A/N: Chapter two. So first off, thanks to those who reviewed chapter one. Much appreciated :) I'm still unsure about whether I should be posting this story. I know some people are really particular with details and such, but I'm not good with stuff like that. I write the story how I wanna, and if I have to change something then I do. I hope that won't bother anyone. This will be sticking with the anime as much as possible - I didn't read the manga - but as I wanted it to be winter, but during the time right after the Luin catastrophe... that didn't work. But. I did it anyway. It's winter, because I wanted them to go skating, basically. Whatever. Maybe it's like November? and they had an early snowfall that didn't happen in the anime? Bah. Too confusing for me to care.

So just try to ignore that stuff if you can. Tell me if you can't and I'll do what I can to fix your problems. Ha ha. Sorry for the ramblings! On with the story - I think? Heh. :)

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever, own the Full Metal Alchemist. Sure wish Envy was real though! Well, maybe without the whole murdering humans thing... that'd be scary. ;)

SyncxArietta

Humanity

Chapter Two: Enter the Homunculi Stage Left

"Jaden, look! Look!" Teddy hollered, skating passed her quickly – too quickly.

"Slow do-" but her warning was cut off as he went head first into the snow bank. "Down," she finished weakly, shaking her head.

He came out laughing. "Whoops," he muttered, getting to his feet only to fall again as his skates slid too far.

Andy came to a stop next to her, roaring in laughter at his friend.

"You okay, Ted?" Jaden asked as she skated over to her brother and helped him up.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," he assured her, already skating away to rejoin Andy and another group of boys that had shown up at the park.

Jaden sighed and skated over to the bench, completely bored. At least she brought her book. She sat down; stretching her still skate clad feet out in front of her and opened her novel with freezing fingers.

Cameron and Darren were skating slowly around the small pond, completely oblivious to their surroundings.

Teddy and the others had begun a game of hockey on one side of the pond, giving the other skaters free space to skate around them. They used their feet to kick around a block of ice, resulting in a lot of kids falling and sliding all over the ice. It was more soccer than hockey, but because it was on ice…

Jaden ran a hand through her long hair tiredly and tried to focus on her book. She must have been reading for a while for Teddy's small hand suddenly appeared in front of her face, causing her to jump. "Ted, don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry," he replied unapologetically as he grinned. "Can you do something for me? Pleeease?"

He dragged the last word out, making Jaden aware that she wasn't going to like this. She sighed. "What is it?"

"Show the other kids your alchemy! Please? Please, please, please? They don't believe me!" Teddy pleaded, clasping his hands together and looking at her with those pathetic puppy dog eyes.

"Teddy! You know you're not supposed to tell anyone!" Jaden scolded, glaring at him. He pouted.

"I just wanted to brag. None of their older sisters or brothers can do it," Teddy insisted. "Please, Jay?"

She groaned and asked bitterly, "Where's Cam?"

Teddy shrugged innocently and then pointed to the other bench… where Cameron and Darren were sucking face. Jaden rolled her eyes. Did they have no respect? Honestly, there were little kids around!

"So, please?" Teddy said again, looking at her pleadingly.

Jaden stood up and grabbed a handful of wet snow with her gloved hands. Teddy cheered and she skated over to a patch of clear ice, dropping the snow nearby. She drew a transmutation circle with her finger in the thin sheet of snow on top of the ice. Then she grabbed the pile of snow again, dropping it in the center of the circle.

The crowd of young kids had surrounded her by now, and she noticed an older lady clad in a cloak there as well. She couldn't see the lady's face and furrowed her brows in confusion as to why the woman was there. Jaden had a feeling this was a bad idea, but she sighed, and touched her hands to the transmutation circle. She closed her eyes momentarily and saw the flash of familiar light through her lids.

The kids gasped and she opened her eyes to see a small action figure made of hardened snow, almost ice. She picked it up and passed it to her brother. "Keep it cold, or it'll melt kay? And remember," she placed a finger over her lips, "this is a secret."

They all nodded, and Jaden noticed the cloaked woman walking away. The lady seemed to have no trouble walking gracefully on the slippery ice. Jaden frowned, wondering if she should follow the unknown woman and question her, or leave her alone. Jaden wasn't a very impulsive girl, and she decided to let the woman leave. She just hoped the woman wouldn't tell anyone of Jaden's alchemy. If it got around to her mother…

The sixteen year old did a couple of laps around the pond, bored once again, and got lost in her thoughts. She loved to read, anything and everything, especially when she was younger. So when she found alchemy books in her father's room, she couldn't resist reading them. One thing led to another, and soon she had to try it herself. It took a long time, but she finally managed to do it successfully. Of course, she only knew the basics. It wasn't like she was an expert or anything. There was only so much a book could teach you.

She wanted to learn more, but knew her mother would never allow her to get an alchemy teacher. She had a feeling Madeleine blamed alchemy for her husband's death. Because Dermot Mallard was so obsessed with alchemy, he joined the military – which resulted in him going to Ishbal for the war.

Jaden sighed, shaking her head to rid herself of such thoughts and suddenly crashed into her little brother. Teddy nearly fell to the ice but Jaden quickly grabbed his shoulders to steady him.

"Heh," Teddy grinned sheepishly. "Should watch where you're going, sis."

"Sorry kiddo," Jaden replied, returning the grin. "What's up?"

"I dunno… I'm not feeling well. Can we go home?" Teddy said, grimacing. Jaden frowned, glancing over him.

"You look all right. You're not pale or anything," she murmured. "All right, go get your skates off while I tell Cam we're leaving, kay?"

"Mhmm," he murmured and skated away. Jaden sighed in relief that she could finally go home and turned to go to her sister.

"Hey Cam," Jaden said as she slid to a stop in front of the now talking Cam and Darren.

Cameron looked up to fix her sister with a fierce glare. "What now?" she snapped harshly.

"Ted's not feeling well, so I'm taking him home," Jaden said calmly, returning Darren's smile.

"And you're telling me this… why?" Cameron said rudely. Darren frowned at his girlfriend but Jaden spoke before he could.

"Just thought you ought to know where we were," she said. "I'll have dinner ready by six-ish, so be home by then."

"Jay-den!" Cameron screeched as Jaden had turned away. She looked over her shoulder and Cam continued, "I'm the older sister, remember? Stop ordering me around! I'll be home when I want to be home! Now go away, and leave me and Darren alone!"

Jaden narrowed her eyes. "That's right; you're the older sister. Maybe you should act like it once in a while," she snapped, unable to resist and skated away before Cam could go over the deep end.

She sighed, already regretting her comment. She lost her temper. She hated losing her temper. But Cameron's harsh statement had really gotten on Jaden's nerves. Cameron was the oldest. Shouldn't she be the one doing everything Jaden did, while Jaden lived a teenage life? Why did Jaden always have to do everything? Why did she always have to be the responsible one?

In her inward ranting, she hadn't realized until she made it to the bench that Teddy was no where to be seen. He wasn't on the pond, or at the bench, but his boots were gone. She moaned, digging her hands into her hair angrily. "He knows not to run off! Why would he do this?"

Hurriedly taking her own skates off, she slung them over her shoulder and slipped her feet into her boots. She took off her soaked gloves and shoved them in her pocket as she asked the other kids if they'd seen him.

She received negative answers from them all and slid and stumbled her way off of the ice. She broke into a run as soon as her booted feet hit the snow, rushing up the large hill that surrounded the park. "Teddy!" Jaden yelled, narrowing her eyes as she scanned the area for her brother's red jacket. She couldn't see him anywhere.

Don't panic… she thought to herself. Teddy probably just headed home. He said he wasn't feeling well. But he knows better…

Her brother knew their mom hated when he was alone. He didn't like to upset their mother, so he obeyed her rules. Besides, why wouldn't he wait for her? He always waited for her! Was something wrong? Did he get kidnapped?

No. Do not jump to conclusions Jaden Calica Mallard, she scolded herself bitterly. Ted's fine.

She hurried up the streets, keeping an eye out for his coat, but she made it home without finding him. She entered the house rapidly and dropped her skates by the door. Then she literally tore through the house, looking in every room for him. But he wasn't in the house either.

"Oh no," she whispered to herself nervously. She ran back outside and down the sidewalk. "This better not be his idea of a joke," she muttered though she doubted it. Teddy wasn't like that. He wouldn't purposefully worry her.

"Teddy!" she yelled again, getting more frantic as she searched the area around her house. "Where are you?" she whispered, biting her lip as she paused for breath. She wasn't much of a runner.

While she doubled over, with her hands on her knees, she heard a high pitched scream and a low chuckle. The scream sounded pained, and ignoring her 'no impulsiveness' rule she followed the sound. It was a female's scream, of that she was certain, and she found herself led to a thin alleyway. It being winter, the sun was already setting behind the buildings. This made the alleyway look darker and creepier than it normally would.

Jaden ignored her irrational fear and stepped into the alleyway, looking for whoever was hurt. She saw four figures up ahead of her. One was against the wall with some sort of thing that almost looked like a plant sticking out of their chest. The plant-like thing was attached to a slender woman with long dark hair. On a second glance, Jaden realized it was the woman's nails that were stuck in the other person's chest.

Oh my God…

The other two figures were a tall and thin teenager with long green hair that fell in spikes. He didn't seem to be wearing much clothing, Jaden noticed, in regards to the cold wintry air. The last figure was a short and extremely overweight man? Jaden thought it was a man at least…

There was blood pooling in the woman against the wall's chest. "This is what happens when you find out things you shouldn't," the dark haired woman with the long finger-things murmured in a sultry voice. She removed her fingers quickly.

The woman being killed slumped forward and Jaden tried hard to hold in a horrified gasp, but she was unsuccessful. Her hand flew to her mouth and her eyes widened in terror as the three strangers turned to her.

"Uh oh, Lust, looks like we've got a witness," the spiky haired man said, his voice strangely cheerful.

Jaden swallowed nervously, stepping backwards. "N-no, really… I just heard a scream and…"

"Being the foolish human you are, you rushed in to help," the boy sneered.

"I… I'm sorry," she whispered, staring at the dead girl's body fearfully. Would the same thing happen to her? Were they going to kill her? Oh no… Jaden, you idiot…

"Can I eat her?" Jaden snapped her eyes back up at the sound of the fat man's voice. He was kidding right? Humans didn't eat…

The man and the one called Lust both grinned slightly, though looking disgusted, and the fat man moved towards her. Jaden pivoted, ready to run but before she could even blink the scarcely dressed man was blocking her path. She gasped and stumbled backwards, but when she realized that that was towards the cannibal she pressed herself to the wall of the alleyway.

What do I do? She thought in misery. She didn't want to die! She was sixteen! Mother… what will happen to mom if I do? No, Jaden couldn't die! She had to help take care of her mother and Teddy! "Please," she tried pleading as the fat man advanced on her. She continued to back away from him as she thought.

The one with the green hair chuckled darkly while 'Lust' smirked. Jaden bit her lip. If pleading didn't work… she would fight. There was no way she would let herself be killed. She scanned the alleyway. Going passed the dark haired woman was out of the question… she'd have to pass the fat man, and it was a dead end behind them. So that was a no go. The only option was to try to pass the green haired man.

Jaden swallowed hard and glanced one last time at the cannibal before bolting. She didn't make it far, not that she had truly expected to. The teenager held out an arm to block her and when she tried to duck under it he lowered it and caught her around the waist. His arm dug into her stomach like a pound of steel and she lost her breath momentarily. She tried to swing her arm up and hit him but he caught her wrist easily and threw her to the ground, closer to the fat man.

She pressed herself against the wall once more and then slowly stood up, wincing as pain shot through her back and stomach. She looked up and met the eyes of the dark haired woman. Women were supposed to be the sensitive gender of human kind, right? So surely…

But this same woman just killed another girl… Jaden reminded herself dryly. She was done for. But as she met the purple eyes of this strangely beautiful woman, the woman gasped slightly.

"Gluttony, wait," the woman called suddenly and Jaden released her breath shakily. Later, she would think of how fitting it was for this man to be called 'Gluttony'.

The fat man stopped immediately at the sound of the woman's voice and looked up at her. "But Lust…" he said in a pouty, childish voice.

She held up a slender finger. "Just wait," she murmured to him and then looked at Jaden. "You were the one at the park, correct? Doing alchemy,"

Jaden's eyes widened. This must have been the lady in the cloak. And perhaps the person watching her, back before they went to the park? But why did it matter if Jaden was doing alchemy? Did these people not like alchemy? Would Jaden's life depend on her answer? A sudden pain in the back of her head reminded her of their presence.

"She asked you a question, girl," the green haired boy snapped, pulling his hand away from her head.

She brought her hand up to rub her sore head. "Uh… yes, that was me," Jaden replied fearfully, unsure where this was going.

"What's your name?" Lust inquired coolly.

Swallowing hard, Jaden replied, "Jaden Mallard,"

"Dermot Mallard, the State Alchemist's kid?" the boy asked in slight surprise.

"Y-yes," Jaden said, wishing she were braver.

"Hmm…" Lust said thoughtfully. "Perhaps she could be useful,"

"What do you mean?" the green haired boy asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"She's an Alchemist, Envy," Lust replied exasperatedly.

Lust, Envy, and Gluttony. Three of the Seven Deadly Sins… what kind of names were those? Jaden didn't have time to ponder it.

"We've already got the Fullmetal pipsqueak," the one named Envy said in protest.

"But we could always use a backup," Lust said thoughtfully. "Besides, if Fullmetal backs out, we could use her for his motivation. You know he's one of those kind hearted humans… he hates sacrificing anyone,"

"Dante won't like it, Lust," Envy said in a warning tone. "You know we shouldn't disobey her."

Jaden was completely lost in their conversation. Taking advantage of their distraction, she had started to sidle her way away from them.

"I'll deal with Dante's punishment," Lust said nonchalantly. Envy growled slightly under his breath.

"She's seen too much; we have to kill her," he snapped. Jaden froze for a moment at his words and then continued her movement. She had thought she was going to be successful, for she almost made it passed him. Honestly, he looked completely distracted as he and the woman glared at each other.

However, while still glaring at Lust, his arm shot out and by barely touching her shoulders he knocked her to the ground. Jaden cursed lightly, remaining in a hunched position where she had landed. She put her head in her hands and gave up any chances of escaping.

"Not necessarily… let's take her with us," Lust murmured and Jaden felt the woman's eyes burning through her. "You, girl, say you had the choice of saving your own life at the cost of two dozen other lives… what would you do?"

Jaden frowned at the sudden question and looked up to meet Lust's violet eyes. She thought the question over, chewing her lip thoughtfully for a moment before responding. She'd like to say that she would be brave enough to let herself die and save the others but… "I've never been in a situation like that. I don't honestly know how I'd react. H-humans are naturally selfish beings, and… I don't know if I'd have the courage to give my life up like that…"

Lust seemed surprised but pleased. "She's honest…"

"Humph…" the green haired boy looked surprised as well but composed himself. "Fine, do what you wish. But you're dealing with Dante on your own."

"I said I would, didn't I?" Lust responded coolly. "Get up, girl,"

Jaden hesitated a moment too long, for Lust reached down and picked her up by her dark hair. Jaden moaned in pain as she was dragged to her feet. "Where are you taking me?"

"Don't ask questions," Lust snapped, gripping her upper arm tightly and leading her away. The fat man trailed forlornly behind them while Envy was ahead of them. Jaden released her lip from between her teeth reluctantly, taking note of the stinging pain from her teeth and allowed herself to be dragged away.

"Jaden! Jaaaaden!"

They hadn't even made it out of the alleyway but his voice echoed through the streets. Jaden froze at the sound and nearly stumbled as Lust continued to pull her.

"Teddy," Jaden whispered inaudibly, water pooling in her eyes at her brother's voice. "No..." she continued to whisper, squeezing her eyes shut while praying to whatever God there was that Teddy wouldn't find them.

"We need to hurry. That's her brat of a brother," Lust snapped. "We don't need anymore witnesses."

"Yeah yeah," Envy grumbled, clearly bitter. "Want me to carry her?" His expression was bored while his tone was flat. Jaden's eyes widened. Carry her? She was perfectly capable of walking!

"Sure," Lust replied, a sly smile on her face. "After all, we should let you do the manly work,"

Envy hissed something at her in too low a tone for Jaden to hear but it made Lust roll her eyes and thrust Jaden at Envy. In no time at all, the boy had slung her over his shoulder. His strength once again surprised her. He didn't look that strong.

"I don't need to be carried!" she cried but her protest was lost as he suddenly leapt into the air, landing on a rooftop. She shrieked and clutched at him for something to hold on to.

"Keep your voice down, human," he snapped and then chuckled. "That was nothing,"

"Huh?" Jaden asked but he didn't reply and jumped again. Jaden saw the ground below them, way below them, and gasped. "Oh my…God," she choked out.

"Heh, stupid girl,"

She had the feeling he was smirking. She looked behind them and saw Lust and Gluttony were following them. How that overweight man managed to leap into the air and land on rooftops, Jaden had no idea.

On the bright side, at least she knew Teddy was safe.


"Jaden? Where could she be?" Teddy murmured as he ran down the street. "Honestly, I only went to the bathroom in the market. She's not mad at me, is she?"

"I dunno, Teddy. Can I go home now?" Andy muttered, yawning.

"No!" Teddy snapped at his friend. "I have to find my sister! She wouldn't just leave without telling us where she was going!"

"Jaden!" Andy yelled half-heartedly, glancing sideways at Teddy. The youngest Mallard ignored the glance.

"She should've been home by now," Teddy mumbled, chewing his cheek worriedly. "Come on, let's go tell Cam…"

Andy snorted. "Like she'll care,"

Teddy didn't reply and hurried back to the pond. "Cameron! Cameron!"

Cam huffed and looked at her brother as he approached. "What the hell do you want, brat?"

"I…I can't find…" Teddy paused, trying to catch his breath.

"Spit it out," Cameron snapped.

"Jaden… I can't find her," Teddy finally managed to get out as he doubled over to calm his racing heart.

"She's probably at home," Cam said with a shrug.

"Nuh uh, checked there," Teddy replied immediately. "Really Cam, I've looked everywhere! I… I think something happened…"

"Well, when I last saw her, she was in a bad mood. She snapped at me," Cam sniffed indignantly. "Maybe she's just off sulking somewhere."

"Jay's not like that and you know it!" Teddy snapped. "She's not like you!"

"Ugh, stop worrying about it. You're giving me a headache," Cam said rudely. Darren stood up suddenly.

"You're unbelievable. Are you really like this all the time?" the teenage boy snapped. "Man, Cameron, I thought I knew you better than this. Your sister could be missing, your brother is freaking out, and all you care about is a headache?"

Cam looked up at her boyfriend in surprise. "Darren…"

"Come on, Ted, I'll help you look for Jaden," Darren said shooting a dirty look at Cameron.

"Thanks Darren," the younger boy murmured and followed Darren from the park.

Cameron sighed, ran a hand through her hair and then hurried after them. If Jaden really is missing…Mom will flip…


Envy had ended up knocking the human out after she screamed once more in his ear. Really, hadn't she ever leapt from buildings before? He snorted at his thoughts.

He had wanted to see her get eaten by Gluttony. Stupid Lust and her stupid ideas. Dante wasn't going to like this at all. And somehow, Envy knew he wasn't going to like it either. Having a human around, ugh.

"What'd you do to her?" Lust demanded as they entered the underground city and place they were staying at. Envy tossed the human's unconscious body on the ground, none too gently.

"She was screaming too much, so I knocked her out," he replied nonchalantly as he threw himself on the sofa. "This is a bad idea," he said in a sing-song voice. Lust ignored him.

"I'll go find Dante," she murmured. "Make sure Gluttony doesn't eat her."

Envy quirked an eyebrow and the other Homunculus added sharply, "I mean it Envy!"

"Sure, sure," Envy appeased, lying on his back and closing his eyes. He heard Gluttony sit on the floor, making a 'thud' noise and opened his eyes. The fat Homunculus moaned, staring at the human girl.

"Can I eat her now?" Gluttony asked longingly.

"You heard Lust, you fat cow," Envy muttered, shooting a glare at the girl. He'd love to tell Gluttony to go for it, but he didn't want to hear it from Lust later.

The girl groaned, using her hands to push herself into a sitting position. Dark eyes scanned the falsely comforting room in confusion. "Where…" she frowned as her gaze settled on Envy. He narrowed his eyes at her. She'd better not ask him any questions, or he'd knock her out again.

Maybe he could give her brain damage by continually knocking her out, he smirked.

The human bit her lip and pulled her legs to her chest, her gaze going to Gluttony with obvious fear. This made Envy's smirk grow.

"I'm not allowed to eat you," Gluttony muttered gloomily, as if sensing her fear. "Lust will get mad,"

The girl nodded, still biting her lip, and looked down.

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" Envy mocked, wondering why she was so silent. He supposed she was probably terrified. All the more reason to taunt her, he thought evilly.

With wide eyes, she looked at him and shook her head. "N-nothing's wrong," she murmured shakily.

"You don't have much fight to you, do you?" Envy commented dryly, looking at the ceiling. He remembered back in the alleyway. She had tried to get away, futilely of course. He had almost chuckled in amusement when she seemed to think she could get passed him.

"What are you?" she asked suddenly and he looked back at her. She was gazing at Gluttony thoughtfully. "I mean, no offense, but humans don't eat other humans…"

Envy snorted. "We're your worst nightmare," he said teasingly, looking back at the ceiling.

"We're not human," Gluttony said sadly. Envy suspected he still wanted to eat her. "We're-"

"Enough, Gluttony," a female's voice said and Envy reluctantly sat up. Dante hated it when he lazed around.

The human looked up, fear in her brown eyes. Dante was in the form of an old lady, the old lady from Dublith. "You must be Jaden Mallard, middle child of Dermot Mallard, correct?"

At the sight of the old lady, and sound of her voice, the human seemed to calm a bit. "Yes, that's me," she said, standing up.

"I'm displeased that my subordinates have brought you here," Dante said, tilting her head thoughtfully. "But I suppose you could have some uses. If you can't do what you're here for, then you could always be my new body."

The girl's eyes widened in shock mixed with confusion at Dante's words. "And… what is it you want me to do?"

"Ah, not yet my dear. You'll find out in due time," Dante replied, smiling at the girl. "You'll be staying here… well quite possibly forever. You can't leave. Someone will always be watching you, so don't think of escape. You may wander the house at will, but you're not allowed outside. While you're here, you may as well clean and cook for us."

The girl bit her lip and her eyes scanned the room once more, as if looking for something. Then she nodded, "Very well," she murmured. Her arms were folded across her torso tightly, as though for protection.

"You'll be sharing a room with Lust, as Lust was the one who brought you here. However, they all have jobs they must attend to, so your guard will change frequently. Lust will show you to your room now," Dante said and sent warning looks at the three homunculi in the room. "We'll be having a meeting later, but Envy, you will not attend. You will watch Jaden. The meeting does not concern you."

Envy smirked. The fact that he got stuck with guard duty didn't matter much to him. For the meeting would most likely entail punishment for Lust. While he'd like to watch, he was glad it meant he was free of punishment.

"Sure," Envy replied, watching absently as his 'master' walked away. Lust motioned for the girl to follow her. After a moment of hesitation, the human obeyed.

The green haired homunculus sighed and threw himself back on the sofa. This will certainly be a change, he thought to himself and closed his eyes.


A/N: And there we have it. Hope you enjoyed it. I'm not sure how far I'm going to take this story, it's kind of a trial thing - to see if I can do it. I work on it when I get time/inspiration so it may be slow going. Sorry about that. Anyway - preview?

Sure, the girl's alchemy wasn't perfect. It was only the basics, to be exact. But with a little practice, the girl would be able to make the Philosopher's Stone. And Lust planned to give her that practice.

Only then would Lust get what she had wanted from the very start: to be human.

I enjoy writing Lust. I liked that the Anime gave her that bit of humanity, such as her strong desire to be human. Jaden will see this throughout the story, as I'll add more moments for Lust. :)

Review and tell me what you think. Btw, Mustang is in East City right now right? When does he come back to Central? Does anyone know? I'll probably research it, but it'd be a great help if someone could tell me. I want him in my story, but it might not be until later. :)

SyncxArietta