Author's note:

Hello! Finally a new chapter! This is the longest one so far! I hope y'all enjoy it. There's some good Edwin content in this chapter and I hope I'm not overloading y'all with them. That's my biggest worry. Buckle up and enjoy! This chapter is a wild ride!

Ed didn't know how long they sat there. He just knew that Winry was right, he could do this. He could stop this Damian Anamala before he killed anyone else. If Winry and Al were safe with Mustang and the team then nothing bad could happen to them. He'd make sure of it. He decided it was finally time to go and talk to the team and figure out a way to stop this guy.

He stood up, his back screaming from the uncomfortable position. Ed held out his hand and helped Winry stand up. She stretched and smiled at him.

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Yeah. You helped me see that I can do this and I believe you."

Winry smiled at him and punched him softly in the arm. Ed smiled and pulled her into a hug, burying his face into her blonde hair.

"Thank you." He whispers. Winry smiles. He pulls back but kisses her softly. He goes to the sink and splashes water in his face before he opens the door.

"Y' know one day we're going to have to stop sneaking kisses in private."

Ed rolls his eyes at the smile in her voice.

"Well, I'm waiting for that day to come." He smiles and reaches behind him to squeeze her hand.

Everyone stares as he and Winry walk back into the room. The team all turn their attention to him as he walks in.

"You ok, Ed?" Al asks, placing a metal hand on his shoulder.

He nods. "Just had to take a minute."

He missed the look Mustang gave Hawkeye as Ed settled down on one of the couches, Winry beside him.

"I can continue now. I've calmed down. Don't think I was gone, I hope." He smirked at Mustang.

Mustang rolls his eyes and smirks himself. "No, Fullmetal. You weren't gone that long. We were just discussing how we could possibly catch this Damian Anamala."

Ed hopes his face doesn't show the annoyance he's feeling. He hopes that they remember that Damian Anamala only wants him and nobody else. An unsettling thought occurs for a second.

'Are they planning to come with me when I go and meet him?'

Ed lingers for a second on that thought. He hopes that they won't try to come with him. He doesn't want to be responsible for anyone else getting hurt if things turn violent. He ends the thought before he gets carried away. He's worrying too much. They have to know he's the only one who can handle their killer, right? Well, he sure hopes they know.

"This Anamala guy is confusing. It's like he has no motive, or maybe he has one but we're having a hard time figuring out."

Suddenly, Ed remembers. This Anamala did have a motive! It didn't occur to him at the time but it made a lot of sense right now.

"Wait! I think I might've figured out the motive!" He gasped out.

It all made sense once he thought about it. The murders beginning in May when his daughter had been murdered in March. It could have been very well possible that he himself had tried to bring back his daughter. That part would've made sense, but depending on what was given up, wouldn't it have taken him much longer to recover.

"Could it be possible that our killer tried to bring back his daughter through Human Transmutation and that's the reason why the first murders were delayed?" Ed asked in anticipation.

Mustang was silent for a moment as he thought about the possibility.

"It's certainly possible, but that's only a theory for now." Al turned to look at him, a thought occurring to him.

"What is the possibility that he is using them to bring her back. They lose maybe an arm, leg, something of the sort. He doesn't want them telling anyone that he committed the taboo, so he kills them by cutting off other body parts as well and slits their throats for good measure."

"Again, that's just an added on theory to what Fullmetal theorized. Maybe it's just random that the murders started a month or two after his daughter was murdered." Mustang said condescendingly.

"Then what do you think happened? You're discrediting what both of us think, so what do you think?" Ed hisses.

Mustang smirks. Hawkeye rolls her eyes at him. She really didn't get why he loved annoying Ed.

"I have no working theory at the moment. It would probably be best to wait and capture this guy before finding the motive."

Ed shakes his head in annoyance. He truly did not understand his idiot of a superior. Was he really the only one who really cared about this guy's motive? He stifles a sigh, this was the exact reason he was going to find this guy himself and bring him in.

"Colonel, that is a good theory though." Havoc pipes up. He didn't miss how the team seemed to be agreeing with him. Heck, maybe all the victims weren't used in the transmutation, but it was the best guess they had at the moment. It seemed like the others agreed with him.

Mustang's normally passive face twisted into annoyance. "Fullmetal, please tell us about the limbs that are usually lost during Human Transmutations." He barely kept the growl from his voice.

Ed glared at Mustang and the man just smirked. He really hated this man sometimes. Ed huffed a sigh.

"Well, from when I researched, it varies from person to person what limb is lost. In my case, you know I lost my right arm and left leg. Al lost his body. From what I researched arms and legs are the most common price paid for performing the transmutation."

Mustang turned to Hawkeye and she turned her attention to him. Lieutenant, do we have the autopsy reports for all of the victims." Hawkeye nodded and went to the file cabinet and looked around.

Ed turned to look at Winry. "You see what I have to deal with now?" He whispered.

Winry rolled her eyes and stifled a laugh. She softly punched him in the shoulder and he smiled. If Al could smile devilishly he would. Did they really think that they were keeping their relationship secret? He was happy that his brother had someone could rely on other than him for once.

Al's thought is broken when Mustang sets down the thick book of the records of the murders. Ed leans in as Mustang flips through the pages, studying the wounds each woman had.

Each victim had at least one of their arms amputated. Some were missing an arm along with a leg. This partially proved his and Al's theory about each victim having the same wounds. This didn't prove that it was from the result of transmutation, though. The wounds could've come from their killer himself.

Mustang scowled down at the pictures of the victims. "It still doesn't prove that these women actually prove that our killer used transmutation and these women lost limbs because of it."

Ed smirked. This was probably the only time where he would ever see Mustang this annoyed and stumped with a motive.

"I guess we can wait until we catch the guy. The motive will probably become clearer once we catch the guy." Ed says. He looks down at his watch. It's 7:30. He's surprised that he didn't even notice that the sun had set.

Everyone falls into silence as they think about Damian Anamala, hoping that they'll be able to catch him. After a while, Ed stands up and stretches. He's ready to get out of here. He suddenly realizes that his favorite hilltop will have a cloudless view of the night sky. On clear nights one could see the stars perfectly. It would be the perfect place to go with Winry. She would love it. She had always loved the stars.

"I'm gonna go now, colonel. I need to catch up on a lead. I overheard someone talking about a possible philosopher's stone." He lies.

He sees Mustang's eyes narrow, but the colonel doesn't mention how bad his lie sounds. Mustang nods to him, apparently not finding the lie worth mentioning.

Winry stands and stretches her back out. "You coming, Al?" She asks. He jolts a little.

"Actually, Alphonse and I need to have a conversation with the others."

Ed's eyes narrow. Why did Mustang need to talk to Al? Multiple reasons flutter through his mind. None of them were good.

Ed wasn't as naive as his superior believed. He could easily tell that Al was in on what the colonel was planning. A slight flutter of annoyance flooded him. Did they really think that he was that stupid? He could be careful when he wanted to, which wasn't often. Well, then again maybe the colonel really did think he was stupid. That would work in his favor.

'Let them try to stop me. I'm not letting them get in my way.'

He knew that Al was probably just really worried about him. He did remember how yesterday he had left their dorm dejectedly. Al wouldn't be able to create a detailed plan himself. Ed had a slight suspicion that Mustang had convinced Al to join his plan. A flutter of disgust floods him at the thought of Mustang trying to stop him.

Well, he couldn't confront the man right now. The man might set his the plan in action the moment Ed mentioned anything. He'll just have to be extra careful sneaking around to the street where he had to meet their killer.

"Ok Al. I'll see you back at the dorms." He opened the door for Winry. He glared one last time at the colonel, warning him to not get in his way. He didn't see the colonel's expression as he closed the door. He smiled and wrapped an arm around Winry.

"C'mon, I got a really cool place to show you."

Winry's face lit up. He really loved that smile

Roy sighs as Ed closed the door. He turned to Al, his face his usual mask of passiveness.

"Colonel, I think brother is beginning to figure out what's going on." Roy can sense the concern in Al's voice.

None of the group missed how Ed's eyes narrowed when Mustang asked Al to wait.

"I agree, colonel. The way he started talking like he was going to let us come along. He could tell something was up." Breda says.

The rest of the team nods. Roy pinches the bridge of his nose. It was too late to back down from the plan now.

"We don't have the time to change the plan. Plus, I doubt he knows the extent we've planned it." Roy turns to Havoc.

"Do you have the ketamine?" Havoc nodded. He had gone out to get it earlier from.

"I just hope Ed doesn't put up a big fight." Fuery worries.

Al lets out a metallic sigh. "I know brother. He's going to fight hard. If he believes in something, then he's going to follow through."

Roy groans in response. Ed was going to be the death of him. It relieved him that the kid wasn't up to full stamina and wouldn't be able to fight for long. Maybe a few minutes at tops before they got him pinned down and the ketamine injected.

Roy knew that what happened tonight could change his relationship with his subordinate forever. He's already prepared himself for Ed hating him. He just hopes that one day the kid will understand and maybe everything would be able to be patched up.

Ed smiled as he looked down at his hand holding Winry's. They were walking to Creshan Hill, a popular spot to watch the stars this time of year and the best place to see Central. It was breezy and he didn't miss that Winry shivered a little.

He pulled his coat off and wrapped it around her shoulders before taking her hand again. She smiled at him. His breath caught in his throat, she was so beautiful in the moonlight. His heart swelled with happiness as he looked at her. Was it possible to feel this at peace? He hoped he would be able to feel like this all the time once he got Al's body back.

"Are we almost there?" Winry groaned. "We've been walking for ages."

Ed smirked. He slightly tightened his hold on Winry's hand. "Just a little further. We're almost there." He playfully rolled his eyes when Winry sighed.

It was just a few minutes later when they finally reached the top of the hill. Winry looked around, perplexed by where they were at. Her eyes lit up as she saw the view.

"Wow." She breathed. The distant twinkling lights of Central were beautiful in the moonlit night. She turned to him, eyes shining.

"It's so beautiful." Ed nodded and smiled.

"The sky looked like this the night we kissed for the first time."

"Really?" Winry stepped closer to him and hung her arms around his shoulders. He nodded.

"The best decision I've easily ever made."

Winry had to turn away for a second, tears burning her eyes. She was so happy with him. Winry had never considered herself to be beautiful. She found herself attractive, but not beautiful. When she looked at Ed, she saw every emotion about her. He thought she was beautiful, smart, so very smart.

"Winry, are you ok?" He gently touched her shoulder, turning her to him. He was surprised to see tears on her cheeks.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked gently. He gently brushed the tears away from her face.

Winry shook her head and laughed through tears. "It makes me so happy that you want to be with me. I don't know how or why you would want to."

Ed laughs. Winry glares at him but smiles. He gently takes her face in his hands.

"I want to because I love you."

Ed's breath caught in his throat. Had he really just said that? He licks his lips. He definitely meant it. He loved Winry Rockbell with everything he had in him. She was his dream girl, his everything. Ed would love her one way or another.

Winry's eyes filled with tears as she smiled.

"I love you, Ed."

Ed's smile widened. He had hoped Winry had felt the same way. He never did miss how she would make time for them to be together when he and Al did come home. He had only noticed the change in her expression as she looked at him a few weeks ago when he came home for automail work.

Ed leans in and rests his forehead against her's. He breathes softly, their noses brushing.

Winry makes the first move and kisses him. Ed's eyes close and he reciprocates the kiss, his heart pounding.

He pulls her closer to him, desperate to feel all of her. He feels something deep in his chest, a primal instinct. He wants her, wants her so badly. He wants all of her. His breathing picks up and so does hers.

Before he knows what he's doing, he's pushing her to the ground, settling himself on top of her. Her legs are wrapping around his waist. He's grabbing her hands and locking them in place behind her head.

He doesn't know how long they kissed for when they finally stop.. Their hearts are pounding and their breathing is heavy. He's leaning his head to rest against her's. She caresses his face and leaves a soft kiss on his lips. If she had it her way, they'd stay here all night. He's giving her that look again. The look where his golden eyes shine like stars for her. The look that made her insides melt.

He laughs breathlessly and moves to where he's on his side, caressing her blonde hair. They don't speak for several minutes as they watch each other. Then, she moves closer to him and buries her face in his chest. He smiles. He loves this, he loves them. He loves how he can open up emotionally around her.

Ed thought about how she had promised to wait for him. His heart ached at how long he would have to wait for her. He doesn't know why she's willing to wait for him. He can't wait for her. He wants her to be his. He knows that she wants him to be hers. He knows what he has to do. He just hopes that she will agree.

"Win." He looks down at her, nudging her a little.

"Hmm?" Her brow furrows and he knows she can sense his anxiety a little.

She sits up a little to stare into his golden eyes. Her expression changes into concern.

"Are you ok?" She gently brushes her hands through his hair.

He nods, taking her hands in his. He takes a deep breath, preparing himself.

"I...I don't want to wait for you. You don't deserve that. I don't know how long I'm going to be here for,"

Winry opens her mouth to protest. He knows what she must be thinking. That he was suggesting that they go their separate ways. He presses a finger against her lips.

"I want to move forward. I want you, Win. I want to be your partner," He blushes and tightens his hold on her hand.

"I want to be in a relationship with you. I want you to be my girlfriend. I want to make it official. I don't want to hide it anymore." He looks down at his lap. Winry doesn't make a sound. He feels her shift. He's surprised when he feels her lift his chin to look him directly in the eyes.

He's surprised by the emotions he sees in them. Determination, love, and one he doesn't know if he can identify.

"Ed, are you sure? You've said it yourself, being a state alchemist is dangerous and you make a lot of enemies. I want to be yours one hundred percent, but can you be a state alchemist and protect me at the same time?"

He sighs. She brought up a good point. The reason she was willing to wait was that he did have many enemies. People who would do anything to try and harm him. He doesn't know know if he can do both but he's willing to try. He's willing to fight for her if he had to.

"I don't know if I can, but I can sure try,"

He watches her smile widen but there is still worry on her face.

"What if one of your enemies does catch me? What would you do?"

"Let them try. They'll learn why nobody should touch Winry Rockbell again." He snarls.

Winry smiles and hides her face in his chest. She's so happy right now. She decides that a little teasing is in order.

"Well, if you insist. I will be your girlfriend, Mr. State alchemist," Ed rolls his eyes.

"Wait until Al and everyone else finds out about us. They'll know that ' prodigy' is head over heels in love with his childhood friend." She snickers, taking his hand.

"Win, stop!" He whines. Her heart lights up when he presses a kiss to the top of her head. He stands up, stumbling slightly. He takes her hands and helps her up. He quickly takes out his pocket watch. She frowns at his grimace.

He sighs and puts the watch away. "I think we need to go back. It's 11:40. I want to get back in time to drop you safely back at my dorm." She nods. He takes her hand and they start on the walk back.

Ed opens the door to the room, letting Winry in first. She thanks him. Winry smiles at Al as he comes to greet them. Winry handed Ed's coat back to him and he put it on.

"Did the two of you have a nice walk?

Winry could feel an eye roll incoming from Ed. She definitely knew what Al was getting at. Ok, maybe they hadn't exactly hidden their relationship the best they could for the past year. Winry knew how Al loved teasing Ed about her and their relationship.

Ed nodded, "We did. We went to that hill that I really like going sometimes."

"Anything interesting happen?" Ed knew exactly what Al was getting out now. He wanted to know if anything had happened between the two of them.

He looked at Winry. Silently telling her that he would tell Al about their relationship when this was all over.

"No, nothing interesting." He goes to his desk and grabs the gloves that he usually wears. He slides them on. He glances at his watch again. The time showed 12:15. Fifteen minutes before he had to meet their killer.

He looked at Al and Winry, taking them in. He was growing a little nervous about doing this, but he knew he had to. He breathed in deeply and released the breath. He knew that both Winry and Al could tell how nervous he was.

"Well, this is it." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. He saw Winry's eyes fill with tears. She was worried about him. They had talked about him being careful on the way over. He ad reassured her that there was no reason to worry.

He's surprised when Winry has him in a tight hug. She's pressing her face against his shoulder. He can feel her shaking and he knows she's trying to be strong for him. He knows something could go wrong on this mission and so does she, but he's going to come back. Al surprisingly joins in on the hug.

Ed's heart aches. He knows that Al doesn't want him to do this. He's already resigned himself to letting Al down this one time. It doesn't hurt any less. He pulls back from them and looks at both of them.

"I'm going to go now. I have to meet this guy soon."

Al is silent for a moment before he nods.

"I know you don't approve Al, but thank you for not trying to stop me." He holds out his fist for Al to bump.

Al bumps his fist back. He smiles up at his little brother, thankful for him seeming to understand.

"I hope to not be gone for too long. Might take a few hours to get everything settled once I get him to Mustang and all that."

Al nodded. "Just be careful, brother."

Ed nodded. "I will. I promise."

Winry stepped forward and punched him in the shoulder. He saw all he needed to in her eyes. He nodded.

He walked to the door and nodded to the both of them. He knew he was doing the right thing. So why did his heart hurt leaving Al behind?

Ed creeps through the dark alley. Everything was going alright so far. He was close to twelfth and Susana now. It was a few streets away. His nervousness was picking up a little. That was understandable, he had never met with a murderer before.

Ed soon comes to realize that he's hearing footsteps behind him. He risks a glance of looking behind. He's startled when he sees the silhouette of a person behind him. He stares for a moment before turning around.

His heart leaps in his throat when he sees Colonel Mustang and his team in front of him. He growls in annoyance. Another look behind him confirms its Breda as he gets closer.

"What's going on?" He growls as he walks to stand before Mustang.

Mustang doesn't answer him. He watches as Havoc steps up beside Mustang and takes out a vial and syringe from his pocket. His breath catches in his throat. No. No! They were not going to do this. They were trying to stop him and by the looks of it through drugs.

"Fullmetal, you're going to come with us back to HQ or we use this and take you back by force."

Ed's hackles rose. They were not taking him anywhere without a fight. Was this what Mustang had been keeping Al behind for? They were planning to go as far as drugging him just because he needed to catch their killer?

A flash of hurt runs through him. Al had agreed to this? If he didn't come quietly then they were going to do this? Hatred passed through his face as he stared at Mustang.

"I knew you could stoop to low places, Mustang, but this? You manipulated my brother into agreeing with this?" He snarled.

He brought his hands up, preparing to clap.

"Fullmetal, think about this. We really don't want to have to take you down."

"Listen chief, we can go with you. This is not something you can do alone."

Ed shook his head. They really didn't get it. He was not going to let anyone stop him from taking down a killer who was murdering innocents because of him.

He clapped and pressed his hands into the ground.

Blue alchemic energy flew up around him. He transmuted a wall in front of him, then transmuted pillars to jump onto the wall of the alley. He ran down the wall. He yelped when he felt a flash of fire behind him. Was the bastard colonel trying to get him killed?

He lept across to the opposite wall and turned into another section of the alley, hoping to lose them.

Ed skidded to a halt when Breda and Hawkeye appeared before him. He snarled and slammed his hands together. He transmuted another pillar, intending to land there. He never got the chance to finish his leap. A wall of fire appeared before him.

He let out a sharp gasp, dodging the fire. He fell harshly onto his side. Ed was winded for a second.

He managed to sit up. Ed looked to his right and left. His left contained colonel Mustang, Hawkeye, and Fuery watching him. To the right were Havoc and Breda. They were cornering him!

Ed snarled like a feral dog. He clapped, intending to transmute a hole to get out the alley. The alchemic energy flickered away and dove into the hole. He was a few feet in when something wrapped around his ankle, pulling him backward.

He managed to look behind himself. His eyes widened. How had Mustang managed to transmute a vine? Ed thought he only knew flame alchemy. No! How had he gotten him so easily?

Ed growled and transmuted his automail arm into a blade. He tried sawing through the vine when he felt another one wrap around his other leg. His heart beat furiously as he clapped his hands. He stopped. What would he even transmute to get out of this? He dug his fingers into the earth desperately trying to hang on.

The muscles in his flesh leg cried out in protest as his grip on the earth stopped him from moving. The aching turned into sharp pain as the tugging got harder. Finally, he had to let go. If it was a physical fight they wanted, then it was what they were going to get.

The vines finally brought him to the top. He felt hands on his legs. They were trying to holding him down! He kicked out his legs, trying to loosen the grip on him. The grip on his legs went away as he kicked out with his automail. That's when he noticed. Al was there. He had made those vines.

He felt hurt flash through him as he stared up at his little brother. How had e not heard the metallic clanking or his voice approaching? "I'm sorry, brother," Al said.

His heart beat wildly as he was finally pulled back up. The team was closer to him now. He saw the syringe in Havoc's hand. He wasn't going to win this.

His breathing came fast as lashed out at the hands around him. They felt like the tiny black hands that drug him into the gate. Breda's strong grip latched onto his arm. He managed to get Breda's arm off of him and made to run when the man tackled him to the ground.

He reached his automail behind him, trying to punch the man. Breda gripped the automail arm and pinned it with a strong grip. He was too focused on Breda's grip to notice Hawkeye pinning his other arm. He didn't realize until he couldn't move.

Adrenaline flooded through him. He bucked against them, desperate to throw them off.

"Hold his legs." He heard. Someone sat on his legs, effectively stopping any chance he had to get away. Terror flooded him now. This couldn't be happening. It had to be a dream. A bad dream. He had failed. More people were going to die now.

"No! Let me go!" He yelled. He snarled as footsteps approached his head. "I have to meet him! More people are going to die!"

A hand approached his face and he snapped out at his. He earned a yelp in response. It had been Mustang's yelp.

"Brother, calm down."

Calm down? Calm down! He was perfectly fine! They were the ones stopping him. He was not going to calm down when people were at stake!

He bucked against the wait on him, nothing moved. "Hold his head, Al."

He felt Al's gauntlet press down on his head, forcing his face into the concrete.

No!

No!

No!

His heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest. His breaths came out sharp and fast. Now he could move nothing.

"Its ok, brother. This is for the best."

No, it wasn't! They didn't understand.

He heard Havoc kneel by his face. Havoc's fingers were cold against the warmth of his neck. Hot tears built up behind his eyes as hopelessness overwhelmed him. How had this happened within a matter of minutes? It didn't feel real.

Havoc's fingers trailed down to the base of his neck, feeling around. He snarled at the touch.

"Sorry, chief. Had to find the right muscle." He heard shifting around and his heart stopped when he felt the needle pushing into his skin.

"Please No." He whispered.

His plea went unanswered. The liquid shot into his muscle, chilling him.

"No! Let me go! Please!" He tried to once again fight against the hands. It took him a good minute to finally be able to get someone to let their grip go.

Whatever he had been injected with was starting to take effect. He felt a flash of panic overtake him as his muscle seemed to stop responding to him. He snarled at his body to move, to do anything.

Hands removed themselves from him when they thought it was safe and he took the chance they gave him.

The drug had slowed him down, he couldn't stand up, couldn't move well really. The hands returned to pin him down once more.

His eyelids felt incredibly heavy and he tried to keep them open. He lost that fight too. His eyelids slid shut. His senses left one by one. Touch disappeared first and then his hearing.

Finally, he surrendered, letting himself be dragged down into the inky darkness of unconsciousness.