A/N: This is a RoyEd fic, so if you detest that pairing, don't read. Also, this is an eventual HPFMA, though I think it may take until chapter 2 to cross it over. This is the prologue, so not much happens. It just explains how Ed and Al get home after the Conqueror of Shamballa.

General Roy Mustang stared, depressed, at the Gate that Fullmetal and his brother had just disappeared through. Fullmetal (Ed, his mind insisted) had left him with explicit instructions to destroy this side of the Gate. But he just couldn't do it.

He missed Ed already, and it had only been a few hours since the boy left. In that time, the cleanup of Central had started, he had officially taken back his position as general, and he had realized that he couldn't just let Ed leave again.

"Ed, I'll bring you back," he whispered, letting the sacrilegious words roll off his tongue without a thought as to who might be listening as he stood in the rain next to the Gate he had promised to destroy.

A month later, he was ready. He had even gone through Ed's personal items to find Hoenheim's journal and the theories contained within. He had been disgusted to realize that the energy used for alchemy came from the pain and suffering of another world, but, according to Hoenheim's journal, not using alchemy wouldn't cure the world's ills. If he couldn't do anything to prevent suffering and it wasn't caused by him, then he didn't care.

He just wanted Ed back.

Drawing the transmutation circle took him hours. It was an incredibly complex array, so he double-checked everything but didn't find any mistakes. Finally, he slit his forearm with a knife, allowing the blood to slowly drip down to the floor.

He was ready. He pressed his hands to the array on the ground, then was surrounded by a harsh golden light.

The Gate. He stood in awe before it, letting its splendor amaze him to keep his mind off what he was about to do.

"Give me back Ed and his brother," he demanded, shocked at hearing how bold his voice was. "I'll give you anything you want in return."

He felt, rather than heard, the Gate's answer. Puny mortal, you have nothing to interest me. Go away.

"No. I won't go until you give me Fullmetal and his brother!" spat Roy.

This time the words were amused. Puny mortal, you're in love, aren't you?

Roy was both appalled and furious. How dare the Gate avoid the subject, and how dare the Gate mock him?

Mock you? Puny mortal… Still, I suppose love is worth something. In return for the boys, I will also bring back the homunculus Envy, who will ensure that you will return to pay your debt. Yes, debt, and believe me, I will collect.

Roy lost consciousness as he was surrounded by another golden light, this one warm and welcoming.

"Where am I?" said Ed dazedly, sitting up and rubbing his head. The last thing he remembered was trying to figure out how to destroy the Gate without alchemy while sitting in a shelter with Noah and his brother. Speaking of which, he felt someone lying underneath him. Someone with brown hair.

"Nii-san?" asked Al quietly. "Why are we in Amestris again?"

"I don't know, Al."

"Nii-san?"

"Yes, Al?"

"Do you mind getting off me? You're rather heavy with all that automail."

Ed blushed and scrambled up as quickly as he could. Then, he looked around and noticed a familiar figure lying on the ground by the edge of a huge transmutation circle. He blanched as he realized exactly what the array was for, and who had activated it. He ran over to the general and began shaking him.

"Mmph," said Roy indistinctly. "Stop that."

"You're alright!" gasped Ed happily. "I can't believe you're alright!"

"Of course I am, Fullmetal. And you will forgive me for not following orders from my junior officer to destroy this side of the Gate, right? I do detest following orders, and destroying one side of the Gate should be sufficient, don't you think?"

Ed bit his lip. It should be enough, but he felt guilty for leaving Noah behind, not that it was his fault. He was so glad to see Roy, though, and he didn't belong in that world anyway, so… "Sure. And thanks. I missed Amestris."

Roy smiled- the first true smile in a long time. He snapped his fingers, effectively crisping the Gate above them. "I'm glad, Fullmetal. Let's go tell everyone you're back."

The scene at the office was best described as chaotic, though that was a rather large understatement. Havoc decided that Ed's return warranted the consumption of large amounts of alcohol in celebration. After getting himself and several others completely drunk, he began stripping and flirting with Hawkeye, which earned him a bullet hole through his jacket. Hawkeye herself broke down in tears and sobbed. Throughout the proceedings, Al stood off to the side and looked uncomfortable.

Finally, Ed managed to escape the mass of bodies that surrounded him so that he could talk to his brother. "Al, you should go see Winry."

Al blushed. "But Nii-san! I don't want to leave you here by yourself!"

"Don't be ridiculous. I've got these lunatics. You know you and Winry have some making out to catch up on, and I sure don't want to be there to see the effects."

Al laughed. "I can't get anything past you, can I? I'll tell her you said hi, and I'll be back in a week." He practically ran out of the building, trying to convince himself that he hadn't just seen Havoc standing nude on a table.

Ed looked around at his friends (yes, friends, said his mind) and felt a deep ache at the thought of not seeing them again. At that moment, he decided to stay in the military.