Ahh! Chapter two has arrived!

Disclaimer: I own nothing! Except for this Vault Zero in front of me. -smiles

Warnings: Language. Stuff like that. Y'know.

Chapter II

There was something exquisite about the night. Roy couldn't place his finger quite on it. Perhaps it was the night sky, a deep navy with a streak of violet soaring through the oblivion. As it twisted, as if driven by some strange force, hints of brilliant lavender would reflect off the pale moon. Stars littered the sky, each one in its place and bearing its own purpose. He concentrated on the sky, barely noticing the snow that began to coat the ground.

He was sitting in the windowsill with the curtains neatly tucked back, glass of wine in hand. Sipping on the delectable liquid, he noted the city, and how alive it was. Lights flashing everywhere, they were almost ruining the serenity of the night sky overhead. He could only imagine the people out strolling around, laughing, and alcohol heavy on their breath. Cigarette smoke filling the air, and sinners using the darkness as their playground.

He sighed, and his eyes trailed over to his mantle, the fire jumping from spot to spot. Everything was calm and quiet, save the crackling in the fireplace. Suddenly the wind howled, and he felt something tugging at his heart. Something was alerting him, and he wasn't sure what.

Troubled by this sudden revelation, he strode down the hallway and into his kitchen. On the counter was his bottle of wine, and he eyed it for a moment. It was already more than halfway gone due to his boredom from the evening, and was hesitating on finishing it off.

"Fuck it."

Roy poured the last of it into the delicate glass, and as soon as he took the first drink, there was a disturbing noise. It shook his insides for some reason. The noise sounded lone, and hollow. His eyes narrowed, trying to pretend like he didn't hear the uncanny noise. How dare someone be as rude as to interrupt him on his day off, and at midnight on top of it all!

He bit his lip, and slowly made his way towards the door. Perhaps they would leave if he were tardy enough. He drug his feet, and again the noise came. This time, he felt the sharpness of it. This person apparently meant business, making their rapping more known, and more frequent.
He was standing in front of the door, separating him from this persistent person. He put his hand on the brass handle, prepared to turn it.

Then, the noise ceased. There was silence from both sides of the door. Roy tried listening closely to see if the person was making their move to leave him alone. Yet, there was no movement from either. His ear was pressed against the door, and he heard ragged breathing. He sipped his wine once more, eyeing the handle. Dare he destroy this mahogany boundary?

When he turned it, he figured it would have been more dramatic. As though someone were delivering a message of some military business, with a full salute and a "Colonel!" as the first words muttered upon his appearance. He was expecting maybe on of his past ladies to try sneaking in for the night, entertaining his tastes with eroticism. Perhaps it could have even been some type of important delivery, anything besides the reality he saw before him.

The figure was crouched in front of the door, hugging their knees. Snow was drifting on top of the person, and they did not move, nor shudder at the intense lashes of the wind. It was a reasonably small figure, with a mass of long blond hair flying loose and wildly around in the forceful movements of air. They were wearing a white dress shirt, and a pair of brown tweed trousers.

He stood there motionless, trying to figure out who this person was. He wiped his eyes, blurry from the wind blowing. The figure looked up, and his eyes widening when they met the others.
The eyes of this person were golden. They were filled with something, so wide and wild. He opened his mouth to say something, but the words struggled to come out.

"Ed…"

Suddenly, the boy began crying hot tears, and he opened his mouth, only to let out a shriek like Roy had never heard before. It shook his very insides, and he felt like a part of him was withering upon hearing it. It was maddening, it was-

He sat straight up in the bed, broken out into a sweat, and forced his hands over his ears. He buried his head down in his lap. His breathing was forced as he fought off panic. He lifted his head barely enough to look at his surroundings. He noted it was the one room, made into a kitchen, bedroom, and office of the sorts. He realized he was back in his cabin.

"A dream…?" He said, almost expecting an answer from something.

He leaned over his bed, reaching for a small cabinet under his bedside table. Pulling out a bottle of whiskey, he took a quick swig. If anyone were to have seen the man in his state, it would have been a shock. He wasn't the charming, dynamic man as he was before. One eye lost, covered by a patch. He hadn't taken the time for a decent shave in ages, leaving the facial hair to do nothing but accumulate. His eyes were dark, no longer holding the light that reflected their sapphire underlay. All that was there were onyx orbs, floating, not focused.

"Hughes…where are you?"
"You know I'm here when you need me."

Roy jerked up, eyes searching the room, before they stopped at the doorframe.

"But…you're dead."
"Right now I'm simply a figment of your imagination. But never fear, I have plenty of things I can say to you. Things you're hiding from yourself…You can think of me as your, conscious, so to say."

Roy tried to focus his eyes, but the image of Hughes in his doorway was blurry. He was leaning against the frame, arms crossed, with, what was that? A half smile brushing across his face? He wanted to say that this was all just another weird dream, that it was a figment of his imagination,

But oh wait,

Hughes already said it was a figment of his imagination. Maybe he was losing it?

"So, Hughes, no, Maes," he paused briefly eyeing him. "What am I supposed to be doing?"
"What are you supposed to be doing?"
"I don't know."
"Of course you know, you just don't want to admit it."
"And what would that be?"
"You need to get off your ass and go back home."
"You know I can't do that."
"Of course you can. You're the Colonel. You're Roy Mustang, The Flame Alchemist. Everyone needs you."
"No, they don't." Roy said, a chuckle lightly breaking through his voice.

Hughes moved over in front of Roy, thoughtfully looking at the man. Roy sat in silence, taking another drink of whiskey. He searched the ghostlike figure before him with his eyes. He looked past him and to the mantle where the picture frame sat, turned backwards.

"What are you doing with yourself out here? If he comes back, he won't be coming back here. You won't get any answers from him if you're on the other side of the continent. He'll be under enough pressure when he comes back."
"What do you mean, when he comes back?" Roy asked, his interest growing in this topic of said boy.
"He's a genius, and where ever he is, he's trying to find a way back. He will find that way back, with his determination, with his drive. With his goddamn intelligence and will, he can accomplish anything. We've all witnessed that."

Silence pierced the room.

"No, we haven't."
'Yes, we have.'

"'Yes we have', Hm, seems like your heart is saying more than your mouth is. I'm your conscious, remember? You can't fool me."
"You're a real trip, you know that Hughes?"
"So will you be leaving?"
"I don't know."
Hughes shifted uncomfortably.
"What if, just asking as a friend, I want you to go home, just so you can check on my wife, and beautiful growing daughter, at the very least? She should be 8 years old now. I wonder if she remembers her dad."
"Of course she does."
Hughes looked over, with a smile on his face.

Roy looked up and returned the smile, only to see Hughes have gone. Another intake of the whiskey and he lay back down in his bed, staring at the ceiling. Tomorrow would be a long day, and he might as well get sufficient rest.

Edward observed the man, closely. He was clad in green trousers with a white button up shirt and vest, which apparently was made to match the pants except for the little gold threads trimming it. Same hair, same height, same build, same smirk, but wait. The eyes weren't the same. They were bright, and strangely, a brilliant green, clashing with the suit. While these shone with an inevitable happiness, Roy's had always been dark, sometimes, in the right light, you could catch their hint of a deep blue. These green eyes reflected who he wasn't. That was the main difference for the time being between this man, and Roy Mustang.

"Roy? I don't recall…But here, let me help you." The man scrambled to the floor to pick up the scattered groceries and place them back into the basket. Edward could only stand there, looking dumbly at the man.

Once he was standing again, he curiously watched the young man standing still in front of him, and quite frankly, the blonde was making him very uncomfortable. The former alchemist made no indication of recognizing all of his belongings had been gathered, just stood there, eyes wide and filled with, shock, was it?

"I'm Raymond…just call me Ray." He said, holding out his hand, to shake the others.

"Yeah, I'm Ed. Do you, uh, work here?" He said slowly, hesitantly reaching out his hand to shake the Ray's.
"Actually, I own this store. I'm filling in for my employee who couldn't make it today." He said, with a smile falling across his lips.
"Oh, I see…I'll just go ahead and pay, I guess."

Ray nodded, placing the basket on the counter and ringing everything up while Edward took a moment to look at his hand. Staring at the glove, he clenched his hand into a fist and kept his eyes to the ground.

"So, who is Roy?" Ray asked, figuring it may start some kind of conversation to rid them of the awkward silence.

"Roy was someone I knew…a long time ago. I haven't seen him in years. You look just like him though.." Edward said, slightly dazed, and his eyes vaguely glazed over. He found it strange himself, being polite and a bit open with this man, who he only met. It was a sudden change of heart. Perhaps it was the dawn of a new era for him. Maybe it was just scaring the hell out of him.

"I see, I'm sorry if I brought up anything troublesome. Oh, though it does look like you'll be preparing a lovely meal tonight. Girlfriend, I suspect?" Ray inquired, changing the subject, with a wink.
"No, I don't have a girlfriend. Just figured it would be nice, the company of some nice food while studying."
"Studying?"
"Yeah, you could call me a scientist. It's really how I spend my time anymore."
"What type of science are you into?"
"Alchemy."

Ray looked a bit taken aback at the reply. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it. Edward studied this motion and felt something was indeed suspicious about this act.

"Alchemy. Huh." Ray spoke, his tone thoughtful as his arms crossed his chest.
"Have you not heard of it?"
"Oh. I've heard of it. I knew someone who studied it for awhile, too."

Silence fell between the two. Edward studied the ground again, as if it were something incredibly interesting. Ray totaled the amount up, and looked at the receipt intently, trying not to look at Edward. The gauche moment between the two was a bit unnerving, especially to Edward.

"Company, yes. I would like some company tonight, I do believe. Would you mind dropping by later? I could share my dinner with you, and we could speak of this topic, a bit more, in depth." Edward spoke quickly, and any passer by may have felt the undertone to his words and intents were macabre, so to say.

Ray understood this meant that he wanted information. He, in turn, wanted an understanding behind the information he held. It seemed like a decent trade off.

"Address?"
"Give me that receipt and a pen."

He quickly scratched something down on the piece of paper, flipped it over to look at the price of his groceries, and laid the money on the counter.

"Come by at about 8:30."

Edward hesitated for a moment, and then ran outside. Once he rounded the corner and was out of view of the grocery store, he clutched onto the bags and looked up to the sky, and tried to come up with some kind of theory that would explain the scene that just happened. Such as finding Roy's parallel in this world, being nice to him, and inviting him for dinner.

Oh, yeah. That's what the former alchemist couldn't comprehend right now.

As if on cue, thunder cracked over head, and the rain slowly began to fall.

"Fucking Christ…" Edward said, dragging out the words as dashed towards his apartment. He was confused beyond all means, and didn't really want to go to his apartment. He wanted to run away, so far that he would meet the Earth's end and simply spend his days sifting through oblivion.

But why? This night could change everything. He was getting answers. He was going to be near the man of his dreams. No. Wait. That wasn't the man of his dreams. It was a replica, a mere shell. Whatever was on the inside of this Raymond fellow was most definitely not that of Roy Mustang. It was all reflected in the eyes. Those goddamn eyes disturbed him, again, mocking him with joy. Perhaps that was why he adored thinking about Roy's eyes. They were dark, filled with secrets and a shady past. The hints of blue drove him crazy, because they indicated a future, that there was hope underneath all of those shadows. It reminded him of the night. Those nights that lingered without sleep, where he was almost wishing for daylight to break, the sign of a new day and a step ahead. When light finally broke, he felt accomplished in that he was officially one step further than he was previously. Truth was though, and he knew it all too well, it was all redundant. He kept chasing down all the same ideas, ending up back at the same spot. Repetition bothered him more than anything, more so than rain that was now beginning to soak him.

He was never happier to see the dilapidated apartment building in his life. Upon arriving to his petite living space, he set the wet bags onto the countertop and decided to clean. First thing was first, he put up the groceries and figured out what needed to be done. Perhaps it was time to unpack the things that were in his closet and use them to make it seem more, livable. It was strange for him, to be motivated to do something for once. He was almost reluctant, but determined it was for the best.

Most of his decorating items were antiques given to him by his father. Nice lamps, paintings and such. Draperies were added to the small window in the living space. After a fair share of dusting, and tidying up, the apartment didn't appear to be the grave place he thought it to be. Upon seeing it, a person would simply think it was just aged and distinct with the details of it's past. Maybe, just maybe, waking up to it wouldn't immediately damper his spirits further.

He sat down, admiring his handy work. For once in awhile, he felt accomplished. Looking at the time, it was already 6 o'clock, indicating there was no time to admire. A shower was calling his name, and no reason existed at the moment for him to deny it.

It was 8:52 and Edward was growing a bit anxious. The food he worked to prepare was growing a bit cool, the steam that was rising with pride began to dwindle to little streams and spirals rising to the air, and disappearing within moments of leaving the source. He eyed the food from his desk, where he was revising a few notes he had out. They were nothing in particular, just old discoveries, that he already knew in the old world, and were only mere possibilities in this world, suggested by other scientists of the sort.

A sigh left his lips, and almost immediately after, he heard a soft tapping on his door. He immediately sat, back in perfect posture, straight up. He found himself chewing on the inside of his lip. Trying to lift his feet so that he could reach the opposite side of the room was a seemingly impossible task at the moment, and he couldn't overcome this simple movement. After taking the first step, he felt almost dizzy. Something was gnawing away at him with each step he took. A bitter wind chilled him, and he wanted nothing more than to open the door, but his heart was telling him not to. Defiant and ready to become livid with himself, he finally reached his destination.

"Sorry I'm late," Ray said, a curt smile tried to apologize along with the words.
"Not a problem at all, come in."
Ray nodded, and walked in past the blonde.
"Mm, whatever you cooked smells delicious."
"Thanks." Edward said incongruously and moved to close the door behind him.
When they sat down, it was small talk for awhile, an occasional compliment on the food, and a few jokes.

"So, you study alchemy?"
"Yeah, I do."
"Why?" Ray said, almost a bit too sharply.

Slightly thrown off by the sudden nature of the man, he was almost reluctant to reply.

After a few moments of silence, Ray added, "If you can give me a decent reason, then I will be able to show you something that may interest you. If you give me a decent reason, I want you to explain to me what I show to you."

Now, Edward was just outright inquisitive. This man, who upon first meeting, seemed a bit ignorant, and now, he knew something that he didn't. Perhaps he knew, but just didn't understand, either way, it bothered him that someone else, especially with the face of the smug bastard, Roy Mustang, was a bit the wiser than he. Yeah, these two men were definitely similar. Dangling much wanted information above his head, but asking some kind of price in return.

If he was to obtain this information, and it was something vital to his studies, would he even want to share it with the other man? He felt himself growing a tad selfish, and his thoughts delved for the darkness. He was going to be greedy. It was simply his nature now.

"My reason for studying the topic of our current conversation is out of pure interest in the matter, the way it has been merely suggested by scientists of the past, but they have not had the intellect, or my intellect, rather, to pursue it. I study it because it holds the boundary between my beliefs and what is out there, what I wish to return to."

Ray was still for a moment, before giving a unpretentious nod, and sliding a small book across the table. Edward, with a smug attitude, picked the book up and leafed through it. At first, it seemed no different from the other notes that he had found or wrote himself before. Nothing stood out, that is, until he reached the last page. There was a sketch, a drawing of the sorts, with a small conclusion written under it. He briefly read it, and then began flipping the rest of the pages with more vigor. When he reached the last page, he saw one more drawing, and his eyes widened. His hand balled up into a fist as he drove it down onto the table. Body trembling, and teeth clenched, he barely managed to get out,

"Where the fuck did you get this?"

Wee! More suspense :D haha

But anyways, I'd love some more reviews!

And yes, there will be smut for future reference.