Summary: Summary: Roy is captured and tortured and Edward willingly offers to help Mustang to recover from his injuries but he never expected how close they'd grow in that time or the risk that Roy's captors were to his own life and to the lives of everyone he cares for.

Rating: M - Check each chapter for the individual warnings about what it contains.

Warning: Mentions of rape and gore. Scenes of a sexual natural.

A/N: So this fic is now completed. I'm not sure how well I ended it, but I'm happy with what I have. I have loved writing this and all the support that you have all given me. I can see me taking a break from FMA fics as I'm having inspiration elsewhere. But thank you again for all the support and, as always, please feel free to leave me some feedback. Thanks.

Chapter 19

Edward sat restlessly in his chair in the Fuhrer's office and kept glancing at Riza and Roy who both were sitting so still and calm that Edward just couldn't understand it. He was anxious. Roy had attacked Sullivan, and the man was going to die and that was one thing that the military did get involved with; when its own soldiers were turning on one another. Ed wasn't aware of how much the Fuhrer knew about what Sullivan had done, but he did know that he would have to confess to it all in order to protect Roy.

"General Mustang. Explain your actions." The Fuhrer said calmly, not looking at Riza or Ed for the moment, which just made Edward even more anxious, but he didn't speak up just yet. He was old and mature enough now to know when he should talk, and this particular moment wasn't one of them.

"Sir." Roy started, bowing his head respectfully. "Lieutenant Sullivan attacked us. I reacted in self defence and for the safety of my men." Roy explained, keeping his eyes on the Fuhrer.

"Is that the only reason for the attack, Mustang? Don't think that I am deaf to the whisperings of my command. Sullivan has claimed some serious allegations. Allegations that claim you and Fullmetal have a personal relationship that you know is against the military's rules, Mustang."

"That is correct, Fuhrer. I have developed unprofessional feelings for Edward, but my reason for the attack on Sullivan was purely with the intentions of protecting my men." Roy said calmly.

Edward felt the dread rise in his gut and he watched in horror as Mustang agreed with the allegations. He stood up then, letting his temper take over. "This is bullshit!" He snapped, catching the attention of the room, but he focused solely on the Fuhrer. "Did Sullivan also tell you how he had his men beat me? About how he was involved in the torture of Mustang? Or about how he captured me with some deluded thought that I only got into the military by sleeping with my superiors?" Ed snapped. Behind him he heard Roy softly telling him to sit down but he ignored the request. "Did Sullivan confess to you about how he raped me to punish me for a crime that I never committed?"

A hand on his arm made Edward look up at Roy with a scowl. He hadn't realised that he'd marched over to the Fuhrer's desk or slapped his fist into the wood in his anger. He hadn't been aware of the guns that were drawn and trained on him as though he were some violent, caged animal ready to pounce. Roy's look was purely concern for Edward and he just shook his head and turned back to the Fuhrer.

"These are very serious allegations, Fullmetal. Do you have any proof of this?" The Fuhrer said with a raised eyebrow. Edward dropped his head and didn't speak. He didn't have any proof, he hadn't considered that he'd need any.

"We do have proof." Roy said beside Ed and the blonde looked up at the Flame Alchemist with a frown. "Sullivan recorded his treatment of Edward because he was aware of my feelings for him. Sullivan forced me to watch this treatment. Brigadier General Hughes has the tape for safe keeping." Roy said before looking back at Edward. "I didn't have a chance to inform you of it. I wasn't going to hand it over until I had received your consent."

Edward nodded, but he had to swallow back the taste of bile. "Give it to them." He mumbled softly. Roy nodded and informed the Fuhrer that he would have the tape by the end of the day. Roy had just turned to return to his seat when the Fuhrer spoke again.

"There is still the matter of your feelings for a subordinate, Mustang." The Fuhrer said, making Roy freeze where he stood. He could be removed from the military for this. He waited for the decision, turning back to the older man out of respect.

"Sir, I request a transfer." Edward said into the suffocating silence and once again all eyes were on him. He glanced at Roy and saw the shocked look, and the fear that he tired to mask. Edward turned back to the Fuhrer and stood straighter. "I don't want Mustang to lose his job for this. We grew to have feelings for each other, so its clear according to Military law that we can't be members of the same team. Mustang is a valuable alchemist, as am I." Edward said, aware of how self-assured he sounded. "So to save you the difficult decision of which powerful alchemist to remove, transfer me to Brigadier General Hughes. Let me work for Intelligence and that way any relationship between Mustang and I is irrelevant."

"Ed, what on earth are you thinking?" Roy snapped, and was met by Fullmetal's almost cocky smirk. It was then that Roy realised that Ed was playing them. He knew how valuable they both were to the military, and he'd clearly read up on the rules fraternizing. Fullmetal knew that their relationship could continue if he was one of Maes' men, and yet he would no doubt be around Roy a lot.

The Fuhrer watched Edward for a moment and then looked at Roy before he let out a sigh. "Very well. Fullmetal, you are as of this moment, a member of Brigadier General Hughes' team. You will report to him immediately. I will withhold any investigation of the attack on Sullivan until I have seen proof of the allegations made by Fullmetal. I want that tape by the end of the day Mustang."

"You'll have it, Sir." Roy said, saluting. Riza stood and also saluted and Edward watched them for a brief moment before reluctantly mimicking the action. The Fuhrer saluted back to them and then dismissed them all, returning to his paperwork and pointedly ignoring the ever present protective atmosphere of his two bodyguards.

Outside of the office, Edward knew that Roy was going to have a go at him. He prepared for it, but it never came. Instead Roy smirked at him and shook his head with a small laugh. "Sometimes I think I underestimate your brilliance Ed. Come, I'll take you to Hughes. Riza, head to the office and make sure that the men are actually doing their work. Feel free to inform them of Ed's transfer." He told the blonde female.

"Yes Sir." She said before looking at Edward. "That was a risky thing you pulled in there, Edward, but I am glad for you both that it worked out well. No doubt we'll be seeing you soon." She said, before turning to head the opposite way down the corridor as Roy then moved past Edward toward Intelligence.

Edward followed Roy with a smirk. He had known how risky it had been. He and Roy both could have lost their jobs, but he had succeed in his assumption of how much the military wanted to keep them both. He had risked it and succeeded. Now he and Roy could be together with nothing but the prejudices of a section of the public to deal with, a task that neither was bothered about. They loved each other and the thoughts of strangers telling them that it was wrong and that they shouldn't be together was nothing to them. Not when they had each other.

Cassidy sat in the cell with her knees pulled close to her chest. The police hadn't been too unkind to her, and that was more than she'd expected. They had left her food earlier and she'd spent a while playing with the soup after having a few mouthfuls, but found that she wasn't hungry. She didn't want to eat and so she pushed the tray back and returned to her cot, which was where she sat when the shouting came.

It was Raul, she recognised the voice, and curiously she moved to the door of her cell, glancing down the corridor and watching as her brother caused a scene. He was screaming at the officers that held his arms and struggling to fight against them, denying any guilt and claiming that the two alchemists had deserved it. He saw her then, watching him from her cell door and he froze. "Cassie!" He shouted her name and she couldn't help the flinch. "Cassie! CASSIE!" Cassidy moved back into her cell as her brother screamed louder and louder. She felt the tears sting at her eyes and she returned to her cot, covering her ears to try and drown out the noise of her brother's screams. She could hear the pain in his voice as his voice got even louder and she blinked, the first of her silent tears slipping past her lashes. They deserved this, but Cassidy knew that her brother was being taken from her. Taken to his death, and despite all the abuse he gave her, that thought ripped her apart. She would be truly alone.

Cassidy didn't know how long she sat there, hugging her legs and softly crying into her knees but from the stiffness in her limbs, she could have guessed that it had been hours. The area had a deathly stillness about it after her brother had left, and that just served to make her cry harder. She didn't know what time it was, or how long she'd sat crying, but there was an explosion that left a ringing in her ears and she cowered up on the bed as the outside wall of her cell smashed, sending shards of brick and a cloud of dust into the room. She looked up when people came in. A woman, an alchemist if the chalk in her hand was anything to go by. By the woman's side was James, and Cassidy was on her feet within moments, staring at him with shock and hope. Was it really him?

James moved to her and cupped her cheek. "Evening." He said with a smirk, leaning down to claim her lips with his own. She returned his kiss but it was short and he pulled away before she wanted him to. He grinned at her and took her hand, running his other hand through his dark curls to shake free the dust. "Come. We're breaking you out and the guards will be here any minute now."

Cassidy nodded and followed him out, glancing back at the cell as she left. "James. My brother, we need to find him. They'll kill him if we don't try to stop them."

James had agreed to help her but by the time they found where Raul was being taking Cassidy had a growing feeling of dread. She raced in front of James and his alchemist friend to where her brother was and when she turned the corner, she saw him. He looked up and caught her eye, giving her a sad smile just as the guns roared and Cassidy screamed. She tried to race to him, but a strong arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her back. She watched her brother's body drop, watched the blood as it sprayed the wall behind him and watched the deep red form a puddle around her brother's lifeless face. She screamed again and was pulled from the street, regardless of her attempts to fight it.

James refused to let her go despite her kicking and screaming and eventually she just collapsed against him, sobbing so hard that she was genuinely concerned that her throat would tear. Her chest ached and tightened around the pain and whenever she closed her eyes she could see him. She could see Raul lying there, his cold and glassy eyes locked on hers, the hole through his skull and the blood that poured from the wound and seeped past his parted lips. She clutched onto James' shirt and felt her knees go weak. She was aware that James was talking but she couldn't hear a word of it.

She felt herself getting lifted and soon was in James' arms but she couldn't stop her crying and instead just buried her face into his neck and choked on her grief. She soaked his shift but they were moving and when she finally calmed enough to look up the three of them were boarding a train. She wiped her eyes, but continued to cry regardless. "James..." She flinched at how weak and scratchy her own voice sounded. "James, where are we going?" She asked softly as he sat down and sat her on his lap, the alchemist sitting across the table from them.

"We're leaving the country. They'll be looking for us. This is the best way. You just get some rest Cassidy, I'll keep you safe now." He said softly, placing a chaste kiss on her forehead. "I'll always keep you safe."

Alphonse sat with a frown, his hand in Winry's, as Edward explained things to him. Ed had come back from work with Roy and Hughes. The two older men where in the kitchen, both having a celebratory drink of whiskey as Edward told his younger brother what had happened at the office. Edward started by explaining the attack on Sullivan and then the meeting with the Fuhrer. Roy and Maes came back into the living room just as Edward was moving on to tell his brother that he was now a part of the Intelligence team and the blonde met Roy's eyes over Al's shoulder. Edward stood up and moved to Roy with a smile, before leaning up to kiss the older man and tasting the alcohol on Roy's lips.

He wasn't back to normal yet. The nightmares still clung to him at nights and he would still take a while to become fully comfortable with Roy touching him, but he would get better. He would learn how to cope and he would recover. All that mattered was that he was safe, as were his brother and Winry and everyone else that he cared about. He could be with Roy now and everyone that he cared for were nothing but supportive of the taboo relationship he had with his former commanding officer.

Edward stood over the prone form that lay in the bed. His skin was splashes of red, white and charred black from the burns that covered his chest and neck. He knew at the sight of Sullivan, that the man would die and yet he couldn't feel the slightest twinge of guilt. He deserved it. Edward watched as the man regained consciousness enough to look at Edward, he saw the fear and the hate flash behind those eyes and the thought that this sick bastard still believed those things about him made Edward even more sure that there was nothing that could be done to change the man. He was beyond all hope.

"I hope you enjoyed what you did to me. I hope it was worth all this pain." Ed muttered, waving his hand over the man's body. "You know that you won't survive the damage that Roy's done. You'll never get the chance to touch me again, or to go after those that I love." Edward turned from the man then, and moved to leave but stopped when he heard the laugh from behind him.

"Oh Fullmetal, we both know that I can survive this. The hospital has healing alchemists that are on their way this very moment." Edward glared back at the charred looking man that lay in the bed, clearly in agony. "They'll heal me and I'll make you and that Mustang prick pay for this." Sullivan smirked, and the whole thing was just wrong. The way that the burnt and melted looking skin pulled at damaged muscle to upturn one corner of the man's lip made Edward feel sick. "I wonder if that brother of yours will scream as you did. But I'll let you know this, whore. It was worth it, you know as well as I do how much I enjoyed your kicking and screaming."

Edward turned away again, and focused on his breathing, forcing down the bile that stung the back of his throat. The antiseptic smell of the hospital caught in his throat when he took a deep breath and made him want to gag on the taste. "It still turns me on just thinking about how much you writhed beneath me."

Edward closed his eyes and heard the door open. He only opened his eyes and blinked away the wetness that clouded his vision when a gentle hand touched his arm. He met Roy's gaze and then watched the look turn cold as he flicked his eyes over the man in the bed. "You're wrong, Sullivan. You won't survive. You won't ever touch Ed again, and you certainly won't get near his brother."

"Oh yeah?" Sullivan said with a laugh that made Ed shiver. "What makes you so sure? You going to protect them just like you protected him? You saw what I did to him!"

"Enough!" Roy shouted it, glaring at the man and then slipping his hand into Ed's; who stood with his eyes to the floor and his back to Sullivan. "You may have tortured and tormented him. You may have done some evil things to him and you may have even come close to breaking him. But you failed. Edward is strong. He's the strongest person I have ever known and you will not be the end of him. He has done things and been places that you could only ever hope to dream of doing. He's going to get through this, because he's strong and he has so many people that love him. But you won't. You'll die here." Roy said, and with one snap of his fingers, Roy let the small flame burn for a moment, smirking at Sullivan's flinch.

He didn't keep the flame alive though. As his alchemy was triggered, Roy then pulled the oxygen away from Sullivan, suffocating him and leaving no evidence that he had even been there. He watched as the man died and then turned to Ed, letting the oxygen levels return to normal. Roy reached up and brushed gloved fingers along Ed's cheek, his thumb catching a tear as it dropped off of Ed's lashes. "He'll never touch you again. You're safe Edward and you will get through this." Roy said softly, letting go of Ed's hand just to take it again with his other hand as he turned and moved them both from the room.

The healing alchemists would come, but they would be too late. They would find Sullivan lying in the bed, but they would assume that he had died from his wounds. Roy led Edward out of the hospital, hand in hand and took him to the car that he'd parked by the road. "Get in. I'll take you home."

Ed wriggled delightfully beneath him as he trailed soft feather-like kisses down the column of his throat. He held the younger man's arms above his head with one hand – pinning them down on the pillow, as he mercilessly kissed and nipped at soft flesh. Ed tried to push closer to Roy's body but was unsuccessful as Roy shifted away with a small smirk, teasing the blonde. Ed let out a small whimper and opened his eyes to glare at Roy. It didn't last long before his gaze turned pleading and Roy leaned over and claimed Ed's already swollen mouth with his own. He pressed their bodies together and was rewarded with a low needy moan from Ed, as their naked crotches rubbed together.

Roy kept his hand on Ed's wrists, but they both knew that he could break free if he really tried, and Roy brushed his other hand down to wrap around both their erections as their skin was pushed together. He claimed Ed's mouth again, slamming his lips into the blonde's as his need took on a more desperate nature. He swallowed Ed's moan of pleasure as he worked his hand up and down them and Roy nibbled on Edward's bottom lip before tracing his kisses down the blonde's neck and finding that sensitive spot at Ed's earlobe that he knew drove the blonde wild.

Roy still had problems believing it. He had watched Edward move from a stubborn and angry teen into this brilliantly strong man. He had watched the fear and uncertainty fade as Edward became more sure of himself and he had watched the guilt leave when the blonde was able to retrieve his brother's body again. Roy couldn't remember the exact moment that he realised his feelings for Ed had changed from the protective urge to keep Edward safe and as far from harm as he could to this admiration and love. He didn't know what to do with himself when he was apart from Edward. The blonde filled his every thought and finally understood why Maes was always going on about how great Gracia and Elicia were. Roy could now say that he truly understood love.

Edward tilted his head back with a low moan that fueled the burning ache below Roy's stomach. Ed was breathing heavily with his lust and he wriggled deliciously again, making Roy smirk. Edward was growing frustrated with his need for a release but Roy wanted to savour this sight for a moment longer. He finally relented in moving his hand from their lengths and around behind Edward to prepare him when the blonde moaned his name. The way he had lowly moaned the word Roy made the dark-haired man's resolve crumple and his need and want burned hotly.

Roy made sure that Ed found his release first, watching as the moment hit the blonde and how his lids fluttered closed as his lips parted in a groan of sheer bliss. He felt the blonde tremble beneath him and he felt Ed tighten around him, pushing him over the edge too. He rode out the moment and then moved to Ed's side, his breathing coming out in pants as his body forced itself to feel normal sensations again. Roy reached out and brushed sweat-damp blonde locks from his lover's face as Ed lay beautifully beside him. The blonde turned and golden eyes found his and Edward claimed a gentle, almost chaste kiss from Roy. An action that contradicted what they had just done with how innocent it was.

"I love you Mustang." Edward said softly, blinking sleepily. Roy knew that the blonde was tired, but Edward was constantly fearful of sleep now. Roy shuffled closer and wrapped his arm around Ed's waist and placed a kiss on his bare shoulder.

"I love you too, Ed. Get some sleep. I'm right here. I'll be at your side all night." Roy said softly, kissing him again. "I'll keep you safe, Edward. I'll always be here."