Title: Teacher
Author: RanMouri82
Word Count: 1248
Disclaimer: Arakawa Hiromu owns Fullmetal Alchemist. I rent it.
Rating: PG
Characters: Izumi Curtis, Edward Elric and Alphonse Elric
Notes: It was an instinct like maternity and a lesson Izumi Curtis longed to teach. [Originally published 9/4/2006.]

Teacher

"Exile though I am on earth, do not hide your commandments from me."—Psalm 119

Two sets of bright eyes shone from the brothers' chubby faces in the midst of the crowded room at Resembool. Years later, Izumi Curtis would have to say it was those mysteriously determined eyes that caught her attention—that, and their wild request. "Make us your apprentices!"

Coughing a little, Izumi wiped her brow and tossed a thin, errant dreadlock aside to get a better look. She tightened her grip on the rough handle of the meat cleaver as she scraped it across a stone, then lifted it to scrutinize its cool, but dull edge.

A far greater concern prodded the back of her mind as the golden eyes of the Elrics shot into her memory. She shook her head, thinking, I told them what they needed to hear today. Those boys aren't stupid—

"Teacher!" cried a familiar pair of boisterous voices, increasing in intensity as they neared the Curtis' butcher shop. The first to lean on the handle and push open the back door, to Izumi's mild surprise, was Alphonse. "Sorry it took so long, teacher, but Ed didn't want to buy the milk!"

"That's because that stuff's disgusting!" Edward cried, following close behind as he hefted two giant bags of groceries in his small arms.

Izumi quirked a smile and wiped her hands on her apron, keeping her gaze fixed on the brothers, waiting until they placed both bags on the sink's counter, until—3 . . . 2 . . . 1—

Wham!

She had already thrown Ed over her head and slammed him onto the ground when Al tried in vain to shrink from her viselike grip. Frowning, she said, "You both could have spent the time in training if you weren't—" she picked Al up easily and flung him out the door, "fooling around!"

Breathing hard, Izumi's throat caught and she hacked a pool of blood. Ugh, not again, she thought, wiping her mouth with a nearly saturated cloth. They seemed to learn their lesson, though. Returning to her still dull cleaver as the brothers wobbled to their feet and began to unpack the groceries in fear, her mind drifted back to that afternoon's alchemy lesson:

Poised with her Easy Cooking book, she had easily dodged the Elrics' elementary attacks as they flew to her left and right, explaining that, "The foundation of alchemy is the power of the circle . . . even when you're not using alchemy, the flow of power has many practical applications!"

Then, to Alphonse's misfortune, she proceeded to prove her point by turning his own attack against him and, with a simple twist of his legs, slamming him into the ground.

"But the flow extends far beyond the world we know," she later added, kindly smiling as she helped the brothers nurse their wounds, sticking a bandage on Ed's nose and patting his trembling head with the slightest ruffle. "Death and new life are all a part of that great harmonious system."

Izumi stared hard at them. "That's why we should never try to bring anyone back to life."

At that, the brothers squirmed.

As Izumi untied her apron and slipped it over her head, she paused to rub a hand over her abdomen. Shaking the thought from her mind, she went to the cracked stone patio and noticed that Al was now laying plates and setting cups on the table while Ed fiddled with the silverware; it was rather amusing to see them fumble with the heavy dishes since Mason or Sig usually volunteered for that duty.

Rubbing a hand over her abdomen again, It suddenly flashed in her memory: that mysterious, indescribable figure of shadow and cruelty that she met the fateful day she made the worst mistake of her life. What she could describe came only from its smile—if such a harsh facial expression could be called a smile.

Just then, the boys' final question struck her again.

"But . . . teacher . . . I've seen you transmute by just putting your palms together," Alphonse questioned, his smudged face blinking wide in surprise. How do we do it?"

She had murmured, as she led the way into the house, "If you arrive at the truth you might be able to do it."

But she would be damned if those two boys would ever have to see that smile.

"Hey, teacher!" Ed piped up, snapping Izumi out of her musings as he bounded toward her elbow—but gingerly avoided it. "Got anything else for us to do?"

"Yes, actually," she said after a beat, planting her hands on her hips while Al trotted to his older brother's side. "Can you repeat what I just taught you this afternoon?"

The Elrics twitched eyebrows in unison while a conspicuous amount of sweat began to drip down their foreheads.

Aha. I knew it.

Both of the boys met with a fist in their faces—the fist with the wedding ring.

"Go and jog each other memories on the flow of alchemical power. When you can explain it to me, then you can eat," she said, entering the kitchen to turn the oven down and warm their dinner. She dished hers separately, however, and set it on the patio table; there was no need for them to be encouraged in their laziness by seeing her wait for them, though she knew full well she would rather do so. It was a mother's instinct.

Well, isn't that ironic, she thought, digging a fork into her garlic mashed potatoes, fully aware that the aroma tickled the noses of Ed and Al, who now huddled with a book on the curving staircase. From a childless mother to motherless children. Maybe that's why.

That, and the look in their eyes.

Izumi sighed, twisting in her straight-backed armchair. "Okay, boys, tell me what you've got."

The brothers scrambled to help each other stand, then snapped to attention. Izumi's heart pounded just a little as the scene looked too similar to the one before: Edward in his tee shirt and jeans, Alphonse in his muscle tee and slacks, both with set jaws as they stared straight at her, unwavering.

"The foundation of alchemy is the power of the circle! The circle dictates the flow of power, and when proper runes are written within it, it is possible for the power to be released!" they cried, in unison.

Quirking a smile, Izumi moved her hands to the chair on her right and the low stool on her left—and drew them out.

Bursting into a jubilant cheer, the boys raced for the oven until Izumi shot a foot out underneath them and sent them tumbling to the flagstones. "Don't run!" she barked, shaking a fist before their faces. "It's dangerous!"

"Y-yes," they stammered, switching to tiptoeing past their teacher and into the kitchen like timid puppies.

After watching them for awhile, Izumi finally swung around in her seat and crossed her arms again. Not bad, she thought. They were beginning to take the lessons she gave them to heart, and she would make sure they did even if she had to beat it into them. Narrowing her eyes, however, she stared ahead into the darkening sky. I won't let them take the path I took, no matter what it takes. Maybe it's like a mother to her sons, maybe . . . but really, as a teacher.

Author's Note: This is my first time writing a fanfic for Fullmetal Alchemist, and it was written in a hurry, so please review—gently! Most of my other fanfiction is found in the Detective Conan category. More importantly, for her 21st birthday, this is dedicated to my dear cousin, Mary Beth. Hope you all enjoyed it!