AN: I don't own FMA or any related characters - and I don't own the pink lunchbox as well. I just own the idea.


Attention! I am putting this warning at the beginning of this chapter because I hope that people will actually see and remember this: alright ... there will be a major time skip forward very soon but at the beginning of that chapter, I will write what happened during the break for the cast


kroutonrex: AHDGDHJSGDYUD A NEW PAIRING HAS APPEARED?
Serena: Technically, it's the return of an old pairing in a certain way…

DoctorWhotaliaandtheOlympians: ! I like your dad. Can I keep him?
Jade: In theory, my dad is like Ava's daddy whom she loves a lot…
Ava: Noo! My daddy stays with me!
And can I join the Fire Lion? Just call me ninja.
Serena: You do not really want to join, believe me
Well, that, was a fun chapter. Later dudes!
Whole cast: Later!

mangagirl135: Ava, it's so weird to hear Serena called Hawkeye because I'm so used to Riza being called Jawkeye because that was pretty much the extent of what Roy called Riza throughout the entire series (the exceptions being when her called her his Queen ((;D)) and when he called her lieutenant ((less exciting)).)
Riza: Technically, he could call Laila, Victoria, Nick, Serena, Nessa and me 'Hawkeye' … but usually, Serena would kill him for calling her by her family name…
Excellent work on the chapter!
Ava: Thanks!
Congrats to both Jade and Jun~Jun on your marriages! :D May your joy never end like the circles of your wedding rings. See, I can make corny toasts sometimes! I'm just not a corny person. Normally, anyway.
Jade: The king of corny toasts would be…
Jun Li: Roy, without a doubt
Olivier: or Alex…
Great work on the chapter, Ava!
Ava: Nothing but the best for my readers

CallousVulpix: Well then, I have to say you are a quite virtuous person.(That's my way of saying this was yet again a wonderful chapter.)
Ava: Thanks^^
Hmm, you mentioned you have an affinity for choosing special names. Do Mia, Allen, and Laura's names mean anything in particular?
Ava: Mia has no special meaning besides of being – in Jade's mind – a reminder of all the battles Jade Mustang and Olivier Mira Armstrong fought together. Allen has the meaning of peace and rock, empathising his parents' to have a strong son who can protect his younger sister. And for Laura: it's one of my best friend's name and it goes good with Lars I think
Fire Lion, night out, Izumi, Sig, Abigail, and Alain. That means one thing.*cough*drunken muses*cough*
Serena: That would explain the name-
Izumi: -which is totally awesome and sane
Wait. Isn't Creta south of Amestris? Excuse me for being so bold, but how can Creta cause Drachma problems when Amestris separates the two countries?*starts sweating nervously* You don't have to answer.0_0
Catherina: Creta is in the West, Aerugo is in the South of Amestris
Hmm, the Cretan Secret Service isn't under government control. But every group needs a leader, so who is theirs?
Serena: Some bastard, I believe
Aw, the children are so grown up now! I remember when Laila was Elizabeth Grumman!
Roy: Ah, the good old times…
Why is Nick surprised about his family/friends coming to cheer him on? Everyone loves him because he is a boss.;P*Vulpix puts on cool sunglasses and smirks.*
Nick: Because they were supposed to be busy!
Nerissa is a Fire Lion, so she must've felt quite at home when she entered the lion's den.0w0
Nerissa: Yeah, I think so too
New romance, eh? Well dang, I believe this review has more question marks and improperly used asterisks than anything I have ever written. I hope you don't come to regret the day you told me you liked long reviews! Până mâine,
Ava: That will never happen!

Sira-the-Awesome: Swimming! Diving! Archery! Oh Ava! Now all you need is Rachel signing random papers and Helena doing riflery and you have a complete set!
Jade: Please … no…
Liv, congrats. I got you ANOTHER sword with Laura's head on it instead of Lars'. Ben, ANOTHER painting.
Bendix: Thanks for the presents!
Jade and Claudio, CONGRADULATIONS! I'm so excited for you. So, um, oranges? And orange onesies? With oranges on them? And... A quilt, with oranges on it? And how about an orange rattle... *rummages through a box labeled "orange- safe for Jade" tossing stuff out and muttering*
Jade: That's great!
Phil: …and a new generation of orange-lovers was born
Winry, I got my dress for the wedding, and my hairdresser wants to know when I want my appointment. So, any rough date?
Edward: In spring?
Nerissa: It's supposed an answer
I can't wait to see your wedding dress! I drew one once, and I put little embroidered wrenches around the bottom of the bodice and skirt. It was pretty cute.
Winry: That's a cool idea – mind if I borrow it?
I'm so sorry your shoulders hurting today Ava, *tears up* Take some cake, okay? I have lemon, orange, chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, *continues on, readin from a novel sized book*... And rainbow cake. (If you can't tell, I've been sort of watching OHSHC and Hunni rubbed off on me) You get cool black tape? That's pretty awesome!
Ava: Not so great when it gets wet, though
I have a knee problem, but all I get is... Ice. So yeah. Ice is cool, I guess.
Olivier: It's so cool that's freezing^^ and get better soon…
So here is my cheer for you today: *concentrates very hard* AVA! AVA! AVA! YOU ARE AWESOME! YOU ARE THE BEST! YOU MAKE MY DAYS WITHOUT ANY REST! *finishes with pompous and flips and suddenly there is a gospel choir singing...* oops, did I go too far? Sorry...
Ava: No, it's alright
Oh yeah, Jade? I want to read that essay, okay? Cool.
Jade: I send you a copy once I finish it…
So, Goddess of Literature, Deity of all that is Awesome, Rolemodel for the Masses, She who Saved My Life and Perseverer through all Pain (I got everything, right? I didn't forget that your my favorite author or that you make the sun shine or that you get my obsession with Riza and are thus even more awesome or the fact that OH MY GLOB YOU'RE AMAZING? Good.) Write on, update soon, sleep well, sweet dreams, have a nice day and... Eat lots of cake!
Ava: That was long…


Time stood still in the office. Nerissa's eyes were huge and she was absolutely shocked. Her hair was bound to a bun with some strands framing her face and her skin was paler than usual. Miles looked at her like he had never seen her before but he had known her for years now.

"That's … sur…surprising… I believe," Nerissa said while she wanted to slap herself for sounding that much like Serena. "You seemed very similar when I saw you the last time but I had so much stuff in my system that I was a little bit too numb to recognise you that time…"

"How's your shoulder?" he asked while he tried to calm himself down.

She touched it unaware of it before her old glare returned with full power. "Well, you never wrote," she said while her long fingers tapped nervously on the desk. "You promised me that you would write."

"I am sorry," he said. "I … I didn't even know if you were still alive and I lost your address. And when I met your sister, Serena said that she hadn't seen you in years, so I assumed you were gone for good."

"That used to be true, right," she said before she handed over some files, "but I didn't come because I wanted to talk with you. I am here because it is my job."

"I should have assumed that much," he sighed. "But it's still great to see that you're alright, Nessa."

She nodded with a faint smile on her face. "I missed you too, Teddy," she said with a smirk while she remembered everything for a second. They had had nothing but one summer but this summer had been the best summer of her life and the memory had pulled her through the hard year in hospital.

"You were always beautiful but today you look incredibly beautiful," he told her. "You look healthy."

"Serena makes sure that I eat enough fruits and vegetables," she shrugged while she watched how he read the file. "She is a good girl and probably the reason why I have a more or less normal life now."

"I heard that the major hired you for the secret service…" he muttered. "That's dangerous…"

"With my bad luck, it makes no difference if I work for a secret service or a bank," she stated.

"Certainly," he agreed while he handed back the folder. "Permission granted."

"That's what I expected from you," she said with a half smile. She was very talented when it came to smile not really but a little bit. "You can call me when you are in Central the next time. We have a lot to talk about I believe. I heard some stories … and they don't make me content…"

He sighed deeply as he leaned back. "You didn't change at all," he smiled up at her. "I believe you will always be the bratty sixteen-year-old girl that told me that I should stay away from her house."

"It has been too long, I agree," she nodded. "But your hair is still the same. I like it."

"You always liked it, Nessa," he replied calmly. "But I am still happy to see you again."

She threw him a scrap of paper. "Memorise it, alright?" she said. "It's your last chance."


Victoria glared at the girl before she looked at the little boy who was going clumsily next to her and the even smaller girl who rested her head on her shoulder. She had picked up Lars and Laura after school because Olivier and Bendix had an important meeting this afternoon andVictoriahad agreed to keep an eye on the little ones.

"Is there a problem, witch?" the older and (in Laila's eyes) considerably uglier girl asked.

"Yes, there is,"Victoriastated calmly as she crossed the metres between her and the older one. "You see, since you are dating Owen at the moment, I give you a warning. Break his heart and deal with me afterwards because I won't allow something like that. And just for your information: my siblings and I are more than capable of planning and performing revenge."

Laila who was babysitting Mia and Allen today nodded while she glared at the older girl. "Vicky and your boyfriend are friends for nearly two years by now and I never saw how she allowed anyone to hurt Owen – so I hope that you know what you are up against if you break his heart," she warned.

"Tell your big sister that she shouldn't mess around in my life if she values her life," the girlfriend said.

"Oh, I am sorry to disappoint you but I have no older sister," Laila smirked.

Victoriaraised her head and grinned widely. "I am the younger one," she stated and straightened herself to show her full height. She didn't look like a ten-year-old. She looked at least two years older – especially since she liked her dark clothes and her individual hairstyle.

"You are kidding," the girlfriend said. "You look like, I don't know, thirteen…"

"New record, sister," Laila grinned. "Now you look three years older than you actually are."

"Ah, I have too much to do to stay here and talk with a girl that looks like she can't even recite all the binomial theorems," Victoria said with a shrug. "I've got better thing to do."

"Are you still mad at Miller because she didn't give you bonus points because you used a much more advanced equation than the rest of your class?" Laila asked as she followed her sister.

"Duh," Victoria sighed. "It was much easier that way and I was hungry, so I had to hurry up a bit."

"You are really suffering since the teachers banned your lemons from class, huh?" Laila inquired.

"Yes!" the redhead sighed. "Well, we need to plot the breakup between Owen and that girl. She is dragging him down and I can't have that. Lai, we go home and give the others a call. We need to get out of this mess before he gets hurt again."

"You really want to mess with another person's life?" Laila asked as she opened the front door.

"Laila – in case you didn't notice it: we keep messing around in others' life since years and no one ever complained because we know what we are doing," the younger sister grinned. "It's our job, it seems."


"…messing around in Owen's messed up relationship?" Elicia grinned. "Count me in. I saw that girl last weekend and I really wonder how he can stand that bitch."

"Elicia!" her mother scolded before she appeared in the doorway. "Who called?"

"It's Laila and she says that we have to clean up something," the girl said, grabbing her keys and her coat. "I'll probably sleep at Vicky's place, alright? Oh, and it would be nice if you would tell dad that Nick is staying at Serena's because I had the discussion last week and I don't need it again…"

"Alright, alright, Elicia," her mother smirked, "but could you take Greg and Freddy with you? You know how they usually get when you aren't around. Your little brothers love you a little bit too much."

"Of course," she sighed. "Oh, but maybe you or dad should get them in the evening, yes?"

"Tonight we are going out with the other adults, so everyone brought their kids to Roy's and Riza's house," her mother said. "You'll have a lot of babysitting to do, I guess."

"Do you know if Edward and Winry are coming too?" Elicia asked while she put her brothers into their coats. "I mean … if Edward and Jade are colliding again…"

"They are on the best way of becoming hypocrites by now," Gracia muttered. "They are still claiming that they hate each other but when Edward had the chance to change his superior, he stayed under Jade's command instead of changing to Serena. So he cannot hate her that much…"

"Olivier has the theory that they just continued to claim that they hate each other because they believe that they would lose their reputation should they ever admit that they are getting along just fine…"

"Let me guess…" Gracia sighed. "Laila or Vicky overheard it, shared it with Nick and he told you…"

"Vicky heard it when she brought back Laura and Lars."


"…what the hell are you planning to do?" Nick asked while he watched the toddlers play and sleep.

"Breaking up Owen and his idiotic girlfriend," Laila stated smugly. "We could, of course, wait until they break up but considering thatVictoriais too lazy to calculate when this will happen, we need to find a way to put a stop to this unhealthy relationship."

Victoria who was eating another lemon nodded. "I would need weeks to get enough data to calculate it correctly," she sighed. "No, we need to do this the old-fashioned way. Well, does anyone have a clue?"

Cai raised his hand like in school. "We could hook her up with someone else," he suggested. "What about this one guy from our class, Lai-Lai? You know … fourth row on the right side…"

"Simon Something…" the blonde nodded slowly. "A good candidate … not too bright … and he owes me and especially Victoria for helping him out during the last exam…"

"That … nerd? Are you serious?"Victoriasighed. "He would need a makeover before that superficial girl would even look twice at him, Laila. But if we do this…" she smirked. "…full score, I bet."

"That sounds like a great plan," Elicia said while she hugged her brothers tightly.

"Well, we would need the competent help of a certain red-haired woman who has experience with stuff of this kind," Nick muttered. "Alright, who is in? We could call Catherina and get the job done."


Serena ordered a glass of whiskey as she sat down in front of her sister. "Alright, Nessa, tell me why the hell you are that … off right now," she said calmly. "You look like someone killed your cat."

The older sister chuckled. "You know that I was always more of a dog person," she stated.

"I know but I want to know why you look like a kicked puppy," Mermaid sighed. "Did something happen when you got the permission? Did you meet someone?"

"Yes … and that makes everything even more complicated for me," Nerissa muttered, sipping her red wine. "You remember Lawrence Miles, right? He was stationed at Briggs along with you…"

"Of course I remember him!" Serena smiled. "He was a good friend of Hakon after all. We got along."

"The thing is … I kinda know him from … before…"

"Nessa…" Serena sighed. "Please don't tell me that he is your secret boyfriend from when you were sixteen! He is like, four years older than you! Dad would kill you if he would ever hear this!"

"That's why I never intended to tell him, Rena," the older alchemist said. "The thing is … I haven't seen him in a very long time and to see him know … to know that he is still alive…"

"Of course you would fall for a soldier, Nessa," Serena sighed. "That had been to be expected. I just hope that you know what you are doing because I have no idea what to do now."

"I can do nothing and you know it as good as I do," the former madwoman stated calmly. "Remember what Riza said about the reason why Olivier's marriage with him was divorced: he loved someone else and should I start to date him now, Olivier could figure out everything and I don't want her as an enemy. I am not suicidal enough for something like that."

"Nessa – you may want to escape it but you know that's impossible," Mermaid stated. "If he still holds feelings of some kind for you – which he seems to do, considering that the picture on his desk was probably made by you – he would never give up on you. He is a soldier from the fortress in the Briggs and there are some things none of us would ever consider: giving up on someone loved is part of it." She patted her sister's shoulder. "You started the game, now you can't get out of it. So do me a favour and act your age … for once, Nessa, will you?"


Catherina smirked as she looked through the notes and sketches the children had handed over to her in a folder. "That looks like an interesting plan," she smiled. "Well, I like that Owen-boy and since Vicky told me how terrible that girl is, I'll help you to free the poor boy from that … person."

The redhead was still incredibly beautiful in her own, fragile way. She had married Peter in spring and despite whatever the doctor had told her, she had given birth to a son in October. She had never returned to Creta and this had been a wise decision, considering that the Cretan Secret Service still wanted her dead more than anything else since she held the key to some very dangerous substances.

"So, you'll help us?" Victoria asked while she walked around in the living room while Lars tried to follow her. She finally sat down on the floor and the little boy hugged her clumsily.

"Big sis!" he exclaimed once more while she hugged him back.

There was one big parallel between Jade Mustang and Victoria Hawkeye-Hamilton (she had taken back her mother's maiden name to express her wish to belong to the family): both had failed once to protect a child they had vowed to protect. Jade hadn't been able to protect Victoria and Victoria hadn't been able to protect Lars despite the promise she had made.

"So cute!" Elicia grinned while she ruffled Lars pale blond hair. "He really loves you!"


"…how's Owen, Jade?" Riza asked while she looked at her friend. "I haven't seen him in a while…"

"He's dating some chick," Phil said darkly. "I am usually no one to judge but I really wonder what the hell he is thinking!Victoriadownright hates the girl and isn't Owen Vicky's best friend?"

"She complained today when she picked up the kids," Olivier agreed, wrapping one arm around her husband. "I never saw her that disgusted and angry before. Usually she can keep up a mask."

"Elicia said that they want to make the girl leave the picture," Gracia shrugged. "And even though I should be a responsible mother and tell her that she can't do that, I feel like we need the laugh."

"That will be funny to watch, I agree," Roy grinned, sipping his water. "I believe we should allow them to recruit us if they need help. Riza and I were already plotting the end of unhealthy relationships when we were still teenagers and no one ever knew that we were behind it."

"I will sneak that information into Vic's brain," Bendix said. He was good in putting ideas into other people's head because he was very subtle and people tended to think that it had been their own idea from the very beginning. "I've a meeting with her tomorrow and I'll use that chance."


Scar looked at his friend and sighed deeply. "…so, what do you mean when you say that she's back?"

"She's Nerissa Hawkeye," Miles muttered, rubbing his neck. "I met her in 1905 … a beautiful woman with a strong sense for whatever is right … sometimes a little bit loony but a great person."

"So, she's the one you loved all along?" the former avenger asked. "You know that she's supposed to be incredibly cruel and colder than ice, right? You describe her as soft and gentle…"

"Maybe yes, maybe not," the quarter-Ishbalan said. "She's difficult to understand but I used to be able to read her eyes like open books … and I somehow miss to know what she's planning. She is here on a mission, something about the Cretan Secret Service."

"So your sweetheart is part of the Amestrian Secret Service, huh?" Scar asked. "You tend to fall for the wrong women, Miles. She is probably more dangerous than you think at the moment."

"I know exactly how dangerous this woman is," Miles said, opening some buttons of his shirt, showing the scar on his collarbone. "She has a throw-the-knife-first-ask-later-policy and got me when we first met. I never imagine that she would actually hit me like it was nothing."

"Another dangerous woman in your collection, I see," Scar teased. "Armstrong was the one thing but this woman is an entirely different story. She isn't predictable at all … so if you decide to go after her, pay attention to your back because that will be the place where her knife will stab you."


First of all:

You need to know that I usually update right before I go to bed and since I check my mails with my handy every morning because some teachers would write us a mail if he would miss the first 2 hours. I also check my reviews every morning. That means that I have a really good morning when I get many reviews. Save my morning - review now!

And everyone who puts this story as a favourite should take the time to write at least one review. 47 people have it as a favourite but it seems that the people who are reviewing are always the same 5-10 :(


Vote, people, vote!

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Vote, people, vote!

Vote, people, vote!

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Thank you, everyone who reads this story! It makes me really happy - and happiness is something I miss since I had to stop swimming because of some serious problems with my right shoulder which aren't solved yet :(


Announcement 1: I opened a poll on my profile, so I would be happy if someone would use it^^

Announcement 2: what-is-the-color-of-love pointed out that 'Aerugians' as name for the people of Aerugo looks/sounds better than 'Aerugoans' ... who besides me agrees with that?