Disclaimer: I don't own FullMetal Alchemist.

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Who has to know
The way she feels inside
Those thoughts I can't deny
These sleeping dogs won't lie
-All American Rejects, "Dirty Little Secret."
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The first day of school was tomorrow, and all over SASE students were preparing. All of them, except a choice few. One of the most surprising of those few was a young boy named Alphonse Elric, who had other things on his mind.

Edward was still asleep, leaving the younger Elric with no choice but to either wake his brother up, or leave. It did not take long to choose. It was late in the morning, but Alphonse already had something he wanted-almost needed-to do. The window blinds let only the palest shade of sunlight warm the room. Fall and winter were coming soon, and Al thought briefly that he would need to get warmer clothes. He had brought a bare minimum, as had Ed, and only a single sweater. However, that thought was pushed away as he slowly, quietly, opened the door and closed it.

He walked slowly and carefully through the building. Jaila and Monica shared room 13, not very far from his and Ed's. The hall had only a shadow of the traffic of yesterday, but Al took notice of little of it. He made a right turn, and found this hallway far more barren. Most of these rooms belonged to girls, who were either gossiping in their rooms or sleeping. The youngest Elric was glancing for the right door and finally found the gleaming numbers he had searched for. Tentatively, he knocked. It was truly a quiet sound, but it seemed a deafening crash to him.

The door opened and Monica appeared. "Hey Al, what's up?" She must have showered only a little while ago, because her hair was wet and curled slightly as it fell down her back. She was putting it up in a ponytail while awaiting his explanation.

"Well, uh, I wanted to talk to you. Is Jaila around?" Monica smiled and ushered him inside, closing the door. In many cases, this would have caused vicious rumors to circulate, but Monica didn't have many enemies. She was a person most people liked, and that had its advantages.

"Jaila left a little while ago, but she'll be back. What did you need?" It never occurred to the young boy that Monica already had an idea of what he wanted to speak of. Why else had she pulled him in?

"Well, it's about her, you see. I mean…you know!"

Monica nodded and sat down. For the first time since he'd met her, Alphonse saw a somber look on Monica's face. "Jaila…well you know what a chimera is, right?" Al nodded. "Well, Jaila is a combination of a human and a cat. Both animals are similar enough that it worked and created a talking chimera that was more human than animal. Her ears and tail, as well as heightened senses, come from that contorted experiment."

Al's eyes widened in horror. "Who-"

"The Sewing-Life Alchemist, Shou Tucker…my brother." Seeing Al's horror, she shook her head. "No, that doesn't make her Shou's daughter. My older sister, who was adopted into the family, gave birth to her. She was too young to handle a baby, so she surrendered her to Shou. Unfortunately, that was around the time he began his research. Jaila was too human and he would be arrested if anyone found out. Regrettably, her mother discovered her daughter and was horrified. Shou made her take Jaila back and tell no one. Three days later, she committed suicide, saying that she could not stand to be related to a monster. Therefore, we looked up her real family and found one of Jaila's uncles, Kain Fuery, and he took her in. She learned alchemy from some state alchemists on the sly, and came to this school. By blood, we're not even relatives. It's pretty confusing.

"She's just lucky no one's taken her to the state for testing. The thing is, doing so would cause such a stir that protests would arise, and other stuff like that." Monica shrugged her shoulders. "Just, don't ask her about it. It's bad enough the halls can't stop talking about her."

Al shook his head. "Sorry, I just…"

A hand fell on his shoulder in comfort. "Hey, don't worry. You've got a good heart Al." Her smile was back, and he felt reassured. He might have stayed like that a second longer, had a knock not come to the door. "Central Station," she muttered with a grin. "I must be popular."

As she opened the door, her face took on a frustrated look. "What do you want now?" Al couldn't get a good look at the newcomer, but it apparently wasn't the best of company.

A 'tut tut' sound come from the other side, it was definitely male, he'd figured, and this annoyed her more. "C'mon Mo, can't you lighten up? I didn't mean to push you into the fountain…it kind of just happened. You'd be surprised how strong the wind is up here in Central compared to down south."

"Too bad the men got weaker."

"Touché."

"Screw you."

"Please."

"Never." She shut the door in his face. "Annoying dick," she growled.

Alphonse cocked his head. "Who was that?"

"Don't ask. Where's Ed anyways?" Al told her scornfully that his brother was snoozing. "Huh…lucky duck. Hey, Al, want to do me a solid? I'm going to play a quick game with some old friends, but I want to see Jai sometime today as well. Maybe you could go grab her. You'll find her not too far from here. 56 Ancolage St. is the address. It's a small house, nothing fancy. She's either there or will be soon. Could you help me out?" Now that Al thought about it, he wondered what sport she played. She was decked in shorts and a t-shirt, so it made sense she would be doing something. He questioned what sport and she reached under her bed to reveal a ball of ebony and ivory.

"The world's greatest pastime." She said with a glimmer in her eyes. That glimmer was extinguished for a second, however, and concern filled the pools. "Alphonse, please, keep this between us. Our secret? You can tell Ed, but only somewhere where no one else can here. Promise?" Al nodded.

"I promise."

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Ancolage St. was a small side road that was the only spot in Central that could accurately be called the middle of nowhere. Only a few houses stood along it, a couple with 'for sale' signs. He found one with number 56, but it seemed abandoned, as he couldn't see any light. Wait, yes he could. On of the windows showed a flickering glimmer. The young boy looked around warily, and then walked up to the door, knocking warily.

At first there seemed to be silence, then footsteps. Finally, the door opened. Jaila stood in the doorway, apparently still in her pajamas. Her purple tank top was wet with something and her flannel pants seemed ripped. The inside of the house, from what Al could see, was clean, although very plain. "Alphonse?" She asked, confusion etched in her features.

"Uhm, Monica told me where you'd be, and she wants to talk with you."

"But, she has spoken to you already." It wasn't a question, but not quite an assumption. It seemed like a commonly stated fact that everyone knew. Alphonse raised an eyebrow, but Jaila smiled. It was not one of her shy ones that seemed to hold back. This one revealed happiness and excitement not unlike a child at Christmas. The burden was no longer secret. There was someone she did not have to hide something from. "Come in Al," she said, "There's something I want to show you."

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Okay, another chapter's done! R&R please! Also, since I probably won't post anymore chapters until after turkey day, Happy Thanksgiving! Gorge yourselves, my ducks!