Prologue

Warmth.

Such a simple thing, and yet, it meant so much. It was everywhere, surrounding him; the most wonderful of sensations. He hadn't felt so good since… well, he couldn't remember at the moment, but it must have been a while, judging from the way his whole body melted with pleasure. He sighed softly in content, which instantly got his attention too. Why was he so relieved to just breathe? Maybe because he could do it in peace, now that everything was finally over.

Slowly, he opened his eyes. At first he was momentarily blinded by the light. Then the sight of multiple smiling faces greeted him.

"Look, he's wake!"

"You okay, Alphonse?"

"Mr. Zampano, Mr. Darius… Everyone…" he whispered. They were all beaming at him, their expressions filled with purest joy. Al's own heart swelled with happiness in response. His eyes wandered around the people, finally resting on one person he didn't expect to be here, but was delighted to see nonetheless. "Dad!"

Hohenheim smiled and reached out for him. "Welcome back, Alphonse."

Al sat up and took the offered hand with his own, noticing how amazingly warm it felt against his skin.

"Yeah…" he responded with the same smile, eagerly absorbing all of the sensations: the shape of his father's palm, the softness of grass beneath, the smoothness of the black blanket on top of him (probably transmuted from a military coat), the light breeze against his skin. He quenched his indescribable thirst for those feelings within him, drunk on them as if he hadn't experienced any for ages. He didn't know how to explain it, but he didn't care. For now, all he chose to focus on was the hand gently held by the man next to him.

"It really is back…" Al breathed out in disbelief and euphoria. He experimentally moved his feet and discovered that both of his legs were present too. "All of it…"

"That's right," Hohenheim smiled at him again, however there was a hint of sadness in it. But before Al had time to puzzle over it, it vanished. "You should take it easy for now, Alphonse. The Gate took a lot of energy out of you."

Al blinked and realized that his father was right. Indeed, his whole body felt exhausted.

"Alphonse!" somebody cried from behind the crowd and before Al knew what was happening, he was barreled in a tight hug from a small girl, still covered in blood and dirt from the battle.

"Alphonse, I-" May Chang buried her face in his chest and sobbed. "I was so s-scared!"

"I'm sorry, May…" Al was uncertain what to say – he suddenly discovered he couldn't exactly remember what occurred before him re-emerging from the Gate. Actually, now that he thought about it, his memory was awfully fuzzy in a lot of places, especially the battle with Father. But he felt that he should comfort his hysterical friend first, and worry about details later. So he put those musings away for the time being and smiling gently, Alphonse returned May's embrace. "It's okay, I'm alright, see? We're all fine. Everything's okay now."

She sniffled, still clutching to him desperately. Al rubbed her back soothingly. He looked up and his eyes met Hohenheim's. There was something bittersweet in the ancient man's expression, as if he was tempted to cry as well. Al surely hoped it wouldn't come to this. He couldn't stand to watch people cry…

...Hohenheim's tears stream down, shining in the dim light of campfire, his grief-stricken face turned to the dark sky...

Al blinked. What…? He furrowed his brow in puzzlement. He'd seen his father cry before? When? The only instance he could recall was captured on the family photo, but he was too young to remember that.

Wait… The family photo…?

Al grunted quietly and rubbed his forehead in confusion.

He couldn't remember the photo. Why? He remembered it existed – the only photo that showed their whole family together. He knew his father was crying in the picture, and Alphonse wondered countless times about the reason. But now, he couldn't even…

"Are you alright, Alphonse?" Hohenheim asked with concern.

Al blinked. "I… think so…" he said slowly, but without much certainty.

Only now he realized something was bothering him – had been bothering him ever since he woke up. His mind was all over the place. It was difficult for him to focus on any specific memory. Everything was blurred, only vague impressions available to his consciousness. It was frustrating. He searched for something he could hold onto and focus on to find his lost track of thought, but nothing was within his mind's reach.

Suddenly, wariness washed over his body. Maybe dad's right… maybe I'm just tired…

"You look like you're ready to pass out," Zampano commented, supporting him by the shoulder. "We should take you someplace you can rest."

Al hummed in agreement – a good, long sleep sounded like a wonderful idea. His legs wobbled a little, but with his friends' help he managed to stand up. Darius grinned at the boy and said:

"Come on, Fullmetal. Let's find you a cozier bed than the military's front lawn."

Allowing himself to be fully supported by the chimeras and the Xingnese princess, Alphonse Elric was slowly escorted to the medical tent.

Author's Note:

Oh, how do I love to confuse people! :3 It's like my favorite hobby.

At first, this was supposed to be a one-shot. But over the months, the idea developed into an eight-chapter-long story. Go figure, huh? We'll see how that goes.

Picture sketched and colored by: "SonicRocksMySocks" xD

I was originally inspired by Aurelo's story-arc in "ABNE Infinite Possibilities" by BelloftheSea (still in progress - BelloftheSea inspires me so much!), however, if you keep reading, you'll discover that this story's premise is much different. I hope you're at the very least intrigued ;)

Thank you for reading, please follow, favorite and review, but most importantly – read on and enjoy!