Chapter 6

It was only a short while after Mustang left that Second Lieutenant Havoc showed up. Anna had tried to speak with the boys and Nina, but not even Ed had been in the room. He had been waiting in the hall with the guard that was in front of Shou's room. That was where Havoc found them all when he came in.

When he made his way upstairs, he called out a greeting to Ed that was returned in kind, but the tall blonde stopped dead in his tracks when Anna turned to him and held out her hand. She only held it there for a moment before she pulled it back awkwardly as Ed started chuckling behind her. She shot him a glare but turned back around when the man finally spoke.

"Uh, I was told that the boys had a cousin that would be staying here too. Is that you?"

She tried not to laugh at the look he gave her as she held out her hand again. "Yes, that would be me. I'm Anna Stephenson. Nice to me you, Havoc, right?"

He grinned when he took her hand finally. "Yeah, Jean Havoc. I'll be here to take care of things until we get this sorted out, so if you need anything, just holler."

Her smile brightened at his enthusiasm, which in turn made him step back and scratch the back of his head before he changed his focus. His expression dimmed a little when he looked to the soldier that was guarding the door. "You can head downstairs. Four more guys have taken up positions outside, so you can head out. We'll cover the inside." The soldier saluted before he headed back down the stairs.

As he was headed down, Al finally came out of the bedroom at the far end of the hallway and quietly closed the door behind himself. When Havoc started to call out a greeting, the boy turned and held a finger up to indicate silence. He waited until he was next to them before he spoke. "She finally fell asleep, but she was still pretty upset. Do we know what is going to happen yet?"

Jean sighed and shook his head. "The only thing I was told was to keep Shou locked up and to make sure the rest of you were kept safe. I'm pretty sure the Colonel is looking for a place for her to stay, but she may end up going to an orphanage."

Ed cursed at that news until Al whispered a reprimand. "Brother, she's sleeping." That didn't stop him from grumbling, but it did make him lower the volume.

Anna was watching the whole thing with a pit in her stomach. She had been afraid this would be the outcome, but she had to believe it was still going to be better than the alternative. Anything would be better than what that little girl could have been subjected to.

She was pulled out of her reverie when Jean waved himself off and headed back down. The brothers must have realized something was off as they immediately turned to her as soon as Havoc was gone. Ed's voice was low but still insistent. "So spill it. I doubt the Colonel got to you, so what the hell has you twisted?"

She rolled her eyes at his vulgarity before she spoke. "You know, I think you have spent way too much time around men that have way too little filter."

"Tch. Who cares. Now answer the damn question." Ed took a step closer and practically glared at her.

Al looked like he was going to intervene again, but Anna just pointed to the bedroom the younger brother had just exited. "I'm just worried about her. I know what could have happened, and I know this has to be better than what that alternative would have been, but this is still going to traumatize her for years. No matter what choice we make, there is no easy answer, no simple fix. I have a feeling that most of the answers are going to be like this."

Ed took a step back and looked like he wasn't quite sure what to say at first. Anna shook her head at his expression and grimaced before he could say something snarky. "Please don't give me something about equivalent exchange right now. In this case, I don't buy it. The whole point of us taking action was to keep something horrid from happening, not to make something equally horrid manifest." She looked away as she continued. "Maybe I am idealistic, but I would like to hope there is a point in taking action."

It was several moments before Ed finally spoke in a low voice. "All we can do is keep moving. Keep taking it a day at a time and doing what we believe is right. If we give up, then everything becomes pointless. The best thing we can do for Nina is to show her how to be strong and keep moving on. You can't tell me that you don't understand. You are standing here without tears, without breaking down, without thought of your own loss, and it has only been a couple of days."

Anna's head jerked up and her one eye opened in shock. After a moment, it narrowed in determination, and she nodded. "It isn't that I don't think of it, but there are more important things. I guess I just needed to hear that there was meaning in it from someone else too."

Al put his hand on her shoulder as he tried to reassure her as well. "Brother and I have something that we are focused on, something that we are working toward, and that gives us the strength to keep going. I don't know you well yet, but something tells me you wouldn't have come to us today if you didn't have something driving you too. I can't say that this will be easy for Nina, but she is young, and despite what Ed says, we both know that Colonel Mustang will do his best to make sure she is taken care of."

Anna gave him a smile. "I'm sure you're right. Sorry, I didn't mean to make you worry."

Ed rolled his eyes at her and mumbled something she couldn't hear before he turned and headed back downstairs. Al looked back and forth between them before he ran after his brother. Anna chuckled at their antics. She only paused a moment and looked back at the girl's room once more before she followed them down.


Later that evening, Anna had agreed to take some food up to see if Nina would eat. Al had been up several times, but the girl wouldn't leave the bed. It wasn't that she thought the girl would trust her more, but it couldn't hurt to try.

When she opened the door, and Nina saw who it was, she covered her head up with the blanket. Anna swallowed a sigh as she set the tray down next to the bed and sat in a chair. She was clueless about taking care of children. Still, she tried to channel what her mother used to do for her when she felt upset and particularly stubborn. With that in mind, she sat back and crossed her legs before she started speaking in a conversational tone.

"I know we didn't have much of a chance to get to know each other earlier, and you probably don't feel much like it now, but we might be stuck here together for a little while. If that's the case, I thought it might be nice for you to know a little bit about me."

Nina's only response was to pull the blanket tighter around herself. Anna wasn't shocked by it at all, so she just kept going. She told the girl several stories about how she grew up with a scientist as a mother and how they traveled all the time. How her mother spent most of her time researching, which in turn led to Anna's own love of research and ancient history.

By the time she got past the basics of her childhood, the girl had finally uncovered her head and sat up. Anna finished her current story before Nina finally spoke up slowly. "You grew up like me."

Anna gave her a soft smile. Nina sniffled a little bit at the sight of it, but she still managed to keep speaking. "Where is your mommy now?"

It was several moments before Anna could bring herself to answer. "She has been gone for almost a year. She was very sick."

At that, the girl crawled to the edge of her bed and gave Anna a sad look. "What about your daddy?"

Anna gave her a wry smile. "I never knew him. It was just my mother and me."

Nina sat there for several seconds before she finally spoke again. "When can I see my daddy again?"

"Oh, sweetie." Anna got down on her knees and took the girl into her arms. She was glad that she was allowed to comfort her a little, at least. "I don't know, but I promise that no matter what happens, you have people that care about you and want to make sure you are happy."

The girl started crying again, and Anna let it go on until she cried herself out. When it slowed to sniffles once more, she pulled back and grabbed a napkin off the tray to help Nina clean her face before she tried to give her a smile. "I know it's hard, but if I promise to read you a story, will you eat something?"

Nina sat back with a sniff and looked around the room before she answered. "Any story I want?"

Anna gave her a reassuring smile and a nod. "Any story you want."

At her confirmation, Nina jumped off the bed and walked to a small bookshelf where she pulled a thin book out. When she walked back, she handed it to Anna. "This one. Daddy used to read it to me before he got too busy."

Anna felt her heart break a little at that point, but she took it anyway. "Okay. Let's get you fed, and then I'll tuck you in and read it for you."

A surprisingly short time afterward, the girl had the meal finished and was back under the covers. This time she was not huddled under them, but instead was watching Anna as she read from the tiny book. By the time the last words were read, the girl's eyes had started to flutter closed.

Anna stayed long enough to make sure the girl was asleep before setting the book to the side and lifted the tray to take it with her. She did her best to stay as silent as possible when she closed the door. However, all thoughts of silence fled when she turned and came face to face with a man coming from another room down the hall. Her voice came out low but full of shock. "You!"

The man froze when he saw her, and his eyes narrowed before they widened. "You are the woman that was in the alley. Why are you here?"

Anna suddenly realized what must have just happened, and she felt ice race down her spine. She knew she should be afraid, but her heart was shredding for the little girl that had just wanted to see her daddy once more. She took a step forward and tried to keep her voice low. "I know what you just did. I understand why, but your revenge will not accomplish anything except perpetuating an endless cycle of violence. Someone has to be the one to say enough!"

His eyes flashed, and he took a threatening step toward her. His voice lowered. "Who are you, and why are you here?"

"Who I am doesn't matter. It was only by circumstance that I am here even, but you, you are here for murder." She paused and took a deep breath. She knew he was not irredeemable, despite how livid she was on Nina's behalf. She tried to push her anger aside. "I understand your resentment, but this is wrong."

At her last words, the man finally lunged toward her. Anna realized at that moment that her mouth may have gotten her into more trouble than she could get herself out of. She threw the tray at his face and managed to distract him long enough to duck back, but she knew it would not keep him long.

She immediately screamed, hoping that one of the males downstairs would hear before she slammed her palms together and then to the closest wall. It wasn't that she didn't know the scar-faced man in front of her couldn't destroy any barrier she made with ease, but hopefully, it would buy her time.

Unfortunately, it also gave him something else to want to kill her for. As soon as the barrier went up, she heard his growling voice. "You are an alchemist!"

"Not for the state!"

"It matters not! All who use alchemy are blasphemers."

"Like you? That's alchemy, too, you know!"

By that time, the flimsy barrier she had erected was demolished, and Anna was backed into a corner. She cursed her big mouth and hoped like hell someone was coming because she couldn't fight to save her life, literally, in this case.

Both she and the man stalking toward her were shocked when the door behind her opened. Her heart came up in her throat when she heard the little voice behind her. "What's goin' on?"

Anna couldn't take her eyes off the man, but she dropped to her knees and tried to push Nina back. "Nina, honey, lock your door. You can't come out!"

The girl started crying almost immediately, but Anna knew that taking her into the room herself wouldn't solve anything. She had to keep him away from the girl. As much as she hated doing it, she turned away from him long enough to push Nina back gently so she could slam the door. She then put her back against it and slapped her palms together once more before placing them on the floor next to the door. The action caused the door to seal shut. At least she hoped that would be enough to keep Nina safe until help arrived.

When she looked up at the man, he had stopped a few feet away. He was giving her an odd look that she couldn't quite understand. It wasn't allowed to go on for long. A bullet passed close by his head, and he was forced to duck. It was quickly followed by the sound of several male voices, including those of Ed and Al.

He gave her one last unreadable look before he ran down the hall and into one of the other rooms. Havoc, Ed, and one of the other soldiers chased him as he presumably tried to get away. Al had stopped to check on Anna. Her heart was still trying to beat out of her chest as he helped her to her feet. They turned when they heard Nina crying in the room.

Anna felt nearly panicked as she instantly moved to undo the seal she had placed on the door. As soon as it was open, she grabbed the girl up into a hug and tried to reassure her it was safe again.

In the end, she had to lay down with Nina before the girl would calm down, and Al had to sit with them both before Nina finally fell asleep again. By that time, everyone had returned, though Ed was in a foul mood. The scar-faced man had gotten away.

When they all assembled downstairs, Anna was shocked to see a rumpled Roy Mustang with them as well. He looked up as she entered the room and gave her a strained smile. "You know, you and I are going to have to stop meeting like this."

All of the tension from the night suddenly seemed to leave Anna in a rush. She knew he was doing it on purpose, but she couldn't help herself. She sat down in the chair next to him and laughed for several seconds before she was finally able to settle enough to speak. When she was calm, the first thing she did was look over to Ed and Havoc. "Thank you both. You saved my ass."

Ed rolled his eyes, but Havoc grinned at her. It was Roy that spoke. "What the hell happened anyway? We found Shou's body."

Anna had known they would, even though she hadn't seen it herself. She rubbed her temples before she managed to answer. "That was the same man I saw in the alley the other night. I had just managed to get Nina to sleep and was leaving her room when he was leaving Shou's. I guess he recognized me, and I realized what must have happened. I was so upset for Nina that I- well, I said some things I probably shouldn't have. I made matters worse when he attacked me, and I defended myself with alchemy. He told me I was a blasphemer and told me I had to die."

Roy cursed under his breath at that news. It wasn't shocking, as he probably had a good idea what it meant. Anna knew he had been a prominent figure in the Ishvalan war. She wasn't done yet, so she tried to ignore it and kept going.

"It was at about that time that Nina came out of the room. I couldn't let him hurt her, so I pushed her back into her room and sealed the door. I thought I was dead at that point, honestly. I am not really a fighter, but thankfully, the guys must have heard me scream. Plus-" She cut herself off because she wasn't sure how to explain the man's last actions. Or rather, lack of actions.

Roy leaned forward to get her attention again. "Plus, what?"

Anna shook her head. "I'm not really sure. He stopped attacking when I sealed Nina in the room. I don't know why."

Roy sat back with a sigh and ran his hand down his face. "It's late. Why don't you try and get some sleep? I doubt he'll be back tonight, and we have posted an extra guard. Tomorrow I'll have Havoc bring you all to headquarters. By then, I should have something figured out for Nina as well."

Anna wasn't thrilled with the idea of sleeping in that house for several reasons now, but she also didn't want to leave the little girl upstairs. She finally gave him a nod and a smirk. "Hopefully, this time, it really is goodnight."

He stood with a chuckle and returned her smirk with one of his own. "Until tomorrow."

A/N: So, I had hoped to at least kind of follow canon a little, but I can already see that things are going to veer off more than expected. That doesn't mean canon events won't be sprinkled in here and there, but I'm sure you can already see what I mean lol. Anywho, I hope you all enjoy anyway!