Fandom: Crossover (Full Metal Alchemist / Naruto)
Author/Artist: Night's Fang.
Theme(s) (include the # number and full theme): You Were Never Mine To Begin With.
Rating: Teen (PG-13)
Disclaimer/claimer: I own the plot-line and nothing more. Not the animes, nor their copyrights. And I especially don't own the characters.
Summary: In an attempt to try and explain the concepts of "Letting Go of First Love" to him, Sakura tells Sai a story, about a young girl and her golden haired, golden eyed best friend.

Notes: Italics - thoughts/flasbacks. (This was for livejournals 30Night's so excuse the format) Story follows the mangas.

She stared straight into his midnight black eyes which, though generally were blank due to his lack of emotions courtesy of his upbringing in 'Root', were laced with confusion and frustration. Emerald eyes turned to her loud, blue-eyed, blonde friend team-mate, then to her other blue-eyed, blonde friend who was smiling apologetically, before flicking back to her raven haired team-mate.

"Let me get this straight…" she said slowly. "Sai was reading up on the entire subject of love from a book he got from the Konoha library, and had problems understanding the concept of 'Letting Go'?" she asked.

Both blondes nodded vigorously. Too vigorously and energetic for a normal person, so late into the night. Then again Naruto defied all things normal, and Ino had always been that way, so Sakura figured it shouldn't really count. Stupid blondes she cursed mentally.

"And he asked both of you to explain it to him." She continued.

"Uh-huh!" Naruto said.

"And obviously, since you three are standing here on my doorstep at – what time is it now? – one thirty in the morning, I'm guessing he hasn't understood you." She said, adding, 'I'm pretty sure you guys confused even more instead' in a soft mumble only her raven haired team-mate caught.

"Yes Hag in fact they actually did. That's why I'm here asking you." Sai said.

Sakura conveniently chose to ignore the Root member's nick-name for her, and begin grumbling about the fact it was half past one in the morning and normal people – like her – should be sleeping. Instead with a soft defeated sigh she opened her front door wider and letting the three trudge in. She was glad that her parents were out of town visiting her fathers parents living a few villages away in the Fire country, otherwise her father would've yelled some choice words at her 'guests' for waking the house up so late.

"Do you guys want anything to eat or drink?" she asked.

"Hot coco would be nice." Ino said. "I'm not sure about the boys though."

Said boys nodded silently indicating they wanted the same, and Sakura sighed knowing that this wouldn't be over in a jiffy. There goes my nice night's sleep. And after I finally got a break from working the night shift in the hospital too. She thought walking into the kitchen.

The things I do for the idiots.

By the time she'd come back in the living room holding a tray with four large mugs of hot coco, Ino, Naruto, and Sai had already made themselves comfortable, settled on one of the arm-chairs by the fire-place. She noted that Naruto had got the fire started for which she was glad, since it was winter, and the living room was freezing earlier.

Placing the tray on the coffee table, she settled on her favourite armchair, mug in hand, before focusing her attention on her friends. In actuality her raven haired team-mate, Sai.

"So what part of the whole 'Letting Go' concept didn't you understand?" she asked.

Sai sighed and began narrating the whole story to her, telling her how he'd been reading up on 'love' in more detail in hopes he'd come around to understanding the complex emotion, since it was a base root for many other emotions. And he was keen on learning about whatever new emotions he was and may feel in the near future. He'd apparently been reading about first love when he'd come across the line that mentioned that letting go of one's first love was the hardest thing to do. So he cross-referenced to see what the term actually meant with respect to human emotions. And that was the entire thing.

She nodded on hearing his story, before sighing softly. And to top it off the boy went to Naruto and Ino of all people to explain this. No wonder the poor boy was confused.

"I don't understand it. If you love someone. If the feeling is strong enough. Why do you have to let them go?" Sai asked.

"It is a tough thing to explain properly or understand sometimes Sai. Extremely tough to be precise. I can empathise with your frustration." She said simply, as the fire-light gave her pink locks an unusual hue.

Sai visibly deflated, and Sakura sighed. "It doesn't mean I can't explain it to you, you know. But I can't explain it directly."

"What's that supposed to mean Ugly? I thought you were an expert with this?" Sai said. And once again Sakura chose to ignore both, the insult – as she'd been doing quite often lately, maybe she was getting used to it – and the reference to Team 7's original member who'd defected from Konoha, Sasuke.

"I'm going to tell you a short story that pertains to the subject. It may help." She said emerald eyes glinting in the fire-light. Naruto's and Ino's ears perked up at this.

Settling back into the chair, and taking a sip from her mug, Sakura began her story.

"Once upon a time…"

It was nearing sunset, and dusk was already falling. A small girl around the age of four smiled as she twirled around in her new dress in front of a golden haired boy of the same age.

"See I wore the dress you gave me yesterday as a present for my birthday!" the girl squealed happily. "Does it look nice?" she questioned shyly. The boy nodded smiling.

"You look really pretty." He said causing a hint of pink to stain the child's cheeks.

"Ah how cute!" Ino interrupted starry eyed. "Falling in love so early."

Naruto grunted.

"No more interruptions Ino, Naruto." Sakura merely smiled softly at her friend before continuing.

The boy however didn't notice it, and began dragging the girl to the fields to play; where they're other friends were waiting for them.

He didn't pay much attention to his friend after that too engrossed in the game or his other blonde female friend. She didn't mind however. He always did that.

A year and a half later the two were walking along the path that led to her house hand in hand, which the girl immensely enjoyed. It was already nearing dinner time, and the boy had made it a ritual to walk her home after play. They were chatting away, their pretty blonde friend always the main topic of conversation. "Anyway we're here." The boy said. "So I'll see you tomorrow like usual. I'll come with Winry to pick you up, kay?" the boy said cheerily. The girl nodded seeming a little distant.

"Something wrong?" the boy asked. The girl shook her head immediately.

"Nothing. I'll see you tomorrow Al. G'night!" she said hugging the boy before trudging up to her front door and knocking.

The boy smiled and began running off towards his own home. "Good night!" he yelled, and the girl smiled sadly.

"You know you should've told him dear. You can't leave without telling him. He'll be sad." The girl's mother said from behind her.

"I'll him tomorrow mama. I still have tomorrow, don't I?" the girl replied softly as she entered the warmth of her house.

The next day however the girl didn't see her friend the entire day. Even though it was a Saturday and school was off. So in the evening she decided to go off and look for her friend. Oddly enough he wasn't in the fields playing with the others. Or any of the other places where they usually played. He wasn't even at home.

Eventually she found him sitting by the river banks sulking. Sitting beside him she asked the boy what had happened that made him moody enough to disappear for the entire day. She had something important to tell him after all. Did he fight with his older brother again, like usual?

Instead of bursting out like she expected him to, the boy seemed unnaturally quiet.

"What's the matter?" she asked. The boy sunk his head in between his knees and mumbled something the girl couldn't hear.

"Huh?!" came her unintelligible reply.

"I said I asked Winry to marry me when we got older, and she refused. I bet she doesn't want to talk to me anymore as well. And I like her so much too." He said, and the girl felt as if something inside her had fallen down a bottomless pit. She placed her hand on his shoulder and smiled – though, she didn't realise, it came out rather forced and stiff – and warmly said that everything would be all right. That it was stupid if Winry didn't talk to him. Why wouldn't she?

They stayed out talking late into the night, she driving his fears that the pretty blonde girl would indeed never stop talking to him, till her mother came out to get her.

"Come on darling, it's very late. And you have to get early in the morning so that we can leave on time." The woman said to the girl, causing the boy to look at his friend in curiosity.

"Leave? Where're you going?" the boy asked.

The girl frowned lightly before lowering her head. "Granny's isn't well. And grandpa needs help in his shop. So we're moving back to Daddy's old home."

The boy's eyes saddened and she hastily began trying to cheer her best-friend up. "I'll come to visit as often as I can. Promise. And you wait and see. When I come back, we'll go to the circus, and do lots of stuff. And Winry and you would be very close." She said beaming.

However the next time the two friends met wasn't as happy as they would've liked it to be. Al's mother had gotten very sick and eventually passed away in the next three months due to the disease. And through all that Al still liked his blonde female friend, ignorant of his best-friends feelings. So the girl simply smiled softly and continued to comfort her grieving friend. She did so for three months.

She still didn't mind that whenever they had a normal conversation that didn't pertain to the boy's mother the topic was always how beautiful their blonde friend was. No matter how much it hurt.

The girl left after six months and came back to her new home half a days travel from her grandparents house. She slowly began getting absorbed in a lot of activities, and making more new friends in her new home. And slowly her feelings for her golden haired best-friend began to fade into the background, and she slowly began to fall for another boy.

The two are still friends.

Sakura looked up from the fire to see her friends looking at her with confusion etched onto their faces. "Hm?" she asked

"She loved him since she was a kid. A little kid to be precise. Feelings so strong don't go away so easily Sakura." Ino protested.

"When did I say they went away entirely Ino? I said they faded into the background as she began falling for another boy. Weren't you paying attention?" Sakura said amusement evident in her emerald eyes before turning to look out of the window. "You know I think the night that boy unknowingly broke his best-friend's heart was similar to this one. It was so peaceful and serene."

"So Sakura-chan did the boy find out about the girl's crush on him?" Naruto asked.

"He did. Later on. Apparently 'his pretty blonde friend' told him." Sakura said. She turned to Sai. "So did that little anecdote help?"

"You're trying to say that 'letting go' of someone means distracting yourself from thoughts of them till you fall in love with someone else, even though your feelings for them were very strong? Isn't that supposedly superficial?" Sai questioned.

"No, though doing that helps. 'Letting go' means giving yourself time to heal the hurt, pain, and loneliness of the heartache. To let the feelings fade into the background." Sakura said and then turned back to stare into the fire a contemplative look on her face. "But the most important thing of letting go of someone you love is to understand that it was never meant to be."

"Wow Sakura-chan that's deep!" Naruto said.

Sakura smiled. "And true. Anyway it's really late and my parents are out visiting my grandparents. So that means you guys can stay the night." She said amongst grateful mumbles, "I'll go get the spare futons. We can settle down here itself."

The pinkette stared into the fire as her friends slept soundly beside her.

"Hey Sakura?" The suit of armour said as it sat down besides the girl on the porch.

"Winry told you, didn't she?" she replied turning towards him. He nodded. Sakura was sure if a suit of armour could blush, Al's face would be red by now. But then again Al shouldn't be a soul trapped in a suit of armour in the first place. She hopes Ed can fix it soon.

"I'm sorry I never noticed." He said.

"That's just like you, you know. To ignore your pain and bother about the pain of others." She said leaning against his metal body. "Your always like that."

The two sat out in companionable silence for a while. "Hey Sakura?" he asked suddenly.

"Hm?" she replied lazily stretching.

"Did I hurt you badly?"

She tilted her head to the side, causing her pink tresses to cascade over her face shadowing half of it. "A little." She replied. "But then again, I had to let you go at some point of time. I love Sasuke-kun now. Besides; you were always Winry's. And you'll always be hers…"

"No matter how much I wanted it. Maybe still want it till today. You were never mine to begin with in the first place Al." Sakura whispered softly letting her eyes trail over the photo-frames hung above the fire-place.

The fire cracked merrily in response.

Half way around the world a suit of armour watches over a pretty blonde girl that belongs to his brother while she sleeps in the cave along with everyone else, as they wait for Ed to come back. A contemplative look in his red eyes while an old memory plays in his mind.

"I love Sasuke-kun now. Besides; you were always Winry's. And you'll always be hers… No matter how much I wanted it. Maybe still want it till today. You were never mine to begin with in the first place." She said her head titled to the side, causing pink tresses to cascade over her face shadowing half of it. Emerald eyes lightly reflected the moonlight, glowing slightly.

The suit of armour sighs inaudibly, as the face of the angelic pinkette stays in his mind.

You're right Sakura. I was never yours to begin with in the first place. I belonged to you even before that.

-x-x-x-

A/N: Wow This turned out long.