Fullmetal Alchemist 1. Chapter 1

**_Six Year Olds are Handfuls_**

Written by: YAJJ

A/N: I've wanted to do this idea for a while, but then I got the real, true inspiration from _Phoenix-Fire Power_'s adorable child!military family group. It was called _A Role Reversal_. And it was awesome. Definitely a must-read. And, it was adorable. Just to let you know. :D

You know, I think from now on, if you review and you have an account, I'll message you my response. If you don't, then I'll just post it on here. I like that idea ;) But I'll still write down the names of all who reviewed... like everyone else... :D

Disclaimer: I don't own FMA.

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><p>"<em>BULL$H!T!<em>"

The entire building shook with the force of the cry. It came from the bottom floor of the Central Military Base, office of one Colonel Roy Mustang.

Mustang stared at his 15-year-old subordinate, who had slammed his hands down on his desk. He was holding a look of shock- and of hurt.

"So you haven't told a _single person_? I don't care if I'm a hypocrite, _I'm_ not the one has been hiding _such a secret_ for 24 years! I mean, what the _hell _were you thinking?" Edward snarled. He dug his fingers into his commanding officer's desk.

Mustang's dark eyes narrowed at him. "Fullmetal, I'm afraid that I have no idea what you're talking about."

"_MORE OF IT! SHUT UP!_ Why haven't you told anyone about what your dad did to you?"

"What are you-"

"Don't _even_! I _know_ why you have your office on the ground floor! I can't believe that I never caught this before! You're terrified of heights! Because your dad _dropped you_ from a _second story window_ when you were FOUR!

SMACK

Edward stumbled back in surprise. Mustang had slapped him!

"You don't even know what you're talking about, so _shut up_, Fullmetal!" Mustang snarled. He went around the desk to the boy. "Now get out of my office." He growled, suddenly dangerously calm.

"I'm not leaving until _you_ confront this. I know how dangerous it is to bottle things up- I can't tell you how many people have told _me_ that… you included!"

"Get _out_, Fullmetal!"

"No!"

Edward yelped when Mustang shoved him over. He stumbled, crashing into the couch and nearly tripping over it.

"Brother, dno't push it!"

"Shut up Al!" yet, even as Mustang's lean form leaned over him and grabbed his collar, this was exactly what Ed was looking for. For the man who had had his childhood so roughly yanked from him to use the smallest, most minimal way to get a part of it back- even something as childish and simple as a shove. Edward, however, did not attack back. He simply continued his vocal onslaught, knowing that he'd hate himself later. "I know that you are terrified of anything happening to your arms, _and_ that you _hate_ going up to the Führer's office because it's 5 stories up." Ed was slowly getting louder.

"...Shut up, Fullmetal…"

"I _also_ know that as soon as you become Führer, you're going to make sure that you turn the desk away from the window- so your back isn't facing it and neither are you! _And_ you're going to close the curtains and have as many candles and lights in there as possible so you don't _need_ natural light!"

"_Shut UP, Fullmetal!_ I swear to God, you don't _even know what you're talking about_!"

"I think you're pushing it brother! Don't over do it!"

"I _do_ know what I'm talking about! Wanna know how? YOU TOLD ME!"

"I never told you such _lies_!"

Edward was having quite enough of Mustang. Finally, he grabbed the man's collar, pushing him back against his desk. "They're not lies! You know that! _I_ know what happened, Al does, _Hawkeye does_!"

"Get _offa_ me!"

Edward stumbled back, finally just hitting the office floor roughly. He glanced up at his commanding officer. The man's deep eyes were glowing furiously. He barely snarled out, "I will _not_ have my sub_or_dinates speaking to me. Not in that tone. You little… you little bastard."

For once, Edward ignored the use of the word little. He attempted to stand up, but Al rushed over and held him down.

Mustang looked up at Alphonse and horror flowed into his eyes. He straightened his back, stepped backwards as though realizing what he'd called the fifteen year old, and took off. He grabbed the door handle, yanked it open and left the room, slamming it closed.

Both Ed and Al winced. "Brother?"

"Huh?"

"I… think you over did it."

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><p>End? Of the first chapter, yes.<p>

An explanation of all of what Ed was saying will come in the next few chapters. Well, almost all of the chapters in this story will be an explanation to what Ed said.

I'll update when I can. ;D

Thanks all for reading! Please review!

~YAJJ


	2. Chapter 2

**Special thanks to:**_** A**thena's phoenix_, _**a**wesomenaruto_, _**F**ullmetalFan16, _**d**fgh

dfgh: Thanks :)

to anyone with an account, your review will be replied to via PM

**A/n**: This is just a filler chapter, so naturally it's not very good. Next chapter should be much better. And longer. Maybe.

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><p><em>3 months earlier<em>

The mission was a fairly simple one. Technically, it should have been done without a problem. Ed, Al, Mustang, and Hawkeye were to investigate a rather rough-looking warehouse an hour east of East City for reports of human transmutation. Easy, right?

They'd chosen to split up to cover more ground once inside the building. Ed and Al went one way down the main hallway that stretched over most of the building, Mustang and Hawkeye the other.

After quite a while (the boys weren't sure how long) nothing had been found on their side. They'd planned to go back after a few more minutes. On their way back, the building started shaking. An explosion of blue light flashed, followed by a piercing cry of pain, and the shaking increased. "Brother, we should get out of here!" Al said. After a confirming nod from Ed, Al picked up his brother and rushed toward the nearest exit.

Hawkeye and Mustang chose to split up, as their hallway broke apart. They promised to meet back at the breaking point of the hallway after an hour. Hawkeye had arrived back just in time, safely. Mustang, however…

Well, it'd been two hours when they broke apart. Hawkeye was currently wandering down the hallway that he'd gone down to find him.

She was angry. No, not quite angry… she was _pissed off_. After all, it had been _Mustang_ who had said to meet back in an hour. Can't he follow his own orders? "I'm going to shoot him when I find him…" she snarled. She sighed heavily. This was _so_ like the Colonel. But! That didn't make it right.

She gasped, nearly falling over, when the building started shaking a little. She noticed a faint burst of blue light and a pain-filled cry, and seconds later, the building's shaking got rougher and more violent. She actually did pitch forward, catching herself on her hands. Standing up and dusting off her hands, she spun around and cried, "Colonel! Colonel, I think we have to go! COLONEL!

The shaking was too much. If it didn't stop, the building would collapse. She spun in a circle once, to see if there was anywhere that he could have gone that she hadn't already been. Growling, she took off the way that she'd come, back towards where they'd promised to meet again. Maybe he was back there.

Or better yet, maybe he was back with the boys.

Well, he was in neither location, though she did meet up with the boys on the way out, both looking rather frantic. Once they'd escaped the shaking building and were at least (they guessed) 100 feet away, Al slowly let his brother down.

Ed turned to Hawkeye, confused. "Where's the bastard?" he asked.

Hawkeye rolled her eyes and glanced at the shaking building. Several 'back up' approached them to see what was going on. "Colonel is the word you're looking for, Edward. And I don't know. We split up a while ago and I can't find him…" she explained softly. She gulped and looked at the building. Suddenly…

_BOOM_!

Alphonse yelped as the building exploded. Grabbing both his brother and Hawkeye, he spun around and pressed them to his chest plate; just in case any debris went flying. He only relaxed once he was certain that all was settled.

Edward rubbed his head, whining. Hawkeye politely thanked him, and turned to look at the demolished building.

"What the hell happened?" Edward breathed.

"It could have been a bomb. Sure _sounded_ like it." Al commented softly.

"Mhmm…" Hawkeye turned to look at their back up; most of the crew. "Boys, the Colonel's missing. We can't find him. Or, I couldn't. He might still be in there; someone must go find him."

The team did. Obediently and without hesitation, they swept off to find and free their commanding officer. In the meantime, Ed and Hawkeye were swept off to look for any injuries, and Al followed obediently behind.

Nine o' clock that very night had the three of them (and the rest of the team) sitting in Mustang's office. Hawkeye was pacing by the door, looking particularly frayed. Her normal, clipped hair was down by her shoulders, and she'd run her hands through it too many times to count.

No news had come of the Colonel. Even Ed was starting to get worried, though he wouldn't show it. It _had_ been almost 8 hours since the investigation, after all.

Eventually, Edward forced Hawkeye to go home. He even threatened court martial (though he didn't mean it) just to get her and the others to go home and rest.

And she did.

12 hours later, she was back, pacing still. Though this time, she was angry again. She would snap at someone for not doing their work or for interrupting the silence. It wasn't like she meant it; she was just worried.

The day before, she'd gone to the hospital to make sure that they called the Colonel's office if he was found. And they'd promised that they would. Yet, still no phone call.

Now, Ed was starting to get more worried about _Hawkeye_ than about _Mustang._ He'd never seen anyone so frantic as she paced in front of his desk.

At about 9:30, the phone rang. Everyone jumped to their feet, but Hawkeye snatched the phone up, saying as calmly as she could, "hello?" she listened to the other person as Edward approached her. She sighed and hung her head, holding the phone out to the boy. "It's for you."

Confused, Edward took the phone and held it to his ear. "Hello?"

"_Lieutenant Colonel Edward Elric?_"

"Speaking."

"_You are needed at the Führer's office immediately."_

Edward raised an eyebrow, but said, "Alright…" he hung up. He started heading out of the door, barely hearing his brother's cry of, "wait, I'll go with you brother!"

Hawkeye stared at the door as it closed. Her eyes clouded over for a second. She rushed after them. "Edward, wait!" she said.

Edward and Alphonse stopped and turned to her. "What?"

"I want to come with. Maybe they know something about the Colonel." She explained.

"No one said that anyone could come."

"Did they say that _no one_ could?" Hawkeye retorted. To her, this was feeling very… strange. Disobeying a superior like she was, essentially. But did she care? At the moment, as long as she could get some information on the Colonel, not really.

Ed sighed. "Fine. Let's go. Please keep up."

"Don't have to tell me twice."

They trudged up to the Fuhrer's floor silently, not bothering to say anything. On the floor, they passed the Window Hallway, the hallway that led to the Führer's office that was nearly no walls, just windows. Hawkeye glanced out of them from the corner of her eye, sighed, and continued walking.

Edward's eyes widened when he saw the Fuhrer and three of his assistants in the hallway. Though he snapped into a salute, he muttered, "what the fuck…"

**review?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Special thanks to: M**ysticMarmalade, **a**wesomenaruto, **S**t. Iggy the Pyro, **a**lphonese, **A**thena's Phoenix

**alphonese**: will do! :D

A/N: See? Much better AND longer than last chapter. Hopefully, this _will_ be better. :D

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><p>"What."<p>

Edward stared at the thing that he'd obviously been called up to see, his mouth agape and his golden eyes slightly narrowed. Alphonse was amazed, staring at the child with similar- if not exact- hair, eyes, face shape, and body shape as the Colonel who had gone missing only the day before.

"Is."

A little boy with black hair and black eyes hid himself against the wall, tiny arms shaking, pulling him as far away as he could from every single person in the hallway. One tiny hand was covering his mouth, and his eyes were squeezed shut, fat tears trickling out of them.

"_That_?"

Hawkeye watched the child, confused and at the same time amazed. Who was this tiny, frightened boy that looked exactly like her commanding officer, the one that she'd vowed to protect? And why were his actions so different from that of the Colonel?

The Führer raised his eyebrows at Edward, who had spoken those rude words. "I believe that the word you are looking for is _who_, Fullmetal. Not what." He said softly.

"No, what. 'Cause it must be a monster, _nothing_ gets that small." Ed said. He crossed his arms, glaring at the… the creature. "…Well, nothing _human_."

"That's mean brother. What did he do to you?" Alphonse managed, keeping his red glowing eyes on the child who clung to the wall.

"I don't know Edward. You were pretty small when you were younger, weren't you?" Hawkeye cooed sweetly, not liking the way that Ed was talking.

"Call me small one more time…"

"This coming from the boy that just called a _six-year-old_ inhuman." Said one of the people beside the Führer coldly.

"Well…"

The Führer King Bradley waved off their conversation in an annoyed fashion. He sighed heavily. "_This_," he directed to the boy, who winced and hid against the wall a little further, "was found late last night. In the rubble of the explosion. In the middle of a transmutation circle. He had a rather… decorated Amestrian military uniform on, though it was at least four times bigger than him. As a result, we, Edward, had to borrow some of your clothes so that he could wear something."

Edward's eyes alighted with near-flame. The very last person that he had expected to yell at was the Führer, but if it had to be done, it had to be done. "Who are you calling _so_ small that-"

He was cut off, however, by a short, terse scream, followed by Al's own, "Brother!"

The boy who had been clinging to the wall had flung himself to his knees. He had one little arm over his head protectively, the other around his stomach. He was fighting to stop the tears that were falling. Alphonse, closest to the boy, distinctively heard, "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry…" repeated over and over again.

Riza watched the boy rub his eyes softly, whimpering. "Uh…"

"Don't worry about it much. He does it all the time. And look, Edward. Don't those clothes look at least a little big on him?" said another assistant.

Looking the boy up and down, Edward found that one of his tightest long-sleeved shirts was almost twice the size of the child, drooping over him in a way that made him worry- at least a little. He couldn't help it, but he noticed that the boy was unnaturally thin.

"Around him, just outside of the circle, were ropes. They were tied to hold _something_… like the wrists and ankles of a fully-grown man. Not those of a six-year-old child. And when we found him and took him to the hospital, he had several bruises and scars, coating… everything." Said a third assistant. "And there's something that you have to be wary of…" he turned to the boy, obviously intending to approach him.

The child seemed to hear him. His coal black eyes widened in fear as he spun around. He stood and backed up, eventually bumping into Al, who took a step back in surprise. He was also surprised to find that the boy went with him.

The boy's eyes widened even more, his tiny hands finding Al's metal kneecap. His breathing hitching, he tilted his chin up to find Al's soulfire eyes. He screamed, but did the last thing that the occupants of the hallway expected.

He turned around, wrapped his arms around Al's left leg- the one he'd bumped into- and he hid behind him, whimpering and sniffing, cuddling against the cool metal.

The second assistant seemed positively amazed. "Okay, besides _that_, he has refused to allow any of us near him. And he hasn't spoken a single word. It's like, he's afraid of us. But I can't explain that. As my colleague was trying to point out, it looks like he has several burn marks on his arms- though not from the explosion. Look closely, can you see them?"

Alphonse's eyes searched the boy's arms, but it didn't take 20/20 vision to see the wounds. His mind searched for what the burns could have been, and eventually, it was found. "They look like… cigar_ette_ burns. And like they were on purpose." He practically squeaked.

"That's what we'd thought, too. We have no idea where they were from. Boys, and Miss Hawkeye, we have reason to believe that _this_ _boy_ is the child-version of Colonel Roy Mustang. Literally. He hasn't said anything so we don't know his name or age, but…"

"This? _This_ is Mustang? But he was a _bastard_ and this-" Edward's eyes were wide with confusion, watching the tiny boy using Al as a lifeline.

"I'm sorry…" the boy muttered against the calf of the armor. He closed his eyes and buried the top of his head into the metal leg more.

"No, it's not-" Al immediately started. He sighed and turned to glare at his brother best as he could. "Brother, I think that it's a little mean, to call an obviously _frightened_ kid a bastard." He scolded, setting his hands on his hips.

"No, I said the _old one_ was a bastard. Not _this_ one."

"He's one and the same." Hawkeye commented carefully. She watched as Alphonse stooped by the boy.

The boy watched him from beneath his eyebrows, terrified of raising his head. He whimpered quietly as Al put his hands on his sides and dragged the boy out from behind him. "Are you afraid of these people? They don't want to hurt you…" Al said softly.

The boy whimpered again. Everyone was surprised as the boy opened his mouth and breathed, "yeah-huh…"

"Why?"

"…"

The Führer sighed. "I'm surprised that you've managed to get that out of him. Anyway, you'll have to move him in with you. Actually, it'd be a better idea if you moved into Mustang's house-" the boy's ears perked up and he glanced over his shoulder to see what they were talking about, "so that he could get accustomed to his surroundings.

Edward blanched. "Wait, wait, wait…. Who said that _we_ were taking care of the brat? I haven't agreed to anything!" he cried.

Al rolled his eyes at his big brother. "Brother, _I_ don't mind. I mean, we can't leave a little kid to his own devices." He said. He brushed a hand over the boy's head, making the tiny child cover his mouth and release a tiny giggle. He then glanced up at Al, as though afraid that it was the wrong thing to do. Then, he hunkered against the armor, glancing around him nervously.

"I don't think that it'll be all bad, Edward. I mean, he's not the same as before. I can't hardly _see_ the Colonel through all of this… _little_." Hawkeye said softly.

Edward snorted. The little child winced.

Alphonse sighed. "What's your name? Here, mine's Alphonse, but you can call me Al if you want." He said kindly, passing his hand through the boy's hair again; the child seemed to like it.

The boy stepped forward and he put one arm around Al's 'neck'. Sighing, knowing what the boy wanted, Al set his arm beneath the child and stood, holding him tightly. "R-Roy…"

Riza's heart plummeted. So, this _is_ what happened when they split up. Oh, dear…

The boy, Roy, glanced down at the other people in the hallway. He clung tightly to Al, whose eyes were smiling at him.

"Roy, why are you afraid of those people? They won't hurt you." Al continued the questioning softly. He noticed the child stick his thumb in his mouth as he answered, "'cause they're so big." Chuckling, Al replied, "but so am I. Are you afraid of me?"

Immediately, the boy shook his head, short black hair flying around him. Around his thumb, he explained, "but they're not big like _you_, they're big like _him_… you're a good kind of big, I think."

Alphonse watched him curiously. "Who are they big like?"

"Umm… no one…" Roy pointed at Riza softly. "Hey, who's her?"

"Do you want to meet her?"

Roy paused for a few seconds, his thumb still in his mouth, obviously thinking. He nodded abruptly, shallowly as though to only let Al know what he wanted.

"Alright." Alphonse walked him over to Riza, who smiled at the boy, immediately understanding the request. She held her arms out, and softly plucked little Roy from Al's arms. "Hi. What's your name?"

Roy narrowed his eyes a little, glaring. "It's _Roy_." He said, accenting it to make _sure_ that she heard it.

"But your second name."

"Second…" Roy glanced back at Alphonse, confused. "I'm 'posed to have a second name? I've only got Roy!" anxiety filled the tiny boy's eyes. Anxiety, and fear.

"Your surname, Roy. The one that you share with the rest of your family." Alphonse quickly explained.

"Oh…" Roy closed his eyes, thinking for a second, and Riza was reminded swiftly of the Colonel. "Mus… Mustang! I think…"

Al glanced back at his gaping brother, who looked just plain shocked.

"Roy Mustang, hmm?"

"Mmhmm… is it not a good name? I don't think that I'm 'posed to change it…"

Riza shook her head quickly, running a hand through his hair the way that Al had done. Roy closed his eyes and hummed softly. "You have a _very_ nice name. I must say, I'm jealous." She cooed.

"J-jealous? Wazat?"

"She wants your name, Roy." Al explained.

"But it's _my_ name! She's got her own! Uh…"

"Hawkeye. First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye. But you can call me Riza." Hawkeye told him gently.

After a few minutes of thinking over her name, Roy smiled- though it was a tiny smile, one that Riza thought should be at least five times the size for a child of his age… whatever it was- and declared, "Miss Hawkeye! Hullo…"

"Hello Roy."

Roy smiled again, this time not as big, and turned to look at Al. "She's a good kind of big too."

If Riza hadn't realized that the tiny child was just that- tiny, young, and naïve- she'd have scolded him. However, she managed to realize that he meant no harm by that. After all, she was bigger than him. Everyone was either a good kind of big or a bad kind of big to him, he was so small.

Riza smiled at him softly. "Well, that's good. Roy, how old are you?"

Roy looked down at one of his hands and splayed his fingers. "Six!"

Smiling proudly, she passed her hand through his hair again. So, the two of them had managed to get more out of the little Colonel in 10 minutes than the Führer had in half a day.

Roy started fidgeting a little, moving his legs so that he was more comfortable. Both of his arms went around Riza's neck as he shifted, finally relaxing so that neither of his legs was touching the other. He cuddled up against her softly, feeling the warmth from her body that, no matter how hard he tried, Al couldn't give.

"Roy, where are your parents?"

Roy's eyes widened. He buried his face into his arm, still around Riza's neck. He shook his head.

"You don't know?"

"Mommy's dead… And I haven't seen my Father all day…" Roy whispered into his arm, still shaking his head.

"You haven't? All day?"

"Mnn-mm…" Roy agreed, shaking his head again. He leaned against Riza softly.

Riza stroked his hair caringly. "Well, that must just be awful." She purred.

Roy shrugged. "Not really." He muttered. His upper body turned a little, glancing at the four people in front of the big door. He fought to escape Riza's grasp, if only because Al could hide him better.

Riza chuckled and set him down. "What is it, honey?" she asked.

Roy shook his head and wrapped his little arms around Al's leg again. "The big people…" he whispered.

Riza glanced at them. "Oh, you really don't like them, do you?"

Roy shook his head. "No, Miss Hawkeye." He whimpered.

"Well, that's alright then. You don't even have to meet them if you don't want to."

Roy breathed gruffly out of his nose. He nodded against Al's leg, and then narrowed his narrow eyes further. He glanced up at the armor, who was watching Edward curiously, almost pleadingly. Curious, he glanced at the short blond boy. He tugged on Al's loincloth gently. "Mister Al… whozzat? Can I know him? Is he a good kind of big like you 'n' Miss Hawkeye?" he asked.

Al looked down at him and smiled with his eyes. He stooped and nodded at the boy. "Yeah, you can know him if you want. Ed's good when he's not grumpy. C'mon." he softly took the black-haired, fair-skinned boy's hand and tugged him over to Ed. "Edward, be nice."

Edward grumbled at his brother. Raising his eyebrows, he looked at the nervous boy.

The Führer spoke to Riza since Ed was busy. "The military will supply whatever it takes to take good care of him. That's all that we're asking. We'll fund the research and most likely run most of it, then call once we've discovered how to change him back. That's all that I've got, unless these three have something…" all three shook their heads, "you are dismissed." Immediately, Riza saluted him. Edward, barely hearing him, snapped into one as well. Then, Riza turned to head back to the office.

Edward sighed and glanced down at Roy, who had taken a distinct interest in his shoes. Narrowing his eyes, he hissed, "chin up."

Roy's eyes darted up to look at Ed, who nodded. "That's better."

"What?"

"Keep your chin up. I don't like people acting like they're better or worse then me. You're not worse than me. When you're talking to me, I want you to look me in the eyes. Same with Al and Riza and anyone else you meet." Ed drawled.

"But I-"

"No buts. No one is better than you. Everyone was born from one mother, same as you, and sired by one father, same as you. As a result, you deserve the same treatment as everyone else. So, chin up, look sharp." Ed took Roy's hand gently and led him away.

Roy watched him, somewhat confused. And he thought that he would like Ed even better than he liked Al and Miss Hawkeye. Because Ed had made him something that he hadn't been in years. An equal.

**Reviews get virtual cookies! **

**And, to anyone reading _Those Days After_, my inspiration is dwindling. Seriously. I'm just saying this because I got 3 reviews for chapter 12, 6 for chapter 13 (which isn't as bad as I thought at first) and only 2 for chapter 14, after it's been up for 2 days now. Normally, it's a lot faster than that. DX so I may not update in a while, depending on my mood. **

**And, I was just wanting to update this. If there are any errors, please do tell! Especially if they're repetitive. :D**


	4. Chapter 4

Special thanks to: **M**ysticMarmalade, **K**atargeo Em, **a**wesomenaruto, **S**t. Iggy the Pyro, **F**ullmetalFan16, **C**hibi Allen Walker the Awsome, and **i**Natix

A/N: Sorry, it took longer than I thought it would... even though it wasn't THAT long of a wait... was it? Only 11 days... 0.o i got stuck for two days or so. I actually finished this at, like, 1 in the morning but I wasn't up to updating it then. DX Sorry all! XD

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><p>As they walked through the Window Hallway, Ed quickly came to the realization that his hand was shaking. No… not his hand. The hand <em>holding<em> his hand was shaking. A lot. Gazing down at the tiny boy holding him tightly, he found that Roy was looking out of the windows, his head lowered and his shoulders scrunched.

Ed softly tugged on Roy's hand. The boy looked his way, though not in his eyes still. "Do you not like looking out of the windows, Roy?" he asked.

Roy eyed him, and then chose to look in his eyes before he answered, only trying to obey Edward's orders. "Um… no. Not really." He whispered.

"Then why are you? Just look forward. Look ahead of you. Watch Riza's back if you need. But if you don't like looking out of the windows, then don't."

Roy gulped and nodded. Clinging tighter to Ed's hand, he watched the hall ahead of him, waiting for them to arrive at the elevator so they could _just get to a lower floor_.

The elevator ride was short, Roy now being held in Al's arms (he felt safest with Al) and sucking his thumb. Riza watched him.

Riza's scrutinizing positively unnerved Roy. He shifted a little and asked around his thumb, "what?"

"That's a bad habit."

"Huh?"

"Thumb sucking. It's a bad habit. I'd recommend you stop now. And not only that, it's gross." Riza elaborated.

Roy pouted a little, but removed his thumb and wiped it on his pant leg. That arm then went around Al's neck as well and he sniffed.

Ed raised his eyebrows at him. They waited a few more seconds for the elevator to come to a complete stop at the ground floor.

Al glanced down at his brother. "Brother, what are we going to do about the rest of the team?" he asked worriedly. He shifted Roy a bit higher, if only to offer more protection.

Ed thought for a second. "I don't know. We'll have to tell them the truth, I guess. I mean, they're bound to figure it out eventually." He said.

Al sighed deeply. "Yeah I guess. But what if they…"

"They won't."

"They _might_ upset him. You know how they get, brother. All loud and… well, loud. And Roy…"

Roy glanced up at the mention of his name. He looked down at Edward, Riza, and Al, before shrugging and snuggling into Al's shoulder, closing his narrow black eyes.

"Roy won't be able to handle that, I don't think. I mean, he gets freaked out just _seeing_ some people. Don'cha think…"

"I can handle that, Alphonse. I'll have a 'talk' with them."

Ed and Al looked over at Riza. They stepped out of the elevator, shrugging. "Um… okay then. But don't hurt them, blood probably won't be very good either."

"Yucky." Roy confirmed.

Riza chuckled, patted Alphonse's arm, and then Roy's head. "I won't. Why don't you just leave him outside the office and we'll talk to them, all three of us." She offered.

"Office?"

"That sounds alright…" Ed decided for his brother and himself. They came to a stop at the doorway of the little Colonel's office.

Al set Roy down softly and crouched in front of him. "Roy, we need you to stay out here for a bit." He said. He settled his gauntlets on his knees, waiting for the reaction.

Little Roy tilted his head down, barely looking up at Al. "Was I bad?" he shuffled his feet and kicked once, his hands clutching each other behind his back. His hair fell down his face softly, looking a lot longer than it actually was. He glanced up at Ed and Riza, to see if _they_ thought he'd been bad too.

"No, you were not _bad._ However, we need to talk to the people in this room _alone_, so that _they_ won't be bad. You hear? Little kids like you are… rare in the office and they'd probably do anything to get out of work." Riza explained. Ed and Al both agreed with a soft nod.

"Oh. Can I come in, in a little bit?" Roy asked.

"Of course. It'll only be for a few minutes."

Roy nodded. He looked at the floor around him, leaned back against the wall, and slid down it. He gathered his tiny knees to his chest. Then, he glanced up at the three, waving one hand innocently. "Buh-bye."

Ed lifted his chin in reply. Riza considered saluting, finally settling on just messing with the boy's hair. Al fully waved at him, the last to go into the office.

Mustang's subordinates seemed to take it rather well. Of course, Breda and Havoc found themselves laughing at the predicament. Fuery was flustered over whether or not the Colonel was all right. Falman was indifferent one way or the other.

Havoc wanted to meet this little Roy. He was absolutely jovial about it, asking why he couldn't. He had a large grin across his face the whole time.

"Why?" Ed asked, surprised. Yes, why _didn't_ they just open the door and send Havoc out like an excited dog to a visitor?

"Yeah. Why?"

"Roy's afraid of loud noises, I think. And _people_. He doesn't react very well with them." Alphonse explained. He slid in front of the door, putting his arms out so none of the men could get past him.

Breda snorted. "Roy? You mean the guy that works with explosive fire every day?" he laughed.

Ed shrugged. "He just doesn't like it."

* * *

><p>Roy fisted his hair where he sat, waiting for Riza and Ed and Al to come and get him. He buried his face into his knees. He could hear the loud men that Al had been talking about. What if they were loud and big like his father? What if… he shuddered and shook his head. No. They couldn't be. Would Al and Riza and Ed let them come if they were? He didn't think so. But then, he didn't know them.<p>

They were always in his head. Always the "you stupid boy!"s and the "look what you've done!"s and the ever present "see what you made me do?"s. They never left. He wanted them to. But that was always what he thought of. All of the hurt and pain.

But those weren't the only things. There was always the "I'm sorry!"s and "I didn't mean to!"s and the "Please!"s that came after an attack. Or during. During was becoming awful common. He didn't know if he wanted these to leave; they came in his voice, but they always reminded him of why he had to say these things in the first place. _Always_.

"Please…"

More big people walked past him. They were not Mister Al's kind of big or Miss Hawkeye's kind of big. Not even his Aunty Chris' kind of big. No, they were _his_ kind of big. The _scary_ kind. The people watched him, confusion in their eyes. They talked to their companions, and maybe they'd snicker, or stop. And he'd have to hide. He would have run off to find a better hiding place but hadn't Mister Al said to stay there? Yeah, he did. He really wished that he hadn't.

He looked at the ground between his knees, thinking that it was the same kind of floor that he always hit if his father was mad. He tucked further into himself.

He looked up, glancing down the hall. It was a long hall. A scary hall, kind of. It was really big. He was just glad that he wasn't on the ceiling 'cause then he'd be way too high.

The door opened.

Mister Ed appeared there, leaning against the door, watching him. Roy watched his chin, still not liking looking in peoples' eyes. His father always told him that he wasn't supposed to look at peoples' eyes. Other people were too good for him to foul their gaze. "You comin', short stop?" Ed asked, raising his eyebrows.

'Short stop?' "Y-yeah, 'f it's okay. Let me get up…" he said. He started to wriggle to get out of his position. He winced when a hand appeared in his vision.

Ed held his hand out to the boy. "C'mon. Let me help you up. Take my hand." He said.

Nervous, confused—why was anyone helping him?—he did so, taking the older boy's hand and letting him pull him up. He scrubbed at his eyes, not wanting for Ed to start with the "you damn weak boy!"s that didn't come as often but hurt just a little more than the other things.

Ed noticed him, raising his eyebrows. He knelt and took the boy's other hand softly as well as the one he'd already been holding. "You okay, Roy?" he asked. He noticed slightly wet tear tracks. Had he been crying while he was out here?

"Y-yeah, Mister Ed. 'M okay. Not used tah this." Roy replied.

"…Alright. Hawkeye thinks that we have the others under control. You can come in and meet them now. We're gonna make them stay quiet." Ed assured softly.

"Miss Hawkeye?"

"Mhmm." Ed softly tugged on Roy's hand and stood. He led the boy in.

Roy glanced back around at the hallway and all of the big people. Quickly, not wanting to be with all of the big people who were big like _him_, he huddled against Mister Ed and let him pull him inside.

There were four people. People who were bigger than him. _Way_ bigger than him. Though they were not quite as big as Mister Al or even as his father. He couldn't decide though. Were they Mister Al's good kind of big or _his_ bad kind of big? The people formed a half circle, watching him. Miss Hawkeye was on one side of the half circle, Mister Al on the other. "Roy?" Mister Al asked.

Roy looked at him, questioning him with his gaze.

"Do you want to know these people too?"

Roy shrugged. He went to Al and wrapped his arms around his right leg. "I don't know. I can't tell if their bigs are good or bad…" he whimpered.

The closest to him, a blond man that smelt strongly of the same kind of smoke that the sticks that were pressed against him in a burst of anger sometimes did, squatted, watching him. He shifted under the inspection, looking away.

"This kid's really the Colonel?"

"Yeah. He said so. Well… a six-year-old version of him." Mister Ed explained.

"Hmm…" the smoky-smelling man thought for a second, and then smiled softly. "Roy?"

Wanting to ignore the person calling him desperately, Roy turned to look at the man. He hid more against Al's leg. His experience with ignoring being called told him that that was the _wrong thing to do_. Ignore it. The man at least had a friendly smile on. Nervously, he waved. The man waved back.

"Hi Roy. I'm Jean. How're you feeling?" he asked.

"Mister Jean?" Roy asked. He glanced up at Mister Al for confirmation, and that at this Mister Jean person. "'M okay."

"Sure, Mister Jean. And that's good. Do you like it here?"

"It was too high up." Roy immediately said.

"Is it still?" A short black-haired man asked.

Roy looked out of the window. He could just barely see the trunks of trees. "…No. 'Don't think so, at least. It doesn't look like it. Who're you?"

"Kain Fuery. Kain's fine, if you're comfortable with that." The man said.

Roy played with the name on his tongue. He said it over twice and then nodded. "Kain." He said firmly.

Kain put on a cheerful grin.

Falman and Breda introduced themselves not long after, and Roy respectfully called them, "Mister Vato" and "Mister Heymans" respectively.

The four men seemed to enjoy playing with him. Ed was contemplating how in the _world_ they were supposed to take care of a six-year-old boy, while Al and Riza watched over the five protectively.

Five o' clock rolled around eventually. Roy had been tuckered out; he was napping on the couch, his head in Riza's lap. His mouth was open, but he was quiet, as though he were afraid to snore. He'd been asleep for almost an hour.

Edward came into the main office after wandering into Mustang's own. He watched all of the people who had started working not long after Roy fell asleep. He finally went to Riza, who was reading to herself. "Lieutenant?"

"Hmm?" Hawkeye didn't even look up. She turned the page and settled her head on her hand, propped up on the arm of the chair.

"Don't you think he's hungry? I mean, he hasn't had anything to eat for lunch and it's already five. Don't they have something in the mess?" he asked.

Riza glanced down at Roy, who turned over and muttered something in his sleep. Did he just say 'sorry' again? She softly pet his hair and sighed. "We may as well. Then what, will you bring him home?"

"Probably."

"I can give you a ride."

"Huh? Oh. Okay."

Riza shook Roy's shoulder softly. He took a second, groaned, and turned over. He pushed himself to his knees and rubbed his eyes softly, looking around. His hair was standing up in the back. "Good afternoon, Roy." She said.

Roy glanced up at her and waved. "Afternoon, Miss Hawkeye." He said.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, ma'am." Roy looked up at Ed and waved. "Hullo Mister Ed." He said.

Edward nodded at him. "Hello Roy. Are you hungry?"

Roy looked around, shaking his head. "No, sir. Not really." As though to shoot down his point, his stomach grumbled loudly. Immediately, his arms shot to his stomach, and he told it to hush. He was blushing deeply. "Sorry. I'm not." He repeated.

"If your body's telling you otherwise, you should probably listen to it." Al offered. He had followed Ed out of the office. They'd been chatting.

"No. My tummy's just bein' bad. Bad tummy!" Roy scolded. He shook his head again.

Ed raised his eyebrows. "Well, we were going to head down to the mess to get something. Do you want to come with? _Then_ we'll judge if you're hungry or not." He said. He held his automail hand out to Roy.

"Is it okay?"

"If I offered then it most likely is." Ed told him.

Roy held his hand up to his mouth and yawned. He clambered off of the couch and took Ed's hand. "Okay Mister Ed." He said.

* * *

><p>"So how did you like all of the others, Roy?"<p>

Roy looked up at Edward, who had just opened the front door of the house. It was a nice two-story house, colored brown with black roof tiles. He was holding Al's hand tightly. "Who?"

"Kain and them?" Al offered.

"Oh! Them. They were nice. I liked them. I think that they're your guys's kind of big. The good kind. I think." Roy decided.

"Good. You'll probably be seeing them quite a bit."

The house had a warm feeling about it. Roy liked it. It wasn't like the one that he and his father lived in. He squeezed Al's fingers softly, yawning.

The two taking care of him chuckled. "Are you still tired, Roy?" Al asked.

Roy shook his head, yawning behind his hand again.

"Roy…"

"Uh… maybe a little." Roy quickly corrected. He hid behind Al.

"That's alright. It's already eight, Ed, maybe we should put him down." Al said.

Ed glanced up from Roy's shaking frame to Al's sturdy one. "Yeah, good idea. C'mon, Roy-boy. Time for bed." He said. He hadn't meant for the nickname to come out. He just remembered Hughes once calling Mustang that. Sure, Mustang had gotten mad, but still. He held his hand out for Roy, who quickly transferred from Al's hand to his. He let Ed bring him to the stairs while Al went to explore the house.

"Hey Mister Ed?"

"Hmm?"

"Why's your hand so cold?"

"My hand…" It took Ed a second to realize that the hand that he'd held out was his automail one. "Um… when I was young I hurt my arm so badly that it ended up… well, it was a bad accident. So I had to get it replaced. It's metal." He explained. He started up the stairs, not even realizing that Roy had let go. He only realized it once he got to the top when he didn't hear the soft pitter-patter of Roy's feet alongside him. He glanced back and saw Roy staring up at him in horror. "What's wrong?"

"You got your arm chopped off?"

And that was probably the rudest thing that Roy had said as he gaped at Ed.

"Yeah. Why?"

"Owie…" Roy whimpered.

"It's alright, it doesn't hurt anymore. Now come on."

Roy seemed to remember why he'd stopped in the first place. He looked up at the long stairs going upwards, shaking his head.

"Too tired? Do you _want_ me to carry you?" Ed asked softly, confusion interlacing his soft features.

Roy just shook his head again.

"Well, I'm pretty sure that your room is up here. C'mon." Ed insisted.

Roy started shaking a little. He took a few steps forward and, with a sudden burst of energy, tore up the stairs. He took Ed's hand and hid behind him, watching the stairs with growing weariness.

Ed was, simply put, shocked at the tiny boy. He stared at him for a second, finally managing, "you don't like the… stairs, Roy?" he breathed.

"No, sir." Roy replied curtly.

"…Well alright." Ed finally decided that maybe, when Roy had been younger, he'd had a falling-down-the-stairs bout that made him not like them. It made sense to him.

After that, Ed led Roy into four different rooms until they found one with a bed; Mustang's room. "Well, here's where you stay. Huh, look at that. You've got a pretty nice view." He commented. After not hearing a reply, he turned around, spotting Roy's shivering form in the doorway.

"Roy?"

Roy just shook his head, hiding in his hands. He peeked through his fingers.

"Okay, now what is it?"

"Nothing."

"You can't do _that_ and tell me _nothing_. It doesn't work like that, short stop. Now then, I'll only ask one more time. _What's wrong_?"

"It's… it's nothing. Nothing I can't handle." Roy suddenly yawned widely, rather obviously doing it just to get Ed off of his back. "Mister Ed, it's late. You must be tired; me too. Can I just go to bed?"

And there it was. The _second_ rudest thing that he'd said. Ed was surprised by the bluntness of the statement. He watched the boy for a few seconds, deciding eventually that even if the yawn was fake, the tiredness was real; the poor kid looked like he was about to fall asleep on his feet. "…Alright. Go on to bed. We'll see you in the morning, short stop."

"Mhmm, Mister Ed…"

It was past eleven-thirty by the time that Edward set down the book- or was _forced_ to set down the book- and went to bed. He'd found an old mattress in the attic and had taken it down to set in the Mustang's office on the ground floor.

Before going to bed, he went upstairs to check on Roy. The boy was sleeping on his bed, his entire body turned away from the door. He _seemed_ to be all right. Deciding that it would be okay to leave him, Ed went back downstairs to hit the hay.

Roy, however, wasn't even remotely near sleep. He was in the bed, with a slightly dizzy feeling. He was whimpering, staring at the moonlight that streaked in from that _stupid_ window.

Only one, fear-filled thought flooded his mind as he heard the bathroom toilet flush downstairs. He hadn't cleaned. At all. His eyes went cross-eyed at the realization, and he stood, effectively dizzying himself enough to toss him to the floor. He pressed the top of his head to the wall, shaking his head, tears starting to fall again.

'Oh no,' anyone who didn't know Roy's situation wouldn't understand this sudden need to clean. Well, only two people knew of Roy's situation; Roy and the man who made him be like this.

'Oh… _no_… my father'll kill me…'

**Review please?**

**Okay, QUESTION TIME~**

**Does anyone know of a good nonfiction book on characters? Making up characters, I mean? I have one, and then a few on the list, but if anyone knows of anything good, could you please tell me in a review or PM? I jsut need the title and author so I can jot it down. Sorry, but that's probably the part that I'm the worst at. Making up characters. :p Thanks all!**

**~YAJJ**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Six-Year-Olds Are Handfuls**_

A/N: Sorry it took so long! XD

Special thanks to: _**a**wesomenaruto, **M**ysticMarmalade, **F**ullmetalFan16, **K**atergeo Em, **G**ilbert Idols Awesome Hostess, _**c**lipped, **A**SD, _**T**he Ninja Alchemist 95, **i**Natix_

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist. :/

**Date: **08/15/11 10:03 am

* * *

><p>It was about one in the morning when Al finally looked up from one of the alchemy books that Mustang had stashed in his study. A few feet away, Ed was fast asleep, his stomach sticking out of his shirt rather innocently, a book resting over his eyes. Al set his book down and extinguished the lamp at his side. He stood and went to the door, thinking that he'd heard a noise. He opened the thin wooden door and looked into the dark house. It took him a second, however, to realize that the house wasn't <em>completely<em> dark. There was a light down the hall a few doors. Wasn't that… the bathroom? And he was certain that there was a noise coming from it.

Well, he was right. Roy was on the floor of the bathroom, on his hands and knees, still in the clothes that he'd been wearing all day since he didn't really have any nightclothes. He was facing the wall, his back to Alphonse, and seemed to be sniffling.

"Roy…?"

Roy screamed and spun around. He pushed himself back to the tub, shivering and shaking.

"Roy!"

"Don't!"

Al watched the tiny shaking boy. Roy was wiping furiously at his cheeks as tears softly trickled down. He shook his head, held his breath, swallowed, and gasped in another small breath.

"Please…"

"Roy, settle down, relax, it's okay! _Breathe_, Roy!"

Though it took a few seconds, Roy managed to suck in a healthy, clean breath, still watching Al, still terrified. He gulped again, catching hold of the bathtub and whimpering.

Al stooped and set his hand on Roy's head softly, not that surprised when Roy sobbed and tried to escape the potentially painful grasp. "Roy, you're all right. Settle down. No one's going to hurt you."

Narrow eyes slid closed, tears still falling. "P-please don't tell… I'm _sorry_…" the boy sobbed.

"What?"

"Please! Mister Ed cannot know! I'll get in big trouble, he'll hurt me, I know! I… I just forgot that I was supposed to clean this so I did… I- I cleaned the upstairs one and now… oh god, please don't tell… I'm trying…" Roy cried.

'Tell Ed?' "What would I tell him?"

"Nothing! Please!" Roy yelped. His now-wide black eyes watched Al as he moved. He lowered his head and sniffed. "You _can't_ tell him," he whimpered.

Al sighed heavily. His armor creaked as he passed his hand softly through the black-haired child's hair over and over again. "Well, kiddo. You're in luck. Since I have _no_ idea what I would tell him, I won't tell him anything that you don't want me to." He assured softly.

Grateful eyes with furrowed eyebrows looked up at him. "Thank you…" the small child breathed. Then, he got back to cleaning.

Al watched him curiously. "Why are you cleaning, Roy?" he asked.

Roy sat back, setting the sponge he was holding down. He glimpsed the armor, before continuing the cleaning. He turned to wipe the tub. "My Father told me that I'm 'posed to because it's my job. Every night at my house I have to clean up the bathroom or the kitchen or the living room or somewhere before I can go to bed. Normally the bathroom. Only my Auntie Chris doesn't make me do that. She's real, real nice to me." He explained.

Al nodded, pretending to understand. "Well, it's one in the morning, we have to go shopping for you tomorrow, and you need to sleep. Why don't you let me finish up here?"

Roy creased his eyebrows together. "Um… I can't. I'll get in trouble."

"Well then we'll tell Ed that it was all you." Al assured.

"No, I can't take credit!" Roy cried.

"It's alright! I highly doubt that Ed will care who finishes it." Al said.

Roy gulped, still unsure. "But won't you get tired? It's past my bedtime, it must be past yours!" he whimpered.

Al chuckled. He grabbed the boy beneath his armpits and lifted him, making him drop the sponge he was clutching. He petted the young child's head. "I don't get tired very easily. But you, it seems, do. I think that you should go to bed and _stay_ in bed, alright?" he said.

"How do you know that I won't get in trouble?" Roy breathed, leaning into Al's grip, against the cool armor.

"Because I know Ed, and Ed's not like that." Al said simply.

Roy was still nervous, but he curled against Al. "You don't hafta finish. It won't take me long."

"That may be so, but like you said, it's past your bedtime." Al scolded. He carried the young, fidgeting child to the stairs and started up them. Once he came to the top, he noticed that the tiny boy had huddled against him rather tightly. Glancing out the window nearby, he noticed the fear in the young boy's eyes. "Are you afraid of heights, Roy?"

While at first the boy looked shocked, he nodded. "Y-yes, sir." He whimpered.

"Why?"

"…No reason. Just am." Roy stammered.

Al watched him for a few seconds, sighed, and escorted him to his room. He softly settled him into the large bed and made sure to tuck him in tightly. "Now you go on to sleep, and I'll make sure to finish the bathroom. Okay? I promise, nothing will happen to you." He said.

Roy nodded at him, still a little teary-eyed. "Good night Mister Al, sir." He whispered.

"…Good night, Roy-boy."

Giggling softly, the boy turned over in the bed and closed his eyes. Al didn't leave until he was sure that he was sleeping. Once he was certain, he sighed and went to finish the bathroom, just as he'd said.

* * *

><p>7 in the morning found Edward forcing himself off of the little mattress in Mustang's study. He groaned about his back (it had been a really bad mattress) and made himself stand.<p>

Who was at the door anyway? And why did they _keep ringing the doorbell?_

_Ding dong… ding dong ding dong ding dong_!

"I'm coming!" Ed practically screeched. He heard a soft cry of surprise and left the study, almost slamming the door.

Roy was standing directly behind the front door, waiting for him to come. His eyebrows were furrowed in confusion, curiosity, and worry. As soon as he spotted Ed, he lowered his head and tucked his small hands behind his back.

"Why didn't you get the door?" Ed asked, much quieter than he had been.

Roy looked up immediately, his dark eyes finding his collarbone so he at least _looked_ like he was respectfully obeying Edward. "Father said that… that I am not supposed to answer because the people won't even want to see me so it doesn't matter anyway." He whispered.  
>Edward froze, if only for a second. His father told him that? It sounded like his father hadn't been the nicest person around. "Um… alright…" he said. He held his hand out for Roy to take, and then answered the door.<p>

As soon as he got over the shock of who it was, he snapped into a salute. Roy hid behind him, whimpering, "the big people…"

"At ease, Fullmetal." Said the Führer. He chuckled darkly, noticing Roy hidden behind the blond. "Once I told Selim what had happened to Mustang, he wanted to help. So he brought over some clothes for the kid to wear. He can keep them; my son doesn't use them anymore." He explained.

Roy peaked a little further out from Ed, noticing the young dark-haired child standing proudly next to the Führer, clutching a paper bag tightly with a broad grin on his face. He cocked his head to the side curiously. He tugged on Ed's shirt and breathed, "Who's that?"

Selim seemed to have heard him, because he stepped further in front of his adopted father, stuck his thumb against his chest proudly, and proclaimed, "I'm Selim. My father's the most important man in the whole wide country."

"The whole country?" Roy sounded astounded. "That's a lot of country to… be important over." He blushed suddenly. He glanced up when Ed tugged him out. "Introduce yourself."

Roy gulped. He played with his hand softly and, remembering what Selim had done, did the same (though with much less gusto) and decided, "I'm Roy Mustang!"

Bradley raised his eyebrows at the formerly introverted child. "Yes, well… I can expect you in the office later today, Fullmetal?" he turned to the blond.

"Yes sir. I'll be there." Ed replied obediently.

"Good. Come along, Selim." Bradley turned around and went down the path.

Selim blinked and turned to look at his father. He cocked his head to the side (just like Roy had done) and sighed. "Yes, Father." He turned back to Roy and stuffed the bag into his hands. Roy quickly fastened onto it so it wouldn't drop. "You look about my size, so it should fit. See you later, Roy!" then he rushed down the path to follow his father.

Both standing in the doorway were too shocked and confused to say or do anything for a full minute, until Al came up to them.

"…Who was at the door?"

Roy yelped and turned around, clutching the bag tighter. He offered the older boy a grin and plowed inside.

Edward raised his eyebrows and smiled up at his brother. "It was the Führer."

"Why was _he_ here?" Al asked.

"His kid had a gift for Roy. See the bag?"

"…Well, that was very… thoughtful of Selim, then."

Ed nodded. "Yes, I guess so. Hey Roy!"

Roy looked up at the boy. "Yes sir?"

'Why is he calling everyone sir?' "Why don't you try those on, so that we can see how it looks and make sure it fits. Okay?"

"Okay sir. Now?"

"Yep. And Roy…"

"…Wh-what…?"

"That's enough with the 'yes sir's and 'no ma'am's and any other mix up of that. You are just as important as everyone else. Certain people, yes, that's appropriate, but you don't call Al and myself or anyone at the office sir. Or ma'am, in Hawkeye's case. And no Mister or Miss stuff, either." Ed told him.

Roy looked down at his feet. He was confused. His father had said to _always_ address someone with the proper title, never his or her name! Because they deserved that kind of respect. But… if Mister Ed said it, was that alright? "Um… then what do I call you?"

Ed and Al both put on true looks of surprise. What _would_ he call them? Ed hadn't really thought about _that_…

Roy glanced up at Al suddenly, and seemed to remember something. "Can I… can I call you brother?"

Both older boys jolted in surprise. "Brother?" Ed asked.

"Yeah. Brother. Um… I noticed that Mister… uh… that _he_," Roy pointed up at Al, "called you brother a lot. Um… I know that I'm not your real brother and you'll probably never see me _as_ your fake brother, even, but…" the boy pouted, looked at his feet again, and whimpered, "I don't know what else to call you…"

Edward's mouth formed the most comical 'O' as soon as Roy's explanation slid out. He sighed and dropped into a squat. "Roy, if you're comfortable with brother, then sure. I don't mind. Al?"

"Not at all!"

"There you go. We're your brothers now."

Roy's tiny eyebrows scrunched together, confusion interlacing in his eyes. Then, out of nowhere, he threw himself into Ed's arms, wrapping his arms around the older boy's neck. He whispered, "thank you…" into his collarbone.

Ed was more than a little shocked when he had the small bundle thrown into his lap. But he sighed and rubbed his back, cooing softly. 'That's what you get for taking care of a six-year-old…' he hefted the boy to the ground. "Go on, go get changed. We need to make sure that these fit."

Roy blinked and nodded. "Yes, brother." He said. He turned and tottered off to the bathroom, clutching the bag even tighter than he had before.

Silence followed. The kind that was awkward, but at the same time not. Needed but unnecessary.

A few minutes later, Roy came back out. The thing that Roy was supposed to put on was a suit. However, it was clear that he didn't have any idea how to put it on. Ed raised his eyebrows and chuckled. Al rolled his eyes, sighing heavily. Roy pouted. "I don't know how tah put it on!" he cried.

"We can tell." Ed replied innocently.

Roy stuck his tongue out, glancing up at them to see if that was even a bad thing to do. He formed a tiny smile when Ed chuckled a little and Al gave a highly amused sigh.

Ed stooped in front of him and grabbed hold of the lapel. "Let me fix this, Roy." He said. And, once Roy nodded, he did. Finally, Ed stood and looked him over. "…It'll do for now." He decided.

Roy cocked his head to the side and shrugged. "Kay." He said.

* * *

><p>Roy seemed perfectly content with sitting on the floor in his friends' office, playing patty-cake with Riza as his brother Ed went all of the way upstairs to talk with the man who had so kindly brought him clothes. Currently, he was wearing a black polo and some little jeans; Ed and Al had taken him shopping not long afterward. He was sitting cross-legged in front of the couch, playing with Riza, who didn't seem even slightly annoyed that her work was being interrupted.<p>

His brother Al was pretending to read a book, at the same time watching him with an amused air about him.

"Patty-cake, patty-cake, bakers man," Roy giggled, clapping his tiny hands against Riza's powerful ones.

"Bake me a cake as fast as you can," Riza replied cheerfully. She was allowing the others to watch them, so long as they watched from their desks. Havoc was leaned forward as far as he could to watch the innocent game. Kain had on a goofy grin. Falman and Breda's eyebrows had shot straight up as soon as it had started and stayed there.

"Pat it and prick it and mark it with a B!"

Riza's smile widened as his giggles became too much for his tiny body to hold back. "Put it in the oven for _Roy_ and me." She couldn't explain how she was becoming so overwhelmed by this tiny child, and she wouldn't bother trying. The fact was, she was comfortable doing it. She liked seeing Roy so happy, giggling and clapping with her, though the clapping game was normally used for much smaller children, he didn't seem to mind.

Roy giggled and nodded at her. He continued, "Patty-cake, patty-cake, bakers man. Bake me a cake as fast as you can!"

"Roll it up, roll it up, throw it in a pan," Riza chuckled as he opened his mouth to continue the jingle just as she did, "patty-cake, patty-cake, bakers man!"

Roy nearly fell backwards from his giggles. He sprawled his arms out above his head, though his legs were still crossed. "Wish me and Mama could have done that." He said. He glanced over at Al and fought to sit up. "My auntie taught me that!"

Havoc raised his eyebrows. "What happened to your mom?" he asked kindly.

Roy paused, and held up his fist. "She died when I was this old." He didn't bother to stick any amount of fingers up.

Riza seemed surprised. He'd mentioned that she'd died, but nothing beyond that. "How old?" she asked.

Roy turned to show her the fist. "This many. I was no years old."

_No years_? Havoc mouthed to her. She shrugged.

"Auntie said that she died when I was born b'cause she wouldn't stop bleeding. Father said it was my fault. Wait!" Roy slapped his hand over his mouth, "I'm not 'posed to say that…"

"It wasn't your fault Roy. Sometimes things happen out of our control. That doesn't make it our fault." Said Al reassuringly.

Roy just shrugged. "He said so."

Well, Al didn't like that. What kind of a father would tell his own child that? He sighed and shook his head. There was something… something about that man. Something that, the longer he knew this child Roy, the more it creeped him out and worried him. But, if Roy didn't actually talk about it, how could he know?

* * *

><p>"He's terrified of heights. Any heights, it looks like. He doesn't even like being upstairs at the house."<p>

Edward raised his eyebrows as he shoved the mattress out of the door. Al was pulling on it, planning to move it up the stairs. They'd already transferred all of Roy's furniture from the upstairs bedroom to the living room, and were now moving all of the study's furniture upstairs. "He just told me that he didn't like stairs." He stated.

"Yeah, well he's not exactly excited to talk about things, is he?" Al said.

"…No…"

Roy was in the kitchen, coloring, and had been told to stay there until Ed and Al called for him, giving them enough time to rearrange the rooms.

"…I wish I knew why he was so afraid of them. I mean, you know why I'm afraid of needles. I know why you're afraid of the dark and storms. There's always a reason for phobias." Ed said.

Al shrugged. "Maybe it's just a wild imagination. What I'm worried about is his dad."

"His dad's…" Ed glanced around to make sure that Roy was certainly still in the kitchen, "_dead_."

"But apparently the memories of the man are not." Al countered.

'_Father said that… that I am not supposed to answer because the people won't even want to see me so it doesn't matter anyway.'_ "What do you think he did? I mean, the guy sounds like a jerk." Ed sighed.

"Mhmm. I'm not sure that I wanna know. But it doesn't _sound_ good." Al replied. He hefted the mattress up. "C'mon, we should probably wait for him to be asleep. Don't want to upset him."

Ed heaved, his eyes going wide, but eventually managed to lift it. He looked like he wanted to protest. Glancing toward the kitchen, however, made him decide not to, for beyond that door was the innocent, six-year-old Roy Mustang, cheerfully humming the patty-cake song as he colored in the picture in a coloring book that they'd purchased for him. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Of course I am," Al laughed, causing Ed to roll his eyes.

It took them under an hour to finish moving the study furniture into Roy's old room. Ed made Al, who could have gone all day (for obvious reasons), stop for something to eat. They wandered into the kitchen, expecting to see Roy coloring and humming, as he was earlier. But no, there was no child sitting at the head of the table. His crayons were splayed around the half-colored picture of a whale and the sandwich that Al had made him sat on the plate, untouched.

"Where did he go?"

"Here."

Both older boys glanced away from the chair, to a corner in the small kitchen. Sure enough, there was Roy, his knees tucked to his chest and his arms around them. His dark eyes were confused as Ed, eyebrows raised, squatted in front of him. "What are you doing all of the way down there, Roy?"

"All of the way?" Roy's black eyebrows furrowed.

"Mhmm. Why aren't you at the table?"

"…It was too weird. I'm not 'posed to sit at the head. Never, ever, ever."

"…So why didn't you just move to a different seat?"

"…"

Edward sighed heavily. "Well, if you want to sit on the floor, I guess… Why didn't you eat your sandwich? Or bring the book down there?"

Roy gasped, and exclaimed, "but I already ate! Remember, when we went out shopping this mornin'!" He nodded his head deeply, sucking in his cheeks.

"You can eat more than once, Roy." Al chuckled, though slightly worried. There was just… there was _something_ about this kid that wasn't right. He wanted to understand what might have happened in Roy's past that he'd be like that. He really did.

"But I'm not hungry," Roy countered, just as his stomach growled faintly, just like the day before. His eyes widening, he wrapped his arms around his stomach. "Not at all!"  
>"Yeah right." Ed sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well, eat now, you won't get much else tonight." He scolded.<p>

Roy's eyebrows knitted together and he looked toward the plate at the table. "Um… no thank you."

"No?" Edward looked shocked. Who says 'no' to food when they haven't eaten all day? Reaching his left hand forward, he pressed it experimentally to the raven-haired child's forehead, testing for warmth.

Roy carefully batted it away. "I'm not sick, brother!" he assured.

"Then why not eat?"

"'Cause I'm not hungry!"

"Ed, just drop it. He can eat it later." Al rolled his eyes at the older blond. He took the plate and set it on the counter.

"B-"

"Ed! C'mon. Just eat something and we can get back to work." Al finally scolded.

Ed's shoulders slumped and he turned to glare once at Roy, who hid behind his hands nervously. "Fine."

Roy tucked his arms back around his knees as Ed busied himself with making himself something to eat. "What… what are you working on?"

"Oh, just rearranging the house a little. Why?" Al asked kindly.

"Just…curious."

Once Ed finished his meal, the two blood brothers left Roy to his devices in the kitchen so they could go and finish his room.

The curiosity starting to practically kill him, Roy stood and went to the door to watch his brothers. He watched them silently, coal eyes peering through the crack between the door and the frame. He watched them pick up something—was that a table?—and bring it inside the study. As soon as they were both in the room, little Roy darted out of the kitchen and—nervously, fearfully, knowing that this was exactly what life with his father had told him _not_ to do—went up the stairs. He slid into the room that Ed and Al had put him in last night.

It… had _changed_. It had a completely different air about it, one of seriousness and a need to concentrate. There was a bookshelf off to the side. A desk had its front right in front of a window ('Why would someone put a desk _there_?') and an uncomfortable-looking chair was situated in the gap where one might strategically be placed. Opposite the bookshelf was a side-table with a homey lamp on it, its shade a pale, almost skin-like color. Beside it was a mattress with two pillows and a comforter, topped with a velvet throw blanket for dragging around the house. The table had a book on top of it, one that read, "Flame Alchemy: The Strategies and Mysteries Behind This Complex Art".

"Flame… Alchemy?" Roy breathed. But, he was too afraid to touch it and get in trouble. He heard footsteps in the hallway and panicked. He went to the desk, pulled out the chair, and ducked in the space that it would fit. Finally, he pulled the chair back so it looked like no one was there.

Once Ed and Al had finished with Roy's room, they went to the kitchen to see if it was fit enough for him. However, checking all of the corners and chairs and even beneath the table, they could not find him. "Maybe he went to the bathroom?" Al offered. Then, kindly, he went off to check.

Ed sighed, shrugging. He went to search the rest of the floor for the raven-haired, coal-eyed child.

Both boys came to the conclusion that he was not downstairs. They looked up the stairs, glancing at each other. "I thought you said he was afraid of heights." Ed said.

"You said he was afraid of _stairs_." Al countered.

Ed grinded his teeth and shoved his brother up. "Just get a move on. Maybe he thinks we were playing hide-and-seek with him or something." He said. Reaching the top, they split up.

Roy's heart was pounding and his palms were sweaty. He could hear one of the boys—it sounded like Al—pass his door in favor of going on down the hall. He rubbed his palms together and gulped silently, waiting to be found out.

10 minutes later, Ed pushed open the door to the new study, annoyed. He flicked on the lights, and spotted a gleam beneath the desk. Sighing, forcing himself to relax, he knelt where he was and breathed, "Roy."

"…Brother." Came Roy's soft, frightened reply.

"Whatcha doin' under the desk?" Ed asked.

"…Hiding."

"From what?"

"You. And Brother Al." Roy squeaked out.

Ed furrowed his eyebrows. "Why are you hiding from Al and I?" he asked softly.

"You told me to stay in the kitchen. And I didn't. I thought that you'd be mad." The voice flowed softly from inside the cave that was the desk. He started playing with his hands; Ed could hear fabric shifting.

Ed sighed deeply, and he held his arms out. "Well, I'm not mad. Come here, short stop." He said.

Roy took a second, but he finally pushed the chair out, left the domain, and found safe haven in Edward's embrace. He cuddled against the powerful chest.

"I guess… I was just worried. So much could have happened to you. If you want to leave, just ask, that'd be fine. Er, leave a room. Not the house. Not unless one of us was with you." The fifteen-year-old muttered.

Roy pulled back and looked at him, gorgeous black eyes staring at him unblinkingly, a little wet on the bottom.

Ed chuckled at him as suddenly, the boy's stomach snarled at him. He stood when Roy blushed. "Are you finally hungry, Roy? Do you want your sandwich?"

Finally blinking, Roy nodded. "Can I?"

Ed nodded as well and called for Al to set it out on the table. Then, he carried the boy out of the study and down the stairs, dropping him into his seat in the kitchen.

After he finished eating, Al and Ed took him to look at his room. He seemed absolutely ecstatic now that his room wasn't on the upper floor. It actually made Ed and Al happy, to see the tiny boy so happy.

But they couldn't help but wonder, why couldn't he have been so happy in the first place?

* * *

><p>Well, I made Roy giggle an awful lot, didn't I? : I loved the patty-cake part! ...Sorry about all of the random dialogue. I get stuck and that's the only thing that I can think of. Well, at least I made it continue, right? :D

... :) Please review!

~YAJJ


	6. Chapter 6

**_Six-Year-Olds Are Handfuls_**

Sorry it took so long. I got soooo stuck. And the ending is crap, as usual, but what can I do? I really wanted to update this. :) So yeah. :)

Special thanks to all readers, reviewers, favoriters, alerters, etc... :D It's because of all of you that this thing gets updated. Well, mostly me, but you too. :D

Disclaimer: I don't own FMA. Still. BUT I do own Scott Mustang, Roy's father. Who's a dick. :)

* * *

><p><em>Fury-filled brown eyes shining out from beneath a canopy of jet-black hair found the shaking, panicky boy at his feet, trying to blend into the door. He was panting in anger, after all, how could the child do this to him? When he gave him a bed, taught him lessons as he did, and fed him once a day as he needed? The boy was shaking his head. "I'm sorry, father, I didn't mean it! I just… I… I wanted to talk to Mama!"<em>

"_Your mother is __**dead**__, you idiot boy! How were you going to go about doing that?"_

"_I… I don't… know?" the child offered. His deep coal eyes were watching his father's knees, too terrified to raise them to look into the chocolate eyes staring at him. The jet-black hair sitting atop his head—nearly the same as the man standing above him—was the only cover that he had from the ferocious man. _

"_You __**run off**__ in the middle of the fucking night, and you say that you're going to visit your __**mother**__? Well, how stupid do you think I am? Didn't __**this**__ already warn you to not disobey me?" the man reached out and shoved on one of the boy's arms. Both were being cradled against his ribs, both broken after a fall from a window… or, at least, that's what he told the hospital and his aunt. The tiny child cried out in pain and attempted to back away from the threatening man. _

"_Roy! Here __**now**__!" _

_The boy winced and stopped. "I… I __**am**__ sorry, father. I didn't mean to run away. I was gonna come back tomorrow, I promise! I just wanted to visit Mommy!"_

"_**Mommy?**__"_

_Tiny Roy knew that he was in trouble now. Mommy was never the thing to call his mother. At least, not in front of his father. He continued his attempts to escape until the man stepped on his leg, crushing it beneath him. Roy cried out loudly, glad and at the same time not glad that their sky-blue house was in the country, with no other neighbors. _

"_**What**__ did you just call her, you bastard?" the man snarled. "Did you just call her __**Mommy**__? Dammit, Roy, you __**know**__ that she's not your fucking Mommy! You damn weak boy!"_

"_I'm sorry father! Please!" _

_The man above him snarled. "Shut up!" he snapped. He clenched and unclenched his fists, glared down at the shaking, finally silent child, lifted his fist, and socked him across the face. The boy cried out and hit the ground on his too-thin belly. He felt blood trickle from his mouth. _

Roy's hand traveled to his arm and rubbed it. He was deep asleep.

"_You're lucky that's all you're getting, you nasty little bastard. Now up to your room. No meal for today… er, tomorrow." He snarled. _

_Roy gasped, his eyes squeezed shut. He attempted to force himself up with his only good limb, his right leg. "Y-yes sir…" he whimpered. He stood and reached out painfully with his right arm to find a wall, hoping that it would lead him to the safe confines of his room—as high as it was._

"_or Tuesday either."_

"_Wh-what?" Roy yelped, spinning to meet his father. _

Roy lifted his hand to rest it on his tummy.

"_No food tomorrow or the next day. I'd hoped that you'd not be so stupid that you can't obey simple orders, but I guess not. And if that bathroom isn't done by the time I wake up, 'there'll be hell to pay' won't even begin to cover it." He snarled._

_Roy's eyes widened. That'd be two weeks __**straight**__ without food. He could practically feel his stomach eating itself. "Yes sir. It'll be done, sir. Promise." He whimpered. He went upstairs as quickly as he could manage—which wasn't very quick at all—just as he heard a voice out on the porch say, "Scott? It's cold out here." The voice belonged to his uncle, who had found him, and also happened to give him the currently-bleeding wound beneath his left eye. _

_Roy forced himself to trek up to his room, which was at the end of the upstairs hallway. His legs shook the whole way. The hallway didn't seemed to stop; it felt like it took twelve hours just to get to his room, and another few to open his door and lay himself down on his mattress! He threw himself against his pillow, letting it muffle his cry of pain._

_He'd never met his mother. But he wanted to. Oh so desperately did he want to. He wanted to be able to wrap his arms around her legs and have her pat his head and say stuff like, "I love you, Roy-boy." But he knew that that was impossible. His mother was dead. And had been for nearly 5 years now._

_If it really had taken him hours just to get up to his room, that must make it, what, two in the afternoon? Maybe three? He lifted his head off of his pillow and looked outside. Nope, it was still dark. Dark, dark, dark. In fact, not even the stars that he often pretended were there to watch him were out tonight. They wouldn't be dancing for him tonight whenever he looked up, eyes that were as deep as the ocean squinted. The darkness stretched on. On, and on, and on. He couldn't even see the smallest glow of the nearest town—which was at least five miles away from his sky blue home with the warm, welcoming exterior but the cold, painful interior that held so many secrets._

_He faintly wondered why it was so dark. _

_Stomps came up the stairs, and __**they**__ didn't seem to take hours. His door was forced open so hard that it slammed against the wall and bounced off of it. "You little bastard!"_

_Scott, his father, stood there, shaking with rage, eyes glowing in anger. _

Roy started shaking in his sleep. He shifted to the side; his eyes squeezed shut tightly, never wanting to open again.

"_F-father?" Roy stood and backed up against the wall. His father closed in on him. _

"_You little shit! You __**lied**__! You weren't going to visit your mother! You weren't going to the cemetery! __**You**__ were going to tell your __**aunt**__, weren't you?"_

"_No! No, I don't even know where the cem-"_

"_Don't __**even**__ start with me! I will kill you! I'll rip you to shreds and feed you to the fucking __**dogs**__! Did you think that you were so much better than me? Did you __**really**__ think that your aunt, my sister who has dealt with __**me**__ and loved __**me **__for at least 40 years now, would believe you, who she has only known for five years? __**WHO DID YOU THINK SHE'D BELIEVE?**__"_

"_Father, I wasn't going to tell, promise! I just… I got lost! No, please sir, please… don't…"_

_The cows in the field weren't disturbed by the scream that split the air. They shifted a little and turned their heads. One looked up, but it took no notice to the blood, no matter where it was._

_After all, humans were weird. Why else would they splatter blood on a window?_

Roy screamed and sat up in his bed. Tiny tears trickled down his cheeks as he looked around, trying to find some solace, preferably his mother.

Then, he remembered. He wasn't dead like his dream had told him. No, he was in Central. In a nice house that looked nothing like his sky-blue house in the country. With his big brothers. And the best part: he hadn't seen his father in two weeks.

He and his brothers had moved into the house nearly two weeks ago. It hadn't taken nearly as long for Ed and Al to become accustomed to the ways of the household. Roy, however, was a different story. For one thing: he was allowed to eat whenever he wanted. If he was hungry, he just had to tell Ed or Al (Al seemed more likely to make sure that he ate the right thing and whatnot. He was also much more agreeable) and they'd get him something. Also, he didn't have chores. He could answer the door when someone was there. He could speak his mind if he wanted.

There were so many new rules that Roy didn't think that he'd ever understand them all.

Roy laid a hand over his tummy, which was starting to pain him. He rubbed it and looked around. His room was cute enough. It had everything that a man could need. But a little boy of six? There was way too much! Not that he wasn't happy that he had all of this nice stuff, stuff that he'd never dreamed that he'd have, but it was so weird.

Speaking of dreams, his had terrified him to the core. He pushed back his comforter and slid off of his large bed. He shivered when his bare feet touched the cold ground, but found his way out.

Alphonse wasn't cuddled up on the couch like he sometimes was, reading a book. Ed said that he liked to go outside and stargaze sometimes. Seeing that as one obstacle to pass, he found his way to the stairs and shakily climbed them.

The next obstacle was getting past the door. He knew that Ed liked to sleep, and didn't like to be interrupted when he slept. But he wanted to talk so badly… and he was frightened of another nightmare… he'd have gone to Al, but he wanted the warmth that reminded him that he was safe, the kind that could only come from a true, human body.

With the door fully open, the only thing stopping him was his thoughts. The ones telling him that the teen on the bed really didn't care about him, that he was just faking. But he bypassed those. He'd figure out if they were true soon enough anyway.

"Brother?"

No reply.

Roy huffed out of his nose. He knelt down on top of his brother's mattress and put his hands on his arm, shaking him. "Brother? Wake up, please… please? 'M scared, had a bad dream. Please?"

After a few more shakes, Ed groaned and forced his eyes open grossly. He turned over, and his golden gaze found Roy, who was kneeling above him. "Roy? Somethin' wrong?" he asked.

Roy moved so that he could sit cross-legged on the mattress. "I had a bad dream last night." He sniffed to emphasize the badness of the dream.

Ed sighed and sat up, holding one arm out toward the black-haired boy.

Roy crawled into his arms and curled up in his lap. He didn't cry. He never did when he had nightmares, but he wanted to feel a little bit of warmth. That made him feel safe. He laid his head against Ed's collarbone.

Ed cradled him for a few seconds, sighed, and whispered, "Do you want to talk about it?"

The boy offered a shrug, which normally meant, "If you don't mind." So, the golden child waited patiently for Roy to get over what had really frightened him about it and start explaining.

It took a few more seconds before Roy opened his mouth and started to speak. "I… I think that it was when I was smaller. It was so scary, it was dark. I'd went to say hi to my mommy at the graveyard but my uncle found me and made me bleed and-"

'Made him bleed? What does he mean by that?' Ed wondered to himself.

"He brought me back home and Father broke my leg and then he hit me again and he made me go to my room and no one cared and no one said anything and then he came up and he killed me!" Roy had started shaking, and most of his words were muffled by Ed's nightshirt. He bit the soft fabric nervously.

Everything clicked into place in Ed's mind. "Again?" he breathed.

"Huh?"

"Um, Roy… did your father hit you often? Er, a lot?" Ed asked the child in his lap.

Roy paused, wondering if it was okay to tell. Finally, he sighed and nodded. "Only 'cause I deserved it though, brother!" he said.

"No one deserves to be hit! Your father had no right to do that!"

Roy sniffed and shook his head. "Don't tell I said." He pleaded.

"Don't tell you sa—Roy, do you not understand the severity? _No one_ has any right to hit their own child! Not even if they think they deserve it!"

Roy continued his furious shaking. "Please. Don't tell." He whimpered.

Ed sighed and held his head in his hand. Finally, everything clicked into place. Well, everything besides the whole acrophobia thing. (1) All of the anxiety, the nightmares, the titles that he'd given each of them… They all made sense. And suddenly, so did this whole "good and bad kind of big". "…I won't tell anyone." He assured.

Roy blinked up at him, gulped, and nodded. "Thank you brother." He whimpered. He laid his cheek against Ed's nightshirt and looked out of the window.

Ed looked out as well. "C'mon, short stop. Let's put you back to bed." He said. He slid Roy off of his lap, stood, and lifted the darling child. Roy's soft arms slid around his neck, and he let the older boy carry him downstairs.

Roy shifted as he watched his brother fix his bed. He looked out of the window again, and narrowed his eyes. He stumbled over to the chair that was so strategically placed in front of the window and climbed up onto it, glaring at the stars.

Ed turned to pull him into the bed, and raised his eyebrows at the boy. "…Whatcha doin', Roy?" he asked carefully.

Roy turned to look at him and beckoned him over. He didn't explain until Ed had firmly placed his hands on the windowsill, one arm around the youngest child. "Brother, are the stars bad?" he asked.

"Bad? Of course not! What makes you think that they're _bad_?" Ed questioned the younger.

"Well… It's kinda stupid. Just ne'er mind." Roy whispered. He noticed Ed's expression, and whispered, "well, see, when I was back at my house there were lots of stars but now there are hardly any! I just… I feel like they were taunting me or something. I used to think that they were watching out for me, but now…" he looked down at the grass outside, and then back up.

Ed wanted to tell him that the stars really didn't care about him either way. He really did. It was just him—he was scientific, and he knew that the stars had nothing to do with the people down below. Whatsoever. But, he knew that that wasn't the answer the boy was looking for. "Roy… see these few out here?" he pointed up at the sky, where three stars glittered among the sky. He continued when he heard Roy's little, "mhmm" and saw him nod, "well, all of those stars out where you were living sent these three to watch over you. The ones from where you lived are over there, making sure that your dad can't come and get you." He explained softly, making the story up completely as he went.

"But what if Father gets through all of those stars?"

"Well… well, you see, that's the thing. These three are at least 10 times stronger than those other stars. So they have the power of 30 stars above you. Watching out for you. So, if your father gets past them, then he has to face these three." Ed pointed back up at the stars.

Roy looked at the stars with a new kind of reverence. "But… but what if Father kills those stars? What then?"

Ed snorted. "Pssh. What then? Then your dad has to get past _me_. And Al. And Riza, Jean, Kain, Vato, and Heymans. Your dad is screwed. 'Cause we can kick ass."

At first, Ed wasn't sure if this would help or not. Roy was giving him a blank look, but suddenly, he smiled at him. "Thank you, brother!" he hopped off of the chair and went to lie down in his bed.

Ed sighed and passed his hand over Roy's head softly. "Don't mention it."

* * *

><p>"Look, you worry too much."<p>

Ed had been having a nice chat with Havoc for the most part, when he'd started questioning the man on the behavior of abused children.

"Worry too much? What do you mean? He told me so!" Ed snapped back, wanting to strangle the man for his insolence.

"Well, take his adult person. When you look at him, you see that he radiates confidence, don't you?" Havoc asked. He took a long drag from his cigarette and dropped his hand, letting the cancer stick hang from his lips.

"Well yeah but-"

"Exactly. And that would not come from the adult of an abused boy, now would it?"

"Maybe not but what if—"

"You see? You know what I'm saying." Havoc stepped back from his perch and left the boy, offering a wave.

"But… YOU'RE NOT LISTENING, DAMMIT!" Edward snarled. He rushed forward and slammed shut the door that Havoc was about to leave from. "You don't understand. He told me _himself_ that his dad hit him. He _told me_. He's terrified that someone else will know, because he thinks that that person will let slip to his dad that he told. I had to tell him that the stars would protect him from his dad. The fucking _stars_! Stars can't do that!" he cried.

Havoc's blue eyes were widened immensely. "Kid, settle down. Look, let's face it. This is all several years in the past. Whatever happened, he's gotten over it already."

"Well obviously, because he _didn't_ come into my room last night because of a nightmare of what his dad did to him! _Thank_ you, Havoc; it all makes so much sense now!" Ed cried sarcastically, throwing his hands up in the air. He crossed his arms and sighed, stepping away from the door and towards Mustang's desk. He noticed that Havoc followed. "Maybe you don't get this because you don't live with this kind of thing every day. It's like with Al. He can't physically feel hurt, but he can get hurt. People don't know that, I know, but I do. I still have to treat him like an human, even if he doesn't look like it. Just because the fifty-and-some year old Colonel acted like he got over it—"

"He's only 30."

"—Doesn't mean that this kid at 6 did! He's _terrified_! I have to act like there never was some 80-and-some year old Colonel."

"He's not that old!" Havoc chuckled.

Ed glared at him and sighed. "I don't know. How do I take care of him?" he asked.

"Well, that's something that you'll have to figure out for yourself, isn't it."

Ed looked toward the door that led into the main office. Riza smiled at him, holding Roy's hand. Roy looked like he was about to fall asleep where he stood.

"Edward, we've never dealt with this either. We worked longer with and closer to the Colonel than you did. This is a much bigger shock to us than it is to you." She said, tugging on Roy's hand to keep him awake. The raven-haired boy snorted and blinked. He offered a slack smile and closed his eyes again.

"Yeah well—" Ed was about to reply with how they weren't the ones taking care of the brat, but he fought against the reply.

"You're doing wonderfully with him. _Wonderfully_. Just listen and support him. I think that the only thing that he needs is someone to listen to and lean on. Isn't that right, Roy?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, Miss Hawkeye. 'M tired…"

Riza's eyes softened. "Don't worry, hon. It'll be fine. Now then, Roy, nap time…" Riza pulled Roy away from the room, and Roy followed obediently, nodding gladly.

Edward puffed his cheeks out and huffed into his boss' chair. "Whatever…" he closed his eyes and tucked his knees to his chest, curling on the seat. His antenna bent in front of his eyes, so he growled at it, blowing it back up. "I'm surprised that Hughes hasn't been here…" he murmured.

"The Lieutenant Colonel is out on a mission, he has been for two weeks now. Remember?" Havoc offered, raising his eyebrows in amusement.

"…No."

"Apparently not. Well, we should see him soon; he's supposed to be back tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? As in the day that we all go on that damn big ass mission in the East? Wonderful…"

"Yeah, that's the day. Speaking of, what are you gonna do with Roy when you go? Al's coming with, right? You can't bring him with, and you can't leave him alone. _And_ Gracia and Elysia are going to head south to visit Gracia's parents, so he can't stay with them."

"…I don't know. Have him stay with Winry or something."

Havoc's eyebrows furrowed. "That may not be such a good idea."

"Well what choice do I have?" Edward questioned, eyeing the blue-eyed man. He sighed and reached his hands back to tighten his ponytail. He hadn't had the time to braid it that morning, and every time that he'd meant to, something else called for his attention. And it pissed him off.

He rubbed his hands together and looked down at his auto-mail. The metal could do to be shined, he thought, especially since to drop off Roy with Winry, he'd have to _see_ her…

* * *

><p>Sorry about the horrible ending. : But oh well. It's fine. I especially like doing the first part. I've been planning that whole stars thing forever. XD I love it!

Thanks for reading! Review please!

~YAJJ


	7. Chapter 7

**Six-Year-Olds Are Handfuls**

Finally, I'm back! Eheheh... *Dodges rotten fruit* I'm sorry! I have... a mood. At least I'm back in my FMA mood again! And (If we're _all_ lucky...) Mock Crash should be updated soon... no promises though...!

Special thanks to: **_a_**_wesomenaruto _(as usual), **_T_**_heNinjaAlchemist95, iNatix _(x3, apparently)_, **M**ysticMarmalade, **b**ronze andromeda shun _(well, we do WANT Riza to be good with Roy, don't we? ;p Ahh, Royai, how much I love you! XD)_, _and **_H_**_atake Kai _(They'll find her soon... maybe._)_

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist, unless it's Scott Mustang and his brother, both of whom are assholes. One chapter soon, you will all meet the asshole himself, little Roy-boy's abusive uncle. :'(

Also, much of this and next chapter will be using the assumption that Winry knows that Mustang killed her parents in the war. And, next chapter will be focused almost entirely on Roy spending time around Winry, if not entirely. Who cares about the mission, anyway? X3

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><p>Ed's eyes of molten gold watched Roy, who was seated in Mustang's seat at his desk in the office, swinging around in it and apparently comfortable. The kid spun around in the seat, kicking his feet, clutching the arms tightly. "This chair is very fun, brother! Come play!" Roy reported excitedly, glancing at Ed.<p>

Ed shook his head and hunched back over the paper in his lap. "I've got to work, Roy, I told you. Maybe go see if Havoc can play."

"Miss Hawkeye already said that I couldn't, though, because everyone else has to work too…" Roy pouted.

"Then just wait for one of us to finish." Ed scolded.

Roy crossed his arms and sighed. "Fine. I will." He set his head on the chair back and whined unhappily.

Ed just rolled his eyes. He scribbled something down on the paper and flipped the page, continuing to write with a scrawl of messy handwriting.

He could hear some noises from the other room. He knew that someone else had come because he could hear greetings.

Roy screamed when the door slammed open against the back with a cheerful, "Hiya, Roy!"

Ed first glanced at Roy, and then at the door, and then at the chair that Roy _had_ been in… yet no raven-haired boy was there. He blinked in surprise. He could still hear the boy's whimpers so he knew that he was in the room… but where?

Maes Hughes stood in the doorway, surprised. "Um… where's the Colonel?" he asked, blushing a little.

Ed stood and wandered over to the desk to see where he'd gone. "Um… he had a little accident a few weeks ago. He's different." He explained, crouching behind the desk. He peered into the nook where the chair fit and sighed softly.

Roy was on his knees in the dark, clutching his hair with his tiny fists, sleeves falling slightly. He looked up at Ed with wet eyes, bursting into a dry sob. He crawled out and curled up comfortably in his Ed's arms when the teen held them out for him.

"An… _accident_? Like what?"

"Like…" Ed sighed and stood, showing the Lieutenant Colonel the six-year-old. "This? Um, Hughes, this is Roy. Roy, c'mon, he won't hurt you…" Ed sighed.

Roy clutched Ed's shirt, turning wet black eyes up to the Major. "Don't know that."

"Yeah I do. This guy has his own kid, maybe you could play sometimes. You're gonna have to meet him…" Ed said.

Roy glanced back at the still surprised man, who was staring wide-eyed at Roy's back. He clutched Ed's jacket tightly and pressed his forehead to it. "…I trust you, brother. Okay." He said. He fought to escape the older boy's grasp, but he didn't leave his side. "lo."

Maes stared at him, mouth dropped open. He looked at Ed for an answer.

Ed dropped to Roy's side. "Roy, this is Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes. He's gonna be coming with on our mission, so he's gonna be with us to drop you off at Winry's."

Roy turned around and tugged on Ed's jacket. "How do you know that Mister Hughes is okay? He's so _big_!"

"I know him. You'll be fine. Maes, this is Roy. And before you ask, yes, Mustang, yes the Colonel, no, I still don't know what happened, and no, we haven't found a way to reverse it. But the military's searching." He said.

Roy cocked his head to the side. "Reverse what?"

* * *

><p>Roy slept most of the ride up to Resembool, his head in Ed's lap and his feet on Al's thigh. Neither boy seemed to mind, as they chatted with the group.<p>

Hughes watched Roy strangely, moss colored eyes confused and worried. He glanced at Al, who listened deeply, hunched over Roy's legs almost protectively.

He didn't really understand what was going on. He'd never been an alchemy-kind of person. So this change from 30-year-old Roy back to 6-year-old Roy not only worried him… it frightened him as well. And not just about the physical changes and everything. Was he going to have to relive all of those horrible memories of his father? Or was he a child stuck with the mind of a man?

"What are you thinking about, Mr. Hughes?" asked a hollow voice.

Hughes looked up to find Al watching him. He shrugged good-naturedly and sighed. "I'm just worried about Roy and everything. Do you know…"

"About his father? Yes." Ed said. He rubbed his human hand on Roy's head softly.

"I'm lucky; I never met the bastard. But I do know how controlling he was. Roy never actually told me what happened, but you could see it from the way that he acted." Hughes sighed.

Ed raised an eyebrow. So, they were one step ahead of the Lieutenant Colonel. Hughes didn't know that Roy had been beaten in his youth, it sounded like. It… kind of upset him. That was one person that Roy hadn't told his father's actions to. Five more, including the team.

"Brother," Al said, glancing behind him, toward the front of the train.

"Hmm?" Ed asked nonchalantly, looking down at Roy to make sure that the boy didn't fall, and then twisting to see what Al was looking for.

"Resembool." Al lifted a hand to point out of the window.

Hughes swallowed, and took a heavy breath. He stared at the tiny town as it approached. He'd never been here before. He'd been told of this place before, Mustang had mentioned it before, but he had never visited himself before.

When the train pulled into the station and the doors opened, Ed, Al, and the rest of the team were off first—mostly because they were the only ones on. Roy was still sleeping; he was on Ed's back with his arms thrown casually over his shoulders.

Al led the group into town, and then out of it, to make sure that Ed kept a gentle enough pace that Roy stayed asleep. It felt like forever (but was in reality, only ten minutes) before they arrived at the Rockbell household.

Al waited for a second for Riza to wake Roy and place him on the ground. Roy fell against her and hugged her legs, trying to keep his balance, still so tired yet so interested in this new place. When he was situated, Al glanced at Ed… and knocked.

They only had to wait a few seconds before Den started barking. They heard the voice of an old woman telling the animal to hush—one that Riza, Ed, and Al recognized, and one that Roy would have if he were several years older—and then the door opened.

A tiny woman stood, there, eyeing them. She was holding onto the collar of a dog with an automail front leg. She smiled at Ed and Al. "I see that you boys brought some… friends." She commented. She scratched the back of her head, but moved out of the way and held the door open anyway.

"Yeah. Sorry we didn't call; we're on a mission, and we need a favor." Ed said with a shrug.

"What do you need?"

Ed glanced back, and held out his automail hand to Roy. Roy bit his lip, looked up at Hawkeye, and then stumbled forward and gripped Ed's hand tightly, watching the old woman. "Someone to watch this kid," Ed explained, squeezing Roy's hand firmly.

Pinako watched the boy, both of them looking into the other's eyes. Of course, Roy was the first to look away, turning to Ed and holding his hands up. He wrapped his arms around Ed's neck when the teen picked him up. "Who…" Pinako asked. Sadly, though, she seemed to already know, or at least have an idea.

Hawkeye cleared her throat, causing Pinako to look her way. "Maybe if we could all come in, we can explain better inside." She offered, waiting for the old woman's reply.

Pinako fell silent, and then nodded. "Please, do come in. Den, go fetch Winry. I can imagine that she'll want to see Ed and Al again." She said.

The dog obediently barked and went off to some odd part of the house, to find his blond co-owner.

"Please, make yourselves comfortable. I'll put on some tea."

"Thank you," Hawkeye nodded, nodding again at Ed and Al to lead them in.

A loud clang sounded, making Roy freeze against his big brother's chest. Al's armor rattled, and he had to hold his head straight just to see straight.

"You came without a call _again_?!"

A dog barked. Ed groaned, using his free hand to gently rub Roy's back. Al settled, and looked around to find another blond firecracker glaring at them, apparently having just flung her wrench. Al stooped and picked up the offending object.

"Yeah, we did. Sorry, Winry. We have to get going right away, but we need a favor." Ed said. He shifted Roy a little higher and started murmuring gentle words into his ear, humming quietly. After a while, the black-haired boy relaxed, but he clutched his arms tighter around Ed's neck, probably attempting to throttle the teen.

"What kind of a _favor_? Oh, Ed, you didn't break _my precious automail_, did you?" Winry narrowed her brilliantly blue eyes, daring the teen to say the wrong thing.

Ed laughed, pulling Roy to the side a little. He rubbed the back of his head, relief that, for once, these words would be true, flooding his entire being. "Break it? No, not at all! It's _nothing_ like that!" he assured. He blushed a little.

Hawkeye chuckled a little and stepped forward, squeezing Ed's flesh shoulder. "Winry, we are terribly sorry for the inconvenience that this may cause. Our entire group has a mission to go on, and with the Colonel gone, we're a man down, so Alphonse will be coming with us as well. Unfortunately, we cannot leave our little charge all on his own, and you're the most trustworthy person that we know." She explained gently.

"Oh? I… I'm flattered. I think. What am I doing?" Winry asked.

Ed stooped and set Roy on the ground. Immediately, the intimidated boy took Ed's hand, waiting for his brother to tell him… whatever he was going to say. Ed looked up, but he didn't stand. "Winry, we really needed a babysitter. Um… well, I thought that you'd be best, since you're practically a doctor and all, and you're good with little kids compared to some of the military people in Central… and since there are no men in the house, we thought it might be better for him, so,"

"_Who_ am I babysitting, Elric?" Winry asked icily.

Roy winced, clutching Ed's hand tighter. Ed was glad that the boy was holding his automail hand.

Ed pushed Roy forward a little. "Him. Roy, introduce yourself to Winry. She's my friend." He told the boy.

Roy gulped, apparently feeling self-conscious in a room with so many people. He looked back at Ed, and then up at Winry, refusing to look into her eyes as usual and so choosing to watch her mouth. He lifted his hand in a wave, and then solemnly dropped it. "Um… hullo. I'm Roy Mustang. Uh…" he looked up at Al. "Ed and Al are m' brothers…" he blushed and tucked his chin to his chest, thoroughly embarrassed.

Ed tugged him back and stood again. "Look, Win, we really don't have anyone that we can trust in Central. You are the very first person that I thought of. We're _desperate_, we wouldn't come to you otherwise. Please?" he asked.

Winry looked at Ed, Al, and then little Roy. Finally, she looked at Hawkeye, just to see if this was really serious. Hawkeye didn't look at her, but rather watched Roy. Winry heaved a heavy sigh, stormed forward, and grabbed Ed's hand, the one not occupied by Roy's hand. "Can I speak with you?" she demanded.

Roy backed against Al, turning against his kneecap. Al picked him up, handing the wrench back to his blond friend. "Don't worry, Winry. You guys go ahead. I'll make sure the team doesn't break anything." He assured gently.

Winry nodded at him, clutching her wrench. She dragged Ed into the hallway and then her room, slamming the door shut. She turned around and glared at him.

"What? I'm not going to _make you_, Winry. But we can't just leave him with anybody." Ed frowned.

"Is he yours?" Winry spat at him.

"What?" Ed asked incredulously. Was she getting at what he thought she was getting at?

Winry tapped her wrench in her hand, elaborating further, "Is. He. Your. Son?" she spat again.

"N-no! With the amount of time that I spend running around, do you think I'd have time to hook up with anyone? And, and even if I did, and did have a kid, how much time could I spend with him that he can get… _attached_ to me?" Ed demanded.

"Then why does he keep going to you, and Al? Don't think I didn't notice that. I may not be a genius, Edward, but I'm not exactly stupid either." Winry enquired.

"Well… Al and I have been taking care of him. We're his… guardians, for now." Ed frowned at her. "Why?"

Winry set her head in her hand, rubbing her forehead. She dropped her wrench onto her bed, and then laid down beside it. "_You_, Edward, who knows next to everything about me, are asking _me_, who had my parents _murdered_ by the very Flame Alchemist that is your commanding officer, to take care of that man's child?!" she demanded, looking very hurt. And very offended, too, as though she thought that Ed just wanted to hurt her, after all that they'd done for each other.

Edward pulled a blank. He had no idea what she meant. In his mind, he pulled up a mental image of the mocking bastard, however old he was normally, and then alongside that, the six-year-old bundle that he was taking care of. There was something about him, now that he thought about it, which would immediately set _son_ before _self_. The meek attitude of the tiny boy, while Mustang's attitude was rude, mocking, and garish. The way he held himself… yup. If Ed had seen Roy walking on the street, he would never have thought of Mustang. He'd have thought _child of_ Mustang.

"Answer me, dammit!" Winry pulled him from his thoughts. She glared at him from beneath her halo of honey hair.

"I'm not asking you to take care of Mustang's kid… _exactly_…" Ed attempted.

Winry only glared at him.

Ed gulped, knowing that he was in trouble with her. "Well, you see… that is… well…" he took one deep, and let out all of the words at once, "HeisonehundredpercentRoyMust ang."

It was Winry's turn to pull a blank. She worked through the phrase, attempting to understand him. She rolled her eyes. "What do you mean, did someone _clone _him?" she asked sarcastically. "I don't like being lied to, Edward. You know that. No secrets!" she commanded.

"No secrets." Edward agreed. "No, no one cloned him. But something happened to him. It's almost a good thing that this happened, though. It's like, someone _really_ wanted us to know about his past."

"_What_ happened to him, Elric?" Winry was getting annoyed that she wasn't getting a straight answer. She sat up and picked up her wrench threateningly.

Ed quickly backed up, putting his hands up. "Um… well, there was a mission that the team went on, all of us. Al, Mustang, Hawkeye, and I went into the warehouse to scout, so Al and I went in one direction and Hawkeye and Mustang another… Hawkeye and Mustang got separated and… well, _that_ happened. Mustang was _apparently_ the victim of some strange human transmutation. So now, he's six." He explained truthfully.

Winry forced herself to her feet and shoved her wrench just inches from Ed's face. "Don't you dare pull that bullshit with me, Edward Elric." She instructed.

"I'm not! Go ask the kid yourself, ask him! He told you his name, didn't he? I know that Mustang is conceited, but so conceited to go _junior_? I don't think so." He defended.

Winry puffed. "Well, _if _that's true, that's worse. You're asking me to babysit my parents' murderer? Thanks, ass."

"He's _six_, Winry, the only thing that he knows is everything that happened when he was _six_, that's it! He doesn't remember anything after that. He…"

"What? Oh what, Ed, could you _possibly_ try to tell me, that will scream 'Hey, I should take in my parents' killer!'?" Winry demanded.

Ed winced, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I already feel bad enough about all of this. Anyway, I dunno. Al and I think that… well, he may have been abused when he was little, so that's the way he acts now. Hawkeye believes me, Hughes doesn't really… _know_, but the others… well, they aren't so sure." He tried to explain.

Winry paused, watching him. "How do you know?" she asked.

"He woke up from a nightmare and told me that his dad hit him a lot. Also, the way he acts isn't exactly… normal. It'll only be for a few days, Winry, _please_. We'll be here to pick him up as soon as the mission is done. I mean, you could just leave him with Den for the day, as long as he's… _safe_. That's all." Ed pleaded pathetically.

Winry gave him a look, and then her eyes softened. "You really care about this kid, don't you?"

Ed immediately blushed. "I… I do not! I _have_ to, he's my commanding officer, and Hawkeye would kill me if he got hurt!" he defended himself, redder than his jacket.

"Mhmm." Winry agreed, just to humor him. She gained a very serious look, and thought for a few seconds, before nodding. "Alright, fine. But you owe me _big time_." She spat.

She was surprised to find an armful of Ed, only for a few seconds, but was still touched by the gesture. "Of course, anything! Thanks, Winry. This makes this whole thing a _thousand_ times easier."

Winry waved her hand at him as he opened the door and left. "Yeah, yeah," she sighed.

They found the group in the living room, sitting on the ground and chairs. Roy was kicking his feet, sitting in Al's lap where Al sat on the floor, legs crossed. Ed stepped out to them and gave them two thumbs up. "It's good." he said.

"Good!" Al said, sounding a little relieved.

Hawkeye nodded. She thanked Pinako and stood. "We should probably be going then: the conductor said that he'd wait, but he won't wait forever." she said.

The others slowly climbed to their feet. Al handed Roy to Ed and stood himself, stretching his arms if only for his own sake.

Ed set Roy on the ground and crouched in front of him. "Roy, we have to get going now, but you're staying here with Winry. Be good for her, okay? I promise you, she will not hurt you. And, don't go cleaning unless she asks you to, okay? You might scare her or Granny. Can you do that for me?" he asked.

Roy gulped, but nodded. "When will you come back?" he pouted.

"A few days, then we'll go back to Central. Maybe then we can set up a playdate with Hughes' daughter, or maybe with Selim. You wanna do that?" Ed asked softly. He glanced to his right, to make sure that it was alright with Hughes, but the man only nodded gently.

Roy shrugged. "Okay. Hug?" The beaten boy held his arms out to Ed, but not up. He snuggled against Ed when the teen picked him up and hugged him tightly. He happily snuggled in Al's arms when the powerful suit of armor took him and held him. He, at least, seemed to enjoy being passed around and _cared __for_ by so many people. Hawkeye even took him and hugged him, while all of the others just patted his head or waved goodbye.

"We'll talk to you later, Winry. Thanks again. I promise that I'll pay you back for this." Ed swore, holding up a fist for Winry.

Winry fist-bumped him. "You'd better." she said.

Ed only nodded. He pushed Al out of the front door, turning to wave at Roy before shutting it behind him.

Roy immediately fell silent, frowning. He looked up when Winry stepped to him. "H-hello..." he stammered. His brother may have claimed that she wouldn't hurt him, but Roy wasn't entirely sure himself.

Winry crouched beside him, forcing herself to ignore the fact that she was facing the murderer of her parents. "Hi, Roy. I'm Winry Rockbell. I guess that I'm going to be watching over you. Have you had supper yet?" she asked.

Roy shook his head, murmuring, "No, but I'm not hungry. All of them took me out for lunch and I had a lot!"

"Where did you eat?"

"I dunno. A yummy Xingese place." Roy shrugged.

Winry nodded at him, forcing a smile when he yawned. "Are you tired, Roy? Do you want to go to bed? It _is_ a long train ride." she said.

"Mmm... kinda." Roy scrubbed at an eye. He pushed down another yawn, watching her.

Winry put her hands on her hips and peered around her. "Well... since Ed didn't call, we don't have anything prepared. You could always take the recovery room, but that'd probably be weird..." she bit her lip, "The guest room hasn't been used in such a long time it's mostly a storage room, now..."

"I can sleep on the floor, if you need." Roy offered innocently.

Winry glanced his way, frowned, and sighed. "For tonight, at least. Or the couch would be better." with a nod, the blond girl set about fixing up the couch with a blanket and pillow, so the boy could sleep on it. When it was finished, she looked it over, and sighed. "Well, there you go, kid. My room's down the hall, second door on your right. Come and get me if you need anything. Bathroom's in the hall, second door on your left."

"Thank you!" Roy chirped.

Winry rolled her eyes. She waited for him to clamber onto the couch and tuck himself in, before waving. "See you in the morning, Roy." she frowned.

"Good night, Miss Winry." Roy said softly. He waited for a reply, but when he didn't get one, he tucked into the couch and soon fell into a fitful sleep.

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><p>Hmm... I feel like it should be longer... oh well! Next chapter will, again, focus on Roy and Winry, rather than the team. Good luck, Winry! XD<p>

Thanks for reading! Please review!

Until next time,

~~YAJJ


End file.

Fullmetal Alchemist, Friendship, Hurt-Comfort