THE CROWN, THE WINGS AND THE SNAKE

The symbol was a symbol of their sins. It was a message to other alchemists that they have committed taboo.

Disclaimer: Checked my desk for the rights to FMA. Sadly, they don't exist. But this story does.

They wore it, not out of sorrow or grief, nor out of pride. Whilst many who walked past would have thought it was a matter of pride, it was not.

It was a message to the world that they had committed taboo, warning them of the horrors they had seen.

They walked proudly, held their heads high, but they were always weighed down by the sign they always carried with them, the sign of their past transgressions. They made sure that they would never be able to rid themselves of the symbol; just because something had been forgiven didn't mean it hadn't been forgotten. And so they wore it as a constant reminder that nothing was going to be the same ever again.

.:.

To Izumi, it was a symbol of regret.

The snake, the temptress, the one who led her into this mess, impaled upon the stake. After she committed taboo, she refused to try and do anything new. After the taboo, she quenched her curiosity, and subdued her mind.

The wings, outstretched, but never able to fly above the king who ruled all. No matter how hard they tried, they could never fly higher than the king, never reach higher than the fundamental law of equivalent exchange.

To her, the oldest of the three, it was a symbol of how one should not be tempted into such actions.

To Edward Elric, it was a symbol of his inadequacy.

The snake, impaled onto a stick. Taboos were taboos for a reason, and there are some things you should just never try. No matter how hard you try, if it was not meant to happen, you will still fail.

The wings represent his fall, having been too close to the sun. He bitterly recalled the tale of Icarus, and realised just how alike they were. They both played with fire, and they both got burnt. But unlike Icarus, he climbed back up again. To him, the wings represented both his fall and his rise. He rose from the ashes, but never again would he try and challenge God in that way.

The crown was the king, the Truth, which ruled above all, never to be usurped. No one could go higher than God, and he pitied the poor mortal that did try.

To him, the most prolific of the three, it was a symbol of how he wasn't good enough, and he bared the symbol every day, showing his intentions to the world, and he waited for the day in which he could finally atone for what he did to Alphonse.

To Alphonse, it was a symbol of hope.

The snake wound around the stake represented the body, the wings the spirit, and the crown the mind. To him, it showed that even if they committed taboo, they were still complete in mind, spirit and body. They could, and would go on. The snake wound around the stake was the body, representing the things they lost. But more so, the snake represented the persecution of those who committed taboo. The snake, the ever inquisitive one, met its doom because of the curious nature it possessed.

Wings: a symbol of purity. While they, as sinners, were not pure beings, the wings were a symbol of their uncrushable spirit, their way of getting back up again after everything life threw at them. After everything, they would rise again. Never would they be defeated.

The crown: a symbol of knowledge, of the mind. The crown was a symbol of the human brain, the wisdom contained within. The wisdom that had come at such a heavy price, that he was not sure if the wisdom was worth all the pain.

To him, the youngest and most innocent of the three, it was a symbol of hope, hope for their future after their sins.

.:.

The symbol was a warning- a warning of what happens if you go too far. It was a symbol of those who had gone beyond their limits, and were broken.

If you become broken and pieced together again, there are always some fragments missing. The symbol was something they held precious, because it was a sign to them that above all else, they were not alone.

They had committed a sin, and they paid for it every day. The symbol was a way of showing the world their pain.

:A sin doesn't end in tears, you have to suffer and bear the burden forever:

AN: Wow. I actually finished. I've been trying to write for a while, and this fic was yelling at me to complete it. The last line is from one of the FMA openings, but I thought it fit so well that I used it.

Review please? I'd like to see what you thought of the style.