First I want to thank for Elite-chan and Naomi Tachi, you made my weekend :) And thank you for all other readers too, you keep me going!


Ed hadn't slept very well. He couldn't stop thinking about everything he had heard that evening. Sleep didn't want to come. Ed had held Winry in his arms, but she had been just as restless as he: she had tossed and turned all night. He had wanted to say something soothing, something to help her to sleep, but he couldn't find the words. So they both stayed awake in the darkness, without saying a word. Ed just held Winry a little closer, hoping it meant more than words.

Sometime in the late night, Ed had finally fell at sleep. In the morning, he realized that Winry had already woken up. He couldn't help wondering if she had slept at all. Ed got up from the bed and yawned. It was going to be another hard day and they still had no idea how to continue. Ed walked downstairs and went to get the mail. The newspaper had big headlines of the train accident. He sighed, it seemed that the newspaper wouldn't help him forget the situation.

Ed continued his steps towards kitchen, but then he heard voices and stopped. Winry wasn't the only one awake, she was talking with someone. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, and then he heard Mustang's voice. But there was something wrong with his voice. He didn't sound like he normally did; his sound was more... vulnerable, if that really could be said from a man like him. His voice reminded him of the day Roy had almost killed Envy. He had sounded so devastated when he had finally realized what he had done, realized that Riza was ready to kill him, and herself too.

What Mustang said next, surprised Ed a little. Of course he had known that he loved Riza, but he hadn't really believed that he was ever going to do anything about it. Ed smiled a little when Roy told Winry about his promise; they really did deserve all that. He might pretend that he didn't like Mustang, but in the end he was important to him. He was a little like a father figure to him, and Riza was a little like a mother to him. They both deserved to be happy after all that had happened.

He waited for a moment after they had stopped speaking. Ed didn't want Roy to know he had heard it all. Roy would never forgive himself if he knew Ed had heard him so vulnerable. "Morning!" Ed said smiling when he finally walked in the kitchen. Mustang looked up at him and mumbled morning, but he didn't look terrified. Roy didn't seem to realize he had heard them. Winry gave Ed a quick kiss and started to make some breakfast. Ed sat at the table and looked at Mustang. He looked very tired, even more than Winry. It seemed he hadn't slept at all.

Ed tried to think of something to say, but didn't know what. It seemed stupid to talk about anything normal when things were like they were. But on the other hand he didn't really want to talk about Riza either, because it made Mustang look even more darker. So they just sat there in an uncomfortable silence, while Winry was making breakfast.

Ed started to read the newspaper, trying to distract his thoughts from the situation. He thought of skipping the couple first pages, which were full of information about the train accident. But his eyes still stopped at the bottom of second page: Riza's brown eyes stared him from the paper. Ed looked it with horror. Riza Hawkeye, Lieutenant, died in a train accident, was the headline above her picture. They had announced her dead.

Ed looked at the Mustang, who still stared at his teacup. He didn't want Mustang to see this, it would kill him. Ed quickly folded the newspaper and hid it in the pile of paper. He walked to Winry and whispered into her ear: "Don't let Mustang see the newspaper." Winry looked a little confused, but nodded. Luckily Roy didn't seem to notice anything odd, and continued to stare into his teacup.

The rest of the house started to wake up. First, Fuery came downstairs, and a little after him Havoc and Breda. They all sat around the table, only saying "good morning". They just didn't know what to say or do. Ed could see how Winry looked at them in a way that said: "Boys! Why is it so hard for them to talk about how they feel?" Ed knew that she was right, they should talk. But it just wasn't easy for him, and it seemed that it was just as hard for the rest of them.

They ate breakfast, but no one seemed to have any appetite. Ed noticed that Mustang just played with his food, and put nothing to his mouth. After the rest of them had eaten their breakfast, Mustang finally opened his mouth. "I have been thinking about what to do next. Somebody clearly exploded the wagon to cover up that they were after Hawkeye. It seems likely that they also knew that the train was carrying some explosives. It must have been a part of their plan that we would think that she was dead. So, we should find out where those explosives were going and who knew about them."

The table was silent. Ed saw a big but in his thoughts. Whoever did this could have been planning only to kill her, not to kidnap her. But he didn't have a heart to tell Roy that. They all wanted to think she was alive. "That's a good idea. Maybe we should call Central, they must have that information," Fuery said and continued: "I can do that now, if you want, sir?" He really wanted to do something. Mustang shook his head. "No, it's better if I call. I have to talk to the Fuhrer too."

It seemed that somebody read their minds, because just after he had said that, the phone rang. "Who is calling so early?" Winry muttered and answered to the phone. "Rockbells, Winry speaking. Oh, hi Armstrong. How can I help you? Yes. I will get him." Winry took the phone off her ear. The whole room was watching her after they had heard her say Armstrong. "Roy, it's for you. It's Alex Armstrong," Winry said. Mustang got up from his stool, and got the phone from Winry.

"Mustang speaking," Roy said quietly. Ed tried to listen to what Armstrong said in the other end, but couldn't hear from so far away. But it seemed what ever he said made Roy look darker at every word. Ed knew that Armstrong was annoying and always so dramatic, but it seemed there was something else too. Finally, the anger burst out of Roy.

"She's not dead, stop talking like that! I don't need your apologies!" Mustang said, a little too loud. The whole kitchen stared at him. Ed started to get worried. It seemed that Armstrong had heard the news and had wanted to give his condolences. It was probably the last thing Mustang wanted to hear. He did his best to deny any possibility that Riza wasn't alive.

Then, Mustang suddenly looked straight at Ed. His eyes were dark and Ed knew that moment that Armstrong had mentioned the newspaper. He tried to look the other way, tried to ignore Mustang. "Where's the newspaper?" Roy said with a demanding voice. He had dropped the phone and it was hanging from its wire. Ed didn't know what to do. He didn't want Mustang to see the paper. "Give me the newspaper, Fullmetal, now!" Mustang yelled. He seemed to have run out of patience. But Ed just sat on the chair and didn't move.

Winry finally gave in and handed the paper to Mustang. Ed had to admit that there was no way to avoid it. Mustang would have found the paper one way or another. Roy slammed the newspaper to the table, and started to go through the pages. He didn't have to do it many times before he saw it. Ed felt sorry for Mustang. As Roy looked at Hawkeye's picture from the newspaper, his anger was replaced with sorrow. "No, they can't, they can't be sure, they don't know..." Mustang mumbled quietly. This was why Ed hadn't wanted to show the article to Roy. He knew it would break his heart.

Roy looked up from the paper. It seemed that he only then realized the people around him, staring at him. "It just can't be..." Mustang said, looking at all of them one by one. Ed knew that Mustang needed someone to say that Hawkeye was alive. But Fuery was quiet, staring at the table. Havoc avoided Mustang's eyes too. Breda got up and picked up the phone. He started to speak to Armstrong. The whole situation felt odd. Ed wanted to say the words Roy needed to hear, but he couldn't. There was a chance that they would never see Riza again, and Ed didn't want to lie. Roy seemed devastated. Ed could almost swear that he was on the edge of tears.

Roy walked out of the kitchen and out of the house. Ed looked as he went, but none of them followed him. They all knew Roy needed to be alone.