I missed this part in the prologue. This is my first-ever fanfic. so if it sucks, I'm sorry. Please read and review, I'd like to know how I'm doing with this story and my writing. Thanks! :)


What am I doing here? I thought as I rubbed the palm of my hand with my opposing thumb. I stared down at them with my eyebrows pinched together. I told myself I could handle this. It was just a test right? I had been practicing and studying alchemy for the past four years, so I should not have any trouble.

Then why am I so nervous? I asked myself. I was never a good test-taker, no matter what the subject. I would study to a point where I had everything burned into my brain, and then when it came to taking the test, I would completely bomb it. However, there were times when it was the other way around. I would think I was doing horrible while taking the test and then ace it.

On top of my anxiety, I took a good look around the room and noticed that I was most likely the youngest out of all the people around. Not to mention, the only female. Great. I was not sure how to live up to the superiors' standards and expectations if I was outnumbered and the youngest around.

Suddenly, my gaze rested on a small boy sitting across the room. He had long blond hair that was tied back into a braid. He wore a red coat with a black outfit. Sitting next to him was a large man in a shiny suit of armor. I stared at them with a strange look on my face as I wondered, what is a suit of armor doing in Central, and taking a State Alchemists exam of all things?

Still, seeing the boy put me at ease a little. At least I wasn't the only kid taking an exam meant for adults who had studied their whole lives on this subject. I sighed with relief and looked at my hands again, which were now resting in my lap.

I looked up again and someone had placed the test on the table in front of me.

"You have 50 minutes to complete the test," said a man at the front of the room, "You may begin now." Then he banged the gravel on the podium.

50 minutes?? No one told me this test was timed! All right, calm down, Kale. You're not going to take it well if you panic. Taking a deep breath, I picked up my pencil and started reading.

Here goes nothing…

Later

After the test was finally over, I walked out of the building and into the bright sunshine. Covering my eyes, I looked for my two cousins. I spotted them and began to walk towards them.

"Hey, there she is," said Clyde, noticing me. "So, how was it?"

"Brutal," I said flatly, "I didn't know I was being timed, so I felt like I was being rushed."

"Did you finish the test, at least?" asked Marie. She was wearing a long-sleeved yellow sweater, even though it was well over 70 degrees. However, she only wore light-colored long sleeved shirts that way she wouldn't be overheated.

"Yeah," I said, sighing, "I barley did. It still doesn't change the fact of how well I did."

"Don't worry, Kale. I'm sure you did fine. You've practically done nothing else but study since you came to live with us." Clyde said.

"Well…I did other things besides that. I would've been pretty dull if I did nothing but study alchemy for four years," I said as I shuffled my feet.

"Nah, I wouldn't say you'd be completely dull," said a voice behind me.

I whipped around and saw the boy from before standing there with a smirk on his face and his arms crossed. This time I was able to get a good look at him and the first thing I noticed were his eyes: golden. They seemed to pierce right through me and see the very depths of my soul. All those years of building walls to keep others out with no eye contact, crossing my arms, or showing no interest whatsoever, he had penetrated them in a single second with those eyes and that smirk.

How dare he?

Needless to say, I was at a loss for words. I wanted to defend myself without coming across as rude. "What makes you say that?" I asked.

"I think anyone who spends a lot of their time working for something, should not be considered dull," he said while grinning, "Especially if they have been working on it for four years. That's what equivalent exchange is, right?"

I nodded. That phrase was repeated numerous times in almost every alchemy book I read, and I could rephrase it, and its' principles in my sleep. I thrived on learning alchemy and for that, I was grateful. It was something different from music and art, which were other gifts I had. Knowledge was something I thirsted for and learning alchemy gave me the opportunity. Once I understood it, I felt I could understand just about everything else.

"By the way, my name's Edward Elric. What's yours?"

"Kale. Kale Jensen. These are my cousins, Clyde and Marie," I said, suddenly remembering my family behind me.

Edward stuck his hand out and I shook it. "Nice to meet you, Kale. You too, Clyde and Marie."

"Likewise," Clyde said smiling and Marie nodded.

Just then, the suit of armor from before walked up. I got a good look at him, too, however I didn't know he was so large.

"Brother, you sure like to wander off don't you?" he was saying. Surprisingly, he had the voice of a young child. It caught me off guard and I felt my eyes widen. Beside me, Clyde's eyebrows raised and Marie's lips parted.

Edward smiled up at him. "Don't worry about me, Al. This is the girl I pointed out to you before." Turning towards me, he says, "Kale, this is my little brother, Alphonse. Al, this is Kale Jensen and her cousins, Clyde and Marie."

"Little brother?" I asked as my eyes grew even wider, "He's taller than you!"

It was now Edward's turn to be shocked as his jaw dropped and skin turn white as snow. Backing away from him, Alphonse snickered to himself. He did so as if Edward were a time bomb on the verge of exploding.

"What?" I asked, "Did I strike a nerve?"

"Maybe," Alphonse said, still laughing and waving his hands defensively, "He hates it when people notice our height differences. He gets picked on a lot."

"Oh" I know how that feels, but he's taller than me. Why should he worry?

Edward was still in his electrified stance by this time, and I wondered if his heart stopped or if he somehow hurt himself. I didn't know anyone could be bothered so much by a height comment. This guy was really something else.

Reaching over, I poked him in the shoulder. "Is he going to be alright?"

Edward was obviously delicate at this point, because once I poked him, he collapsed to the ground. Jaw still dropped and skin as pale as the moon. He really didn't like the fact that his younger brother was taller than him.

I raised an eyebrow and bent over looking at him. Clyde came up behind me and did the same as Marie followed as she muttered, "Oh, my."

"Hey little man, are you gonna make it?" Clyde asked, shaking Edward's shoulder.

What happened next took less than five seconds. Edward jumped to his feet in a rampage. His skin went from white to an angry red, and his front teeth almost seemed to turn into fangs. His pupils were no longer visible as he flailed his arms around like a madman and screamed at the top of his lungs, "I'M NOT LITTLE!! AND I'M NOT A SHRIMP OR A BEAN OR AN ANT SO TINY THAT HE CAN'T GET SQAUSHED IN THE CREVESES OF A SHOE!!"

Now, usually I would get nervous around people who would raise their voices even a little. Although, watching Edward denying his shortness with his little rant was kind of amusing. I felt a snort escape my throat and tried to hold back anything else by biting my lip. Still, a smile broke through.

Alphonse was now holding the thrashing Edward back by coaxing him, and telling him that Clyde didn't mean anything personal by his comment.

"So, you've got a bit of a temper, do you small boy?" Clyde asked as a mischievous grin spread across his face.

"Clyde, don't provoke him." Marie said, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry about that, Edward. When Clyde was born, the doctor had to pry his little foot out of his big mouth." I said, glaring at my cousins' husband.

Edward seemed to calm down after that input. He then smirked at looked up at the eldest. "Is that so?" he asked.

Clyde shrugged as he glanced away, also smirking.

"Enough of this crap," Edward said, as he fixed his overcoat which had begun to slide off him from Alphonse holding him back during his charade, then he turned towards me. "How do you think you did on the test?"

"I don't know. We'll see. I was really nervous before." I said as my shoulders slumped.

"Don't underestimate yourself. I'm sure you did fine," said Edward as he waved his hand defensively.

I stared at my shoes. It was no use telling him about how anxious I get when it comes to taking tests. If I didn't get a State Alchemist title, what else was I going to do? My hometown was now captured and under the control of my uncle. The citizens were suffering from my mistake because I was a stupid little girl who's father couldn't rescue her.

Everything was my fault.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and my muscles stiffened under the touch. I glanced behind me and noticed it was Marie. She wore a sympathetic look on her face as if she knew what I was struggling with.

"Even if you don't get the title this year, there's always next year, and the year after that. You don't have to start at the age of 12." She said softly.

I brushed her hand off my shoulder and spun around to face her. "I'm tired of waiting. The more I wait, the more my family and friends are going to suffer! I can never go home until I pass! My friends are in jeopardy because of what happened and I need to put my uncle in his rightful place," I said trying to keep my voice at a minimum, though it was hard since I was seething a little.

"I know, Kale. You're not the only one who's hurting here. They're my family too." She whispered.

Clyde bent down to look into my eyes. "We're doing everything we can to help you fight through this," He said softly, "We know it's not your fault, alright? We know."

Gulping back tears, I lowered my head so my bangs covered my face. I slowly nodded my understanding.

The two brothers felt the atmosphere change and exchanged concerned glances. "What's wrong?" Edward asked.

I turned around to face him. "Nothing," I said, hoping to change the subject. "How did you guys do?"

Edward scowled as he rubbed his head. "I didn't even get to finish it. I can't believe they expected us to take that whole thing in under an hour!"

"You at least finished most of it, right?" I asked.

"Yeah, but I left a pretty good chunk of it blank." He said, crossing his arms.

" I finished it," said Alphonse, "Although, I agree with you, it was pretty hard."

I glanced at my watch, wondering how much time has passed since I walked out of the building. "When is the personal interview?" I asked out loud.

"There's an interview, too?" Marie asked, looking at me.

"Yep, it's in a few minutes." Edward replied, as he put his arms behind his head.

I stuffed my hands into my pockets as I thought about what sorts of things the military would ask me. Do they know about my past? If they do, would they believe me about my innocence? Suddenly, I was afraid they would send me away as soon as they read my files after what I've been accused of.

Wait a minute, I'm only 12. I thought to myself. They would believe an innocent girl over a madman right?

There was no telling how much the military knew, since I didn't have enough time to think it over because I was being interrupted by a voice calling from a distance,

"Edward! Alphonse!"

"Brother, Colonel Mustang wants us," said Alphonse as he pointed to a man in a military uniform with black hair.

"Guess we'd better go see what he wants," said Edward. "I'll see you at the interview, Kale."

"Alright, bye." I said.

The boy and the armor turned and headed toward the side of the building where Mustang stood, waiting.

"I'd better head inside and get ready. I don't want to be late." I said as I scratched the bridge of my nose, hoping to appear nonchalant. The truth was, my anxiety was returning.

"Okay, Kale." Marie said, as Clyde put an arm around his wife.

I ran my fingers through my dark blonde hair, sighed, and then turned and walked towards the main building.

"Don't forget to loosen up, kiddo." Clyde called out as he waved.

I kept walking, then decided against the idea of not hearing him and letting my nervousness swallow me whole.

Without turning, I waved back, opened the door and walked through Central Headquarters.