Aiden strutted into the office and sat at one of the many desks that occupied the room. No one spared her a glance when she did so, except for one man.

"Aiden!" Maes called cheerfully. "What's up? I haven't seen you in a while!"

"It's been two weeks Hughes," Aiden grumbled. "I doubt you missed me that much. As for what is up, my team and I just finished the case on the Jones murder in the North. Turns out it was the old lady next door, and apparently she had schizophrenia. Who knew?"

Within the last five years, everyone Aiden knew had been promoted including herself. Mustang was a Colonel, Aiden and Maes shared the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, Riza became First Lieutenant to Mustang, and Kain was now a Master Sergeant. During that time Aiden had figured out how the military and Amestris ran and she eventually broke off from Hughes and made her own team. Aiden's team worked closely with his whenever something big came up, usually a serial killer or murders when either needed a second opinion. It actually happened more often than one would think.

One of the things Aiden discovered along with her age regression, was that her maturity too, fell straight into the gutter. Sure she had joked around when in her homeworld, but then she arrived here and suddenly it was as if she was Jessica! While it wasn't a totally bad thing, it didn't help when the first thing that popped up in her mind would usually be a pop-culture reference or something alike.

The other thing she had noticed was that she retained information much more efficiently. Aiden could read an entire book and retain more information than she normally would have. So, being the 'go big or go home' person she was, she tested herself on alchemy after reading it once. Then she had Roy, who had been visiting at the time, quiz her over it. Imagine his surprise when she listed the entire Periodic Table backwards and was able to name compounds of random mixtures. One small circle in the middle of her front room proved she could, in fact, do alchemy.

Perhaps that was what Truth had given her, a door to alchemy. Although, the door to alchemy and the door to Amestris were the same thing for her, so maybe it was just a side effect of having gone through it. It still didn't prove anything, unfortunately. But Aiden felt that she'd know what Truth had done when she saw it.

When she wasn't on duty Aiden would spend her time going over Jessica's journal, which had worn down over the seven years she'd had it. Or more accurately, she would read the copy she had copied down in English. As it turned out, English and Amestrian, while they sounded the same to her, were very different and in no way were there any similarities. Aiden figured this out when she had been writing down notes. Maes had been looking over her shoulder and asked her about it. It took her a minute to recognize that she wasn't writing in Amestrian but rather in English, and it was a while to see the difference and not mess the two up.

The original journal Aiden had stashed away in case someone found hers. She tried to memorize every detail and plan ahead for what was to come. Aiden had no hope of remembering the show, as it had been over half a decade since she'd seen it. She was relying solely on what Jessica wrote and prayers that Jessica hadn't missed anything or wrote something incorrectly. Aiden knew she should put more faith in her daughter, she was after all at the top of her class.

"Hey, you know what Hughes? I hear Mustang is in Central to catch the Freezing Alchemist, and the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother are here too. In fact I think they're just down the hall. How about we go greet them?" Aiden suggested.

"What a great idea Aiden!" Maes agreed.

Suddenly Aiden was being dragged down the hallway. In her opinion, he had too much experience kidnapping other people. She waited a couple moments before pointing out that they were, in fact, going the wrong way. Maes let go of her arm and let Aiden lead the way. They paused at the doorway and she gestured for him to go first. He grinned and shoved the door open.

"Roy!" Maes greeted cheerfully. "How goes? Heard you let them put you in charge of catching the Freezer huh? One hell of a nasty assignment."

Aiden snorted and squeezed herself into the room. Another laugh escaped her when she saw the approaching migraine train heading straight for Mustang. She waved enthusiastically at Riza who smiled and nodded her head in greeting. Then she looked at the two sitting on the couches. Alphonse, the one in the armor, had his back toward Aiden and Hughes but was looking over his shoulder in what she assumed was interest. Edward was staring at the two in surprise as if he didn't know what to make of Maes.

"But hey, could be your chance to win that promotion to Central!" Hughes turned toward the Elric's as if he was just noticing them. "Oh say! Looks like my timing was perfect! You two are the Elric brothers right?" Suddenly Hughes was across the room and shaking Alphonse's hands quickly. "Wow! It's an honor to finally meet the youngest state alchemist ever! You're a real legend around here! I'm Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes, a pleasure!"

Aiden was cackling on the inside and grinning on the outside. Alphonse was sputtering and he looked like he didn't know what to do. Then she took a deep breath to steady herself.

"Maes he's not the Fullmetal Alchemist," Aiden chuckled.

Alphonse nodded in agreement. "I'm his younger brother Alphonse. You want Edward, not me."

Hughes gasped and stared at Edward, who had a massive dark purple aura surrounding him. Sometimes Aiden felt like the only person who could actually see these things.

"What?" Hughes gasped. "You're the Fullmetal Alchemist? Sorry, I had no idea you'd be so-"

"Aiden, Maes," Mustang said before he could call Edward short.

"Yeah?" they both answered.

"What are you doing here? Go home."

"Actually I'm here on official business."

"And I'm just here to say hi."

"You, Elrics! I understand you don't have a place to stay. Which means you'll have to come with me." Maes reached into his jacket, slightly startling the boys, and pulled out a picture. "My wife Gracia and my daughter Elicia would love to have you!"

Aiden stared at Hughes and sighed deeply. Everyone at Central knew that it was her job to assign rooms to soldiers staying for a while. Obviously this was one of Hughes' plans to show off his lovely wife and daughter while also getting to meet new people. Suddenly the boys were drug from the room and Aiden was left with Roy and Riza.

"Hey Roy?"

"What?"

"What are the chances that Maes has actually kidnapped someone before?"

Roy snorted lightly. "Very high I'd imagine, given his experience with it."

Aiden sighed and drooped her head. She could feel a sweat drop coming on and boy did it feel weird. "I'm gonna go make sure he doesn't smother them to death. Your rooms are the same as last time, see you two later."

The next day was slow and rather bothersome. Even with the confirmed report of the Freezing Alchemist having broken into the prison, no one seemed to have been able to catch him. It irritated Aiden to no end. This man was killing on the military's front lawn and they couldn't catch him. To make it worse, five more men had been killed. Surprisingly, the only people who had been able to get close to Isaac the Freezer had been Alex Armstrong and the Elric brothers. None had been able to land a blow.

"Stand back and prepare yourself for a display of Armstrong alchemy!"

"He's all yours Major!"

What? Aiden glanced behind herself only to witness Edward and Alphonse hightail it past Major Armstrong and skid to a stop in front of her. A large glacier was on a path of destruction toward them and suddenly Armstrong thought it would be a good idea to punch the ice. Sure it stopped for a split second, but then it veered to the left and went around them.

"What the heck are you doing?" Edward shouted. "You're making it worse!"

"Edward! The ice walls!" Alphonse began.

"They're merging."

"But that would mean..."

"If they all meet in the middle... Ah, damn it! It's Central Command! He's gonna freeze it over!"

"Major Armstrong, get rid of the transmutation circles!" Aiden commanded. "Edward, Alphonse, you two need to slow Isaac down! The police will clear civilians and I'll help destroy the ice."

Armstrong saluted her, "Yes Lieutenant Colonel Wilson!"

"We're on it!" Edward called, already running off, his brother not far behind.

"Get the cannons!" she shouted. "We need to blow this ice before Armstrong can get anywhere near it!"

Several soldiers on standby rushed off in compliance with her orders. Aiden reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of chalk. Then she knelt on the ground and drew her own transmutation circle, much to the surprise of Armstrong.

"You are an alchemist?"

"Eh, I dabble when I'm bored."

The minute the circle was complete Aiden slammed her palm on the ground. The effect started to crack the ice and it slowly began to shatter. Her alchemy proved useless when the ice grew back just as fast as it was destroyed. Aiden cursed and erased the circle.

"Fire!" a soldier called.

Cannons fired and hit the ice dead on. They did leave good sized holes, but those too filled in.

"Keep firing!" Aiden commanded.

Each and every time the ice was reassembled back into the iceberg it was. The sloshing of wet boots reached her ears and Aiden watched as a soaking wet Roy Mustang marched up to the ice and started attacking it with his flame alchemy.

"What do you think of my flames now, you bastard?" Roy roared at the ice.

"When will he learn? It's bad enough he's useless on rainy days," Riza said, gaining Aiden's attention.

"Is he really that useless?"

"His hand-to-hand is terrible and his aim is just as bad."

"That's kind of ironic."

They watched as Roy reduced the ice quickly and efficiently, if not a little angrily. He made great progress compared to the soldiers and their cannons.

"Major! Go now!" Roy shouted as he unearthed Isaac's transmutation circle.

"Leave it to me! The Armstrong fists will not fail!"

Aiden felt a sweat drop slide down the back of her neck as Armstrong suddenly became shirtless and punched the ground. It had the desired effect and the transmutation circle was destroyed. Aiden breathed a sigh of relief and ran a hand through her hair. She did not pity whoever had to deal with the paperwork for this accident.

By the time she made it home Aiden was exhausted. She'd graciously declined Gracia's invitation to dinner, but she did make time to stop and say hello to Elicia. The girl was growing into a little pretty lady and when Hughes had her babysit Aiden would coo over anything Elicia did. It was almost as if she didn't know how to do anything that wasn't adorable. Gracia had once walked in on Aiden softly singing Elicia to sleep and commented that she would make a great mother one day, that she was a natural at it. Aiden had ignored the pang of sorrow she felt and smiled and joked with the other woman.

Even though years had passed, Aiden still felt saddened whenever she thought of Tristan, as any normal parent would. But through the years she had accepted her life as the way it was and hoped he and Jessica were happy.

He would have been eleven by now, she thought mildly.

Aiden kicked off her shoes and tossed her keys onto the counter. She slouched into her sofa and sighed as she finally got to rest. Only to hear a knocking at her door. Aiden groaned and sloppily marched toward her front door. Normally, she'd tell whoever it was to get the hell away from her door because by god it was two in the morning! But seeing Roy at her door just as exhausted and worn out as her made Aiden pause and sigh.

"What is it?" she asked tiredly.

"The place I was staying at was destroyed with ice," Roy replied. "Think I could stay here until it's gone?"

That may have been her fault, she was supposed to assign new rooms for those affected by the Freezers ice. Apparently Roy had slipped by her watch and she couldn't have him out in the cold. Damn her moral code and it's honor at two in the morning. Aiden waved Roy in and he followed her lead.

"Yeah sorry about that. Did you send in a request to have your room changed? If not that's probably why."

Roy avoided Aiden's gaze. He forgot he had to do that, Aiden snorted. Then she pointed out the things in her apartment. Bathroom to the left, right next to her room. The living room and kitchen had no clear dividing line. While the kitchen was against the south wall and the table was a few feet away, the living room consisted of only a sofa sitting against one of the walls and a coffee table in front of it. The guest bedroom was around the corner.

Sometimes Maes would stay over when they were working the same case so the spare room should have a set or two of his pajamas.

"Thanks," Roy said.

Aiden hummed and nodded before turning to her bedroom and waving goodbye. "Night Roy."

Aiden groaned, rolled over in bed, and sighed when she found a comfortable spot. She glanced at the clock on her wall and threw a pillow over her face when she noticed it was time to get up. She was too comfortable damn it!

So with a yawn Aiden sat up and headed toward the kitchen. Minutes later she was standing at the counter with a cup of coffee, slowly returning from her drowsy state.

"Is that coffee?"

Aiden squeaked and looked up from her cup to Roy. She'd forgotten he had stayed the night. Now normally this wouldn't be a problem but apparently Aiden had gone to bed way too tired the night before and to put it bluntly, she wasn't wearing anything but her underwear and a shirt. So here she was standing behind a counter, in front of Roy, with no pants on. Luckily he didn't seem to notice. Roy himself was in Maes' extra set of night clothes and was in a similar state of clouded mind. Aiden blushed and averted her eyes, trying not to draw too much attention. She hoped he wouldn't come any closer.

"Uh, yeah. It's coffee," she replied steadily. Her eyes landed on the clock sitting above her sofa. "Forty-five minutes to get to work. We should get dressed."

Roy nodded before returning to the guest bedroom. Aiden made sure he was gone before she booked it to her own room. She returned fully dressed for the day and tossed her blue overcoat onto the kitchen table. By the time Roy walked back out Aiden had already made an extra cup of coffee for him and a couple of eggs. She had already finished hers and was sitting at the table reading a book.

"Thanks," Roy said.

He hadn't expected Aiden to actually let him stay, Maes was just too far away to walk to. In his opinion at least. Now Aiden had actually made him breakfast, and surprisingly it was the first time she had done so in the years they had known one another.

"You didn't have to make me food."

Aiden shrugged nonchalantly. It would've been rude to not have, and he was her friend, so why shouldn't she. She glanced up from her book.

"Ten minutes, then we need to go. You can toss the dishes in the sink, just don't break them."

"You're being unusually tight-lipped today," Roy commented.

"We went to bed just past two in the morning, it is now almost eight. Aiden isn't home right now, but she left a note saying she'd be back shortly." Roy snorted and shook his head. "Shut up, it's too early in the morning."

"Well you're obviously not a morning person."

"And here I was thinking that I was the only detective in the house." Roy barked out a laugh. Sleep deprived Aiden was a fun Aiden to mess with! Aiden scowled and threw on her blue overcoat. "Whatever, let's go before we're late."

They made it to Central Command with no problems. Roy kept giving Aiden teasing grins up until the point she threatened to throw him into a pool. Then there was blissful silence.

The two parted ways and Aiden made her way to her office for another long day of paperwork. She still didn't mind the papers but it eventually became boring. Hours ticked by when suddenly a thought came to mind, and a malicious grin spread across Aiden's face. Aiden reached for a blank envelope and began scribbling on the inside.

"Oh wow, I don't like that look. It spells trouble out in big, bold letters. What are you up to, Aiden?" Maes asked carefully.

Through years of study and friendship, he had been able to figure out which smile meant what. Boy did he pity whoever was on the receiving end of this one. Aiden chuckled and finished her writing with a flourish. Then she grabbed her glass of water and poured the contents into the envelope. Maes watched in surprise as the paper held the water and didn't show any signs of being wet. Aiden carefully closed the envelope and shook it up and down. No leaks, perfect. She addressed the letter to Roy and set it aside.

"What's up Maes?" Aiden asked, grin not slipping from her face.

"Roy and Riza are here! How's about we go say hello?"

Aiden didn't get a chance to reply before she was being drug down the hall against her will. Fortunately she was able to squirm from his grasp and walk alongside him rather than be dragged. Maes knocked on the door and they were let in by Riza.

"Achoo!"

"Ooh is that a cold I hear? Ah, nevermind," Maes rushed forward eagerly while Aiden stayed behind and greeted Riza. "From what I'm told you're the man of the hour!"

"Eh, I just destroyed the transmutation circles. The Fuhrer is the one who actually brought down McDougal."

Aiden joined Maes at his side. "Oh you didn't hear?" she asked. "The Fuhrer is saying that you're the one who did it."

"Which means a congrats is in order!" The two took in Roy's unhappy expression. "Oh it's like that huh? Suit yourself! But some friendly advice. Next time a superior tells you to take credit for something you didn't do, you might try it for once."

Aiden snorted and shook her head. "Alright guys, I'll see you later. The Elric's are at the hospital and I want to visit them before the day is out."

Aiden waved as she left the room. Today was supposed to have been her day off, but considering what had gone down the day before... Well she had made it a rule to come in after a case was solved, even if that day was a day off. She made a quick stop by a shop to buy a few soda bottles and then she was headed to the hospital.

The nurse was rather nice and she easily directed Aiden to Edward's room. Aiden passed Armstrong on the way there who nodded his head at her in greeting. She knocked on the door before stepping in.

"Hey boys!" Aiden greeted cheerfully.

"Lieutenant Colonel Wilson? What are you doing here?" Edward asked.

"I came to see if you're doing okay and to say hello. Oh!" Aiden pulled out the soda bottles she'd bought and set them on the table. "Maes said you weren't too fond of milk and since that's all this hospital ever serves, I got you these."

"Oh, uh, thanks."

Aiden nodded. "And you Alphonse, are you okay?"

"What? Oh yeah! I'm great! I'm in no need for a checkup!" he hurriedly said.

"Hmm, alright then, if you're sure," Aiden conceded slowly. She couldn't very well express concern about Ed without doing the same for Al. Even if he was in a suit of armor, but neither knew that she knew.

"Uh, Lieutenant Colonel Wilson?" Al asked.

"You can call me Aiden, Alphonse. Or Wilson if you prefer. What is it?"

"My brother and I were wondering what that mark on your arm was. We saw it that night at the Hughes' house."

Aiden inwardly cringed. Several years of not showing that tattoo to anyone and she messed up when the story had just begun. Now normally she wouldn't mind people seeing, in fact she didn't care! The only thing that worried her was the fact that her tattoo, on the underside of her arm, was in the shape of an ouroboros. Jessica had made her get it with her as a way to show they were family, a bonding exercise. Apparently Truth didn't think it important enough to erase.

So Aiden smiled at the boys and winked, "It's a secret, tell no one."

Then she lifted the sleeve of her jacket and exposed the one thing that would eventually mark her as an enemy. Hopefully not too soon.

"It's an ouroboros?" Edward asked.

"Yep! A friend of mine had me get it. Well then boys, I'll be off. Get well soon Ed!"

"Thanks! I will!"

Aiden left the room and made her way back to Central Command. In her mind, she was definitely going to die because of that. But she could handle it! Just one step at a time... For now, all she had to do was hand in the report of the Freezing Alchemist to Maes and head home for the day. Then she'd begin her plans.

"Thanks Aiden!" Maes grinned.

"Thanks for being in your office for once, now I don't have to track you down," Aiden replied dryly. Maes would more often than not be wandering the halls. "I'm headed home now, see you."

"See ya Aiden!"

Aiden made it to the next corridor before she cursed herself and turned back to Maes' room. She'd forgotten to tell him to pick up Elicia's clothes from when she had last stayed the night while Aiden was babysitting. She slowed her pace to a stop when she heard voices from the office.

"Roy! Hey, you still in Central?" Maes asked.

"For now anyway. They're shipping me back to Eastern Command this afternoon."

"Well now, aren't you the lucky one. Next time you come here I expect you to have made Brigadier General, you got that?"

"Easy for you to say."

"Well you gotta make Fuhrer somehow! Oh, by the way, if you're leaving I'll go ahead and give this to you."

"What is it?"

"Something you might find interesting. It's the final report on Isaac McDougal. I'm guessing it hasn't reached your office yet."

"No." Silence. "Xingese Alkahestry, what's that?"

"Apparently that's something they have. To be honest no idea. You don't know it?"

"No, it's the first I've heard of it."

Aiden thought it was a good time to step in and she did so. She made sure to close the door behind her.

"Xingese Alkahestry is Xing's version of alchemy. They use it for medical purposes. Also, when both of you are going on about being promoted ranks, close the door before someone besides me hears. It's dangerous talk, especially here in Central," Aiden folded her arms and slumped against a wall. She was rather disappointed with them.

The two men stared at Aiden in alarm. They were both tense, waiting for what she would do. Obviously they didn't think she was on their side. Aiden scowled.

"Oh give me some credit guys!" she yelled, obviously offended. "I'm a detective, I'm not an idiot! And we've known each other for just over half a decade!"

"So you're not turning us in as traitors?"

Aiden sighed and rubbed her forehead. "No, Roy, I'm not. I'm your friend and I'd never do that to you. Either of you. So use your heads next time and close the door." She glared at the two.

"I get it, we're idiots," Roy sighed.

"Yes, you are. Oh and Maes? I came back to tell you that Elicia still has a good few changes of clothes over at my house and that you still haven't picked them up."

"Right. I'll get on that."

Aiden nodded and walked out of the room, waving lazily as she did so. Sometimes her boys were morons. Giant ones too.

**********

Roy: I am one of the smartest people here and I will become the Fuhrer.

Maes: Yes, and we will support you.

Aiden: You left the door open and it's a wonder no one hears you in the middle of Central Command. It's like the two of you share a single brain cell and her name is Riza.