Thank you so much to the handful of reviewers! First time writing in this fandom so if you have any suggestions for plot or character please throw it at me :D

Chapter 2 - For Ishval

Roy's mind kept replaying what he had seen and still couldn't comprehend what Edward Elric-Hughes had pulled off.

Who says I was using only one array?

The boy had no tattoos, or so he had been told, which meant… Either he had hidden something on him, or he didn't need to draw arrays to perform Alchemy.

Which was impossible.

But then the boy shouldn't have been able to draw a perfect circle with a series of intricately overlapped patterns for what Roy was betting had been the plumbing of the fountain with just a bit of chalk on a stick.

Maes's house was tightly packed with their whole team assembled, but Gracia was as welcoming as ever.

Two little girls darted out of the kitchen, a woman —he knew by description must be Mrs. Tucker— was distractedly scribbling notes in a corner.

Elicia and Nina ran at Ed who easily scooped both girls up in his arms.

"Did you pass!?" Nina asked.

"Yes, he passed," Roy answered dryly.

"Did you get a new name?" Elicia asked.

"He'll get a moniker tomorrow," Maes said cheerfully, taking everyone's jackets.

Ed stuck his tongue out Maes who laughed when the girls started making silly faces, wiggling in Ed's arm.

Roy felt a fresh wave of sorrow pass through him.

Did his best friend really think he would ever purposely endanger his son? Hell, seeing them like this, he regretted the boy had applied to being a State Alchemist at all. Just because the boy was drinking age didn't mean he was ready to join the military.

Maybe the academy but not straight to the rank of Major, even if the boy had finished a six-hour exam in a single hour.

The girls chattering took centre stage as everyone settled in, filling up the living room.

Considering everyone employed in the room needed to take off military jackets and boots it did take a bit.

He noticed that Ed had a metal foot, and when he took off his gloves and outer layer, leaving him in a black tank top looser than the black T-shirt everyone else was wearing, he saw that his right arm was automail as well.

Two amputations before sixteen, knowing Maes, likely before the age of eleven was a tad startling.

"Got a story for that metal?" Havoc asked.

Ed flashed him a grin, "Got into a fight with a drunken bear."

"No!" Elicia exclaimed. "It was a tiger!"

"A ninja tiger!" Nina joined in before collapsing on Ed's side in a wave of giggles.

"My apologies," Ed said before meeting Havoc's gaze and spoke as if completely serious. "It was a ninja tiger, with two swords. Luckily, Dad came around to save me."

Havoc, proving he was only an idiot when he wanted to be, returned in a worried tone, "What happened to the tiger?"

"Ninja tiger," Elicia insisted.

Havoc nodded, "What happened to the ninja tiger?"

"Dad let it live," Ed said with a heavy sigh. "My fault, of course, he had to get me to safety."

"It's why you never insult a ninja tiger with two swords on a Wednesday," Nina said sagely.

"Wednesday?" Breda asked.

Falman whacked Breda's shoulder, "Of course, Wednesday. Don't you know anything about ninja tigers, fool?"

Nina and Elicia exploded into peels of laughter, which got everyone else laughing as well.

Roy caught Maes' expression, he was smiling but not laughing. Roy guessed that the boy's automail was a lot less of a light hearted affair.

The rest of the evening passed with cake and later that night, they went out to dinner at a restaurant. Being the ranking officer, as well as the reason transferred to Central City, Roy paid.

In a single afternoon, Ed had proven how sharp he was. that wasn't always a given, some alchemists were smart acedemically but fell short in other areas. So far the kid had only proven that aside from reading, he wasn't all that keen on doing things for himself. Roy was beginning to worry about the responsibility of likely becoming Ed's supervising officer.

They remained in the restaurant even as the other patrons found their way home. Elicia had fallen asleep in Ed's arms, Nina and her mother had returned home, as the rest of the team lingered with tea and coffee.

"So," Breda asked Edward. "Do you have plans for your signing bonus?"

The signing bonus was nearly half of a State Alchemist's salary. It was one of the biggest drives to get Alchemists to even attempt the exam. After Ishval, and several other tragic and horrific events, the State Alchemist program had seen a sharp decline in candidates and in a good year signed on two to three new Alchemists. But there had been a few years when not a single candidate had passed muster.

The signing bonus was no trouble when of the fifty alchemists who had taken the exam, Edward was the only one who was likely to receive his watch.

At Breda's question, however, Ed ducked his head.

"Edward," Maes immediately warned.

Ed looked up, and the boy definitely was aware of the effect those gold eyes had, his face looking a bit younger, "I already had it commissioned, the mechanics agreed to let me pay on install."

"Edward," Maes said, exasperated and disappointed.

Ed winced, "I had them highly customised."

Gracia gave Ed an unimpressed look, "We are your parents, Edward."

"What are you talking about?" Havoc asked.

"Automail," Maes and Gracia said together in the same disapproving tone, not taking their eyes off Ed.

Roy exchanged a look with Riza, understanding passing between them. Automail could be expensive, and from what Maes had implied, Edward seemed to barely tolerate being dependant at best.

It was a good look into a boy under his charge that he might avoid proper medical care to avoid troubling anyone.

Ed's expression turned stubborn, "First, they are already built, and second, they are military grade. If I need something that can handle bullets in my job, then my paycheck can pay for that."

"You've grown," Maes stated, unamused.

"I had Matthew take measurements and I had him take them again this week, the new ones will make up for added height," Ed argued.

The boy wasn't that tall.

"It's not as simple as pinchy shoes," Maes protested. "I can afford—"

"I can afford it. And if you want me to, I can upgrade every six months, but only if I'm paying for it. Everything you have given me is more than enough," Ed's voice stayed low to avoid waking the little girl in his arms.

"That is not the point," Maes said.

Ed seemed done with this conversation, shutting it down the way only a teenager could, "If you want to pay for the automail, I can start paying rent or move out."

Several emotions swam across Maes's expression before he said, voice not giving an inch, "You could have permanently damaged your back with a too short leg."

"I made a few extensions," Ed said.

"Ed."

"I have to get the port joints replaced," Ed said in a rush.

Maes took off his glasses to rub his eyes, his silence speaking his disappointment loud and clear.

Edward looked suddenly much, much, younger with the guilt that crossed his expression. "Matthew said I should go back to my original mechanic if possible."

"Edward," Maes sighed, replacing his glasses and looking much older. "I can't take off that much time on such short notice and Elicia has just started school."

"It's not something he could do alone?" Havoc asked.

"It is something I can do alone," Ed said. "You know how fast I bounce back."

Maes glared at him, "For a port replacement?" He held up a hand to stall Ed's protests. "It's not even that worried about your physical health, I mean I am, but the trauma of reconnecting nerves to a mechanical prosthetic can affect your neurological reactions. And despite what you believe, that is something you have no control over."

Trauma.

That was almost a nice way to put it. Roy knew a number of people who had tried to get Automail and hadn't been able to handle the nerve attachment. From all accounts, it was torture. To have a limb that functioned with your nerves was a gift, but it came at a very high cost.

"Where is your original mechanic?" Gracia asked.

Ed grimaced, "Resembool."

Maes sighed.

Fortunately, this was something Roy could help with. "The next few weeks we are just settling into the Central offices from East City. We can spare a person."

Maria perked up and she said to Maes, "We just took on new hires too. Denny can watch over them and I can go with Ed."

"I can't ask—" Maes began.

"He's a State Alchemist with automail. If his automail is not at peek performance they will just force him to take the time off and assign him a guard anyway," Roy said, then flashed Ed a humourless smirk. "State Alchemists are a dying breed."

Dogs of the military.

Sometimes the State truly treated them like prized pets. If they were on the frontlines, it was to make an impression, but oftentimes, they were stored away behind desk jobs until those key moments to reshape history.

Maes let out a long breath, seeming to suddenly realise that. He had been so focused on keeping his son safe, on the worst aspects of becoming a State Alchemist, he had forgotten some of the benefits.

Like the prioritising of healthcare and the fact that an Alchemist as young as Ed would be assigned to a team that would double as his guard. The State would bend over backwards to ensure Edward's health.

Bradley himself was likely to take an interest in an Alchemist he could groom so thoroughly.

Too bad for him, Maes Hughes was one of the best military strategic minds in the country. As long as Ed lived with his adoptive father, Bradley couldn't invite Ed into his own inner circle and if he tried separating Ed by assigning him to a long-term station in a different city, he could risk alienating Ed.

It would also be seen in the wider military as a show of insecurity on Bradley's part. The beautiful thing about life in the military was there were always wolves ready to pick at any vulnerability, especially for the most powerful among them.

"Alright," Maes said. "Alright, but you call me immediately if there are any complications."

Ed's smile was relieved, "I will, I promise, Dad."

Maes glowered at him for another moment before melting, "Hopefully this means they will give you a pass on active missions."

Gracia snorted, putting her teacup down, "It's Ed, he will find the missions, no assignments needed."

Roy raised a brow.

Maes rolled his eyes, "Remember the book thief from the archives a few years back?"

"The man researching explosives to rob the banks?" Riza asked.

"That was Ed," Maes said with a smile.

"He was an idiot," Ed said, unimpressed.

"Wait, you actually caught him?" Breda asked.

"Chased him down an alley and everything," Ed said with a wide smile. "I even put a bow on him."

"An actual bow," Denny clarified. "It was pink, with sparkles."

"That's how I got promoted to the Hughes team," Maria said with a fond smile.

"How did no one see you?" Riza asked.

"Ed likes jumping rooftops," Gracia said ruefully, like she hated it but had long since come to accept that this was the way of her son.

Roy had a sinking feeling that yes, Ed was going to be a whole lot of trouble, hopefully, it was a productful chaos.

The waiter came by then with the bill and a none-too subtle hint to get out so they could close and lock up.

Roy offered her his most charming smile and left a sizable tip.

Later that night, when everyone else had found their beds, Maes walked back with Roy to his new apartment.

"He's a good kid," Roy remarked.

Maes said, "He's a self-sacrificing menace." Clearly still upset about the automail.

Roy's lips twitched, "The military needs a little shake up."

"Resembool," Maes muttered. "That's the first he's mentioned it."

"It's a small town," Roy said, knowing it only because learning the geography of the country was his job.

"It might be where he's from."

Roy's brows shot up, "You don't know where he's from?"

Maes sighed, "I don't know much about his past. Getting him to open up at all was difficult. He really only started coming out of his shell after Elicia was born."

"You adopted a kid whose history you knew and know nothing about? Do you know anything about his birth family at all?"

"He has a sibling," Maes said. "That much I've been able to deduce. He had a mom. She was dear enough to him that he doesn't address Gracia as such. I can't discern if his birth father is alive or dead, I have gotten the sense that he hates him. Elric was his mother's name."

Regrettably, Elric wasn't such a unique name they could find him.

Though, an Elric from a town as small as Resembool… Roy noted again Ed's intelligence. Not just his secretiveness, but his understanding that with a shred of information Maes could have uncovered Ed's past rather simply.

"I could put in—" Roy began.

"No," Maes said. "He's my son, but he's also his own person. At this point, it is more important that he tells me than I know what happened. Wherever he ran from, broke him. He is no longer whoever he was before."

"Any guesses?" Roy asked because he knew that it must have killed Maes to keep this bottled up for so many years.

"He regrets it. Whatever happened, he regrets it so much he's ashamed every time it comes up." Maes expression was heart-wrenching. "Sometimes, I catch it, I see how much he hates himself. My bright little boy who would risk his life for anyone and everyone… And yet, he loathes himself."

"You seemed more upset about the mention of his automail than he did," Roy noted.

Maes looked up, "The ports were still healing when I found him. I think the only reason he could walk at all was because he is just that stubborn. He was coughing up blood on bad days. I don't even know how he was walking with it, honestly. He wasn't joking about how quickly he gets up after the automail is installed."

"That doesn't sound healthy."

"It isn't. Which is why I wish I could go with him, to make him sit."

"Got any tips I can pass along?" Roy asked.

"I have a couple of old journals, half in our language, half in Xing, and a few Xing language books."

Roy quirked a brow.

Maes smiled, "He hasn't learned Xing yet."

"You think a sixteen-year-old will be distracted by trying to learn a new language while enduring intense pain?"

"It's Ed. And as his supervising officer, I humbly suggest, you find any assignments you can and prioritise what you can assign him in downtime and what you're not ready to have him stick his nose in."

Roy shook his head, "You sound awfully relieved he won't be assigned to your team."

"Edward is an asset, but as his father, I know exactly how much trouble he can get into right in front of you."

Roy fidgeted with his gloves and said in a smaller voice than he had intended, "I wouldn't have endangered him if you told me about him."

Maes came to a stop, and put a hand on his shoulder, "I trust you, Roy. I don't trust Edward to prioritise his own safety. He's impossibly intelligent and capable. If given a task, there is little he couldn't do."

oOo

Ed decided he liked Roy Mustang, and he saw at once why Maes wanted him to lead the country and why Maes worked so hard to keep them apart.

Unfortunately for his adoptive father's sanity, Ed had figured this out some years ago when he realised his father was dodging his best friend.

Having spent so many useless years of his life researching human transmutation, Ed had decided instead to learn things that would be most useful for the development of the country. All to help his father and Roy Mustang to achieve their goals.

And no, that didn't mean weapons development.

No, as it turned out, the best things for stabilising a nation were accessing clean water, plumbing, and construction. Ed had spent a lot of time researching the poorest places in the nation and the most environmentally threatened regions.

Ishvalan settlements were one of Ed's key areas of interest, including Ishvalan architecture. Given how hated alchemy was to their people, he doubted he would ever be able to help them directly. But he had a personal collection of books of their architecture that he would gladly give back if given the opportunity.

He would give them back now, but the Ishvalans had been largely banned from their lands and shuffled between tent cities and herded out of sight beneath bridges.

But when the time came, Ed would have a treasure trove to give back to them. If Maes had taught him anything, it was how to give what you could without reservation.

Maes reminded Ed of his mother, and nothing at all of Van Hohenheim. He had been making the comparisons a lot over the last few months, knowing he would be returning to Resembool.

Ed was so wrapped up in his anxiety of maybe seeing his brother and Hohenheim again, he forgot he was waiting for official acceptance papers.

"Edward!" Gracia called up the stairs.

"Coming!" Ed called back, snapping his trunk shut. His luggage was filled with books he had been saving for this occasion, both for the train ride and the lengthy recovery from a port surgery. Well, in his case, two port recoveries.

He wondered if Winry and Granny would realise it was him who was coming based on the limbs, the separation points, and his age. Or maybe they would read his name in the paper if they cared to look at the papers from Central.

Matthew, his mechanic in Central had agreed not to share his age and Granny had told Matthew she would be prepared for the invasive surgery when he arrived.

Ed sprinted down the steps, jumping the last three and came to an abrupt halt at the sight of everyone in the living room.

Among the gathered officers, the Fuhrer himself was there. He smiled at Ed, his face crinkling and he looked approachable despite the eye patch.

But Ed remained frozen, let his fear show a bit on his face so the man wouldn't sense his disgust.

Maes woke screaming from night terrors, not so much anymore, but Ed had sat awake at his father's side with warm tea through enough sleepless nights to know that what Bradley had demanded of his military was evil.

So Ed let fear of the unknown, fear of what Bradley could do to his loved ones colour his expression.

Fear because men like Bradley wouldn't be able to tell the difference between respect and fear, and if he did, he was likely to enjoy it.

"I was in this part of the city and given you were the only candidate to pass this year, I thought I would deliver the watch myself, Major Elric-Hughes."

Ed put down his trunk, and shot a look to Maes who was smiling, camera in hand, but his gaze was sharp.

Bradley had the power to send Ed away and he really didn't want to leave home.

He had lost too many homes already.

Roy, Hawkeye, Maria, and Havoc were among the officers standing at attention in the cramped living room.

Bradley continued to speak, "You will be stationed under Colonel Mustang. Their team has been brought into East City to get the Ishvalan camps and unrest in the poorer parts of the city under wraps. I fear where there is prosperity, there will be those who will stop at nothing to tear stability down."

Ed was pretty sure that was not how that saying went but he was saved from having to answer as Bradley held out his contract.

Ed took it with a muttered thank you and read the moniker out loud, "Fullmetal Alchemist, Major Edward Elric-Hughes."

It was a slap in the face, even if Bradley didn't know how he had lost his limbs, had no way of knowing that his automail was a brand of his failure to protect his brother, of failing his mother's memory and faith in him…

Even without all that, Fuhrer Bradley had just defined him for the world point at.

Youngest State Alchemist ever, Fullmetal, the one with a metal leg and arm.

Ed supposed it was no less than he deserved. The Rockbells, his brother, and Teacher would hate that he became a dog of the military.

A dog who had just looped his own neck through the noose that Bradley had used to tug him to heel.

Too bad for Bradley the closer he brought him, the more tools he would give Ed to topple him off his throne.

Ed's hands may be the ones to get dirty but Bradley reeked of corruption.

So Ed merely looked up with a polite smile, "Thank you, Sir."

Elicia was excited by the new name for her big brother but Gracia, sensing the tension in the room said, "Elicia, darling, we promised to help Nina with her new puppy today, remember?"

Elicia, who clearly didn't like all the serious faces, including their father's, nodded and raised her arms to be picked up.

Gracia scooped her up and wasted little time in getting out the door.

Ed had to remind himself that losing his limbs was nothing in the grand scheme of things. Nothing because Al hadn't been there like they had originally planned, Al hadn't gotten hurt.

Didn't have to meet the smiling demon who had laughed at him when he asked for his mother.

He had been given a breathing thing and a soul in exchange for his leg and arm. But Ed hadn't known enough about the function and particulars of the body to create one and the soul he had brought through had been something trapped. It had been something that Truth had trapped and held onto to, not a dead soul but one caught in purgatory.

Ed told himself that he had, at the very least, freed that soul from Truth's grasp. That even if he had messed up keeping Al safe, Al hadn't paid the ultimate price of Ed's foolish delusions.

Bradley was talking and Ed could have slapped himself for spacing out and getting lost in old horrors in front of the enemy.

oOo

Maes was panicking as Ed's gaze glazed over a bit after reading his new title.

Damn Bradley, damn him to Hell and back.

There were a thousand names he could have chosen, instead, he picked the one that still haunted Ed in his sleeping and waking hours.

"It seems a fitting name, the metalwork within the fountain and the plumbing array you drew was exquisitely done," Bradley said.

Maes fought not to clench his jaw, glad that Ed had masked his dislike of Bradley with fear.

Ed wasn't actually afraid for himself, proof his son understood the game he was stepping into as one of Roy's men.

Bradley wouldn't see that. He would see an untamed child who still skipped the stairs, deferred to his adoptive father at the first sign of uncertainty, and a boy who was ultimately intimated by ranking officers.

A child who was textbook smart, not an Alchemist who was neither talented nor clever enough to match the Crimson Alchemist.

Against the Flame Alchemist wasn't really a fair competition, not with Roy's range. Although Maes might still put money on Ed who was physically fit enough to move faster than his slight form indicated and being partial to water alchemy, he might very well be able to get the edge on Roy.

"I'm also told you will be getting an upgrade with your signing bonus," Bradley continued. "I was a bit surprised to hear it, given your father's rank."

Maes bristled. His smile had already fallen behind the mask he had worn during most meetings, but that one still stung. It was too new.

Two warring feelings battled for dominance inside his heart and mind. The fear Ed didn't trust how much he was loved and wanted in this family against Edward's misinformed gesture that this was a way of giving back to their family.

As if it wasn't Maes's heart's desire to provide for his family, to see them well and happy.

"It's an old debt, that I mean to repay," Ed said. "My first automail procedure was done out of charity and that was before I was adopted. I would have died without them."

"Who is your mechanic, surely Resembool is a humble beginning?" Bradley probed.

To Maes's surprise, Edward's temper flared hot and he let something of his past slip, "Actually, my mechanics are the Rockbells."

Everyone save Maria who hadn't served in the war, held their breath. How close had Ed been to the Rockbells?

"Doctors Yuriy and Sarah Rockbell?" Bradley asked, expression reserved.

"Pinako Rockbell, Yuriy's mother, did the surgery," Ed agreed.

"The Rockbells' deaths were notable tragedies among many. I am sorry for your loss."

Ed shook his head though there was apparent grief on his expression.

If Maes remembered correctly, the Rockbells had had a daughter no older than Elicia was now. How close had Ed been with their family?

Doctor Pinako Rockbell could have saved Ed's life without an expensive and risky procedure of automail.

Ed's next response indicated that yes, he was indeed a close family friend to the Rockbells. "I was young when Yuriy and Sarah passed away, younger when they left. But they were the best of people."

"They were murdered by an Ishvalan," Bradley said with cruelty masked as sympathy. "A patient of theirs as it so happens."

Ed's gold eyes flashed but he didn't lash out, even if his tone was tight, "Fear and pain make people do stupid things. Whoever killed them, if it was a patient, wouldn't be the first patient to attack their healers."

Maes wanted to step in, to guard Ed as the facade of his youth was picked away with expert slices of a master swordsman.

"They were murdered in cold blood," Bradley said, making another slice.

Ed's tone was utterly devoid of feeling as he said, "All blood is red and all spilled blood cools."

Maes was very glad Gracia had removed Elicia from this. He stepped forward but Bradley held up a staying hand in his direction and Maes froze.

Not because of Bradley's gesture but because he knew Ed would do something stupid if Bradley threatened him.

The Fuhrer could tell Ed he would have to go without having his automail checked until it literally disintegrated off him, but threaten Maes or Gracia, or if you truly had a death wish, Elicia and Nina, Ed would fly off the handle.

Bradley asked, "You think the war was unjustified?"

"I think the evil acts of a few shouldn't have defined a nation," Ed answered rather diplomatically.

"The spark is not what dried out the timber," Bradley said, apparently dispelling the notion that he was talking to a child, or perhaps it was another way to test Ed.

"Ishval is a desert," Ed said, purposely misunderstanding the metaphor. "Everything is dry in the desert, especially cut timber."

Also using it as an opportunity to sass the Fuhrer with impunity.

Bradley laughed, breaking the tension. "Again, my congratulations, Fullmetal. And I wish you a smooth and swift recovery." His one good eye pinned Roy, "I trust you won't allow him to travel alone."

"No," Roy agreed easily. "Arrangements have been made."

"Very good," Bradley said with another smile and dismissed them all without further-ado.

Quiet filled the room and they all looked at Ed who was holding his new pocket watch.

Ed composed himself, his face smoothing out into a grim smile. Spinning the watch on the chain into his hand with a click, he asked, "For Ishval, then?"

Roy's lips twisted upwards in an approximation of a smile, a fiery gleam of determination flashing in his dark eyes, "We all have debts to pay."

Maes let out a long breath acknowledging that while this was a very positive thing for the country, he hated the price his son would have to pay for it.

oOo

AN: Thoughts, suggestions, dogs, or feedback, pretty please?