HEY EVERYONE! I'M BACK! HOPE YOU ENJOY!

Cara: If you think she's actually good.

Be quiet queen of cynisism!

Cara: Bite me.

Chole: sigh... Review!

"We need more meat" Cara sighed, closing the crate that housed their spoils. "And I could use a few more knives. Chloe hurry up with your breakfast and-" Cara turned as she called and stopped at the sight of Chloe already behind her, holding out a series of knives, a grin formed over her face.

"Already done" the kid looked very pleased with herself.

Cara sighed and shook her head, allowing a half smile to drift over her lips "You out do your self kid." she took the knives from her partner and concealed them on her person. "But don't go getting a big head" she warned sharply

Chloe giggled "With all your warnings I find that exceedingly difficult."

"And stop using such big words!" Cara groaned theatrically, rubbing a hand over her face. "It makes me feel... un intelligent."

"I'm book smart, you're street smart." Chloe shrugged.

"As you say, I'm a genius" Cara grinned.

"Whose getting the big head now?" Chloe raised her eyebrows.

"Shut it little shrimp." the red head rolled her eyes. "And hand me an extra bandage. They're-"

"On the second crate to the left of the cot I know" Chloe retrieved the bandage and held it out to Cara. "I've done this enough to get it."

"Stop finishing my sentences, it creeps me out." Cara muttered. She unwrapped the old bandage on her hand and tossed it away, pausing to look at the mark on her hand for just a second. It was a strange birthmark, that's what she thought it was at least. She's always had it. It was fadeing into her skin slowly, lightening with age. It had used to be a dark angry red color, not the faded brown it was now. Still she always kept a bandage over it. No need to wierd people out.

Only Chole knew about the birthmark. Then again, Chloe knew alot of things about Cara that no one else did. Like the nature of her condition, her reasons for running away... and just about everything that was going to come out of her mouth. The kid was smart, a fast learner. It had only been two months and she was like Cara's shadow. The red devil remained aloof from her partner but she couldn't deny how useful the little alchemist was.

"Well, no sense in hanging around" Cara got to her feet, clapping her hands together, an evil smirk on her face. "Let's steal things!"

Chloe sighed and followed Cara from the cellar.

"So you know everything we do is that what you're saying?" Edward Elric asked sourly, glareing at Colonel Mustang vicously. "Great, I'm really glad we had this talk!"

"Relax Ed" Mustang smirked. "But that's not quite all I wanted you here for. In addition to your state alchemy exam I have a little job for you."

"I don't know" Ed countered sharply. "I Don't think I really feel like doing you any favors!"

"Oh I'm sure it won't be any trouble for the 'Great, Fullmetal Alchemist'" Mustang clasped his hands together on his desk. "It's just a little thieving problem in Central. The 'Red Devil' has been terrorizing the public for over a year now and I need someone to clear it up for us."

"Over a year and we're just now getting to it?" Ed asked dryly. "Wow, we have a state of the art police force don't we?"

Mustang ignored the comment "She's fast and she also is rumored to have a companion, an alchemist."

"Is this 'Red Devil' an alchemist too?" Ed asked, eyes narrowed with a slight curiosity.

"No, she's rumored to just use knives. But don't underestimate your opponent Fullmetal. She may just be a teenager but she's evaded us for this long so there's got to be an explanation for all this."

"What? You're sending me after a kid?" Ed groaned in exasperation. "Aren't I more qualified than that?"

"She may be older than you Fullmetal so I would talk" the colonel smirked as Ed fumed. "I figured I'd match up the heights... though it might be a close call... maybe she's taller than you. It is hard to find someone whose smaller."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A PINT SIZED, LITTLE MIDGET WHO COULDN'T WIN A FIGHT AGAINST AN ANNOREXIC FLEA!" Ed ranted loudly.

Mustang sighed and leaned back in his chair "Don't for get your re examination Fullmetal. Get going."

"Yeah whatever" Ed muttered moodily, stalking from the room and slamming the door. What a waste of his time...

"Damn this place is crawling with soldiers." Cara growled, peering out from behind a wall.

"Yeah" Chloe frowned from where she knelt on the ground, her hand pressed against the stone. "You're right... I'm getting a lot of guns in my scope."

"That's one thing I don't get" Cara studied Chloe. "How do you sense guns? They don't move."

"Metal sends out more vibrations then normal earth" Chloe explained, rising from the ground. "Even when it's not moving I sense it vaugley...

"Do you think they're here to look for you?" Chloe asked, a touch of consern in her voice. "You've been doing this for awhile."

"Yep" Cara sighed and leaned back against the wall, a small smirk on her face. "But if so it took them a damn long enough time. Comeone" she straightened. "We'll have to take the backways. They aren't beating me out."

The two hurried down the back alley, trying to make as little sound as possible as they ran.

"Any one following us?" Cara asked as they paused to rest a minute in the a back alleyway.

Chloe's brow furrowed "...No... I don't think..."

"You don't think?" Cara blinked. "What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Well I sense something but the vibrations are all wierd..." the girl stared at the ground in concentration.

"Hey! You're that red devil aren't you?" a young, boy's voice called from behind them.

"Yeah, no shit Sherlock" Cara smirked ad turned around "Who exactly wants to know?"

The boy was short, a little taller than her though that wasn't saying much, especially for a guy. He had blonde hair pulled back into a braid and fierce golden eyes, identical in color to Cara's. He wore a red jacket and gloves even though it was seventy degrees outside. Beside him was someone in a tall suit of armor.

"Fullmetal Alchemist Edward Elric" the boy said sharply. Cara decided that she didn't like this boy. He was way too cocky for her taste. "And you're under arrest. I don't have much time for this so I'll have to make it quick."

"Somebody's getting a little confident don't you think?" Cara raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "And aren't you a little on the small side for a military dog?"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A RUNTY LITTLE PIPSQUEAK THAT CAN'T BE SEEN WITH OUT A MAGNIFING GLASS!" said pipsqueak exclaimed angrily, in what was a rather commical reaction to Cara's comment.

The red head blinked "I... didn't say that."

"It was implied!"

"...Right..."

"Brother..." a suprisingly young voice came from the suit of armor. "She didn't say anything like that!"

Cara heard Chloe inhale sharply from beside her and she looked down curiously at the eleven year old "What's wrong kid?"

"That boy's right arm and left leg are metal" she whispered. "And the armor beside him... it's hollow."

Cara felt her eyes widen. She heard a sharp intake of breath from the fullmetal pipsqueak and his brother.

"H-how did you know that!?" Edward stuttered glareing at at Chloe with a mixture of shock and anger.

Chloe pressed her lips together in a tight line and Cara decided to draw the conversation away from her companion. She always told Chloe not to tell anyone how her alchemy worked as it was a weakness that could be used against her.

"I thought you were in a hurry pipsqueak!" the red head snapped impatiently. "I don't want to waste my time either so let's just get this over with." She glanced down at Chloe "Kid, keep the armor one off me. I'll take the state dog."

Chloe nodded "Right."

Cara looked back up, staring the pint sized alchemist down, smirking widely. "I've always wondered what the military's standards were for it's dogs." She flicked her wrist and a knife slipped into each hand. "So let's see what you've got." She shot forward twoards the alchemist, intent on knocking him out with the hilt of her knives.

Edward managed to dodge just barely, allowing Cara to go shooting past. Then she made a swift turn back and she lunged forward again before the alchemist had time to recover from the first attack. She brought a knife down twoards his head but he managed to raised his right arm to block the strike. The knives rebounded off with a sharp clang.

"Ha! They are metal!" Cara dodged Edward's fist, flipping back on one hand and landing in a crouching position. "Lucky for you."

"Brother!" the armor moved to help in the fight but Chloe was there to cover Cara, true to her word. The girl slammed her foot against the ground causing a rock fist to shoot from the stone and knock the armor aside.

"She didn't even move" Ed whispered, stareing in shock.

"Mind on the fight pipsqueak!" Cara called, coming at him again.

Edward barely dodged the blades "Damn you!" he flipped back and clapped his hands together, drawing a steel blade from his automail arm.

"Pretty cool" Cara smirked.

"Yeah thanks!" the alchemist charged her againt, swinging down at her with his blades, a blow sh blocked by crossing her knives together over her head.

Meanwhile Chloe was beginning to have trouble keeping the armor at bay as he was in fact hollow and couldn't feel pain.

"Look we don't have to fight like this!" the armor protested, holding his hands up in attempt to keep Chloe from attacking. "If we keep doing this someone's gonna get hurt!"

"I'm not calling the shots here" Chloe sighed sadly. "I don't like fighting much either but I can't have you makeing my friends job any harder."

These fights continues in a succession of acrobatics, alchemy and occasional insults. Finally Cara managed to catch her opponent across his left arm creating a shallow cut. He hissed and was distracted long enough for Cara to knock his feet out from under him and send him sprawling on the ground. She raised a knife, ready to end the fight when suddenly a searing pain shot through her chest.

The force of the pain caused her knives to slip from her fingers as she doubled over in pain, curling into a tight ball on the ground. She gritted her teeth in a vain attempt to keep strangled cries of pain from escaping her. It felt like someone was pouring liquid fire into her veins.

Through the pain she saw leather boots approaching down the alleyway and the sound of clicking guns.

"CARA!" she heard Chloe cry out from somewhere in the midst of her haze. That was the last thing she heard before her world faded to blackness.

Cara: We're three chapters in and already you're making my life miserable.

Of course (evil grin)

Cara: sigh... this is gonna be a long book...

Chloe: REVIEW!