Chapter 10: Like No Time Has Passed…

The street in front of Central Headquarters was empty and the pavilion was gone, but Director Johnson, Roy and Riza still stood on the steps waiting for them.

Ed walked slightly ahead of Winry and Al, glaring at Roy.

Roy's eyes narrowed as he noticed Ed's left hand ball into a fist before it flew at him. Roy leaned sideways and dodged the punch easily. "You've gotten slow while you were away. I thought you were better than that Full-"

Out of nowhere, Ed's automail fist landed a blow, knocking Roy to the ground.

"General!" Riza shouted in shock as she went to check on him, but a raised hand made her freeze.

"I'm fine, Captain." Roy chuckled as he wiped away the blood that trickled from the side of his mouth, and stood with a smirk. "I should have known the left was a fake… Looks like you finally got to give me that fist to the face you kept saying you owed me."

Director Johnson shook his head as Ed returned Roy's smirk. "You two certainly have the strangest relationship I have ever seen in all my years…"

"You get used to it after a while, sir." Al said with a shake if his head.

"Well, I must get back to work. You should too General Mustang, there's a great deal of post-war paperwork waiting for your attention."

Roy nodded as Director Johnson went up the stairs. Once out of sight, Roy sighed, shaking his head. "Damn paperwork…"

Winry sighed. "Well, it's getting late; I'm going to head back to my hotel now."

Ed and Al nodded. "I guess we should get a room there now that we're no longer in hiding." Ed said.

Al bowed to Roy. "Thank you for letting us stay at your place."

"No problem. Now get going. I'll have your belongings sent to your hotel."

"How would you-?" Al was about to ask but was cut off by a gesture from Ed.

"You know he knows everything we do. He'll find us."

Roy smirked. "That I will… now go." He said before heading up the steps with Riza.

"Come on, let's go…" Winry said as she walked away.

Ed and Al took one last glance at Central Headquarters before following.

Ed sighed as they entered the hotel that Winry was staying at. "I'll be glad when we can finally leave Central…"

"Well I'll be damned… you actually came back! It took you long enough." A familiar voice called out, causing them to turn back towards the entrance.

Ed couldn't help but smile as he stared down Russell and Fletcher Tringham, but that smile faded into an irritated grimace once Russell got closer and it was obvious he was still taller than Ed.

"Fletcher! It's good to see you again!" Al said, causing the Tringham brothers to look at him in confusion.

"Alphonse…?" Fletcher asked warily.

A relieved smile crossed his face as Al nodded.

Russell frowned at Ed as he pulled him aside. "I thought you said you weren't going to make the Stone…" He muttered so that only Ed could hear him.

Ed shook his head. "Somebody else made it instead… we just stopped them from using it for a terrible reason…" He muttered quietly.

Winry frowned as she observed Ed and Russell's serious conversation. She was worried about what they could be talking so seriously about as Al and Fletcher chatted happily away about what they had been doing in the last three years.

A clock in the hotel chimed, causing the Tringham brothers to jump in shock. "Fletcher, we've gotta go or else we'll miss our train!" Russell said worriedly as he and Ed rejoined the group.

"You're right! Sorry we couldn't say and talk longer, but we need to be getting back to Xenotime!" They turned to run for the exit, waving back at the others.

"Say hi to Belsio and Elisa for us!" Ed and Al called.

The Tringham brothers acknowledged their request with a nod and wave before running out the doors of the hotel towards the train station.

"Oh, Ed. I need to see your automail. Something sounds off with the leg, and I know you suck at maintenance, so can I check it over?" Winry asked, frowning at his left leg.

"Yeah, I was going to ask you about that. It does kinda feel off…" Ed said, moving the leg to feel it.

"Well then, let's go check your arm and leg over."

Al and Ed nodded, quickly registering before following Winry to her room.

Winry resisted the temptation to hit Ed for his inconsiderate attitude towards his automail as she examined the arm.

"The skin plates will need to be replaced, they're scratched up pretty badly, but everything else seems to be fine for now." She said as she moved to the leg.

This time she did punch him once she removed the skin plates to examine the internal structure.

"What the hell have you been doing to my work?! The bearings are almost gone and the gears are badly damaged!" She listed off several other problems with the leg before glaring at him. "I'll have to completely redo the internal structure of your leg! It won't last long, so don't do anything reckless in the meanwhile. You'll have to come back to Risembool so I can make new limbs for you." She said grumpily.

Ed chuckled nervously. "Well we were planning on visiting a few people before heading back to Risembool. Is that all right with you?"

Winry sighed, shaking her head. "That'll give me time to get them made, so yeah… I guess it'll be fine. Just don't be reckless with the leg!" She snapped as she began removing it.

Al cowered in the corner, fearful of getting a blast of Winry's fury.

When a knock came at the door, Al jumped up to answer it.

"Is Mr. Edward Elric here?" A courier asked, peering inside.

"I'm Alphonse Elric; I'll take it for him."

The courier nodded warily before passing an envelope to him.

"Thanks." Al said as the courier left. "It's from General Mustang!" Al said in surprise as he read the envelope.

"Give it here…" Ed grumbled as Winry finished replacing his arm's skin plates. His eyes narrowed as he read the letter. "That man really loves to piss me off." He said before Al snatched the letter away so Winry and he could read it.

"You've gotta go see him tomorrow? Then I'll have to get working on this right away." Winry said, frowning at the leg. "I don't have any spares with me, so you'll have to use crutches. Can you handle them?" She asked Ed worriedly.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I had to use them quite a bit in Germany."

She nodded in understanding as she fetched a pair from the closet. "Get some sleep you two; I'll have this done by morning."

Ed and Al looked at her worriedly as she waved at them in dismissal.

"I'll be fine. I've gotten plenty of rest, so this will be nothing."

The brothers nodded as Ed stood up on the crutches with ease before following Al out of her room.

The next morning, Winry sighed as she double checked Ed's leg, something she always did now after the incident with the screw that landed Ed in a hospital.

Footsteps passing with a strange clunking announced that the brothers were awake and probably heading downstairs for breakfast. She peered out the door to stop them.

"Ed, wait. Your leg is done."

"Thanks Winry." Ed and Al came into her room as he sat, sighing in relief.

"No matter how used to them I am… crutches are a pain."

"This will be even more of a pain." Winry said, grinning as she lined up the automail to what remained of his real leg.

Ed braced himself as she warned him before the searing pain of nerve reconnection shot through his body.

As the pain faded away, he sighed in relief. "Thanks Winry. Come on, Al, we might as well go see what Roy wants with me."

"I'm going home today, and I expect you two will be going off to visit people too, so we should have breakfast together. I'll meet you at the train station once you're done with General Mustang."

Ed and Al looked at her in surprise before nodding. "We've got one thing we need to do before we go to the train station, so we'll meet you there for the six o'clock train. Is that all right?" Ed asked, glancing at Al who blinked in surprise before nodding in agreement.

Winry nodded in understanding, knowing what the brothers wanted to do.

"We'll be stopping by Risembool in about three weeks or so…" Al estimated, receiving a nod of agreement from Ed.

"So take your time with the automail. I can't really give any promises about taking care of my leg, but I'll try my hardest not to let anything happen to it."

Winry glared at him dangerously. "You had better not." She growled. "Come on, let's go eat." She said, walking out of the room.

Ed and Al exchanged nervous glances at each other before following.

"General Mustang, Edward and Alphonse Elric are here to see you." A soldier said as he stood in the entrance to Roy's office, which was empty.

He had sent everyone away on errands so that it would just be him and the Elrics. Roy smirked. "Send them in."

The soldier saluted as he motioned for Ed and Al to enter.

"So what do you want?" Ed asked in irritation.

Roy went over to the safe and brought out a file, tossing it across the desk to Ed, who instinctively stopped its slide.

Ed raised an eyebrow at him. "What's this?"

"It's the dilemma that you're now faced with."

Ed opened the file and his eyes widened as he stared down his fifteen year old self's image.

"That's right, Ed: your State Alchemist file. Technically, you're still enlisted as a State Alchemist." Roy said in response to Ed's expression.

Ed picked up the silver pocket watch that accompanied the file and opened it tentatively. Staring back at him was 'Don't forget .10' engraved in the lid. He quickly shut it as Al tried to see it. "You had it repaired?"

Roy nodded. "The dilemma facing you now is: do you remain a dog of the military or do you go back to being a normal civilian? You returned Alphonse back to his body, and I have a feeling you won't pursue any means to regain your lost limbs, so now you no longer need the research funds the military grants you. It's up to you, Edward; I'm not forcing you either way." Roy said.

Ed was surprised by the concern hinted in Roy's voice.

"Brother? What are you going to do…?" Al asked uncertainly. He was surprised to find himself torn between hoping his brother would keep the watch and remain chained, and hoping his brother would set the watch down and walk away.

Ed stared at the watch uncertainly for several moments before slipping it into his pocket. "This state's heading in a new direction, and I don't mind being chained to it for now."

Roy nodded as he took the folder back. "All right, we'll have a new picture taken for the file when you return." Roy said as he put the folder back in the safe. "Some new clothes have been taken to your hotel room while you were here, so go back and change. The clothes from the other side of the Gate stand out too much here."

Ed and Al nodded in understanding. "Beware: I received reports there's something strange that's been lurking around Central. Apparently sightings go back to around two weeks before you came, so I didn't think it had anything to do with you. I just wanted to warn you as trouble seems to enjoy latching itself onto you boys."

Ed and Al stared at him in surprise. "Thanks for the warning, General." Ed said as they left.

Roy watched them walk down the stairs. "I have a feeling I'm going to regret giving him that choice…" He muttered to himself.