A/N. Okay, I should probably clarify that there are no pairings in this fic other than possibly PARENTAL!EdRoy (as Roy is having a bit of a hard time he needs some TLC) The reason the summary has Edward listed is because this fanfic has both Roy and Edward as main characters, even though some others will be important to the story as well. Just wanting to clear that up as Edward is now entering the story. Thanks for all the kind reviews and feedback! Love y'all! (okay back to the crazy shit...)


The beaten beige suitcase swung heavily from its owner's automail arm, threatening to knock any passerby to the ground if they crossed its path. The boy's feet tread rhythmically on the stone walkway and rang out as they passed over a sewage grate. A light breeze blew against his face and he tossed his head gently to remove his brilliant golden hair from his face. The sun was warm, the breeze cool, and the first chirps of baby birds sang out in the park parallel to the boy and the massive iron armor walking next to him.

The teen frowned as they passed a busy intersection, their destination now visible above the rooftops of the apartment homes. "Well, there's headquarters! I wonder how everyone is?" the armor asked lightly, his voice young and sweet. The sun-haired boy scoffed. "Probably the same as always; Bastard slacking off, Hawkeye threatening everyone with her gun, Havoc smoking, Breda eating, Falman freaking out, Fuery fixing some old machine crap and their little pet running around biting documents and boots," he joked, waving his flesh hand around in a circle. "Same as usual."

The brothers walked along the now paved sidewalk, nearing the military facility with every stride. They slowed as a car started up to their right and they waited for it to cross. It pulled up next to them instead, and a rather attractive (but naïve-looking) blonde man rolled down his window. "Heya, Ed. Al."

"2nd Lieutenant Havoc! I would have thought you'd be on duty right now?" the blonde asked, walking toward the car with a smirk. The spike-haired man grew solemn and he removed the cigarette from his mouth. "Boys, I'm going to have to ask you to get in the car. I'm taking you to Hawkeye's place." He unlocked the doors and rolled his window back up. The boys exchanged worried looks before climbing into the vehicle.

Havoc put the cigarette back in his mouth and he pulled the car out of park and started to drive back into the street. He groaned as he stretched his shoulders, reclining into his seat. Edward bit his lip out of anxiety. "So… Why are we going to the lieutenant's house? Is there some sort of sickness at HQ or something?" Havoc exhaled and the smoke left his nose like some great fog from a dragon. He shook his head.

"No, but we all wish that were the case. I wasn't at the scene like Hawkeye was, so I can't really give you the proper information. We'll be there in about four minutes though so I think you can wait that long…" he said, his tobacco jumping up and down between his teeth. He rotated the wheel and they headed left down a housing district. "She'll explain everything once we get there."

Edward looked to the armor that was his younger brother and shrugged with a raised brow. The armor returned the shrug and the three sat in silence. Edward looked out the window and watched the world outside rush by.

He had never been to the Lieutenant's house before. He thought it silly, but he wondered what it looked like. What color was the paint? Was it one floor or two or even three? Was there a garden, or did she consider the idea too feminine? He blinked. Why should any of this matter to him?

Maybe it's because she actually has a house…

Havoc slowed and pulled the car in to park. "Here we are, boys. C'mon." Edward and Alphonse exited the vehicle and followed the uniformed man to the front steps of what was apparently the lieutenant's home. Edward looked around as they waited for her to answer the doorknocker. He noted that it was actually an apartment, but it was well-kept; with red brick, iron windowsills, and some ivy growing from one of the flower boxes. He heard the door unlock and returned his attention to the situation.

Riza Hawkeye opened the door slowly, her hair down and somewhat messy, though not terribly so, and she wore a white silk robe over her pale blue pajamas. She smiled sadly. "Hello, boys, it's good to see you again. I hope your last excursion wasn't too much of a hassle?" Edward smiled sheepishly. "N-no, no, it wasn't too bad. A little bit of a fight here and there but nothing we couldn't handle!" he joked, waving his hand around.

She nodded warmly and then turned to her subordinate. "Would you like a cup of coffee, Havoc?" He shook his head, but he smiled. "Thanks, but no thanks. We're all busy at the office as you… know…" he trailed off solemnly, both officers looking downwards in dread. The woman turned to the teen and opened her door fully to let them enter. "Well, thanks for stopping by anyway, 2nd Lieutenant." The man nodded before leaving to go back to the car.

Riza watched him drive away before closing the door. She turned to look at the boys again, seeing Edward playfully petting her almost grown shiba puppy. She sighed through her nose and began walking over to her living room, Black Hayate barking playfully and he trailed behind her, trying to nip at her heels. She sat down and Hayate jumped up on the couch next to her and lay down. He yawned and rested his head on his paws, his ears falling back against his head tiredly.

The brothers took their seats across the coffee table and they sat respectfully in their chairs as they waited for Hawkeye to explain. Riza leaned back and rubbed her eyes of what was presumed the remnants of sleep. She took a deep breath before pulling herself back forward to talk to the boys.

"Are you two aware of what has happened, or are you not?" Edward swallowed before shaking his head. "No, we have no idea what you're talking about. We just got back in East City this afternoon." Riza nodded sadly before reaching for an envelope of documents that were next to her coffee mug. She opened it and began laying papers down (faces down) on the table between herself and the brothers. "Colonel Mustang was… Assigned a mission in which he was to dispose of a serial killer who has taken many victims. The location we traced the killer to was this abandoned brick factory," she explained as she pulled out a small packet of photos bound by a rubber band. She handed them to Edward as she finished emptying the manila folder.

Edward began flipping through the photos, trying to take in the enormous scale that the facility was. "As we didn't know exactly where in the building our target was, a siege was put into order, a team going in from above, the right, left, front, and behind of the building. This was to draw attention away from when our-… The colonel's team… Went in from the entrance." Edward began reaching for another document, but Riza held her hand up for him to stop. "Not yet."

He leaned back confused but he obeyed her command. She folded her arms under her bust as she continued. "There were accomplices—which is odd for a serial killer—but we were prepared for an attack anyway. The colonel ran off to try and find the target, but his orders were to allow for us to protect him at all times. You know how stubborn he is…" Ed nodded with a tiny smirk.

The lieutenant suddenly grew very cold in her speech. "We found a passageway and as we were heading down it, the lights went out. After we lit our lantern, we could hear someone's footsteps running away. Colonel Mustang chased after them, leaving us behind. We couldn't see where he had gone or could even hear his footsteps anymore. We did however, hear a door slam, but even that was so distorted because of all of the echoing in that passage." She began rubbing her face, her forehead wrinkling despite her young age.

"Our team managed to find the door the colonel had broken down and when we reached it we heard him screaming. We tried to find him in this room," she handed him a stack of photos, frowning. "But we couldn't. It turned out that he was actually in the next room through the vent…" she trailed off.

Edward was looking at the photos with his hand over his mouth and his eyes were wide with horror. The room was covered in blood splatters and meat and bones were organized crudely into different areas. The tags tied around the slabs of meat read: male, 37, fat; female, 7, thin; female, 22, fat, and Edward felt his chest clench with disgust. "Oh my God…" he groaned behind his hand.

He put the photos down and swallowed, his throat thick. Riza sighed. "It only gets worse from here, I'm afraid." Edward moaned with contempt. "OH GOODIE." Alphonse nudged his brother's arm. "Ed…" Edward looked up and saw that the woman was very nervous, a cold sweat forming on her forehead. "Uh… Lieutenant? You okay?" he asked worriedly.

She shook her head.

"When we saw the vent, I went in it to try and find him, but…" She leaned forward with her bangs hanging over her face, hiding it from the boys. Edward watched as her back shuddered ever so slightly and she wiped her eyes with her arm. She pulled herself back and she took a deep breath. Her eyes were pink.

"The colonel… Was hunched over the target and there was blood… Everywhere. All over him, all over the floor, and… And…!" she stammered before burying her face in her hands. "Oh God—why did he do it!? Why why why!?" she cried, her normally low voice breaking and squeaking as tears began falling from her eyes. The brothers both stood up in shock and they looked at each other frantically.

They had never seen the lieutenant cry, let alone sob.

She sniffed loudly as she pointed to the next stack of photos, motioning for Edward to look at them. He hesitantly picked up the stack and began looking at the pictures. He stared in silence at the first photo, his expression completely void of recognition.

"This… No. No this can't be real," he remarked, his voice low and quiet.

The photo was of the colonel; he was handcuffed—his eyes wide and seemingly fearful, and he was covered in blood, the majority of it coming from his mouth and neck. He didn't seem injured and so one could only draw the conclusion that he had been biting something bloody. He was being held down from the shoulders by a soldier who kept a gun in his left hand ready for any wrong move Roy could've made.

Ed flipped to the next photo. He felt himself gag at the sight. A man—looking to be middle-aged—lay on the stone floor, his middle section torn open and entrails sprawled across the floor. Bite marks and burns could be seen around his face and neck, and Roy's ignition glove lay limp in the man's exposed ribcage.

"Oh my God…"

He turned to Riza, and then looked back down at the photos. The stack was of at least twelve other scenes, but he could feel his knees weaken at the thought of seeing more gore and disgraceful imagery. "Lieutenant Hawkeye… If this is some sort of sick joke…" he muttered. She looked up with tears scaring her face. "DO YOU HONESTLY THINK I'D JOKE OF THIS!?" Edward stared deeply into her chestnut eyes before looking away in disbelief.

He took a deep breath and proceeded to flip through the rest of the photos, spending only as much time as was needed for each one.

Bite marks.

Broken ribcage.

Missing heart and bitten-off lung.

Detail shot of missing heart.

Full-body photo of the victim.

Close-up on Roy's glove—singed.

Transmutation circle under victim.

Detail shot of circle.

Shot of Roy looking confused at the camera.

Shot of Roy being pat-down for weapons.

Shot of Roy inside the police vehicle.

Mug-shot of Roy.

Edward held on to the police photo of the man, something seeming off. He sat the other photos down and analyzed the mug-shot. Roy was smiling, his eyelids ever so slightly drooping. His head was tilted to the right and his pupils were dilated so much so that his eyes appeared black, even though the camera flash was bright and gave him a sort of pale glow. He was holding the prison number calmly and comfortably.

"Has Mustang ever been convicted of anything? Ever?" Ed asked, his voice concerned. Riza shook her head. "The closest he's ever gotten was a restraining order. And that was from you two years ago because you thought he was 'being a complete pain in the arse.'" Edward could feel a twang of humility. "I-I was thirteen! I was dumb… Besides, the point is that this is the first time he's ever done anything against the law?" Riza rubbed her arm. "Well…" Edward raised a brow.

"Well, the first that he's ever done something illegal to another person."

Edward leaned back in surprise. Alphonse in contrast leaned in for more information. "So wait, Colonel Mustang is a felon!?" Riza shook her head. "No, he's… He wasn't. The illegal things he's done in the past have been things like covert affairs and secret missions I am not at liberty to discuss, even with him out of the picture so to speak…" Edward nodded. "So, is he at the same prison or did they mo—"

"He's in the Eastern Isle Asylum for the Mentally Ailed."

The brothers gawked. "A-asylum?! Like, for bat shit crazy people!?" Ed asked with a high voice. The woman nodded. "Apparently, he had fits of dementia and physical outbursts while at the prison… And he…" she inhaled slowly. "He brutally murdered one of the guards while he was to be in the shower room."

"B… Brutally murdered?" Al stammered. Edward's throat turned dry. "So he really was the one responsible for that guy from the factory?" Riza nodded. "I saw him… His face was in the man's chest and he was eating and… Drinking the blood and…" she gagged, covering her mouth to keep herself from retching.

"A-and I don't have photos of the guard's death—thank God—but from the reports say, the colonel used the doorframe as his weapon and bashed the man's head in by repeatedly smashing him into the corner. What happened after both attacks is what's really unsettling though…" Edward's ears perked.

The sniper grabbed a couple of grey documents and handed them to the young alchemist. "After both attacks, the factory and the jail, the colonel seemed in a cloud of confusion. Asking questions like 'What's going on?' and 'Wait, what did I do?' But after the guard's death the report says he was found across the room naked on the remains of the bathroom mirror sobbing. The guards say he had a piece of glass in his hand and so they beat him till he dropped it as to assure everyone's safety. Unfortunately, they apparently had a misfire and hit him in the head, knocking him out."

Edward exhaled slowly through his nose. He read over the report, taking about two moments to complete them, and then set them back down and he rubbed his temples. "I just don't get it! Why would Colonel Bastard do anything like this?! It's not at all like him!" He looked to the woman and she was shaking her head solemnly. "I wish I knew, Edward. The colonel and I have known each other since long before the military, and never did he ever show any signs of mental illness. Not in adulthood nor in his youth." Edward stared at her as she sat silently. He was not comfortable with the situation, nor the topic, so he deemed it best to try and change the mood.

Edward smirked devilishly. "Ooh~ since his youth? So were you two like an item or something?" he jeered. Riza shut her eyes and grit her teeth. "DO NOT INSINUATE ANYTHING, EDWARD. YOU ARE GETTING OFF-TOPIC." He raised his hands defensively. "Okay, okay! Jeez…" Edward recoiled. So much for that plan... Hawkeye huffed and scratched her head right behind her forehead. "The asylum only allows one visitor per morning and afternoon. The team and I were discussing on who should try and talk with him and when. It was pretty unanimous that you should see him most often."

"W-why me!? What if he snaps and tries to rip my face off!?" Ed objected. Riza glowered and continued. "Edward, regardless if he 'snapped' (she gave air quotations) he wouldn't be able to harm you at all. The facility is very strict and is one of the best mental health hospitals this side of central." Edward rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah, I'm sure it is. But what if he tries to gouge my eyes out or something?"

Riza groaned and leaned forward, her face in her hands. "He'd be in a straight jacket, Edward. Even if he tried to he'd just be struggling against himself." Edward inhaled to begin speaking but Riza commented before he could, "And before you ask, no, he'd be wearing a human muzzle, so he wouldn't be able to bite you either." Edward exhaled what would have been his next objection.

"Well, why don't you go visit him?" Riza sighed and looked down to her left at nothing. "I will be visiting now and then, but with the office work that will be piling up soon, I won't be able to as often as you can. I also… Can't yet… Not yet…"

Edward moaned and let his head hang back over the back of the seat and the three of them sat in silence.

"Fine."

Alphonse and Hawkeye both turned to the teen and an air of relief seemed to wash over the room. "But," Ed clarified, "I'm not visiting both mornings and afternoons, that'd be way too much!" "Of course," Riza agreed. "And if I'm gonna be seeing the bastard a lot then I'm going to be taking a book or the case files or hell a rubber band because he'll get boring quick!" Riza rolled her eyes but she nodded. Edward opened his mouth to say more but the soldier cut him off, "OKAY. Do whatever you like, as long as you can ease some info out of him. We'll need it for his court case… If he's even sane enough for one."

Edward nodded, a fake smile plastered on his face. He looked down at the photographs and stared at Roy's face.

He looked so scared, all covered in blood and sweat.

Edward began returning the files and photos to the folder and he clasped it shut. "So, when do I start visiting the loon?" Riza shrugged. "He's been there for a couple of days, so you should be able to see him starting tomorrow. Will you be visiting him morning or afternoon?" Edward thought over it and then responded with, "Morning. Wanna get him when he's still groggy. Maybe I can get more info out of him then." Riza nodded and began to show the boys to the door, her dog following behind her.

Edward held the folder tightly to his side and he saluted as they left her house. She waved them goodbye and closed the door. The brothers stood silently in the evening sun. "I can't believe the colonel went nuts…" Alphonse said under his non-existent breath. Edward looked down at the folder and watched his automail fingers tremble lightly. "Yeah…"

Tomorrow, he thought, tomorrow is when the games begin.