A solemn song played in the background as many people in black stood in neat rows. Al cried on Ed's shoulder as Lita's coffin was carried down the middle and was set on the alter before them. Roy Mustang stood up and walked up to the podium. p
Mustang: "We are gathered here today to celebrate the life of Lita Lerena Nitro. Some of us knew her as a hardworking individual who would stop at nothing to help her best friends Edward and Alphonse. Others knew her as a talented State Alchemist that became the youngest female to ever pass the Alchemy Exam. Others knew her as a beautiful warm-hearted woman, who would sacrifice an afternoon to herself to help you with your paperwork or sacrifice her life to save a friend. In her years in the military she had made many friends, but mostly enemies." Many laughed brokenly at this. "One moment she was helping you off the ground, the next she's knocking you back on your ass. She could always lighten up a room with her smile, and could always make you laugh even if she didn't mean too. Although the ears may have misguided you, she was almost nothing like a cat. Yes, she never listened to orders, she hated the rain and loved milk but I suppose the most important thing a cat has was something she didn't have. Cat-like reflexes. If you ever came into Central headquarters on any day you chose, you could always find her complaining about falling down a pair of stairs or running into a pole she didn't know had been there." He paused for a moment as he almost started to cry. "But I watched her grow up right in front of me. She was almost like the daughter I never had, and I love her. I know I will never forget her and I know we will see each other again someday." He looked over at Armstrong who nodded. "I would now like to present Lieutenant Colonel Alex Armstrong who would like to say a few words." Mustang stepped down. p
Armstrong: "Lita and I first met after Brigadier General Mustang sent me to trail her and the Elric brothers to make sure they were not harmed by an Alchemist Killer named Scar. I did fail that mission unfortunately, as Scar had gotten away. But soon after Lita and I became good friends, as I would like to call it. I know I got on her nerves sometimes with all of the muscle flexing but she never showed it. If you were close to her she would never tell someone her true feelings, she could always make you think that she loved everything that you did, no matter how infuriating or annoying it really was. She would always say it doesn't matter what I think because that's the way a person is and I can't change that. Lita was right about that and that is probably what I respected most about her, that she took in a persons real nature and she respected everyone in their own right. She never tried to change anyone because she thought they were perfect the way they were. I've learned many life lessons from her that I will continue to carry with me for as long as I walk this earth. Find peace, Lita Nitro, because you truly deserve it." He also stepped down and Edward stood up. Ed stood at the Podium for a moment, trying to think of what he wanted to say. p
Ed: "Fifteen years ago, I found Lita wrapped in a blanket in a shed about a quarter of a mile from our house. Her mother and father had left her there because they were unable to take care of her anymore. Over the next fifteen years we grew up together, watched our loved ones die together, and made mistakes together, life changing mistakes. But through it all we made it through together. She gave me the strength to get through the hard times. Her + Me Success but now the formula has been changed; now she is gone. It almost seems like a nightmare that I will never wake up from." Ed didn't care how many people were watching him right now. Tears flowed down his face and he didn't make any attempt to stop them. "I love her so much. . . and I never got to say it. So many chances I threw away when I could have told her how I felt, and now I can never tell her. I'll never love anyone ever again, not like her. They say young love never dies, and that will hold true for me." And he abruptly stepped down. Winry and Pinako handed everyone a rose and they placed it on Lita's coffin. As the coffin holding her body was lowered into the ground, it began to rain. Mustang looked up from beside Ed. p
Mustang: "Even the heavens weep." The ground was covered and everyone retired to the Rockbell's home for the after gathering. Ed repeatedly looked up at a special plaque that was made in Lita's honor by the military. 'The Heart Of An Alchemist Never Dies' they didn't know how right they were.