A/N: For conveniences sake both Maes and Mustang are already together in Central command. I know in the series he's supposed to be out east (I believe it was) but I went ahead and moved him over to central early. He is already a colonel, his promotion moving him speedily to central city.

A/N 2: Also I don't think I addressed this earlier so I'll address it now. Edward can use alchemy in the future. I know he ends up losing it but I just could never accept this aspect of the story line. It takes away why we all fell in love with Edward to begin with, his passion for alchemy and justice.


Elicia sat on her bed playing with a small chubby doll her father had gotten her for Christmas. Night had fallen and her mother had already come to tuck her in but she didn't feel like sleeping just yet. She giggled a little at her own joke as she quietly chatted with the doll about her day. For her it was the most eventful day she could have ever had, she was three, taking the world by storm and as a bonus her father had taken her out for ice cream that day. There was a small sizzling noise that caught her attention as she focused her bright green eyes next to the closet where the sizzling was coming from. She hopped off the bed and bent down as a small circle began to form itself into the paint. Slowly it took form and the sizzling started to grow louder then with a pop it began to glow and everything went white.

She was crying as she walked around lost, all that was surrounding her was whiteness as far as the eye could see. She cried out for her mom or her dad but they wouldn't come. She wandered around until she came upon a large set of doors; a shadowed man perched in front of it. Elicia mustered up all her courage and began to speak to the unknown man. "Can you please take me to my mommy and daddy," The shadow quirked its head to the side. He stood up and stepped sideways opening the doors before her. The tears stopped streaming down her face. The doll she had been carrying had fallen to the ground, forgotten. It was as if all the information of the world was being pumped into her brain. Then came the memories. She saw it all, her father's funeral, her mother's dead body, and her alchemy exam, then Mrs. Malarie. She saw the lessons between her and Big Brother Ed, she saw Alphonse with his girlfriend and Uncle Mustang sitting at a desk in a room that was bigger than her whole house. Her chest ached and tears streamed down her face. Why? Why was this happening? Why did any of it have to happen? Suddenly the doors slammed shut and the shadowed figure resumed his sitting position in front of the gates. "Now you know," it whispered. Elicia was still crying. Her heart ached. "Now I know," came her quiet reply back. The light gave out and she lost consciousness.

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Elicia woke up on ground tightly clutching something to her chest. She let it go and it fell to the floor, a metallic ring echoing through her room as she threw the door open and ran to her parent's room. As quietly as she could she opened the door. She could here her father's snores and she could see her mother dangling dangerously close to the edge of the bed. She closed the door quietly behind her, her hand covering her mouth as tears fell down her face. They were ok. They were alive, both of them. Together. She walked back to her room holding her mouth tightly trying to stifle the gasps that so desperately wanted to come out. The door shut behind her with a soft click as she slid against the door to the floor. She didn't know if she was crying from happiness, sadness, or relief. All she knew was the tears wouldn't stop. She would save them and she would save Ed too. She knew it all now, and it was her responsibility not only as a colonel but also as a daughter to keep her family together. She got up quietly, the tears finally receding and picked up a pocket watch. This must have been what she was holding. The front had the Amestrian logo emblazoned on it. She clicked it open and the stars that adorned her future uniform fell neatly into her hand. On the inside of the cover was a picture; newly promoted as a colonel with Ed in his brigadier general uniform, his arm slung casually around her beaming proudly at the camera. She replaced the stars back into pocket watch and clapped her hands, sealing it alchemically. She pulled a sock out of her dresser and put the pocket watch inside then stashed it in the back of her closet where in a few years time she would hide her alchemic books and research. Her mother never had found any of it and she wouldn't find this either. With a yawn she climbed into bed but she couldn't sleep now. She had too much on her mind. Moments ago she was happily chatting with her doll. Now she had the weight of the world on her shoulders.

Elicia woke up to the smell of bacon wafting into the room. She rubbed her eyes tiredly. After all the revelations she hadn't fallen asleep till nearly dawn. She was lucky she was so young. At least she didn't have to worry about having to do anything later on. She climbed out of bed still rubbing her eyes as she made it to the kitchen. Her mother stood at the stove humming happily to herself and her father sat at the table with a paper in one hand and coffee in another. He was already dressed and ready for work. "Elicia!" Her mother exclaimed excitedly. She jumped a little in surprise and felt strong arms encircle her as her father snuck up behind her and pulled her into a big hug, hoisting her into his arms. "How's my beautiful little girl today?" He cooed at her, flashing the widest smile she had ever seen. Suddenly her heart began to ache and she could feel tears welling up in her eyes. She couldn't lose this. She had to do something. Almost as fast as the pain flashed through she was soon engulfed in guilt. She was no longer the innocent little child they had put to bed. She could no longer run around screaming wildly as her daddy played tag with her. She wasn't the same person anymore. Maes frowned when he noticed the shift in attitudes as he carried her over to the table to join him. "What's wrong muffin? Does your tummy hurt? Did you lose your doll?" His voice was soothing but only reinforced the guilt she felt. She would save them but she had made it so that she was the daughter neither of them wanted now. They just didn't know it yet. Maes shot his wife a grimace when all he was met with was brooding silence.

The silence was broken when Gracia brought over a plate with bacon and eggs for them and took a seat across from her husband. They tried for the duration of breakfast to get her attention and to try cheer her up but nothing was working. Eventually the table was cleared and Maes stood up and motioned for Gracia to step into the other room with him. She sat quietly staring at the wall thinking about everything that had (will?) transpire to her and her family and to Amestris as a whole. She was shocked back into the real world when her father picked her again and flashed another giant smile; her mother was leaning against the door frame smiling at the both of them. "I know you've been missing me sweetie, so your mom and I decided well why don't we let you come to work with me?" His eyes were twinkling and the triumphant smile on his face betrayed how much of a good idea he thought it was. Elicia flashed him a rather weak smile that worried the Lieutenant Colonel but he shrugged it off as he put her down so she could run to her mother to help her get dressed.

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Elicia had wandered into Colonel Mustang's office behind her dad as he came in to regale him of the newest developments in her early life. She plopped down in front of a bookcase and pulled out a book on the bottom shelf letting it fall open before her. Alchemical arrays were imprinted on the book as well as advanced alchemical formulae and equations. She flipped through it absent-mindedly absorbing the information before her as her father prattled on about how he thought she was having a rough day because she lost her favorite doll. She flashed back to the gate at that, she remembered wandering lost in the stark whiteness surrounding her, her doll clenched tightly in her arms. She must have left it there by accident when the transmutation had completed. She jumped slightly when she felt arms wrap around her and giggled a little when she felt his beard tickle her neck as he kissed her gently on the cheek. "And what is it my little baby found over here, hmmm?" He cooed lightly in her ear as he picked up the alchemy book she had been reading. "Ah Roy my darling Elicia must be a genius, she's already begun to try to teach herself alchemy." The arms encasing her disappeared and much to her chagrin so did the book she was reading; whisked away for Roy to peruse and feign interest in their daily lives. She watched them bicker lightly from her vantage point on the floor and saw as Mustang's eye began to twitch in irritation. She laughed at the memory of mustang nearly destroying Brigadier General Elric's office with that same eye twitch. Mustang got up slowly and gave his best friend a glare, eye still twitching as he feigned large amounts of paper work and began to escort the older man out. Hughes turned to her and waved, gesturing for her to come with him. Elicia looked between the two and put on the sweetest face she could muster, "Daddy, is it ok if I stay with Uncle Roy?" Roy's eyebrow rose at this and Maes gave her a confused look. He looked at Mustang who shrugged his approval and Maes nodded. "Well alright, sweetie. I'll be back later ok and if you need anything just ask Uncle Roy, ok?" Elicia nodded as her father left them alone with one last sideways glance. It didn't escape her that her father handed off a small camera to Roy and a dirty look imploring him to document her 'first day without daddy or mommy'.

Roy had given her the book back to mindlessly explore as he worked through his paper work. It felt odd, studying the famous flame's alchemy in his office; the future Fuhrer of the country. She took extra special notes in her head of the hand scrawled annotations and equations trying to memorize what she was sure was a very private book that he only shared with her because of his fair assumption she couldn't read or comprehend anything in it. She had gotten flashes of the older man's brilliance while working alongside Ed but she had never touched his research or spoken to him outside of the office to really get a feel of what truly went on in the older alchemist's head. She heard a yawn behind her and looked up to see the older man's head beginning to nod forward as he fought off sleep. She got up quietly and pushed the door open a little and walked over to Hawkeye who was diligently doing her own paperwork while keeping a watchful eye on the rest of the team. Elicia tugged lightly on her pant leg to get her attention. Riza looked down surprised, then her features settled into a warm smile. The Lieutenant bent over and picked her and placed her in her lap. "What are you doing here little Elicia?" She looked over towards the door that lead to Mustang's office. "Uncle Roy is sleepy and I wanted to get him some coffee but I can't reach. Could you help me get Uncle Roy some coffee?" Riza's eyes had softened at the little girl's request as she nodded and placed the little girl down on the ground. Quietly she trailed after the older woman as they made a few turns through the hallways and came to stop at a small coffee cart. It felt like a few days ago she had stopped at the same cart for coffee before she went to meet with Brigadier General Elric when in reality it wouldn't come to pass for at least another twenty years. The feelings of guilt began to crush her again but she tried her best to push them to the back of her mind. "Did he say how he would like it Elicia?" Riza had poured the cup and held a small packet of sugar in her hand. Elicia flashed back to when she had gotten coffee for him once when he and Ed were in a meeting a few months ago, "two packets of sugar please." Riza nodded as she added the sugar to the coffee and bent down slowly to give her the cup. "This coffee is very hot ok Elicia? I want you to walk very slowly and carefully as we go back to the office because I don't want you to hurt yourself, ok?" Riza gave her a stern but loving look and she nodded as they made their way slowly back to the office.

Mustang had nodded off, his hand barely supporting his head as he tilted dangerously back and forth threatening to face plant into his work and break his nose in the process. Riza shook his shoulder lightly waking the man up as Elicia stood there patiently waiting. He blinked blearily then straightened up when he realized who had awoken him. "Good afternoon Lieutenant. Just finishing up here, there's no need to come in and watch me. You and I both know how little the guys out there get done when you're in here!" He was babbling nearly tripping over his words trying to protect whatever limb was about to be threatened. Riza frowned but gestured to Elicia, "she wanted to bring you some coffee." Elicia took her queue and walked up to him and lifted the coffee as high as she could so Mustang could take it from her. He gave them both a confused look at first then accepted it gratefully and took a sip. "Very good, just how I like it. You're very sweet for thinking of getting me coffee," he said and put a hand on Elicia's head in thanks. Riza raised her eyebrows at this, having assumed he was the one that had requested the little girl get him coffee in the first place but figured she did it for her father at home and just wanted to help her Uncle out in the same way. She excused herself so her superior could get back to work and left the door open just a crack in case Elicia needed to be let out. Mustang shot her a happy smile as he tiredly went back to signing papers, taking sips of paper in-between the shuffling. Elicia took her place back in front of the book she was reading and remained that way until her father had come by to pick her up for lunch.

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The next few days passed similarly, her father convinced by now that she just missed her Uncle Roy and since she was so well behaved she had been allowed to spend her days reading alchemy books while her Uncle did his paperwork. Riza had even given her the unofficial job of 'keeping Roy working' which basically meant whenever he dozed or slacked off Elicia was instructed to get Riza who would quickly put him back on the path of being a productive citizen. The days began to blur together and her father only grew more worried but found solace in the fact she seemed to cheer up when she was around her Uncle. He supposed as long as she was happy it didn't hurt to bring her to work with him and Roy didn't seem to mind keeping an eye on her.

The door banged open loudly and both occupants of the office jumped. Ed barreled into the room cursing his superior officer as the door banged against the wall leaving a small indentation in the plaster. Elicia giggled a little to herself drawing the attention of Ed who cut his rant short at the sight of the pint-sized guest. She had never seen her 'father' address his superior that way so it was funny to see the dynamic between the two before Mustang became Fuhrer. She had heard the tales of the legendary Hero of the People and the Hero of Ishval practically laying the command to waste but those years had long since passed by the time she had risen through the ranks enough to regularly come in contact with either of them. She ran to Edward and threw her arms around his leg tears had begun to stream down her for the second time that day. She missed him. Despite the fact she had her family Edward had been her father for so long and not seeing him everyday broke her heart. Ed sputtered in surprise then kneeled down in front of her. "What's wrong Elicia? Is everything ok?" She sniffled at this and nodded her head. "I just missed you was all." Ed quirked his head to the side in confusion, he had spent time with Elicia, sure but most of the time she had trouble recognizing him so he wondered where this newfound fondness had come from. Mustang cleared his throat now, grabbing Ed's attention. "Fullmetal, your report?" Ed shot him a dirty look but refrained from using the multitudes of profanity that popped into his head for the sake of Elicia. He got up and plopped a folder onto Mustang's desk then turned back around to give Elicia some attention. "Fullmetal." Ed frowned, "I'll give you my report in a minute pony-boy, just let me say hi to Elicia." A feeling of relief flowed through her as she felt Ed's arms around her but was surprised when she felt one was significantly harder than the other. She remembered being told about the automail but to be confronted with it just made it all too real.

Elicia sat next to Hawkeye's desk as she read, having been instructed to go out there while Ed gave him his report. She could hear the muffled shouting and the occasional curse as Ed and Roy got down to business. It only took a few minutes until the door swung open with a loud bang again and Edward stormed out of the room fuming as he made his way out of the office. Elicia grabbed up her book to rejoin Roy noting the hole in the wall was just a tad bit bigger than the first time Edward had used the door. She replaced the book into the bookshelf and went over to Roy and asked for a pad of paper and a pen. He pulled the pad out of his desk and handed it to her. "I'm sorry I don't have any crayons Elicia. Would you like me to send Hawkeye to get you some?" Elicia shook her head. "No thank you. I just needed to write my thoughts down." Mustang's eyebrows rose at this but handed her a pen and went back to work. Elicia was a strange child. What three year old had thoughts, and ones to write down at that?

She spent the afternoon writing down everything she knew about Xingese alchemy, or more precisely what she had used to transfer transmutations from one place to another. She made sure to write it in the Xingese language just in case someone read over her shoulder. It just looked like scribbles to the uneducated eyes. It had popped into her head last night after she had heard the soldier's talking in the mess hall yesterday. The applications for state alchemists had opened up and in one-month time they'd be considering submissions. She knew she was far too young to be a field agent or be of much use in investigations like her father but she could be a research alchemist if she could prove her worth. Edward had done it and she had just as much alchemical experience now as he did. This way she could remain close to her father. Nothing would happen if she were near him and what better excuse to have her come with him to work than if she were a dog of the state as well? She needed access to the library though. She tapped her pen in thought then it popped into her head. Alphonse! She bet she could get him to take her into the national library and no one would think twice about a little girl going through state only books and records. They'd think she was just trying to be a grown up like her big brothers. It was perfect. Elicia stood up and patted her dress to get the dust off it, "Uncle Roy?" Roy made a soft noise letting her know he was listening. "Do you know when Big Brother Al will be coming in?" Roy put his pen down and thought for a moment. "Well, his brother's probably mad at me so…I'd say he'll have Edward's rewritten report for me tomorrow. I doubt it'll be Ed to turn it in." Elicia smiled and ran up to Roy and hugged his leg. "Thank you Uncle Roy!" Roy smiled and patted her on the head. Elicia ran back over to her notes and turned to her Uncle. "Is it ok if I keep this?" Roy looked up to figure out what she was referencing then nodded his head. "Of coarse Elicia." She smiled at him again then made her way out to see if Riza would take her down to her father's office. She wanted to spend some time with him now.


A/N: I know it's a tad annoying that there's almost no talking and/or action yet but I had to finish setting up the story and with Elicia being 3 in this it's hard to make it build up since she needs to remain Elicia the 3 year old for her parents. Please bear with me as I set everything up.

Ok so thats the official start of the story. If you like it leave me a review or if you don't well review if you like as well. I know its a bit rough but my muse has been bugging me about this story for a long time and I'm just trying to get it out while I like how its going. I tend to forget plot points if I don't move fast.