Chapter 7

Ooh, Gracia....way to fall under Hughes's spell!!!

I ended up opening and running the shop most of the next morning while Gracia slept in with a hangover. And it was after thirty minutes of standing behind the counter did I remember that Edward had called my Lucy. It was nagging at me.

     "Maybe...he's really Edward," I whispered to myself. I shook my head, pushing that thought from my mind. "No. Don't hurt yourself like that."

     "Too late," I answered back. "It's too late, self. You're already hurt as much as you can get."

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The days that followed were boring. Extremely boring. Alfons wouldn't talk to me, so I guessed he was still miffed about the whole rocket thing, even though I didn't really do anything. I just said it was amazing.

     Fewer and fewer people came to the flower shop, and Gracia let me off the hook of working for her.

     "No one comes here anymore," she had said. "there's no point in having you work here." So...yeah, my days were boring.

     Until one night, I found a new friend.

     I was walking home, and it was after dark. I fell asleep on that hill again, thinking of ways I could get back to Amestris.

     I walked down the dark lit streets of Munich, and heard a very pitiful noise. I looked around, and heard it again. I stopped walking and looked at the trash can next to me.

     I took the top off and looked inside. My heart almost broke at the sight.

     There was a small brown and white dog sitting in there, whining and crying. I lifted him out of the garbage can and saw there was a sign on him: frei.

     The sign said free.

     "You poor thing," I muttered. The dog whined a little more, and licked my face. The poor thing was shaking, and it was awfully thin.

     That's when I made a descision that I knew I would NEVER make in Amestris.

     I took him home.

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"A dog?" Gracia said when I brought him home. "We can't keep a dog."

     "But the poor thing was just thrown in a trash can!" I said, petting the dog as I put some of Gracia's leftover dinner on a plate on the floor for him. "He had a sign around his neck that said 'free'."

     "I don't know, Lucille," she said. "He might have fleas or something."

     "I'll take him to the vet tomorrow," I said. "Just...please let me keep him. I'll take good care of him, I promise!

     "Besides," I continued, picking him up and holding his face level with Gracia's. "How can you resist that adorable face!?" I saw her soften a bit, and then she laughed, saying, "Well, he is pretty cute."

     She thought it over a few more minutes and said, "Alright, fine, but he's your dog. You take care of him, understand?"

     "Thanks so much, Gracia!" I practically shouted. "I promise, I'll take care of him!" The dog barked happily.....and then peed on the floor.

     "I'm starting to regret this," Gracia said with a sigh.

     "I'll..,uh, I'll get that," I said, going over to grab a rag.

     "And what are you going to name him?" Gracia asked. "We just can't be calling him, 'The Dog', now, can we?"

     "I'll call him Dieter," I said automatically. "I like that name. Dieter."

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Dieter laid in bed with me that night. He still seemed curious of his new environment, but at least he seemed happy.

     This dog had a story. I just hope his owner hadn't physically abused him before putting him in that trash can.

     I fell asleep to Dieter's soft snoring.

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Back in the hospital room. Dieter was gone. My body was laying in the hospital bed, looking paler than it did the previous night.

     Colonel Mustang walked in, and this time, without Lieutenant Hawkeye by his side. He just sat on the edge of the bed and wouldn't look at my sleeping form. It made me sad. And then I saw....was that....it coulnd't be...

     Tears. The colonel was crying.

     "You'll wake up soon," he mumbled to himself. "You'll wake up soon, and you won't have to go back to that school, and we'll find the man who did this and kill him. We'll find Fullmetal. Lucy, you'll never be unhappy again. I promise you..." He put his head in his hands and stayed still. For a long time.

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I awoke to happy yipping.

     I sat up and wiped the tears from my eyes as I saw Dieter sitting by my closed bedroom door.

     "Please hold it until I get dressed," I said to him, my voice a little shaky. "Don't pee in my room this time..."

Author's Note

Dieter's a German name, too lol. I couldn't think of anything else!

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[Emunah June.]

PUPPY!!!! >.<