In the French countryside, a large white dog roams from place to place, helping townspeople where she goes; but the ungrateful people think she is a menace and a threat, and seek to capture and kill her. Meanwhile, in a town near the Pyrenees Mountains that separate France from Spain, a young boy named Sebastian lives a life of loneliness. Left behind by his gypsy mother when he was just a baby, Sebastian has been raised since birth by an old man and a young woman; but even though he is surrounded by a loving family, Sebastian is picked on by the other children and longs to know his real parents. When the white dog arrives in Sebastian’s town, her and the boy happen upon each other and become fast friends. Sebastian names his newfound companion Belle and does his best to keep her safe, but ultimately the two must flee their home. With mountains and adventures ahead of them, Sebastian and Belle set forth to escape danger and find Sebastian’s mother.
Once upon a time, two brothers passed the happy days of their childhood by studying alchemy, which is governed by the equal transfer principle: an eye for an eye -- you can't get more than you give. But these brothers tried to defy that law, and a horrific accident resulted. Now, the older brother, Edward, is called the Full Metal Alchemist because of his metal limbs, and the younger, Alphonse, is a soul without a body, trapped within the confines of an automaton. Together they search for the power to restore themselves, to find the lives they lost so long ago...
While it's much more action-packed, darker, and more violent than Meiken Jolie, Full Metal Alchemist is also about a boy's journey motivated by the absence of his mother. Both series have their moments of adventure and stillness, and both focus on the friendship between the main character and his travelling companion, as well as the places and people he encounters.