When Chiui woke up the next morning, she saw that she was in another room, one that was not in the house that she, Ling, and Riza were in yesterday. The room seemed to be much brighter, and sunlight was coming from it.

Chiui yawned, and stratched her head. She then turned around, and saw that Ling had woken up as well. He had a bandaid around the wound on his chest, but there wasn't any on his bruises. Chiui guessed that the bruises were not that bad. Otherwise, they would have bandaids on them as well.

"Well, good morning, Mrs. Chiui and Prince Ling." A masculine voice startled the two teenagers as the owner of the voice walked into the room.

Chiui and Ling looked up, and saw that it was Major Armstrong, with the usual spark next to his eyes. Chiui nervously smiled, and nodded. "Morning, Major Armstrong." she then saluted him, in which he saluted back.

She then looked around. "...So where are we?"

"Oh." Armstrong thought on that for a second. "You two are at in the military building, in one of the abandoned rooms."

Chiui blinked. "Oh, so we're back in Central." she sighed in relief. "Whose room did this use to be?"

Armstrong hesisted for a moment. "Maria Ross's." he replied. "She...was a good friend of mine, but something happened to her. So they cleaned out her office and left it completely empty."

Chiui's eyes widened in shock. "Oh gosh...well, I'm terribly sorry to hear that, Major."

"Thank you." The male Major bowed, and then spotted something between the two teenagers. He saw that Ling still had his hand on Chiui's.

"What is it, Major?" Chiui asked, and Armstrong pointed to where he was looking at. Ling and Chiui saw it, and both blushed out of embarrassment. The two released their hold.

"I-I-It is not what it looks like!" Chiui and Ling told him, but Armstrong just laughed it off.

"Edward and the rest are going to be surprised." Armstrong grinned, and made his way out the door. He then looked at Ling and Chiui. "Speaking of which, he, Alphonse, and Lan Fan will be here any minute. So you two will have some company."

"...Okay." The two said in unison, then watched as the door closed behind the Major. They then looked at each other, their cheeks a bantam pigment.

"...Why were you still holding my hand?" Chiui's voice almost squeaked when she asked him.

"I-I don't know!" Ling shrugged. "I thought I let go if it when we got some rest!"

'I did too!" Chiui's voice rose. "So how?!"

"I must have not been paying attention!" Ling ended the awkward conversation at that, and looked away.

After a few minutes passed, they heard the door open. Edward, Alphonse, and Lan Fan walked in. Lan Fan instantly ran towards Ling and Lan Fan, hugging them both.

"Are you and the Prince alright?" Lan Fan asked them.

"We're alright." Chiui nodded, adding a smile to the end of her sentence. "Did Armstrong tell you about what happened?"

Lan Fan shook her head. "Edward and Alphonse told me. Armstrong had you too over his shoulders the whole time as he, Edward, and Alphonse took you back here." she then smirked knowingly. "And Ed had noted that you two were holding hands."

Chiui and Ling looked at each other, confused. They thought that they were holding hands when they were resting, not while Armstrong was carrying them. They then looked back at Lan Fan, embarrassed. "N-No, we weren't."

Lan Fan just chuckled, setting that aside. "But...I'm glad you two made it out alright, though you suffered a few injuries."

"Thanks." Chiui smiled warmly. She then saw Alphonse and Elric talking to Winry on the phone, asking how she was doing. They haven't talked to their childhood friend in a while, since the last time Ed had called Winry, she told him that he was creeping her out by the sudden phone call.

Chiui couldn't help but let a short chuckle escape her lips. She could tell that no matter how many times Ed told his friends that he didn't like Winry, that he truly loved her.

He then hung up the phone after he and Al said their goodbyes. They then walked towards Chiui, Ling, and Lan Fan.

"So how are you two feeling?" Alphonse questioned Chiui and Ling, who looked away from a moment.

"...Well, my back is still hurting from the fall I took." Chiui told him. "I suffered a few bruises and wounds, but those are minor. Other than that, I'm fine."

"I wasn't really hurt all that much since I let Greed take over my body." Ling added, and then frowned." But when a demon with a Homunculus mark on its shoulder attacked us, Greed didn't react in time, and caused me to take control of my body again." He didn't want to unwrap the bandaid around his chest, so he just patted it with his hand. "...The demon slashed me clean across the chest...so I suffered this deep wound on my chest." Ling sighed.

"I see." Ed commented. His eyes then widened as he thought the part with the demon over in his head. "Wait. Did you say 'a demon with a Homunculus mark-or Ouroburos Tattoo- on its shoulder'?"

Ling nodded, and so did Chiui. "It wasn't a Homunculus like the others are, but Chiui and I assume that the demon had been tortured by the Homunculi, and was forced to follow their orders. The same went with the demons that it was in charge of."

"Whoa..." Al couldn't believe it. "The Homunculi...torture demons? But aren't demons evil themselves-"

"Yes, they are." Chiui interrupted him, and got a sullen look on her face. "But something tells me that those demons used to have a good life, as normal people, but the Homunculi came around and captured them...possibly injecting them with some type of substance that completely altered their appearance. In other words, they completely changed the race of the person...causing it to become a demon and grow dark wings."

She thought about the demon that Greed had killed before they went into the house, how she commented that the demon must've had white wings before they changed color. She realized that the comment she made might've not been true, since demons wouldn't have white wings. Perhaps...

"Is something on your mind?" she heard Lan Fan ask, and she looked at the dark-haired girl.

Chiui blinked, and shook her head. "...No, not really." The comment that she was thinking of had quickly faded away from her mind. She was silent for a moment.

"Say, Lan Fan..." her voice trailed off for a second. "Why...why do you put such much trust in me whenever I am with Ling on missions?"

Lan Fan didn't seem surprised by her answer, and gave it some thought. "Well...I know that you've known the Prince for a long time, and you've always had trust in him. I..." she hesistated, since she could feel her face fluster behind her mask. "I have trust in him, too, but Grandfather and I know that he might disappear without our consent, so we always had to track him down. But since you have reunited with him for the second time, I can see the bond between you two, and I have to admit that I envy it."

Chiui's eyes widened. "Well, I should envy the bond between you and Ling. You two have chemistry-not in that type of chemistry-but as in your job as a bodyguard for the Prince. I envy how no matter what trouble comes your way, you try your best to protect the Prince. Same thing goes with Ling, how he had helped you when you cut off your own arm."

Lan Fan looked away when Chiui finished her compliment towards her, and was silent. She then looked back at Chiui, locking her black eyes on Chiui's orange eyes. "...You're...right. But after I had cut off my own arm, treated by Dr. Knox, and found out the news of Greed possessing the young Lord...well...I felt like I let my Prince down. I felt like I should've been there for him and not be in a bed, injured. I was happy to find out about him acquiring the Philosopher's Stone...but the stone..."

"It has a twisted story behind it, yes." Chiui concluded it for her. "...Let's just leave it at that." She then rested a hand on Lan Fan's shoulder, catching the young bodyguard's attention. "You don't need to be so hard on yourself, Lan Fan. Just...be positive, okay?"

Chiui couldn't think of any other words to say to her, but Lan Fan appreciated what she said. She then looked at Ling, who nodded to her. She then left the room, and closed the door behind her.

The room was silent, then, and Chiui didn't notice that Edward and Alphonse were already making their leave.

"Oh, you two are leaving already?" she stood up, but a pinch of pain from her back caused to her to sit back down. "Did something happen?"

Ed and Al looked at each other, then at Chiui. "No." Ed told her. "We just have to do some errands around Central." he then got a irritated look on his face. "An Homunculus I was fighting ended up in me damaging a few buildings, but at least my automail is not broken." he pointed towards the said arm, and then waved to Chiui. Al did the same.

Ling and Chiui both waved to the two, and then watched them leave.

After a moment of silence, Chiui exhaled irritability. "It is getting quite boring being in here and not being able to walk or do anything."

Ling nodded in agreement, and looked at the bandaid around his chest. "...Yeah. If Greed had reacted sooner, then I wouldn't have gotten us like this."

Chiui's orange eyes widened, and she quickly turned around to look at him. "Ling, don't blame yourself. It is not you or Greed's fault. We didn't expect that demon to come at us like that. It had attacked us when we thought that there were no more demons to kill off."

Ling only looked down at the ground, mute. Chiui was getting worried until the Prince looked up at her. "I know. But-"

His sentence was brought to a halt when they heard someone open the door. Their boots clacked against the ground as they closed the door behind them. They saw it to be Colonel Roy Mustang.

"Cousin Roy!" Chiui stretched out her arms towards him, since she knew that she couldn't stand up. Roy came over to her, and give her a hug.

"I heard about what happened." Roy told them, and then looked at Chiui with a stern face. "You should've followed Lieutenant Hawkeye's orders when she told you to not go in that hole, Chiui. Otherwise, you wouldn't be like this with your back in pain."

Chiui felt those words sting her, and looked down at the floor apologetically. "...You're right, Colonel. I should've. But Hawkeye had said that I am as stubborn as you are."

Roy blinked, then rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "...Well, that's true. But Riza was worried about you...and so was Greed...when he was in control of the Prince's body." he then turned around, since that was all he had to talk about. But then something suddenly clicked into his brain, and he turned back around.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Roy looked to the left, and then to the right. "After you and Ling have healed, I will give you two some time off. You've already had missions to go to back and forth...and I can understand how tiring it can be."

Ling and Chiui's eyes brightened. "Oh, thank you, cousin!" Chiui grinned, but then became concerned. "But...what about Bradley? Is he going to find out about you giving us time off?"

"No." Roy immediately replied. He had a plan emerging in his mind, which was to tell the President that he sent Chiui and Ling on an important task somewhere, and they'll be gone for a while. He didn't have to give it any thought...though he had to admit that he was a tad concerned of the President finding out.

Ling could see the burden on his face, and decided to shift the dialgoue to something else. "...So, when are we going to be able to return back to normal activities?"

"You're going to be able to return to normal activities by this evening." Roy replied. "Your injuries don't seem to be that bad, so you'll be able to be back to normal then."

Chiui and Ling sighed in relief. "Thanks, Colonel." Ling smiled.

"No problem." Roy nodded, and made his way out the door.

"...Why do I feel like this is just like the hospital?" Ling questioned Chiui after a few seconds of silence passed by.

Chiui looked at him and shrugged. "I don't know. Déjà vu, I guess?"

Ling laughed. "Yeah, that might be it." He then set his mind on the evening. "So, where...do you plan to go this evening?"

Chiui thought on that, and couldn't think of a good idea. "I don't know. It's your choice."

Chiui felt so embarrassed as she stood in front of the mirror in her room at Hawkeye's place. She was in a purple dress, and didn't like it at all. She isn't usually one for dresses, since she is more comfortable being in casual wear and military wear.

"You look fine, Chiui." Riza smiled, and Chiui flinched. She didn't expect Riza to be behind her. She turned around.

"You sure, Riza?" she looked at herself in the mirror again, and twirled around. "I don't think I do..."

"Relax." The blonde woman rested a hand on Chiui's bare shoulder. Chiui was wearing a dress with no sleeves. "Besides, your back is covered with a bandaid. You just have to make sure that nothing happens to it."

"Don't worry." Chiui smiled, though she was worried. Riza didn't know what was on her back, and Chiui didn't feel comfortable about telling her. It was something from her past that she didn't want to reveal.

"Do you want your hair up?" Riza asked her, and Chiui thought about that. Chiui always wore her hair in a braid, and rarely had it down. So she shook her head.

"Alright, then." The blonde Lietenant concluded and waved to Chiui as she was leaving the apartment. "Have a good time!"

Chiui only waved, and nodded back. She then closed the door behind her.

It was already 6 in the evening when Chiui was walking down the streets of Central, trying to find Ling.

"He said that he would be near one of the buildings here," The redhead recalled to herself, and then sighed, "so he won't be far." She then looked around. "I just hope that he didn't wander off and get-oof!"

She bumped right into somebody with a suit. She went to apologize and curtsie, but when she saw the black hair in a ponytail, her face flushed.

"Ling?" The dark-haired Prince heard his name being called by Chiui, and quickly turned around. He stepped back half an inch.

"Chiui?" Ling looked surprised at what she was wearing. "Are you...wearing a...dress?"

"I am." Chiui felt embarrassed admitting that. "And you're wearing a...suit? That is very uncommon."

Ling rubbed the back of his head with his hand. "Yeah it is." The two then laughed.

When the laughter died out, Chiui wiped the tears away from her eyes. "But I have to say that you look quite handsome in a suit." she smiled shyly.

Ling appreciated the compliment. "And you look quite beautiful in a dress, my Princess."

Chiui blinked, and she felt her cheeks become rosy. She never heard Ling use nicknames before. But she had to admit that she liked the nickname. "Thanks." she let out a short laugh.

She then saw Ling's hand extended out towards her, and she immediately took it. "So where are we going?" she asked as they walked down the street.

"Oh, it's a surprise." Ling smirked, and his eyes opened. He looked at Chiui, and winked, then went back to looking ahead of them.

Chiui giggled at the wink, since she didn't feel uncomfortable about it. It was only when Greed winks at her that she feels annoyed.

The redhead almost freaked out when they stepped into a large building. She thought it was going to be something entirely different, but when she saw people in fancy outfits, dancing, her heart sunk.

"Hm?" Ling opened an eye and looked at his girlfriend. "Is something wrong, Chiui?"

"Well..." Chiui didn't know what to say at first. "...I thought we were going to a restaurant to eat. But I stood corrected. I...hate to admit it, but I...can't dance."

The 15-year old teenager didn't seem surprised. "Well, I can't dance, either." he grinned, catching Chiui off guard.

"Are you serious?" Chiui couldn't help but let a chuckle escape her lips. "You don't know how to dance, either?"

"Uh-huh." Ling nodded. "My parents have been teaching me Xingese martial arts for as long as I can remember. I've been busy mastering the martial arts of our country, so I haven't been able to actually learn how to dance." he then shrugged. "But I guess that going here would help me learn a few things."

"True." Chiui agreed, and looked at the dancing crowd before them. She gulped nervously, since she wasn't used to being around such a big crowd. She laughed to put it aside, then looked at Ling. "So..are you ready, Ling-"

Her question was cut off when she saw that the 15-year old Prince had disappeared. She looked around, and couldn't see him anywhere. Her ear then caught some hushed and surprised conversations towards Ling, and exhaled deliberately.

"Oh, I should've known..." she muttered to herself, and walked into the crowd. She excused herself when she accidentally bumped into a few of the people, and eventually met up with Ling.

Chiui could see him scarfing down a handful of food.

"Man, fis ish delicshush!" he exclaimed with food in his mouth. "I shvould fell Chiooee abouf fis-" he turned around and saw that Chiui was looking at him, tapping her foot. He quickly finished off the food he had in his hands, and laughed nervously.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I just saw the food and couldn't help myself!" he apologized.

Chiui was quiet for a moment, and then chuckled. "It's alright, Ling. You just have to make sure not to let your verocious appetite get the best of you next time." she then looked at the crowd. "So, are you, um, ready to dance, Ling?"

Ling belched, but covered his mouth just in time. "Of course!"

The two then joined the crowd, and started to dance. Chiui accidentally stepped on Ling's feet a couple of times, and same went with Ling. They keep on apologizing, and started laughing when they did so. But they eventually got the hang of it in no time.

"I guess that you're right about this place." Chiui warmly smiled. "I have learned a bit from dancing."

"Same here." Ling nodded, and then saw something near the tables. He didn't realize it, but as he leaned forward to keep an eye on the buffet table, he had dipped Chiui.

Chiui's face flushed as she almost lost her balance, and looked up. "Ling, did you realize what you-huh?" She then saw him looking at the buffet. Oh, not again...she thought, but then saw a silohuette grabbing some food, then dashed out. A waiteress at the table gasped and moved out of the way.

"What was that?" Chiui asked Ling, who looked at her. He felt his face flush, and he straightened himself and Chiui up.

"Oh. Sorry." He blushed out of embarrassment, and then looked at the exit that the silouhette took, which was a window across from the buffet table. "I thought I saw a suspicious figure."

"I see." Chiui looked in the same direction he was paying attention to. "I saw it as well. What do you think it is?"

"To the best of my knowledge, it might have been a Homunculus or a chimera." Ling replied. "It might've been Gluttony, but I'm not sure on that, since he would've tried to devour anybody here, including us."

"So it might've been a chimera, then." Chiui guessed, and saw that Ling didn't say anything against the prediction. "I wonder why the chimera came here in the first place..."

"Yeah, same here." he seemed to be intent, until he and Chiui heard somebody drop something, which took him out of his train of thoughts.

Chiui saw the item fall on the floor, and quickly bent over to pick it up. "Oh, here you go, sir-" her sentence was quickly interrupted by a SHRIIIIIP. Chiui froze, and felt her face turn red with morticiation. She still had the item, which was a clock, in her hand, and the man who had dropped it was waiting for her to give it back to him.

She saw his impatient expression, and quickly put it in his hand. She then backed away, and stopped. Chiui looked over her shoulder, and saw people's shocked expressions, some nodding over to her back. And what made it worse was that Ling's eyes were wide open; he was staring at her back as well. Chiui immediately realized what happened, and rose her hands up in protest.

"...Er...nothing to see here...just.." she looked ahead of her, "don't pay attention to me as I...skee-doodle out of here. Okay, bye-bye now!" she quickly ran out of the building backwards, and then turned around so she didn't trip. Ling watched as she disappeared from his sight.

Ling nervously laughed. "I'm so sorry...wait, Chiui!" he then followed her.

It took a while for him to catch up with her, since she was a few mintues away from the building. She was out of breath, and had her hands on her knees.

"Chiui, what was that for?" Ling questioned her with a disconcerting tone.

Chiui blinked, and straightened herself. She then turned around and looked at the 15-year old Prince. "...Well, did you see what happened back there in the building? I went to pick up an item for a young man, and when I went to get up, the bandaid on my back ripped off." she then hid her face with her hands. "Oh dear god...I am so embarrassed..."

"Well, there's no need to be embarrassed, Chiui." Ling told her, resting a hand on her shoulder. She gave him a skeptical look, since she knew if that happened to him, he would've been embarrassed as well. She only gave him a nod and a warm smile. She then noticed that he had walked over to where her back was, and was observing it.

"So, what is this on your back?" he asked curiously, poking it with his index finger. Chiui felt pain rush through her body, and she gritted her teeth. The hairs on her back rose up.

"Don't. Do that!" Chiui shivered, and Ling stepped back. Chiui then saw that she scared Ling a bit, and sighed. She was silent for a moment. "...It's...something from my past...a scar that I had received from the fire."

Ling nodded in comprehension, though there was something he didn't understand. "...But why does it look like the Flame Alchemist symbol, but with a lion's head, 'Another Dog of the Military', 'Lone Child', scars, and dried blood?"

Chiui gasped, she didn't even notice that. "W-What do you mean...?" she then saw a mirror next to her, one that seemed to be abandoned by somebody that didn't want it anymore.

Her eyes widened in horror when she saw what he was talking about. She suddenly had flashbacks of what had happened, about what happened at the fire. She remembered running away from the fire, only to be slammed to the ground by a piece of the roof that had a strange marking on it. And it...was exactly like the one on her back.

Chiui sharply gasped, and covered her face with her hands. "Oh no...no no no!"

"What is it, Chiui?!" Ling was worried, and rested his hands on her shoulders. He then saw the distraught look on her face when her orange eyes locked on his.

"This...this scar...I remember it now. I know it was from the fire...but...this mark looked exactly like the one from the roof of my house!" Chiui gritted her teeth, and felt tears emerge in her eyes. The flashback of the mark on the roof appeared again, but this time, it showed something odd...something unbelievable. She saw her...father...drawing the Flame Alchemist mark on the roof, along with the lion, "Another Dog of the Military", and "Lone Child" on it. She then saw what she thought was President Bradley with him and...and...

"Chiui?" she heard Ling's voice, which brought her out of the nightmare she was having. Chiui quickly turned around and looked at him. She went to apologize, that she just remembered something shocking when Ling suddenly hugged her.

Chiui blushed massively, and blinked, confused. She then hugged him back.

"Thanks, Ling." was all she said before the tears finally decided to run down her face. She sobbed, and choked on some of her own tears. Her tears landed on some of Ling's suit, but he didn't mind. He knew that sometimes people had to let out their feelings, especially depressing ones like this.

"No problem." Ling smiled reassuringly, then frowned. "What is it that you remembered, though?"

Chiui knew it was going to come back if she told the Prince about it, so she shook her head. "I don't...want to talk about it."

Ling blinked, and sighed. "It's alright. I understand." He then averted his attention to the dance hall that they were in.

"I don't think that we will ever be able to go back in there again." Chiui sighed out of embarrassment. "After what had happened, the people there might start small rumors...or worse."

"True." Ling nodded in agreement, then got an idea. He then grabbed Chiui's hand, and start running.

The redhead almost lost her balance. "Ling, what are you doing? I said that we can't go back in there."

"I know that!" Ling looked over his shoulder at her. "But I have a better idea!"

"Hey, Riza." Chiui smiled when the blonde woman opened the door. The 29-year old didn't expect the two to be here at this time.

"...Hey, Chiui and Ling." Riza smiled with a perplexing tone to her voice. "What happened to your guys' date?"

Chiui blushed, and looked away. She didn't know that it was a date. But then again, she might've realized that when they were in the dance hall.

She then looked back at the Lieutenant. "Well, um..."

"It was ruined after we were there for a few minutes." Ling completed the sentence for her, adding a nervous laugh to it. "But, we had noticed a chimera or some type of monster at the dance hall."

"You did?" Riza's eyes widened. "Were you two able to see what it looked like?"

The 15-year old teenagers shook their heads. "It was too difficult for us to make it out." Chiui explained. "It just grabbed some food and left. We don't know why it did that, but I have a strange feeling that the Homunculi are behind this."

"True." Riza nodded. "...Though it does seem odd that if the chimera was ordered by the Homunculi to go the dance hall, that it would just grab food and not complete its mission."

"Yeah..." Chiui's voice trailed off when she gave what Riza said some thought. She then rested her hand on her chin. "Or it might be a runaway chimera."

Riza agreed with one more nod. "But, let's leave it at that. Why are you guys here if your date was ruined?"

Chiui and Ling looked at each other, then grinned. They then both looked back at Riza.

"Well, do you have a big, empty room in here that hasn't been furnished yet?" Chiui questioned.

Riza blinked, thrown off by the question. "Um, I think I do." she looked over her shoulder at one of the rooms in her apartment, then back at the two teenagers. "Black Hayate likes to sleep in there, but if you two like to spend some time in there, then...I don't mind."

Chiui smiled, and bowed. "Thank you, Lieutenant." she said the rank of the blonde woman when she lifted her head up.

"Anytime, Major." Riza smiled, and watched as Ling and Chiui went in to the empty room.

There, they continued dancing. Black Hayate tried to join in by jumping around and barking, but saw Riza from the corner, so he decided to stay still.