Leonahari: The following happens after episode 20 and the first few minutes of episode 21. If you haven't seen them yet, I suggest you watch them before reading on otherwise you may be confused. I'm not going to rewrite the events from those episodes even if they are needed for the plot formation of this story because that would be boring for me and my readers. Cheers!

Chapter Eight: Interrogation

"Why!?" Envy shouted, angrily. His voice echoed off the walls of the underground cellar. Behind him, Gluttony wallowed in sorrow, and in front of him, Wrath stood facing the far wall. Envy continued to yell at his back, "Why did you let that Flame bastard live!? He burned Lust to death!"

Gluttony gasped and cried, "Lust…is dead…"

"It's not too late! Go back there and kill him!" Envy ordered ruthlessly.

Wrath had not turned to Envy. He faced the darkness and said, "We can make use of Roy Mustang."

"Use him?" Envy frowned, "You mean… as a sacrifice?"

Wrath scoffed, "Don't worry yourself over it. Father has left him to me. Which brings me to another topic – one which Father wanted me to share with you…"

Wrath finally turned to face Envy. His eyes glinted darkly in the torchlight of the chamber. Envy straightened slightly, wondering what more bad news would be shared with him. So far, Father's plan was falling apart. They had lost Lust, who had been a vital piece to the board. Envy could already feel the pressures of being shorthanded, and he hated it. It would mean Father would put more responsibility on him, and that didn't necessarily mean fun jobs either.

"A message from Father," Wrath said, coldly, "If you step over the line again, you will be destroyed."

"Line?" Envy wittily remarked, "I hadn't realized one had been drawn."

Wrath's expression was indifferent, "Don't pretend to be an idiot, Envy. We are all aware of your sly act concerning Maria Ross."

Being practiced in the art of acting, Envy easily hid his surprise. He forced himself to remain calm as Wrath continued to speak, "What did you think would happen when you gave Mustang that evidence? Wasn't convicting Maria Ross apart of your original plan to suppress the Colonel by making him believe the real murderer was caught?"

"Why are you asking me all these questions if you knew my intentions already? I wanted to stop him from nosing around," Envy smirked.

Wrath's indifference suddenly broke. His eyes darkened with fury as he said, "Don't you realize that by giving Mustang evidence to free Maria you were handing him the confirmation he had been seeking this whole time!?"

Gluttony sniffled loudly behind Envy, who continued to keep his face void of expression. Wrath finished off without waiting for Envy to reply, "Mustang was looking for proof that the higher hands of the military were involved in Hughes' murder and by giving him the evidence you proved to him that the Maria Ross' trial was not only unfair, but a complete cover up! You destroyed your own plan and exposed the military to be corrupt! I know you are not an idiot, Envy. So, unless you plan to die by Father's hands I suggest you stop."

Envy simply glared at Wrath. He knew all too well that Father wouldn't hesitate to kill him if he became a complete liability, but since he was getting a warning ahead of time, Envy knew it was safe to assume that because of their short handedness Father wouldn't jump the gun immediately. Envy would use that to his advantage. It seemed Father and Wrath misunderstood his earlier actions, which was fine with him. The longer he could keep his real plan under wraps the better.

Wrath had started walking away from him and Gluttony, leaving Envy to mull over his earlier words. Envy planned on letting them think their threats had worked. If they stopped being so suspicious of him then he would be allowed a longer leash – just a couple of inches, that's all he needed to get his show on the road.

"Envy, headquarters is in disarray. I'll need you to keep tabs on –,"

"I'm not taking your orders!" Envy snapped, "Father wants me to guard Dr. Marcoh. Stupid bastard…"

"The doctor is currently being guarded by Pride," Wrath stated, and Envy blinked in surprise.

"Oh, so Father finally realized following me around was a waste of time," Envy grinned.

"Don't get too excited. Just because Pride isn't watching doesn't mean you're going to be allowed to venture off the radar," Wrath warned, "You will be helping me at headquarters for a while to calm things down, and after that you will take up your original post – Father has agreed."

Envy ascended the steps and disappeared into the darkness, grumbling miserably.

Winry had been kept in a barracks overnight. It had no windows and the bars surrounding the outer walls were narrow, but strong. The cot she had tried to sleep in had been uncomfortable and cold. She was hungry and tired. She felt like she had been stuck in that cell for an eternity until footsteps announced a visitor had arrived.

Winry looked up from where she sat on the cot and was pleased to find Rize Hawkeye standing just outside the barred cell door. The Second Lieutenant didn't smile at her when she appeared, which unnerved Winry and made her feel insecure. She produced a set of keys from her pocket and unlocked the door. As soon as the loud screeching sound of metal sliding against cement greeted her ears, Winry jumped up and said, "Ms. Hawkeye, there must be a mistake. I have no idea what's going on. They arrested me last night and –,"

"Please save your explanations for the interrogation," said Hawkeye, indifferently. The formality of her statement shocked Winry into silence, but panic had started to overwhelm her mind. Confusion was the first stage to set in.

"But I don't even know why I'm here!" she shouted, tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes. She balled her fists at her sides in desperation.

Hawkeye had stepped forward and placed a fresh set of handcuffs around her wrists. Then, she grabbed her upper arm and said, "Follow me."

Winry sobbed as Hawkeye led her through the barracks and into a brightly lit hallway of the Central Command Center. Winry didn't pay the slightest attention to where they were going, but as soon as they rounded a corner – BAM!

She felt her entire body slam into something and she collapsed to the ground. Her handcuffs dug into her wrists as she tried to catch herself, and the person she had walked blindly into hadn't said anything, they hadn't even tried to help her up. She glanced up to see if they were even still there, and her eyes widened.

Beside her Riza Hawkeye had frozen into a salute to the Fuhrer King Bradley. The man she had run into appeared to be a lower-ranking officer, probably a bodyguard for the King.

Bradley chuckled, "Oh, sorry about that, Miss. My subordinate has a habit of rounding corners too quickly."

Winry gazed up into the cold blue eyes of the subordinate, who had reluctantly held out a hand for her. He helped her up wordlessly and returned to his place next to the Fuhrer. Bradley studied Winry's face for a moment before saying, "Well, aren't you Fullmetal's friend? I remember seeing you a while back when you were visiting him in the hospital."

Winry recounted the events when she had been at the hospital after the incident at Laboratory 5 and couldn't remember seeing the Fuhrer at all. She figured this probably wasn't the best thing to say, so she remained quiet. Of course, the other thing the Fuhrer noticed were her handcuffs. "What's all this about?"

"I was escorting her to the interrogation room, sir. There are matters concerning the Maria Ross case that need to be cleared up," Hawkeye responded, formally.

"The Maria Ross case, eh?" Bradley repeated. The officer next to him tensed up a bit. "Well, you wouldn't mind if I sat in?"

Hawkeye's hand shook slightly in her salute, "Not at all, sir. But, if I may ask, why?"

"Simple," Bradley replied, though a little more seriously, "There are still loose ends to tie up concerning that case – I have some free time. I might as well fill it."

Winry thought that was a rather strange answer to a straightforward question, but she didn't say it. Hawkeye seemed a little nervous at the thought of having the Fuhrer watch the interrogation and she wondered why on earth the Fuhrer of all people would want to get involved, save for the fact that he simply had free time. Winry also felt her heart hit rock bottom at the mention of Maria Ross' case. She felt her blood run cold at the thought that perhaps she was a suspect in Hughes' murder. She felt new tears threaten to form, but she swallowed and forced them down.

They arrived at the interrogation room, the same room she had been in before. Hawkeye sat her down in a hard chair at the empty table and cuffed her hands to the side of it. She did all this very quickly and with trembling hands that caught Winry's attention. She had either had too much coffee this morning or the Fuhrer's presence made her nervous. The man in question stood in a corner of the room, while his subordinate stood in the opposite corner, closest to the door. Riza Hawkeye took her seat across from Winry and produced a small package from her coat pocket. She dropped it on the table and lifted it upside down so that the contents fell out onto the surface.

Winry's eyes widened as she watch two metallic pieces fall out of the bag. She had never been familiar with weaponry, but she could tell just from looking at it what it was. Hawkeye folded her hands on the surface of the table and looked into her eyes. Her expression was stern and unyielding. Any fragment of the kind woman Winry had once met years ago was not present now. It chilled her to the bone.

"These are the evidence you provided us with the day before Maria Ross escaped from jail," Hawkeye explained. Winry's mouth fell open slightly at the statement. She hadn't been the one to give Mustang the evidence, Envy had. What was going on? She let Hawkeye continue, "Due to certain circumstances, Colonel Mustang will be unable to attend this interrogation. I will be questioning you instead."

There was a delicate knock at the door and the officer opened it. Somebody whispered something to him and he closed the door again and walked over to Fuhrer Bradley to pass the message on, quietly. The Fuhrer then nodded and excused himself, but the subordinate remained guarding the door.

Hawkeye continued like nothing had happened, though her confidence seemed to have gone up a bit. "I need you to tell me how you managed to find these pieces of evidence."

Winry paled a bit. She started to panic. She couldn't tell them about Envy because according to Edward the military was investigating the homunculi and Armstrong had told her that Envy was one of the ones they were interested in. However, she didn't know how Envy had managed to find the evidence, nor did she know anything about Maria Ross' case aside from the fact she had been convicted for murdering Hughes. She thought back to the event at Laboratory 5 and figured that lying would be her best bet.

"I followed Miss Ross to Lab 5 when she went to find Edward. I fell behind and when I got there I heard her fire a shot at something. So, I thought that the bullet could be used to prove that she had fired her gun at Lab 5 and not when Mr. Hughes died - it would prove she was innocent," Winry tried to explain. She felt her cheeks redden. She had never been a great liar and she knew she sounded weak and shy.

She looked up to see if Hawkeye seemed even a little convinced, but she was looking back at her with the same indifference as before. The officer behind her however, the Fuhrer's subordinate, seemed incredibly surprised about something. His blue eyes were wide with intrigue. Winry dropped her gaze to the table and hoped the interrogation would be over soon.

"What if I told you Ross' magazine had two bullets missing?" Hawkeye deadpanned.

Winry stalled, unable to answer. She didn't know any details about how they had convicted Maria Ross, and so whether she had two bullets missing or not didn't mean anything to Winry. She figured if Ross fired one bullet at Lab 5 and she had two missing then she would have had to have fired a second at some point between Lab 5 and her arrest, leaving her open to suspicion. This made Winry question whether she really did have two missing or whether Riza was bluffing to throw her off. She didn't know how to respond, so she remained silent.

Apparently, her confusion had been expressed in her face because Hawkeye said, "Look, Winry, I understand this is hard for you, but I need to clear you as a suspect –,"

"A suspect!?" Winry gasped. Her fears had been confirmed, "I haven't done anything! I can't believe you think I would…"

"Where were you last week, on Tuesday night?"

"I was in Rush Valley with Ed and Al," Winry answered heatedly. Hawkeye seemed to be unaffected by her claim to innocence and had diverted her eyes to the surface of the table.

"And what were you doing on Wednesday night? The night I ran into you in the park after midnight," Hawkeye reminded her.

"I was…" Winry thought back to that night, the night she had made a spontaneous trip to Central in hopes of finding Envy and instead had discovered Hughes had been killed. She had met Envy for the first time that night, in the darkest part of the park. She had been attacked by that wild beast. "I was walking through the park to get to the main avenue of Central, but I was attacked by that strange animal and then I ran into you and Mr. Mustang."

"Did you meet anyone before us that night?" Hawkeye asked, intuitively.

Winry bit the inside of her lip discreetly and shook her head. She thought about how Envy had beaten the animal off her, and their odd first meeting. Then, she thought about Ling, the illegal immigrant from Xing, who had mysteriously disappeared before the Colonel's car had come around the bend. "No," she lied.

Hawkeye lifted her gaze to meet hers and Winry felt like she was being searched for a hint of a lie. She decided to elaborate. "I had just arrived in Central, so I went to visit Miss Gracia and Elecia, but they didn't answer. So, I left."

Hawkeye nodded and a light knock on the door interrupted them. The door opened before the officer could get there and Roy Mustang appeared. He looked weak and wounded. He was in full uniform, but by the way he was slouching there were injuries hidden beneath the folds of blue. A small bandage was on his cheek. His dark eyes graced Winry only briefly before he turned his full attention to Hawkeye and said, "We've got a situation down in the lower district. I need your assistance immediately, no excuses."

"But you're in no condition –," Hawkeye started and Mustang snapped, "I'm well enough."

Hawkeye was reluctant, but she stood anyway and said, "Yes, sir."

"Winry, wait here until we get back. I have some questions for you," Mustang said before both of them left, shutting the door behind them. Winry was left in the room with her hands locked to the table in handcuffs and the officer, who continued to stand on guard next to the door.

Winry leaned onto the table and rested her head on the cold surface. She was so tired and hungry. She figured she hadn't eaten now in a full day. She glanced up at the blond-hair, blue-eyed officer and asked, "You don't suppose they'll feed me when they get back? I'm starved."

She knew she should probably worry about why she was being interrogated more than how empty her stomach was, but she couldn't help it. She was becoming light-headed. The officer suddenly replied, "Why did you lie?"

Winry's breath caught in her throat and she tried to push down the emotions that threatened to express through her eyes. Her surprise at how he had managed to figure out that she was lying stunned her. He wasn't even asking whether or not she had lied, he had directly asked why, coming to the implied conclusion that he already knew she was lying. Winry diverted her gaze to something other than him, because she knew she wouldn't be able to lie and keep the truth from showing through. "I didn't lie."

She heard the chair scratch across the floor and she realized the officer had taken a seat across from her just as Hawkeye had. His arms were folded on the table top and his posture was a little slouched. A small grin was playing about his lips, and his eyes were narrowed on her in an amused way. "You don't have to try and fool me. I just want to know why you lied."

Winry lifted herself from the table and stared at him, trying to decide what kind of game he was playing. Was this apart of the interrogation? Was it a trick?

Suddenly, the officer sighed, leaned in closer and whispered, "I'm Envy, you idiot."

Winry blinked and almost laughed out loud at the relief that flowed through her. She relaxed immediately and said, "Oh, Envy, what should I do? Do you know what I'm in here for? I thought you said they knew Maria Ross was innocent and that that evidence would clear things up?"

"I did say that, but it appears the Flame bastard and his pawn have some other plan I'm not aware of," Envy replied, casually, "I'll figure it out, but for now answer my question."

Winry gritted her teeth at him. "Apparently, you're an enemy of the state," Winry hissed, she felt an inkling of betrayal weigh down on her. Envy continued to stare with a bored expression. "And I'm not about to tell them about you because that would put you in danger."

"But if I'm an enemy of the state, you're just going to make yourself look even more suspicious if they find out your covering for me," Envy stated and leaned his head in his hand, he still hadn't taken his eyes off her. Winry caught something deep there, questions that he wanted to ask, but didn't. Winry had seen that look on one other person before: Edward. He always seemed to show it when he was unsettled or deeply confused. She wondered why Envy was looking at her that way.

"I don't believe you're an enemy," Winry said simply, and then added, "Besides, even if you were I still wouldn't say anything."

It was her deepest, most fatal weakness and Winry knew she could do nothing to change it even if she tried: she always protected or tried to protect those she cared about. It didn't matter if they were a dog of the military, hated by the common people; an alchemist, hated by herself; or a homunculus, enemy of the state.

"Why?" It was a simple question asked with the most curiosity.

Winry sighed, lightly, and said, "I would do the same thing for Ed and Al, and I feel like I owe you for all those times you saved me."

"So, it's just a matter of debt to be paid?" he asked, indifferently. Winry didn't understand what he was trying to say, and she didn't like the sound of his voice. She figured he was still angry from the other night when Edward and Alphonse had walked in on them, and then she remembered how Envy had snuck out, leaving her to deal on her own.

"You left me to fend for myself, remember!? So, don't get angry with me!" Winry snapped, and Envy's face softened a bit. "I'm not angry," he stated, "I just don't get it. Why would you get yourself into trouble just to cover for me, an enemy?"

"Ed told me everything about what the homunculi have done," Winry said, quietly, and she realized her voice was shaking, "but I don't feel in danger when I'm with you. I feel safe, and that I can trust you. So, I'm trying to return the favor. That's what friends do after all."

"You're an idiot," Envy smirked and leaned back in his chair so that he was only balanced on the two back legs. "If the Flame bastard finds out you're lying, you could be executed."

"You wouldn't let that happen," Winry said with complete confidence. She stared into his fake blue eyes and he smiled. It wasn't the smile she had seen him wear before, it was softer, warmer somehow. She liked it better than the other smile he had shown her. "You really do trust me that much, do you?" he asked.

"You know I'd beat you with a wrench if you betrayed me," Winry said playfully. She could already feel her anxiety ebbing away leaving a pleasant calm in its wake. She truly felt that even if she did get into trouble Envy would be just around the corner to drag her out of it, just like the river.

"That hurt like a bitch!" Envy snarled, dropping the front legs of the chair down again with a loud thud, and leaning forward threateningly, "You're lucky I like you, human, or I would have torn you apart for that."

Winry grinned, but then her mind dropped back to reality and she remembered that when Hawkeye and Mustang got back Envy would go back to pretending he was a simple officer and she would be interrogated again. What if Envy was right and they decided to convict her? Would she go to jail for lying about something as serious as hiding the truth about seeing a homunculus? Would they think she was endangering the military by seeing Envy?

"Envy," Winry asked, nervously, "You wouldn't…use me to get information, would you?"

Envy laughed his high pitched laugh and said, "I follow the Fuhrer around, dumbass. Why the hell would I need you for information?"

Despite the rude comment, Winry smiled, "I'm just trying to understand why you would be interested in me, if I'm just a simple human to you. I mean, wouldn't it be more beneficial for you to get involved with someone who is also a homunculus? I thought you said humans were foolish."

"They are," Envy agreed, and then added, "Why are you making such a big deal about a kiss? Are you really that naïve to think we're involved now?"

Winry's mouth fell open in shock at his statement, but he started talking again before she could speak, "But to answer your first question, I suppose I'm interested in you for the same reason you refuse to tell the Lieutenant about me."

Winry failed to close her mouth and Envy seemed amused by this. Suddenly, he stood up and made for the door. Winry snapped out of her momentary confusion and panicked. She didn't want him to leave. She needed him to stay with her to make sure she would be safe in the end of the interrogation.

"Where are you going?" she managed to blurt out before he opened the door. She realized she has half out of her chair, her handcuffs stopped her.

Envy glanced over his shoulder and replied, "I'm going to the food court to grab you some lunch. Weren't you just complaining earlier of how hungry you are?"

"I…" Winry trailed off, pleasantly surprised at the promise of food.

"Don't have a heart attack. I'll be back soon enough," Envy said and left.

Winry sat back down, staring at the closed door. The emptiness of the room seemed to envelope her and she concentrated on his disappearing footsteps down the hallway until all there was left was silence. Slowly, not tearing her eyes from the door, she let her head slide down to the surface of the table again and rested her cheek in her hands.

She began to mull over her and Envy's conversation and wondered just how much Envy had expressed to her without knowing it.

The food court line up was ridiculously long. Envy stood at the end, waiting rather impatiently for food he wouldn't even be eating. He crossed his arms and stared at the back of the head of the next person in line, willing them to drop dead so that he could take their spot. Honestly, this was just stupid. Did this place seriously only employ one cashier at a time?

Envy looked down at the prepackaged salad he had picked off of one of the selves on his way in and hoped Winry liked Italian dressing.

What?

He resisted to shake his head clear. It didn't matter if she hated it, he would force it down her throat since he was using his own money to buy this crap. She better eat every last sesame seed!

She had said she trusted him, even enough to put her own life on the line…

Envy's lip curled up in triumph. He supposed he hadn't had to wait too long after all. Though, he was still confused over why she had decided to trust him so quickly. Could it really have been the kiss the other night? Was she really that naïve? It had to be more than that.

She said she considered him a friend…

Envy had earned her trust so far, but he was still confused over why humans would throw their lives away to protect each other. Rockbell was doing that for him right now, and he didn't have a clue why. If she said one wrong thing right now, Colonel Flame-ass would send her to the jury for trail – she could be executed for even just knowing who he was and keeping it a secret for so long.

So far he wasn't convinced that he would put his life on the line for her. Maybe it depended on the person? He had tried to ask her why she was hiding the fact that she knew him, making up stories to cover him, protecting him, and she had failed to give him an answer he could understand. 'I would do the same for Ed and Al…that's what friends do after all…'

What the hell had she meant by that? That she would do the same for them? She was protecting Envy, and he knew she would do the same for Ed and Al because they were her friends and that's just how humans worked. But Envy wanted to know why they worked like that. What motivated them to do so?

He felt rather pleased with himself that he had managed to convince Winry he was trustworthy, but he didn't feel satisfied enough to stop there. He didn't feel like he had completely reached his goal yet.

"Sergeant!" Envy blinked and realized, though the line hadn't moved yet, he was face to face with Wrath.

"Lunch break already?" he asked like the ass he was, and Envy resisted the temptation to spit in his face. If only they weren't surrounded by low-lives he might have punched the old-timer out for stepping into his personal space. Honestly, did Wrath have to come that close for a light conversation? It wasn't like he wouldn't be able to hear him if he had kept another foot back or something.

"She was complaining that she was hungry. Apparently, Lt. Hawkeye hadn't fed her yet," Envy replied, desperately trying to keep his tone light and polite in the presence of others.

"She complained for food and you jumped, did you?" Wrath said with an undertone of irritation.

"Stop breathing down my neck," Envy hissed under his breath, and Wrath responded sharply, "Well, while you were out on a pity trip," he used the word with the most sarcasm as possible, "the girl you were supposed to be watching escaped."

Envy's breath hitched and he remembered how Winry had asked him to stay there with her. Why would she ask him that if she had planned to try and escape unless she was taken against her will?

"There are remnants of a transmutation, probably to release the cuffs and unlock the door. And on top of that we have another situation that needs to be attended to," Wrath added, darkly, and Envy dropped the salad on a random shelf and followed him out of the food court feeling more like an idiot than ever before. When they entered into an empty hallway, Wrath said, "Scar and Fullmetal had a confrontation which I was called to suppress, but it turns out it was a trap."

"A trap?"

"They've captured Gluttony," Wrath informed him and Envy's eyes widened, "How the hell did they do that?"

"Save that for later, right now I want you to go and get him back. They're hiding out at an old cabin on the West side of Central," Wrath said.

Envy sighed, "I always get stuck with the shitty jobs."

"Consider it punishment for your misbehavior," Wrath replied, indifferently, "Which reminds me, if you find Rockbell, bring her back to the Command Center. I think Fullmetal and I need to come to an agreement. He and Mustang have been meddling too much in affairs that don't concern them."

"What does Winry have to do with it?" Envy asked, curiously.

Wrath stared at him for a moment before answering, "Nothing. Just do it."

Leonahari: Ta-da! Poof another chapter done like dinner - takes forever to write and ten minutes to read - geez, guys a little more response would be nice. So many readers and so few reviewers, it saddens me... You all better cheer me up in time for Christmas or I'll run around and beat you with a wrench and then I'll order Envy to beat you too - unless you'd enjoy the later...*thinks* you sick bastards :P

Next chapter coming soon...