Okay...this one's quite a diversion from my normal style. I don't know where this idea came from, but it's been bothering me for awhile, so I decided to just give in and write it. Strange that it's not supernatural based, like most of my stories. (Yes, that is QUITE strange! Hehe) I wish that I could just quit starting new stories, so that it would be easy to finish my old ones, but I can't seem to tell my mind to shut up until I finish my older stories, so I have to give in and write these new ones down in order to have enough sanity to continue plodding along on my older ones. Sigh. Just something I gotta deal with, I guess.

Just so you know, I know nothing about Drachma, so I made up all the facts in this story about that country. Heck, I made up a lot of facts about lots of different things that I didn't know about. I just wanted to let you know that, just in case Arakawa-san had actually mentioned something that I had totally neglected to notice.

Disclaimer: I do not own FullMetal Alchemist. I own two FullMetal Alchemist keychains though. W00t!

One year, three months, eleven days, four hours, and twenty-seven minutes: That's how long it has been since I left my home country. That was when I lost my liberty, my freedom, my identity. I hardly even know who I am anymore.

My every waking moment is spent serving my master and mistress, two people I grow to hate more with each passing day. The reason I hate them is not because they are my master and mistress. It is not because I haven't seen any of my family or friends since I have been with them. It isn't even because they are people of Drachma. It is because they hate Amestris. I despise people who despise my country. My country is part of me, and I am part of it.

They keep trying to remind me that Amestris has fallen, that it has been overthrown and that I've been taken prisoner and forced to work as a slave. But I don't listen. Amestris is not dead. It will rise again. And I will live to see that day. I will even help to bring it about. Amestris's time will come.

I walked down the street while running another errand for my master with a cloak pulled over my head. I hate hiding my Amestrian nature, but if it were known, I would not even be allowed to buy bread. Some of my friends look almost Drachman, so they can blend in, and not be noticed. I, however, look extremely Amestrian, with my blond hair and blond eyes. With my cloak, I'm usually able to pull it off, as long as I don't speak. My accent betrays me.

I stopped at a street vendor and reached to grab some fruit. My glove and sleeve separated, exposing my auto-mail arm. Auto-mail is practically unheard of, here in Drachma. I usually try to avoid using my right hand, but sometimes I forget, being naturally right-handed.

"We don't have any food here for you Amestrian dogs!" shouted a woman running out and swinging a broom at me. I ducked and quickly ran in the other direction. I wasn't able to make a clean escape, however. Her accusation had aroused the attention of several of the nearby crowd, and they started chasing me. Amestrians were really despised in this part of town.

I picked up my pace and tried to outrun them, but they were really fast. A gust of wind caught at my hood and blew it back, exposing my blond hair. I would not be able to hide my nationality now. I ran even faster.

Suddenly, my foot caught on a loose stone, and I fell to the cobblestone pavement. I was able to land on my hands and my knees, but I dropped the basket of goods I had just bought for my master. If I didn't bring those home, and in good condition, he would whip me severely.

I was about to reach for the basket when I noticed that the mob was almost upon me. I was just going to have to take my chances with my master. At least he was only one person. I jumped up and ran.

I continued running until I felt someone grab me by the arm and pull me into a nearby alleyway. She cupped her hand across my mouth so that I wouldn't say anything, and waited. The Drachman mob ran past, not knowing where I had gone, but continuing to try and follow me regardless.

She removed her hand from my mouth, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I turned to face my rescuer, and muttered, "Thank you."

"You're Amestrian, aren't you?" she said.

A tear came to my eye as I nodded and said, shakily, "Yes."

"What did you do to get them so mad at you?"

I shook my head. "I don't think I did anything. They just…hate me."

The woman sighed. "War is a terrible thing. It makes people forget that they're really human. It builds hate and encourages evil. And then we justify it by saying that we're just defending our own country, whether we really are or not."

I didn't say a word during her rant. I just let her talk. She then turned to me after noticing that I hadn't replied yet, and asked, "Do you have a place to stay?"

"I live over on the grass hill with my master," I said. The grass hill was a part of town where some of the richest people resided.

"So you're a slave then?" she asked. I nodded. "That's too bad," she said, "That's just really too bad. Haven't you ever tried to escape?"

"I get caught every time I try," I said, "I look so Amestrian that it's easy to pick me out."

She looked at me again, and said, "If you'd like to escape, I'll help you. I may be Drachman, but I despise the way that we treat our Amestrian brothers."

"You would risk your own reputation by helping an Amestrian?" I asked.

"I would risk everything for a cause I considered just," she said, "And this is definitely a just cause. I believe it is our duty to treat our fellow man with respect, no matter which country they come from."

I choked back a sob. "But-But even if I did manage to escape, what good would it do? I look so Amestrian, unlike the others, that I would never be able to blend in. I would get caught after a period of time, and returned to my master."

The woman managed a light smile, and said, "I've been watching you for some time. You're really strong. I believe that you could be one of those that could actually help your people regain their foothold and return to their native country."

"Do you really think so?" I asked. She nodded. Tears started pricking my eyes. "Then," I said, "Please help me."

She pulled the hood back up over my head, and led me down the alleyway to a door. She knocked on the door three times hard, and two times soft. I gathered that that must've been the code knock for this place.

A man opened the door and ushered us both in, and then quickly shut and bolted the door behind us. I looked towards my benefactor, who just nodded and said, "It's okay to take your cloak off now if you want to."

I proceeded to do so, and when the man turned back around from bolting the door, and saw me, he jumped back in a little bit of shock. Didn't he know that I was going to be Amestrian? Wasn't that what this whole operation was about?

He cleared his throat and explained, "I knew that you were going to be Amestrian, because helping your people is what we do, but I never expected someone to be brought here that looked as Amestrian as you. Usually, I'm only brought people that can blend in. How is it that you were able to get away when you look as Amestrian as you do?"

The woman explained, "He has a really strong character. I think he might be able to lead his people out of slavery."

The man rubbed his chin. "So, this boy is a special case then?" The woman nodded. The man bent down to look into my eyes. "Son," he said, "This is a big responsibility that you're taking on. I'm going to need you to be completely honest with me. Do you understand?"

I nodded my head. "Good," he said, "Now, it would be a lot easier on you if you knew some skill or had some trait that almost no one else had that you could use to your advantage. Do you have such an ability?"

I coughed. "Actually…yes," I said, "I, uh, I was an alchemist when I was still back in Amestris, though I haven't tried to perform alchemy since I came here. I didn't want my master to discover that and exploit it."

"Quite understandable," said the man, as he stood back up. "Alchemy could be quite useful, if you're really good at it. How great is your skill?"

"Well," I said as I scratched the back of my head, "I'm sure that I'm kind of rusty at it right now, so I don't know how well I can do it. But when I was back in Amestris, I was a State Alchemist."

"A State Alchemist?" cried the man, "At your age? Didn't Amestris only allow the best of the best to become State Alchemists? And didn't that mean joining the military? Why would they let a kid do that?"

I glared at him for a second. I hated being called a kid, but I was just going to have to let that go this time. "They made a special exception for me," I said, "I was unusually skilled at alchemy, so they made a special provision for me to join the military at the age of twelve."

The man smacked his head. "At the age of twelve? Wait, are you telling me that you are...Edward Elric?"

I looked up into the man's eyes. "My name is known all the way up here?"

The man just nodded, shocked, and then turned to the woman. "You're right, he IS a special case." He turned back to me and extended his hand. "Come, you have much to learn before you can start your mission."

I grasped his hand and followed him. I didn't know where I was going. I didn't know what I was doing. But I didn't care. I was going to save Amestris.

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