Roy Mustang's sister

Chapter 7

We waited for five days, not really doing much, just hanging around the hotel and playing cards. Ed was already fed up with his 'useless' bodyguards, so when he was contacted by Shesca, he literally jumped into the air with joy.

We all piled into the car and drove quickly to where Shesca's lodgings were, we ran up the stairs, followed by the confused bodyguards, who had been assigned to watch me too now. I felt a bit bad for them, but, like Ed, it grew tiring being followed everywhere.

When we knocked on the door, we were greeted by a very chipper woman who shook my hand enthusiastically while saying, "I've heard of you! You're the Disaster Alchemist aren't you? News travels fast in East Central, come inside!" She talked EXTREMLY fast and a bit like Major Armstrong, that is to say, with an overly dramatic voice. She led us to a table and spread her hands, "Here they are! Sorry it took 5 days, but there was a lot of them!" I pointed to the huge piles of notes, "Hang on, you wrote this?" She nodded and Alphonse exclaimed, "There sure are some amazing people in this world!" While Ed picked up a few notes, "These are really Dr. Marco's notes?" He asked.

Shesca nodded eagerly, "They sure are! Come, take a look at them!" She told Al and I. She held up a few and continued, "These are by Tim Marco, 1000 easy recipes!" My mouth fell open, we were sent to find a cookbook?! One of the guards, the female, I think her name was Lieutenant Maria Ross, her companion was named Denny Brosh, picked up a book and read of the ingredients, "We come this far for a cookbook?" She asked. Denny held up another to Shesca, "Miss? What part of this made you think it was an important document?"

Shesca looked horrified and asked, "Is it not what you're looking for? All I did was copy down what I remember." Denny grabbed his head, "Wonderful! So this was just a wild goose chase?" Shesca looked down and I glared at Denny, "Brosh! You never know what might be important!" I angrily snapped. Before he could respond Edward asked quietly, "Shesca, are you absolutely sure this is a flawless reproduction of the notes?"

Shesca stepped forward eagerly, "Oh yes! I'm 100% certain!" Ed turned around with a triumphant smirk on his face, I looked at him curiously as he held up one and said, "Then thank you very much, you're incredible!" Then he looked at Al and I, "Alright! Let's get this back to the Library!" My mouth fell open and I exchanged a look with Al, but we both picked up a stack and started to follow Ed. Al handed a stack to Brosh and picked up another, "They should have related materials there." "Thank you Shesca." I told her as I passed.

Before Ed left though, he stopped and said, "Oh, I almost forgot Shesca's payment." He pulled out a book and his pocket watch, wrote something down, and handed it to Ross. "Lieutenant, here, this is my registration number and my pocket watch for ID. Redraw that amount from my annual research grant and make sure Sheca gets it." I gave her mine too and told her the same. "Right, I'll get on that right away Sir, Ma'am. I assume I can just take this down to the State Alchemist office?" I nodded, "That should do it!" I said cheerfully.

Ed turned at the door and looked back in, "Well, Shesca you're a life saver. Bye!" While we walked away Rogue pricked his ears up as we heard Shesca shout, "WOW! DID THEY MISS A DECIMAL POINT SOMEWHERE?!" Then Ross shout, "HOW DO KIDS LIKE THAT HAVE THIS MUCH MONEY TO THROW AROUND?!" I smirked, glad for good hearing. Though, I'm sure the street over heard that. Edward had told me that Shesca mother needed a better hospital, if the amount that we gave her didn't do it, then she needs to go to a different country entirely.

When we got to the library we started to look at the notes, I was getting to what Ed was thinking now. But Brosh was clueless, "I don't understand, these are cookbooks! What could they possibly have to do with Alchemy?" I leaned on my elbows, "Alchemy is a powerful thing, it could be incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands." I said thoughtfully. Edward nodded as he read one and he continued, "In order to prevent that, a chemic research is always encrypted." I grinned and said, "These are designed to look like recipes to the average eye, but they're actually advanced Alchemic notes." Edward looked at his notes again and picked up where I stopped, "Only the Alchemist who wrote them can understand."

Brosh still looked confused, "If they're so heavily encrypted, than how are you going to be able to decipher them?" Ed frowned, muttering, "It's not going to be easy, we're going to have to use all our Alchemical knowledge." I nodded, Brosh rubbed his head, "Wow Sir, Ma'am, that's sounds really complicated." While he was talking, Ed gasped and looked at the notes he had in his hand harder. He looked up at Al and I, "Al, Reyna, there's a section in here on Green Tea!" I stood up straighter, "Really?" I twisted my neck to look at the notes he had in his hands.

Al turned around, "Green tea? Are you thinking what I am?" Ed smirked and replied, "Yep, it might be a reference to the Green Lion of Metallurgic Alchemy. Do we have copies available of Flamel's codex or Lanspring's concerning the Philosophers stone?" Al set a pile of books he was holding between Ed and I, "Of course!" Ed and I grinned at each other, "Alright! Take a look at this here!" He held the notes out to us and we both bent down to see what he was showing us. "And here too!" I was reading the recipes, piecing everything together. Al and I said in unison, "Yeah you're right!" I pointed, "And maybe there too!"

Edward grinned at us, "Great! We have a place to start! Let's do this!"

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