I'm still mad that I can't do a quesiton mark followed by an exclamation mark... Oh well... Ok, this chapter is longer than the last one - sorry, but it was much more effective from an author's stand-point to split chapters 12 and 13 the way I did. I though the whole "once more..." thing was pretty cool - this is another case of this - almost. There are two confrontations in this chapter, hence the title. I was going to do three (again) but this turned out much better! Let me know what you think! Enjoy!

I do not own FMA - but I am debating as to whether I should buy the trading card game or not...

Chapter 13: "Confrontation"

Papers flew and people scattered all over the office as phones rang and voices shouted orders. In the midst of this chaos General Mustang stood at his desk, looking out through the dark window at the place where the young alchemist had been with him only minutes before.

"Sir! Phone call for you!" Second Lieutenant Kain Fuery called out to the general – luckily for the commander all of his men had still been working late at headquarters, allowing for the search for Trisha to begin immediately – no time could be wasted.

Roy Mustang quickly grabbed the phone receiver. "Yes?" he said.

"ROY!" a voice shouted through the phone.

"Uh-oh…"

"He's in for it now…"

"We're all in for it now…"

"R-Riza! T-take it easy," Roy said nervously, trying to back away from the source of the fury out of habit and instinct.

"I will not take it easy! How could you lose her? What happened?" the general's wife pleaded through the phone lines, concern apparent but anger unabated.

"I don't know, I – " Roy tried to say.

"Well, you had better find her!" Riza shouted at the man she had always worked under but still swore to serve and protect – not as a soldier, but as a wife.

"I know, Riza… I'm trying…" Mustang said tiredly as he heard the phone click, his wife having hung up on him. He sighed, the phone receiver still in his hand as he slumped over, putting his hands on his desk for support.

Lieutenant Colonel Jean Havoc, Major Heymans Breda, First Lieutenant Vato Falman, and Second Lieutenant Kain Fuery all looked over at their weary commander, their eyes focusing on the phone still in his hand – they had all served under Mustang for a number of years – even before they had met Edward and Alphonse Elric… They knew what the former sniper was capable of… almost as if one body and one mind, Mustang's subordinates all quickly turned towards the door behind them, as if expecting First Lieutenant Hawkeye herself to come bursting through the door, firing off rounds at anyone who wasn't working. Mustang looked up too – it would be just like her to pull a stunt like that, even if she was four months pregnant. The general sighed and sat in his chair.

"Well?" he asked to the room in general, "What are you waiting for? Get back to work!" he commanded. He sighed as he pulled out various files from his desk drawers; no matter how long he had known her, he still was afraid of his wife's wrath.

Mustang's men began to work at a frenzied pace, their adrenaline pumping from their near-confrontation with the stern former Lieutenant.

…

"Lumos!" a voice whispered in the darkness.

A small beam of light burst forth, casting shadows on the faces of three young individuals who were huddled together at the base of a large tree.

"Thanks, Hermione," a boy with dark, messy hair and a pair of glasses said.

"Yeah – too bad we can't light a fire or anything, I'm freezing!" the second boy said as his teeth chattered, his red hair and freckles violently illuminated by the small light.

"We can't Ron, you know that – we're running enough risk just using wand light!"

"I know, I know," the boy called Ron said to the mousey-headed girl seated next to him. He held up his hands to the light emitted from the tip of the girl's wand, as if trying to warm himself.

"Come on, you guys – we'd better get moving. I have a feeling that all of those flashes of light came from somewhere near here."

"Ok, ok, slave-driver, we're coming," the red-head groaned as he got to his feet.

"What do you think it was, Harry?" the girl asked the bespectacled teen beside her.

"I don't know – I was just about to ask you that," he said.

"Well, either way," Ron said, "it's probably nothing that – "

"BONK!"

"Owww!" Ron shouted.

"Be quiet!" Hermione hissed at him. "What did you do?"

"I ran into this – this big rock thing!" Ron said as he held his hand to his nose, checking for blood.

"Whoa…" Harry said in awe as he gazed up at the massive stone structure that Ron had run into. "Lumos!" he said, shedding more light on the rock, revealing its dome shape; yet the light from the two wands was not nearly strong enough to illuminate the entire thing, making it difficult for the threesome to see how tall it was, or how wide.

"What in the world?" Hermione asked as she put a hand up to the rock. "There have never been any mountains in these forests before…" she said in a hushed voice. "I read so…"

"Well, Hermione, have you ever thought that maybe your books are wrong?" Ron said in an annoyed, somewhat vicious, manner.

"Well, excuse me, but at least I – "

"Guys! Keep it down!" Harry said suddenly and urgently. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.

"…snap!" the faint sound of branches breaking met the teens' ears.

"Bloody hell! Harry, you don't think – ?" Ron started.

"Shhh!" Hermione shushed her companion. "Come on, it came from over here!"

The three of them walked gingerly along the base of the giant stone dome towards the sounds they had heard.

"… wheeze, …. wheeze, …."

"What on Earth?" Hermione whispered, wand held high so that they could see what lay before them.

"… crunch!" the threesome heard some feet away from them.

"Nox!" Harry and Hermione whispered together, casting the three friends in darkness once more.

"Who's there?" Harry called out quietly.

"BAM!"

"Wha – ?" Harry barely had time to say before being slammed up against the large rock dome.

"Harry!" Hermione and Ron both shouted.

"Grrr…" a husky voice rumbled through the darkness, the hand belonging to it grasping Harry by the throat and holding him up against the stone, his feet off of the ground.

"H-help!... St-stop… it…" Harry choked out, gasping for breath as the grip around his throat tightened.

"Who are you?" the voice growled. "Are you one of them, too? Do I have to kill you, also?..." the voice trailed off, the grip on Harry's throat tightening – he couldn't attack the person who held onto him – they were probably a Death Eater, and there could be more of them in the shadows.

Ron and Hermione tensed, barely able to see Harry in the darkness – they knew just as well as Harry did that their situation was delicate enough without trying to stupefy the attacker.

"LUMOS!" Harry bellowed, holding up the wand in front of his face, hoping that the light would blind his foe – Harry screamed, unprepared for the eerie, gleaming silver eye that confronted him.

…

Whooee! How you like them apples? Pretty cool, huh? Don't dismiss the dome-shaped rock... it will be explained in the next chapter (sorry, but I can just imagine some of in the next chapter reading and going: "Huh? What rock?") ... So, can you guess as to what's happeneing yet? No? Good - it means you have to wait until the end like everyone else! Mwahahahahaa! Next chapter will probably be even longer. Also, not all of the chapters are going to switch back and forth between Mustang and Harry and the gang - only when I think the general needs some checking in on - after all, I'm sure he's slacked way off on his paperwork since Riza became his wife instead of his co-worker! But who knows, maybe she still does do his paperwork... Please review! Thanks:)