Jean pov:
I hummed to myself as I walked through the corridor to my office, having picked up some documents that the colonel had asked me to bring to him. I was in high spirits today since Kiana had agreed to go out with me. The gears in my brain were already whirring as I thought of the perfect first date to set up with her. Since I felt very serious about this relationship, even more than the few I had been on with prospective girlfriends, I wanted to take things slowly and at a pace comfortable for Kiana. I didn't want to mess this up like my previous commitments – well, I suppose I couldn't really call them commitments because they were just meetings to test compatibility. Even though I came to like the girl because she was nice enough, things never worked out after the first few dates....and I didn't want something like that to happen with Kiana.
I was yet to mention it to the colonel and the others. I was waiting for Kiana to come to the office so we could tell everyone together. Speaking of which, she had probably reported in with the colonel by now. An excited grin made its way onto my face at the thought of seeing her and I couldn't help but pick up my pace of walking to the office.
When I reached the office though, my smile faltered because neither Kiana nor Kyran san were there. I suppressed the mild disappointment, since I knew she would come soon enough, and handed the documents to the colonel before taking my seat. I opened one of the leather folders to go through the papers inside but lifted my head up when a soldier came to stand at the door.
"Col. Mustang, Sir!" He said with a salute and walked in upon receiving permission to enter. "I'm here with a letter from the Glacier Alchemist."
I frowned just a bit in confusion. Kiana had sent a letter? Why had she sent in a letter instead of reporting in with the colonel?
"It seems she won't be coming to work today." The colonel said, having opened the letter and read through it after dismissing the soldier.
"She won't be coming to work today? Why?" I asked, feeling suddenly nervous. Was she avoiding me? Or worse, had something happened to her?
"The letter says that she got some leads on the Homunculi and she's gone after them. She's said she will contact us by phone when time permits." He responded casually and set the letter aside.
"Homunculi? When did she get a lead on them?" I pressed.
"She hasn't included that detail. Well, she'll be back soon, I suppose. She's strong and I trust that she will return with some progress in the matters of the Homunculi." The colonel said and went back to looking through some documents on his table.
I glanced out of the windows, frowning a bit and nervousness bubbling in my stomach. For a moment, I couldn't help but wonder if she was making up a reason to avoid me because she was uncomfortable with what happened yesterday. I knew that couldn't be true but I was still uneasy. Besides, she and Kyran san were still healing and I was worried for their well being.
"Lt. Havoc." Col. Mustang called out after a moment and I looked at him.
I got up from my seat and walked to his table to stand in front of him and waited for instructions. He pushed a sheet of paper to me for me to look over and I did so without hesitance. I read through the contents and blinked dumbly for a moment before looking back at the colonel.
"Colonel, this is....?"
"A mission I want you and Lt. Fuery to go on tonight." He completed. "That pub seems to be a safe house of ruffians who have been stirring trouble in Central lately. They've taken over the outskirts of the city and are robbing and embezzling money from the civilians. It would seem to not be something difficult to take care of but they're good at hiding their identity. This is the first tip off we've received about them since they started causing trouble and you two are to go with a few of Gen. Haruko's men undercover, find the ruffians and apprehend them. You are free to shoot them down if they resist."
"I understand, Colonel. But wouldn't it be difficult for us to get into the pub even if we are dressed in casuals? They'll probably check for weapons before we enter the pub and I'm pretty sure that we'll need to be armed when fighting against the ruffians – they will definitely be armed too." I stated.
"I am aware of that – that's why you'll have to find an alternate way in." He said and smirked, making me twitch. "Use your flirting skills to woo some of the women in the bar and they'll let you in without checking."
"Flirt?" I asked, feeling a little awkward.
"Of course! Use some sweet talk or something. I'm sure you can manage that much. I suppose Lt. Fuery has no skills in flirting but his innocence, so to say, should be enough to appeal to some girl." The colonel said with a shrug.
"I'm sorry, Colonel, but I can't take up this mission." I said almost immediately and it earned curious stares from not just the colonel and Lt. Hawkeye but the others as well. I wasn't one who refused the colonels orders before so my refusal now was definitely something they found odd.
"You can't take up this mission? And why not?" He questioned.
"Because I got a girlfriend. I can't go and flirt with some other girl when I have a girlfriend." I said matter-of-factly.
"You have a girlfriend?? I thought you broke up with your girlfriend last week!" Lt. Breda hollered.
"That's what I heard too." WO. Falman added.
"I did break up with Lynn last week but I have a girlfriend now, okay? And this time, I'm sure it's a serious relationship. It's not like the others....because it didn't start from a blind date." I said, annoyed with the words of the others.
"And who, may I ask, is your girlfriend now? I'm really curious to know since you say you're so serious about it." Col. Mustang mused, resting his chin on his interlocked fingers. Heat rushed to my face and a bead of sweat ran down the side of my face as I swallowed thickly.
"It's Kiana." I said and the whole room fell to pin drop silence.
"Whaaatt??!" Lt. Breda yelled, having been the first to recover from the shock. "You're going out with Kiana san?! Since when?? How come we didn't hear about this before?!"
"I asked her out yesterday and she agreed to go out with me."
"Wait....so you liked her?? How come you didn't tell me??" Lt. Breda hissed and pressed his face up against mine, irk marks pulsing on the side of his head. "I thought I was your best buddy. I can't believe you didn't tell me anything, you traitor!"
"I only realized I liked her recently so stop bugging me about it, Fatso." I responded, irk marks pulsing on the side of my head as well as I pushed against him in return. "And I'm telling you now, aren't I?!"
"Hmph! Touché." He muttered and folded his arms while looking away from me with a frown.
"Whatever the case, congratulations, Lieutenant." Col. Mustang said with a teasing smirk. "Make sure you work hard for Kiana san, hmm? We all know that she's a good person so don't let her slip away from you."
Heat rushed to my face again but I scowled slightly to hide it. "I don't need you to tell me that."
"Alright then! Lt. Breda, you'll be going on the mission in place of Lt. Havoc." The colonel said.
"Yeah yeah, whatever." Lt. Breda muttered and then grinned, bringing an arm over my shoulders to make me bend to his level. "You've got to treat us all to drinks and dinner – don't forget!"
"No way! I'm not letting you guys leave a hole in my pocket with your all-you-can-order meals!" I hollered.
"C'mon, mate! Don't be stingy!" Lt. Breda muttered.
"I don't mind being called stingy so I'm not going to treat you for anything more than one mug of beer. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to finish." I said and walked back to my seat to get back to what I was doing before.
Lt. Breda continued to mutter at how stingy I was being and not treating them but I smiled just a bit as I looked over the papers in front of me, my mind floating away to the embrace I had shared with Kiana yesterday. My insides felt tingly as the warmth of her in my arms still seemed to linger and made my heart skip a beat in euphoria. I also recalled how I found her to be so delicate in build – she was small and fit snugly in my arms and the desire to hold her so again bubbled fiercely within me. Although, there was also the still lingering uneasiness because of her absence today....
I shook my head slightly to dissipate the negative thoughts that were brewing in my mind. I'm sure she wasn't avoiding me and I'm sure she would be alright while facing off against the Homunculi. She wasn't the sort of person to say one thing and do another – I trusted her.
But I was also a little surprised, now that I thought about it – despite having a small physique, she was quite strong. She held her own against opponents and wasn't afraid of going on dangerous missions for the military. She was really impressive.
I smiled to myself again just thinking of how lucky I was to have been accepted by her despite all the failures in the past. I had a good feeling about this relationship too. And I would make sure that I would do my best to make and keep Kiana happy.
Kiana pov:
I sighed deeply while looking at the landscape we passed by. We had been traveling all night and the train moved swiftly, though not as fast as the ones in my world, and we were now just an hour away from a town called Dublith. I had managed to get some sleep during the night journey but it wasn't enough considering the soreness in my body. Nonetheless, something was better than nothing.
Kyran was with Greed's two comrades and he was coming to Dublith by road – we were separated to ensure that we didn't get the chance to escape together before Greed got what he wanted from me. Now, he sat across from me with his arms folded over his chest, watching me in both curiosity and suspicion.
"You're really strange, you know that, Sweetheart?" He said and I looked into his beady eyes.
"Why do you say that?"
"Well, I'm sure anyone else would try to escape. They'd just leave behind their friends and save themselves." He said with a shrug.
"I'm not like that. Kyran is not only an important friend – he's family. And I never abandon family." I said confidently and he smirked, showing me his sharp teeth.
"I like your personality, Sweetheart, and I'm sure we'll get along real well."
I didn't respond to his statement and I went back to looking out of the window. We sat in silence until we reached Dublith and I was then escorted to a pub called the Devil's Nest. I followed Greed down the staircase at the very back of the bar and I twitched as I sensed Kyran and four other people – Chimera to be precise – along with....Alphonse? I frowned just a bit wondering why I was sensing Alphonse alone downstairs and not with Edward. However, my doubt was cleared when we stepped into a musty smelling room and I spotted Kyran and Alphonse on the floor tied in chains.
I clenched my fists, feeling anger bubble within me when I noticed a bruise on Kyran's cheek along with a cut on his thigh, the blood around it dry.
"Who said you could hurt Kyran?" I hissed at Greed, narrowing my eyes at him dangerously.
"My apologies, Sweetheart." He said, holding both hands up in defense. "I told my men to be nice but they couldn't really do anything else when your family here struggled, refusing to come without a fight."
"Kiana Onee san??" Alphonse spoke up and all eyes were on him.
"Oh? You two know each other, hmm? That makes things easier for me." Greed mused. "Now, why don't we...."
"Let Kyran go first." I interrupted.
"No can do, Sweetheart. I know you'll try to escape if I let him go." Greed said with a chuckle.
"What makes you think I can't escape even if you don't let him go? I'll just beat the shit you all and walk away with Kyran and Alphonse. But....why is Alphonse here anyway?"
"I don't think you can escape so easily, not when it's five against one." A buff man dressed in the military uniform said while looking at me. "And I'm sure you've already fought Greed sama and you're aware that he has an unbreakable shield. Fighting him will only end with you and your friends getting hurt."
"Roa is right." The woman spoke this time. She was watching me with a narrow stare, her arms folded. "Especially since you're not up against normal humans – a Homunculus and four Chimera can't be beaten by a single human, even if they are an alchemist."
"Oi oi, Martel, you're sounding rude to my special guest!" Greed said by Martel looked away with a scoff. "Don't feel bad for what my comrades said, Sweetheart. And to answer your question about metal boy here, I want to learn his technique of becoming immortal!"
"Immortal? You're saying that Alphonse is immortal?"
"Of course! He has a body that never ages and feels no pain! I want a body like that and he's going to tell me how to get it." Greed said, grinning madly.
"There's no such thing as immortality, idiot. If there was, there would be no value to people's lives." Kyran hissed from where he sat on the floor.
"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, Greed, but Kyran is right. There is no such thing as immortality and Alphonse is not immortal." I stated which caused his grin to falter.
"Not immortal? That's not possible, Sweetheart – it looks like you don't know much about him."
"No, you don't know anything about Alphonse." I corrected. "He may have a body that doesn't age or doesn't feel pain but that doesn't make him immortal. He had a blood seal inside his armor and it is what attaches his soul to the armor. If that is damaged even in the slightest, Alphonse will cease to exist."
"Are you serious?? So I brought this kid along for nothing? Man, what a letdown...." Greed said with a frown and rubbed his neck while looking at Alphonse. He then looked back at me and shrugged. "Oh well, I'll just have to find another way to gain eternal life. I'm sure there are other ways."
"Even if people have a longer lifespan, they can never be immortal. You're trying to find something that doesn't exist." I said again.
"That's what you say but just think about the few people who have lived for centuries in reality. Envy has been around for a good five hundred years." He stated and I twitched. "Judging from your reaction, it seems you've met Envy. Have you met Dante though? She's been alive for more than five hundred years too, even though she's a human."
I narrowed my eyes just a bit. "I suppose Envy being alive for that long isn't surprising – Homunculi live for very long because they have no soul, or at least barely have a soul. But who is this Dante person you speak of?"
"Dante? Greed san, you don't mean the old lady living in the forest, do you?" Alphonse asked.
"Of course I'm talking about her, boy. You don't seem to know her true identity." Greed answered. "Well, it doesn't matter, I suppose. Now let's get to the matter at hand, shall we? Let's make your alliance with me official, Sweetheart."
"I told you before and I'm telling you again – I'm not going to help you." I said and unsheathed my sword and activating the Shikai.
"I don't think that's a good idea, Sweetheart – not when your precious family could end up hurt before you do something to me." He said and I glanced at Kyran who was being held up by another guy with a dagger near his throat.
"You might have caught Kyran off guard once but don't think it will happen again." I said with a smirk and less than thirty seconds later, Kyran was free and Greed's Chimera friends were lying on the ground groaning in pain. Of course, both Kyran and I knew that they weren't going to stay down for long and were sure to not get caught off guard again but Greed and his comrades now knew that we were going to fight seriously.
"Hmm....I guess I gave him too less credit. However, there's no way you can beat me – not when I'm the ultimate shield." He mused.
"Let's see what you've got, hmm?" I said with a smile and readied myself.
He crouched just a bit, ready to launch himself at me but paused when the doors were burst open to reveal an enormous buff man and a woman dressed in a white top and dark blue capris. She looked around the room, her gaze lingering on me and Kyran for a few moments longer, before she looked at Greed with narrow eyes.
"I assume you're the one who's the boss here." She said while walking to him. "Thank you for taking care of Al for a while but I'll be taking him back now."
"Oi oi, what's with the interruption? Who are you?" Greed asked in disapproval.
"Just a housewife passing through and saving my useless student from this mess." She said with a glare at Alphonse who tensed. She was Edward's and Alphonse's teacher?
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that." Greed responded coolly.
"I'm going to take him back whether you like it or not!" She bellowed before sending a fist at his face. I cringed when she made contact with him and cursed under her breath in pain. Greed's skin had turned dark blue and hard and I was sure the woman's hand really hurt now. She pulled away from him and jumped back a few steps still glaring while cradling her bruised hand.
"My my, aren't you a violent woman? Tell me, did you break two fingers or three?" Greed mused.
"Sensei! Are you alright?!" Alphonse hollered and I glanced at him for a moment before looking back at the woman.
"That's a strange ability you have." She responded, managing a smirk through her expression of pain.
"I suppose so." Greed shrugged in response.
"Sensei! Where is Onii san? Is he safe??" Alphonse asked in worry.
"I should be asking you that. It seems you two can't even run a simple errand for me without getting stuck into trouble. You two are in a lot of trouble with me too so you better be ready for what I'm going to do later!" The woman scolded causing Alphonse to whimper.
She didn't respond but clapped her hands together and used alchemy to encase Greed in a concrete case. I pressed my lips into a thin line, understanding that she too had seen the Gate that Edward had told me about when he talked about his past. But the one thing I found odd was that she didn't seem to have any missing body parts that would have happened to anyone because of the Law of Equivalent Exchange.
"Um, I don't mean to interrupt but....do we really need to be fighting?" I spoke up and everyone looked at me. "I mean, I already told you than you can't get what you want from Alphonse so why don't you just let all of us leave and we'll call it a truce."
"You seem to be forgetting that I want you to be my ally, Sweetheart so even if I let the kid go, I can't let you...."
"And who are you?" The woman asked, or rather demanded as she looked at me.
"A-ah, I'm Kiana Sojuro, the Glacier Alchemist. It's nice to meet you." I introduced myself awkwardly.
"I see the military is now accepting female alchemists as well." She spat bitterly and I merely laughed, still feeling incredibly awkward.
"Well, I suppose you can take the boy but where's the fun in that? I'm sure my comrades can take care of you." Greed said and easily broke out of the concrete casing. "And you, Sweetheart, will be staying with me."
The other Chimera that Kyran had defeated were up on their feet again and had surrounded us. Roa chose to be Kyran's opponent since they knew Kyran's strength couldn't be underestimated while the other five seemed to ready themselves to fight the man and the woman. Greed, however, came to stand right in front of me smirking.
"How about we get serious and show you lot what we can really do, hmm? I'll be your opponent and when I win against you, you'll have no choice but to become my subordinate." He mused and took off his fur coat. The dark blue color of his torso began to spread to his arms and face and moments later, he had an appearance of a monster. But it didn't really faze me – I had seen much worse, especially in that of Hollows.
I took a moment to glance at the man and woman, of which the man was now standing in front of the woman saying that he wanted to take the fight into his hands now. From the way she referred to him, I understood that they were husband and wife.
"I'm impressed you don't look scared, Sweetheart. But you'll be scared soon enough and you'll have no choice but to agree becoming my ally when I fight for real now!" Greed san said, making me look back at him. He then grunted and launched at me.
Deciding to test my true strength now, since I saw no need to hold out against this pretty strong Homunculus, I exhaled and released the restraint I had had on my reiatsu for all this time. I held up my naginata and blocked his arm with ease, though tensing just a bit under the impact, causing him to gasp and widen his eyes in surprise. I pushed him back violently and he grunted as he met the wall, leaving part of it crumbling as he fell to his knees. He looked up at me in sheer surprise and hesitated for a brief moment to launch at me again.
The others were fighting as best as they could as well but after just two attacks, the woman fell to her knees while coughing up blood.
"Izumi!" Her husband called out anxiously but couldn't get past the three Chimera fighting him to help the woman. Another Chimera reached for the woman, lifting her up with a hold on her dress, and I sighed.
"It looks like I'll have to finish this quickly." I mumbled to myself feeling burdened and not really keen on letting more people see my true abilities. But I knew it had to be done. The woman and the man couldn't hold out against all the Chimera together, at least not under the present conditions.
I tightened my grip on my naginata and used Shunpo to get around the room and take care of all the Chimera before kneeling next to the woman with a hand on her shoulder.
"Ma'am, are you okay?'" I asked her and she looked at me with sweat dripping down the sides of her face.
"You....how did you...." She said through gasps.
"What in the world?! How did you do that, Sweetheart?! Man, it looks like what I heard from Envy was right! You do have special abilities besides your ice alchemy!" Greed said, grinning madly.
"I'm afraid I'm done playing around with you, Greed san. It's time for us to go – and that includes Alphonse. Kyran, can you please unchain him?" I said. Kyran nodded and walked to Alphonse to get him out of the restraints.
"Not so fast!" Greed yelled and rushed at Kyran. I, however, used Shunpo to get between them and caught his fist in my bare hand before shoving him back once again.
"I said we're done fighting. Don't make me have to do more damage."
"Do more damage?! I'd like to see you try!"
"Fine, have it your way." I replied and slashed my naginata diagonally across his chest, easily shattering his shield and leaving a blood pouring wound.
He gasped and so did my standing onlookers and Greed stepped back while applying pressure on the bleeding gash in hopes of making the blood stop. His appearance returned to how it was before and he was looking at me with a mix of a glare and an expression of pain.
"What the hell are you? Freak!" He shouted and my heart skipped a beat in discomfort. I inhaled deeply though and released my Shikai before sheathing my sword without taking my eyes off him.
"I assume we have no more reason to be fighting here?" I asked and looked at Kyran and Alphonse with a smile. "Let's get out of here."
The man carried the woman out since she couldn't walk on her own and I glanced briefly at Greed before we left the room to climb the stairs to the main part of the pub. Just before we exited the pub though, a frantic Edward came running it and skidded to a halt when he saw all of us.
"Al! Sensei! And Onee san?!" He yelled, his eyes wide in bewilderment.
"Hey there, Edward." I greeted with a chaste wave.
"What....what happened??"
"It's a long story – maybe we should find someplace to relax first – your teacher doesn't look too good." I said while glancing at her.
"O-oh, right." He said and we walked out of the pub, only to be greeted by several military men.
"Edward san! We told you not to rush in like – oh! Um, I see your brother is with you. And who are these people?" One of them asked while looking over us.
"Oya? Isn't that the famous Glacier Alchemist?" A really tall buff, bald man asked as he stepped to us. He had only a bit of curled blonde hair over the center of his forehead and his eyes were blue, though lighter than Jean's eyes.
"The Glacier Alchemist? But what is she doing here? I didn't hear anything about her being here for a mission." The first soldier said.
"I'm sorry for coming here unannounced. The Homunculus that kidnapped Alphonse also kidnapped Kyran so I came here to get him back." I answered.
"I see! I see! Then allow me to introduce myself! I am Alex Louis Armstrong – the Strong Arm Alchemist!" He said while giving a pose and flexing his muscles. I smiled awkwardly while eying the pink sparkles that had magically appeared around him, accentuating his dramatic pose.
"It's nice to meet you, Major." I said with a chaste bow.
"Major, now that Al has been saved, we can go back to Central and....gweahh!!"
I tensed and took a step back along with Kyran when Izumi san punched Edward square across the face, the force throwing him back several feet. She looked absolutely livid and both Edward and Alphonse were watching her terrified.
"Who said you could leave already??" She bellowed and I smiled awkwardly while glancing at Kyran. He looked a little startled by her but didn't appear in any way scared. He was brave enough to fight now and he knew that I wouldn't let him get hurt.
"S-Sensei! W-we have to go back! For m-missions!" Edward hollered in a desperate tone but Izumi san didn't calm down in the least.
"To hell with the military and its missions! You're going to be punished for going against my teachings first! You're coming with me and I'm going to pound some sense into you!" She said and took a hold of Edward and Alphonse by the collars to drag them away. She paused though and looked at me with the darkest glare I had seen anyone ever give me and said, "I have questions for you so hurry up and follow!"
"H-huh? O-oh, okay, I guess..." I said and gave a chaste bow to Major Armstrong before following the lady who was still dragging Edward and Alphonse along with Kyran – they looked terrified and were teary eyed. I bit my lip to hold in a smile of amuse as they looked at me with begging expressions but didn't openly ask for help fearing the wrath of their teacher.
It was just about ten minutes later when we made it to the outskirts of the town and to a big house made of cobblestone. Kyran and I were let inside while Edward and Alphonse were thrown against the wall before their teacher used alchemy to bind the two of them around the arms, torso and legs to make sure that they could barely move. They actually looked like caterpillars right now and I was trying really hard not to laugh.
"You! Sit down!" The woman commanded and Kyran and I complied and took a seat on the floor on our knees next to the two human caterpillars. "I'll be back and you better be ready for some serious interrogation!"
She walked through a door after that and I sighed deeply. "It looks like we've got tangled up in something unexpected."
"But do we really need to listen to her? We can just leave..." Kyran said while looking at me. "We did leave Central without anything more than a vague letter after all."
"I guess we could but I don't want to be rude. Besides, she's Edward's and Alphonse's teacher and definitely older than us so we have give her respect. We should probably request her to let us contact Col. Mustang and tell him what's going on though..." I said.
Edward grunted and I gazed at him as he wiggled violently to try and get out of the bindings. He was sweating profusely and looked like he was dreading what was to come.
"Oi Onee san!! help us out here! Please!" He begged. "If we don't escape now, we're as good as dead!"
"Why do you say that? You'll just get scolded, right? Just take it head on." I said with a laugh, obviously giving them the message that I wasn't going to help.
"You don't know her, Onee san!" Alphonse said with a whimper. "She's really scary when she's angry! And she barely yells at us – she pounds us to the ground!"
"Exactly! That's why we have to get out of here right now!" Edward hollered and I raised a brow. "We have to get out of here before she returns!"
"Well...I do sympathize with you but I don't think it's right for me to help you escape. I mean, she is kind of angry at me too and wants to question me. But why is she angry at me in the first place?" I mumbled at the end with a slight frown.
"She hates State Alchemists." Edward said. "The fact that we're State Alchemists and that you're a State Alchemist pisses her off. So before she decides to crush all of the bones in our bodies to dust, I suggest we get out of here!! Help us get out of these bindings, Onee san!!"
"Ooh...I still don't think I should do that. I'll try and help you in a different way though – I'll ask her not to hurt you guys too much. How does that sound?" I suggested with a smile and Edward paled.
"Oh man...we are so dead."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Phew!! Updating this one after a really long time. Yup, I'm updating stories randomly XD But I hope the surprise is fun! :D
Awwie, Jean sweetie is just a bit uneasy [omg that rhymed XD] but he trusts Kiana and has promised himself to be a good boyfriend! I hope things work out well for them.
Ah, Greed wans't successful in overpowering Kiana...I mean, how can he, right? He got his butt kicked but now it's time for our Elric brothers and Kiana to get their but kicked by Izumi san ^^' Welp, good luck you guys!
Hope you enjoyed the update!
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