DISCLAIMER: Owning FullMetal Alchemist? Me? No, sorry.

Author's note:

Why hello there! This is my first time on , so I'm still struggling with the controls and stuff, but hey xD I'd really appreciate it if you took the time to review and give some constructive comments, mostly because English isn't my mother tongue and I want to be sure I have done everything properly. So here it is, enjoy !

PROLOGUE

A light frown appeared on the child's face as he gave a disappointed stare to the fireplace right before him. The fire that was burning in it died just a minute ago. He wanted to see some more pretty lights, so why was it only ashes? He turned around to seek an answer from either of his parents, but went unnoticed as they continued their conversation.

"Is it really necessary, Bill?" asked a soft, feminine voice. A snigger was the only answer she got. "Bill?"

The boy tilted his head a little, trying to guess what it was all about. Despite his young age, he had noticed the unusual clothing his mother dressed him in: the fabric was kind of itchy and not as comfortable as the pyjamas he was used too. Even the dress she wore seemed brighter, more colourful than the modest ankle-length skirts she'd normally put on.

"Oh yes, it is, Yu!" finally replied the so-called Bill as he turned around to face his wife with what could be the largest smile of all Amestris. "Because..."

A flash of eagerness passed in his eyes as he announced in a deep, serious tone:

"I have gotten myself a promotio-o-o-o-on!"

He now had his arms wide open, almost like he was waiting for her to rush into it. All he could get, tough, was a clearly unimpressed stare.

"Am I supposed to suddenly understand why does it imply a photograph coming over in ten minutes without any previous warning? Dang, William - you know I hate those!"

"Then I shall explain myself more clearly: I've been promoted to Central, which means we'll have to move there in the following week! I know it's a bit rushed, but everything's already planned: they have found a nice little house for us to stay; I can now pay all our debts with the nice little amount of money they gave me and I have a nice little older sister who can babysit the kid until we are ready to move in! But there's no doubt that the best lies in the nice little photograph that we are going to take of our nice little family for our last nice little day here!"

He had talked in such a happy, good-hearted way that she could not help but smile a bit, and he knew from it that everything would be fine-just like it had always been. Even if he was being a last-minute planner, "nice little" over user and sometimes just a plain pain in the neck, she did - sadly, sometimes - love her husband the way he was. It was only then that she noticed the majorly confused face of the nearly two year old kid standing by the fireplace, his eyes slowly moving from one parent to another. With all this, he had completely forgotten about the disappointing ashes. Another snigger came from Bill as he bent down next to his son in order to cheer him up.

"Why the long face, lil' chap?" he asked while proceeding to pull on the child's cheek, giving him one weird forced smile. "No worries, we weren't fighting. We'll be taking a picture soon though, so you'll have to give the camera a biiiig toothy smile. Understood?"

The boy gave a nod.

"Now that's more like it, son!" roared Bill with what sounded like a weird mixture of fierce pride and playfulness. He then took the kid in his arms without ever letting go of his cheek, leaving the world wondering how the heck he did so. As seconds passed tough, the child started to get impatient.

"Oooww! Daddy!" he whined.

Bill only chuckled before letting go. He then turned to his wife who was watching them carefully, eyebrows raised and the hint of a smirk on her lips. At the very moment he felt like he was going to say something pretty damn smart, someone knocked on the door. He put his son in Yu's arms before answering it.

"Excuse me good sir, but am I at William Michael Mustang's place?" asked an old, crumpled, but smiling man holding a camera. "Dean Hadler. I'm the photographer they asked for."

"Indeed you are!" answered Bill as he put the door wide open. "We've been waiting for you - here, let me introduce you my wife, Yu, and my son, Roy."

Thanks for reading =D Hope you enjoyed !

-LilDemonWarrior