-Edward-

God. Another boring day in Central. After being lectured by Colonel Sarcasm himself, I was given another mission, which the Colonel probably has rigged so the outcome is to his liking. And to top matters off, I was kicked out by the repair staff from my dorm. I had no idea what to do. Now I get to wander around this stupid city when I could happily be sleeping of that stupid meeting.

And it's cold, too. Winter in Central really sucks. I sigh. At least it's not as bad as that ridiculous Briggs Mountain. Pulling my jacket closer, I shuffle through the crowd. The people are massing everywhere, doing all their holiday shopping, and stuff. Pausing at a window, I peer inside. Maybe I should get something for Al… maybe later.

Wandering around, I yawn. Lucky Al. He got to stay at the HQ helping out Lt. Hawkeye. That's what I should have done. I pause at a small outdoor café and buy a mug of coffee. Sitting down at one of the small wrought-iron tables, I gaze blankly around.

A bookstore, a clothing boutique, just a bunch of little stores that I could see through the thinning crowds. Guess everyone's done with there shopping. My eyes pause on what looks to be a small art gallery. The window shows a collection of paintings. Outside, there was a girl with long dark hair painting on an easel.

I yawn again, and take another sip of the coffee. It's not that bad actually, definitely worth that 100 sens. In the distance I hear a locomotive whistle blow. A train must have just pulled into the station.

I leaned back in the chair and pulled out the alchemy book I borrowed from Central Library. I was well into chapter 3 when I heard a surprised cry and a crash of wood breaking.

I glanced up, and way that a huge man, with lots of tattoos on his arms, sneer at the girl outside the art gallery. He had crashed into her easel, knocking it over and breaking it.

"Watch were you going!" he grunted. I found myself walking over behind the bully, as she looked up at the huge man and stammered "S-sorry," even though the look on her face seemed anything but.

I gotta admit, though, the guy was huge. Just as I was about to speak up, a man exited from the store, big and muscled, with dark skin and a wiry beard, and took one look at the girl and turned to the tattoo man, and said, in a deep gravely voice,

"May I ask what you are doing to Miss Bryant?"

Tattoo man sneered at him, and turned around, almost running into me. I sneered right back at him, and I watched him retreat. Bullies always knew when to run away. I turned to see the man who had exited the store walking away and the girl picking up her painting, which seemed to be unharmed.

I bent down to help her pick up the pieces of her easel. "Thank you, for helping me" she said.

"No problem" I said, picking up the last pieces, and making sure I didn't miss any.

"So, were do you want this?" I asked, meaning to the broken easel in my hands. "Oh, you can bring it in here."

"OK" I followed her into the store.

It was a roomy place, with tall shelves framing paintings. The walls were painted a pale yellow that reflected the light in the room. There was faint classical music playing in the background and the whole place had a faint floral smell around it. I placed the pieces of the easel on a table towards the back of the room, next to a large vase of pink and red roses. The girl skipped up a wide staircase with the painting in her hands. I rearranged the pieces of the easel on the table, just about piecing it together the way it was. She came back down the stairs as I clapped my hands together.

"What are you…?" She started to ask. "Just watch." I grinned at her. I placed my hands on the broken easel, and with a flash and a bang, it was in one piece again. I watched her eyes widen, and her mouth drop open as she picked up the easel.

"Wow! You fixed it." She placed the easel upright and ran her hands over it. She looked at me, her eyes wide.

"You're an alchemist?" I grinned. "But how did you transmute without a circle?" I was puzzled. "Huh? You know about alchemy?" She shrugged. "Only a little. My grandfather is an alchemist." "Oh." I looked out the window.

She picked up the easel and walked over to a corner of the room, placing it against the wall, and then looked over at me.

"So… I don't think I ever caught your name…" She had curiosity in her brown eyes. "Oh!" I said "Edward Elric."

"I'm Emma. Emma Bryant."

I nodded. "Ok, got it. Emma." She had a slim, but wiry frame, with long dark brown hair, almost black. She had wide, deep brown eyes. She smiled at me again, and then turned to face some of the paintings on the wall. I walked over to another shelf. It was full of portraits of people, all more paintings.

They were spectacular! I could hardly tell if they where paintings or photographs. As I looked at the various paintings, I heard a small sound behind me. Emma was standing at a desk in the back corner; she was hunting through some of the drawers.

"Hey, did you paint these?" I asked, motioning to the shelves.

"Oh, you mean the portraits? Yeah, I painted all of the pictures in here. Especially the portraits. Those are one of my specialties." She answered with a smile, brushing some of her dark brown hair out of her eyes.

"Wow" I looked around again, taking in everything. "So, are these of actual people?" "Yes."

"But, if you're getting a portrait done, wouldn't you want to keep it?"

"Well, yes." She walked over to the shelves. "But, sometimes, if I really like a portrait, I ask if I can make a copy and hang it here"

"Ah. Okay."

She started to move back to her desk, when I blurted "Do you think you could do one of me?"

She glanced back at me, seeming to be taken unaware. "Sure, I guess, if you want…" she trailed of looking quickly at her wristwatch, "It's getting close to closing time, though. Do you think you could come back tomorrow?

I sneaked a look at my own watch. It was getting sort of late…I should get back to the dorm. I nodded.

"Ok, then. We open at 7 o'clock"

"Thanks." Stepping out into the now twilight-lit Central City, I shivered. It had gotten colder while I had been inside the little art store.

I walked back to the dorms that Al and I were staying in. As I walked through the door, I caught the smell of my favorite food. Al was already sitting at the table, eating from a bowl.

"Yeah! You got stew!" I exclaimed as I hung up my coat.

"Hey Brother" Al greeted me. I grinned.

"Al, you are an awesome brother. Thanks." I sat down and dug in. I sill didn't understand how something with milk in it could taste as good as stew.