DISCLAIMER: WOOT! I RE-DID THE FIRST CHAPTER! I don't own any Full Metal Alchemist-ness or beautiful Edward. I only own Kiara and Austin!
Chapter 1: Their Forgotten Burden

"Oh you've got to be kidding, right?" a young boy had been complaining for a fairly long while. "You don't pay to me to baby-sit!" he yelled impatiently, shoving his fist on the desk.

"Would you relax Full Metal? You act as if I'm giving you a four-year-old child," a man, rather older than the boy but still very young in years, replied, straightening out his golden tassel on his navy-blue uniform. "It's rather simple if you ask me. Her name's Kiara Nevina and she will be under your watch only for the time I was allotted— three weeks. You take her to public places, and that's all."

The much older man had short stringy black hair that fell carelessly into his deep eerie black eyes. A regular blue uniform fit tightly across his broad shoulders engulfed him with the scent of higher superiority. None the less, his ignorance could be spotted right after your first conversation. Colonel Roy Mustang, a state alchemist also, ignored Edward Elric's protests.

"But…this hardly makes sense sir!" another polite voice came from behind the annoyed Edward Elric.

One would have found it eerie; it was so hollow and empty, but full of the child-like aura. When he'd talk, it would seem as if it was a monotonous and steady voice that flowed from the armor. But if you looked extra careful, and paid close attention, it was just the expressionless face that never moved that made everything so offset to him. An impassive face was only because this young boy, no more than sixteen, was a huge armored suit. Large bolted down spikes lay across his shoulders, (three to be exact) and one placed on his head. His mouth was only the combining of two metal pieces in a zigzag style that was never any use to him, for he never needed it to speak. Setting aside the blue loincloth wrapped around his middle, he was a full metal body suit.

Standing at about seven feet, Alphonse Elric seemed to have a dark demeanor. But the true him was so much different than the armor conveyed, only the people close to him knew of his true gentle, polite, courteous attitude.

"I don't understand why we of all people would have to guard some girl. Isn't that what other officials do? Aren't we the people who are guarded, not the other way around?" he demanded curiously.

"That is specialized information Alphonse, it is strictly forbidden to your acknowledge."

"Really? " Edward scoffed sarcastically. "Because I think this is all your doing, " he spat, and without knowing it, was completely right. "You've got some crazy hunch about some random girl so you're sticking her with us to see what will happen! Well let me tell you this—,"

"Please use the left side of your brain, " Mustang shot corrosively, rolling his eyes for effect.

"I am! You do these kinds of things! " Edward insisted, then opened his mouth again to continue with a far-fetched story.

"Why, does she have someone after her? " Alphonse intervened, not able to wait for Edward to finish.

"No, " Mustang answered him on contact, hoping, and succeeding, to shut Edward up.

"Then if she's with someone like us, as in, alchemist who shouldn't be protecting someone, does she have to stay hidden?" Alphonse inquired with a puzzled sound in his voice. In his mind, he was desperately trying to think of an explanation for this berserk order they received all of a sudden.

"No."

"If someone is after her, why are we of all people watching her?" Alphonse began to fall into his own anecdote just as his brother.

"No," Mustang found himself raising his voice more than necessary. He always tended to do that when both of the Elric brothers ganged up on him. "Have we already been over the fact I'm not going to give you any information?" he yelled irritably.

"If you want a story, I guess I could tell you I offered the job to many people," he began, from the start lying, but looking as though it was the complete truth. Roy could do that, you know. "And," -he sighed- "They are too afraid to take the job."

The two brothers looked surprised at this, and scared, just as he expected. But, as quick as it came, it surpassed as Edward shot of his mouth in an angry tone once again.

"You're kidding right? Your men work for the military, they've seen horrible stuff, and they're afraid of a little girl! How bad can she possibly be?" he exaggerated.

Mustang gave them a blank stare, then shook his head. "You don't understand…."

"Well, you could tell us so we would!" Edward yelled, fairly annoyed by now.

"If I did you wouldn't watch her! She's too valuable and dangerous to let die," Mustang was secretly enjoying torturing the boys' emotions as he watched them become shocked for the millionth time that night.

However, Edward was the first to recover again. "But we've got a lead Mustang! We are supposed to leave tomorrow! Is this really 'top-information,' or do you just enjoy pissing me off?" he roared, accidentally stomping his feet so he looked more like a five-year-old than an actual seventeen-year-old did.

If you had gotten the time to know Edward, you'd find him a complete opposite of Alphonse, in every way you could imagine. How they managed to work together some may never know, but it was probably because they balanced each other out. Edward, as you'll soon learn, didn't have a very patient temper…at all.

"Both, actually," Mustang couldn't help but say, smirking evilly. "And besides, if it's that strong of a lead, and you really must go right away, take her with you."

He watched as both Edward and Alphonse's jaws literally dropped to the floor, and their bodies almost fall all the way over in utter awe.

"WHAT!" they both cried incredulously in unison, something they rarely did.

"Sir!" Alphonse whined in disbelief, getting very frustrated by now. "How could we possibly take an innocent girl on a wild goose chase, especially when our lives could be a stake any moment! You aren't actually expecting us to tell her the true story are you? You don't really believe she'll want to come, will you? You aren't going to let this happen, are you?" Alphonse's voice grew higher as he went on.

If there was anything he didn't like, it was taking credulous people, particularly women, into his brother and his' insane search for something that they weren't sure existed. Every time they went out their lives were set to limits, and even Mustang knew that!

"Who cares if she knows!" Edward shrugged all thoughts of that away, seeming more interested/angry at something else. "That…That…thing would be the biggest obstacle in our way! This is pathetic Mustang, pathetic! Could you really get no oneto do your bidding for you? Why is this girl so special? Why are you being to intolerable..." Edward ranted on for another ten minutes, but after that line, Mustang had already zoned out.

Finally, Edward had to pause to inhale deeply. Alphonse saw an opportunity to shoot something in.

"Can we have something so we know about her?" he sighed, finally giving in.

They'd already been back and forth for at the least, an hour. What was the use? Roy Mustang was not going to tell Edward and Alphonse Elric why they'd have to watch over a girl about their age for three weeks.

"It isn't an eternity," Mustang quickly replied, cutting Edward off with a sign of relief on his face. "Like I've been repeating to you two for the past hour and twenty-minutes, it will be three weeks, here is her what we know of her. Not enough for an actual profile," Mustang threw a yellow folder at Edward, who distractingly caught it. "You will do this, no matter what. Keep in mind you work for me, not the other way around. Now get out of my office," he stated simply as the two boys walked out of the door reluctantly.

For a while, it was just their footsteps echoing, and a few military personnel's walking by, but soon Alphonse broke the silence. "Brother," Alphonse called in a whisper. "What is her name?"

"Who cares?" Edward scowled.

"I do," he replied emphatically. "Don't act like that, brother," he gave the usual voice when trying to crack Edward's temper.

With a 'humph,' he flipped open the golden page agilely and looked at the first line. Hastily, he quickly spoke, "Kiara Nevina. Hmm, no middle name…." He looked slightly interested now.

They both stopped in the hall, peering into the folder with curiosity, not aware of anything else. A few people casually walked by, giving them small odd glances, then continuing on when they didn't look back up.

"Well, we don't have middle names either," Alphonse stated bluntly, looking in Edward's direction. "I'm sure she's nice."

Somehow, Edward couldn't find his brothers words comforting. "I don't understand this," Edward muttered to himself, flipping through the pages, trying to find something more. "She's got a dad somewhere, why the hell isn't she with him? Why do we have to baby-sit at such an important time!" his fist grasped the paper a little too hard, causing it to crumble.

"She's eighteen," Alphonse cut in fast, calming down his older brother. "That's only a year older than you and two for me."

"Hn, red hair," Edward continued on, his fist releasing greatly. "Hazel and sea-foam eyes, what kind of color is that…?" he briefed over her profile, with Alphonse silently reading along with him over his shoulder.

"Brother," Alphonse spoke suddenly, pointing to the very middle of a very long paragraph. "It says she's an expelled State Alchemist." They both exchanged odd glances, compiling this new information.

"Then wouldn't the military want nothing to do with her?" they found themselves winding right back to the start, with only more confusion piled on top of it. "Maybe someone really is after her like you said Al, and Mustang is giving her an inside favor. Eh, probably dated her at some point of time," he answered his question sarcastically.

"Edward…." Alphonse sighed disapprovingly. "I highly doubt that is the case. Besides, she's not even twenty yet."

"Not like that'd stop Mustang, the perverted bastard," Ed mumbled lowly, making sure his brother couldn't hear.

"Well, I really don't care who she is. I'm going to spend as much time away from her as possible," Edward stated clearly, shocking Alphonse a bit. "And if she gets in our way, then we dump her back at little Uncle Roy's footstep."

The two brothers walked down the halls of a great building, barely discussing the new girl they would have responsibility over.


Hoped you liked the revised edition! The second chapter is on my way now that I'm back! Plus, already got half of the eigth chapter typed up and ready! REVIEW PLEASE, I THRIVE ON FEEDBACK! If you have to flame-mail, please don't rant. I hate reading all of it...too long.