FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST PART XVI:

A Bone to Pick with Mustang

"MUSTANG, YOU BASTARD! YOUR ASS IS MINE!...(nudge) Al, open the freaking door..."

"WHAM!"

The door to Mustang's office flew open, and Al walked in, carrying me in his arms, along with my automail limbs. Mustang, not even one bit surprised by the entrance, looked up from the document he was reading.

"Oh, hello, Elric. I got the report from a woman downtown. It appears you were successful in your mission! Lieutenant Harris has been arrested and charged as decreed suitable for his actions. A fine job, if i do say so myself."

He then noticed the fact that I wasn't really able to stand before him, and smiled.

"Though it appears you had a little trouble disposing of those war vets…"

"WAR VETS MY ASS! You knew exactly what you were sending us after, you creep! You didn't care WHAT happened to us! I bet the FURHER didn't even KNOW about this "army" to BEGIN with!"

"Calm down, Edward. Besides, that means you've experienced the very first rule of being a dog of the military: you need to be prepared and willing to carry out whatever I need you to do, even if it means going after a bunch of, shall we say, "confused delinquents". There's no need to get short-tempered about it."

"SHORT! Why….you…. I oughta… GAH!"

I knew that there was nothing I could do about his comments. As it was, I had nothing to support myself on, and any attempts to retaliate would just have been useless. Al sighed.

"Mr. Mustang, even though we did take damage while fighting those guys back there, we did succeed in breaking up the army. Does that mean that Ed can be a State Alchemist now?"

"True, Alphonse, you both did succeed. Yes, I suppose it is fair then to say that Ed is an official State Alchemist from this point on. However, please understand that I cannot give the same title to you, even though you did help with the break-up."

Al and I both understood and agreed. We had already decided amongst us that if anyone became a state alchemist, it would be me. Al's life was not worth risking so soon, and being sent on random missions means he could be separated from me. Since I was the only State Alchemist, that meant he could follow along with me all the time.

I looked back to Mustang, who had set his papers aside and was now looking out at the surroundings that HQ had been placed in.

"Well Colonel, that's fine and dandy, but how the hell am I supposed to carry the watch in my current state!"

"Don't worry about that, Fullmetal. I have arranged for an escort to take you to your mechanic… Winry Rockbell, I believe. Once she has fixed you up, she has instructions to hand you the watch that is being sent to her residence. By the way, Fullmetal is now your official State Alchemist Title, for future reference. I hope you have a peaceful trip back."

As Al and I headed outside to the car that was waiting for us, I could tell that we both had a mix of feelings going on at the same time. Who wouldn't? We had single-handedly faced death, lost limbs, and in the end, made it through, all in the course of about 20 minutes. I looked up at Al.

"Al, promise me that no matter what happens after this, you'll stay with me, ok?"

"Of course, brother. And we'll do whatever it takes to get that Philosopher's Stone!"

"Damn right! They're dealing with more than just the ELRICS now!"

I wasn't "Edward Elric" anymore.

I was...

THE FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST!

END OF SEASON 1