Disclaimer - I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist

A/N - Okay, so I just want to make sure you guys don't hate me for that last chapter . . . Because you might after this one XD

PS - I really like feedback because it boosts my confidence so if you guys wanna make my day and review I'll love you forever!

. . .

Central, Amestris

1920

(Earth Year: 1926)

"So the Colonel's promotion is official?" Breda asked. He and the rest of Mustang's team were on their lunch break. The Flame Alchemist, however, made up some excuse about paper work in order to miss lunch that day, but his subordinates assumed that that was not the case.

Lt. Havoc nodded. "Yeah, as of tomorrow it's Brigadier General Mustang again . . ."

"You really think he'll land Fuhrer?" Breda asked.

"Oh, of course!" Furey exclaimed. "He has to, he's the only one who'll ever be able to fix this country!"

"He's the only one who cares about the people more than the power," Hawkeye corrected. "All though it's basically the same thing. He's good at hiding it, but he really only makes decisions based on how others will benefit. Not himself. He's someone to admire and look up to."

"I just hope he makes it soon," Furey said. "I've heard that the current Fuhrer is thinking about declaring war with one of the neighboring countries . . . The last thing we need is another Ishbal.

"Yeah, but this time I doubt the Fuhrer's an evil homunculus that wants to exterminate a race of people in order to create a Philosopher's Stone," Havoc pointed out.

Falman gasped and held out the newsletter that had been handed out to all of them earlier that day. No one ever bothered to read those stupid things, anyway. "I think we've got bigger problems at the moment!"

"'Be on the lookout for a mysterious man with long, dark, green hair, purple eyes, and a small, red tattoo on his led (unidentified),'" Havoc read aloud. "It also says he appeared in East City the other day and killed a bunch of officers who tried to question him."

"Green hair and purple eyes?" Furey asked. "But doesn't that sound an awful lot like-"

"Envy," Hawkeye growled. She rose quickly from the table. "I'll go alert the General."

. . .

London, England

1926

"Brother?" Al asked as he waved his hand in front of Edward's face.

Ed blinked. "Sorry . . . I was just thinking about something."

Up until that point, the elder brother had been starting at the wall; completely unresponsive to everything Alphonse was saying.

There was a knock on the door frame of the study. Since the door had been left ajar, the boys could see Patricia standing there, holding a tea tray.

"Thanks," Al said.

She nodded and handed them each a cup. "So have you found anything new on those old notes? You've been staring at the same pieces of paper for three years now, tell me you've got something!"

Al picked up one sheet and held it out to her. "This doesn't look like our father's writing."

Patricia nodded. "Edward wrote that, I'd recognize it anywhere."

Then under her breath she added, "chicken scratch . . ."

"It's not English . . ." Al muttered, more to himself.

Patricia nodded. "It wouldn't be . . . He almost always wrote anything of importance in some weird code language Hohenheim taught him."

Ed and Al both nodded. If was definitely Amestrian.

"So how's Wendy?" Al asked.

"The doctors told me she'll be fine, but honestly . . . I'm a bit worried. Well, I mean I'm always worried, but . . . Even though she's been getting better, she's still not looking so great." Patricia's voice was sad, yet somehow optimistic. "Ah, well . . . Maybe she and Edward will finally be together again."

Soon we'll be together, Wendy. Soon . . . I promise.

Isn't that what Edward Matthews had said when Ed heard his voice on his birthday?

"Ed, you okay?" Patricia asked.

Edward hadn't noticed it, but he had jumped to his feet. He sat back down on the floor, amongst the many loose pieces of paper and open books.

"When you boys are done with your tea, I was wondering if you would like to take a little break from working and drive down to the hospital. I have Edward's old car, I just have no idea how to drive it . . ."

Ed nodded. "Sure, Patricia. I haven't seen Wendy since Gracia and Hughes showed up at the hospital and we got kicked out of her room by that nurse for exceeding the maximum guest number of the room."

Patricia smiled. "Mr. and Mrs. Hughes are such nice people. Now a days you'd think all German's would be scum just from what you hear around and on the radio, but those two, along with Noah are the perfect examples of human beings."

Al grinned. "Yeah, and not only that but they're completely anti-Nazi!"

Patricia chuckled a little and walked out of the room. "Hurry up with that tea, I miss my Little Wendy."

"Little Wendy?" Al repeated after she was gone.

"Patricia always calls Wendy that," Ed told him.

"I never noticed it before . . . Why does she call her that? Wendy's an adult. And from what I can tell from the pictures, she and Edward Matthews didn't start going out until they were both at least 16."*

"Yeah, but Edward and Wendy were best friends before they started dating. Ever since Wendy's mother would watch Edward while his mom was at work and his father was in prison," Ed explained. "I can't believe you didn't know that, Al, there's a big picture of the two of them on their first day of grammar school on top of Patricia's mantel."

Al shrugged. "I guess I just didn't pay attention, or maybe my mind just registered it as you and Winry . . . Speaking of which, don't you find it a little odd that Wendy and Edward were childhood friends as well?"

Al's face was smug. Ed looked as if he wanted to punch his grin right off, but instead he just sighed. "Yeah . . . I guess."

It wasn't worth the argument.

Al's face changed when he saw his brother give up on a fight before it had started. That was strangely out of character. "Brother, what's wrong? You've been acting really weird."

Ed thought over his options for a minute. He could either tell Al what happened in the bathroom at the hospital, or he could put it off longer until he knew more.

He decided to go with the former. He and his brother never kept secrets from each other. It was like an unwritten rule.

"That day, when we went to go see Wendy . . . I saw it; the gate. I was there, Al. Envy was, too, and I think I might have figured out a way home.

Al's eyes grew wide. "WHAT?"

Ed slapped his hand over his brother's mouth. "Do you want Patricia to hear?"

Al pulled away from his brother's reach. "No, sorry . . . Tell me!"

And so Ed did. He told Al everything that had happened from the time he started to feel his head hurt in the waiting room, to the visions in the bathroom, to the conversation with Envy, and finally his own opinions and what he had concluded from the experience. There was a way back to Amestris.

Al was completely silent the entire time, soaking in every word. When Ed was done, Al sighed. "There's still that one little piece that we're missing. Just like always, right, Brother?"

Ed nodded. "I was hoping that maybe looking through Dad's notes with fresh eyes and a new concept to inquire, we might find something. But all his theories point in the opposite direction. I just don't see how that could be right though . . . Dad always seemed to know exactly what he was doing."

"Brother," you don't really think that alchemic energy is really just the dead people on this side, do you?"

Ed shook his head. "Energy cannot be created or destroyed. But it's just like anything in life; we don't always know where it came from or where it's going. I'm not sure if it can travel between parallels, but I doubt it. Personally, I seriously find the theory to be impossible; that alchemists subconsciously open the inner gate when they do alchemy. How could alchemy be discovered without that prior knowledge? But then again, we are just tiny, insignificant humans. We could be wrong, that's always a possibility."

Al looked down. He hated it when his brother acted so serious. It made him seem almost . . . Grown up. And Ed could grow up, because growing up meant giving up, eventually. And Al wasn't ready to give up.

That reminded him of something. "Brother? There's been something I've been meaning to talk to you about. It's about that day, when-"

"Are you boys almost ready?" Patricia called up the stairs.

"Yeah!" Ed yelled back. His face changed so he almost looked . . . Excited. He gulped down the rest of his tea and put the cup on the table.

Al stared down into his own, full cup. Maybe he wasn't ready to talk to Ed just yet.

"Come on, Al!" Ed said cheerfully. "Let's go see Wendy!"

Al placed his cup down on the desk. "Yeah, Brother."

He then followed Ed out of the room, without putting away any of the books.

I have a feeling Brother and I might be spending the night at Patricia's house . . . We've got a lot to look over.

. . .

Resembool, Amestris

1920

(Earth Year: 1926)

"Did you have a nice time in Central?" Pinako asked as her granddaughter walked up to their house. Pinako was waiting outside, blowing her pipe.

Just like she always does, Winry thought. Waits and waits, knowing that we'll return. Always.

Winry nodded. "Little Elysia is getting so big! I'm just gonna drop my suit case in my room, Granny. Then I'll take Den for a walk."

Hearing her name, Den lifted her head and wagged her tail**. Winry smiled and headed inside and up the stairs. She motioned for the dog to follow.

About ten minutes later, Winry and Den were on their walk.

Because her mind was wandering, Winry let Den lead the way on the oath. The next thing Winry knew, she was standing at the entry way to Resembool Cemetery.

Winry raised her eye brows and looked at the dog.

Den sat down firmly, and Winry knew she wasn't going anywhere.

She sighed. "I guess it has been a really long time since I came here . . ."

Moments later, she stood in front of her parents' grave stones.

"Mom . . . Dad . . ." she felt tears stinging in her eyes. "I'm sorry I haven't come down in so long. I guess I just haven't been thinking very straight lately. It's all because of those stupid Elric brothers. You knew them . . . We were always playing together, and you were friends with their mother. Well, they're gone now, too, and ever since they left I've been off. I don't know why . . . I mean it's been three years, yet I still write them letters. Maybe it's because . . . In a way, those boys were always my brick wall. When you guys died . . . They were still here, and they helped me get through it. And when Auntie Trisha died, they were still here, too. When we were little and Den got hit by that carriage, they held my hands while Granny amputated her leg. Even though it got really bloody and scary, and Al nearly threw up, they stayed by me. Any time I ever got hurt, or was sad, they always seemed to be there. They cheated death so many times, I never guessed that they could actually be taken from me. Al and I promised we'd get Ed back, but now I'm on my own and they're borth lost. 'The Elric Brothers'. You hear that name and no matter who you are you think of the same two people. They're like a disease; once they've entered your system you can't get them out. They'd help anyone and ask for nothing in return, and that's why every one loves them. But where was the equivalent exchange, then? It seems all they ever did was give. When you two died, I know that Al thought I had already lost more than they ever would, Al told me so once, and Ed agreed. But that wasn't true! They never got to know their father at all, and then their mother died! I had Granny but they had no one. Then, Ed lost and arm and a leg, and Al lost his whole body. But still they thought that there were others out there who had it even worse than they did!"

Winry sank to her knees, tears running hot down her cheeks. "Mom . . . Dad . . . Why did you have to go away? You two were no better than those stupid Elric brothers . . . You, too, helped everyone unconditionally, and because of it you had to die, and Mustang almost took his own life!"

She didn't mean to, but she had started yelling. "Death, depression, disappearances! Is that the cost of helping people? WHERE THE HELL IS THE EQUIVILENCY?"

Winry buried her face in her arms and sobbed. She felt as if everything worth living for had been taken away. So what was the point?

She felt something brush against her and looked up to find Den standing there. She whimpered once and nuzzled Winry's shoulder.

Winry sighed and stood up. "Come on, girl . . . Let's go home."

. . .

London, England

1926

Al's feeling was right.

After spending about three hours at the hospital with Wendy, Ed and Al went back to Patricia's house to continue working.

At around eleven o'clock, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Ed called, placing his finger in the section of the book he was on.

Patricia entered, wearing a long night gown and slippers. Her orange-gray hair was tied back in a long braid. "I've just phoned Lisa, she says you boys should just spend the night because it's already far too late for someone to come and get you. I just thought I'd let you know. And you boys remember where the guest room is, I assume?"

Ed nodded. "Okay, thanks Patricia. But-wait, you don't have a phone."

"I used one of those red box thingies with the telephones*** on the inside!" Patricia told them. "It's very exciting! You guys should try it tomorrow!"

The brother exchanged looks, both chocking back laughter.

"thanks again, Patricia," Al said. "Night."

The woman smiled and retreated to her own bedroom.

At around midnight, Al, too began to feel drowsy. He tried to hide it, but eventually he could no longer contain his yawns.

Ed chuckled. "Tired, Al? Why don't you go downstairs to the guest room?"

Al shook his head. "No, Brother, I want to help."

"What help will you be if you aren't awake enough to pay attention?" Ed pointed out. "You need rest, go on and get some sleep."

"But if I sleep in the guest room where will you go?" Al asked.

Ed shrugged. "Probably on the ouch, just like any other time we've spent the night here. Just go to sleep. We have to be back home early tomorrow anyway, we've got lots of chores to get done."

Al yawned again and rubbed his eyes. "If you're sure, Brother."

He rose from the floor and walked out of the room, stretching his arms as he went.

Ed let a small grin cross his face. Even now, three years later, Ed still couldn't help but smile when he remembered that his little brother could dream again.

. . .

Al was asleep seconds after his head hit the pillow.

Al could hear Teacher crying in her room from the kitchen. He had no idea why, but he was too afraid to ask.

"Izumi?" Al head Sig's voice in the room over. "Why are you crying? What's wrong?"

Izumi sniffled. "It's just . . . I found this."

Al heard the sound of paper being passed handled.

"A picture of the Elrics?" Sig asked.

Al froze.

"They're both fully human, and together," Izumi said. Her voice was soft.

Up until then, Al had been trying to pretend he wasn't listening by just staring down at the table. But now . . .

He jumped out of his chair and pressed his ear to the wall separating student from teacher.

"I started thinking," Izumi said. "When Edward and Alphonse were here last, and Al got kidnapped . . ."

"Kidnapped?" Al whispered to himself. It must have been one of the memories he had forgotten.

"I-I made a promise," his teacher continued. "On that day, I promised that I wouldn't let anymore babies be taken from me. But now . . ."

"You can't possibly blame yourself for what happened to Ed!" Sig exclaimed.

Al leaning in closer. So close in fact that his cheek was completely squished against the wall.

"I was with him just an hour before!" Izumi cried. "Maybe the reason I wasn't able to have our child was because fate new I wasn't meant to be a parent!"

Al's eyes widened.

"I tried to get back our baby, and that poor boy Wrath is paying for it now. I began to love Ed and Al as more than students; I thought of them as my own children," Izumi confessed.

Al smiled a little. He had always known it was true, but hearing his teacher say it was something else.

"And look what happened to them!" Izumi exclaimed. "First, they repeat my mistakes and pay too high a price, then, Ed gets taken away from us and Al loses all his memories of his brother! It's like Ed was completely erased for that boy, while the rest of us get to keep a part of him with us! It's not fair to the children that my faults cause them to suffer!"

After that, Al heard heavy footsteps; something he assumed to be Sig stepping forward to hug her.

"I just don't want to see anymore children die," Izumi said quietly. So quietly that Al almost didn't hear her.

Almost.

Al sat straight up in his bed, cold sweat on his forehead. The dream hadn't seemed like a nightmare until he woke up-rather just a sad memory.

He knew Edward missed Teacher more than he let on, but that was only because Ed and Izumi were so much alike. Neither of them liked to talk about their feelings, they'd rather just pretend they didn't have any.

But nothing gets rid of feelings.

. . .

*I figured that since Earth seems to be 6 years ahead of Amestris, it would make sense that Edward Matthews was 6 years older than Ed (even though that's not the case with Alfons and Al). It'd make a lot more sense for a 21-year-old to be engaged then a 16-year-old, right? So going by that logic Edward Matthews would be about 26 and happily married if he hadn't died.

**Did anyone else think Den was a guy? I did! But nope, Den the Dog is in fact a girl. I know, I was as shocked as you are (unless you already knew).

***There actually were red telephone boxes all over England in this time period. I believe they were installed all over the place in 1925, but it might have been 1926.