Disclaimer: "See part one"
A/N: I thought I was giving poor old Havoc a break in chap one, but I guess I shot him down. The idea I got in my head was just too good to pass up. Maybe I'll make it up to him later. Anyways, I had the new character just assume the conclusion during that part because in my head it gave her a more humanlike quality. Who knows what'll happen in the ranks. Basically, my goal is to make fun of all the little eccentricities and quirks throughout the anime and manga before this story ends. I think I've already gotten a lot in if you look closely. That was my reasoning behind it all. Enjoy the chapter.
The alchemist eyed the cups in the young girl's hands greedily. "Great! Just what I needed! Thanks." He said taking one of the cardboard holders eagerly. "By the way, did you know there's a book on your head?"
Aakara froze like a deer in the headlights. She wasn't prepared for this sudden encounter. There were a thousand things she had in her head to say if she was ever given the chance to meet him. Now the only thing she could do was numbly remove the reference book from its resting place. She slowly recovered and uttered a barely audible, "Thank you."
"Are you alright? You look a little pale." The knight beside him asked. Aakarashan managed to unlock her eyes from Ed and faced the speaker.
'Is this Alphonse?' she asked herself feeling a little intimidated by the sight. "I… I'm f-f-fine thank you." She stuttered mentally slapping herself. She had to bite her lip to keep herself from fainting. Hawkeye had been standing near the Colonel watching the whole affair unnoticed. She quickly picked up on her young apprentice's distress and moved to take the beverages off her hands before they ended up on the floor.
Edward watched the newcomer with interest. A number of things had intrigued him within the past few seconds. The title of the book revealed it was of alchemy. He first assumed the girl was a State Alchemist, petite though she was. His theory was cancelled when he noticed the lack of a silver watch. As he observed her further, she sported a more fashionable attire then the standard military uniform. He brushed that off since he himself was not able to fit into one. But she didn't exactly look like she was equipt for combat either. What exactly was an ordinary civilian doing in Mustang's office anyway?
"Well I suppose introductions are in order. This is an intern who applied for a secretarial position. Her name is Aakarashan. Of course you are already aware that these are the famous Elric brothers" Mustang finished regarding her.
"Um, yes sir. P-Pleased to meet you." She answered meekly. 'What the hell is wrong with you! Get your head in the game!' she berated herself. It was as if her mind and body were two completely separate entities.
"Nice to meet you too uh, Aawaka…shum…" Al slurred trying with all his might to remember the pronunciation. 'What a strange name', he thought extending his hand towards her.
"Just call me Aakara." She giggled and accepted his hand. There was something mysterious about the other Elric brother that puzzled her. She couldn't quite put her finger on it. A shiny object from the bottom of Edward's white gloves caught her eye. 'Automail' she surmised recalling the pictures she had of him up in her room back home. There were many poses of him with his favorite customized weapon of choice as he brought on justice.
"Mustang's secretary huh? You have my deepest sympathies." Ed quipped. His voice screamed sarcasm.
"Oh brother," Al moaned.
"Forgive me sir, but we should be getting to the matter at hand,' the Lieutenant reminded him.
"Yes of course. Spread the word to Havoc and crew so they can get ready to leave. We need to take care of this mission as soon as possible." Mustang stated, his rank shining through.
"What about her?" Riza whispered referring to her "student". Aakarashan looked at them curiously noticing her superior's suspicious behavior.
"She's coming with us. I may need her to record the events. Besides, it won't hurt to have an extra pair of eyes."
The Colonel's order sent shivers up and down her spine. She hadn't even noticed her mouth was agape, practically touching the floor while her eyes were glued to her boss. Her arms felt numb. Darn it all if she hadn't just gotten the feeling back in them!
"Lieutenant, what's he talking about?" she asked with obvious fear in her tone.
"We have been delivered a dispatch to clean up a make-shift lab of loose chimeras. The East HQ would see to it if they weren't already taking care of the Ishbalan camps. These days there just isn't enough man power so we need all of the officers we can acquire. You are Colonel Mustang's secretary are you not? You will also follow him into battle like the Fuhrer's secretary does for him. We all have our duties. Just stick with me and you'll be fine."
Riza's speech left her throat dry. She had heard of the carnage of the military through her family's own stories. She didn't even believe she was about to witness some of it first hand. "Sheizka was right, I should've read that waiver more carefully before I signed. This internship's gonna get me killed." She whimpered. She was horrified when she realized she had said that out loud. 'I can't believe I said that in front of them! They're gonna think I'm a coward now.' She looked up when she felt a large hand on her left shoulder.
"It's ok. Nothing gets past Colonel Mustang and his gang. You'll be perfectly safe with us." Alphonse said as if he could read her like an alchemy book. "It's only natural to be scared on your first mission. Even Ed was scared when he first got his state license." Edward growled at the last part and attempted to throttle his younger brother. Al only held him at bay with his other hand.
"TRAITOR! I can't believe you sold me out to one of Mustang's minions!" Ed shouted to no avail.
"Brother, please. You're only embaressing yourself." Al stated attempting to calm Edward's raging temper.
"You were afraid?" Aakarashan asked. Her question momentarily stopped the racket and his intense golden eyes bore straight into her. She was petrified and overjoyed at the same time. She still couldn't bring herself to use his name.
"Well, it was no piece of cake. That's all I'm saying." He answered giving Al the look of death. He gave off an incredible aura and she decided not to press her luck with any more questions. Their antics and words of wisdom cheered Aakara up a bit and they headed out to meet the rest of the unit.
A/N: Well, I guess that's good enough for now. It feels like something's missing. Hopefully next part will be longer. I already have the ending in my head. I apologize for the long notes in the beginning. I would also like to take this time and thank Manga-Artist and Dailenna for their kind and honest reviews.Thank you for reading.