Danger Zone

The festival had ended and soon, Iris would have to return to Carraig. It was a bitter-sweet feeling to know that her time in Amestris was likely closing. She could get away from the bitter memories, but that didn't mean she wanted to forget. What had happened became a part of her. The decision, the deaths she saw.. all of it was just to be a memory, but it was better than nothing. How much more painful would it have been if she hadn't been there? The whole happening was a two-bladed ordeal that wouldn't save her.

People passed by and the clouds hovered above her. It was strange how life could just go on. So any people had lost their eyes in a that suicide mission and yet the world around her felt no different. Sure, it'd been a long time, now, but it didn't stop it from aching in her stomach. What if she had been given the chance? Would she undo her path or keep it the same? ..Why was she so obsessive compulsive over something long gone. There was no point thinking about it, but she constantly found herself wondering if things had been different. Honestly it was part of being human.... but she wasn't human anymore. The thought kicked her in the gut more strong than a roundhouse kick. Her body tensed and she couldn't breathe. She was a freak now. A real freak. Her immune system had kicked up, but the sugary problems still persisted. So many problems that remained with no solution. Her only outlet.. would be her sketchpad. So for the day, she would sketch.

On a park bench, Iris sat for hours. Her jean skirt hung over her dark blue tights with no effort. At the same time, it brought out the color in her navy spaghetti-strap top under a jean jacket. Her cyan scarf looped around her neck and as usual, her had sat on her head with a slight tilt. Her flat black shoes tapped the surface of the cement to a tune no one realized. Pen in hand, she rolled an image into the paper. Even as two hours passed, she sat there. She had every right to, after all.

Why did I come to this city…? I hate noise…

Golden eyes glittered in the midday sunlight as Zeich made his way through the busy Central City. The capital of Amestris was a busy, bustling place, and the young Chimera often winced at the level of sound around him. To a normal human, it would be a little loud with vendors yelling out to draw the attention of their customers, cars going by on the busy streets, and people raising their voices to be heard over the din. If Zeich wasn’t in his human form right now, his ears would be flat on the sides of his head as he winced at the noise. Even without being transformed, his hearing was still far more sensitive than the average human’s, and as a result it was all beginning to give him a headache. His eyes narrowed behind the black shades that hid their unnatural hue, and his jaw tightened in annoyance, but the Chimera could do nothing to stop the clamor about him, and so he just lowered his head and kept pushing forward.

Eventually a park came up to provide a solace from the headache that was forming, an area of lesser noise that would provide some relief from the constant and incessant sounds of the city. Though there were still people around, the difference in volume was an audible relief for Zeich’s poor ears, and the Chimera let out a soft sigh of relief. His boots crunched softly against the fresh green grass as he strode across the well-kept park lawns, moving towards a bubbling fountain that he could hear off in the distance. The young man rubbed at his throat, a bit thirsty from his walk through Central, and wondered if anyone would mind if he dipped his head in the fountain. They were cleaned fairly often, right? The water couldn’t be too bad, and it would be free; Zeich was a little on the poor side after his last trek’s supplies, and so he had to save every penny until he could find some work in the area. He hadn’t decided where he was going next; maybe he’d stop by North Amestris next.

As he strode through the park towards his promised refreshment, Zeich’s nose twitched at an unusual smell. Tilting his head, an odd habit from his animal DNA that popped up whenever he was confused, the Chimera sniffed the air as he tried to figure out what the scent was. It sort of smelled human, though it was closer to the scent that clung around Alchemists: the slight scents of chemical shifts and lightning from alchemic reactions was about it, but it was distinctly different, as if those additions were part of the deeper scent rather than one that was just layered atop. Anything to do with Alchemy tended to intrigue Zeich, and for a moment he forgot about his thirst as he sniffed the air to get a better feel on his direction.

Finally he found the source: a woman sitting on her bench was writing or drawing on a pad of paper, and the scent was coming from her. Moving in a bit closer while maintaining enough space to keep the woman outside of his three-foot comfort zone, Zeich looked over her shoulder and noticed that she was drawing, sketching really, and that she wasn’t half bad. The Chimera looked away from the pictures, however, and took one last sniff of the air to make sure that he was approaching the correct woman. There was no doubt about it; the woman sitting with her back to him was the source of the unusual scent.

“You smell odd.” Though he spoke Amestran without any accent, Zeich was hardly skilled at it, and used rudimentary sentences to speak. Blunt as always, he barreled on with his inquiry. “Are you an Alchemist? Or was Alchemy used? Like I said, you smell odd.”

Snifff.. snifff.. She could feel her eye twitch. What kind of creep just went up to women and sniffed them? Just ignore him, Iris, he'll go away. OH IF ONLY THAT WERE TRUE. His breath moved all about her hair and messed it up with his strange-ass sniffs. What. The. Hell? “You smell odd.” He had said and Iris sighed. God. She was going to have to talk to this man, wasn't she? “Are you an Alchemist? Or was Alchemy used? Like I said, you smell odd.” Internally she groaned. Dammit. Damn it all to Hell. The day she was just flowing with inspiration and she had to spend it shooting the breeze with a park-sniffer.. man.. Her eyes to came to him and she took in his form. Curiosity.. he had curiosity. Actually everyone did, but his was showing. Her first initial response was in her mind 'Why the Hell do you care'.

No, be nice Iris. You can't just be rude to the strange man because he's sniffing you. "Do I have to put a restraining order on you? I've already got one on some else." Yes, because threatening was less rude than asking who the hell someone was. So after her little outburst, she didn't apologize, but she pressed her tablet in towards her stomach and put the pencil in her ear. "But to answer your question, I used to be. I don't exactly use it anymore." Her answer was truthful. She wasn't exactly sure why, but she COULDN'T use it anymore. This was of course, depressing to her, because Iris had loved her alchemy. It was so convenient when she carried paper everywhere, but now it was pointless, but she had.. different abilities.

“Well, aren’t you rude…” Zeich’s face twisted in a slight grimace of annoyance at the woman’s remarks, but he kept his tone level despite that. God, he hated humans some days, and he especially hated how rude they became if they noticed you were slightly different. “I was saying you have an odd human scent. It feels odd; wrong, perhaps.” The Chimera’s repetitive use of certain words suggested that Amestrian wasn’t his first language, and that his vocabulary wasn’t very large, so he was doing the best he could to communicate with his limited skills. It didn’t help that he was basically forcing himself to talk, once more asking himself why he even bothered to associate with others.

“But then again, I should expect nothing more from you humans!” There was a tone of disgust at the word, and the Chimera’s general body language suggested slight tension while his lips curled back to slightly bare his teeth. He was clearly put out by her hostile behavior, but soon backed off; he wasn’t going to instigate a fight with this human just because she had no manners. Instead, he stamped off towards the nearby fountain, his thirst coming back full-force in his anger. Without a hint of propriety he dunked his head in it, hoping to cool his temper a bit, before pulling out and just taking a long drink, his long black hair dripping water everywhere.

I don’t need help from anyone, especially not another human… Zeich tried to salvage his damaged pride, shooting another glare at the woman he had spoken too. The unusual scent was still there, but now it was more of a mocking insult rather than a curiosity, a question that was unlikely to be answered by the woman. “I don’t need anything from anyone…” He grumbled aloud this time, unaware if he was audible enough. However, what was audible at that very moment was his stomach, which let out a rumble far louder than his mumbled complaints. Zeich hadn’t eaten in two days, having only arrived in Central the night before, and hadn’t had a chance to earn any money for food.

Maybe I could ask someone where a guy can get some food…

"But then again, I should expect nothing more from you humans!" Iris blinked at him. Had she hurt his feelings? She really hadn't meant to? It was just strange that a man could be hurt- Oh yeah. She kind of threatened him. Yeah.. that often put a damper on things. Her nose twitched and she sighed. Yeah, she should work on her people skills a bit more. She sighed heavily and looked back at him. He looked so lost.. like a puppy. Gah damn her for concerning herself in the affairs of others.

“I don’t need anything from anyone…” His stomach growled loudly.

Yeah. Don't need anything. Iris rolled her eyes. Why were men so stubborn. She fished in her bag a moment and brought out a package of beef jerky. On long days she had to make sure she had some and a stash of crackers to go along, just to keep from getting sick when she didn't have money under her belt. In an attempt of being nice, she held it out, in front of his nose. "Here. It's not a gift or anything. I just don't want it." Naturally that was a lie, but she would be damned if she told someone she gave food to a man who was starving. Then EVERYONE would expect her help.

(sorry kinda short

“Here. It’s not a gift or anything. I just don’t want it.” Zeich turned, curious as to what she meant, before he found a small bag waved beneath his nose. The Chimera gave it only a second’s thought, his stomach warring with his pride before hunger won out with another loud grumble from his middle. It didn’t help that it was meat, even preserved; since becoming part wolf, Zeich’s cravings had taking a strong lean towards those of a carnivore’s. As a result, meat was particularly alluring to him, second only to sweets, and was hard to resist. He was in his human form, so he didn’t crave it raw, but Zeich was hooked the instant that the small bag was waved at him.

Snatching it from the woman’s hand with an offended huff, as if it had been forced upon him, the Chimera ripped open the bag eagerly. “Fine! Then don’t expect any thanks; I’m taking this off of your hands, after all.” Taking a large strip of the preserved meat, he tore it roughly in his teeth; if the woman looked closely, she’d see that the young man’s teeth were slightly pointed, not quite jagged enough to be a canine’s but certainly sharper than the average human’s. With ease he tore into the jerky as if it were the best meal on Earth, and for him it was; hunger was one of the greatest seasonings in the world. It was no wonder that Zeich finished it in record time, the bag emptied within a minute or two of ravenous consumption.

Tossing the bag aside, Zeich glanced over at the woman who had given him the jerky, fixing her with a level look over the rim of his shaded glasses. Golden irises would draw attention to themselves immediately as they met the female’s, catching her eyes in an intense stare. After a moment, the Chimera adjusted his glasses and looked away again, once again concealing the most prominent feature of his human form. He was silent for a moment, considering, but with great reluctance he spoke to the woman again. “…My name is Zeich. I’m a wanderer from down near the border of Creta. What’s your name?” It was probably one of his most civil moments in conversation, but of course it was one that Zeich ruined a moment later with a brief sniff of the air, tilting his head towards the woman. “Also, you never explained your scent, lady. It’s like that of a normal human’s but mixed with Alchemy, and a bit more different too. Something subtle.”

"…My name is Zeich. I’m a wanderer from down near the border of Creta. What’s your name?”

Creta was a nice place. Iris had been there once or twice in the occasional tourist fashion. They had strange customs, but really it wasn't a bad place. She liked it enough. However that wasn't the point. the jerky was devoured as if he were starving.. which may have been true. Sometimes Iris did forget that not everyone had more money than her. The name Zeich was an odd thing, but it was kind of.. cute. In fact he was kind of cute... in an aggressive way. Not like she would say anything like that to him, but yeah..

“Also, you never explained your scent, lady. It’s like that of a normal human’s but mixed with Alchemy, and a bit more different too. Something subtle.”

"Back on the whole scent thing?" Iris groaned and pinched her nose. The boy was a chimera obviously. That was the only type of person that got by with such a defined sense. Her pink eyes closed a moment and she sighed. Such an odd comment about alchemists. As true as it had been, it was still simply a wondrous thing. How did he know what an alchemist smelled like? Did alchemy really have a scent? Some things were simply puzzling. At least it was good to know she didn't just stink. "I used to be an alchemist," she admitted with a sigh. "I stopped using alchemy recently, though." That was all he needed to know. He didn't need to know why or what happened.

“I used to be an Alchemist. I stopped using Alchemy recently, though.”

Zeich tilted his head, that same habit showing itself as he tried to puzzle it out. Maybe her scent was residual, and the Alchemic part of it would fade in time. But something about it felt… fresh. Renewed. The whole thing was like a constant cycle, always flowing and never ceasing, almost like a never-ending Alchemic process. The woman could be lying, and perhaps making use of Alchemy in some subtle way, but she seemed sincere enough. Zeich had never completely picked up on that whole “animal instinct” bit when it came to detecting falsehoods from people, but he had a good sense of complete sincerity. It wasn’t as simple as saying “this person isn’t completely sincere, so they’re lying,” as there were shades of gray… overall, it was a troublesome practice and thus Zeich had never completely learned it.

Crossing his arms, the Chimera sat at the edge of the fountain as he tried to think of how to describe what he could smell. “It’s hard to explain, really. It’s like… more than a scent, though Alchemy does have a smell of lightning to it, but it’s really more like I can… how do I say it… I can ‘feel’ the shifting processes. It’s kind of like a sixth sense in a way. Something subtle that uses my other senses to tell me when there’s something Alchemic going on nearby. And trust me, I know Alchemy. It’s because of it that I’m al—” Lost in his musings, Zeich almost didn’t catch his slip-up. Quickly he made an excuse about being thirsty from all the talking and dipped his head into the water again, coming up with a gasp for air as he wiped the dripping liquid out of his eyes.

“So what made you quit Alchemy? It’s a great science, and it’s responsible for a lot of our advancements and technology.” Zeich was warming up to the conversation quickly, as it was one of the few topics he enjoyed. “I mean, if I could perform Alchemy, I’d be able to do a million and one things more than I could ever do so before. Since though my father was an Alchemist at some point himself… well, I thought I’d be able to learn. But since an accident when I was younger, I haven’t even begun to be able to perform Alchemy.” If he were in his wolf form, his ears would be drooping as he thought about his inability potentially being tied to his nature as a Chimera.

Iris didn't need him to finish his statement. She already understood, already knew. IN a similar fashion it had saved hers.. somehow. She wasn't exactly sure how to explain it, because her alchemy was no longer there. The life she was given definitely wasn't normal. She had been on the brink of dying. HELL she lost a lung! A fucking LUNG! She was coughing up blood and hacking like an old man; raspy breath included. That woman had nearly stolen away her life; only a coupe minutes to spare, when that stone was given to her. Like a coward she swallowed it, vaguely knowing the consequences. However in last moments, even sweet poison would have been a welcome relief from the pain that had claimed her body.

She shrugged her shoulders and sighed. "I'm not exactly sure what happened." It was partially a lie and partially true. "I just.. woke up and couldn't use it." Her eyes looked away, saddened by the thought. Her own alchemy had been wonderful: useful and now it was gone. However, strange other abilities had come to show. Namely: Her strange ability to put those who made eye contact to sleep. The boy had done so earlier, but it seemed lucky chance it didn't affect him. Also on occasion, Iris' cellphone and MP3 stopped working. An annoying thing, but it wasn't as bad as the putting people to sleep thing.

(Sorry kinda short)