A/N: alrighty, so here it is the last chapter :) thanks so much to everyone who R&R'd this story- was partly inspired by some of the comments for this ending :P a slightly shorter chapter to round everything off. Enjoy!

Colonel Roy Mustang watched in silence as the box was lowered into the ground. That's all it was after all, in the end, just a box… it seemed far too small for its contents if he was being honest, although that did mean the hole didn't take as much work to hack out of the frozen Briggs ground. As much as he would have liked to take Ed back to Risembool it simply wasn't practical. Aah practicality.

The Rockbell girl had made the journey up, and now stood sniffing and biting her lip so as not to cry. Trying to be strong as the simple ceremony was completed. Al wasn't there in the end, choosing to remain within Fort Briggs, saying it was in case the cold affected his armour even though everyone knew the real reason.

He had been so damned close…
"Sir." Hawkeye, ever faithful Riza tapped him lightly on the arm as the hole was filled in. "We should get back inside… it is snowing after all."
The Colonel reached up and touched his cheek, then nodded slightly and the two headed towards the main entrance of the fort. They were joined by Olivier Armstrong who had been overseeing the proceedings, and a minute later Winry came wandering back into the warmth.

For a moment they all stared at each other, unsure of exactly what they should say, before a new voice suddenly cut across their thoughts.
"Hey! Colonel Bastard- would you close the door already? It's bloody freezing out there! What were you born in a barn or something?" the voice was accompanied by a squeak of wheels as Alphonse guided his brother's wheelchair closer to the group by the door.

The man in question sighed heavily. "For the love of all things Fullmetal- it's your bloody fault that I was out there at all. Honestly- insisting that I accompany Winry for such a ridiculous-"
"Oi! it is not ridiculous to bury destroyed automail!" the girl beside him shrieked even louder than Ed- which he could have sworn was a physical impossibility. "I pour my heart and soul into each piece that I make so it is very emotional when this moron trashes it!"
"Who are you calling a moron?!"

Mustang looked on and couldn't resist a small smile at the tableaux of arguing teenagers. Yes, it really had been close… he had been almost certain that Ed wouldn't survive long enough for them to get him to the surface and medical attention, but apparently the brat's stubbornness ran very deep indeed. Even so, it had been touch and go on the mad drive back to Fort Briggs, with Havoc actually having to perform CPR as Hawkeye flew their car across the ice. At long last though they had made it.

The Fort's doctors had been horrified by the extent of the boy's injuries, and genuinely amazed that he was somehow still breathing at all. Amongst the Briggs soldiers who respected strength above all others, the Fullmetal Alchemist was swiftly becoming something of a living legend.

Mustang would never admit to anyone just how intense the relief had been when, after what felt like days, those golden eyes had reopened in the too thin face. The boy had stared at him, for some reason without the surprise which the officer had expected, before managing to half whisper in a rasping voice, "Hiya Roy."
The Colonel had blinked in surprise- the kid had never called him by his first name before, and tried to cover his confusion with bravado, "A tad informal Fullmetal, but I will let it slide under the circumstances."

For a moment Ed had frowned ever so slightly in apparent confusion, and before Mustang could stop him raised his flesh hand to pinch himself hard on his cheek. A split second later he yelped slightly from pain, which strangely caused his eyes to light up with what could only be described as radiant joy. Faintly the now thoroughly confused Colonel caught the barely breathed word, "Real." And suddenly understood to a degree. Shortly after Al came charging into the room, almost dancing on the spot when his brother managed to wave tiredly in his direction and even smile a little.

That had been a couple of days before, and already the young alchemist was on the mend, although the base doctors had mentioned that if he kept eating as much as he was doing, it wouldn't surprise them if he ended up as wide as he was tall. They all knew Ed was feeling more himself when that comment earned a minute long rant. By no means his record but definitely a sign that, with some time, he would be ok.

After a few phone calls Mustang had managed to swing permission for him and his team to stay up north until the Elrics would be moved back to Central, which looked to be about a week. Even Hawkeye had relented under the circumstances, and declared that this would be a week's holiday (if only because shipping the paperwork all that way would be a nuisance). Of course, this amnesty did not extend to the processing of the captured and killed Drachmans, nor would Roy have wanted it to. In fact, he made sure to take a personal interest in ensuring that the conditions of their imprisonment were as far from comfortable as he could legally get away with.

He turned his attention back to the still bickering kids, smirking slightly as his subordinates attempted to break them up. The noise attracted the rest of his team who had been watching the automail burial from various windows, and now joined in the steadily escalating argument. Everyone for the time being simply safe, which in all honesty was the best he could ever hope for. It was almost too good to be true.

A/N: alas all over now! (felt kind of evil at start seeing if I could trick anyone :P ) thanks again for reading! hope wherever you are you are having a good day!