Chapter 32 (Epilogue)-
The wooden door leading to Mustang's inner office slammed open with a bang.
"Oi, bastard!" yelled Edward, striding confidently through the door. Despite his words, he had a smile lingering on his mouth.
"That's General to you, Fullmetal," Mustang looked up and smirked. It had been two months since the Homunculi had been defeated, and since then, everything had changed.
"Whatever. You just got that promotion 'cause you survived to tell the tale." Edward was referring to the war which had shaken all of Amestris. Mustang scoffed.
"That's all over now anyway." Ed's tone softened momentarily, before returning to his overconfident tone. "Here ya go."
Edward handed over a single piece of white paper. Mustang didn't even have to read it to know what it was.
"Your formal resignation from the military." Mustang closed his eyes. "You must be happy about that. At least, I assume you are; you're a little too far down for me to see over my desk."
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO MINISCULE THAT IF HE FELL IN A PUDDLE HIS FEET COULDN'T TOUCH THE BOTTOM CAUSE HE'S SMALLER THAN AN ANT?!" Edward exploded, clapping his hands and changing a nearby ornament into a metallic spear. However, Mustang chuckled. That would never cease to amuse him.
"Brother, you don't have to shout. We can hear you from down the hall!" Alphonse entered through the already open door with a smile, and instantly Ed's wrath vanished. He changed the ornament back and grinned at his younger brother. Even two months on, he couldn't believe they'd actually achieved their goal. Sure, they'd been through hell to get it, but no longer. They were whole.
"Sir," Hawkeye followed Al. "Just because this is your first week out of the hospital doesn't mean you can slack off."
"But Lieutenant-!" Mustang protested.
"Now that you're a General, there's even more paperwork to be done than before. Start working!" And with those final words, she pushed Ed and Al through the door.
"The poor General. That stack of paperwork was even taller than I am." Al commented.
His brother turned, casually linking his hands behind his head. "He deserves it."
"Oh, Edward! You and Al are going to go see Havoc before you head off, right?" Falman asked.
The brothers paused. "Yeah," Ed replied.
Al continued. "We'll only be there for about half an hour though; otherwise we'll miss the train."
Hawkeye came through the door behind them. "Where are you two going first?"
"Three," Alphonse corrected, smiling teasingly at Ed. "A certain someone invited Winry along."
Edward went slightly red, changing the subject. "We're going back to Risembool first, now that everything's settled. Then, we're going to travel."
"Yeah!" Al grinned excitedly. "We're going all over Amestris first, to see all our old friends- also show Winry around. And then we're thinking of going to Xing. We were going to anyway, to look for the philosopher's stone, but we don't have to worry about that anymore." Al smiled at Ed enthusiastically. "Now it's just for a holiday."
"Plus, my military resignation payout can cover all of that." Edward smirked.
"Sounds amazing. I wish I could go on a holiday like that," Falman sighed.
"Good luck, Elrics. You deserve it, both of you." Hawkeye gave them a small smile. "And if you were working, Falman, you'd find there would be no time to wish you were on holidays." Hawkeye sent Falman a withering glare, and Falman quickly jumped back to work.
"Thanks," Ed replied, turning to go.
"Thank you, Miss Hawkeye!" Al followed with a wave.
Mustang entered the room, leaning on the doorframe. "If you two are ever in Central again, drop by." Mustang interrupted, ignoring Hawkeye's unimpressed glare.
The brothers both smiled, albeit Al's was considerably more enthusiastic than Edward's. "Sure," Edward responded, and with one final wave over his shoulder, he vanished through the door.
"Al." Mustang spoke before the boy could leave. "Keep an eye on him, okay? He seems normal, but…"
"General…?" Alphonse sounded confused.
Mustang closed his eyes. "Nothing. Have a safe trip."
Edward silently opened the door. "Oh, you're awake. How're ya feeling, Havoc?"
Havoc smiled sarcastically. "I've been better, chief."
Havoc lay in the military hospital wing, in a well-light, open room. Bandages covered him from under his armpits down to his hips, mostly covered by his light green hospital clothes. At his bedside sat Winry, two suitcases on the floor beside her feet. A young nurse stood in one corner with a clipboard; however, as Edward entered, her eyes widened with fear and disgust. She dropped her clipboard and fled the room.
After a moment of silence, Winry spoke. "I thought you got everything sorted out, Ed. You know, that you weren't the one who kept murdering people when we first found you."
Edward sighed. "I did… I spoke to the military and told them it was actually an enemy that died in the war two months ago, and they believed me. But sometimes it's not that easy for people to believe it wasn't me. After all, the citizens of Central thought I was the murderer for months, and that kind of belief is hard to break."
Havoc lit a smoke, inhaling deeply. "Don't worry about it, Edward. Everyone important knows you didn't do it."
Alphonse closed the door and sat on the edge of Havoc's hospital bed. "How long will it be until you're healed and allowed to leave?"
Havoc sighed. "At least another month- you know, for 'rehabilitation' or whatever. As long as I'm allowed to smoke, I'm happy. And besides…" Havoc suddenly grinned. "I'm gonna ask that hot young nurse out!"
Edward rolled his eyes. "He's absolutely fine!" he muttered to Al and Winry, and they both laughed.
Havoc glanced over to the three, a contented look spreading over his features. Those brothers had been to hell and back; even Winry had held a heavy burden. But that was over now. They were finally free, and able to do whatever they wanted- both completely whole. Well…
Havoc squinted slightly and briefly managed to catch a glimpse of the red tint in Ed's slightly slitted eyes, the late afternoon sunlight illuminating his expression. The young man caught him looking and silently turned his head away, a shadow creeping over his eyes. He remembered what he'd done, as both a human… and a vampire. But he could deal with those things. It was all in the past now.
An hour later, Alphonse boarded the train, flashing their tickets to the conductor. The woman knew the Elrics well after they'd travelled from Central so many times, and let the three companions pass. The three chattered cheerfully as they headed down the corridor, the train lurching to a start, slowly building up speed. Edward threw his suitcase up on the luggage rack first, collapsing lazily into a seat beside the window. He brushed his golden hair out of his eyes and watched as the station started to fade, leaving his past behind. Then something caught his eye.
For an instant, Ed thought he saw a pale man with black robes and pupil-less red eyes standing motionless among the crowd. He gasped, leaping to his feet and staring breathlessly out the window- but the Elder was gone, and as the train built up speed the station vanished from sight.
"Brother?" Alphonse asked as Winry peered over his shoulder. "Is something wrong?"
Edward slowly sat down and smiled at his brother and Winry. "Everything's fine. I mistook someone on the station for someone I knew."
Alphonse nodded and said something to Winry as Ed turned his gaze back out the window.
Yeah, that was all it was- just mistaken identity. He was free of all that now.
A/N: And that was the last chapter of Night Eyes. I hope you've all enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it! Thank you to everyone who's read to the very end of my first fanfiction, and to everyone who's given me feedback over the past year or so that it's taken to write this. I kind of can't believe I actually finished it.
My next fanfiction will be another Fullmetal Alchemist one, because I'm obsessed. It should be out early next month, so stay tuned for that. Also, if anyone wants to read a non-fanfiction story of mine (with my own characters and setting, as well as plot) I'd really appreciate it. Just google fiction press, click on the first result and search Trina Sapphire in the search bar under 'find author'. If you have any questions about the fic, feel free to ask! Bye :)