Hello! I am Ulti! And this is my first (published) story for Fullmetal Alchemist! I am fairly new to this fandom, so the way I write the characters may seem a little... off. Please let me know if you see an error, it really helps! This is a multi-chapter story, but it is very short, about 6 chapters long. And the chapters themselves are pretty short. :/ But hey, that's how I write, it'll take me months to come up with a long story.

So anyways, enjoy the chapter, and the next one should be up on Monday!

1: Promise

War. It was a horrible thing. It destroyed countries, it killed soldiers. It took the lives of many innocent men, women, and children.

And now, it was taking Edward away form her.

Well, not just her. War was taking Ed away from her, from Granny, from Al, from everyone.

It wasn't like he had a choice in the matter. He was a state alchemist, a dog of the military. All state alchemists were required to fight when summoned, especially someone as skilled as he. In war, it didn't matter how young you were. It only matters if you can fight. That was why he was going.

When he told them the news, everyone was heart-broken. There was a 50/50 chance that Ed would die. There was a 50/50 chance that he would come home. The odds stacked against Edward was so terrible, even Granny was quiet for a while. At least he had the guts to tell them in person, weeks before he set out to Creta.

It was decided that Alphonse would stay with the Rockbells until Edward returned (that is, if he ever did).

When the day came for Edward to leave, it took all of her willpower not to cry.

He looked so handsome in his uniform, she had to admit. And any other day, she would have admired him. But today, today was not one of those days.

She was the one to hug him last. Ed was the same height as her now, it was baffling. She buried her head in the crook of his neck. Surprisingly, he let her.

"I'll miss you," her voice cracked. Damn it, she was going to cry.

"I'll be back," he whispered in her ear, "I'm not going to die, I promise."

I promise. She held back tears, he couldn't promise something like that.

He boarded the train, waving goodbye as he got on.

I promise.

Don't break that promise, She thought, Please.