucking bastards!!!" She shouted out in Ishvallan at the crowd. They'd stolen her damn wallet! And all the Cenz that she'd been saving up! That was her food money... The girl gloomed, and fell onto her knees. What a failure of a date, huh? She looked up again, just in time to see Celes poking his way out of the crowd. She stood up, determined.

Now wasn't the time to gloom. She was a thief, wasn't she? She'd just steal the food! It was important to her survival, after all...

[Guest]

"Looking for this?" Celes chimed like a spring breeze mixing with the vibrations of thin metal. Around a slender finger he twirled a girlie-looking wallet while some ways away from his outstretched leg lay a very disheveled-looking man. Beyond his greasy, wiry hair and dirt-crusted fingernails were shifty eyes that rested on the stark blond who looked rather sure of himself despite the obvious danger that would come about from stealing from a thief. "Nene~" Celes nudged the body on the ground with a sheepish smirk, sky blue eyes narrowing into amused slits. "Stealing is wrong. Mend your ways!!" The man didn't look nearly as entertained as the white and cyan-clad man standing proudly over him. He stumbled to his stubby feet, kicking up dust, and with a crooked smile, proclaimed, "I am a State Alchemist I'll have you know; you cannot get away with this!!"

Celesto took a step back, holding out two hands as if to stop him. "Nuooooh!" By now there was a crowd formed around the angry one and the peculiar man who seemed as if he were about to get his ass kicked. "Just kidding~~" He grinned, showing pristine white teeth and then whipped out something from the inside of his coat. A bronze staff unfolded with a jolt of heavy wind, the strange crystal at the top glinting dangerously in the noon sunlight. Celes swung it around a few times and then slammed it into the earth with a scary look glinting through his stormy eyes. "Run now and I'll spare your meaningless life," he turned to the side, "or something like that~~"

The man blinked and holding out his pocket watch as if it would give him strength, he called upon some strange confluence of metal that gathered from the Earth and shot straight at Celes' heart. He would totally lose his job if Celes died here. What a dummy!! The blond rolled his eyes and fell backwards, flat on his back as the sword-like pillar of metal sailed over him. But then it shot down at a right angle straight at him. Oh no! He was doomed!! The electric alchemist yawned, staring at Euphie from across the way as if saying 'watch me, watch what I can do!' A clear, melodic whistle rose shrilly above the gasps of the audience. A line of deconstruction alchemy sprung forth from no where and not just severed, but removed a large horizontal chuck of the metal. It clunked uselessly to the dry ground. Yes, in that short amount of time, Celesto had figured out exactly what composed that metal mish-mash of alchemy. And no, the transmutation circles on the thief's hands didn't help at all. Celesto whistled a tune and looked sideways, standing up and putting a hand in his pocket. The other hand flew upwards like a dog shadow-puppet. He clamped the mouth down and back open again, a childish smile playing on his face as if this was all a game. "прощание~~" And he turned his back on him, walking off to the audience's extreme horror. He's going to die, they were all thinking. Celes was laughed with a backwards wave. And not soon later, the thief State Alchemist was coughing up mouthfuls of water, sputtering on the ground. "Wh-where's you tr-transmutation circles?!" He cried pathetically.

"Hm~ I wonder~" was the only response that was given as Celesto reached Euphie and rewarded her with the wallet he had held this entire time. And somewhere along the way, his staff seemed to have vanished back from where it came. Where ever could it be? "Aa," he said when he reached her in a rather low voice, "you shouldn't shout random things in Ishballan on an Amestrian street, ne~"

[Guest]

Watching Celes... Aren just couldn't help but fall to her knees again. He was an Alchemist, then? Heh... figured. That was some impressive shit she saw him doing, after all. There was no way that he wasn't an Alchemist, especially after all that. She could all but watch in both shock and horror as the thief tried to attack Celes, and failed. He was destroyed by... a whistle. A goddamn whistle. Aren could all but sit there, able to do naught but watch. He was... the girl slumped. There was nothing, NOTHING that she could do! She was just as powerless - no, WEAKER than that poor man right now. She sobbed lightly, before suddenly hearing the sputtering of water coming from the throat of the State Alchemist.

She looked up, her neck snapping into a level position. What was he... Aren's hand was raised to her face, unable to contain the look of utter horror on her mug. It wasn't... there was no way! She'd known of powerful Alchemy, like Spade's, and the King and Queen of Briggs... But this guy was on a whole other level! She stood up, and staggered a few steps forwards, before toppling over onto her knees again. What could she do? There was nothing that she could! The guy had only stolen her wallet!

I know he tried to hurt Celes, but this is insanity! This is MADNESS!

No, this was Sparta. Yes, Sparta. At least, in the basest sense of things. She was an Athenian in the wilderness of the Spartan fighting caste. She was no fighter, let alone a warrior, she was just a normal person. Of all the people to find hot, why was it this one!

He was coming back. Aren's mind barely registered that. She didn't know what to say, or how to look at him. The Alchemist was still there, obviously in as much of a state of shock that she was in, yet he was the one who had been injured. He was the one who almost drowned... on thin air. She noticed the wallet before her eyes, and looked up at Celes, a slight red tinge both on her face and around her eyes - tears that had been brimming were now slowly receding.

"Th-th-thank you, Celes..." She held the wallet tightly, before returning it to her pocket.

"Aa, you shouldn't shout random things in Ishballan on an Amestrian street, ne~" She looked up at him again and blinked a few times, before standing up, head held down.

"You're right." She stepped forwards, revealing her own hidden weapon - noting quite as elaborate as Celes', but it certainly did the job. The steel baseball bat sparked when it hit the ground, Aren dragging it along behind her, the slow steps resounding in the now-devoid-of-life street. She flicked the bat up, and stared down at the man who had just been choking.

"What do you know of honour, State Alchemist?" She flicked a small switch on the handle of the bat, causing vapour to pour out of small holes in the metal, and a single spark to light them up. Her eyes narrowed, and she looked down at him over the bridge of her nose.

"You deserve to be beaten for what you've done, scum." That single word, even with the Ishvallan, had hidden malice. The girl sneered, and raised the bat into the air, before bringing it down sharply.

CLANG! The bat hit concrete, and Aren knelt down beside him, the heat of the bat just inches away from his now-sweating face. She smiled purely and innocently at him, and then spoke.

"You're going to leave now, and not come near either of us again. You'll go back to the Fuhrer and hand in your pocket watch. You are no Alchemist, you're a thief - no, you're not even a thief. You're a disgrace to the name of thief, boy. Be happy that I, Euphemia Til Alexandros, have spared your life. Do not forget my name." The innocent smile still on her face, she stood up and turned away, bringing the bat up quickly again, just missing the man's nose. She was done. There was nothing else to be said. She just walked back over to Celes, swiping the bat rapidly so the flames dispersed, and making sure not to stash it yet. It would be far too hot to handle... She smiled at him, with the same innocent smile, yet no malice behind it. He was scary, but...

She looked back at the man behind her, the one who was still there, staring into space, almost as if he had just seen - or was - a ghost. There were still people like him in the world.

She sighed, and pulled out the wallet, checking to make sure it was intact. Wait, what. Saywutnao? She turned back to the Alchemist one more time. The bastard had run. You had to be kidding. No fucking way. She looked back in the wallet, just to make sure she hadn't just... not seen it. Nope, it was definitely not there. There wasn't anything in the secret cranny that she'd made either!

That thief stole my fucking money! ARGH! Aren sighed once more, and smiled sheepishly at Celes.

"Wanna dine and dash?" The girl poked her tongue out at him coyly. It was their only option, it seemed. Stealing...

What a way to live, hm?

[Guest]

Celesto pretended not to see; it was his specialty. If he overlooked other people's weaknesses, they would most likely not come close to catching his: it was genius. Possibly. It was clear, however, that his alchemy had certainly moved something in Euphie and she was so surprised that Celes found himself becoming surprised as well. This meant that she couldn't be an alchemist. Celes had thought she was...what with the flaming bat and all that. But her reaction to him gave it away--the blond looked to the side--along with the smell of gas, he he~ He was too sharp for his own good. Ugh what a hard life.

He listened politely as Euphie bad-mouthed the prostrated man, one hand still pocketed. His bored expression changed though when Euphie checked her wallet. The State Alchemist was running off, kicking up a fun array of street dust. He turned his light-colored eyes back to the girl and grinned. "I was planning to do that all along. Let's go~!" He pumped his fist into the air and took his hand out of his pocket, grabbing her's. This was a date, wasn't it? He hadn't invited her, so it had to be something of the sort. "Byy the way, you sounded like a princess back there~ could you be from a faraway land in search for true love?!?!" The sheepish look in his unreadable eyes hadn't changed in the slightest all afternoon. It was nearly impossible to tell when the man was joking or when he was serious, much less distinguish his true personality. Only one thing was clear: he was hiding many things--many things he would stop at nothing to keep in the darkest depths of his ravaged soul...

Spinning. Large metal...copper..rusted. It overtook the left side of his vision, eating away at the black--the endless black that was more comforting than this nightmare. Celesto staggered to the side, falling against an old brick wall. His eyes were wide, no longer in reality. Collapsing against it, he slid down to his butt, burying his face in his knees, clutching his head--handfuls of stark hair--flashing waves of bright sunlight--too bright. Mirrors. Mirrors upon mirrors stood before him, reflecting, reflecting still. Again and again eternity shown forth through itself replicated over and over. A shuddering breath, panting, sweating, his bangs were sticking to his forehead, hands falling listlessly away from his writhing mind. Collapsing--it was all collapsing. What--what should he--? The gears slammed into the mirrors, shattering the images of him...of him...of Karis..of-- Karis? Was it...it was Karis! Karis!! He was lost--gone...the--the creature panted his name. Br-brother!! No, no!! Go away! He wanted to scream, but had the mental stability still to know that he was among other people.

He wanted to die.

Disappear like Karis into the void of black that was his left eye, but now--now... The gears were spinning...round and round. Celes couldn't breathe as if he were sucking in smoke from the fires of hell. Hell it was! Right before him, lapping at the thoughts in his mind. The shards of the shattered mirrors, ate into his flesh, burning, melting, searing agony! He dug his nails into the dirt and threw himself over sideways. No matter how tight he closed his eyes, the gears wouldn't go away. Slowly spinning...slowly... as if peacefully awaiting the sounds of his inner screams. Karis' face appeared--or was it his own? Haunting...haunted...always. The pain in his head grew to something akin to agony. He felt himself lift his hands from the ground, heaving for relief from it, but it kept coming. It was only slow because it was about to pierce his heart and kill him! It would be better to end it now! Get it over with. No more...no more... Let Karis live instead. Anything...anything...

It stopped. All at once it stopped, retreating back into the darkness--the sweet silent darkness. Celesto opened his eyes, seeing as if for the first time in a long while. He clapped a hand over his left eye, reveling in the sharp stabs of pain. Carefully, intricately, he tied the spare white bandage eye patch he had with him always for emergencies over that left eye. Keep out the light...keep out the light he can't see. He panted heavily, drops of sweat falling from the tips of his bangs and to the ground. Then Celes remembered: he wasn't alone. For the first time...this happened when he was with someone else. Horror filled his innocent blue eye and he stared blankly at Euphie. He couldn't explain. And then his mind went blank and he fell slowly into a heap of unconsciousness.

[Guest]

He'd left her in hist dust already, huh? She watched him run off, before hearing him shout back. Wait, what? She processed his owrds over and over again in his head. Something about... meaning to do that already? You had to be kidding. Impossible. There was no way! She blinked, still not quite registering exactly what she was thinking, before it all locked into place. He had...

"You idiot!!!" The girl suddenly set of at a running pace, much faster than most would care to attempt. Dust that had settled on the ground behind her was being kicked up in a frenzy of rage, and Euphemia suddenly caught up with him, skidding to a stop next to her. The breaths came out of her mouth heavily; her tired body already out of energy. Funny - she always thought her own energy was nigh on boundless... She laughed softly, knowing full well what had happened, but not really caring. She smiled brightly at Celes, before hearing his question.

"Byy the way, you sounded like a princess back there~ could you be from a faraway land in search for true love?!?!"

Fuck. That blew her cover very nicely. Then again, maybe he was just joking? Yeah... Then again... the look in his eyes, it belied many secrets, and she wasn't too sure if he was indeed joking, or if he was completely serious in his question. She was gonna take the joking route, and joke along with him. I mean, who wouldn't? It would make life far more interesting, and that was always a good thing. She put a hand up to her mouth, and giggled lightly.

"Ohhh, yes, my good sir. I am Princess Alexandros, from the far off land of .fanlkewania. We were a prosperous people, and I have been sent here, to Amestris, to find a man suitable for the kingship. As a country of only women, we were plagued with no suitable heirs for a good number of year--huh?" Celes had suddenly staggered over to a brick wall. Euphemia stepped forwads, slightly worried.

"Celes..." As he slid down the wall, she began to get really worried. There was definitely something going on... He was... she closed her eyes rapidly, not wanting to look onto him. There was no disdain there, just worry. If she looked, she felt like she was disrespecting him, and that was something that she could never do - respect was something that those in pain most certainly deserved from anybody.

But there was more to this... wasn't there? He wasn't just in pain, he was going mad. He was certainly going mad! The woman crouched down before him, and tried to shake him out of his stupor. But there was nothing, he was... unconscious? Euphemia blinked, and stood back up, putting a hand to her chest. What should she do? Should she call for help? No, she needed to get him somewhere safe, first. Who knew what sort of people were hiding out in this part of town, even on a day like this?

Her world suddenly darkened, and Euphemia looked up at the sky, just in time to see the dark clouds covering. She sneered, and suddenly gasped. Things appeared before her eyes, and although they weren't as sharp as the gears that appeared in the mind of the blonde, they were certainly horrifying for the girl to see. She was on her knees, crying as she went, watching the goings-on of Creta play over and over again before her eyes. Tears rolled down her cheeks, and she could only watch the images - no amount of shouting or mindless rambling could force them away.

"Hello, my cousin." That shocked the images away. The Cretan words pierced her skull with a deafening blow, and she slowly turned around to see the source of the voice, though there was no need to, not with that suave, menacing tone. There was only one person who could do that, and she knew exactly who it was.

"Dietrich." The man sneered at her, placing a single hand on the ornate saber at his side. There was something strange about this, maybe he wasn't expecting any resistance? Considering the lack of a Guard, it was rather obvious that he was expecting to leave here alive... Or his men didn't know about this. That was more likely, at least in Euphemia's eyes.

"Referring to me by my first name, commoner? You should know better than to say that to your King." The man's face was even more menacing than before. It was almost as if he was trying to twist her words to his whim... She sneered.

"You're no King of mine. You're no family of mine." She didn't have the words to waste on him, nor did she have the time to care. All she wanted to do was leave, but it seemed that she'd have to get through him to do so.

"Oh, Euphemia. Do you have to say it like that? I'm hurt. I truly am. And here I was going to go through with my promise to your late Stepfather, the OLD King of Creta. Do you want to hear it?" His voice was beginning to annoy her now. He was deliberately going out of his way to make every words as smooth as silk, making every word an attempt to get her onto his side. He did this to everyone! Her eyes narrowed darkly.

"Go on..." The man's smile turned wild, his blond hair and red eyes seeming to change into some visage of true evil.

"Alright then. 'If you kill me... let the rest of the Royal Family alone. They are still your kin, my nephew. Don't harm the family.' That's what he said. Strangely enough... you just denounced yourself as family. That's enough for me. I can finally remove the last little thorn in my side." He reached down to the rapier, and slid it out of it's sheathe carefully. He smiled at Euphemia wickedly, and spoke once more.

"En Garde. I don't believe that you have any weapons here, do you, cousin?" Aren's eyes narrowed, and the girl slipped the baseball bat back out of her clothes, flicking it over her shoulder.

"Celes... wake up soon... Yeah, I do. What of it?" The man's eyes widened, and he leaned forwards, breaking off into a hysterical fit of laughter.

"That is no weapon, princess. It is far too crude. How about this. You put it down, and I'll kill you with a single strike. Deal?" No deal. There as no way she was going to let this murderer get the better of her!

"Over my Father's grave! OVER MY OWN HONOR!" The girl suddenly stepped forwards, breaking into a run. She flicked the switch once more, allowing the gas to pour out and ignite. A flicker of worry crossed Dietrich's face, but that was soon changed to basal confidence as Aren's hurried strike was easily parried by his blade. Each strike was full of rage and hate, and every time they collided, Aren felt her own strength draining. She wasn't doing anything! With a shout, she jumped back, watching the man with cautious eyes.

He reached out a hand and beckoned for her to go for him again. He'd blocked every single hit... What could she do? She could only watch the man in front of her with a horrified look upon her face... She was useless...

The girl went onto her knees.

I really am just a princess.

She dropped the bat beside her.

No use to anyone.

As the flames were doused by the concrete, she looked up at Dietrich, a remorseful look in her eyes.

Have mercy, O Holy Father.

He stepped forwards, preparing to finish her in one strike.

No... I cannot die yet. I may be useless... But...

"CELES!" The girl stood up straight before Dietrich, pulled back her right arm and punched him full force in the face, sending him sprawling.

Huff... Huff... Huff... Huff... The girl stepped back, and fell on her ass next to the unconscious Alchemist. She was out of it now, all she could do was hope.

"Please wake up, Celes. Please wake up."

{OOC - DON'T KILL DIETRICH! D=}

[Guest]

Sweet darkness licked at the recesses of his mind and slowly--so slowly resigned. Fresh blue like a spring sky surrounded by yellow flecks of hair creaked open to a scene unfolding in the market street. Before the images registered however, he felt a violent smarting on his left cheek under the eye that was safety tucked beneath the eye patch. The white bandage caressed the unseen bruise now forming on top of the bone just under his eye. Unconsciously, he raised a hand to touch it, wincing and emitting a soft hiss of pain. As his mind began to rid itself of the sludge, Celesto realized that someone had to have done this. Did they knock him out? No... He was certain that the gears had, for he still felt the effects and saw brief afterimages of the terror. Brushing the dirt from his white clothing, he noticed that a girl was sitting beside him. Wait...who? He blinked, holding his head with both hands to try and extract something from his throbbing memories. Euphie! A rush of realization invaded him and he thrust his face in front of her, vaguely remembering the sound of her voice calling to him. He was about to ask her what was wrong when he suddenly noticed a strangely ornate sword flying at his head. JESUS CHRIST!?

Celes drew his staff just in time to block the hunk of metal from cutting off both their heads. That would be a sad day indeed. Or would it... Maybe he should have just pushed Euphie out of the way and taken the blow...maybe that was his fate and he just missed it!? Damn. He really was a failure at everything. Celes laughed quietly to himself, ignoring the rather dumbfounded expression on the attacker's face. Well, he had to live for Karis so the bastard trying to kill them could suck it~~ "Iyyyaadaayo~~" Celes whined like a preschooler and then twirled his staff in such a way that the saber flew out of the guy's hands. How unfortunate. Celes smirked, a vicious--almost demonic--look entering his single flaring eye. He threw off a glove towards Euphie to hold and began furiously rubbing his hands together. He must have looked like he was cold because now he was getting odd looks. All well. He touched his staff which was now held vertically in parallel to the horizon line and then thrust the metal into the dusty ground. Immediately the crystal on the top sparked and shot out a violet stream like a ribbon. Celes spun around, missing the glorious sight of the poor guy's saber turning into a singed puddle of black ash. "Cover your ears!" He yelled to the girl in all seriousness--much unlike his normal, joking tones. Immediately following the destruction of the sword, a loud boom shook the entire area. Some people ducked into stores, most covered their ears in time, but those who didn't would be deaf for some time.

Celesto didn't hesitate. Unlike the fail State Alchemist, he sensed real blood lust from this red-eyed man. Hah. They were opposites: both with blond hair, but one with blue and one red eyes. Blue was usually on the good side. Hm...it didn't really fit, but this guy was the one who seemed to have attacked first...unless he missed something while he was out. Though it did seem that Euphie was terrified of him... Certainly she hadn't started this. Either way, she was part of his crew. This man had to die. Stealing money was one thing...stealing life from Euphie was a no-go. The guy was a bit too far away to suffocate... Celes cursed under his breath and, using his quick-witted mind, glared daggers at the area where the man was unfortunately standing. All around him sprung up razor sharp crystals the same as the one on the top of his staff. They sliced through a fruit stand, through a corner of the man's clothing and with great intricacy, constructed a jagged wall of beauty around the murderous attacker. Celes slapped his hands together when it was finished and open his eye cautiously. And yep what he had envisioned was now standing right before him in reality. Hellz yeah!~ He smiled slightly, and sighed a soft sigh of relief. No one was dying today...at least not them; the whole suffocating him to death idea was still vividly on his mind. But for some reason...he felt so tired. He took a single step and wobbled a little, leaning on his staff. Damn his head was whirling... it had to be... That's right. It was the gears. The spinning gears.

He put a hand over his left eye and sighed again, returning to Euphie's side. "I want to kill him," he muttered, "what do you think?" But Celes didn't really wait for her answer before he collapsed to his knees and dragged his head into his hands. Wavy hair fell around his face to mask his fatigue, though his body language screamed exhaustion to all on-lookers. ...it was annoying. He normally would never get this tired, but he felt his mind fading away...and he could barely catch up to each thought before it faded into darkness. He looked up eventually and met her eyes. What had happened anyway? Why were they being attacked all day today? He just wanted some lunch dammit!

[Guest]

She saw it. She saw his eyes open. That was enough to cause her heart to surge in a flood of relief. With a small smile on her face, she noticed the look on his face just in time, just in time to turn around and see the metal flying towards them. She went to duck down, and Celes drew that amazing staff of his, blocking the saber as it came. Euphemia breathed a small sigh of relief, and could all but sit there, watching as Celes stood up again, knocking the saber out of Dietrich's hands! She sat forwards more, keeping a careful eye on the proceedings. There was something good that was about to happen, she knew it!

As soon as the saber was destroyed, she was suddenly and quickly told to cover her ears. Okay, he had a point. And he knew what was about to happen, so that meant one thing. COVER EARS! She hurriedly stuffed her hands tightly over her ears and closed her eyes sharply.

BOOM. Even through the muffling folds of her hands, she could still hear the sounds that Celes' Alchemy had produced. It was amazing, really, that that much sound energy could be produced from something as insignificant as her cousin's saber. She turned back to the man, eyes narrowed. She hated that man. He'd killed her stepfather, and tried to steal the throne of Creta. There was nothing that she hated more than a man like that. Yet, he was still her family, that much was also true. With a small sigh, she stood up, listlessly watching Celes do his deed.

The cage of crystal sprung up about him, and it was clear that Celes had the advantage, as he always did. She was rooting for him, yes... But still...

Dietrich... I must be the one to kill you. Yet I can't do that here. You're too powerful, too much of an opponent. I need a way to do this myself, on my own, and without violating some diplomatic immunity laws that the Fuhrer herself placed upon this country. She sighed, and began to walk over towards Dietrich, a grim smile on her face. There was something she had to do, to let this smarmy bastard of a cousin know that she was a force to be reckoned with, so that he could run back to Creta with his tail between his legs.

That was when Celes stumbled slightly, and walked over to her. She could only just look at him, seeing him in this condition. Then he asked her the one question that could change her fate.

"I want to kill him, what do you think?"

"I... I don't know." She really didn't. Through all of the hatred that Euphemia felt, it was nothing compared to the idea that this person was the closest thing that she had left as family. That, and she wanted to spill his blood herself. Yeah, let's get the soppy shit out of the way. She didn't want him to be like family to her... She wanted his blood on her hands, and nobody else's.

"I don't want you to ki--" Celes suddenly dropped. Aren turned straight to him, and knelt down beside him. He was holding his eye once again, and as she looked up... The crystals were beginning to fade. Ah, well, now was as good a time as any. She turned back to Celes one more time, seeing him and looking in his eyes.

"This is something I need to do myself. I'm sorry." She stood up straighter, and began to approach Dietrich, the fire now burning in her eyes. There was nothing else for this, she had to finish this charade. Even if this bastard didn't die, he'd have to pay some day! Her eyes were now narrowed, and they almost seemed to be glowing with the rage and hatred that had built up within her. And, like that, she was there, standing before the still-helpless King of Creta.

"I should kill you where you stand right now." Her words were unwavering, menacing. It was as if... Euphemia had disappeared, and all that remained was an apathetic shell. She stared him in the eye, and sneered at him.

"If I wanted to, I could have your head on the ground next to my feet."

"Then, why don't you?"

"Because you're still family, no matter how much I deny it." Dietrich grinned wickedly, it seemed that Euphemia had done something in his favour. That was a lie. She was only clearing her own debt to his soul.

"Listen to me, Dietrich. I don't accept you as Creta's king, and I don't accept you as someone to trust, but I do accept you as a member of my family. Unfortunately, I also want to kill you. Pity, huh? I can't do that here... Because you're a goddamn DIPLOMAT!" The girl drew the bat one last time, and cast it onto the ground with a shout of rage. All that anger and hatred that had boild up inside of her was now bubbling loose. She was a cannon now, and ready to destroy this man that called himself family.

This man that called himself king. She struck at the wall, trying her hardest to break the already receding crystal. Every time it hit, she felt herself shake from the shock, but still kept going in her assault. Tears rolled down her face as she attacked, she was finding this unbearable. Why did she hate him so? Why could she not let this go? It was only the goddamn seat of Royalty! There wasn't any power behind it! As the last of the wall receded, she fell to her knees before Dietrich.

"Please, just go. Forget you saw me. I don't want to become Queen, and I'll even abstain from the throne if I have to. Please, Dietrich, just go. I don't want this hate to have to continue." If she didn't see his face...

"Fine. But don't expect me to give up. You win your life for today. Hope that you have enough time to pay final respects to your dead stepfather. Good day to you, cousin. Good day to you, Alchemist." The man simply turned away and walked off... leaving a crying Euphemia, and a fatigued Celes. Strange... how things turned out now, wasn't it?

[Guest]

Yus-yus there could be a major problem~~ Celes stared darkly from between his fingers at the glorious scene unfolding before him. Despite the pain building in his skull and making his world churn and his equilibrium flip, he found himself back on his feet, swaying from side to side like he was about to break into sexay pop star dance moves. That'd be the day ne~~ Celes leaned heavily on his staff and smiled slightly at them despite the shock his mind was currently experiencing. His alchemy was faulty. Not only was his alchemy faulty, but his focus was off and he was having a physical rebound. He felt his heart pumping against his chest--the rush of cold liquid through the veins in his arms. He constantly felt shivers slip up and down his spine as the wind combed through his messy blond hair. This was definitely a problem.

Never before had he seen Ceres shatter... and it was somehow beautiful--the broken shards like glass decorating the dusty market street. People were staring from safe locations and it was only a matter of time before the military showed up. Hell, they probably all knew his face...Spade himself may even show--nah-nah impossiblejyan~ Celes blinked and the childish enthusiasm vanished from his thoughts. This was no laughing matter; this was real shit here. Real shit... Think, think, think!! He hit himself in the head and winced. Why wasn't it working? Maybe it was because he was thinking about thinking so thinking didn't actually work? Hey...maybe that was how meditation worked... It was like trying to not think made you think so...maybe it worked opposite too. So if he tried not to think, he'd be able to think... Chair...chair...kon~! You know, it had to have been the lightning bolt--the origination of the crystal--that made the alchemy malfunction. Maybe the degree of the lightning was too low? That could be it. That could be it!

Celes almost felt over, his head a few feet from face planting into the ground he had been staring intently at. Well, he didn't burn a hole into it. Laser vision was impossible after all. Now...lightning. The lightning. What was wrong with it? He rubs his hands enough...the staff was right... He held onto it tightly, his clammy hands slipping across the cold mental that wobbled with his unsteady feet. It didn't matter; he was thinking; this was the most important thing now. The fact that the bastard was now walking away, also, didn't matter. Celes had a feeling they would meet again. He also had a feeling that that man's death was rather...eminent. When a beautiful girl wanted someone dead, they'd die for sure. For sure~~ Lightning... he was thinking right--thinking about something important. Focus...focus~~kon!

Aa-aaa! That! It was that. That's what it was. Ah, okay. He nodded, his arms crossed in confirmation of his discovery. So as to not make that dire, rather unfortunate mistake again, he had to do that. Aa-aa he saw now. Alright! Yoshhaa! He flung his head in Euphie's direction, a blast of sun-kissed hair billowing in waves of accomplishment. "nde, Shall we get lunch?" He asked casually, shrugging at the weird guy's regressing shadow. "We gotta run nene~~" He spun around and looked in every direction overdramatically (like usual). Lunch was an important thing. Escaping was also an important thing. Thinking was done. Recovering was essential, and he was definitely dizzy. iiyyyaaaa~. In a feat of pure blindness, he grasped Euphie's shoulders when she reached him. "You are a princess; someone of diplomacy is after yur life ne~~ nde, I will be your prince if... if you just put up with this for now. It...seems..." He looked every which way again to confirm that no one was nearby and that the nonexistent people weren't overhearing. "I am going to become a problem for you again. Keep my secret; I'll keep yours." He winked, which involved closing his only eye in a rather strange smiley way. "You just have to make sure I walk in a straight line." He let go of her shoulders and almost collided with a wall. Douuushiiteee!? I'm already clumsy as it is?!!?

[Guest]

"We gotta run nene~~" Euphemia wiped the tears from her eyes, and turned around to see a comical Celes turning every which way but none. She put a soft hand up to her mouth and giggled lightly, before standing up and walking regally over to him.

"Eating sounds fun~" She said, her face and mouth imitating a :3 before Celes--woah! He was now RIGHT in front of her, hands on shoulders, and all Euphemia could do was stare blankly as he asked his questions. He had guessed, huh? No use in lying to him now. She looked back up at him, baleful eyes coming slightly to tears.

"Truth is... I am a princess. I like to say I was, but it seems that I can't escape my fate, huh?" She laughed nervously at Celes' remarks. Was she going to explain the entire story? She flicked through the possible consequences in her mind, looking over the ideas of this man ratting her out, one of Dietrich's men being nearby... But none of them presented themselves to her. Strange, how things turned out. Alright. She smiled brightly at him, and nodded.

"I told Jack, I think I can tell you. My name, as you know, is Euphemia Til Alexandros. I am the third in line for the throne of Creta. That man was my cousin, Dietrich Von Vermont. He usurped my stepfather, the Right King of Creta, and took the throne for himself. I don't know about you... But I think he's looking for a reason to take over Creta and wage war on Amestris. That, and..." She looked straight into Celes' eyes, getting as close as she could without being pushy. If she was going to tell him, he was going to know.

"I'm his only competition. I'm now the only thing remaining that can take that seat away from him. My mother, the Queen, is in hiding. My brother is dead, and he was my only sibling. He fathered no children, and I certainly haven't mothered any either." Her eyes were dead set into his now, making sure he got every word, and didn't forget a single one. "That settled, I'm here, in Amestris, hiding from my own cousin, who has sent countless numbers of his own agents in an attempt to kill me. For I am the only person left in this entire world that is legally allowed to take the throne from him. Not that I..." Her voice trailed off to the side, her eyes nonchalantly gazing over at something in the distance. She didn't want the throne. She didn't want the power. She just wanted to kill her fucking asshat of a cousin. Was that so hard?!

"It...seems...I am going to become a problem for you again. Keep my secret; I'll keep yours." Aren grinned, and went to shake his hand, somehow... She failed, of course.

"Deal." As that was said, Celes trailed off from her, and stumbled into... a wall. She sighed softly, and facepalmed, before walking behind him and grabbing his shoulders. The Cretan Princess then dragged him away from the wall, and set him onto the path, before holding his hand tightly.

"If you can't walk in a straight line on your own, I'll teach you. You know that whole 'walk in a straight line with books on your head' thing that the movies show princesses learning? I learned that. If you want to walk in a straight line... come talk to me about it." She giggled and winked at him, before slowly walking forwards, leading him along, making sure he didn't stumble away. If he did... She had her bat at the ready.

[Guest]

[Dai, I hate to say this, but like your post kind of puts Celes in the noodle shop. Normally it would be fine with me, but I had something I wanted to do before they reached it...if they reached it at all. This is one of the problems with having long posts of ACTION, you know? We'll plot when you get on. ^_^]

[-pokepoke- Edited~ That bit about the noodle shop was pretty rushed anyways. XD]

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BUMP~

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