SCARLETT

That was the moment Edward chose to show up. "Okay, Scarlett, why did you take off without telling me!" he yelled, pinning her first.

"If I went and told you, I would've lost Al when he went wandering off, and then neither of us would've been ale to find him. Simple as that." she said simply.

"No, it is not that simple!" he yelled angrily.

Someone behind her was bringing a weapon down!

She spun around, her arm whipping up. The blade sliced cleanly through the weapon as she kicked the wielder in the stomach.

"Wow, talk about pissed." Greed commented.

"You kidding? You kidnapped Alphonse, Ed's brother and my friend. It's natural that we're pissed to heck with you!" she snapped.

Keep it cool.

Don't let anything get to you.

If they aggravate you, you're walking their path.

Follow your own path.

She dropped the stance she had assumed, the blade in her arm vanishing and the rip sealing up. She stood, totally relaxed, taking a deep breath.

"I am in control. No one else is. I am in control. I am walking my own path, no one else's. I am Scarlett, formerly Yuuki. I am a fighter, one who strives to protect."

"Wake up!"

Her eyes shot open. All of the Chimeras had left with Al. She was left with Greed and Edward. Ed was already pretty banged up. As Greed flew at her, she smoothly dodged him. "This is how I work." she said softly.

What the...!

Her vision had become different. Now it showed small graphs and statistics. A few vectors pointed to different parts of Greed, information listed at the other end. She grinned. She didn't know how that had happened, but she loved it already!

GREED

She'd seemed asleep on her feet. He'd ditched the boy and charged her. At that moment, her eyes had opened and she'd smoothly ducked, making him miss. Shock was written across her face for one second, but then it was replaced by triumph. "Edward! The Shield is carbon-based! Hit it with some Alchemy!" she ordered.

"'Kay!"

Edward jumped onto his arm, clapping his hands to his arm. He shook the boy off, making to strike the girl. She put her fist up to meet his, and the Shield covering his arm shattered. "Beware me, Greed. I'm not human anymore, and I seem to develop new skills as I progress!" she snarled.

He growled, regenerating his arm and putting his Shield up again.

Then the wall fell and another new-comer arrived.

EDWARD

For the first time, Scarlett looked scared of Izumi. He understood. She looked really scary now! But her help was welcomed. They managed to combine all of their fighting skills, Alchemy, and Scarlett's new skill into making him scramble for an exit when Izumi was down.

But then came the soldiers.

He was scared for some reason. What if they were there for Scarlett?

They eventually recovered Alphonse. He was somehow passed out, with one of the Chimeras dead inside him. While he was out, they removed the girl from his armor.

Almost the second Al woke up, the Fuhrer came. They had a short conversation, but it ended quickly.

Bradley turned to Scarlett. She was sitting quietly, her hood up and glasses on. Her back was turned to them as she crouched in the dark. As if feeling his gaze, she turned around. "Can I help you?" she asked softly.

"You must be the tattooed Ishvalan that I've heard about."

He and Al panicked for just a second.

"I hear you're against Scar and forgive us for what happened to your country." the Fuhrer continued.

"Against him? Yes. I'm not forgiving you for what you did. I simply don't hold grudges like him. There are sometimes times when I consider joining him, but then I think how I may be able to change the way the world sees my people." she said softly. "Not everyone is good, but not everyone is evil, either. Some are neither, remaining neutral. Until I have found where I stand exactly, I remain on my path of neutrality."

"You're very brave, especially sine you seem to know me." Bradley told her.

"I was the girl that helped cause tension between our countries. The one that went missing. I was kidnapped and taken to a secret research facility. I was experimented on and turned into a Chimera. My eyes especially are something to be reckoned with. I can tell a lot..."

For one instant, he saw an almost wicked grin on her face.

"... just by looking."

"Well, you remember that we will permit you to roam free. But if you show the slightest intention of harming this country or anyone in it, I'll have you killed." Bradley told her.

"That is understood. I know how it works."

As the Fuhrer walked away, he crawled over to Scarlett. "Are you crazy?" he hissed.

"I really don't think you want an accurate answer there."