it's pronounced beige, like the color. you'll see. and it's edward's turn now.

Roy drank down the last of his beer and looked at the pocket watch in his hand. It wasn't his, but Edward Elric's. It was the only thing his team had found when they went to go find out what had happened to him and Alphonse. He had sent the Elrics on a mission and he only heard from Edward from an outside line with an ominous message saying, "Colonel, I don't think I'll make it back." and the line had gone dead, as if cut. As soon as Roy realized that something was wrong, he and his team went to the place that Roy has sent them, only to find Edward's pocket watch… and Alphonse's armor with the blood seal scratched away.

That had been the most horrifying part of the find to Roy, knowing that poor Alphonse had been literally scratched out of existence. The other thing that nagged at him and haunted Roy every night since then was wondering if Edward even knew about it. Whenever they found him –and they would- would he have to tell him that Alphonse was dead? Or did he already know?

He wasn't sure which was worse…

"Colonel."

Roy looked up as Riza slid beside him at the bar.

"How many is that for you?" she said, motioning to the beer.

"Three, I believe."

"You need to stop dwelling on it. We're doing everything we can."

"That's not good enough. It's been almost a year! I just need to know if he's alive or dead; that's all. I want solid proof of one of those things."

Riza frowned at him. "Depending on the state he's in, you know that it could be impossible to dictate even that."

Roy knew she was implying Edward's mental state, if he had one still. Hopefully he was fighting tooth and nail like he always did, being a smart ass and driving his assailants crazy. Maybe after a year of back talk, they would abandon him at a train station. He knew that wasn't true though and gripped the pocket watch.

"I won't rest until he is found. I gave them that mission and I caused Alphonse's death… Edward needs to be found."

Riza put her hands on her superior's, comforting him as best as she could. She was anxious about Edward as well but Roy had to keep a level head.

"We're doing everything in our power-"

"Got a call for a Colonel Roy Mustang?" the bartender said, holding up the phone on the wall.

"That's me." He said with a confused look. The bartender handed him the phone as he looked at Riza. "Colonel Mustang speaking."

"Colonel, we have some news about Edward." Jean said on the other line. Roy sat up straight. "I thought you'd want to discuss this in private."

"I'm on my way." He handed the phone back to the bartender and turned to Riza. "Havoc just said that he got some information on Edward. Let's go."

Riza nodded and they left.

When Roy got in, Jean stood up.

"You said you had some news?" Roy asked, trying not to sound desperate.

"Yes, that man that you sent the Elrics after has been found and brought into custody by the Amestris police. The chief called us to let us know they had him since he knew we had been trying to find him in regards to Edward. They said we could go down there and interrogate him about Ed's whereabouts."

Roy's eyes seemed to come alive with the thoughts of getting more information on his missing subordinate after so long in the dark.

"Hawkeye, you're with me."

"Of course, sir."

Roy entered the interrogation room with the man he had sent the Elrics to investigate, an alchemist by the name of Beje Copplestone. He had been accused of doing some unsavory acts with his alchemy and since he was also a soldier, the military was involved since he was not a registered State Alchemist. Because of that, he proved especially suspicious.

Beje looked at Roy and grinned at him.

"Well, if it isn't Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist himself. It's a pleasure and an honor."

"Save it, Copplestone. I want to know where Edward Elric is."

"Elric… Elric… Hmmm… Name doesn't ring any bells. What did he look like?"

Roy's patience was already thin and this guy tore right through it. Roy grabbed Beje by the collar and began to shake him.

"I don't have time for your bullshit, Copplestone! You know who Edward Elric is and you know where he is. Now tell me where to find him or I will send you to Hell already used to the flames."

Beje was undeterred and only laughed at Roy.

"He was right about you. He said you would blow a gasket on me…"

"So help me-"

"Cool your gloves, hot pants. I'll tell you the last place I saw him at."

"Last place you… What do you mean? Why don't you have him?"

"I sold him."

"Sold… him…" Roy said, not believing the words. He shook Beje again. "You sold him?!"

"Of course, he was no longer useful to me."

An unusual calm suddenly settled over Roy and he let go of Beje's shirt, sitting back down across from him. He needed all the details in order to track Edward down and for some reason, whatever calmness had taken over, it allowed him to be given the details without a cloudy, angry mind.

"Tell me what happened and why you sold Edward Elric." He asked calmly.

Beje smiled brightly. "Wow! You're amazing! How did you just collect yourself like that?"

"Believe me, it's an act of God."

"Huh… Anyway, so I was doing some experimentation on that kid when some thieves broke into my lab. I'm a scientist as well, I hope you know." Roy just glared at him. "Anyway, he had just drank my newest alchemically altering serum when those thieves came in and they wanted me to hand over my research notes for their boss or something. When I refused to do so, they asked me if that kid was part of any of my experiments. I told them he was and so they knocked me out and took him. The last thing I remember from that night was them doing something to that suit of armor. The kid screamed bloody murder and I blacked out."

Roy sighed in relief and sadness. At least Edward knew of Alphonse's fate but it still didn't help on Edward's whereabouts.

"You said that you sold him. It sounds like someone took him."

"Ah, they did take him, but then, oddly enough, they brought him back. Said he wasn't worth the trouble they thought. They did, however, rob me of my notes. That being said, when they gave him back to me, he had been so traumatized by the demise of his brother that he wouldn't take anything from me. He refused to eat or drink and wouldn't even let me turn him back to normal."

"Back to normal? What do you mean?"

"I turned him into a little kid. About four or five years old?"

"For what purpose?" Roy growled, trying to contain his anger even more.

"Just to see if the experiment worked. You see, I had kidnapped the boys and then used the human one to just make sure my experiments worked. I was planning on letting them take me in but I just wanted to see if my hard work had paid off. Then, when I was testing the regression formula I made, that's when he got stolen. I tried to give him the reverse serum to change him back but he wouldn't take it and then at one point he knocked it out of my hand. Since my research was stolen, I couldn't make another batch and I can't do experiments on a little kid like that, so... I sold him. He was pretty useless to me… I sold him on the black market. He was sold for a pretty penny too since he has that strange hair and eyes and stuff."

"How long ago did you do that?"

"Pssht, hell if I know. Probably at the beginning of the year since that's when he got a hold of the telephone without my knowing and called you nice folks in. Luckily, those thieves came before you did!"

Roy's patience was thinning again.

"Do you know where they may have been heading?"

"Sorry, couldn't say. Once they paid me, the kid was no longer mine and was no longer any of my business."

Roy finally punched Beje in the face as hard as he could and then breathed in. He walked out of the interrogation room where Riza was waiting for him and looked at him expectantly.

"Well?"

"I need everyone to be on the lookout for Edward… but we need to make sure we are looking for the right one… It seems that Edward would look the age of a four or five year old boy now."

Riza gasped as Roy went to the chief of police.

"I need you to find all the files you can on any child slavery or anything of the sort."

"Child slavery, sir?" Riza asked, trying not to look as frightened as she felt.

"That bastard sold Edward on the black market and most likely he is either with a slave trader, a fight club, or a child labor camp. I need information now!"

The chief nodded as he directed his officers to look up any files they knew of and Roy breathed in with new vigor. I'm coming for you, Edward… Don't give up yet.

so even though this is a regression story, it won't be like backwards. it will be very different. and don't hate me for killing alphonse.