Chapter 1, Childhood Trauma:


Louis Hagraven smiled as he waved goodbye to his last patient of the day. His wife, Sarah Hagraven, was behind him cleaning up the room they had used to look over the young lady. When she was out of sight he let out a long tired sigh and sank into his chair, his hand going up to wipe his eyes as his shoulders slumped. Sarah rushed to his side and rested her hands on his shoulders gently as he grumbled to himself absently. Her own smile had slipped into a thin line of worry as she studied her husbands face. As of late, many strange afflictions had found their way onto and sometimes into their patients. They had found it harder and harder to find the correct alchemical circle that was needed to heal what troubled the ones who found their way into the small clinic the two ran out of their home.

"I need to get in contact with the Major. This all seems too coincidental." He looked up to her as he spoke and she nodded slowly in return.

"Emily will be back from her friends house soon, I will distract her so she isn't snooping into your lab while you speak with him." She moved away from him then and pulled her lab coat off to hang it on a waiting hook. The couple did not need to converse anymore about what they planned to do, they had been together long enough that it was simply second nature to them; making plans amongst themselves without having to speak a word. Sarah moved out of the small garage that they used as a clinic and into the kitchen where she prepared their daughter a light snack. Louis moved to the phone that rested on the wall of the clinic and pulled a worn piece of paper from where it had been tacked to the wall. The number he dialed met with a deadline tone that caused his brows to furrow in worry.

When he heard the front door open and shut he let out a slow calming breath and placed the phone back on it's holder. His daughter was home, he was sure, and he had to make it seem like nothing was wrong or risk the ever curious Emily snooping through his office and possibly finding his more dangerous yet needed journals. He straightened his own lab coat and moved to the door separating his home from the clinic. With one final calming breath, he firmly placed a smile upon his lips and stepped into his living room where his wife was fussing over their daughter.

Emily Hagraven was a rambunctious girl, she had been something of a wild child when she was younger and aging to sixteen had not taken that away from her. So It did not surprise her father at all when he saw his wife working herself into a fit over a large cut on the silver eyed girls cheek. He simply chuckled and pulled his wife away before she grew too overwhelmed with her worries about their girls safety and hurt herself.

"This doesn't look too bad." He hummed as he took her chin in his hand and turned her head to better view her cheek. "We could just put a plaster on it but I think that may leave a scar."

"Oh honey just use the array on her." Sarah grumbled as she adjusted her shirt before holding her chest with a pain filled look in her eye.

"Alright, alright." He pulled a thick pen from his pocket and carefully etched a simple mending array on Emily's cheek. A moment later both he and his wife were smiling as the cut sealed itself before their very eyes. Emily was handed a wet rag by her mother, which she used to quickly wipe away the array just as she had many before. They fell into the usual daily activities; Emily ate her snack while reading through the books her mother had laid out for her to prepare her for her homeschool hours the next day, Louis moved on to his office to add the discovery from that day to his journals and mull over possible solutions, and Sarah settled on their couch to finish up her patchwork quilt that she had worked on for months at that point. They were a simple Amestris family, as simple as one could be with a medical alchemist father and mother with a daughter who showed no talent for alchemy at all.

Emily was shooed off to ready herself for dinner a few short hours after she finished her snack. She stopped outside of her father's office and frowned at the sight she was met with. He was slumped over piles of paperwork with his head in his hands and his shoulders slumped in defeat. She had spotted him in this posture an increasing amount of times over the past few months and she had grown worried over what made him look that way. When he knew she was watching, he was all smiles and jokes like always. Yet, it was the times that he thought he was utterly alone that truly showed her how heavy his work was weighing on his shoulders. She thought over the fact he had to deal with his daughters lack of skill in pretty much everything on top of the stress of his work as she changed into clean clothes and washed her hands and face.

She was quiet during their dinner, an odd thing as she usually was willing to tell her parents about her day with the children around the neighborhood. However, those dark thoughts on her own inabilities plagued her still that night, thus she ate and excused herself to bed without the usual warmth that she brought to their evening meals. She moved into her small bedroom and willingly crawled into her waiting bed without changing into her nightgown or clearing up the small clutter that had built up that day. She curled into a ball under her blanket just as her door swung open slightly and her parents peeked their heads inside with worry creasing their brows.

"I wonder if something happened with her friends today." Louis mused as they stepped away from her bedroom door after it was once again shut securely.

"She never explained where she got the cut from, I just hope that Jenny didn't put her up to anything." Sarah shook her head slowly as she spoke, "Ever since Jericho was sent to study in Central that girl seems to be putting Emily up to wilder and wilder stunts." She crossed her arms and frowned at the thought of the pigtailed blonde who had become something of a menace to the parents around their neighborhood.

"We should just let her sleep, she's getting older. I know I didn't want to talk to my parents about everything at her age." He chuckled as he lead his wife down the hallway and away from their bedrooms. She nodded at his words, but still glanced over her shoulder with her brows furrowed in concern.


Emily was groggy when she awoke the next day, her body felt heavy and her eyes did not want to open, causing her to roll out of her bed with an annoyed groan at the sunlight that stung at her pupils from the other side of her eyelids. She pulled herself up and was shuffling across her room to her dresser when she heard glass shattering from the front of her home. Her eyes were opened wide in a split second and her body stiffened in shock and fear. This was only amplified in her when a loud banging followed shortly after. She scrambled to her bedroom door as the sounds of her mother screaming reached her ears, only to stop in her tracks when they were cut short suddenly. Ice ran through her veins as yet another thump followed the last sound from her mother. She forced her body to move in that moment, pushing her door open wide and scrambling down the hallway like she was being chased by a terrifying monster rather than running headlong into danger.

Her rush to get to her mother had her sliding onto her knees as she lost her footing upon entering the living room. She landed with a wet splat on her rump and her attention was stolen by a hulking black figure standing in the hole that once was her front door. It turned towards her and she felt a thick wet substance splash across her face as it glowing violet eyes settled on her. She couldn't move, couldn't utter a sound, the icy cold fear of what the beast would do to her had her entire body shaking so badly that it was impossible for her to act no matter what the things intentions were. It's eyes narrowed at her cowering form and for a second she thought that would be the last thing she would see. It was not so merciful however, and soon after studying her it turned and bounded it's way through the hole it had made and out of her line of sight. What it left behind for her to observe with the light that its body had blocked before had her eyes welling with silent tears that rolled down her cheeks in rivers.

Blood was everywhere; it seeped into the braided carpet and ran out over the stone floor. Long streaks of it that began in star-burst at the top ran down the walls of the small room. The thing that most disturbed young Emily was the red stain that seemed to continually seep from her parents, who where carelessly thrown over each other in a heap in the middle of their small living room. Her silver eyes were wide with terror as she sat on her knees in the growing puddle of crimson liquid that was once her living room carpet. Her brown locks fell around her shoulders limply, some of the silky tresses where now sticky and red with the splatter the beast had sprayed her with when it turned to see Emily. Her face was streaked with tears and brown muck, a sick mixture that hid her usually pretty features.

There was a man there after a while, throwing a gray sheet respectively over her dead parents and blocking the sickening sight from her vision which was still slightly blurred with tears. A blonde woman in a starched blue and white uniform was wrapping her in a coat and muttering soothing words in her ear which she ignored. Voices where all around her as her small home slowly filled with people. One man who seemed to be in charge patted her head, he had odd white gloves with transmutation circles on the backs, and nicely kept black hair. His uniform matched the woman's, and pretty much everyone else in the room but for herself, a strange golden haired boy with a bright red coat and a tall man in armor. The man who had patted her head squatted down before her and met her silver eyes with his deep blackish brown ones.

"Do you know what they were after, The ones who did this to your parents?" He asked in an authoritative voice. She shook her head slowly and pointed towards her father's office.

"They went in there." She croaked, her voice sore from crying, it had become obvious to her in the hours she was alone to take everything in. It looked to her as if her father was dragged from her study before her mother was attacked, a long browning stain from her father's office to where he lay under her mother made the fact that he was attacked in the other room obvious to her. He nodded and placed one hand on her shoulder, squeezing it tenderly

"Perhaps it would be best if we got the girl away from here Colonel Mustang sir." The blonde woman had appeared at her side and was saluting the man, Colonel Mustang. He nodded and pointed towards the open front door with a wave of his hand.

"Havoc is outside, He can take her to Central and we will find a safe place from there. You never know, they may return for her." He turned after speaking to the woman and gave her a gentle smile, "Don't you worry, we will protect you." He assured her warmly. All she could think was: why didn't you protect my parents? Blindly she allowed the woman to lead her out of the dimly lit house and into the shockingly bright light of the midday sun.

A blonde man with a haircut that resembled something a three year old would think of and a fine coat of stubble on his chin was leaned against a very important looking black car with the symbol of Amestris embezzled on the door. He was halfway through smoking a cigarette and simply allowing the ashes to fall between his slightly scuffed military boots. She was led to stand before the back door of the car and then told to wait there as the blonde woman spoke in quick whispers to the blonde man. After a moment the man seemed to materialize before her eyes.

"Hi there, the names Havoc, Jean Havoc." he held his hand out politely for her to shake. She looked at the hand for a second, ungloved and scarred with tobacco stains at the tip of his two longest fingers, this man was a military official, not an alchemist.

"Emily Hagraven." She mumbled as she accepted his hand and gave it a quick shake. It felt odd to be so formal at a time like this. She could still smell the blood and rotting smell of death that was seeping from her home like a black cloud.

A flash of red from the front door of her home caught her eye and she turned her head to see the strange red coated boy who was leading the armored man outside with a sour look on his face. Havoc waved them over with a smile that caused him to drop his now spent cigarette. She moved closer to the car, running one finger over a chrome door handle, trying to do anything but look at what once was her home.

Suddenly the three of them where walking towards her, the man in the armor looked meek and scared to her, nervous energy seemed to jump from his shiny frame as they drew closer and closer. She noticed that the boy who wore the strange red coat had eyes that matched his hair in an eerie too perfect way that made her wonder if maybe they were fake.

"Emily, this is Edward and Alphonse Elric. They will be joining us on our trip to Central." Jean Havoc introduced them through his new cigarette that he was busy lighting with a fancy looking lighter.

"H-hi Emily, nice to make your acquaintance." The armored man held out a hand to her and she watched as it shook slightly, "My name is Alphonse Elric."

"Nice to meet you Alphonse." she said with a forced smile as she reached to accept his hand.

"Why are you being so formal and stiff! You just had a terrible thing happen to you, you can at least cry." The blonde who she assumed was Edward Elric jumped between them quickly, stopping the polite shake before their hands touched, "Come on we have to get to central before Winry." he muttered as he shot a glare at Alphonse.

"Sorry brother, I wasn't thinking." Alphonse looked nervous once again as her rubbed the shiny helmet like someone would rub their head. She thought this was odd as the front door was opened for her by the kind Havoc. She gave him a polite nod and slid into the leather covered passenger seat. After a moment the car sagged with the weight of his armor as Alphonse climbed in the backseat behind her, followed by the sour and sullen Edward. Havoc climbed into the driver's seat beside her and smiled.

"Everyone ready?" he asked as he cranked the car, sending the vibrations from the engine up her spine. She slumped in her seat and rested her head against the glass of the window. Her eyes watered as the car pulled away and turned to go down the driveway. She watched the small cabin drift away from her in the rear-view mirror. As they pulled onto the main road the first of many more warm tears slid down her cheek. She tried to be quiet as she cried but the sobs she kept from escaping her throat caused her body to shake. She bit her lip and pulled her knees up to her chest as the tears cut warm lines down her cheeks.

The other three seemed to politely ignore her tears as trees and houses fell away from her blurred vision to be replaced by concrete and brick buildings. The ride was quiet after her tears finally stopped. She was sitting a little straighter and even looking around in awe at the large official looking buildings as Havoc drove them towards the very heart of Central city.


A menacingly large white building loomed over the heart of Amestris and Central city. She looked upon it in awe as they drove closer and closer. Large bright green yards where separated by paved drives and perfectly trimmed hedges. large trees sat in the middle of each of the four yards with tables set up in octagons around them. She saw a few groups of blue and white uniformed soldiers running across a couple of the yards as their commanding officers called out orders to them. She noticed a few people at a group of tables with their noses in large books, a couple of the people had transmutation circles on gloves like the Colonel. She heard Edward groan from the back seat as they drew even closer to the large main building. Havoc shrugged and chuckled as a angry looking blonde girl approached their slowing car.

"Edward Elric!" The girl shouted as she leaned close to the back window, "What did I hear about your automail!" Emily briefly wondered why almost everyone was a blonde as the two exchanged loud angry sounding words from the backseat. She turned to look but stopped short when she caught Havoc's eye. His look he was shooting her said: stay out of it.

"Thank you for the ride Mr. Havoc." Alphonse's child-like voice called as he pulled his blonde brother from the car and away from the other girls wildly swinging wrench. Emily raised one eyebrow but kept quiet as Havoc waved goodbye to the three as they made their way into the large building.

"The boss is in for it this time for sure, He busted a valve in his arm and that Winry is so picky about that automail." Havoc chuckled as he pulled out of the drive for the Command center and back into the busy streets of the city. She frowned as she thought carefully over his words.

"Automail? wait is Alphonse your boss?" she asked as she scratched the dry muck from her cheek. She felt like she would never be clean again, even after a hundred baths. The image of her parents laid out over one another in the middle of her destroyed living room popped into her mind once again and she shivered in fear at the thought.

"Oh no, Al is a sweet kid but Edward is who i call boss." He said with a smile as he flipped his spent cigarette out of his open driver's side window. She raised her eyebrow, sure the shorter guy had worn a coat in the middle of the summer, and gloves on each hand to boot but she didn't think he seemed like an amputee. She had seen many in her fathers clinic, and they all seemed to not quite blend well with their false limbs. Edward, with what little she had to go off of, seemed to be at one with his automail to the point that she couldn't pinpoint which arm was the false one.

"When did he lose his arm?" she asked as she leaned back in her seat with her eyes fixed on him. Her thoughts on amputee's and how each had different ways of dealing with the heavy metal limbs were at the forefront of her mind as she asked the question.

"When he was just a kid, I think he was eleven." Havoc shrugged, "he lost a leg too, Winry came through for him though. She built him automail and installed it in less than a month. He was pretty impressive too, managed to learn to use them like normal limbs in less than a year. It usually takes at least three to go through the therapy he managed to fight his way through." He was smiling as he said each word, and she thought his eyes seemed to sparkle as he spoke. She blinked slowly as his words sunk in, he was a double amputee. Emily had not even toyed with the idea of one of his legs being automail, he must have grown accustomed to them quickly for him to treat them as extensions of his body rather than add ons to it.

"You sound like you have a lot of respect for him." She stated as they pulled up to a large apartment building. Her eyes flashed to it for a second before returning to Havocs gently smiling face.

"Yeah." He cut the car off and pulled the key from the ignition," I guess you're right, the kid lost everything but his brother, and he almost lost him. Now he is well on his way to being one of the best state alchemists I have ever seen." He shrugged and looked past her to the building beyond her window, "Ready to go meet the family you will be staying with?" he asked.

"Staying with?" she asked as her head turned quickly to scan the building a bit more carefully than she had before. It was plain enough looking, just a red brick building with rows of evenly spaced windows and a fire escape running up one side.

"Oh yeah the Hughes family, nice people and Mrs. Hughes makes the best homemade meals you have ever tasted." He patted her shoulder and opened his door. She waited a moment before following suit and stepping out of the car.

She followed him up the cracking stone steps and into the surprisingly cool main hallway of the apartment building. there was an old-fashioned looking staircase that lead up to the floors above them. She studied the wrought iron railing as Havoc moved to read a sign on the wall nearby.

He tapped her shoulder as he stepped on the first of many steps. She turned away from the shiny metal to look at his face, which seemed bare without a cigarette hanging from his lips. He pointed upwards with the wave of his hand.

"They live on the fourth floor. their apartment number is 407." she nodded and allowed him to lead her up the three flights of stairs until they came out on the fourth floor. They came out across from a door marked 402. The rest of the doors but for 401 lined the other side of the hallway leading off to their left.

She followed him, after his quick grumble about non-smoking buildings, down the hallway until they reached the correct door. He knocked upon the dark wood of the door three times in a quick succession, after a pause the door creaked open to reveal a lovely older woman with light brown hair she had pulled back in a bun and the most beautiful green eyes Emily had ever seen. The woman looked between them for a moment before her warm green eyes settled on Emily's bloodshot silver ones.

"You must be Emily." The woman smiled at her warmly the way a mother would, sending a pang of sadness straight to her heart.


Hello Dear Readers,

You may recognize this story from a past work with a similar name. I have decided to reboot it with the skills I have gathered over the years. However, I wanted to keep it as close to the original as possible and only add bits here and there to make the story (in my opinion) better than before. I also edited small problems that I had not noticed before to make the original writing easier to read. This story will not have a sequel, due to the fact I am meshing the two together rather than having multiple stories with the same character and arch. If you read the original Butterflies and Blood let me know what you think of my new vision for it. Also in future chapters a few plot points will be changed. Look out for those and let me know what you think of them. I do hope you all enjoy this new version and that you will enjoy for many many chapters to come.

Much Love;

Ad