A/N: Sorry this chapter took me so long. School is about ready to start soon and I've been really stressed lately. Not to mention I've had a huge writer's block. ha ha...so the next chapter may not be coming for a while but I'll do my best.

"Alphonse, please hand me those vegetables…and Edward, if you would go set the table…" Kerria instructed as she stood over the stove and cooked their dinner. The two brothers were rushing around the kitchen doing whatever she asked. It had been about 3 days since Kerria came to live with the Elric brothers, and since then she had been doing whatever she could to help out, including cooking. Finally, the dinner they had been preparing was ready and they all sat down to eat it.

"Hey…not bad." Ed commented, taking a large bite. "What is this? It tastes very interesting." Kerria and Al exchanged nervous looks.

"Eh heh…well…we decided to try something new…" Al started as Ed continued to stuff food into his mouth. "So…we put…fried milk in it." as soon as those last words left Al's mouth, Ed realized what he had just swallowed and grimaced in disgust.

"M-milk? Ugh…I actually ate it?"

"But it was good wasn't it?" Kerria asked smiling. Ed paused for a minute before answering.

"W-well…yeah I guess it's not so bad when it's fried." he said, taking smaller bites. Kerria and Al laughed.

"So Edward, you have to go to the military every day? Don't you get days off?" Kerria questioned.

"Yeah," Ed scowled. "The only days I get off are the few holidays they give us. So until then I have to put up with it."

"Sounds tough," Kerria commented. "and Alphonse tells me you don't like people there either."

"Well, most everyone's okay. There's just a few people I don't exactly enjoy working with."

"Like Mr. Mustang." Al chimed in. Ed glared at his plate and started jabbing his fork at a piece of meat; Kerria wondered if he was pretending it was Mustang's head. Then Ed suddenly got an idea.

"Hey," he started. "since you're so curious why don't you guys come with me tomorrow?" Kerria and Al both thought this was a great idea, and they agreed excitedly.

Kerria stared up at Central Headquarters in amazement; it was so much bigger than she had expected. She remembered seeing it a few times from a distance while she was shopping or taking a walk, but she had never been this close to it.

"You going to stare at it or come inside?" Ed called. He and Al were already at the door and were waiting for her.

"Ah! Sorry! I'm coming!" Kerria exclaimed as she ran to catch up with them. When they went inside, the receptionist at the front desk came over to greet them.

"Good morning, Colonel Elric. I see you brought some visitors with you." She smiled, looking over at Kerria and Al who bowed politely. Then she turned back to Ed and added. "Oh, and Fuhrer Mustang wants to see you in his office this morning."

"Oh great." Ed sighed. "Just got here and already I have to put up with him." he sighed again. "Not to mention…" Al and Kerria looked at him questioningly. "in his office…she's there."

" 'She'?" Kerria and Al asked, blinking in confusion. Ed assured them that they would see soon enough, and told them to follow him. As the three of them walked down the large hallways on the way to Roy's office, Kerria looked around the place and suddenly began to feel very small. The whole building was so big, she thought it was a miracle Ed never got lost in the labyrinth of hallways and corridors. Al noticed Kerria's amazed expression and laughed slightly.

"It's very big isn't it?" he asked.

"Yes, it's enormous!" she exclaimed. "Have you been here before, Alphonse?"

"A few times."

"Don't you and Edward ever get lost?"

"Ha ha…as long as I follow Brother, I won't get lost. He knows this place pretty well." Al chuckled. Ed turned his head slightly to listen in on their conversation. He was surprised by the fact that Kerria had never seen a big place like this before, but after thinking about her former home life, he realized that maybe it wasn't all that surprising. They finally reached Roy's office, and Ed knocked on the door.

"Come in." A voice said from inside. They all noticed it was not Roy's, but a woman's voice that had spoken. Ed reluctantly opened the door and they all stepped inside. The room was not very big, but not small either. In the back of the room was a large desk, and in front of the desk were a few leather chairs. Many bookshelves, paintings and wall hangings lined the walls, and the floor was covered in forest green carpet. Seated behind the desk was a teenage girl; her shoulder-length, brown hair was tied back in a ponytail that was slightly spiked at the top, and the ends of her hair were highlighted with silver. She looked up from her paperwork when she noticed Ed, Al, and Kerria walk into the room.

"Colonel Edward!" She smiled happily. "You hardly ever come to the office anymore…I miss you helping me out! You never come sharpen my pencils anymore, or file my paperwork for me, or dust the desk…you never even bring me tea much anymore!" she gave him a sulking look.

"I don't come anymore because you always force me to help you and give me even more work than I already have!" Ed retorted. Al and Kerria were starting to realize why Ed dreaded coming to Roy's office so much. The girl glared at Ed for a minute, then quickly smiled again when she noticed Al and Kerria standing behind him.

"Ah! You brought visitors?" she asked, getting up and walking over to them. Al and Kerria smiled nervously and introduced themselves. "Nice to meet you both." The girl smiled. "I'm Fuhrer Mustang's secretary, Kashi Murasakiiro. Although I think it would be more fun to be Colonel Edward's secretary." Al and Kerria laughed slightly, and Ed rolled his eyes. "So…" Kashi started. " The Colonel has brought his brother and his brother's girlfriend with him today, huh?"

"Wha-Whaaaaaat?" Al and Kerria exclaimed, both of them blushing furiously. Ed couldn't help snickering to himself.

"Ha ha! I'm just kidding." Kashi laughed. "I just wanted to see your reactions." she stuck her tongue out and winked at them smugly. Kerria and Al stared at the floor, still blushing. It was then that something about Kashi caught Ed's attention.

"Kashi…what…what are you wearing?" Ed stammered. Al and Kerria lifted their gaze from the floor and looked in the direction Ed was. Kashi was dressed in her military uniform, but instead of the normal uniform pants, she had on a very tight, blue skirt that came down a few inches above her knees.

"Oh this?" Kashi started, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Isn't it cute? It just came in today! Fuhrer Mustang had this idea that all female officers should wear miniskirts. Most everyone refused to wear them, but they just looked so cute I couldn't help myself!" Ed, Al and Kerria all stared at her with a mixture of surprise and disgust on their faces. How could there be someone who actually liked that idea?

"Sounds pretty lively in here." A smug voice said from the door. Everyone turned around to see Roy smirking at them.

"Mr. Mustang!" Al exclaimed.

"Good to see you again, Alphonse," Roy said, turning to him. "Edward hasn't been wearing you out too much lately I hope." Al laughed nervously and assured Roy that he was fine.

"Y-You…!" Ed glared at him and started to say something, but he just sighed and asked "So what did you want to see me about?" Al, Kerria, and Kashi quickly left the room so Ed and Roy could speak in private.

"So what do you think of Central Headquarters so far?" Kashi asked Kerria once they were outside the room.

"It actually seems like a fun place," Kerria giggled. "even though it's supposed to be serious."

"Man you're good at observing." Kashi commented. "You've got this place pinned." Al nodded in agreement.

"Brother complains all the time about the work he has to do, but I can tell he likes it here, otherwise he wouldn't still be here." He remarked. "The only reason he joined the military in the first place was to get information from them, but even after our journey was over he decided to stay in the military." he stared at the ground, deep in thought. Kerria wondered what he meant by "journey". She could sense that the Elric brothers had been hiding something from her; even with everything she had told them about her, they never said anything about themselves. She had so many questions to ask, but she didn't want to seem rude, so she decided to wait and see if they told her on their own.

Inside the office, Roy and Ed were discussing a serious problem that had arisen recently. Roy was seated at his desk and looked at Ed with a serious expression on his face. Ed sat in one of the leather chairs across from him, and was reading a report Roy had handed to him.

" 'Murders'?" Ed repeated part of what he had just read in the report.

"Yes," Roy replied gravely. "There has been a series of murders happening in and around central. We're still investigating the matter, but…"

"But?"

"But all of the victims so far have been around your age." Roy finished. Ed gasped slightly and scowled at the report in his hands. Why would someone be killing innocent teens? It didn't make sense. "So I suggest you look after yourselves." Roy said firmly. Ed looked up to face him. "You, your brother, and that friend of yours…the girl." Ed looked somberly at the floor again. Roy was right; they had to be very careful or they could be next.

He came outside the office to find Al and Kerria waiting for him. "Brother, is something wrong?" Al asked him. "Your face looks so serious." Ed quickly grinned and gave them a thumbs up sign with his hand.

"Never been better!" He said cheerfully. "I'm finally done listening to that jerk go on and on. Now let's see if we can get through the rest of the day!" Ed motioned for them to follow him, and started to walk down one of the long hallways to the break room; he decided to tell Al and Kerria about the murders once they got there and could talk in private.

By the time the day was over, it was almost pitch dark outside. Ed, Al, and Kerria were all a bit nervous about walking home in the dark; there was a murderer on the loose, after all. The three of them walked cautiously down the street towards their house, looking all around them for any signs of movement. Almost nobody was around, and there was an eerie sense about the city that wasn't present during the day.

"I never knew walking home at night could be so scary." Al said with a slight nervous chuckle. He gazed over at Kerria, who looked even more frightened than he was. She had both of her hands clenched into fists, and she held them up to her face. Her usually soft, gray blue eyes were now wide with fear, and shifting in every direction. Al placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be alright." he smiled. Kerria looked up at him and nodded a little.

"We'll be fine." Ed assured them. "Just as long as we keep our eyes peeled." Just then, there came a rustling from a nearby bush, and all three of them jumped. They huddled close together and waited for whatever the thing was to show itself. Suddenly, a shadowy figure leapt from the bush and towards them; they all cried out in terror as they fell to the ground. After a moment, Ed slowly opened one eye; he couldn't see the figure anymore, so he figured that whatever it was must have left. He sat up and glanced behind him, starting to tell Al and Kerria that the coast was clear. "It's okay, it must have been a cat or some--" he suddenly stopped in his tracks as something about them caught his eye. "Wh-what?"

Kerria slowly opened her eyes; she couldn't see anything, as her eyes hadn't re-adjusted to the dark yet, but she could hear Ed nearby so she decided that the coast must be clear. She tried to sit up, but as she did she noticed something was keeping her down.

"E-eh?" Kerria blinked. Her eyes finally started to adjust to the dark and she found that right in front of her own face…was Al's face! They stared at each other in surprise for a moment, and then both began to blush furiously. Apparently, when they fell, Kerria had landed on her back and Al landed forward on top of her. The result, of course, was something that appeared very devious.

"Aaaaah!" they both cried as they quickly separated from each other. Ed couldn't help but laugh out loud. "I…I'm so sorry!" Al apologized, still blushing. "I didn't mean to, really!"

"I-It's okay." Kerria assured him with a slight nervous laugh. They all got to their feet and walked in silence the rest of the way home.

A/N: Ha ha funny ending huh? My rabid fangirl side was kinda showing there for a bit. lol! Well I hope to get started on the next chapter whenever I can. Laters all!