Ok so I'm kind of proud of how this turned out. It was really hard to write dialouge between Mustang and Envy, it took me forever. But I'm proud of the final product.

Envy: It took her hours on end to do this chapter.

Liz: So review.

Mustang: Or I will incenerate you.

Ed and I shot each other glances, both of us obviously panicking.

"Wh-what do we do?" Al asked fearfully.

The only one who didn't seem frozen on the spot was Envy.

"One second General," I heard my own voice call out behind me. I whirled to see Envy smirking at me as he continued to speak in my voice "We'll be right there."

'That's creepy' I mouthed at him.

He shrugged.

"Out, hide." Al pushed the homunculi out of the room. "We'll talk to him until he goes away ok? Please stay put unless you feel it's absolutely necessary to come out."

It wasn't just because Mustang was from the military which would be reason enough to hide the homunculi. What I was worried about was his previous friendship with Hughes. He had proven that he was beyond looking for revenge in the past but what would happen if he found out that Envy was the killer. He might just try to take his chance when the murderer was right in front of him.

I opened the door, glaring "We're still on vacation, General Flame… what do you want?"

"I know, I apologize but I felt this was urgent." Mustang said. Hawkeye stood behind him as well but she was the only other person. "And you always get mad when I don't tell you things."

"True enough, come on in I guess. Al was making tea." I let the two in. Luckily, I was actually keeping a good poker face this time so Mustang didn't seem to suspect anything.

"Yeah, I'm sure you just couldn't resist barging in on our time off." Ed muttered from the kitchen.

"Don't be so uptight Edward. I might be dropping by as a friend" Mustang smirked.

"As if" Ed rolled his eyes. "How about to dump some of your crap on us?"

"Friends do that all the time" Mustang chuckled before his face grew serious. "But this is something you want to know about Fullmetal… trust me."

Al set a cup of tea in front of the Lieutenant Colonel and General before he began. He drew a file out of his coat. "There have been attacks on state alchemists for awhile now. We knew there are several people in this… or just an elaborate one person, since the methods of the killings always seem to differ. At first I didn't tell you because I thought you'd go looking for trouble or just accidentally find it… let's face it, Liz has a nasty habit of doing that."

"Hey!" I snapped. "Though it is true."

"Anyway, I was having my team investigate it" Mustang continued. It wasn't till a murder two nights ago that I realized how serious this was." He opened up a file and pulled out a picture. "The murder itself was simple enough. The man was stabbed and he looked like he had been in absolute terror at the time of his death. The only difference was a bloody symbol on the wall above him." Mustang drew out another picture and held it up. "Recognize it?"

The three of us gasped in unison. Of course we recognized it, how could we not? After all, that was the symbol that had screwed our lives over for several months and that was also the symbol that three people hiding in this house had tattooed on their body.

"The tattoo of the oroborus" Al murmured.

"Yes" Mustang nodded. "We must consider two options of course… that there are new homunculi being spawned somewhere and brought together or that the old ones are back."

'Or both' I thought.

"I'm leaning towards the first option." Mustang said. "The old ones were never this obvious. They infiltrated the military for years without us knowing… yet I wonder if these new homunculi have the same master."

"Then Dante is-" I started to say when the file was suddenly snatched from the table.

"No, that definitely isn't something we'd do." A voice mused. I whirled to see Envy, file in hand, reading over its contents with narrowed eyes.

"Envy!" I smacked a hand to my forehead with a groan.

"I thought it was absolutely necessary." He said flatly, never taking his eyes off the paper.

"Envy?" Realization dawned on Mustang and Hawkeye simultaneously. Hawkeye drew her gun with expert speed but a black nail shot from the door quicker, knocking the gun from her hands.

"We'd appreciate it if you didn't draw your weapon." Lust said firmly from the doorway, eyes narrowed.

"Y-yeah" Wrath stuttered, holding up his hands placating way. "No one's going to attack anybody, really. We don't need to fight."

"By your lack of surprise" Mustang turned his glare on us. "I'm guessing you knew they were here?"

"Kind… of…Sort of, maybe… ish… yeah." I said sheepishly before steeling myself and glaring back "Though you have the worst timing General! They weren't here two hours ago!" I crossed my arms. "And besides, I didn't know they were coming. I thought they were dead."

"We were" Envy dead panned. All this time, his eyes never left the file. I'm not sure I had ever seen him so focused. "Damn it…" he growled, his hands clenching around the paper so hard I thought he might rip it to pieces. "How can she still be alive… She was rotting… she shouldn't still be… but no one else would gather more homunculi… only she would."

"So you're Envy" Mustang had relaxed just a little when it became clear that the homunculi weren't about to attack. He spoke calmly, though Mustang always seemed to be able to disguise his voice like that. "This is the first time I've met you in person… I've only heard about you from the Elric's and Liz."

"Yeah, nice to meet you Flame alchemist." Envy's eyes left the file for a minute to regard Mustang coolly. The tone of his voice made it clear that he didn't really care that much one way or another. His eyes slid down to where the General's hand was held in position to snap. "You know, you don't have to do that… You make a flame in here you could burn the place down and that would be a shame… besides… it would take more than that to kill me."

"I know. I was the one who killed the homunculus Fuehrer." Mustang's eyes narrowed.

"Did you now." Envy seemed only mildly interested. "Well good work… I hated that bastard anyway so I don't really mind. That brat and I never saw eye to eye."

"You call a man that old a brat?" Mustang's eyebrows rose in mild amusement.

"I four hundred years old, Flame. He was in his sixties… I can call him a brat." A smirk slid over Envy's face. "But judging by this file, you failed to take out the leader didn't you." He slapped the document down on the table. "Because that bitch is still alive."

"Fullmetal and Liz were on the other side of the gate" Mustang said calmly, standing his ground, which was a pretty gutsy move on his part. "Al lost his memory. We couldn't go after someone whose face we didn't know. We didn't even know a name."

"Hmm" Envy turned to Lust. "Hey, Lust. You can retract your finger now. I think the lady with the gun here knows it's pointless to shoot me."

"…Fine" Lust's did as she was told. I noted that the homunculi did seem to be doing what Envy told them to do. I guess it was just a seniority thing.

"Lust?" Mustang turned to look at the other homunculi for the first time. "And you're Wrath. I remember you."

Lust nodded once and Wrath smiled tentatively… Was it just me or was Wrath less… wrathful now? He seemed slightly nervous but other than that, he seemed more peaceful. It almost reminded me of back before Envy fed him the stones… though he looked more mature now.

"So then I'm correct in assuming that these murders aren't your doing?" Mustang asked.

"That's right." Envy answered. "And if they were we wouldn't be stupid enough to give it away. Plus" he held up a picture of one of the murder victims. "This guy burned to death. None of us can do something like that."

"And you have severed ties with your old leader?" Mustang pressed on. "You have no connection with her?"

Envy's fists clenched "Don't be ridiculous. I don't follow Dante anymore." He held Mustang's hard stare. "Are we done with the interrogation now?"

The tension the room was already considerable. Then Mustang had to make it even worse "One more question… which one of you… killed General Hughes?"

Silence.

I forced myself not to glance at Envy, instead stepping forward "Uh, Mustang look-"

"I know it was not the secretary or the Fuehrer who pulled the final trigger," Mustang continued, completely ignoring me. "So… who was it?"

The tension in the room was unbearable. I closed my eyes, praying silently 'Envy please don't say anything. Please don't say anything. Please-'

"I did."

I exhaled and swallowed. Great, how were we going to get out of this one? I hoped the General was actually as above revenge as he said.

"Sloth led him into the trap, Lust injured him" Envy met Mustang's cold stare with an equally icy look. "I pulled the final trigger."

"…Why?" Mustang asked after a long, tense pause. "Why… did you kill him?"

"We were told to" Envy replied evenly. "Because he had learned too much… we were told to kill him. So we did."

"How can you be so indifferent about it?" Mustang's voice rose a bit in volume, threatening his forced calm demeanor.

"That's rich coming from you" Envy said coolly. "Back in Ishbal, you killed lots of people without consideration didn't you? It was your orders, so you followed without question. It's the same thing, Hero of Ishbal."

Mustang's eyes widened a fraction. It was clear Envy had scored a hard hit. Hawkeye's hand started for her gun but Mustang held out an arm "Lieutenant Colonel… its fine…" He sighed and closed his eyes. "I promised myself a long time ago that I would not pursue revenge. I will stand by that."

I almost sighed with relief but Mustang continued "On a broader scale: you homunculi toyed with humans and the military for who knows how long. I would be completely justified with arresting you right now." A slight smirk drew over his face. "But I know how to play my cards… It looks like you have a harbored grudge against the mastermind of these murders as well… and am I right in assuming you are on our side now?"

Envy smirked "Don't flatter yourself… I'm just on Liz's side."

"Well then it's a good thing she is on our side." Mustang's face grew serious. "Don't make me regret letting you stay out in the open… if your loyalties switch again… I will kill you. Not as revenge but as an enemy. It will be for the good of the military."

Envy held Mustang's stare "Trust me General; I have no intention of switching sides."

There was a long, tense pause before Mustang's usual calm smirk returned to his face "Very well… you two" he turned to where Ed and I were standing. "I expect to see you back in Central in two weeks maximum. Don't be late."

"Uh…sure" I nodded and Ed shrugged in agreement.

"Bring whoever you want" Mustang glanced at Al and then the homunculi. "And be careful… Lieutenant Colonel Hawkeye, let's go. Our business here is done."

Hawkeye nodded "Sir."

The door closed and I exhaled before turning to glare at Envy "Do you ever miss an opportunity to stir up trouble?"

"Only when they overlap." Envy smirked lightly.

"You're insufferable! Do you really want to make the military your enemy so quickly? If Dante is back then you don't want them both going after you." I sighed and bit my lip. "And I have a funny feeling she hasn't quite forgotten about us either… I get it now… Why Truth brought you back… If anyone has a harbored grudge against Dante its Truth… since she's evaded equivalent exchange for so many years, he wants her dead… but he can't just up and smite her. He knows we'll kill her. That's what he meant about the end being different than we thought it was."

"I don't care what the Hell that little bastard wants" Envy shrugged. "However I would very much like to kill my dear mother. I'll do that without any encouragement."

'Naturally that's just what I want' Truth giggled.

'Of course you do Truth" I sighed. "Manipulative little imp."


On the roof later that night (Or what might've been early morning), Envy sat in silence, staring blankly ahead. The Flame Alchemist was a strange character, at least one of the only humans he had ever met that refused to be driven completely by their emotions. If he had snapped and wanted to take revenge, Envy wouldn't have cared, but he didn't.

What bothered him more though was the odd sensation in his chest when he claimed he was the killer of General Maes Hughes. Like something was burning inside of him, smoldering at the thought of the old memory.

He remembered that night well. Liz had come on the scene right after he shot the man. It had annoyed him that he forgot the small detail of a mole under Maria Ross' left eye. A pesky detail that Hughes had actually noticed. Then he had taken the shape of the man's wife and he had been powerless. He couldn't even throw his knife at him.

So what was this strange sensation he felt at the mention of the murder?

'Oho!' The unwelcome voice of Truth giggled. 'Confused homunculus? You are very new to feelings aren't you?'

"What are you talking about?" Envy growled into the night.

'You see, while it's true that homunculi can feel emotions they are not completely natural. They do not come as easy as they would to humans thus you can claim that you don't have feelings. In this way, when you do have feelings they are unfamiliar.' Truth giggled again. 'You know what your price was Envy, along with the other homunculi? You are being subjected to all the emotions and feelings of a human? Strange isn't it?"

"…I'm… what?" Envy blinked.

'You were always so adamant about how emotions make humans weak" Truth pointed out. 'Well now you get to see if you're right, don't you?'

"You… little…" Envy's fists clenched and he wished once again that Truth had a physical form that he could beat to death.

'So, homunculus" Truth grinned. 'What does guilt feel like to you?'

Envy's eyes widened slightly "Guilt?"

'That strange sensation you feel in your chest at the mention of that man you killed. That is guilt. It's quite a painful emotion. In fact, you evoked that in Mustang tonight when you brought up the Ishbalan war. He always feels guilt about the thousands of innocents he slaughtered' Truth sighed. 'You have felt guilty before. When you accidentally stabbed Liz as well as that other girl.'

Envy gritted his teeth, glaring a head into the dark, but said nothing.

'You looked down on humans for many years Envy. You made many of them suffer. You laughed at their emotional ties and feelings. In truth, some human emotions can be very painful. And you get to experience them now. Problem is, you aren't quite used to them yet' Truth continued on. 'Hughes death happened years ago and you haven't really had to compensate for it. This isn't nearly as painful as the guilt that Liz or the Elric brothers have gone through on countless occasions." Truth's voice was dark and serious as he continued on.

'Liz felt an overwhelming guilt after her family was killed and she could do nothing. The guilt intensified after her streak of revenge. And then she's felt guilt from hiding so many things from the Elric brothers over long periods of time. She hid the death of Hughes from them for awhile, even when she was the first to know, because she couldn't bear to tell them. Alphonse felt guilty for the loss of his brothers arm and leg, and for the suffering that went on around him."

Edward carried guilt for a long time because he believed he put his brother Al in a cold unfeeling shell where he could no longer experience any sensations of being human. In addition he felt guilt watching people around them suffer. He felt guilt for Hughes death… more than you do now… because he believed he dragged him into the whole mess. He's also felt guilt for agreeing with you when you decided to go to the Thule society, because he hated to see Liz hurt.' Truth cackled darkly. 'He also hates you for that of course.'

"Get out…" Envy growled, rubbing a hand over his face.

'Why? Because you don't want to hear the truth? Humans have suffered a lot. You loved to make them suffer, unable to identify with their emotions or feelings. You made them suffer.' Truth sighed. 'Though you have suffered too haven't you Envy? If nothing else you can connect that.'

"Just get out of my head you bastard" It was taking all of Envy's will power not to punch through the roof.

'This is your price Envy.'

Then the voice was gone, leaving nothing but the distant sound of a night train and the soft chirping of crickets. But the voice still echoed in the homunculus' head.

'This is your price.'

'Yeah' Envy stared up at the black sky. 'I know…'

So what did you think? I really hope I got them in character...

Liz: Next chapter is mostly filler with some fun stuff at the end.

Envy: aka. Next chapter will be a filler.

MWAHAHAHA!

Ed: She's insane.

Al: REVIEW!