A/N- Thanks to my Beta Reader this chapter was re-done. Hope you enjoy!
Summary: Set after the movie. Edward and Alphonse are missing, there are signs all over the place saying they are still on their side of the gate. Winry is full of anguish, Roy won't give up trying to find them, and even Riza feels as if she is somewhat responsible.
Disclaimer: This fanfiction is not for profit and has no connection with Hiromu Arakawa, Funimation, or any other licensees or affiliates of Fullmetal Alchemist.
Waiting is always the hardest part… waiting when time seems to slow to a crawl… when each minute seems like days…
Roy had been off on some big mission, gone for days. He had been off on a lot of those with his new promotion. Always gone, always working, always looking for any
sign of the Elric brothers.
After those two saved the world and all the evil homunculi were killed off, there were a lot of promotions to be had; even the absent Elric brothers were included. Edward got an award of Alchemic Achievement, and Al was announced as a certified State Alchemist. Most considered that a bit odd, since most doubted that he would ever return to know it. Roy didn't agree though, since he believed in those boys then as much as ever, and he would never give up until he learned what really happened.
Riza felt somewhat responsible for their fate, whatever it was. She knew they were just kids, that saving the world should have been too much to ask of them, but she didn't stop them. Maybe she was too worried about Roy, or herself. Looking back, later she would wonder if she was just too much of a coward. Now the Elrics were dead, and she was sitting in an empty house; alone, waiting, and thinking about how she had been living a lie.
The world isn't perfect. It's not fair, right, or balanced. Riza had always believed that the Military could make a difference, that they were all doing as much right as possible, when in truth the people she thought she could trust were the liars, the ones destroying society. They were pulling families apart, destroying cities for their own selfish reasons, and she had been going right along with it.
Riza stood up and looked out the window to see a figure coming up the road. She reached for her handgun, but relaxed when she opened the door to see Winry Rockbell coming up the front steps.
"Hello," Winry said with a small smile.
"Winry," Riza responded with a nod. This is the woman that had feelings for Edward Elric, feelings Edward had returned. Neither would admit it, but as a grown woman in love as well, Riza knew the signs of love well. She had been like a mother to those boys, and knew how they worked. She had also been around Winry enough to realize that she has always been the one that cared about Edward the most.
"I was hoping to speak to Roy," Winry said. Even without her saying anything, even with the effort she was putting forth to cover up her emotions, Riza could see that she was lonely and depressed. She came by here always wanting to talk to Roy. Those two would sit for hours talking or telling stories about the Elric brothers, and Riza would hear things she never thought were even possible. She thought she knew almost everything about the boys, but eavesdropping on Winry and Roy's conversations, she learned that the boys had been through a lot more than they used to show. They managed to push forward to get what they really wanted, while still caring for those they loved. Riza gave herself a mental shake, realizing that Winry was waiting for a response.
"I'm sorry, he's still out on a mission, has been gone for days. Is there anything I can help you with?" Since she felt somewhat responsible for what happened to the Elrics, the responsibility for the effect their absence was having on Winry came with that. She looked so lost, like something inside her was missing, something like her heart.
"It's urgent," Winry insisted. "Is there anyway to get in touch with him?" The younger girl had a gleam in her eyes, a spark that Riza had not seen in the year and a half she had been visiting. Winry came every other Saturday, rode all the way out on the train. Roy paid for her to ride first class, like a daughter that moved out but always came home to visit.
"What is wrong, Winry?" Riza asked, automatically thinking something was wrong with the girl.
"I got a phone call the other night. Someone looking for Edward," she said. Riza was about to just say that maybe the caller had not heard what happened to him, even though she knew almost everyone had, but Winry kept talking. "I thought it was just a coincidence, but when I said that he was missing, the man said that he just spoke to him a few months ago. That Edward told him to call my number if he ever needed him again. I guess Ed and Al helped this man out and he needs them once more." She paused to take a breath. "What do you think it means?" She asked, looking up at Riza. There were tears in her eyes, along with that renewed ferocity that had been missing for so long. These tears were not tears of sadness, but of hope.
