Alphonse Elric

About Alphonse Elric

Alphonse is Edward's younger brother, a gentle boy whose soul was bound to a huge suit of armour after the brothers' failed human transmutation. He cannot eat, sleep or feel, yet he stays kind, polite and devoted to animals, especially stray cats. All he wants is his body back and a normal life with his brother. His calm heart balances Edward's temper, and his size makes him a surprising powerhouse in a fight.

Appearance

To most people, Alphonse is a towering suit of grey steel armour, well over two metres tall, with spiked pauldrons, a loincloth-like apron and glowing white eyes inside an expressionless horned helmet. A blood seal drawn inside the armour is the only thing anchoring his soul to it. The armour cannot eat, sleep or feel touch, and its hollow inside sometimes shelters stray cats Alphonse cannot resist rescuing. As a human boy he had short golden-blond hair, rounder features than Edward and a softer expression, and he was already the taller of the two brothers.

Personality

Alphonse is the calm heart of the Elric brothers: polite, patient, thoughtful and kind to a fault, especially to animals and anyone smaller or weaker than himself. Where Edward shouts, Alphonse reasons. He is usually the one apologising for his brother and talking people down. Living without a body weighs on him quietly: he keeps lists of food he will eat when he is human again, and loneliness in the night hours, when everyone else sleeps, is his private burden. In a fight, though, the gentle boy is a wall of steel who protects others without hesitation.

Background & Story

Alphonse was raised in Resembool alongside Edward by their mother Trisha, and learned alchemy at her side from their father's old books. After Trisha's death the brothers trained under Izumi Curtis and attempted the forbidden human transmutation to bring her back. The rebound cost Alphonse his entire body; only Edward's quick thinking, sacrificing his own arm to draw a blood seal, bound Alphonse's soul to a nearby suit of armour. Unable to eat, sleep or feel anything, Alphonse now travels Amestris at his brother's side. Because his armour never tires and can be taken apart and put back together, he often handles the physical side of their investigations, while his search is the same as Edward's: a Philosopher's Stone, and a way home to his own flesh.

Powers & Abilities

• Alchemy: Alphonse is a highly skilled alchemist who transmutes by drawing circles, reshaping earth and metal to attack, defend and repair, including his own armour.
• Armoured Body: His steel body feels no pain, fatigue or hunger, can survive damage that would kill a person, and can be rebuilt with alchemy after being broken apart.
• Martial Arts: Trained by Izumi Curtis alongside Edward, Alphonse is an expert hand-to-hand fighter whose size and steel fists make him a powerhouse in close combat.

Key Relationships

• Edward Elric: His older brother and partner in everything, the two share one goal, restoring their bodies, and Alphonse is the only person who can calm Edward's temper.
• Winry Rockbell: His childhood friend from Resembool, who treats the armour like the boy inside it and worries over both brothers equally.
• May Chang: The young Xing princess who becomes a close friend and teaches the brothers about alkahestry, Xing's very different form of alchemy.
• Scar: The brothers' early enemy, whose path keeps crossing theirs and slowly changes as he travels with May Chang.

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