See! I totally said I would have something closer to the end of the week posted! ttebayo!

~Tempest

Opening his eyes Ed took in the sights around him. Why couldn't I have stayed there, in the darkness. Surely it would've been better than anything that is going on out here. Feeling movement on his bed, he looked down to his left to see Roy Mustang, womanizer and philanthropist, laying with his head on his arms with a red, tear-stained face. Why has Roy been crying? Did something happ-...oh. That's right. Al's dead, and I'm a girl, how fantastic. He thought cynically, watching the grown man before him sleep. Surely he won't have the same feelings for me anymore, I'm a girl for christ sake! He thought holding back his tears. I really thought we had a chance too, after all he said that he loved me.

Just then the man on the bed began to stir, unable to face him, Ed quickly closed his eyes and pretended to still be asleep. He couldn't look into that handsome man's face and see the rejection that was sure to be there.

Shit, Roy thought, didn't mean to fall asleep on him...her. Oh this is going to be confusing. Sitting up, ha ran a hand through his hair, a nervous tick he hand developed over the years, and looked down at the blonde. So peaceful...

"Ed?" Roy whispered, shaking the blonde shoulder slightly, "Ed will you wake up for me, we need to talk."

The earnest, hopeful sound of his voice caused Ed to tear up, he couldn't look at his face and see the disgust that lingered there. He just couldn't. With these thoughts in his head, he was unable to keep the tears from escaping.

"Ed?! What's wrong are you hurt?! I know you're awake, look at me please!" Roy begged concerned for the small alchemist underneath him.

"No." Ed said quietly, turning his head away from Roy."

"No..what? No you aren't hurt, or no you won't look at me? Ed this isn't fair open your eyes!" Roy panicked, desperately wanting to see the eyes being hidden underneath the kids golden hair.

"No, I don't want to see." He whispered again.

"Why don't you want to see Ed?"

"The look of disgust on your face for what I've become." There's no way you'll love me now.

"Why on EARTH would I be disgusted Fullmetal? What you've become isn't that different from what you were before. Sure, the packaging may have changed a little, but underneath is the same caring, loving you man who would have done anything for anyone in a time of need." Roy calmly spoke to the boy.

"You don't really believe that do you, I've been turned into a girl, that's more than just a package change. Thanks for sugar coating it, but everything about me is different now, everything. Nothing's ever going to be the same, and now.. now..." Ed suddenly teared up again, thinking about the rose bud, cut from the bush before it had the time to bloom, "We'll never be together now." He whispered.

"Oh...Ed, that's ridiculous, of course we can be together now." Roy stated simply.

"What do you mean?! I confessed to you when I was still a guy, and you clearly felt the same way before. Just the same as I am clearly not a guy anymore." He was starting to get a little mad at how dense Roy was being.

"I'm saying that it doesn't matter if you were a guy before, or girl now. I...really don't... a way to put this simply... restrict myself to one gender or the other." Roy cringed back a little, hoping that this newest tid-bit, didn't make the blonde disgusted at him.

"Oh... I guess this situation, just got a little bit easier to muddle through. But,...do you still want to be with me? I never really got a solid answer. Everything that happened before... I'm considering as momentary desperation. So, do you?" Ed asked nervously.

"Well...

MEANWHILE

"I hope Edo is okay..." Maes trailed off, knowing the whole situation was his fault, but he knew if he hadn't done something that the blonde would've harmed himself big time. He just felt guilty that he had caused Ed even more suffering.

"I'm sure young Edward is fine, Hughes. What the more concerning matter in this moment is, how are we going to explain the 'death' of the younger Elric?" Armstrong commented quietly, so that if Ed was awake he wouldn't here the mention of his brother. They were all sitting in the Generals living room, which was only a couple of rooms down from the bedroom in which the General and the Elric were in now.

"Jeez... Boss has been through a lot today. I can't believe he just... disappeared like that, I know they were short on time, but I never realized how short..." Jean trailed off, feeling awful.

"I don't really think they realized how short their time left was. I mean... did you see how freaked out Edward got. I know he was preparing himself for the inevitable, but it was obviously that he really wasn't prepared." Breda commented, not wanting to sound harsh, in such a delicate situation.

"I think that besides the passing of Alphonse, our biggest concern right now is how to explain the recent... changes that Edward has undergone" Riza said with a sad, yet level-headed voice.

"Like I said poor kid's been through a lot today." Jean commented in.

"Yeah, if we say that he was changed by the alchemy, and the circles destroyed now, they'll want to take him off for testing, and we'll never see him again." Maes said.

"But if we say that he was a girl all along, he will be prosecuted for lying to the state." Fuery explained, not having much hope in saving Ed.

"I have an Idea!"

Wow! two cliffhangers, one story! I'll update soon based off of the comments I get! So if you want to see this story continue you know what to do!

~Tempest