Hello, everyone! I'm back with another story. Hopefully this one doesn't take a year to complete. I noticed that there weren't a lot of fanfics that focused on Al. He's pretty badass too, so I've decided to give him his time in the spot light. Shout out to my editor Lacila for the help.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist.

ALSO SPOILERS FOR THE END OF FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST BROTHERHOOD.

It was a quiet day in Central. The sun shined brightly and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Al smiled as the suns heat warmed him from where he stood on the balcony. He and Ed lived in an overpriced apartment near Central Headquarters. Since Ed was still in the military, he thought it would be nice to live nearby his job. While Ed was working at a desk in Headquarters, Al was studying at a cram school in the hopes of passing the entrance exam to Central University, despite missing years of education. Because he had studied so much while he was in the armor, he had little difficulty getting used to school. Al enjoyed the fact that their lives were finally normal. They had daily routines that they stuck by, and didn't have to hop on a train every few days. It was relaxing, and Al loved every minute of their normalcy.

It had been three years since they had gotten his body back. After Al had sacrificed himself so that Ed wouldn't die because of Father, Ed had gone half mad trying to get him back. In the end, the cost was Ed's alchemy. Al felt guilty that Ed couldn't transmute anymore, but Ed told him he was worth more than alchemy. Still, alchemy was what Ed was amazing at, and his entire life revolved around it. He knew Ed got upset sometimes or felt useless, but he always shrugged it off. For the first few weeks after getting his body back, Ed was paranoid that if Al wasn't within his sight at all times, he would disappear. After a while, Ed eased up, Al regained his strength, and now their lives were complete.

They had gone back to Resembool and lived with Winry for two years, but Ed had returned to the military a year ago to try to help with the conflict. Their planned trip to Xing was delayed, and Al decided he wanted to go to college instead. Al stretched and looked at the time. It was almost eleven in the morning, and he still hadn't gotten properly dressed. Normally he was up bright and early and had breakfast waiting on the table, but since it was a Sunday, he didn't have to do that. Sundays were his favorite day of the week. He and Ed would spend time with each other without having to worry about work or studying.

Still, his hair was a mess and he was getting tired of wearing his pajamas. Sunday or not, he still wanted to look presentable. He turned away from the balcony and walked past his brother, who was in the study. Ed usually slept past noon on Sundays, but he had been bothered about the recent developments with Drachma. Mustang had been giving him paperwork about the struggle going on between the two countries. Because of it, Ed was already awake and reading over some documents. He had been up earlier than Al for most of the week. He decided he would have a talk with Ed once he was done getting dressed.

Al entered the bathroom and grabbed his comb. He brushed through his short blonde hair and grabbed his clothes. After sliding on a white dress shirt and tan slacks, he exited the bathroom and entered the study where Ed was. Ed didn't notice his presence. He flipped through the documents in deep concentration. He was completely blind to the world around him whenever he studied. "Brother?" Al called out, receiving no response. "Brother, you should take a break for a little while. You should have slept in; it's Sunday," Al suggested, walking up to his older brother that was hunched over a desk. Al touched his shoulder and tried to pry the document away from him.

"I can't, Al. This is serious," Ed protested, snatching the document back irritably.

Al felt a hint of dread at how stern his tone was. He sighed and pulled up a chair next to him. "You've been here for hours. Haven't you already finished reading those?"

Ed nodded. "Yeah, but maybe I'll find a new solution if I read them again."

"What's it about?"

Ed ran a hand through his loose, messy hair. "Drachma."

"I see." Al wasn't oblivious to what was happening. There were four warnings from terrorists in the last six months. They had found the Amestrian flag burning in the park, there was an attempt at destroying a memorial monument, an entire city was almost destroyed, bombs have been going off near the border, and protesters were roaming the streets and shouting daily. It all started back at the attack on Briggs. Though Drachma had been the one to break the pact, they blamed Amestris and believed Amestris used Kimblee to lure them there to wipe out their troops. Drachma had been sending out warnings and causing trouble ever since. "Was there another attack?"

"Not yet, but there's going to be if we don't do something. Damn it! How the hell do we stop this!?" Ed clenched his fists tightly and glared at the document.

Al placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We'll think of something. I'm sure Co-General Mustang will have a plan. Why don't you eat something?"

Ed swatted his hand away. "I can't, Al! If I don't think of something, a whole damn war is going to break out! And don't bring Mustang into this! That damn bastard probably doesn't have a clue on what to do! If he did, he wouldn't be asking for my help on this! And don't you remember what happened when he went over there!?" Ed's expression was filled with anger and traces of worry.

Al gulped. Ever since their pact of non-aggression ran out in 1914 with the attack on Briggs, they had been on a slippery slope with Drachma. Several attempts were made by the military to renew the pact, but Drachma didn't want to hear it. They've had trouble with the country for quite some time before, but it was getting out of control. They had already declared war, but Amestris was trying to prevent it by finding some in between ground. General Mustang went to Drachma as an ambassador of peace six months ago. It ended with him almost being assassinated. Peace wasn't what they wanted. Any move Amestris made was viewed as a set up. They wanted to destroy Amestris before Amestris destroyed them. "Maybe we should accept that it's beyond our control right now," Al muttered sadly.

Ed looked at him with a mix of anger and disbelief. "Like hell I'll accept that! There has to be a way to turn this around!" Ed flailed his arms in the air out of exasperation, gritting his teeth.

Al frowned as he noticed the bags under Ed's eyes. "Brother, have you been sleeping at all this week?"

Ed stuttered for an answer and then spewed out, "How can I sleep when all of this is going on!?" Ed stood up from his seat and ran to grab another document. He sighed and lowered his gaze to the ground. "Maybe I should go there myself and talk sense into these people. Don't they realize how many people are going to die?"

"Brother..." Al stood up and snatched the file away. "You're tired and stressed out. You won't be helping anyone like this. Please, take a break for a little while."

Ed looked at Al, then the documents, then at Al again. He sighed as his fatigue caught up with him. "Fine."

Al smiled. "Do you want something to eat?"

Ed's stomach rumbled as an answer. "Yeah; food sounds good."

"Okay." Al smiled and walked to the kitchen. Ed followed and sat down unceremoniously at the table. Al frowned as he rummaged through the fridge. "I need to take a trip to the grocery store." Al closed the refrigerator door and walked towards the coat rack. "Do you want to come wi-" Al paused and smiled softly as Ed slept peacefully with his head on the table. "I'll take that as a no." He wrote a note and placed it on the table. He knew Ed would panic if he woke up and he wasn't there. After sliding on his gray trench coat, he exited the apartment.

Al smiled as the wind blew through his hair. 'It's such a nice day today,' he thought to himself. He walked through the neighborhood, reveling as his senses were indulged. He followed the scent of freshly cut grass to one of the neighbor's house.

"Morning, Alphonse," an old man greeted from where he stood in his yard, turning off his lawnmower.

"Hello, Mr. Richmond!" Al walked over to him. "How are you?" he asked politely.

"These old bones feel great today. I thought I should get things done while it lasts."

"I'm glad you're doing well." Al looked over to the garden. "How are the flowers doing?"

"They're doing well. I'm glad I listened to you. The soil you recommended helped them to bloom. Thanks Alphonse," Mr. Richmond informed with a smile.

"It was nothing, honest! I'm happy that I was able to help." As much as he would have liked to stay and chat, he remembered his original goal. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I must be going! It was nice talking to you!"

"You young people are always on the move. Say hello to Edward for me."

"I will. Bye sir!" Al waved and then ran for the grocery store. It wasn't until he picked up a basket that he remembered he forgot to write a list down. He decided to try his best to recall everything they were out of. As he picked out a can of peas, someone called for him.

"Alphonse Elric?" a male voice asked.

Al turned to see a guy around his age with blonde hair and brown eyes. "Oh, you're, um, Clyde, right?"

"You remember me!" Clyde smiled and walked over.

Al laughed. "Of course I do! We go to cram school together, after all."

"Right, right. I didn't think you would. When I talk to you at school, it seems like you're not listening."

Al felt slightly embarrassed. 'I do that too when I study?' he asked himself. He laughed awkwardly and scratched his cheek. "Oh, sorry."

"It's nothing to apologize for! Hey, could you help me out with something?"

"Sure. What is it?" Al asked as he placed the cans into his basket.

"I'm confused on one of the homework assignments."

"Which one?"

"Which one!? We have more than one assignment!?" Clyde's eyes grew wide as the information hit him like a truck.

"Uh," Al struggled on what to say. He wondered if Clyde had paid attention to the class at all. "Yes."

"Oh, shit! What are they?" Clyde asked frantically.

"Well, we have to write a short essay on Phylum Porifera, since we are studying the animal kingdom. Then we have to-"

"Hang on." Clyde hastily pulled out a pen and notebook. "Continue."

Al shook his head. "You know, it might be better if I help you on this." Al glanced at his basket and put it down. "Why don't we go to the cafe? I'll help you there," he offered with a shy smile.

"You will!? Thanks, Alphonse! You're my hero!"

xxx

Al groaned as he sluggishly walked to the apartment. He checked his gold wrist watch and wasn't pleased at the time. "It's already four. Brother must be worried." After helping Clyde, he had rushed to the store and gotten all of the groceries. He hoped that Ed had managed to find something to eat. He felt guilty for leaving Ed for so long. He had meant it only to take a moment, but Clyde was completely clueless on almost all of it. He knew he should have left sooner, but he would feel bad if he left his fellow classmate to fail.

His frustration was replaced with joy as he saw a small orange cat. "Hey, kitty!" Al said as he got on his knees. He placed the grocery bags on the ground next to him and called out to the animal. "Are you lost?" The cat studied him and then broke into a run. "Wait!" Al grabbed the bags and chased it. "I won't hurt you!" He stopped running when the cat jumped into the arms of a young woman. The woman had dark brown hair and brown eyes. She looked over at him and Al felt a bit embarrassed. 'Great. I must look stupid chasing a cat around with these bags,' he thought. "I-Is that your cat?" he asked.

The young woman petted the cat. "Yeah, for now. My brother and I are taking care of him."

"Oh. Sorry. I thought he was a stray," Al admitted sheepishly.

"Can't blame you. Rascal here was a stray. We took him in."

"You did? That was nice of you." Al was a bit envious. He had suggested that they take in stray cats to Ed several times, but he always told him no.

"Not really. This cat pisses my boss off all the time. He tears up anything he sees. It's how he got his name," she explained. Before either of them could react, Rascal jumped out of her arms and climbed onto one of Al's grocery bags. He clawed at the paper until it's contents fell out. "Rascal, no!" the woman scolded as she picked him up. Al got on the ground and started picking up the items. "I'm really sorry about that." She got down and started helping him put the items in the other bags.

Al sighed as he realized how much time he was wasting. "It's alright."

The woman finished up placing the groceries into the other bags and stood up. "Sorry for the trouble. The names Lynne Kuzmin, by the way." Lynne said and extended her hand.

Al took it and shook it. "Alphonse Elric, and it's alright."

Lynne suddenly tightened her grip. "Your last name is Elric?"

Al was a bit surprised as she began studying him. "Uh, yes." Al tried to subtly free his hand, but her grip was unrelenting.

"Are you, by any chance, a gifted alchemist?"

Al chuckled softly and rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "Well, I wouldn't say gifted, but I am an alchemist."

Lynne nodded and continued to look at him strangely. "Can you transmute without a circle?"

Al didn't know what to make of that. He wasn't sure if he should answer or walk away. He decided on the latter. "I have to go." As he attempted to walk away, she still kept a grip on his hand and pulled him back.

"You're forgetting your groceries," Lynne said coldly, pointing to the bags scattered about.

"O-Oh, right." Just as he leaned down to get them, he felt a metal pole strike the top of his head. The world around him grew dizzy as he struggled to maintain consciousness. Just as he was about to clap his hands and fight back, another strike was all it took for him to pass out.

xxx

"He's waking up," an unfamiliar voice said. Al groaned as sunlight hit his eyelids. His head throbbed with pain. He wondered if he and Ed had gotten in a heated sparring match. Suddenly he realized that the ground below him was moving. When he groggily opened his eyes, he realized he was in a car. 'Is Brother taking me to the hospital?' he asked himself. He felt something small and furry move against him. 'A cat? Brother got me a cat?'

"What are you waiting for? Knock him out," a female voice said.

Al had little time to react as a fist came at him and the world went black.

xxx

Al woke up with aching pain inside his skull. He groaned as he opened his eyes. He was surprised to see darkness. For a moment he was startled and thought that he lost his eyesight. After snapping out of it, he realized he was blindfolded. 'I'm blindfolded? What happened?' He tried hard to remember what had happened, but came up blank. He wasn't sure if the throbbing in his skull was why he couldn't remember or not. He made an attempt to rub his head, but he realized he was in wooden handcuffs. 'I'm handcuffed? Am I in a prison?' He noticed that his palms were safely apart, so whoever captured him knew he could transmute. He could feel that behind his pants, his legs were tied together with rope.

He felt something sticky and wet on his forehead. His blindfold was a shade darker in one spot. 'Is that blood?' It all came back to him. His conversation with Lynne and how she started asking him strange questions. He wasn't sure what was going on or why they wanted him, but he felt pathetic for being captured so easily. 'This isn't good. What do they want from me? And brother? How is brother? I hope he's safe. He better not be kidnapped too!' A pang of guilt hit him as he realized that if Ed was okay, he was worried sick about him. He had no way of knowing how long it had been. He hoped it had only been a day or two. Knowing his brother, he was freaking out majorly and searching for him.

"Great, just great," he muttered. He realized he could talk. Whoever these people were, they didn't bother to gag him. Using what he gathered, he had three clues. They knew he was an alchemist, they didn't want him to know who they were, and they wanted him to tell them something. He realized that Lynne had said her last name was Kuzmin. That sounded like a Drachman surname. It could mean that he was taken hostage by a group of Drachman terrorists that wanted him to spill secrets about the military.

He didn't get to think over things for long as the sound of a door opening echoed in the room. He could tell by how the door sounded a bit far away that he was likely in a large room. "Oh, you're awake!" The same male voice from the car ride shouted. He heard footsteps approaching him. He could sense that that man was right in front of him. "I've got to say, it's nice to meet you. You've been hell to find."

Al kept silent in the hopes of the mystery man spilling more info. 'They were looking for me, but why? Why me?' he asked himself.

"To be honest with you, we were all going to throw in the towel on searching for you. Now we've got you right where we want you. I'm surprised you didn't put up one of your notorious fights."

Al held back his tongue. He already felt awful about being caught off guard and leaving his brother alone. He still didn't know if he was alright or not.

"What's the matter? Don't want to talk?" The man asked.

"What do you want from me?" Al growled.

"There we go! You finally said something!" Al stiffened as a hand patted his head. "I know how all of this looks, but we're not your enemies. If you just tell us what we want to know, we can make all of this disappear."

"That doesn't answer my question," he snarled. He was running out of patience. He just wanted to go home.

"Relax. You'll find out soon enough. There's no reason to get so angry, shorty."

Al's eyes widened as it all came together. They thought he was his brother! It explained all the strange questions Lynne asked, but he had said that his name was Alphonse, not Edward. She might have only paid attention to the last name, or mixed their names up. Besides, most of the world thought he was still in a suit of armor. They probably had no idea that he got his body back and that Ed lost his alchemy. He was glad that it meant Ed would be safe. They wouldn't go after him if they believed they already caught him. For now, all he had to do was pretend to be him until he could think of a plan to get out of there.

Al took a deep breath. He wasn't sure if he could do a good impression of his brother, but he had to try; for his sake. Al mustered all the anger he could, and shouted loudly, "WHO YOU CALLING A TINY LITTLE ANT THAT YOU CAN STEP ON AND STILL WON'T DIE BECAUSE THE CRACK OF YOUR SHOE IS LARGE ENOUGH TO HIDE IN!?"

There was silence, and Al grew anxious. He wondered if the man had seen through him and realized that he wasn't Ed.

Laughter broke the silence. "You really are sensitive about your height! I thought that was just a rumor! This is going to be beautiful!"

Al felt relief flood through him. 'Okay, he doesn't suspect a thing. I just have to keep this up and think of something,' he told himself. "Don't tease me, uh, bastard!"

There was the sound of footsteps that got closer to the two of them. "Lance, you're not supposed to be talking to him. The Boss won't be happy if he finds out you're doing this."

"Fine, fine. Jeez. When's he coming back, anyways?" the man asked.

"Tomorrow."

Al recognized the woman as Lynne. "You tricked me," he said with anger.

Lynne sighed. "Get used to it. Life isn't fair. Come on, Lance."

"I'm coming," the man, now known as Lance, said. He heard the retreating footsteps and the sound of the door closing. "See you later, Fullmetal Alchemist." Al was left alone as the door slammed shut.

"I can't believe they bought it," Al muttered. He was grateful that Ed would be safe. However, he knew it couldn't go on forever. Sooner or later, someone would find out he wasn't who he said he was. He hoped it was later rather than sooner.

Thanks for reading this! If you would like to see me continue with this, please let me know by leaving feedback.