Warning: Slight OOC, Lots of Blood, Shameless Fluff

Roy had to explain the children's entire past to them, from becoming a state Alchemist to fighting alongside the Colonel not a week ago in an underground tunnel beneath the current city to capture an Enemy of the State, who so happened to have a Philosopher's stone. Said stone apparently restored Al to his body and rewound the boys' lives to the time shortly after their mother's transmutation.

Alphonse quickly got over his timid behavior partway through the Colonel's story, and was soon eying the Colonel like he was the best thing since sliced bread.

However, Edward had been more wary and skeptical of the two soldiers, as he remembered neither the Colonel nor his Lieutenant; but as the man began to tell his story, he was soon convinced that Roy Mustang was telling the truth.

At the end of the monologue, both boys were left to think about what had been said, with a promise from Roy that he would return tomorrow to take them back to Central and out of the dinky little city they were in.

"Colonel?"

It took a moment for Roy to acknowledge he was being addressed, and when he did, he turned towards the boy who'd spoken with an arched brow and a soft sigh. He didn't know what he was going to do with the boys, not that it was his decision. The Fuhrer would tell him what was to happen to Fullmetal, and then Roy would act accordingly, but he still wondered… were they going to keep Ed and send Al back to Risembool? Send them both back to Risembool? Keep them both? Where were they going to reside if they were to both stay in Central? In the dorms? In a flat? With a soldier? Maes was a parent... was Hughes going to get them? Was Fullmetal even a soldier anymore?

Roy thought about the fact that he was Fullmetal's CO, and being a minor's CO meant he was also said minor's guardian. Were they going to be his responsibility?

"Colonel?" The brother questioned again as he began to lightly tug on the man's sleeve.

"What is it, Fullmetal?" Roy was still thinking about the near future while trying to ignore Riza, who'd been letting Al sleep in her lap, his head resting on her shoulder as his chubby legs rested on her hips. She was rubbing his back with one hand, and cupping the boy's head with another as she hummed a soft tune, trying to calm him. Alphonse had just been struck with the notion that he and Ed had failed to save their mother and that they were now alone in the world without her.

At that revelation, Alphonse had soon broken out in tears, and Riza took it upon herself to comfort him; however, Roy found that with Riza entertaining Alphonse, it left him to tend to Fullmetal. Upon that realization, he decided to hold a grudge against the Lieutenant and was now completely ignoring her while trying to keep his young 11 year old subordinate still and quiet on the boring train.

"I was thinking about how you said you're my commanding officer…?" Ed watched Roy with wide eyes and when Roy made a gesture for the boy to continue, Ed did as prompted, "So, does that mean that we're friends?"

Truthfully, it had been a question that had been bugging Ed since Roy's introduction and story, and the more he thought about it, the more he wanted an answer.

Roy gave pause. Were he and Fullmetal friends? He first thought was 'no, of course not. You're an annoying rebellious irritating brat, and I'm sure you think no more highly of me either.' But then he thought about their occasional missions together, their meetings and conversations, and those few times he'd saved Fullmetal from eminent demise and vice versa. His thoughts were drawn most prominently to the last mission just before the brothers' reversion to pre-teen children.

"Mustang!" Edward shouted in warning as he watched the gun raise and take aim. Mustang had been occupied with getting one of the bad guys out of the fight. He hadn't been paying much attention to anything else, and as a result, he was unprepared for an attack from the other end of the room. Even with Fullmetal's warning, he only had time to turn and see the man cock his gun and fire.

Everyone watched the bullet sail through the air and hit its mark with a bone shattering crack. It was almost unreal as the colonel spun slightly by the force of the projectile, right before, in what seemed to be slow motion, he collapsed backwards, sprawled on his back.

Edward didn't know how he got there, but he was soon kneeling beside the fallen man. He couldn't help but stare at the man spread out on the ground with the hole in the side of his head flowing vast amounts of blood like a kitchen faucet.

"No…" Edward murmured quietly as his right hand searched frantically for a pulse and yet found none. He looked again and again for some sign of life, despite its obvious futility, and when the gravity of the situation finally settled in, that Roy Mustang was dead, Ed doubled over in grief. He didn't even have the strength to even sit up right, so he just let his head rest on his superior's uniformed chest, doing all he could to choke back his sobs of misery. "No…" He whined again, fighting to keep his eyes dry as he fisted his hands in Roy's uniform, like doing so would bring the man back. However, when the man's blood began to saturate Edward's legs through the fabric of his pants, he couldn't hold back, and his tears ran from his eyes, dribbled down his cheeks, fell from his face, and began to soak through the fabric creating little dark circles of grief and sadness and misery. Roy Mustang was dead. "Oh please no." Ed moaned, gripping the fabric in his fist even tighter than before. "Please no."

Everyone in the room, Hawkeye, Alphonse, the murdering bastard with the gun, and the other alchemists, all watched the scene play before them, unable to move. Time seemed to pause, all noise save the quiet sobs the young boy were lost in the vast expanse of the room. No one dared move, dared speak, or dared breathe.

"Please don't go…" Edward whimpered again, so quietly that only he could make out what was being said, "Please don't leave me…" He tightened his grip again, tears spilling freely and without reserve now, completely unaware of the man beneath him slowly opening his eyes while struggling against a raging headache.

Once they were open, Roy immediately spotted Fullemetal crying nonsense into his chest, "Don't leave me…" He cried in a hoarse whimper, and Roy felt something in his chest tighten suddenly. Then he felt blood dribble down his face, and he immediately put two and two together. He was thought to be dead, and truthfully, he had thought he was dead too, just before the bullet hit him and he lost consciousness. It was through sheer luck that the bullet had only grazed the side of his head instead of hitting dead on. If it had been only a centimeter to the left, he actually would be dead.

But he wasn't, so with a smirk he made to respond to Fullmetal, who'd just so recently spoken, only to stop short. Right now wouldn't really be appropriate for any sort of sarcasm and witty retorts. He really would be a bastard if he made fun of Fullmetal as he was now. So he let his smirk fade and replaced it with a real smile – something warm and pleasant instead of the fake things he usually handed out whenever it was necessary– and he spoke with a comforting tone that he didn't even know he had.

"Don't worry, Fullmetal." He wheezed, watching the boy's eyes widen exponentially, "I'm not going anywhere."

After that, Roy remembered kicking some serious ass that night with Fullmetal on one side and Hawkeye on the other. No one had spoken about what had happened afterwards; but Roy remembered it, and he was certain that the others did too.

With that in mind, Roy knew that Fullmetal was fond of him, and of course he was fond of Fullmetal… not that he would ever admit that to the boy's face; but despite it all, one thing he knew for certain - his and Fullmetal's relationship was a complicated one.

Does that mean we're friends?

Roy turned to the young boy sitting beside him, both of them oblivious to Riza's eyes watching the entire scene intently, "Well, Fullmetal," He began with that same comforting tone he had used only once before, "I like to think so."

Roy didn't expect the massive grin that could very well split Ed's face in half if it persisted, nor did he expect the boy to suddenly wrap his tiny arms around the older man's waist, burrow his face into Roy's side, and squeal happily into the fabric, "I like you too!"

Riza fought to hold back her giggles at the sight of a happy Fullmetal willingly burying his face into his CO's shirt while the said CO's face took on a rather amusing expression. However, the effort became futile a second later when Fullmetal released the colonel only to happily crawl into Roy's lap, plant himself, and then curl up and into his superior's chest with closed eyes and a contented sigh. It took both Roy and Riza a second to realize Ed had fallen asleep; and upon that realization Roy had quickly tried to release himself from the sleeping child, only to find that the boy had quite firmly seized Roy's shirt in his little fists. Roy was stuck with Ed until the boy woke up, and that left Riza giggling even harder.

Roy forced himself to relax and lean against the back of the bench with a glare directed at his lieutenant.

"What?" He snapped, feeling defensive.

She raised her hands in mock surrender, "I didn't say anything, sir." And then she returned her hands to their original position on the boy in her lap to support Al comfortably against her body as he dozed, having long ago calmed. Roy snorted at her, and then inched up a little straighter in his posture before turning to look out the window, ignoring her once again.

At the end of the trip, Fullmetal was still asleep, despite his younger brother's attempt to wake him through relentless poking and prodding. Roy, accepting his fate, slid his left arm underneath Fullmetal's small body yet heavy body (the automail leg was ridiculously heavy for it mass), and placed his other hand on the boy's back to keep him steady as he stood up.

Roy thought of the older, teenaged version Fullmetal and how he would have never willingly cuddled into his superior, yet this younger model had no qualms about falling asleep in his lap. He thought about how the new Edward had not once shouted obscenities or shown much of any serious disrespect towards him either. Roy was beginning to miss being called 'Colonel Bastard' by the kid… But he could totally get used to the more respectful version with no reservations in an alarmingly short amount of time too. It wasn't as if he was complaining or anything, just... noting the differences…

But still, he wondered if they would ever be able to return to their teenage selves, or if they would be this way forever, or if they would grow up like normal kids? With these children, Roy knew anything was possible; and he had to keep all his options open so he wouldn't get suddenly blindsided by them.