Prologue~ age thirteen~

''Leah come on! Al and I wanna show you what we learned!'' a voice broke my thoughts.

I looked to my left seeing my nine-year-old brother Edward with my eight-year-old brother Alphonse. I grinned, facing the two. ''Alright show me what you got alchemists,'' I gave them a toothy grin. They loved when I called them that. On cue, they clapped their hands and slammed them onto the ground in sync, and out arose two small metal dolls. My eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. ''Wow! You guys have been practicing for mom again haven't you?'' I smiled kindly. ''Yep! Do you think she'll like them?'' Al grinned. I smiled, placing a hand on my youngest brother's hair. ''She'll love them. Now let's go show her,'' I beamed, already dashing off.

''No fair!'' Ed grumbled, tackling me right as we entered the doorway to our home.

''Will you to ever settle down?'' a soft voice interrupted our little wrestling match.

All three of us smiled, seeing our mother. She was sick, had been for a long time now. Nonetheless, she was the most beautiful woman on the planet. Out of the three of us, I was the only one who inherited her long brown hair. Unfortunately, everything else such as my amber eyes were inherited from him. We gathered around the kitchen table, my brothers playing with the two dolls they created.

''Leah, those nice military officers stopped by again while you three were gone,'' my mom offered, sipping her tea.

I let out a sigh. ''Mom I already told you it's fine. You guys need me right now. They can recruit me in a few more years,'' I said, my eyes examining her frail form. She didn't have much more time, that's what I overheard the doctor tell Granny Pinako. I couldn't leave her, she'd never forgive me. My attention went to Ed and Al. They needed me too, they were both so young. ''I don't need to be an alchemist, nobody ever has to know about my powers,'' I continued. At the mention of my alchemy, my brothers ceased playing and looked at me with wide eyes. It was no secret to them that I really did want to become a State Alchemist, but I'd never let my mom know that.

''Leah you have so much to offer the world with your powers,'' my mom encouraged.

''I have you and these two monkeys to look after. You guys are what's important,'' I said, feigning a smile.

''You were meant to do amazing things,'' my mom said, a sudden strength in her words.

All three of us looked at her in surprise. The loving smile never left her face. ''That's what your father always used to say about you, all of you,'' she smiled, staring right at me. My eyes widened at the mention of my father. She hadn't talked about him since the day he left. There was a time I truly did believe he was on a ''business trip''. Well, two and half years later crushed any hope I had of having my father in my life again. I never knew why he left us, only that it broke my mother's heart. And mine. Suddenly, tears rolled down my tan cheeks, my breathing becoming slightly uneven. My mom's smile grew even more, already knowing my decision. I got up from my chair and wrapped my arms around her.

''O-Ok, I 'll go. But promise you three will be here when I come back,'' I sniffled into her shoulder, taking in the faint scent of flowers and honey. She softly wrapped her arms around me, petting my hair to soothe my cries.

''Always.''

Seven years later. . . . .

''Roy, you said they'd be here by now,'' I murmured, my amber eyes flickering as the sun shone on my tan face.

''They'll be here soon Leah, I promise,'' Roy offered a reassuring smile, looking back at me as we waited outside my apartment.

I returned his smile with one of my own, although it was clear to see my nerves were everywhere. I looked to my sides, searching for any sign of them. Roy sensed my uneasiness and held my hand in a firm, yet comforting gesture causing me to look up at him with a trace of sadness in my golden orbs.

''It's been what, five years since you've last seen them?''

''Seven. I was 13 when I left home. Stayed here for a few months before I was sent to Briggs to work with Armstrong for six years. Then Bradley requested I'd be transferred back to here due to my. . . abilities,'' I trailed off, staring out into the streets of Central.

Had it always been this quiet? This, normal? I bit my lip as my thoughts trailed off into the past. No, nothing was ever normal in my life. I never thought it would take seven years for me to see them again. Leaving home as a child, you expect everything to change, but never family. I always thought I'd be able to come home whenever I wanted, free to see my mother and brothers. Evidently I was wrong. Mom died just short of a year after I left to join the military. Apparently my reputation for being the youngest alchemist didn't last too long, as my brother became Fullmetal at just 12 years old. A soft smile graced my pink lips at the amount of pride I had. I was popularly known as Leah Elric, the Shadow Alchemist, survivor of Fort Briggs and to my enemies a ''lap dog of the military''. However, nothing made me more proud than to be known as the elder sister of Edward and Alphonse. I had searched for them as soon as I was transferred back. Fate would not allow it, until now.

''It's not your fault, you know. They know you never abandoned them, that you never stopped looking for them,'' Roy spoke softly to me.

Unwanted tears threatened to spill. ''It doesn't change the fact that I should have been there Roy,'' I sighed. Roy was one of the few people I trusted here, the others being Riza Hawkeye and Maes Hughes. We were close, and perhaps in another life we could have been more than friends. Roy made it clear he wouldn't mind settling down with me, but it never felt right. He had dreams bigger than me. He wanted to be Fuhrer someday and settle down with a woman and have the nice house with a picket fence and three kids running around with a pet dog eventually. I on the other hand wasn't sure of what I wanted. I knew I wanted to settle down with someone, but I knew that I needed more than the vanilla lifestyle everyone around me wanted. But more than anything, I just wanted my brothers back. Before Roy could comment anything more a black car screeched to a stop in front of us. My eyes widened and my heart pounded viciously in my chest. Maes stepped out of the driver's seat, grinning ear to ear.

''Well my favorite babysitter, I've got a surprise for you~!'' he sang, opening the back seat and stepping aside.

''Hughes why are we here?! I told you we have to go hunt down the Homunc-,'' an all too familiar voice complained before making eye contact with me.

Amber met gold in a collision. There he was, my brother. ''E-Ed?'' I whispered, barely audible. He stood there, long blonde hair in a loose braid, completely awestruck. Neither of us let out any words, too dazed to say anything. His metal arm caught my eye and that was the moment I completely broke down. Tears blurred my vision and I let out a strangled gasp.

''Leah,'' Ed blinked, a thousand emotions running through him as tears streamed down his cheeks.

''Sister?'' a different voice echoed out, causing both of us to look up.

''Alphonse,'' I cried out, my eyes meeting a suit of armor's.

I was prepared to see my brothers had changed. I was not prepared for them tackling me into a bone-crushing embrace. I sobbed as I felt them shake uncontrollably as we cried together. Roy and Maes stood to the side, smiling at the emotional family reunion taking place. I cried, not just out of guilt for leaving them but out of pure happiness that they were alright. I pulled back after several minutes of crying and placed both of my hands on their shoulders, looking back and forth at the two of them.

''I promise, I never meant for this to happen. I'm so sorry,'' I spoke softly.

''This isn't your fault Leah,'' Ed smiled sadly, wiping his tears away.

''What matters is that we're together again sister,'' Alphone offered happily.

I smiled and shook my head in agreement. ''Yes, and I promise nothing will ever come between us again,'' I vowed. If only I knew just how wrong my statement was.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Unknown place, third person p.o.v~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Violet eyes danced with mischief and curiosity. It was evening by now, the sky contorted in orange and pink hues as night loomed over. Three figures hung in the shadows, watching the Elric siblings catch up on the last seven years. They were in the Shadow Alchemist's apartment, laughing and trading stories of their adventures. The tallest of the figures chuckled, her voice smooth as velvet.

''I told you she was back. She certainly is a looker, isn't she?'' Lust smirked, watching Leah Elric's figure. It wasn't as curvaceous as hers' but it certainly came in a close second, and her face rivaled Lust's beauty. The thought made Lust frown, only for a split second.

''You were right. The Shadow Alchemist huh? And she's related to the pipsqueak,'' Envy stepped into view, grinning maliciously. His eyes swept over the eldest Elric sibling. He licked his lips, similar to how a wolf acts just before viciously descending on a defenseless lamb.

''Can I eat her, Lust? Can I?'' Gluttony drooled in absolute hunger.

''No Gluttony you may not. She's too powerful at the moment. Besides I think Envy would be mad if you broke his toy before he got a chance to do so himself,'' Lust looked over to her fellow ally.

Envy didn't respond, just grinned harder. By the time he was done with Leah Elric, she would be begging for a sweet, quick death. Before he would grant her wish, he'd make her suffer. He'd break her down in every sense of the word. He'd make her scream in both pain and pleasure. He'd make the Fullmetal Alchemist watch as he tore her apart. Nothing would give Envy greater pleasure than destroying Edward Elric's happiness. Leah Elric was just an added bonus. Envy chuckled to himself, watching Leah hug her brothers goodbye. He leapt from the shadows, staying hidden but advancing toward the apartment. It was time to introduce himself to his new toy. The sky shifted into a dark blue color, the Elric brothers already a few miles from Leah's apartment. Envy smirked, easily snapping the lock on the window. He crept into the decently-sized room, noticing there were plenty of places to hide.

''Perfect,'' he chuckled lowly.