Disclaimer: Nope don't own anything, would I be writing this if I did?
Summary: After Al gets his body back, Ed loses his alchemy in the process as well as his arm that he had regained. Ed goes on still unable to stop moving, and decides to stay with the military and leave Al with Winry.
A/N: With Ed's arm, I like the automail so I'm just gonna say this time he brought back his body and had to attach his soul or some shit like that, so two things needed sacrificing instead of just one, if you don't like the explanation make your own up.
A/N: Also some of the past things with Hawkeye and Mustang are different to make them not quite as close like the confrontation in the tunnels with Envy although I may or may not mention them in the story.
Also this story has been unfinished for a long time and I forgot where I was going with it so I just wrapped it up and called it good. Pretty sure I wanted some actual fighting at some point, but it really didn't turn out that way. I really gotta be in the mood to write about fights, or you know, put any effort into my writing at all.
Ed walked through central command trying to avoid running into Mustang, who happened to now be the new Fuhrer.
Ed turned the corner and ran into Riza "Colonel" Ed saluted with a slight grin.
"Yeah I'm now a Colonel, and yet I still feel like Mustang's personal assistant" Riza replied with annoyance in her voice.
"Hey wanna go for a walk, ever since Al got his body back he's been at home, I don't want him getting involved in this" Ed said looking at the ground.
"What about Winry, I thought she was going to ask you out" Riza asked curiously.
"Well she did, but it's just, I think Alphonse is better for her" Ed finished. Ed liked Winry and loved her, but she was more like a sister than anything. "I don't need to be putting her in danger, and I'd be taking her away from her home, life, and work, plus the town needs her, I just can't take her away from all of that" Ed finished.
Riza gave a small smile "I wanted to be with Roy before Ishval for a while but the woman he parades with, and the fact that he still treats me like a servant, whether he's grateful or not, I just can't deal with it anymore" she finished, the annoyance in her voice more clear.
"Come on Colonel, let a fellow officer take you out for a walk" Ed smiled as he motioned her to walk beside him.
Riza nodded giving a smile as she moved to his side. Ed had gotten promoted to Colonel so he would stop bothering Roy for permission to do stuff, and well he did deserve it, but most people tended to leave that part out when making fun of him.
Ed walked out of Central Command with Riza by his side. As they walked silently through the streets Riza noticed that Ed was still giving the graveyard a wide berth "Ed it's not your fault he would of done this for anyone" Riza said in a comforting tone.
"But it was for me so it is my fault" Ed replied angrily.
"Ed with all due respect, Maes would've found out eventually even if you weren't here, he was too smart not to have, so stop blaming yourself and respect what he did" Riza replied angrily.
Ed glanced at her sadly "I just, it's easier if I blame myself" Ed responded, looking away.
Riza felt bad for him, as long as she had known him he had always shouldered all of the blame if he knew he had any part in it; he never did anything for himself.
"Ed let's go do something tomorrow, meet me command" Riza demanded more than asked.
"Actually I was going to leave tomorrow, Liore is still rebuilding, I thought I should go help since it was my fau—" Before he finish the word he was on the ground.
"No, you did everything you could do at the moment and thought was right and they are a happy united community now because of you, so central tomorrow or I'll have you dragged in, and you can take up one of Mustang's missions" Riza said standing over him.
"Fine, I'll take some time off" Ed groaned.
Riza smiled, what Ed needed was time off, and actual time off, not time off to do something else that he needed to do for work.
"Where's the nicest hotel" he asked, but received another blow to the head knocking him down again.
"I DIDN'T MEAN LIKE THAT" Riza yelled.
"Damn neither did I, I was gonna stay there, you do realize I don't own a house or anything right. I just stayed at whatever hotel you guys put me up at" Ed said rubbing the back of his head.
Riza looked at him curiously "Oh really, why not?"
Ed continued glaring at her "First I haven't had time", Riza could understand that because he had been so busy before everything ended, and after he had been going around the country smoothing things out in places that became unstable as result of the old government being almost completely replaced. "Second, I worked all of the time when I was here so I didn't see the point."
When Riza thought about it, Ed always fell asleep in the library or room he was studying in and worked the rest of the time. "And third I was hardly ever here to need a place to stay" he finished.
"Wow, well I think you shouldn't waste the money on the hotel, you can just stay with me till you find a real place" Riza offered happily.
"Well now who's being" Ed started, but stopped seeing the look in Riza's eyes.
"I will take your kind offer" Ed replied politely and giving a small grin. "Although isn't it against regulations to live together" Ed asked. Ed hadn't really read anything about the rules in the military, but vaguely knew something about relationships.
"Only if we're seeing each other" Riza replied "Which we're not" she added more to remind herself that he's only sixteen and that wouldn't look all too great on her record, but she had thought about it and it didn't help that she admired him as much as she did because he had done so much without complaint, and any complaining he had done wasn't all that serious since it was mostly about his height and not being able to work more. But he never placed the blame of who put him in his situation on anyone else but himself.
"Are we gonna go" Ed asked after about thirty seconds of standing.
"Oh yeah sorry" Riza replied motioning Ed to follow her.
As they started walking to Riza's house Ed smirked a bit "You know I find it funny" he started with a grin.
"What" Riza asked looking at Ed.
"I was twelve when I joined the military" Ed grinned.
"And" Riza asked not seeing where he was going with could be amusing in itself, but she knew that he had more to say.
"How long have you been in the military" Ed asked with a grin still on his face.
"Eight years now" Riza responded.
"Well in six of those years you were lieutenant or lower in rank, and I started as a Major and got to Colonel in three years where as it took you eight" Ed said grinning. Riza glared at Ed, who fell back a few steps to avoid a punch coming from Riza. "Please Colonel Hawkeye you insult me by thinking you could hit me that easily" Ed said as he slid his hands into his pockets.
Within a few feet Ed faceplanted, Riza had to decided it would be easier to just trip him when he wasn't looking.
"You hardly even count as a Colonel, you still act the same way and do all the same shit as before" Riza said, helping Ed back up.
Even without alchemy the Armstrong family had decided that he was worthy, their words, of their training — not to mention the their only chance of children was Catherine and after talking to her the chances still seem slim — so he was now an expert in hand to hand, being able to keep up with Armstrong, and an expert in swordsmanship seeing he as he was able to keep Wrath from slaughtering him in straight combat, and his speed with on par with, well he didn't know at this point since he was faster than everyone else. Even so he learned from the Armstrong family Ed's style was his own. He combined the way the Armstrong's fought with his acrobatic abilities. He could take a heavy hit like Alex, but he could avoid the attacks a lot better.
"You know I actually gotta thank Greed" Ed chuckled.
"Oh why is that" Riza asked, eyebrow raised.
"Well Greed's ability was his ultimate shield, which he made by rearranging the carbon atoms his body. So I had Winry stick with the lighter northern automail because it has more carbon" Ed explained "and it's so much lighter" he added grinning.
"So how does that help you, you can't use alchemy anymore" Riza asked.
"Well actually I'm working that part out, I think I'm pretty close though" Ed chuckled, scratching the back of his head.
"Ugh let's go around" Riza said seeing a group of people up ahead.
"What, who's that" Ed asked curiously.
"An old acquaintance I'd rather not deal with him, it'll just end up with someone getting hurt or killed" Riza replied.
"Hey you offend me you think I couldn't take these guys on without hurting them too badly" Ed asked in a mock offended tone. "If you don't deal with them now they're never going to go away" Ed said as he started walking towards them. Riza didn't see the point in not following, and if anything this was just going to help.
The men saw Riza walking towards them with a kid "HA, you thought bringing a little pipsqueak with you was really going to help, asking for help Riza I thought that you were above that" the man in front mocked.
"Well he offered to help me take care of you guys without killing you, but after that I'm not so sure" Riza said giving Ed a look, who had steam rising from his head. "Yep just signed your own death warrant" Riza laughed.
After about five seconds Ed was about to rush in before Riza stopped him. "Remember no killing them, they aren't homunculi don't hit anything too hard with your automail" Riza pointed out. Ed realized he would probably crack their skulls if he did hit them in the head. He listened to Riza and his temper dissipated; he didn't want to murder them.
Might as well put on a little show for them Ed thought grinning inwardly, while keeping a serious facing.
He slowly walked towards the men. A couple of the men in the back laughed and charged towards him, Ed easily slid away from the punch and delivered a swift knee to the first man's stomach, and then spun around to his left bringing his elbow up to the second man's chest knocking him down and breaking a few ribs. The man who managed to slip behind Ed threw a punch at the back of Ed's head only to meet empty air. Ed did a backflip, flying over the man and kicking him in the back and sending him flying in one of the other guys. The last man charged to tackle Ed who in turn lifted his arm at the last second causing the man to run into it.
"Try not to stay unconscious too long, it's like super bad for you" Ed said as he walked by the man's body.
Ed walked back to Riza "See isn't that better I doubt they'll give you trouble now" Ed smiled.
After a few minutes Ed and Riza arrived at her house. Hanging his coat up Ed went and sat on one of the couches "Hey Riza, did you have anything planned tomorrow" Ed asked.
"Well no I just kind of figured I would take you out to relax and have some fun" Riza replied with a blank face.
"Well when I traveled I had fun when we weren't working, but I was thinking" Ed started. Riza raised an eyebrow "shut up" Ed said glaring "Anyways I've been working ever since my mom died" Ed said.
"Pfft working. You were the youngest state alchemist ever, the most talented alchemist I've met probably even without your alchemy, without you the homunculi would of beat us and killed pretty much everyone, you're an amazing fighter, I could keep going like this for a long time, so saying that you were just working is an understatement" Riza told him loudly.
"Anyways" Ed said pausing long enough to let Riza refocus her attention again "Since I have always been working it's kind of odd for me to stop now, so I was thinking you could take me to Liore and I could help rebuild while hanging out with you and Rose and other people there." Ed suggested.
"Gah well I guess I kinda like to work as well, with everything that's been happening no one's really had any time off, especially you" Riza said "Anyways let's go to bed, the guest bedroom is right across from mine" Riza said, motioning for Ed to follow her.