Disclaimer - I do not own the idea for Fullmetal Alchemist in any way shape or form. Please don't sue. Thank you!

Selfish Protection

Written by - Stripe

Prolouge - Concequence

It was dark and dank in the underground cavern he was currently being paraded through, and the wetness of the place was very uncomfortable on Edward's automail. However, the alchemist made no outwards indications of complaint. He was careful and obidient.

One wrong move would end Winry's life. For him to make a complaint would be selfish. He'd already been selfish enough when it came to her well-being - if she didn't hate him by now, it would honestly be a miracle. He let out a soft puff of air, casting a quick glance to his left to see if the homunculus who so greatly resembled Ling would see that as a threat. It made no change in expression, so Edward figured he was safe for the time being. Of course, it was entirely possible that the clanking of his brother's body had masked the discontent sigh. Sometimes it was hard to anticipate when such things could come in handy.

Suddenly, the cavern they were tavelling through opened up to a large open chamber carved out of the rock. Edward grimaced. He had been here before. And, in all honesty, he hadn't wanted to come here again - especially not under these conditions. But the hulking hommunculi behind him forced him forward, despite how badly Edward didn't want to be there. After all, he didn't figure Sloth was bright enough to realize that squishing one of the so-called "human sacrifices" was probably not a good idea. Or, at least not until he was scolded for it, in which case, it would be too late.

About a quarter of the way into the room, Ling - or Greed, as he was now - held out a hand to stop the two brothers. Now not having walking forward to focus on, Edward examined the room more closely. They were not the only people there, which was something he could tell Al noticed immediately. There wasn't a single unfamiliar face in the room. Standing nearby was Roy Mustang, and standing next to him was Selim Bradley, whom Edward now knew to be Pride. Just beyond them was the new Gluttony - who looked exactly like the old Gluttony - standing behind the almost unrecognizable Marcoh and the Xingian girl - Mei Chan. On their other side was King Bradley - or Wrath - standing behind their teacher, who had a silent look of defiance on her face. And standing just beyond them was a face Edward had never wished to see again - Hohenheim. Unlike the others, he had no hommunculi behind him, signifying he was likely here by choice.

It was all Edward could do to keep from punching in the man's face right then and there. The only thing holding him back from doing so, really, was the threat of Winry's well-being which they teased him with - like holding a dog biscuit just out of reach of a dog. The metaphor couldn't be more fitting. A dog was exactly how they were treating him - both a dog of the military, and a grudgingly obedient lapdog, who only listened to commands in hopes that one day, the hand holding the biscuit would fall low enough for him to reach.

However, something was gnawing at the back of the young alchemist's mind... Something missing. Lust was dead, having been killed by Mustang a long time ago. Sloth and Greed were guarding him and Al. Wrath and Pride were watching over their own targets, as well as Gluttony. There was just one homunculus unaccounted for...

"Hello, pipsqueak."

Edward glanced up quickly, his eyes immediately drawn to the farest edge of the room. Standing there was Envy, with a wicked smirk stretched across his face. However, that wasn't what really alarmed the alchemist. Instead, it was the girl he was holding by her long, blonde hair, making sure she didn't attempt to get free.

"Winry!" As an automatic reaction, he took a few steps in her direction, only to be stopped by a bone-chilling voice eminating from the center of the room.

"Do not move, Edward Elric." Ed froze in his tracks as Envy's right hand - the one which wasn't holding Winry's hair - transformed into a lethal blade, which was then held up against the female mechanic's throat. For the time being, Ed knew it was an empty threat, but he wasn't going to push his luck. Instead, the short blonde turned to the center of the room, where a man who looked suspiciously like Hohenheim sat in a large chair.

Father.

Edward's face twisted further into a frown, as he watched the man to try and judge his actions. Whatever his plan was, it was seemingly about to be carried out, based on the "human sacrifices" he had gathered. The eventual goal was to get rid of Father, save Winry, and then get out of here. And Ed needed to be constantly vigilant if he wanted to fufill any part of that, let alone all of it.

Slowly, he backed up to the spot he'd been in before, behaving as any trained dog should. He glanced up to Al, who's hulking figure showed no sign of any worries he might have had. In fact, had it not been for the small glint of life behind the helmet which Ed recognized as Al's soul, he might have thought that the armor was simply something placed on display in an old museum of some sort. The posture was perfect.

Ed glanced to the rest of the room - the other "sacrifices." Somehow, it seemed as if there were too many there. He'd been under the impression that only five were needed, but there were seven alchemists here. He wasn't entirely certain that all of them had seen "Truth" either - last time he'd consulted Mustang about it, the man seemed oblivious. Ed didn't believe that Marcoh would have the guts, and he wasn't entirely sure Rentanasu would be able to access the Truth. So, in truth, there were likely only 4 human sacrifices here

What was Father planning? Was he hoping to find a loophole or something?

After glancing back over the other alchemists, most of whom had somber expressions on their faces - excluding Mei Chan, who looked ready to cry - he looked back to Father. The man seemed to be waiting for something... Edward clenched his fists as tight as he could, trying to relieve some of the tension he felt. No one was speaking - no one was giving any hint at what he should do.

The alchemist's golden eyes flickered back to Winry, who was making obvious effort to free herself from Envy. Edward willed her to stop moving - to stop struggling - so that they wouldn't hurt her, but he knew that she wouldn't give up so easily. That was partly what he admired her for. Unfortunately, she wasn't watching the homunculus's expression, which was slowly getting more aggravated as she struggled. Finally, the transformed blade which had been resting gently against her neck was raised and slashed across her face, creating a deep gash across her cheek.

Edward's rage boiled over as he saw the blood seep through the wound, and he was vaugely aware of Al's armor clanking beside him - likely in an automatic reaction to try and stop what had happened.

"You bastards! I told you not to hurt her!" Without thinking, Edward's palms slammed together, which quickly alarmed the other alchemists in the room.

"Fullmetal! Stop it now!"

"Don't transmute!"

"Thank about what you're doing!"

"Ed!" Winry, whom Envy had now let go of, shouted this last statement, watching in horror as her best client's hands feel to the ground, seemingly in slow motion. "Don't do it!"

However, by the time Edward realized that he was falling into a trap, his hands were already pressed to the ground. It was too late.

The previously hidden transmutation circle began to glow.

A/N - This is my first time submitting a fanfiction on here in... Geez, almost two years I think. So I'm probably a little rusty. A beta reader would be much appreciated, as my computer lacks a spell checker.

And yes, this is one of those annoying stories where it starts out with a scene from the middle. We're backtracking quite a bit next chapter. See you then!

Reviews would be lovely, too, by the way.

---- Stripe