Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Fullmetal Alchemist nor do I claim to.

Chapter 6

Envy awoke only a few hours after he had fallen asleep. It was still daylight, he realized. Sun shone through the thick trees painfully on his face as he squinted his eyes. He felt like dog shit, worse than he'd ever felt before. His stomach hurt and he felt cold. He sneezed suddenly, covering his face with his hands in surprise when it happened.

"This fucking sucks." He half whined, half sobbed, talking to no one in particular but himself. He wiped his sneezed-on hand on his skort as he stood on shaky legs. His stomach felt a little better, at least. Better than yesterday, but it still felt weird. It was rumbling now, but not like before. He didn't really feel sick anymore, he kind of felt hungry of all things.

He looked around himself, trying to find anything at all that was edible. Leaves, no. Bark, no. Berries? Maybe. He plucked one from the stem of a nearby bush and inspected it closely. It was shiny and slightly moist, the thin membrane of red skin glistening in the light. He gingerly took the small berry between his teeth and bit down, but the second the taste hit his tongue he spat it out and shook his head, spitting the whole time.

"YLECH!" He stuck his tongue out as the ultra bitter taste still lingered. Well, it was worth a shot anyway.

He cast a sidelong glance at Dante's mansion, the image of Lust suddenly coming to mind. He pictured her face as she told him he was never to return. She seemed serious, and Lust wasn't exactly one to joke.

The good news was, he wasn't dead yet at least. He actually felt a little better, as a matter of fact. Maybe he didn't need that stinky old hag's help after all. Could Lust be right? Could he really be changing? The question was, what was he changing into?

He held out his hands and inspected them. They seemed different too, somehow. They didn't look as pale and cold as they once did, the way he liked them to look. He pulled at his hair, putting a strand in front of his face to check it out. Still greenish black, phew, just the way he liked it. He was fairly certain he still looked the same given he didn't have a mirror handy. That was a relief.

He sighed as he began walking slowly through the forest, unsure of exactly where to go now. He supposed he could just go back to his little hide-out, though it seemed pretty lonely now knowing that he could never return to his real home. Was it ever really home at all? He really did hate it there, and everyone in it. Well, except for maybe Lust. He thought of her as he kept walking, and eventually he made it back to his little shack embedded in the rocks and bushes of the hill overlooking Central.

Envy kicked the door open, or at least he attempted to. He wasn't feeling as strong as normal, and the thing barely budged. "Well shit." He said out loud. So much for a dramatic entrance. Who was he trying to impress anyway?

He tried the doorknob this time, and the old thing slowly creaked open on it's loose hinges as he made his way inside. He plopped down on his stinky, rotten old couch and he heaved a heavy sigh as he looked around himself. It didn't seem so bad before, but now being here all he could think about was Edward. He had taken the Alchemist here when he was hurt, by Envy's hands nonetheless.

Envy really felt like a miserable piece of shit right now. He was such a coward. He had run away without an explanation, and now he was sure if Edward didn't hate him before he most certainly hated him now.

His thoughts of Edward were interrupted by his gurgling stomach. He closed his eyes and sighed as the pangs of hunger ripped through him. He hadn't had to feed himself in a very long time, so he really had no clue where to start. Dante would be no help for him now anyway, he did remember she was a terrible cook.

His thoughts went even darker as he pondered about just laying here and waiting to die. Maybe that would be better for everyone. He closed his eyes and hoped, but nothing happened. His stomach only growled louder in protest against his obstinance.

Edward had been pacing the room feverishly for quite some time now. It was mid-day, and still no sign of Envy. Alphonse was beginning to worry about his brother's sanity.

"I figured he would have shown up by now. Why would he just up and leave like that? He was so concerned with being near me all the time before." Edward mumbled to himself. He wasn't even entirely sure why he cared so much, aside from the fact he couldn't stop thinking about the damned homunculus.

He felt bad for treating Envy the way he did before he left, but he just got so passionate about finding the answers. The scientist in him took over when he saw those stones.

"I don't know, Brother, but I'm sure he will be all right. He is Envy, after all." Alphonse shrugged, doing his best to be helpful but he knew his words did nothing to soothe Edward.

"That's it. I can't take it anymore. I have to find him. I won't be able to live with myself if he went off and died because of my ignorance. I have to apologize to him, Al." Edward said before taking a last drink of now luke-warm coffee and turning to go. He was going to go to the only place he knew to look.

Envy laid there on his decrepit couch, and time ceased to exist. It could have been minutes, hours, or even days. He had no idea, but the longer he laid there the more serene it became. The pain in his belly began to fade, and he almost felt like he was becoming one with the couch.

His silent wasting away was interrupted by a harsh knocking that jolted him into reality.

"ENVY! Tell me you're in here or so help me!" Edward yelled from the other side of the door.

Envy blinked a few times before licking his lips and managing to speak with some effort. "It's open, you fuck." He said, his voice scratchier than normal. He felt like his mouth was made of cotton. Blech.

Edward turned the doorknob and came in, looking disheveled and sweaty. He was panting like he'd been running, and his golden bangs were sticking to his forehead.

Envy just looked at him, unsure of whether he was hallucinating or if the Pipsqueak was really there. He figured if he were hallucinating, the other would look a little more presentable. Guess he was really there. "Hey."

"Hey? That's all you're gonna say?" Edward huffed, and looked away with a slight pink hue staining his cheekbones. He had meant to apologize, but now that the time was here he felt shy all of the sudden. He did run all the way here just to see Envy. Looking back now he was worried it seemed kind of desperate. Guess it's too late to worry about semantics.

Envy snorted, then coughed a little weakly. "I don't have the energy to say much else." He said, closing his eyes again.

Edward started, but then paused. Envy looked even worse than the last time he saw him. At least before he was full of spunk like normal, but now he just looked weak and frail. He inched closer and knelt beside the homunculus laid on the couch.

"I'm sorry," he finally choked it out. "I'm sorry for being a dipshit. I know there's something seriously wrong with you, and I want to help. You helped me, I guess, so I want to do the same." He said, not looking directly at Envy's face while he spoke.

Envy slowly creaked one eye open to look at Edward. "Hmph. You are a dipshit." He agreed, but the corner of his mouth angled upwards in a small smirk. "I'm hungry."

Edward stopped, giving Envy a very strange look. "You're what?"

"I'm hungry. Are you deaf?"

"Uhh. Okay." Edward pulled a wrapped up piece of bread from his inside jacket pocket and cautiously handed it to Envy.

The sin snatched it up quickly and began stuffing it into his mouth. He finished the whole thing in a matter of seconds. Edward looked stunned.

"That was all I had." Edward said with slight disappointment evident on his features.

"Do you have something to drink too?" Envy inquired, seeming a little perkier now.

Edward plucked a flask of water from his hip and handed it to Envy, and the other didn't waste any time gulping it down as well.

"Ahhh! Oh God... that's good." Envy burped a little and covered his mouth looking slightly embarrassed. Edward still looked confused.

"Yeah I know. Don't look at me that way. I don't understand it either, I've never been hungry before. But I'm... I dunno. I'm changing somehow." Envy looked away sullenly. He wasn't sure why he was opening up to the Pipsqueak like this, but something had changed inside of him when he had given up. Edward came for him when all other hope was lost.

Edward's eyes softened as he realized Envy was being genuine with him. There was no more sarcastic façade in place, this was really Envy. But he was different now, somehow. Warmer, softer. Almost human.

Envy looked back at Edward's face and when he realized the blonde had been staring at him his face flushed crimson. Edward smiled, thinking the shade looked rather attractive and he leaned in slightly, his eyes trained on Envy's lips. He wasn't sure why, but he couldn't stop thinking about the last time they had kissed. It should have felt wrong, but he found himself wanting more.

Envy seemed to read the desire on Edward's face, and he closed the distance between them, pressing their lips together softly. They were all alone now, no one to interrupt.

Edward brought his hands to Envy's face, caressing the warm skin softly. "You're warm." He observed, breaking the kiss briefly.

"So I've been told." Envy hummed, pulling Edward back in for more. He still felt crappy but damn this was good. This is what he'd been craving all along, it just took some time for him to realize it.

Edward climbed on top of Envy and kissed him harder, with more need. He pressed his body against Envy's as they kissed, and he sighed softly into the sin's mouth. He tasted like peppermint and chocolate mixed together. The sensations and heat went straight to his groin and he pressed himself against Envy.

"Whoa there, Casanova." Envy giggled. He was in no shape to be doing this kind of thing here, as much as he would love to show Shorty just how much he's been wanting him.

Edward pouted, his desire evident in his pants as he grew a respectable tent in his tight leather pants. "I want you, Envy." He admitted quietly, the blush returning swiftly. It wasn't as hard to say as he thought it was going to be. He really meant it.

Envy gulped as Edward said those words he'd been longing to hear. How could he say no? He still felt pretty crappy, so he'd probably just have to lie back and let Edward do what he wanted. Why was he having doubts again? He completely forgot.

Edward continued kissing Envy softly, trailing his lips down the sin's jawline and down his neck. Envy shivered beneath the touch and arched his back slightly begging for more.

Being inexperienced as he was, dealing with a gender-changing homunculus was something even an expert might be hesitant with. Edward paused as his fingertips traced Envy's hips, catching on the light black fabric of his skort.

"What's wrong?" Envy asked, gazing up at Edward with glossy purple eyes.

"Umm... I don't know how to ask this but..." His eyes darted away in embarrassment as he searched for the words.

"Well? Spit it out, Shortstack."

Edward growled lowly from deep in his chest. "Will. You. Stop. Calling. Me. Short."

"Uhh, no. But nice try." Envy smirked in the most sickly-sweet way he could muster.

"Anyway," Edward rolled his eyes. "I don't know if um... if you're..." His eyes trailed down to Envy's thighs.

"A virgin?" Envy guessed.

"Well... no, that's not really what I was wondering... though that could be good to know too." He scratched at the back of his head awkwardly.

Envy sighed, pursing his lips thoughtfully before answering. "Not really, no. But it doesn't much matter when I can change into any body I want to, now does it?"

Edward blushed furiously. "Well, that sort of leads me to my other question..." He paused, looking unsure of himself.

"Are you wondering what kind of junk I have stashed away in there?" Envy asked, pointing down at his crotch ever-so-gracefully.

Edward stuttered and bit his lip. "Yeah well I thought it might be better than being surprised by something I don't recognize."

Envy frowned. What was that supposed to mean? Talk about open mouth insert foot. Pipsqueak wasn't too good at this.

"I mean... shit, I'm sorry. That didn't come out how I wanted it to." Edward felt super awkward now, still straddling Envy while they had this conversation. He was really wishing he had just gone for the surprise route instead of making an ass of himself over it. The moment was kind of gone now, anyway.

"It's fine. I get that a lot. I'll let you in on a little secret that not everyone knows." Envy said, thrumming his fingers over Edward's arm playfully before elaborating in a dramatic whisper. "I'm actually a boy. I just like to pretend sometimes. Being androgynous and adorable is my favorite, though." He hummed, looking rather pleased with himself indeed.

Edward blinked. Well, that answered his question all right. At least he wasn't far off in his guesstimates. He blushed a little when Envy called himself adorable. It really was kind of cute that he was so narcissistic.

The whole thing made him even more curious, so he decided to ask a bold question. "So, what do you really look like?"

That was the wrong thing to ask. Envy's face went pale and he looked like he had seen a ghost.

"What did I say?" Edward leaned backwards a bit in response to the chilly air now surrounding the sin.

"Nothing. This is how I look, and that's all you need to know." He said cryptically, and in a tone that suggested that Edward not ask about it again.

Edward took the hint, and instantly dropped it. Why was he so sensitive about that? He momentarily wondered if his true form was really ugly, or something. Oh well, not like it matters. Edward wasn't exactly shallow, so he really didn't care what Envy looked like. He was starting to enjoy his personality now that he was getting to know the sin a little better.

"Al is probably wondering where I am." Edward said, cautiously lowering himself down on Envy's chest and laying his head on it.

Envy held his breath as Edward made himself comfortable on top of him. He wasn't exactly heavy, but this was weird for him to have so much intimate contact. He experimentally wrapped his arms around Edward's back, hugging the smaller male close to him. It was nice. He didn't want it to end.

"Yeah. Tin-cans tend to do that." Envy's snark was definitely intact.

"He has a name you know. And for the record so do I. And it's not Sh-shorty or P-pipsqueak or anything of the sort!" He stammered on each vertically-challenged name as if he had a hard time with saying them himself.

"Whatever you say, Shrimp-surprise."

"..." Edward seemed to give up after that one. The more he fought it, the more creative nicknames Envy came up with for him. It was a lost cause, he decided.

"And sorry for y'know... ruining the moment." Edward murmured.

"It's whatever." Envy gave a small shrug of his shoulder. He was almost glad nothing happened, he wasn't sure how his body was going to respond to anything anymore, though he didn't want to trouble Edward with his problems.

Envy's stomach was making small gurgling noises as it dealt with the food he'd eaten. Edward listened to the noises happening with interest as he pressed his ear against Envy.

Edward wanted to ask Envy a million questions, but he refrained. He didn't want to risk upsetting him anymore, not after asking about his appearance. Could he really be becoming more human? The thought seemed absurd, but after what's happened over the last week he was ready to believe anything.

Envy frowned as he felt pressure in his belly, and not the nice kind. His eyes widened as he vaguely realized what was happening. Oh God, please no. He pushed at Edward until the blonde got off him, and he ran outside out of the blue, slamming the door behind him.

Edward was left on the couch looking rather dumbfounded, wondering why Envy would just up and shove him off like that.

He waited a few minutes, and was about to go look for him when Envy finally returned, looking a little traumatized to say the least.

"Are you okay?" Edward asked cautiously. He was ready for any kind of answer, or at least he thought he was.

"Uh. Yeah, I think, but the bush outside isn't." Envy said quietly in a slightly pissed-off tone. What crawled up his butt?

Edward frowned at him, confusion evident on his face. "What?"

"DO I HAVE TO FUCKING SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU? GOD." Envy snapped, feeling quite embarrassed. "That bread you gave me did some weird shit to my ass."

Edward had to stifle giggles. Was Envy trying to tell him that he had the shits? "Oh." Edward looked around. "Well if that's all. I guess you don't have a toilet in here, do you?" He shrugged as if it were no big deal, though his face was screwed up as if he were holding back raucous laughter.

Envy growled menacingly, but it had little effect on Edward. "Shut up. This kind of crap doesn't happen to me. I'm a homunculus, for fucks sake." He began pacing the room.

"Are you sure about that?" Edward teased. From the looks of it, Envy was doing a lot of really human things. If he didn't know any better, he'd say that's exactly what was wrong with the sin.

"No I'm not fucking sure." Envy was in no mood for humor. That was precisely what he was worried about. The fact that all these things were happening so quickly were alarming. At least he was fairly sure now that he wasn't dying, not yet anyway. Humans weren't exactly very durable, if that is indeed what was happening here. What could have triggered this? He hadn't done anything special, the only difference was-

He bit his lip when it occurred to him. Edward was the change. He was really the only notable anomaly in his entire long life. He'd killed and plundered and took enjoyment in every moment of it, but he'd never really felt strongly about another individual before. Not until he discovered his baby brother. His replacement. But his anger was misplaced before, no. Now he realized the fire and envy burning inside of him for Edward could be so much more than hatred and and anger. It could transform into something amazing, something simple and pure.

Envy realized in that moment that he had fallen for the Fullmetal Alchemist. He was irreversibly in love and lust and everything in between with him.

Edward sobered when he realized how upset Envy really was. He was just joking, but what if it was really true? Could Envy really be becoming more human? He pondered the possibilities. But why now, after all this time? What had changed?

He had the nagging feeling that somehow it was because of him that this was happening to Envy.