Note: Sorry, I finished this a bit later then I wanted to. For the matter of fact the chapter was ready for a while but I had problems with the grammatical checking. I still feel that there are too many mistakes in this chapter… So sorry for them. Checking is always the difficult part of writing for me and the only part I don't like too much. I am too shaky in English grammar. So thank you for your patience and reviews:

Raqueel

Floutistvivi

Super Saiyan Angel: I just finished the first half of this chapter when I read your review and I laughed really hard on your comment about Charles. You will see why:)

Manga-animelove: oh another skeptic:)

The Snow Crystal Alchemist: and a third one too. Or in fact you are the forth one because our Colonel doesn't trust him either:)

Childish

Roy stormed into the Investigations Division angrily while Hawkeye followed him closely. Her face was impassive now but he remembered her expression after the call, when the police informed them that their son had been found at a murder scene. Of course Roy told Hughes to get the case immediately. They didn't need that the police interfere and make this shit even more complicated. But not the fact that Fullmetal had found a corpse was the most annoying. No, what infuriated Roy and enraged Hawkeye was that Edward had been in the company of their main suspect. And he had been left alone only with him and a corpse. With the corpse of another possible suspect by the way. He could have been attacked and only Fuery could have helped him. Or at least he hoped that Fuery had followed them. Not that the man alone would be too much help against an alchemist. Roy could have strangled those stupid men of his. But according to the police Fullmetal was okay, just a bit shocked. It seemed that Patterson hadn't attacked him although he had had the chance. But the why was a question that yet to be answered.

"Roy" it was Hughes who whispered to him and he stopped abruptly. "We took over the case. It's under my command. Edward is in that room and he is okay. Havoc is with him, right now. They were accompanied by the police to here not too long ago. Patterson is in the next room, I have already interrogated him. Can I dismiss him? He didn't do anything suspicious…"

"No, I will have some words with him" Roy answered darkly.

"I don't think it's a good idea. You are here incognito and…"

"And I am a pissed off parent whose child was dragged into a possible murderer's house by that person. I have every reason to beat him into a pulp and it won't even endanger my alias."

"You have to stay calm, Roy. If you…"

"I don't recall that I have asked your opinion, major" he hissed. Hughes flinched and let go of his arm. "Darling, you go and see if Edward is okay. I will have some words with that sorry excuse for a man" he shouted loudly and rushed toward Patterson room. He opened the door with a bang and he was next to the man in a second. His eyes grew wide as he recognized Roy.

"You are the father of…" Roy grabbed him violently

"Yes, I am a father of the child you brought into a possible murderer's home! What you were thinking, you bastard? Did you want to kill him?" he shouted into his face. The man paled considerably.

"I thought…I thought he is… he is…" he stammered.

"You thought what?" Roy shook him impatiently.

"I am really sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. I was a fool" Roy punched him into the face ad the man fell backwards.

"It's a very lame excuse. You say you sorry? That what you would tell me even at the funeral of my son?"

"Mr. Piper! Please, stop this." Hughes appeared and stood between them. "It's no use."

"No. He is totally right. I deserved that" Patterson stood up. "I was totally wrong and endangered a child's life. I am really sorry. If I could redeem this than I would. But I can't. But now I think your son needs you. He was really upset when I last saw him."

"Don't you dare to tell me what should I do, you…" Hughes restrained him before he could attack the man again.

"You can go now, Mr. Patterson. We will call you if we have more questions." He said firmly. The man hesitated for a moment then nodded.

"I am really sorry, Mr. Piper. I will never forgive myself for this. Please tell Ed that I am really sorry" and he left rapidly before Roy could answer. When they were left alone Hughes let him free immediately.

"What was this good for?" he asked disapprovingly. Roy just glared at him.

"I was totally professional. I tried to force him to reveal something. You shouldn't have intervened" Hughes sighed and pinched his nose annoyed.

"And what could have he revealed? He clearly isn't our murderer. If he was then he would have attacked Ed as soon as he could."

"Come on, Hughes. You should use your head. You are an investigator after all. What kind of sane man would bring a child along to visit a possible murderer? No one. This man is suspicious. He wanted something. I don't know what, but he wanted something. And I tried to get answers and you just hindered me. You should know that I wouldn't attack people randomly and thoughtless." Hughes looked back at him frowning.

"You are right. I am sorry. But I thought that you didn't think clearly. It was about Ed and I thought you…"

"You thought what? Fullmetal is my subordinate. I am really angry because he was in danger. But it was partly your fault if I remember correctly" Hughes flinched at this. "I am always angry if one of my men's life is in danger. Especially if it is because of my other men's stupidity. But that doesn't mean that I would loose my professionalism. You should know me better than this." Hughes looked at him really apologetically. "Now let's see Fullmetal. I want to hear what happened. Everything. And you are really lucky that he isn't injured" Hughes shivered at this. Roy knew that in that case his friend would never forgive himself. But now he had to see the boy. So they rushed into the other room. Fullmetal was there sitting on a chair with a pale face. His eyes were glassy and his hands clenched into fists. Havoc was standing next to him with a worried expression. To Roy's surprise Hawkeye wasn't there.

"She went for a hot chocolate, Chief. The boss seems to need one" Havoc answered to his silent question. Roy nodded.

"So what happened, Fullmetal? You are clearly good in getting into dangerous situations" the boy's head shot up and glared at Roy angrily for a minute before his eyes went back to their previous empty state.

"I thought that that was my job" he muttered quietly. It was clearly wrong. Fullmetal and quiet in a same sentence was clearly wrong. "When he invited me to Smalt's house I thought it was a trap to attack me. Why else would he want to bring me there? But I am a bait, am I right? So my job was to go into the trap. I thought that Hughes and the others were with me and we could finally get the murderer if it was really Charles. But they weren't there, were they? I didn't see anybody even when the things became difficult. I thought… I thought for a moment that he would really kill me. I… I…" but then Fullmetal stopped and shook his head. "So we went to the house of Smalt. He didn't answer so Charles went in. I followed him after I heard a shout. Mr. Smalt was dead. According to the stink he was dead for some time" he grimaced. "After that Charles called the police and they brought us to the office and then here. That's all."

"Did Patterson act strangely? Did he try anything?" Fullmetal shook his head.

"No. He didn't try to attack me. And he was genuinely concerned about me, after I saw the corpse. Not that I haven't seen worse than that. But of course he didn't know this." Fullmetal was somehow out of character. He avoided eyes contact and talked in a strange quiet voice.

"You don't tell me something" Roy looked at him strictly. "I have to know every detail, Fullmetal."

"I told you everything you need to know" he murmured irritated.

"It's not your job to decide what should I know. Tell me everything, Fullmetal! Now!" he shouted at him after the brat dared to turn away from him.

"Fine" the boy shouted despondently. "I panicked. When I saw Smalt I got sick and I was totally vulnerable in front of a possible murderer. This what you wanted to hear? Come on, laugh at me! Tell me how a child I am!" Roy was taken aback at the outburst of the boy. He didn't expect this. The boy's face was red with shame and his eyes were full with hurt. And Roy really didn't know what he should say.

"Nobody blames you for this, Ed" fortunately Hughes recovered faster than him. "It was our fault. We shouldn't have left you alone in a situation like that. We never thought that you could leave the school that early. So we left you only with Fuery. I am sorry Edward. Colonel Mustang told us not to leave you alone and we did exactly that. I am so sorry, Ed. This mission should be a teamwork. You shouldn't have to deal with this alone. You counted on us and we let you down. So the ones who should be ashamed are us" Havoc joined to him immediately.

"That's true, boss. I am sorry too. You should transmute us into something really horrible."

"Human transmutation is forbidden" muttered Ed darkly. Then he finally looked up. "But that doesn't mean that I can't beat you into a pulp" Havoc stepped back nervously.

"You would be totally right, boss. But… but… we could be needed in the future. So if you kill us then we won't be able to help…"

"Because you were so much help so far" Roy cut in sarcastically. "I will gladly assist you, Fullmetal. They disobeyed me after all" Hughes and Havoc cringed simultaneously. A sadistic grin appeared on Fullmetal's face and Roy felt relieved. They boy will be okay. He scared him for a moment. That's when Hawkeye finally came back and she gave a mug of hot chocolate to the boy.

"Drink this Edward" he looked at Hughes and Havoc with such a scary face that both of them tried to appear as small as they could.

"You won't leave him again alone, will you?"

"N..n..n…o…o." they answered in union. Roy smirked. Hawkeye could be scarier than he and Fullmetal together if she wanted to.

"You will regret it badly if you do" she said dangerously. They nodded maniacally and backed against the wall. "Fine. Then now let it be as it" she finally let hold of her gun. "We don't have time to get another men in place of them so you can't kill them" she informed Fullmetal. The boy clearly looked disappointed, but he didn't dare to oppose Hawkeye.

"So where the hell is Fuery? He should be here!" Roy looked around angrily.

"Falman went for him to the school" Hughes answered.

"WHAT? He didn't follow Fullmetal to the house of Smalt?" Roy shouted enraged.

"We don't know it for sure yet. He hasn't come in so Falman checks him there too."

"I told you! I told you it had been a really bad idea to leave him alone to watch Fullmetal" his previous fury came back with new force.

"Calm down, Roy! Nothing happened with Edward. And we don't know sure what happened with Fuery" but Roy didn't pay any mind to him.

"You heard Fullmetal. He went with a possible murderer because he thought that he was safe and covered. He counted on us and that moron let him alone. I will kill him." This time not even Hawkeye protested.

Ed was really tired and he wanted to go home. This whole ordeal exhausted him. And on the top of that the four adult continuously shot worried looks at him. It was unnerving. Somehow he was relieved that the Colonel didn't laugh at him when he admitted his weakness. He knew that he should have handled the situation better. But it wasn't entirely his fault. When Hughes and Havoc admitted that they left him alone he could have really strangled them. Of course he shouldn't rely on others too much. He was perfectly capable to deal with Charles. He just panicked. And it was the second time after what had happened with Barry the Chopper. What an idiot he was! Hughes and the others weren't alchemist. If Charles had been the culprit then it wouldn't have mattered if they had been there. It would have been Ed who could have fought with him. So he couldn't really blame them. Besides nothing serious happened. He was frightened shitless but nothing else. He drank the hot chocolate gratefully. It had an amazingly good effect on him and he felt himself better immediately. Maybe the problem was that his sugar level was too low.

"Thanks, Hawkeye" he said to her and she smiled back at him encouragingly. That's when Falman came into the room, Fuery coming after him closely.

"I hope you had a really good reason why you weren't with Fullmetal, Fuery" the Colonel attacked him immediately. Ed was also curious about the answer. Fuery looked really ashamed. He shivered and stopped at the other end of the room. He was clearly scared from the Colonel who looked menacingly at him.

"I don't have one, sir" the Colonel's eyes glittered dangerously and Hawkeye also grabbed her gun with a face which promised immediate death. "I… I didn't think that the major would go out from the school that early. I waited for the others for a long time. But I became so hungry. I hadn't eaten anything until then" the Colonel looked ready to kill him. "I didn't go far. There was a vendor next to the school I just ran there and back. It wasn't more than five minutes, sir. Ed must have left during that time and I didn't know. I am terribly…"

Slam.

The sound was strange for Edward. He watched with wide eyes horrified as the Colonel hit the terrified Fuery.

"Don't say you sorry, sergeant. You were on duty. You should have waited until the others arrived and relay you!" the Colonel shouted at the man who fell backwards from the hit. Ed wanted to say something, anything but he just couldn't find the words. The shock was too big. On the contrary Hawkeye was between the two men in an instant. She looked into Mustang's eyes with a pleading face. However the man seemed unperturbed by this and he looked ready to hit again. But then the soft voice of his lieutenant changed his posture.

"Sir, please. This is not the route you want to follow" they eyed each other for seconds and seemed as if they were silently communicating. And finally the man let down his hand and looked at Fuery somewhat shamefaced.

"Colonel, you should hit me too" Havoc stood before him. "It was equally my fault as Kain's. I shouldn't have left. If I had remained there with him than I could have watched the school while he was eating. He told me before that he hadn't had the time to eat anything"

"And it was also my fault, sir" Falman continued. "I also deserve punishment"

"And me too, sir. I was the senior officer there so the responsibility is mine" Hughes added sadly. Hawkeye glared at the Colonel meaningfully until the man sighed defeated.

"No. Neither of you deserves this. Look, Kain. I am, err, I am sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I am exhausted, angry and nervous because we still haven't caught the culprit and he killed another person. But I shouldn't have channeled my anger on you." Fuery looked at the Colonel flabbergasted.

"No, sir, I really deserved that and more. I made a huge mistake and endangered one of his own. You have the right to be angry."

"Of course I have" said the Colonel flatly, but after Hawkeye glared at him again he added "But it isn't an excuse for unjustified violence. I will never do that again." He helped Fuery up. The man's face was red where he was hit. He also seemed to be shivering.

"But I still owe an apologize to the major. I am terribly sorry, sir. I…"

"No" Edward interrupted him. "It doesn't really matter. Our culprit is an alchemist. You wouldn't have been any use in a battle. I am very capable of taking care of myself. So forget it" that was the best that Ed could think up at the moment. And even if it was partly an insult, the man looked grateful for it. "Now I want to go home. I am tired" Hawkeye nodded immediately.

"Yes it was a long day. Let's go." Ed stood up and followed her and Mustang out the room.

"Take care, boss" Havoc waved him.

"And be very careful" Hughes added. "But I am sure that Roy will protect you better than us" the Colonel looked back irritated at this. Ed had to fight against a blush as he remembered how he had wanted the man to appear in Smalt's house.

"And don't worry we won't fail again, sir" Fuery added determined. Ed nodded to them and he left along with his superior and Hawkeye.

Roy was exhausted and hated this day with passion. He even lost his control for a moment and it was a very rare occasion. He felt ashamed if he remembered what had happened with Fuery. He shouldn't have hit the man. The sergeant had made a mistake, yes it was true. But not he was the only one. Moreover it wasn't a fatal one. And even Roy admitted that Fuery couldn't have done anything either way. He would have been only a hindrance in an alchemist fight. So he was clearly unfair when he only punished him. And he shouldn't have punished him physically. That violence was below him. He never hit his men. He didn't believe in that kind of discipline. He should have punished him and the others too civilly. And he will do that later, after they finally finished this damned mission. He already enjoyed the thought of thinking out something really humiliating. But to hit one of his men was a really bad movement. It only destroys his authority and their loyalty. And what was the worst he had lost his mind before Fullmetal. How could he demand from the boy to act more judiciously if he looses his head just before him? But the kid didn't seem to react to what happened. He was much more calmer than when he had first seen him. He wasn't that pale and the fire was once again burned in his eyes. So at least nothing terribly wrong had happened and the boy could recover from the shock. Roy couldn't blame him or ridicule him because he had panicked before. He didn't even know why Fullmetal thought that he would laugh at him or call him childish. Even the adults and experienced soldiers could get into situations when they feel themselves out of control. When they panic and despair. And Fullmetal wasn't even an adult. Yes, Roy liked to humor him about his height and immature behavior, but he would never mock him about something like this. But it seemed that Fullmetal always assumed the worst about him. That time when he had talked with Al Roy was totally speechless. And when Fullmetal had shouted into his face that he had expected him to humiliate him about his suffering and make fun of his weakness he had nearly got sick. He never thought that the boy really could think that low about him. His short jibes and sarcastic remarks clearly told the boy that he couldn't trust in him. That Roy really didn't give a shit about his feelings. And Roy felt himself a monster for this. Fullmetal was a kid. He shouldn't have forgotten this even for a minute. He couldn't handle him like an adult in his expectations and then as a kid if he did something wrong. He had been thoughtless and destroyed any kind of sympathy that Fullmetal could have toward him. And now he had been also thoughtless when he had forced the boy to admit his weakness before a bunch of people when the kid had been clearly ashamed and upset. He should have waited until he calmed down a bit and have talked him in private. But what was done was done; now he should make peace with the boy. And it sounded difficult. Fullmetal clearly tried to get as far away from him as he could. But how could he assure the boy to trust him a bit more? Explain him that he never wanted to humiliate him? He thought that Fullmetal knew that his remarks just what they were: jokes with which he just wanted to form a bit easier atmosphere in a military center for a young boy. Fullmetal always reacted as if he knew. With his smartass remarks he seemed to enjoy their fights. But now it seemed that he was wrong.

Roy was so deep in his thought that he didn't even realize that they arrive home until Hawkeye opened the door and they went in.

"Edward, you should rest a bit. I go to the shop to buy some ingredients and I will cook something" Hawkeye said to the boy and smiled reassuringly at him. The kid smiled back a bit wobbly. The tense atmosphere of the morning between the two disappeared fully and the lieutenant watched the boy retreat with an understanding face.

"You should speak with him again, sir" Hawkeye pointed out strictly. "I don't think that you could settle everything yesterday" Roy just nodded. He also didn't think so.

"But I don't think that Fullmetal would want to see my right now."

"Just be a bit more understanding with him and take him seriously. He won't trust you if he feel that you just laugh at him and at his problems" and she left. Roy looked towards the room of Fullmetal. He didn't know what to tell the kid. But he knew that he had to say something after this. At least he had to assure the boy that what had happened in the house of Smalt was perfectly normal and he shouldn't feel ashamed for that. He sighed warily. That's why he hated to deal with children. They couldn't read between the lines and they needed everything to be explained. It was so annoying.

Ed was sitting on his bed thinking about the day's happening. It was a long and tiring day so he hoped that the Colonel won't send him out this night. He still couldn't fully comprehend what had happened before. He has never thought that the Colonel would hit one of his men. He have surely never hit Ed. Although he would have had plenty of reasons for it. Ed has screwed up many times already during his short time in the army. And Fuery mistake wasn't that big. He didn't kill anybody, didn't even harm anybody and didn't destroy anything. Why did the Colonel hit him then? He also had to know that it wasn't really mattered whether Fuery had followed him or not. Then why did he make such a big deal from this? Yes Ed had been also furious when he had found out that he had been totally left alone. He really wanted to beat all of the soldiers into a pulp. But Ed was Ed and the Colonel was the Colonel. The man always acted totally cool and calm. That outburst wasn't like him. But it wasn't the first time the Colonel acted strangely. For example during his illness. The man had been really strange then. He had been kind to him, helped him and hadn't even complained about it. And he didn't blame him for the last murder. More then that yesterday he had even tried to assure Ed that it hadn't been his fault. And today at the morning he hadn't berated him because he had used alchemy. And he hadn't ridiculed him about his admission. He didn't really understand the man.

Then someone knocked on his door.

"What?" he shouted out.

"It's me" came the voice of the Colonel. "May I come in?" he just grunted. He didn't really feel like talking with the man. But the man interpreted the absence of objection as a permission.

"What do you want?" he demanded adversely.

"Are we in a bad mood, Fullmetal?" the man smirked but then he turned his face into a serious expression. "We have to talk."

"Hawkeye forced you again?" Ed teased him evilly.

"No. Now I think that's necessary" Ed looked at him interestedly. What the man was thinking? "Back then I didn't have the time and chance to tell you that I would never laugh about something like your understandable panic. It's natural to fear in situations like that, Fullmetal. Everybody would feel the same. You were alone with someone who could kill you and only a bloody corpse there near you. It was natural to fear. But I know you, Edward and I know that you didn't act childish. I think you would have fought if you had needed to" Ed looked at the man flabbergasted. He acted strange again. Why he wanted to tell him this? It didn't really matter.

"I kicked him" he stated bluntly.

"What?" asked the Colonel surprised.

"I kicked him. He grabbed my arm and I… I didn't think. It was a reflex. He never wanted to hurt me. I don't know what would have happened if he had wanted to."

"See? That what I am talking about. You defended yourself. If he had attacked you then you would have beaten him into a pulp. I am sure about it" Ed smiled a bit at this. The Colonel was really a strange person. He could never figure him out. But he was grateful for his words. He felt himself horrible then, but now the whole memory became better. Yes he would have surely kicked the man's ass if he had needed to.

"Thanks. But I think I don't understand."

"What?" the Colonel looked back at him questioningly. Did he have to play numb?

"Why are you so kind to me now?" the man face remained serious as he sighed.

"About that. I think I… I think you misunderstood me, Fullmetal" Ed looked back at him with firm eyes. Now it will come something like "I am not kind to you but if you childishly blame yourself for everything you will endanger the mission…"But instead of that the man said something totally unexpected.

"I never wanted to ridicule you, Fullmetal. I thought you understand that my teasings are only jokes. I never intended to say that I don't trust you or I think you are childish. Although you surely are sometimes. But it's nothing you should be ashamed. You are very young, Fullmetal and I never expect from you to be an adult all the time. But I would have never invited you into the army if I hadn't thought that you could be one if you needed to be. And you have never disappointed me. Never."

Roy watched the kid's reaction closely. The boy was clearly surprised and speechless. Roy hoped he didn't go too far. He didn't want to seem a fool in front of Fullmetal. The boy just stared at him for moments and it started to become unnerving. Should he say anything else? No, he thought he told the boy enough. He wasn't an idiot, he had to understand from this. When he was finally about to ask him if he was okay Fullmetal finally spoke up.

"Of course I knew this Colonel Bastard. I knew that I am your best weapon. And I never took seriously your stupid tauntings. Nobody would take your nonsenses seriously anyway. I never gave a crap about your stupid remarks. They weren't even creative. They reflected the speaker's empty head" Roy was taken aback. Fullmetal acted like… then he finally understood. He broke into a smile.

"Really, Fullmetal? But my remarks was just equal to your weight"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL THAT HE COULD DISAPPEAR BETWEEN THE AIR'S MOLEKULES?" Roy chuckled.

"It sounds really true" then he became serious again. "If we cleaned up this matter then how are you, Fullmetal? Honestly. Not just physically." The boy looked back at him pondering. He looked like he would answer him like always. He even opened his mouth then shook his head and sighed. Roy watched him curiously.

"It was bad. I felt myself terrible then and it was hard to come back. But now it's better. The hot chocolate helped me a lot. You just can't remain gloomy while you are drinking something that delicious, don't you thing? Don't worry, tomorrow I won't even remember this stupid day" Roy smiled at this. Edward was tried to be honest with him and it felt good.

"I am happy about this. But I am a bit surprised too. I thought you hated milk" the boy eyed him suspiciously.

"I do" he smiled at him evilly.

"Then you didn't know that the hot chocolate usually made of milk?" Fullmetal paled considerably.

"Hawkeye would never…" Roy let him suffering a bit more than he began to laugh hard.

"You should have seen your face. It was priceless" the boy looked back at him enraged. "Don't worry. Hawkeye went into the kitchen and specially asked for a hot chocolate from water" Fullmetal still watched him doubtfully.

"Seriously?"

"She didn't say it, but I am sure she did. You know her. I bet she would have even taken up her gun against the poor cooker if he hadn't obeyed" Fullmetal chuckled at this too.

"It doesn't really matter" he added then. Roy looked at him questioningly so the boy continued. "I mean, I also like stew. Even if there is milk in it. I just… I just don't want to know" Then he looked at him speculatively. Roy gulped at this. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what was in Fullmetal's mind.

"You know, you promised me something" Roy looked at him blankly

"What?" he didn't remember that he would have promised the brat anything.

"In the hospital" Roy still didn't know what he was talking about. "You said that you would come with me and buy me more sweets if I get better" Roy was clueless for a moment then he finally remembered. Yes he indeed said something like that. Even if he was sure that Fullmetal won't remember anything about that.

"But you refused my offer. You said you couldn't be bribed with candies."

"I was sick and didn't think clearly. But you promised either way" Roy watched him hesitating. What could be the aim of the brat? But he couldn't think any harm from this so he nodded.

"Fine. Tomorrow, after your school time we will go and buy you some sweets. You wait for me before the school. Let's see… around two 'o clock."

"Perfect" the boy beamed happily and Roy couldn't help but smile. Yes, Fullmetal was clearly a kid. But he could be an amiable child if he wanted to be. "And Colonel…"

"Yes?"

"You hit like a girl."

Hi there. We are getting really close to the end. I think there are three more chapters left. So if you have any tips about our murderer, please tell me. Is it Charles or not? I am really interested about what you think and why. It's a kind of feedback to me. So until the next chappie bye-bye:)