Thanks to those who reviewed, thanks to those who read it but didnt want people to know. I would have gotten this up sooner, but I was spending time with my boyfriend so this wasnt exactly the first thing on my mind. (hey, at least i updated eventually though) I'm still going to try to update it once a week but things are picking up at work so I have to actually work.


Dante strolled through the empty alleys in the abandoned city, walking towards a large building that had once been a very nice hotel. It stood only three blocks away from the center of the town and had been very popular before the demise of the area. She also knew that it was one of Envy's favorite places to stay in when he was not out doing his job. She hoped to find him there, yet doubted that she would.

It was not that the call from Pride had worried her, she knew better than to think that Envy would go against her will. Now and again he would go off on his own, but those adventures were short lived and he always came back in the end. If she tried to keep him on a short leash he would undoubtedly lash out at her. Instead, she allowed him to do as he pleased as long as it did not endanger their mission.

Even though she trusted him to a degree, she did want to know what he was up to. Perhaps she would even help. The simplest way to find out what was going on in that head of his would be to look around that hotel. If she asked him then he would only get annoyed. If she poked around in his things, she was certain to discover what she wanted. That homunculus never had been good at hiding his tracks. He had improved as of late, but she was certain that she could uncover it.

Envy grumbled as he got on the train. Once again, he was using the boring body guaranteed to blend in anywhere. To prevent him from being recognized, Winry had put all of Ed's hair up under a hat. The familiar red robe was shoved in a suitcase, replaced by a boring brown one. Since there was no good way to disguise Al, he was forced to ride in a luggage crate again. This time Ed checked on him at every stop the train made.

"I still don't get what you're up to." Ed hissed under his breath.

"I don't care if you understand or not, just as long as you do the research." Envy sighed, trying to ignore everything around him.

"All I want to know is why. Why these theories? Both of them have been discredited, why do you want to know more about them?" Ed growled, trying to remember that they were in a public place.

Envy chose not to answer. He was still fighting off a lingering weariness that made the world a little fuzzy, that alone put him in a bad mood. It had been bothering him ever since his last change. Although he tried to pass it off as nothing, he knew that it was serious. If either of those two theories that Ed would be researching applied to him, he would not live for very long.

A calmness that he had never experienced came over Envy as he listened to the repetitive sounds of the train and felt the soft rocking. All stress just seemed to disappear and he was left in a beautiful darkness, free from reality and restriction. He stayed like that for an untold amount of time before something began to drag him away. Slowly, he became more aware of his surroundings, he heard a baby cry on the other side of the train. He opened his eyes to see that it was dark out, it had been light when they left.

"We're almost at the station you said we were getting off at." Ed muttered. Envy had not noticed him standing there until then.

"What happened?" Envy blinked a few times, still groggy.

"You fell asleep dumb ass, what do you think?" Ed spat back. Envy didn't feel like mentioning that homunculi didn't sleep.

After getting Al off of the train and out of the box, Envy lead them out of town. They kept to the back streets where they would not be noticed. People stood on fire escapes and crowded in dark corners, too wrapped up in their own criminal records to care about anyone else's. They took those back roads until they reached the end of town, a surprisingly dramatic shift from urban to forest. From there they took dirt trails, some of which had overgrown, but Envy knew exactly where every one of them lead.

It was almost daybreak when they reached a clearing, well, what had been a clearing at one point. In the middle of it stood a house, not particularly large, but large enough for them to live in comfortably. It showed the same wear and tear of time as the dirt paths that they had taken. Multiflora rose clung to one side of the house, sharp thorns and small flowers shone in the early light of the new day. A tree had fallen too close to one of the sides and knocked all of the glass out of one of the windows. Squirrels and other woodland creatures used it as a door, hiding in the house when it rained.

Envy examined every bit of the house, comparing it to his memories. Yes, this was the place he was created, the lab of Hohenheim, shoved so far back in the woods that he wouldn't have to worry about nosy neighbors discovering his work. He hated this place.

Inside was almost as bad as the outside. Dust covers had once sat on the furniture, but they were eaten through by mice or had been blown off by the wind coming through the broken window. Ed groaned, fully exhausted. After spending all night walking he had hoped for a nice little country house with a maid and maybe some dinner. If nothing else, he had expected a good bed. With a deep sigh, he clapped his hands together and got to work.

Dante read through the papers scattered about Envy's favorite room. They were old notes about missions that she had sent him on. She saw a map of Lior with stars drawn over the important areas, a list of who was considered to be dangerous in the military. Several names were crossed out, signaling that there was no need to worry about them anymore. There seemed to be nothing out of place. She had expected to find a smoking gun, several books about one topic, maybe even the file that Envy had taken, but there was nothing there.

"Perhaps you are better at covering your tracks now. I'm glad that phone booth incident taught you something." Dante said to the empty room.

With nothing better to do, she left the room and began to walk towards her own residence. She was still not worried about Envy, he always returned to her. She knew that Pride would not be happy with her decision, but she didn't care. He was nothing more than a pawn, he would not be alive for too much longer anyway. His public position in the military guaranteed that people would notice if he lived an exceptionally long life.

It didn't matter how well Envy covered his tracks, she would find out what he was up to when he came back to her.

"We're going to need some supplies," Ed noted, looking at the empty cabinets. His voice was weak with exhaustion, it would only be a few more minutes until he passed out.

"Right," Envy muttered, "You sleep, I'll get food."

"Al, I want you to go with him." Ed looked at his brother, he knew that there was no other way. He still did not trust Envy, the homunculus could just abandon them there to die and then take Al away once Ed was no longer alive.

Al nodded and looked down at the homunculus sitting next to him. Envy had not yet changed out of his boring form that could blend in. He was looking bored and disinterested, but what else had Al expected.

Ed began to walk into one of the bedrooms only to be kicked to the floor. Envy was standing over top of him, glaring down.

"That is not your room, its mine! You take his room." Envy hissed, pointing to another door. Ed didn't understand why he was getting so possessive but figured that it had something to do with not having a soul. It was better not to question some things, so without saying anything else, Ed went into the other room and fell asleep before his head touched the pillow.

Ok, your done. you know the drill. If you want to admit that you read this shit, please review and let the world know. The same thing applies that i said in the first chapter, try to say something intellegent.