Melker

by Lapiz Sagana

Ed has one week left in the military, people think Al is cheating on Mei Chang with a girl from his university, and crime scenes with dead bodies lead them to something Hohenheim started in the past that they must now finish. And that university girl, Ms. Melker? Ed doesn't like her very much, at least in the beginning.

2. Chapter 2

Melker

By Lapiz Sagana

CHAPTER TWO

Roy had not expected to make drastic turns in his plans at this stage of his career. After the events of the Promised Day and his sight returned, however, it was as if he was looking at the world from brand new eyes.

The first time he laid eyes on Riza again, with whom he had unconsciously held hands when they used the Philosopher's Stone to cure his blindness, it struck him how stupid he had been for the years he had not truly seen her.

Flashbacks of her near-death experiences only strengthened his belief that her worth encompassed that of a leading supporter to his goal of becoming fuhrer. She lived a life devoted to him and the wellbeing of their country, and although he possessed an underlying knowledge that he was committed to her, his decision to put the military above all else had made him inept at ever expressing himself in the way she deserved.

Now, driving home to his townhouse with her at his side and their baby growing inside her, he knew he made the right choice. He could still see the emotions on her face when they confirmed her pregnancy, and what horror he thought he initially saw was replaced by that of relief. She sat on the edge of the hospital bed in the office of a trusted doctor, held her stomach, and closed her eyes. In the silence of the room, he heard her clearly when she whispered, "Grow strong."

What qualms they had about proceeding with their marriage and making her head of the program was silenced by the fact that they were going to be parents soon. Now they had no choice but to let her step down from her military life to serve the country in a new way, but whatever uneasiness Roy felt in not having her around in the office was silenced by the knowledge that at least he had her in his life for good.

"What are you smiling about, sir?"

Roy turned from the window to face her. She drove with the sharpness of a soldier heading out for a man-hunt - a quality he found amusing. "Drop the formality, Riza. It's awkward."

"Sorry." A pinch of a scowl touched her brows. "It'll take time to get used to not addressing you so formally."

"But all these years you had no trouble scolding me in front of everybody. Twisted kind of respect you have for me, lieutenant."

His use of formality made them both pause and then break out into laughter. They were still familiarizing themselves with their new relationship, and switching from one to another as they went in and out of work was taking longer than they expected.

Riza turned on the curb. "So what did Edward say about the offer?"

"The brat accused me of doing something to you to get you to step down."

"Technically, sir, he's correct, ," she said. "You got me pregnant."

"Why are the two of you making it sound like I forced you because the concept of you falling head over heels for me is impossible?"

Riza reached out to touch his hand. "I'm past the point of falling head over heels for your looks, Roy. I'm steadily in love with you, and this baby is the best thing that's ever happened to me yet."

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. "The best thing next to me, of course."

"Nope." Riza parked the car in front of his town house. "The baby first, then you. You could've stayed on top if only you married me first and then got me pregnant a couple of months after. But no, you had to follow Havoc's advice."

Roy got out of the car. He propped his arm on the roof and looked across it to see her. "How in the world did you know?"

"It's offensive that you think I wouldn't know. Close the door, sir." She rounded the car and locked it. "It's my job to keep your men in check and to know when they're keeping secrets. Havoc's made a bad habit of staring at my abdomen for the past six months, and after we confirmed my pregnancy and belatedly the need for me to resign, all I had to do was point a gun at this now-civilian man and make him confess."

A cold sweat ran down Roy's spine at how strategic the love of his life had been in her approach to this matter. Havoc had gone on a drinking spree during his first month as a retired soldier, and Roy being the good commanding officer that he was, kept up with the other man at the bar.

It was in one of their not-so-sober conversations that Roy admitted his fear that Riza would never choose him over her career, to which Havoc suggested that getting her pregnant was the only means he could force her retirement and put a ring on her.

'Can't you see, general?' Havoc waved his hand in front of Roy's eyes as though testing his vision. 'The lieutenant showcases Black Hayate everywhere to send you a message that she likes looking after frail little things that bite. She doesn't want to be a dog-owner – she wants to be a mother!'

Roy unlocked his front door and went in before she did; another one of his bad habits as her superior. She didn't seem to mind though, and probably preferred it that way. Once the door was closed, he said, "It's not what it looks like. Are you mad at me?"

"It's exactly what it looks like." She shrugged off her coat and hung it on the coat rack. "And yes, at first I annoyed, but then I think I would've missed out on this opportunity altogether if you two idiots hadn't forced me into this situation."

Roy frowned at her choice of terms. He squeezed past her in the narrow corridor, unconsciously reaching down to her stomach to shield the baby from hitting the nearby table. He flicked his fingers to light the fireplace. "For the record, you're the one who dragged me to bed the first time. And that was before Havoc made his suggestion."

Riza glanced at him from over her shoulder. "Oh, please. You were seconds away from saying 'please'. I merely saved you from sounding like a deprived boy."

"Well, the truth is I've deprived myself for far too long." He kissed the top of her head. "Anyway, the Fullmetal brat will agree to aiding you in the program on one condition I can never agree to."

Riza blinked up at him. "What condition?"

"He wants our baby to be named after him if it's a boy." The second those words left his mouth, he knew he was going to regret ever telling her. All too quickly, he was reminded that while he was the first to show concern for the wellbeing of the Elrics during their stay in East City, it had been her who planned how they were going to assist the brothers.

The Elrics would never know, but Riza touched her savings to give them a comfortable living. From the moment she made that decision, Roy didn't have a choice but to spare money for them as well. It had been in one of their discussions about how they would look after Alphonse while Ed was away on an assignment that he realized Riza had always looked after the Elrics in her subtle ways. Havoc's drunken speech made sense to him then.

Riza removed her brooch and shook her hair loose. "And if we're having twins, we can name one after Alphonse, too."

Roy sighed, knowing he couldn't persuade her otherwise once she's made up her mind. He wrapped his arms around her and tucked her head under his chin. "If our son doesn't grow as tall as me, you know it's your fault for naming him after the pipsqueak."

Riza chuckled against his chest. "The most important thing is we get Edward to help us." She pulled away to look up at him. "The attempt on Dr. Marcoh is no light matter," she said. "Having Edward by my side will be of great comfort, especially now that we have evidence that there are still people determined to break the peace treaty between the two nations."

"We'll proceed with caution and take a cue as to the gravity of the matter from how things unfold from here onward." Roy took off his own coat, handed it to her, and went to the kitchen to get her a glass of water. "It's time for your vitamins."

---

Ed feigned dizziness to hide his impatience. He felt the drive home was taking longer than usual, and his brain could not cope with suspense of a confrontation with Al. He'd never done this before because there had never been a need. They both kept secrets, but none they tried to hide with effort or lies.

Havoc, while driving, droned on about the difficulty he faced after his retirement but assured Ed that it was not as bad as he might think. The lack of the usual adrenaline was the culprit, but after a while, he coped with the stability and safety of normal living. Besides, he said as he smiled at Ed through the rear-view mirror, working with him and Lt. Hawkeye on the program would be the perfect means to adjust.

That had been the surest way to throw out whatever intent Ed had of at least getting an honest answer from Alphonse as to his whereabouts that day. At Al's prompting once they were inside their barely furnished apartment, Ed was forced to explain the offer Mustang made.

Al paused halfway through removing his red scarf and sat down at the mention of the program. They had a brief exchange about the theory of human transmutation being performed in the orphanage, to which Al declared his distaste at the use of innocent children for the military's gain.

Ed hesitated on telling Al about Hawkeye's pregnancy, but figured his brother's sharp mind would catch on the unusual choice the general made anyway.

Alphonse grinned at the confession. "I thought so."

"You thought so?" Ed asked as he undid the laces of his boots. "It's barely a bump yet."

"You forget I'm going to be a doctor someday." He brought out a book filled with loose papers and spread them on his lap. "We're trained to know these things. Besides, the way she's been nagging me about our laundry soap kinda makes it obvious."

"Our laundry soap?"

"She called me to complain about your clothes," he said. "She didn't like how they smelled. So I switched to the brand she recommended."

"Huh. I guess being pregnant makes girls crazy." Ed studied his brother, still contemplating whether or not to ask. The leak from the ceiling that dripped on the tin can they placed on the floor sounded like the seconds of the late evening slipping away. "Test tomorrow, Al?"

"Yep. I think I've covered everything Professor Mckenzie ought to include but there's no harm in being sure," he said. "Go on ahead to bed. I might be up 'til two or something."

Ed slipped off his shoes and worked on rolling off his socks as he went to the bedroom. "Make sure you get four hours of sleep, at least." He missed his brother's response as he pulled the bedroom door half-shut. Stripping off his clothes until he was down to his boxers, he threw himself on the bed and tried to keep his anxieties at bay.

Looking after Al while he had been in armor was so different from looking after him now back in his body. Dr. Marcoh checked on him before leaving for Ishval, as he was the only one Ed trusted to make a proper assessment of Al since the old man pretty much knew their history. He had set Ed aside and told him Al might suffer from mental and emotional struggles apart from the apparent physical ones. The sensations of the world would be new to him, and they had to watch out for Al getting used to his vulnerabilities. Being in armor rendered him nearly invincible against most harm, and rewiring his brain to understand the limitations of his human body would take time and a couple of mishaps. Most importantly, though, Al would need Ed to be a stable source of strength. The maturity Al showcased in his years in armor might backlash now that he was in a fully-sensual body.

Ed buried his face on the pillow, listening beyond the door to Al turn pages and pour what smelled like coffee. Getting Al back to shape had been like teaching a child to walk - the difficulties of which he had no problem handling in terms of patience and due encouragement. It was getting used to Al's changing expressions and the clear rising and falling of his voice as his temper fluctuated that taxed Ed more than anything.

It was better now that Al had a grip of the emotions that once startled him, at the heart that beat fast when he was anxious or afraid, or how he thought it would burst after he first kissed Mei Chang. But Ed wasn't sure he would suffice as a stable source of strength for his brother, more so for the fact that it had taken an offer from Mustang for him to get a bit of direction.

The swarm of thoughts soon faded into a buzz, and then a hum before the darkness of sleep engulfed him fully. He wasn't sure how long he was asleep or how many times the phone rang before he came to.

He threw the blanket over his head and yelled for Al, whom he assumed was still studying in the living room, to answer the phone. When the ringing ensued, Ed sat up and scrambled to the door. The emptiness of the living room drew his eyes towards the coat rack, and he knew at once that Al had left. He made a sideways glance to the wall clock - three in the morning -before pressing the receiver against his ear and yelling, "What now?"

He expected to hear Fuery's apologetic tone as he explained why he had to bother Ed at an ungodly hour, but the deep growl from Mustang startled him. It was enough to jolt him to full awareness. "You better be sober, Fullmetal."

"Why?" He searched the living room for any note from Al as to where he ran off to. He assumed when he saw none that Al could've just grabbed a bite from one of those 24-hour restaurants around the corner. After all, his hunger had been insatiable from the time he got his body back. "What happened, Mustang?"

"Get yourself down at Park Avenue. I'm calling you from home as I've just received the report from Hughes that a corpse with unusual marks at the back of his head had been found by a patrolling police officer," he said.

Ed stretched his foot to get his socks from where they lay scattered on the floor. "You think it's an array?"

"Hughes wouldn't be calling me if it didn't look suspicious."

He was already rolling up his socks but still he had to ask, "Can't it wait 'till morning? Or have you just grown too dependent on me for anything concerning alchemy since you've done nothing but sit behind a desk for years?"

Hawkeye's voice echoed from the other end, and Mustang told her to please wait. "Edward, this is not time for your jokes. I'll drop by Park Avenue on my way to the office and I expect to find you there and investigating for me. Another thing - a corpse with burn marks on his hand similar to the one found on the head of the corpse in Park Avenue had just been reported from the apartment of a woman named Alicia Melker in Lawton Street. Lt. Gordon reports she's a med student at the university. Say, is Alphonse with you?"

Ed weighed that question. The haze of the early morning and the couple of beers he had gave rise to a sting in his temples, rendering him unable to decipher an honest question from a testing one. He had to take a risk. "Yeah, he's just fallen asleep. See you in the office."

He dashed into his bedroom to pull up his leather pants and a clean shirt from his wardrobe. It was only after he'd locked his apartment and was already climbing down the stairs two steps at a time that he realized he was only wearing a sock on his left foot. "Damn it, Al. Where are you?"

Ed shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat as the chill of the early morning blew against him. He shuffled his feet as he tried to think the situation through. Mustang lived approximately fifteen minutes from Park Avenue if he travelled by car, ten minutes more than the time it would take for Ed to arrive there if he walked. Lawton Street was three blocks ahead. If he sprinted through the alleys, he could be there in five minutes and assess the place before anybody from Mustang's team could realize he's made the detour. Of course, his attempt at discreetness would be futile if Breda or Gordon were at the crime scene, but he'd rather receive a scolding from Mustang than risk missing out on any hint of Al being there tonight.

Ed could hear the siren of the police cars while he was still a distance from Lawton Street. Already people were poking their heads out of apartment windows and sitting by the front steps of their building to pry on the commotion going on at an old apartment complex.

Ed maneuvered his way through the cluster of onlookers and slipped under the police line. An officer grabbed him by the shoulder to apprehend him. Ed shoved his silver watch against the man's face.

The police officer stared at it with a twisted frown. "We did not seek out the assistance of the military. This is a civilian case."

"I'm a State Alchemist, and last I heard, where there's an array on the hand of a corpse, I have the authority to look it over on behalf of my commanding officer and the inexperienced likes of the police." He tossed the silver watch in his hand as a means of fending off the other policemen already giving him surly looks.

Officer Megan ran over to him. He was a lanky man in his thirties and one of the few police officers Ed liked. A year ago, he asked for help on a minor case about a chain of thefts by a sneaky alchemist, and theirs had been a successful partnership. "Major Elric!" He bent on his knees to catch his breath. "I've just been to Park Avenue."

"You ran?"

"The car broke down on the way and Colonel Hughes said he'll call you up," he said. "I thought you'd be summoned there first."

"I may have been misinformed." Ed jabbed his thumb behind him. "Anyway, if the marks are similar then there's a huge chance the two cases are connected and I'm not wasting my time being here."

"Right, right." He waved for the officers by the door to let them pass. The corridor stank of burnt flesh and the sting of alchemy that still bit in the air. Ed covered his nose with the back of his hand. He climbed the stairs with Megan on the lead. "The owner of the apartment where the corpse was found is a young lady named Alicia Melker. Neighbors claimed to have seen her return home tonight, but she was not there when we arrived. Or at least, I haven't received word that they've found her inside the apartment or within the vicinity."

"Who called the police then?" Ed evaded the puddles on the floor, trying to recall if it had rained or not.

"A tenant came home late from work and saw the dead man lying on her threshold," he said. "It's as though he stepped through the door and got electrocuted trying to enter."

Megan pulled up the police line that boxed the corridor where the corpse lay shielded under a white blanket. Ed slipped past the line. He nearly gagged at the stench. One of the paramedics saw him and handed him and Megan masks.

Ed borrowed a pair of gloves from them also. He peered inside the apartment and asked why nobody had entered.

Megan gave an embarrassed laugh. "It was out of a hunch, but remember you saved me from getting electrocuted while we were chasing a thief in his hideout? It kinda felt the same. Also, there was no sign of any weapon from the inside having been used to cook the man alive. It appeared he was electrocuted on the doorway given the scorch marks start and end here, so I insisted nobody entered without the go signal of an alchemist."

For a right-hand man of the chief inspector, Megan sure was too soft-spoken and good humored to be taken seriously. Ed thought at least it was apparent to everyone that there was a fully-functioning brain behind that smiling face.

"Good call," he said as he crouched next to the corpse. Drops of molten wax sat next to the body. Ed tipped his head back. A round scorch mark glared at him from the metal of the door frame. It must be from when the array was activated. He drew the design in his mind, revising the design based on the material used and the surface on which it was drawn. It was a simple enough array with the intention to sent a shock down whoever forced entry, supposing that a body part would be in contact one way or another to the line of metal that lined the wooden door frame. The question was how the array was activated in the first place.

Ed checked the perimeter of the metal for any hidden arrays, but thought that unless it was engraved, any hidden wax arrays would've also melted if the energy was enough to toast a man. Taking one cautious step across the door, he carried himself over to the other side and waited for something to happen.

Nothing.

He noted that from this angle, the top metal lining on which the array had been drawn was gaping. Ed checked the back of the door and confirmed his suspicions. A loose latch hung from the top of the door, on its tip a nail cut short of its body. Whoever set this up was not protecting a thing, but a person he supposed was Alicia Melker. She would bolt the chain whenever she was inside, so whoever tried to force their way in would dislodge the nail from where it was tucked behind the top metal lining of the door frame and create enough spark to activate the array. "Megan," he called. "Did it rain in the past hours?"

"No, major. There hasn't been rain at all today."

"There are puddles on the floor leading here. Isn't there a pond in Park Avenue?"

Megan made the connection in an instant. "Are you suggesting the victim came here drenched, hence the electrocution?"

"Huge chance of that, given the way the array was put up meant it didn't intend to kill anybody."

"Is it safe to enter?" Megan made a move to cross the threshold, but Ed put his hand up. The police and paramedic behind Megan froze as well. Ed told them he'd better check the rest of the apartment to make sure there would be no more human toast for the day.

The soonest Ed turned his back, he scanned the place for anything that could incriminate Al.

The technique used was one of the many safety measures they came up with as children playing with alchemy, some of which they applied during their travels whenever they felt unsafe.

Think fast, Ed. If he were Al and he wanted to protect a girl or at least give her enough leeway to either call for help or escape, he'd have her go where she could put a barrier between the assailant and herself. Ed's eyes focused on the two doors ahead of him, one to the bedroom and one to the bathroom. Playing arrays where it could be marred by water or other chemicals was not the smartest idea. Besides, if the intruder did follow Alicia Melker into the bathroom and she used the environment to further fry him, there was no chance she wouldn't get scorched herself.

Ed made his way to the bedroom. The metal lining on the door frame warned him of the same trick, but the door was ajar and he couldn't think of any security measure that could be activated without it being closed and locked first. Unless, of course, Alicia was mindful enough not to fall for the traps even in her daily living. He kicked the door open. The chain connecting the nail behind the metal lining to the back of the door swung in the air.

Unlatched. When the intruder came in, where did Alicia go if she did not lock the bedroom door? Ed marched inside and saw the tip of the curtain caught in the window pane. He pressed his forehead against the glass to check the view outside. The emergency exit was two windows away, possible to risk making it there by jumping, but he doubted that's how Alicia vanished.

Even from this height, Ed could recognize the rough bump on the pavement in the alley as an alchemy-inspired mishap. He left Central with enough of those scars on roads and buildings for him to know one when he saw it.

Al must've shut the window to drive prying eyes away from the alley, but didn't expect to catch the curtain in the process. Ed tugged at the light, blue cloth to free it. Now he understood the girl didn't bother locking the door. She already had a savior ready to deliver her into safety.

Al, what the fuck were you doing here tonight?

Ed glimpsed the rest of the room. He took in the tidiness of the single bed, but somehow that did not bring him comfort. He'd been driven by lustful passion a handful of times in the past to know sex wasn't confined to a bed.

He spied a red scarf on the floor behind the door. He turned it over and focused on the initials embroidered at the end. A.E. This was Mei Chang's gift to him on his nineteenth birthday. He folded the scarf, flattened it along the line of his back, and tucked in his shirt to secure it.

Upon stepping out of the bedroom door, he announced that the coast was clear. The police and paramedics made cautious steps forward, and as more of them spilled into the apartment, the heavier their footfalls became.

Ed asked Megan for a pen and paper. Together they pulled the blanket over the corpse and studied the array on his palm. Had the engraving not been deep and prominent, he doubted he could've distinguished the array at all. The sheer design told him Hughes wasn't overreacting when he suggested Ed joined the investigation. He copied the array on the paper, trying hard not to make it obvious that his fingers were trembling, and told Megan he would be running off to Park Avenue to meet the general if he was still there.

Once out of the building and out of sight of the police and onlookers, he dashed back to his apartment. Who cared about what Mustang would say to him for not appearing at Park Avenue? There could've been more than one intruder, and they may still be in pursuit of Al. Whatever he was hiding, Al was sensible enough to run to Ed if he was in danger. That was their agreement. He had to at least check their apartment to see if he was correct.

He had entered the code to the building when he realized any sane person running away from a threat would remain in the dark. Ed rushed to the fire exit which was concealed in the shade of the barely lit street behind the building. The drop of blood on the pavement made him pause. It was still fresh. He touched the ground and deconstructed the cement. He rummaged a nearby trash bin for any container with liquid and found a similar bottle of Scotch as that of the general's. This would have to do.

He kept his eyes peeled for any sign blood as he made his way up to the fifth floor. The alcohol would suffice to cover the stain and the stench, but he rubbed it off with his boot for good measure. Once upstairs, he did the same on the hardwood of the corridor before unlocking his apartment.

A woman nearly collided with him, but she leapt backward fast enough to dodge. Al grabbed her by the arm and stepped in front of her.

They all three shared a moment of silence. Ed broke it by bolting the door behind him. He took in the sight of the girl he assumed was Alicia, assessing her as best he could. She looked out of breath and a little unbalanced, and her round spectacles only emphasized her glazed, brown eyes that stared back at him. Her hair was a long mess that reached to her waist, almost succeeding at hiding the blood on her blouse if only it weren't white. "I'm guessing you're Alicia Melker from Lawton Street."

"Brother, let me explain," said Al.

"What's with all the blood? What happened to you, Al?"

"I'm fine. It's just a cut," he said, gesturing to his injured arm. "And it's already been well taken care of."

"Yeah? By her?" Ed prodded his chin towards Alicia. "You so happen to be injured too?"

She lowered her head, trembling fingers clutching her blouse. "No, I'm fine. This is Al's."

"How did you get that injury?"

"Someone threw a knife at us while we were running," he said. "I would've fought back but I wasn't sure if he had accomplices who wanted to get to Alicia."

Ed pulled the curtains close. ""You sure you lost whoever that was?"

"The person stopped chasing us halfway through."

"Any idea who it could be?"

"All I'm sure of is that somebody's after Alicia," he said. "I've been helping her out. We didn't know how serious it was until somebody barged into her apartment earlier."

The string of questions in Ed's mind rendered him speechless for the next couple of seconds. The array at the man's palm, this strange girl coming to Al for help instead of the police, and his very presence at the crime scene…Ed wanted to ask, but he had to set them aside for more pressing concerns. "Can you at least tell me anything that helps?"

Alicia shook her head. "I don't know. Tonight's the first time I've actually seen anybody."

"Is that right? Tonight's the first time and there are already two corpses connected to you."

"Two corpses?"

"Another one at Park Avenue but with an array at the back of his head," he said, turning to Alicia. "You might want to try being honest now because I'm not buying into your cluelessness."

Al motioned for her to stay silent. "It's a long story, and I don't think we've got time to go into detail when an alchemist was after an innocent woman."

Innocent wasn't the first word that came to mind when describing someone hiding from a dead man who was probably a psycho with alchemic abilities, but he agreed that time was against them.

Ed pinched the bridge of his nose. When Al asked if he was okay, he pulled out the scarf from behind his shirt and shoved it against him. "Is this the only thing you left in her apartment? I didn't have the luxury of time to scour for anything else that might point back to you."

Al recognized the scarf in an instant. "What does it matter? She's a victim."

"It matters, Al, because we don't know what this is about."

"He normally doesn't leave anything behind," Alicia said. "Besides, whatever notes from class is in his handwriting shouldn't get him in trouble. It's not a secret that we're both taking medicine."

Ed transmuted the door to blend with the wall. That should throw off anybody who'd attempt to barge in on them. "Sorry, but I'm not referring to notes."

"Pardon?" Alicia said.

Al covered his eyes with his hand, his lips tightly pursed. "What are you trying to say, Ed?"

The array from the man's palm lingered at the forefront of his mind, and his muscles tensed at the recognition of human transmutation in its design. Now might not be the right time to confront him. "I don't want you involved in the police or the military, is what I'm trying to say."

"Brother, I'm not having an affair with Alicia," he said. "She's not that kind of person, and I was the one who insisted on involving myself with her problem."

Alicia pulled out a chair and sat. "This is making me nauseous."

"Sure. Whatever you say, Al." Ed took in the sight of the apartment and decided on a course of action. He fractured a wooden panel with the repeated stomping of his automail foot. The bloody bandages Alicia had gathered on top of a newspaper, he squeezed and rubbed on the crevices of the plank. Al asked what he was doing, but Ed ignored him as he removed the tin can and allowed the leak from the ceiling to wet the floor.

"You're making it look like Al slipped and cut his arm on the wood," Alicia said. "But why? Won't coming to the police with evidence that we were attacked by someone other than the dead man help?"

"I don't want my brother involved, okay? Al, burn your shirt in the fireplace." He turned to check if his brother had heard him. "What are you waiting for?"

"What are you planning, Ed? Why can't we just call the general and tell him everything?"

"This is, first and foremost, a civilian case until I get my ass to Park Avenue and report that the array is anything but basic." He sighed when his brother still wouldn't budge. "Trust me on this. Just because I'm erasing you from the crime scene doesn't mean I'll feed your friend to the wolves."

Al took off his shirt and tossed it into the fireplace. He hissed as the chill nipped at his bare skin, but he chose to burn the bandages and the cottons first before grabbing a new sweatshirt.

Ed saw Alicia turn her head away while Al was shirtless, the blush spreading across her face like fire. She focused on the growing puddle on the floor and remained as still as possible.

Her reaction confirmed two things to Ed, and he thought at least the time he spent enduring Mustang's jibes helped him hone his skills at reading people.

A woman sleeping around with a man wouldn't have been embarrassed so at seeing him naked. Her state of shock, too, provided enough comfort in Ed's mind that she could be safely called a victim. Her innocence, however, was still in question.

Al, noting her own bloodied blouse, went to the bedroom and found a maroon work shirt Winry left behind. "I'm sorry, but we need to burn your blouse too. You can change in the bathroom." As though struck by Ed's sharp glance, he withdrew it from Alicia. "You don't mind her using this, do you, brother?"

That was what Winry wore the afternoon they broke up. He remembered buying it for her in Central because while he had poor taste in women's fashion, he did know what worked for her when she was amongst her gears and metals. The first time Ed saw it among their things; he realized she'd left it on purpose as her means of setting aside a bad memory. "…It's just lying around like a rag anyway," he said.

"Alphonse, what's going to happen to me?" Alicia slipped her fingers beneath her spectacles. The tears she rubbed away only caused her eyes to redden. "The man's dead. He died in my apartment and they're going to blame me."

"Calm down, Alicia." He turned her to the direction of the bathroom. "First things first. Get changed. Everything will be alright."

She held the rough fabric in her fingers as though testing if it were safe, and moved across the apartment with such delicacy that both Ed and Al paused to see if she would faint.

The phone rang. The brothers looked at each other. Ed answered the phone. Fuery apologized for bothering Ed and said the general was still waiting for him at Park Avenue with the warning that he was now on short fuse.

"Well, tell the bastard with the god-complex that Al got injured due to a fucking leak in my apartment." The harshness of his own tone struck him, and he rubbed his eyes as though that would ease his temper. "Sorry, Fuery. it's just been a bad night. Or morning."

Fuery chuckled. "No worries, major. I've been in the military long enough to differentiate bad temper from bad people."

"Thanks."

"Would Alphonse need medical attention?"

"Nah, he's fine. What good would university be if he couldn't stitch his own wound, right? Tell Mustang I'll be in Park Avenue in a bit," he said. "And Kain, who's with you at the office?"

"Gordon is, sir. She's just about to report to Lawton Street."

Ed noticed Alicia standing beside Alphonse. She had tucked in the shirt to her loose, brown slacks kept in place by a brown leather belt, and it didn't seem like an awkward fit at all. "Kindly ask her to drop by the police station," he said. "I believe we're already on the lookout for an Alicia Melker and she's on her way there now."