The end of Riza's shift was quickly approaching. She sat on a bench near Hagrid's hut, polishing her gun. Other than the dementor attack, her stay in England had been rather uneventful. Riza was waiting for Ibiki, who had gone off to explore the forest.
"Hey, Riza!" a voice called from above. Riza looked up. Anko was perched on a branch of a tree close by.
"Hi Anko," Riza replied unenthusiastically. "Is it your shift now? Where's Roy?"
"He's coming," Anko shrugged.
"Aren't you supposed to stay with your teammate?"
"Where's Ibiki, then?" Anko shot back. "He'll be fine. Like I said, he's coming. Unlike you, I don't feel a need to keep tabs on him 24/7."
"What are you implying?"
"Well, it's just that you tend to be somewhat clingy," Anko informed Riza.
"Excuse me?" Riza stood up angrily.
"It's okay. Everybody has their flaws," Anko assured Riza.
"Shut up! Yours is that you're so damn annoying!" Riza pointed her gun at Anko.
"Hey, it's not my fault Roy doesn't like needy girls!" Anko pulled out some shuriken and kunai.
"Back off, Mitarashi! I saw him first!"
"If you liked him so much, you should've told him first! Finders keepers losers weepers, Hawkeye!"
"What's going on?" Ibiki arrived at the scene with Black Hayate at his heels.
"None of your business!" Anko and Riza shouted at him.
"I think it is. Riza put your gun down. Anko put your weapons back." Ibiki gave them looks that had retrieved information from many enemies. They reluctantly obeyed. "Look at yourselves! Two full-grown women arguing so pointlessly! When we're on a mission! You should be ashamed! Anko, your shift just started. Why don't you go do your job? Riza, I'd like a word with you in the forest."
"Bye!" Anko waggled her fingers at them and dashed away.
"What is it, Ibiki?" Riza crossed her arms, following him a short distance into the woods. Although it was already light outside, it felt like night among the trees.
"Was your argument over Roy Mustang?"
"How did you know?"
"You don't exactly keep your attraction to him a secret, you know," Ibiki told her. "You mentioned that you joined the military to protect someone. Is Roy Mustang the reason for your existence? Would you die if he left you? I think you should reevaluate your life."
"Don't tell me how to live my life! You don't understand anything!" Riza crashed to the ground, bursting into tears. "I saved his life during the Ishbal Rebellion! I've known him since I was practically a kid! He's helpless! If I'm not there to protect him, who will?"
"If you've been paying attention lately, you'll notice that Roy isn't that helpless anymore. He can fend for himself. You should get on with your own life." Ibiki looked at Riza with harsh eyes.
"Roy Mustang is part of my life. Losing him is like losing an arm or a leg…" Riza hastily wiped her eyes with her sleeve.
"Calm down. You haven't lost him. He's not dead, is he? You had all those years to make your move, so why didn't you?"
"I was shy…"
"Is that really the reason? Or did youknow that he wasn't the one you wanted to share your life with?"
"I don't know…" the tears kept on coming, and Riza kept on wiping them away.
"Get up. You'll be fine. Arms and legs can be lost. Faces can be scarred." Ibiki continued in a composed tone. He pulled off his bandanna, revealing his scars. Riza gasped. "As long as you live, you can heal." Ibiki pulled Riza up. "The real war's starting. Pull yourself together if you want to live. The weak always die first." Ibiki departed, leaving Riza behind to regain her composure.
"You're really excited, huh?" Temari commented to Ed.
"You would be, too, if you lost your limbs and got an opportunity to get them back," Ed rolled up the sleeve of his automail arm.
"Pretty cool," Temari complimented, examining it.
"Yeah, if you're not the one that has it clamped onto you," scoffed Edward.
"I wouldn't mind," shrugged Temari, "Ed, it's pretty nice of you to try and protect your brother, but don't you think he's old enough to know the truth?"
"Al's very sensitive and a much kinder person than I am. He could never go through with it, knowing how it was made," Ed explained. "Believe me, I hate lying to him, but I don't want to break his heart. Wouldn't you protect your brothers, too?"
"They've never really needed my protection. When we were young, the kids talked about Gaara behind his back, but I was scared of him, too…" Temari's face took on an expression of sadness. "I know my brothers better than anyone else. I'm closer to them than anyone else in the world, but not as close as you and Alphonse. I care about them, and I know Kankurou cares about us, too. Gaara, on the other hand…"
"It's not his fault. He didn't ask to be born this way," Ed comforted her.
"I know, I know. He's never known love, so it's inevitable that he can't feel it. It's not his fault he's a murder weapon because that's why he was created. He's probably the strongest person in this building right now, so I know he won't need anyone to look after him. Still…" Temari grasped Ed's automail hand. "You'll watch out for him, won't you, Ed?"
"Of course. No one's dying on my watch!" Edward declared.
"Everybody's outside. Are you ready?" the Bloody Baron's appeared through the ceiling.
"Sure." Ed stood up. "See ya, Temari."
"Come back soon, okay?" Temari called after him. Ed scrutinized her face. Her features were arranged back into the smug mask it usually was, but what was that reflected in her green eyes? Concern?
"Are you worried about me?" Edward smirked.
"No! Just don't get yourself killed, pipsqueak! Patrolling by myself will be twice the work!" Temari informed him. "Now, go! Everyone's waiting for you."
"Okay. Bye!" Ed waved, and left the common room.
"Learn how to drive, baka!" Naruto barked at Ernie after he was thrown against the windowthe third time that ride.
"Don't complain about something you're getting for free!" Stan yelled back. The group was taking the Knight Bus. It was the fastest transportation besides a Portkey, which they weren't using because the Ministry had gotten improved security. Stan had offered a free ride for the 'Chosen One', which included all the bumps and thrills the Knight Bus usually offered.
"You know, you look a lot like King Bradley," Alphonse commented to the Bloody Baron.
"Maybe there's a reason for that," Lust mused. "I told you guys that there are seven of us homunculi, right?"
"Yup. We've met five of you so far. Who are the other two?" asked Harry.
"One of them is Greed, who is imprisoned right now. You'll be pleased to know that the other one, Pride, is none other than… Fuhrer King Bradley himself." Lust observed Ed and Al with a smug smirk.
"What!" exclaimed Al.
"Why would we be pleased!" Edward demanded.
"He's Dante's favourite. Her masterpiece: A homunculus that can age. I don't suppose you know what happened to your body?" Lust asked the Baron.
"Hohenheim told me that he wanted to keep it as a memoir. I thought it was strange, but since I couldn't use it anymore, I agreed. He promised that he would bring me back to life or something. Then he left, I continued my existence as a ghost, and here we are," the Baron motioned at his surroundings.
"I think we can fill in the blanks," said Lust. "Hohenheim obviously attempted human transmutation to bring his beloved best friend back. It failed, Dante fed the results of the experiment, and homunculus Pride was born. Maybe it can age due to the fact that the body has a different energy system."
"The Fuhrer is a homunculus! We have to warn everyone!" Al shouted.
"Ministry of Magic!" Stan called from the front.
"But first, we have to finish this mission," decided Ed.
