This is my Full Metal Alchemist story, and the main character, the female, is property of me. No, I don't own Edward and Alphonse Elric, nor would I want to. XP Anyway, they're Arakawa-sensei's. So, enjoy.

The train came to a halt. Its bell rang with loud authority as its passengers departed. Not many came to this part of the country, for this place was the Eastern Headquarters of the military. General unrest had been surging due to the Ishbalan War years back, and only recently had there been some amount of peace.

Of the few who stepped from the train, one stood out. Though, she wanted desperately not to be an eyesore until she was in safe territory.

She hid her flaring eyes with a thick pair of sunglasses, and her blouse, pure in its color was covered by a dusty, worn traveling cloak she had found in an old shop in the last town she had been in. It reached the back of her thighs and was quite oversized. As for its color, it mimicked the dirt.

The girl's hair was calm in contrast to her fiery orbs, and was a clay-like brown. Even more subtle in intensity was her skin, strange for this part of the world. Though it wasn't powerful in its color, it still gained a few unwanted glances for its paleness.

Her pants were as formal as her blouse, but were the direct opposite in shade. They were baggy and flowing, and stopped slightly past her ankles, covered by a pair of worn out, arch-less shoes that misdirected the formal appearance just as much as her cloak did.

Over her shoulder was a lengthy but weak in girth traveling bag of a pastel color. It was all she had brought with her from the other town.

The girl stretched, for the train ride was longer than she had wanted it to be. And, she was not used to being on such vehicles altogether.

"Painless, at the very least." She muttered almost silently to herself. A sigh escaped her lips as she thought about her goal. Over all other issues, she would have to remain clear-headed and in control. One mistake could mean the end of her journey. However, she shook her head a bit, to clear all of the negative thoughts out. It didn't mean she couldn't enjoy herself in the meantime.

She took an unsure step towards her goal, and then another. Checking to make sure her sunglasses effectively covered her eyes; she confidently strode towards the eastern military base located in this city.

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"This is ridiculous…" she growled in a frustrated ton. The girl had been looking for the base for a good fifteen minutes but couldn't find it. In fact, she was sure she had passed by the train station twice. Now, she sat on an empty bench near a small fountain. "How could I miss a building that large?!"

She mentally punched herself for being so confident. At least, she could have asked someone at the station, with her being so naturally untalented with navigation. Now, she had no idea where to go. Possibly, she could go back to the train station to get the directions, but who knew if she could even find it?

The city was moving about her. In every direction she heard footsteps. Though not as bustling as Central had been when she visited, the eastern city was still slightly too loud for her to think clearly.

And, it was too loud for her to hear someone approaching and completely trip over her bag that was slightly too far out from underneath the bench.

"What the…?" the fumble of another broke the girl from her thoughts. She looked up and saw a boy not much shorter than herself, with a bright fiery coat and blonde hair. He was sprawled out on his stomach, covering her bag with his feet. When the girl realized what havoc she brought upon the child, she stood up and quickly blurted, "Ah, excuse me for that!" She put a hand to the back of her head and looked away, "I didn't watch where I put my bag…"

"You could've hurt someone!" despite the aggressive sentence, the boy's voice was only slightly irritated. He gathered himself up and handed the bag to the girl. "Be more careful next time."

The girl took her bag back from him. She slung it over her shoulder and replied, "Yes, I will." Suddenly remembering why she was in this city, she took the chance to ask, "Umm…would you know where the military base in this town is? I'm…lost."

It was purely humiliating to ask such a thing for her. Surely a child like him wouldn't know where it was! But, before he could speak a reply, loud, metallic footsteps converged at their location, and the owner was more than what the girl had expected.

A person, at least seven feet tall, the girl guessed, stood before her then. Encased completely was this individual, in a suit of worn, silver armor. It had spikes, mostly for intimidation on the helmet and shoulder guards. There were more sharp points jutting from it at the elbows. She did not know whether to see this person as a threat or simply an obstacle, but the girl had a feeling nothing good could come from that armor. An urge to tear out the contents of her bag was suppressed with great difficulty.

However, when this person spoke, her view of him changed greatly.

"You should watch where you're going, nii-san." A soft, gentle voice came from him, surprising the girl. Even his voice sounded metallic, just like his footsteps. "What if something was broken when you tripped over that bag?"

"Hey, I already said sorry, didn't I?" the smaller boy whined. He spoke with authority, which seemed strange to the girl watching this scene take place.

"I don't think so," she corrected with an almost as strong tone. But then, it hit her that these two might be the ones that could get her to the base. "Though it's more than alright."

She scolded herself for not realizing it earlier. She knew who these two were.

Perfect. She thought to herself, and smiled.

"Do you know where the base is, or not?" she pushed again, acting as if she wasn't sure; "I'm in a bit of a hurry."

"Well, it's…" the blonde-haired boy started, but the girl stopped him there.

"I'd rather you show me; I'm not the best with directions," She recommended. Of course it was true, since she was lost in the first place, but that wasn't the whole reason. The girl figured that, if this one was who she thought it was, she could perhaps have an easier time obtaining what she wanted. "Is that alright?"

"Why do you want to go there, anyway? The military's not all glamour, you know. Wait, are you the daughter of some high-up official?" the boy asked her with a hint of arrogance in his tone.

That would make it easier, she thought, but held her tongue. Now, with a bit of her own pride, she said, "No, that's not it. I'm here for the exam; I'm an alchemist."