I know it's been way too long since I last updated, but I have good reasons. First I got food poisoning and then the stomach flu. Then I got a migraine that lasted for three freakin' days and had to have an IV shoved into my arm. The week after that I was on a well-deserved vacation and now I'm spitting up blood and the doctor thinks that I might have TB, which is Tuberculosis for those of you who don't know. Well, thanks to all of you that reviewed. I'm absolutely amazed at the amount of reviews I have for this story. I didn't really think this was all that good actually, but whatever. Thanks.

Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Alchemist. I own a magic sock and a magic pair of pants, but that's it.

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Crimson Sin

Chapter Nineteen – Missing Pieces of a Puzzle

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Roy awoke to an unfamiliar weight resting on his chest. His back was still resting against the wall and had become rather stiff from staying in the same position the entire night. A light pink blush appeared on his face when he looked down and found that Ed was still sleeping peacefully, using the Colonel's chest as a pillow, a small smile on his lips. The raven-haired man also realized that his arm was still wrapped protectively around the smaller boy's frame, keeping him close.

Ack! I want to move, but I'll wake Ed up if I do, Roy thought to himself as he stared up at the ceiling. Ed stirred slightly, but his golden eyes remained shut. The teen inhaled and snuggled closer to Roy, causing the light pink blush to quickly deepen until it was a deep magenta. Ed! Roll over or something! I really need to get up! Roy thought desperately, banging his head softly against the wall.

As if he had heard the Colonel's silent pleas, Edward pressed his body even closer if that were even possible just to cause Roy as much discomfort as possible. The older man was actually rather comfortable, but he didn't want to get his head chewed off when Ed woke up. Roy's entire body tensed when he heard the blond let out a small groan and saw Ed's eyelids flutter.

Please don't wake up. Please don't wake up, Roy pleaded as he became as still as possible. He even held his breath. The blond alchemist suddenly relapsed into the peaceful slumber and let out a small grunt as he rolled off Roy and onto the floor. Thank you, Roy thought and quickly said a silent prayer.

The Colonel then quickly, but quietly, stood up and wandered over to the bathroom. His hair was a complete and utter mess and the spot on his neck where Ed had bitten him was red and puffy. It looked like a rather large hickey when viewed from far away. Roy chuckled softly to himself when that thought came to mind. What would people think if they saw him in this state? Messy hair, hickey on his neck, and a crinkled shirt that had been slept in, well Roy could already think of a few things that might pass through his mind. He smirked and splashed some cool water on his warm face.

A sudden knocking on his door caught Roy's attention. The Colonel sighed, clearly irritated since that knocking could wake Ed up and most likely had. Roy was surprised and relieved to see the blond still sleeping soundly on the floor, now curled up in a small ball. The raven-haired man couldn't help but smile when he saw this. Ed really did look like a small child when he was calm. It was hard to believe he was actually almost seventeen. Tearing his thoughts away from Edward, the Colonel moved over to his bedroom window and looked outside to see who his unexpected visitors were.

Roy's breath caught in his chest when he saw whom it was. There were six military personnel and each and every one of them was armed. Roy quickly thought of all the reasons they would be here. He could only think that they found out that Edward was a vampire and the one who was responsible for all those deaths. They were here to arrest Ed! Roy quickly formed a plan in his head.

"Ed! Edward! Wake up!" Roy said in a loud whisper as he kneeled down beside the sleeping boy and began to shake him gently. Edward answered with a loud groan and swatted Roy's hand away.

"What do you want?" Ed asked, his words were slightly slurred due to his recently awakened state. The teen sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to rid them of the last specks of sleep.

Well, Ed's being unusually compliant today, Roy thought as a surprised expression crossed his face. He soon became serious once more. "Ed, the military is here. I think they might have found out about your condition." Roy paused and let everything sink in. Ed's eyes widened considerably and he was about to open his mouth to blurt something out, but Roy quickly shushed him. "We have to get out of here as quickly as possible. Ed, you need to sneak out the back and head towards the park. I'll meet you there as soon as you can." Edward opened his mouth to protest, but Roy shushed him once more. "Just go!"

Ed reluctantly agreed and was out of the house in a flash, his inhuman speed making him merely a blur to the human eye. Roy sighed worriedly and went to answer the door. Maybe his appearance would scare them away.

"Can I help you?" he asked when he opened the door. Roy yawned and rubbed his eye, which made it look he had just woken up. The Colonel couldn't help but smirk inwardly when he saw the men's expressions when they saw him. They must've thought that he had a female upstairs and had spent the night with her.

The leader of the group made himself known by speaking up. "You are the superior officer of Edward Elric, correct?" the man asked, his carefully coiffed moustache bobbing up and down as he spoke, distracting Roy slightly.

"Yes," the raven-haired man replied, staring rather blankly at the officers standing before him.

"Do you have any information about his whereabouts?"

"Isn't he back at the dorms? That's where he should be. Did you check there yet?"

"Mr. Elric is not present at the dorms and hasn't been for quite some time. Did you happen to know that your subordinate is the prime suspect in the atrocious murders that have occurred these past few weeks?" the leader asked, rather confused with Roy's behavior.

"No, I had no idea," the Colonel replied, trying his best to sound genuinely stunned.

"Is Mr. Elric with you?"

"What do you think?" Roy asked, hoping that they would take a hint and just leave. This caught the officer off-guard and he began to stutter.

"I-I u-understand s-sir," the moustached man replied. "I'm s-sorry to h-have t-troubled you." The leader and the rest of the officers gave Roy a quick salute and hastily departed. Roy snickered when he watched them leave and slowly shut the door.

Now, time to go meet up with Ed, Roy said as he walked back up the stairs to pack a few necessary items and change.

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Ed sat hidden in the dense foliage of the tall oak tree that stood in the park. The tree's many multicolored leaves kept him well hidden from view. His blond hair was messy and stuck out in all directions. He was now trying to tame in with his fingers. The blond winced when his thumb snagged in one tightly knotted clump. He continued to try and untangle his hair, but gave up in frustration.

Where the hell is he? Ed asked himself silently as he rested his head against the tree's rough trunk. The teen bit his lower lip, wondering whether something terrible had happened and Roy was now locked up. Edward tried desperately not to think of those things. He needed to remain optimistic, which was easier said than done. Any moment now, Roy is going to pop out of nowhere and laugh at me for being so stupid, he thought and let out a soft sigh.

"Edward?" a familiar voice suddenly called out. Ed's eyes widened and he quickly stuck his head out into the open to confirm his suspicions. He grinned broadly when he saw Roy standing there, a small suitcase grasped in one hand.

"Hi!" Ed cried out happily as he swung down on his perch, making it so that he was now hanging upside down. The blond had discovered that he had a new ability. He could stick to almost any surface. It was as if the soles of his shoes were made of flypaper. The rules of gravity meant absolutely nothing to him now.

"Holy-!" Roy began clearly startled by Ed's sudden appearance. The Colonel's mouth hung open slightly when he saw that Ed was standing on the underside of a tree branch. "How do you do that?" he asked, clearly in awe.

"I have no idea," Ed stated simply and dropped down to the earth, landing gracefully on his feet. "So, where are we going?" he asked.

"Someplace where the military will never ever think to look," Roy said and gave a satisfied smirk. It was nice to know that he knew more than the blond, which always seemed to infuriate Edward to no end. This time the teen merely shrugged and walked towards Roy, stopping at his side.

"Let's go then," he said, his impatient nature revealing itself once more, "You know that I don't like waiting." Roy chuckled and smiled, which earned a smile back from Ed.

"Okay then," the Colonel said and grasped the briefcase firmly in his hand, making sure that it wouldn't fall out of his grasp. The wind ruffled his clean white blouse that was neatly tucked in his black pants. The two then began to walk off towards the train station.

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The train station was extremely busy as always. People of every shape and size rushed about from train to train. The conductor's shouts were lost amongst the loud whistles and clatter of luggage trolleys.

"Roy," Edward began, tugging on the older man's sleeve to get his attention, "That book, it said that there was a way to become human again." Edward paused and bit his lip once more to keep it from trembling. The want to become human again was overwhelming. He didn't want to be a monster that feeds off of others his entire life. He may have been able to control himself once, but he didn't know for certain what would happen in the future.

"I know, Ed. We'll find a way. It has to be out there somewhere," Roy replied and managed to force a weak smile, hoping to cheer the younger boy up. It worked since Ed smiled back and grasped Roy's hand, letting his fingers entwine with the Colonel's.

"Thanks," the teen said. Feeling genuinely happy for the first time in a while. It was as if Roy was his salvation, the one who would show him the light and bring him back to humanity's side.

A high-pitched whistle blew and a conductor shouted something that seemed to be of no importance to Ed, but was the opposite for Roy.

"Shit!" the Colonel cursed and ran towards the smoking train, dragging Ed along. Roy quickly handed the conductor two tickets and hauled Ed on board when the conductor gave a small nod.

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Ed sighed as the compartment door shut behind them. The train was relatively full, since it seemed as if they had to search half the train for an empty compartment. Almost as soon as the two males had sat down onto the plush seats, the train began to pull out of the station.

"Well, we made it," Ed said, breaking the silence that hung between them.

"Yeah," Roy said, panting slightly from all the excitement, "I thought that we were going to have to wait till tomorrow to catch the next train." The silence settled over them once more, leaving Ed feeling slightly awkward and uncomfortable.

"Where are we going?" the blond asked hopefully. The Colonel gave him a crooked grin that made a pink blush settle on Ed's face.

"Pravek," Roy replied and settled into his chair, still grinning. Ed raised one eyebrow since he had no idea where this place was.

"Why are we going there?" he asked, pressing Roy for further information.

"That's for me to know and you to find out when we get there in about eleven hours," Roy said and began to stare out the window, acting as if the dull barren hills that rolled outside were more interesting than Ed.

"You're no fun," the teen remarked and began to pout, obviously unhappy that secrets were being kept from him. Roy smiled at Ed's response, his attention still focused on what lay on the other side of the large window. Seeing that Roy wasn't going to pay any attention to him, Ed stuck out his tongue and looked the other way, ignoring the Colonel as well.

"Real mature, Ed. Real mature," Roy said after Ed's display of childish behavior.

"Piss off," Ed grumbled and crossed his arms across his chest, earning another chuckle from Roy. "What's so funny?" he asked, obviously starting to get irritated.

"Nothing," the older man replied and continued to gaze out at the hills. Ed snorted.

"Whatever," he mumbled.

The two men then began to bask in each other's silent company for the rest of the hour, Roy staring out the window and Ed looking the other way.

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Mmkay, I'm going to stop there for now. Look for an update either this weekend or next. Don't forget to review my lovelies and I'll love you forever. Yeah. I know Roy and Ed are a bit OOC now. Can't they act nice to each other for once? Probably now, but you understand what I'm saying. Right?

Next Chapter:

Chapter Twenty - Monster