Author's Note:

Normally I am opposed to changing perspective, but I looked it over and I could not find a way to naturally fit in the Parental!RoyEd subplot without it. So I worked it into the plot so that it was more subtle and not that weird.

For a little over a week I was on vacation, away from my computer, and unable to write anything at all. However it worked out, I was able to work out the final outline for the next couple of chapters. I was having a little trouble finding exactly when it would be appropriate to place which scene where, but I have it mostly figured out now.

Reviews are always appreciated.

I own nothing.

Someone had egged the construction site. Reed had to admit he was both stunned and impressed. Whoever they were, they had managed to egg not only the supporting beams, but the beams that would later become the roof. That required good aim.

However the more he began to think about it, the less the situation made sense.

This was clearly a pre-planned attack. The amount of eggs used was simply too much to acquire overnight. Then there was the fact that they were all rotten. Whoever they were they had taken the time for the eggs to sour before they egged the place.

It was possible that this was just another act of vandalism, similar to the ones Mark previously mentioned. However egging a station was remarkably juvenile, very uncharacteristic of the White Wolves. This only made it more apparent that despite the amount of support the White Wolves had in Ukon, for some reason, there weren't any members in town.

Reed's heart pounded in his chest. He was missing something, something big.

As he approached the construction site, he could hear loud voices arguing.

"Are you kidding me? Someone egged the station!? Do you know how long this will take to clean up!" one worker yelled.

"I understand that you are frustrated," Mark said. He was in the midst of the crowd. His eyebrows furrowed into a worried line. "And I know that this is going to take us a day or two to clean up, but we need to keep working."

"I don't need to keep doing anything," one worker said. "I'm going home."

"I have sent in a request for more workers," Mark said. "They are scheduled to arrive tomorrow. However until then we really need to clean up this mess, so for the next few days all construction work is being suspended until the site has been cleaned."

"I came here to rebuild a station. That's all. I will not get caught up in the military's mess."

A few workers shouted in agreement.

Mark sighed.

"I will send a message to the military explaining our most recent setback. I will also speak to the mayor and see if they can find out who is the cause for this."

"That's not good enough!"

"I bet the mayor was behind this!

"I want to go home!"

Mark raised his hand to silence them.

"Look," he said. "I, like all of you, just want this station to be rebuilt. I understand the frustration at the amount of setbacks we have had. But I also know that I will not be deterred by a foolish prank. I am urging you, please don't let something as silly as this discourage you. You guys are the heart of this project. I cannot do this on my own. So please, would you help me out?"

Mark's little speech seemed to do the trick. Slowly the workers began to calm down and a few murmured in agreement.

"Good," Mark said. "There are some buckets and a faucet nearby the shed. I believe there is some soap as well. Let's get to work."

They fetched the supplies and began to clean the site. As the morning wore on, everyone seemed to liven up a bit. As much as Reed wanted to believe that it was because of Mark's speech, he knew it was mainly Mustang's fault.

They had been in Ukon for less than 24 hours and Reed was certain that if the resistance group didn't get to them first Mustang and Ed were going to strangle each other. Neither party had acknowledged what happened the night before. Instead Mustang seemed to be taking full advantage of the fact that Ed wasn't allowed to use his alchemy. This meant that he took every single opportunity to point out his height.

Every.

Single.

One.

Soon the other workers began picking it up and before long it was a running gag.

Naturally this meant that Ed retaliated. Just 15 minutes ago Reed had witnessed Ed "accidentally" hit Mustang in the shin with a bucket. He claimed he wasn't paying attention, but they all knew better.

At lunch things hit a climax when Ed stole Mustang's bread roll. It looked as if the two alchemists would have a screaming match when they suddenly stopped. However, Reed had been watching and when he saw Hawkeye brush past them, he swore that he saw her covertly press her gun to Mustang's back.

Lunch was nice and quiet after that.

As covert missions went, gathering intel was a slow process. Reed kept an eye out for an opportunity to speak to Mark again. He found it weird that even with Mark keeping watch over the site, someone had managed to egg it.

Unless Mark had been lying.

However Reed guessed that it must be something else. Mark was putting obvious effort to keep this project going. Why would he jeopardize its completion?

It was in the evening when Reed found an opportunity.

Egg had dripped into one of the machines that Reed didn't know the name of. He and another worker had to dismantle the entire thing. Reed found himself with a soapy bucket full of metal parts, slowly cleaning off each piece. The other worker had stepped away for a moment to get another bucket. Out of the corner of his eye, Reed saw Mark walking past.

Thinking quickly, Reed let the bucket fall onto his foot. The bucket fell over with a clank, spilling water across the floor.

Reed jumped back in feigned surprise, pretending to rub his foot. They wore steel toed boots, so it actually hadn't hurt that much.

"Here," a voice said.

Reed looked over to see Mark handing him a rag. Reed stooped down to wipe up the water.

"Sorry about that. The bucket just slipped from my hands," Reed said.

"No problem," Mark said. "It could happen to anyone." He leaned down to help Reed pick up the parts. By sheer luck, one screw had fallen in the gap between the boards and Mark was struggling to pick it back up.

"Let me try," Reed said.

Mark moved aside.

Reed put his arm into the gap. He couldn't see what he was doing, but after a few gropes his skin brushed against cold metal. He grabbed the screw, retracting his arm to show Mark.

Mark held out the bucket and Reed plopped the screw into it.

He wiped his brow, surveying the site.

"This is going to take a while to clean up," Reed said.

Mark nodded. "I estimate it's going to take at least two days to get back on track."

Reed wiped his hands with a rag, trying to find the best way to phrase his next question.

"So about preventing the vandalism..." he said, trailing off.

Mark rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah, I guess I better explain. You know, after I said I was staying after to prevent it and all."

Reed nodded, watching Mark's expression. He looked more embarrassed than guilty. That was a good sign.

"So what happened?" he asked.

"I slept here last night in order to watch over the site," Mark admitted. "It was going well until at about 3 in the morning these kids walked up with this wagon full of eggs."

"Kids?" Reed asked.

"I tried to stop them, but they were fearless. One of the older ones threatened me with a shovel. Now as much as I want this project to succeed, I was not about to get into a fight with a child. I figured it would be better to go the diplomatic route and bring it up with the town's government," Mark said. "They haven't done anything in the past to stop the vandalism, but I think they'll intervene if it looks as if the military might get involved."

Reed was slightly taken aback by the simplicity and logic of Mark's decision. Mark would have had to fight the kids to stop them from egging the station. So he chose to do nothing, something which jeopardized his relationship with the construction workers as well as the project's success. However by doing so, he opened up a different opportunity. If it seemed that the vandalism would get the military involved, there was a good chance the town's government would put a stop to it. Then there would be no more setbacks.

"That does make sense," he said.

"Well enough about that," Mark said, standing up and brushing the dust off his clothes. "Time to get back to work."

Reed turned back to his bucket.

Mark had been unwilling to fight a child. Instead he picked a safer, but harder alternative.

Interesting.

After a long day, Reed was walking back to the inn. He was tired and wasn't really paying attention to his surroundings. He rounded a corner and promptly bumped into someone.

"Sorry about that," the person said, continuing to walk past him.

Reed tried to catch a glimpse of them, but they had turned the corner and disappeared. He stood there for a second, stunned. It wasn't the collision that displaced him. It was the fact that at the point of impact, the other person had slipped a piece of paper into his hand.

The paper was still there, clenched inside his fist. After a few moments, he forced himself to continue walking. Could it be a message from the other spy? Did she have new orders for him? Or was it a message from the White Wolves themselves? Had someone recognized him?

Reed made sure to read the message as soon as he was safely back in his room. It ended up not being from the spy or any member of the White Wolves. The note itself was more unsettling. Reed read it once more. It had been written in a hasty scrawl.

New developments. Meeting in my room at midnight.

-RM

- two hours earlier -

Ed remembered that when he was a kid, sometimes he would fall asleep on the couch. Only by morning to find that he had been magically transported to his bed.

Then his mother died.

After that, whenever he fell asleep on the couch, he would wake up having not moved anywhere.

But not last night.

For some stupid reason he had let himself fall asleep in Reed's room. And for some equally stupid reason he had woken up down the hall and back in his own bed. Ed knew that it must have been Mustang. Even if Reed had carried him to his room (which he doubted) he didn't have a key. Ed swore that if Mustang ever held this against him, he would tell Breda who really discovered his cookie stash.

Though that Bastard hadn't said a word about it. He carried on as if nothing had happened, simply teasing him more than usual. Ed wasn't about to confront Mustang about it either. That would involve acknowledging that the incident had happened.

Mustang had come up with excuses for why he was on the mission, but Ed knew better. Deny it all he wanted, Ed knew the reason why Mustang was really on this mission.

And it pissed him off.

He wasn't a child. He wasn't defenseless. His run in with the White Wolves had been a slip up. His injuries were pretty much healed. Sure his ribs still hurt like hell, but the doctor said that that was normal. He was fine.

And he did not need Mustang's pity.

So the first chance he got, he went to clear his mind. He was taking a long walk through the town. Keeping his eyes on the ground before him and not really paying attention to where he was going. He kept to the shadows, trying to avoid the sun. Although he was never one to complain, his automail didn't react well with heat. The fact that he had to wear his hair up in a hat wasn't helping him cool down either. He started to wonder if he had enough time to run back to the inn for a quick bath, when he heard someone call out to him.

"Hey you!"

Ed looked around, but he didn't see anyone.

"Be quiet!" someone said quietly to Ed's right.

Ed looked in that direction. There was a narrow alley he hadn't noticed. There seemed to be a few kids calling him.

"Yeah, you," the first speaker said, when they made eye contact. "Come over here."

Ed knew that this situation was very sketchy. But honestly, what was the worst that could happen? It was just a group of kids. Even if they attacked him, Ed knew he could fight them off. So he turned and walked closer to the group.

The first speaker was a tall boy who seemed to be a year or two older than him. The other one was a girl around Ed's age. Ed noted that she had light brown hair knotted into a bun. There seemed to be a few other kids hiding deeper within the alley.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"You are with the construction workers, right?" the older boy asked, ignoring Ed's question.

"Yeah," Ed replied.

"They told us not to," the girl said harshly to the boy.

"Be quiet. I got this," the boy told her. He turned back to Ed. "The man you are with. Is he like your uncle or something?"

Ed was taken aback. They were asking him about Mustang?

"No. I'm just his apprentice," Ed said. The statement felt weird on his tongue. As if Mustang ever taught him anything useful.

The boy smiled.

"Well you don't seem to like him a lot," he said.

"You were watching me?" Ed asked.

"Yeah." The boy leaned back against the wall. "We've been watching you for a while," he said, as if that made him badass.

"What do you want from me?" Ed asked.

"Follow us and we'll tell you," he said.

Now the situation was extremely sketchy. Though Ed still did as they said. It was just a group of kids. He knew for a fact that he could fight them. They led him deeper into the alley until they reached a dead end. The exit was blocked off by a fence.

When Ed turned around, he found that he was surrounded. There were now about twenty kids, ages raging from around nine to fifteen. Ed looked at the boy in front of him. He seemed to be the oldest.

"Sorry, we had to lure you here, but we didn't want to take any chances," the boy said.

"What do you want?" Ed asked, scanning the kids. A lot of them looked uneasy. Ed knew if he suddenly charged them, they would probably move out of the way.

"Don't worry, we're not going to hurt you," the boy said.

Ed wasn't concerned. He was the Fullmetal Alchemist, a measly band of kids wouldn't be able to hurt him.

"We think you might be a valuable asset," the boy said.

"What do you mean?" Ed asked.

"I guess we should explain ourselves," The boy said confidently. "We are the ones who vandalized the station."

Ed narrowed his eyes. A band of kids egging the station didn't sound very impressive.

"Last night wasn't the only time we vandalized it. Every setback you guys have experienced. We were responsible for it," the boy boasted.

Ed was confused, but it wasn't anything the boy had said. He knew that the White Wolves were a very formidable group. He had experienced that first hand. So why were a group of kids the ones vandalizing the station? Could it be possible that the kids were just taking advantage of the situation and acting on their own?

"Are you guys part of the White Wolves?" Ed asked, sounding more stunned than he really was. He dealt with many thugs in the past. Usually if you make them feel in control, they get arrogant and talk more.

The kids snickered.

"Yeah, we support them. And for that they gave us a mission," the boy said.

Now Ed was interested. These kids have ties with the White Wolves. So what did they want with him?

"So, will you help us?" the boy asked.

Ed thought it over. Really the answer was obvious. If he said no, there was no way they would let him simply walk away. Even if he could get away, they would likely tell the resistance group about him and have them deal with him. Ed couldn't resist the shudder than ran through his body. However if he said yes, he would get closer to the group. And wasn't the point of finding out who vandalized the station to backtrack and find members of the White Wolves?

"Why not," Ed answered.

Reed had been meaning to sleep as much as he could before heading to the meeting, but he had been unable to close his eyes for long. So he stared at the ceiling, wondering what in the world he was going to do.

Spending the day cleaning a hot sulfurous constructions site was enough to keep his mind occupied.

'Those kids just had to pick eggs. Of all things: eggs. They couldn't have gone with paint. Paint is easier to apply, generally cheaper, and if those kids had vandalized it with paint then they wouldn't have to clean it up. They could just keep building and no one would know, but no they chose eggs. Rotten eggs. Rotten eggs smell really bad'

However now that he was alone all those petty thoughts had ceased, leaving him with less egg problems and more capital crimes.

His orders were to kill the Fullmetal Alchemist, if the raid on Heinsworth failed. He couldn't even deny the strategic importance of Ed's death. It was a brilliant plan.

But even though Ed was a State Alchemist, he was still a kid. He had only been in the military for under a year. Strategic plan or not, killing Ed was morally wrong.

But then again, so was betraying his country and getting his family killed.

Which was why Reed was stuck.

His country wasn't the type to give empty threats. He knew what happened to spies who disobeyed their orders. While he was the Wolves' contact some spy had stepped out of line. Within a week his commander had come all the way to Amestris, dragging the spy's girlfriend in tow. Reed saw them board a train heading for South City. A week later, his commander returned with visible bloodstains on his clothes. Reed never saw the girl again.

He had to follow his orders. There was no other option.

He hated how little control he had of this situation. Sure he could try to sabotage the entire operation, but that was extremely risky and a very stupid thing to do.

He didn't like how easily things could change, leaving him without footing. It made him extremely uneasy. Tomorrow, the military could suddenly decide to come down and oversee construction of the station or the White Wolves could suddenly decide to attack some other base. Hell, in the next few hours everything could change.

Reed had no clue what the meeting was about. He silently wished that he still had the note, so that he could read it once more and be sure of his orders. However, he had destroyed it after he had it memorized. Less evidence that way.

In the note "RM" most likely referred to Roy Mustang. Reed wondered what new developments have occurred. Whatever it was, it wasn't good.

Trying to occupy his racing mind, Reed picked up the book sitting on his nightstand. He brought out a flashlight so that he could see it clearly. The book in his hands wasn't the one he had on the train.

It was the one Ed had left in his room.

It was a book on alchemy, mainly centralized on elements and their different alchemic properties. There were bookmarks at important passages and notes written in the margin. Alchemy wasn't popular in Reed's country so he simply flipped through the book, amazed at how much Edward had analyzed it. They weren't kidding when they said the kid was a prodigy.

Reed was suddenly struck with a wave of emotion.

He closed the book and threw it in a random drawer of his nightstand. He had to stop doing things like this. It was just foolish to get attached to Ed. Foolish to think about what kind of person he was or find out his hobbies. The more he knew about Edward, the harder it would be to kill him. He had to stop thinking.

'Ignoring the problem won't fix it'

Reed sighed.

Once the clock hit 11:59, Reed got out of bed and went down the hall to Mustang's room. From the hallway, he could see light coming in from under the door. Upon entering, Reed found that he was the last to arrive. He took a quick scan of the room. No one seemed to be injured. Mustang was sitting on the edge of one of the beds, facing the other, Hawkeye was sitting next to him. Ed was on the other bed, leaning backwards against the pillows.

Reed flicked off the light.

"Why did you do that?" Mustang asked.

"You can see the light from the hallway," Reed explained.

"But now we can't see," Ed said, obviously annoyed.

"Be quiet, Fullmetal," Mustang said.

Reed heard someone stand, then what sounded like a drawer opening and closing, and finally some shuffling followed by a snap.

Reed blinked a few times, eyes adjusting to the new light.

Mustang had put on one of his gloves. He held a small flame in his hand, using a continuous transmutation to keep it going. The flame lit up the room just enough to allow them to see each other and converse comfortably, though it was dim enough to not be seen from the hall.

"Show off," Ed said.

Reed walked over and forced himself to sit down next to Edward. He tried his best to avoid looking at him.

"Fullmetal, why don't you tell everyone else what happened," Mustang said.

Ed grimaced.

"Honestly Mustang, I think you're overreacting. It wasn't a big deal," Ed said. "This evening I was walking through the town and a group of kids called me over. They claimed that they were connected to the White Wolves and that they were the ones who vandalized the site. Then they said that they wanted my help. That's all."

"And did you agree to help them?" Mustang asked.

"They had me surrounded, of course I said yes," he said. In the dim light Reed noticed Mustang's lips tip downward into a scowl. Ed must have noticed too.

"Well, what would you have done?" Ed retorted.

"I wouldn't have gotten surrounded in the first place," Mustang said.

"I was investigating," Edward spat.

"You were being foolish," Mustang hissed, the flame in his hand blazing.

"That's enough," Hawkeye said, silencing them both. "We don't even know if the kids were telling the truth."

"Actually," Reed said. "I spoke to Mark earlier today. Last night he was at the construction site. He said that he saw a group of kids egg it."

"Did he do anything about it?" Mustang asked.

"He said that he didn't want to start a fight and was just going to bring it up with the town's government," Reed said.

"Edward," Hawkeye said, turning toward him. "What did the kids want your help with?"

"They mainly wanted information: when the site was being completed, who was in charge of the project. That kind of stuff." Ed tilted his head. "Although, they did ask me if I saw any military officers on the train ride here."

"What did you say?" Mustang asked.

"I said that I slept most of the time and didn't notice anything," Ed said.

"Did you tell them anything about the construction site?" Mustang asked.

"Just that we were working on the framework, but you can tell that by just looking at it," Ed said.

"Did you notice anything about the kids?" Reed asked. "Anything useful?"

"Their leader seemed pretty confident. He was the oldest, maybe 15, give or take. However, everyone else seemed really uneasy. Especially this one girl who was about my age. She kept telling the leader to stop talking to me," Ed said.

"So they are amateurs," Mustang said.

"Gee Colonel, what gave that away," Ed said.

Mustang gritted his teeth.

"I'm just wondering why the White Wolves would have children running their errands."

'Maybe it's because there aren't any White Wolves in town'

"That is strange," Hawkeye said. "But it might be for various reasons. Maybe they know that the vandalizers might get caught and don't want to sacrifice their own members. Maybe they expect the kids to be overlooked. The thing is we can speculate, but in the end, we don't know."

"I can try to find out more from their leader," Ed offered.

Mustang looked back at him.

"What do you mean?" he demanded.

"I mean that I'll get close to the group and see what I can find out," Ed said.

"You are not getting close to this group," the Colonel said.

"Why not?" Ed argued.

"Do I have to list the reasons?" Mustang hissed. "To start with you have never done intelligence work, you are irresponsible, you are stubborn, and-"

"Quit treating me like I'm a child!" Ed yelled

"You are a child!" Mustang retorted.

"Colonel," Hawkeye said, her stern voice silencing both alchemists. "Please keep in mind that this is the only lead we have."

"And if they are truly amateurs they might easily let something slip," Reed said. Personally he didn't like the idea. It increased the chances that the raid on Heinsworth would be unsuccessful. However this was the only lead this mission had, it would be suspicious to not support it.

'Then why is Mustang opposed to it?'

Reed slowly blinked his eyes and tried to focus on the conversation at hand. He didn't have time to speculate about such trivial things.

The Colonel appeared to be considering what they said. After a few moments he sighed.

"Fine," Mustang said. "But I don't like it."

"You don't like anything that isn't in a miniskirt," Ed retorted.

Mustang ignored that comment and turned to Hawkeye.

"Have you been able to complete your analysis of the town?" he asked.

"I'm about halfway done," Hawkeye said. "From my basic surveys everything seems normal. I found a few abandoned and unused buildings and was able to scope out a few, but found nothing unusual. If there are hidden weapons storages, they must be keeping them somewhere well hidden."

"Okay, keep an eye out and tell me if you notice anything," Mustang said. "Reed, what is your impression of Mark?"

"He seems determined and hardworking. It seems that he is trying his hardest to get the project going. I honestly doubt he has any connections with the White Wolves," Reed said.

"Has he said anything useful?" Mustang asked.

Reed thought back.

"He said that the townspeople have been relatively nice to the construction workers. Though he did imply that most of the town opposes the military. He seems to believe that if the military sends soldiers to Ukon, it will end in bloodshed."

Mustang was quiet for a moment.

"So this town definitely has strong support and connections to the White Wolves," Mustang said. "But then why would children be the ones vandalizing the site?"

"Who knows," Ed said. "Anyway, since we got here I haven't noticed any evidence of alchemy."

"Me neither," Mustang said. "But I suspect they used it to destroy the station."

"I think so too. Alchemy is strong enough to do something of that magnitude. Plus they already used it to destroy the tracks," Ed said.

Reed stayed quiet and let them draw their own conclusions. He knew that the station was destroyed with a bomb, but he had no way to prove it.

'At least not without dying'

Mustang continued. "Alright. Hawkeye, I want you to finish your analysis of the town. Report back to me once you are done. Edward, wait for the kids to contact you again. Try to find out where their orders come from, but don't get too close. Reed I want you to get close to the townspeople. Try to find out who supports the White Wolves. I will talk to the construction workers and find out what they know."

Mustang went on to say something about reporting their findings to Heinsworth, but by then Reed had tuned him out.

While Mustang was speaking, Reed had been struck with an idea. If Ed got closer to the kids, it would only make it easier to kill him.

Reed could simply attack him in an alley. And when Ed's body was found, everyone would assume that the White Wolves had discovered his identity. The resistance group would take the blame and Reed would be free.

However something about the sentence: it would be easier for him to kill Ed. Made Reed extremely uneasy.

It wasn't the morals. He still felt as conflicted as before.

It was something else.

And he just couldn't put his finger on it.

Author's Note:

Just a fun fact. In my early drafts Mark's name was "Ted" because it was similar to "Teddy Bear" and I thought it fit Mark's personality. However, I had to change it after I realized how similar it was to Ed's name.