Ed knew he was different. It wasn't just that he was smarter than the other kids or even that he had automail. No, it had more to do with the way people would occasionally look at him, like they were expecting somebody else. It was the way his mechanic cried the day she met him. It was the way his dad would sometimes slip – and call him Fullmetal.

When Edward joined the military, he and Alphonse thought they knew what to expect. One thing they didn't expect, however, was that they would gain a new family. A series of one-shots centering around Parental!RoyRiza/EdAl before, during, and after Brotherhood, with bits of Royai, Edwin, and the rest of Team Mustang.