A/N: woohoo! Another oneshot for the fantabulous fullmetal alchemist! This is a very nice little thing about Ed and Izumi, parental! I'm so excited because I just love Izumi, and I hope I made this well. You'll tell me, won't you?

Alex: we own nothing but the plot

Ed frowned as he sat hugging his knees to his chest outside the meat shop where his teacher worked, and he and his brother temporarily called home. He had been having a great time here, learning new things about how the alchemical energy flowed from within the alchemist, through the circle, around the arrays, and then into the desired object, but now...Teacher had given the boys a day off, a day to do with as they pleased.

"All work and no play is bad for you, go ahead and have a day of fun. Just be prepared to work hard tomorrow, alright?"

Al had rushed off at Ed's persistent insistence, quickly making friends with the locals and playing around. Meanwhile, Ed stewed in his own thoughts, angry at those kids.

"Where do they get off? It's not my fault I'm small...and trying to make me drink milk is just gross!" The poor kid was miffed, the other kids had been making fun of him. What was worse, his height wasn't the only thing they teased him about. In fact, it wasn't teasing, it was outright bullying. The bigger kids had shoved him around, pulling his golden hair and poking his golden eyes.

"Mom always loved our eyes..." He whispered, touching the corner of his eye tenderly, remembering his sweet mother gushing over how handsome him and his brother were.

"At least they don't pick on Al, they'd really pay for that..." But who could pick on him? He was adorable, and the kindest person on the planet, no one would mess with him. Especially since it was no secret that Ed would pound the life out of anyone that tried.

"Ed? What are you doing, out here?" Ed's head whipped around to see Teacher rounding the corner, a curious look on her face. She put her hands on her hips, normally an intimidating gesture, but right now it simply looked like a 'what am I going to do with you' feature. "You were supposed to be out having fun."

Edward bit his lip, contemplating on what to tell his mentor, finally deciding on the truth. He couldn't lie to her, anyway. "The other kids...they're picking on me." He scowled, disgusted at himself at his situation. Even to his ears his situation seemed small and too childish to be of any concern. And yet...words still hurt. He growled, cursing under his breath as hot, angry tears flowed down his face. He made to wipe at them, but was stopped when Teacher did it for him.

"Do you know why they pick on you?" Teacher asked, her dark eyes steady and her face calm. She had moved into a crouch so as to be eye-to-eye with the boy, making the conversation a bit more serious.

Her pupil's eyes were wide with surprise. He had thought she would be mad at him for acting so silly, this hadn't been a reaction he had been expecting. He shook his head, staring up at the housewife.

"They pick on you because they are jealous. You are smarter than they are, and you are also stronger. They want to bring you down because they believe that it will make them appear smarter and stronger, but do you think that is true?"

Still a little stunned, Edward could only shake his head in the negative.

Teacher smiled in approval. "That is right. Others will try to have power over you, but they will only have as much power as you yourself allow them to hold."

The child let that sink in, his eyes wandering to his shoes. "But... They were calling me small, and an orphan. They said that I made Mom sick... That I'm why she died..." He turned his golden eyes brimming with tears back to Izumi. "They weren't right, were they? It wasn't my fault, right?"

Izumi's eyes softened as she pulled the child into a rare hug. They stayed like that, the younger simply soaking in the comfort that was being given, for awhile before she spoke again. "No, no it was not your fault. How could it be your fault?"

With the latter question, she pulled away just enough to look into the gold iris's of her student. They were wet and glossy, but they no longer looked in danger of shedding tears. "I guess you're right." Ed whispered quietly, not knowing what else to say.

Teacher smiled, nodding as she stood up. "Come on, Ed, I have something I've been meaning to give you. Think of it as an early graduation present, since you will be finished with all I have to teach you in a month or so. I think you're ready to handle it." She held out her hand, waiting for the surprised boy to take it and stand beside her. Once he did, she lead him inside the meat shop and into the living portion of the shop where she entered her bedroom, motioning for Ed to stay where he was at the doorway.

Ed pondered over what exactly could be what his teacher wanted to give him, but absolutely nothing came to mind. He listened as she rustled around a bit before she returned with a folded piece of red cloth. His eyes widened at it, was this the thing she wanted to give him?

Wonder evident on his visage, he watched as Izumi lowered to a crouch and revealed a very familiar symbol embedded within the bright red cloth in black. She tapped the symbol, bringing he boys eyes to hers. "Do you know what this symbol means?"

Edward frowned as he struggled to remember. He'd seen it, and knew its design by memory because it was brazenly tattooed on Teacher's chest, but the meaning had never been a concern to him. "It's your symbol, right?" He gestured vaguely towards Teacher so as not to be offensive of where he pointed. He knew from experience that pointing inthatparticular direction could lead to a painful slap or worse.

Teacher laughed at the blush that rose to the child's cheeks. "Yes, it is, but it is so much more. You do know what symbology is, correct?" Seeing the confused look, she pressed on. "The study of symbols; what they represent. This symbol is really made up of four symbols that create a distinct meaning."

She handed the boy the coat, enjoying the look of wonder that overtook the earlier sadness. She pointed at the snake encircling the arrowed cross. "The snake, or serpent, symbolizes energy, and the cross with the arrows stands for centrifugal forces."

"So...centrifugal energy?" Ed inquired, smiling brightly when he received an approving nod.

"Exactly." She continued on with her explanation, pointing at the crown and the wings. "The wings represent imagination, thought, and intelligence, while the crown stands for pre-eminence. There are many interpretations, what do you think that all means?"

Ed thought, trying to piece the information together in his mind. Now that he understood what each part meant, it fit together like a completed puzzle. "With alchemy, our efforts, and our minds, we can reach our goals."

Izumi pondered over his interpretation, "That is certainly one way to take it." Ed shot her a look that said he was worried he had come to the wrong conclusion so she quickly raised her hands in a peaceful manner. "I am not saying you're wrong, that's just not what I concluded. With interpretations, there is no end-all-be-all answer. Now, no more moping, right?"

Ed's face fell slightly as all the taunts came back to him. "But, Teacher-"

"No buts," instantly, within Ed's mind, his teacher grew ten feet taller as the scowl placed itself on her features. "You are my student, right? I do not teach those with weak enough minds to be ruled by such petty fools."

The tone instantly made Ed stiffen into a pose the military would be proud of: a full salute with clicked heels. "Yes ma'am!" With that, he ran outside to face those he had hidden from before, showing off his new red coat and bragging about his alchemical abilities. Thanks to Izumi and her words, Ed never had trouble with those boys, nor any other persons, taunts bringing him to such a deep depression again. He was stronger because his teacher believed in him, and that was all he needed.

A/N: the Nicolas Flamel symbol information has been broken down by the book I found in my library: a dictionary of symbols by J.E. Cirlot. I hope you enjoyed, I certainly had fun writing! And if you know of any parental!Izumi, you'll let me know, won't ya?

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