Okay, shorter chapter, I know, but it just felt like a good place to stop.

And I'm so tired of writing disclaimers, so I'm just going to let this one count for the entire story: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist.

Chapter four

Roy didn't go to the office that day. Nor did he stay at his house. It was a crime scene after all. Ed's head had been taken in for an autopsy, but the blood stain had soaked into the carpet underneath it. Roy would have to change it, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't do it when he knew that the stain came from Ed's blood. He would see it whenever he walked past that spot no matter what sort if rug he bought. He could buy a sparkling pink one and it wouldn't make a fucking difference. The MPs had decided that it was a good idea to take the carpet as evidence and Roy was happy for it. At least he didn't have to remove it himself. Now all he had to do was sell the house and get the hell away from that place.

He was sitting on a chair in some hallway at HQ, just finished with being questioned while lying through his teeth about how he didn't really know why Ed was killed. That he didn't know why they did it like that. That somebody had obviously just heard about how the pair of them where checking out the Ishbalan areas and used the opportunity to get at them because they would be fewer in numbers and that was it.

He had never before said so much bullshit to his colleagues, but because he was a General and obviously devoid of guilt, they didn't question it.

Havoc put a hand on his shoulder. He had come to fetch him to stay with him at the dorms. He was almost as pale as Roy. He didn't even have the usual cigarette in the corner of his mouth, something about how "it wouldn't taste any good anyway." Havoc knew how much the Elrics had come to mean to him these last few months, he had visited them plenty of times during Alphonse's stay in the hospital.

"Boss? You okay to go?"

"Is it wrong of me to suddenly wish that Doctor Marcoh hadn't healed me?" Roy said quietly. "Then I wouldn't have to see Ed's face every time I close my eyes now."

"I know it's not easy, Boss, but you can't think like that. It will get better."

"Havoc, they didn't just cut off his head. They gouged out his eyes and ripped out his teeth. A sixteen-year-old kid and I don't even know if it was before or after they killed him! Tell me how the hell that will get better? I was supposed to protect him. He didn't even have his alchemy anymore which meant it was my duty to protect him. I failed him. I failed Alphonse."

Havoc was quiet for a few seconds, letting the information sink in. "Does Al know yet?"

"No. I want to be absolutely sure that it is Ed before I tell him."

"Do you think there's any chance that it isn't him?"

"No." Roy put his head in his hands. "Why the hell would they choose Ed? The kid didn't have a selfish bone in his body! He only stayed with the military so that he could put his little brother through university!"

"Boss, you should tell Al before anybody else does. Stuff like this doesn't stay quiet. He should at least hear it from you."

"Resembool is a day's drive away from here."

"Then we're going for a road trip."

"You talked to Hawkeye, didn't you?" Roy said, knowing that these words were definitely the Captain's.

"Yes, and I agree with them wholeheartedly. We can reach Resembool by nightfall, that way we'll be able to reach them before the news do."

It wasn't a cheerful car ride at all. Roy kept dreading what the news would do to the kid, yet all too soon they pulled up outside the yellow house.

"I'll stay in the car, Boss. You just take whatever time you need," Havoc said, offering them a bit of privacy.

Roy walked up to the house, somehow able to move his legs forwards although he had no recollection of ever telling them that he wanted them to do so. His hand knocked twice on the door, it too was working on its own accord. How was he still able to move naturally when his body felt like it had been destroyed from the inside out? Like it had been flattened, twisted and cut into a million pieces? Surely he should be lying dead on the ground like the bloody pulp he felt he had been reduced to?

Pinako opened the door. "Ah, General Mustang, I suspect you and Ed want to talk to Alphonse? I'll call him down for –" She looked up at Roy's defeated look and her eyes filled with tears. "Where's Ed?" Her voice was sharp.

A blonde head peeked around the door into the living room. "Oh, hi, Roy! Are you and Ed done already?"

Pinako stood back to let Roy inside. Alphonse looked at him and looked expectantly at the door behind him, but paled once Pinako shut it without any sign of the older Elric. Al walked forwards, eyes trying desperately to see any answers. "Where's Brother? He's not hurt again, is he?" Al was getting more anxious and he strode forwards, only standing about two feet away from him now, grasping Roy's arms. "Tell me!" His eyes filled with tears.

"Al, I'm sorry –" Roy felt his own tears brimming as well now.

"NO! HE CAN'T BE! DON'T TELL ME THAT!" Al then took a step forwards and punched Roy in the face before he began sobbing against Roy's left shoulder. Al's knees gave out and Roy didn't have enough strength in his own to keep them both standing, and so they sank to their knees, Roy holding around him as Al screamed with grief. Roy's own tears were streaming down his cheeks now, which just had to be when Winry came looking curiously through the doorway only to gasp and have Pinako rush over to her and close the door behind behind them. A few seconds later he heard loud sobbing coming from the hallway behind the now closed door hiding the two Rockbells.

Roy felt like his whole body was being ripped apart from the inside out, but Al also sounded like it. It made it even harder for Roy. "I'm so sorry, Al." Roy's voice was choked by his own tears.

"I want to see him! I want to make sure it's really him!" Al looked up at him a little madly and Roy knew he was grasping at straws, trying to find a way for it not to be Ed.

"Al, you can't."

"WHY NOT?! WHY CAN'T I EVEN SEE HIM?!" Al's face was filled with a kind of sorrow-stricken fury that made Roy sure that his chest must have been run through with a large pole. He couldn't breathe. His lungs must have been punctured and he should be coughing up blood because he had to be dying with this amount of pain.

"Because they gave me his head." Roy barely got the words out.

That was it for Al. He grew limp in Roy's arms, clearly having fainted from the shock. Roy sat there, cursing himself for not even being able to carry the boy over to one of the living room couches. But fact was, Roy didn't have any strength left in his body to do it. And so he just lay Al against his chest and waited for him to return to consciousness.

Al blinked slowly, tears running down his cheeks. "Roy? I –?" Then his eyes widened. "NO! BROTHER! WHY?!" He began weakly hitting his fists against Roy's chest and Roy just held him tighter and kissed his forehead. "I don't want this! Please don't tell me it's true! PLEASE!" Al was shrieking with sorrow. "PLEASE, ROY! PLEASE!"

"I'm so sorry, Al. So, so sorry."

Roy didn't know how long he sat there, kneeling with Al resting against his chest, bawling his heart out. All Roy knew was that he had never experienced such pain as this. Getting stabbed by Lust was nothing compared to this. He hadn't been able to breathe properly for more than twelve hours now. He just wanted to lie down and sleep somewhere in order to get some relief from the pain.

"I'm going back with you to East City. I want to take part in the investigation."

"Al, I can't let you do that."

"Please, Roy, I need to! I NEED TO!"

"Al, it's not safe for you …"

"I DON'T CARE! THEY CUT OFF MY BROTHER'S HEAD! I NEED TO DO SOMETHING! ANYTHING! PLEASE! TAKE ME WITH YOU!" Al looked so desperately into Roy's eyes, he couldn't say no. Besides, like that imaginary Ed had said, he had to take care of Al. He owed Ed at least that, didn't he?

"Okay, Al."

"Thank you, Roy." Al was still crying, he just didn't have enough breath left to sob anymore.

Roy just squeezed him tighter, tears still running down his own cheeks.

I really hope I did this part of the story justice, because I've had the refrain from Paul Simon's You Can Call Me Al playing continuously through my head for the entire chapter and it's driving me insane because it's waaaaaay too cheerful for the mood of this story.