Alright. I've found a severe shortage of Roy being a parental figure to Ed and Roy and Ed interacting in general in the anime.

the purpose of this fic is writing a more emotional, realistic way Edward would handle meeting Hohenheim after all these years of feeling his father abandoned him, and how he, and team Mustang, by extension- dealt with it.

Please review- constructive criticism is always welcome, and I'd love to fix any errors you point out.

Please tell me if I should continue! :)

"See? She's already falling for him!" Sergeant Brosh pointed to the scene on the Rockbell's porch, where Maria Ross sat, clearly falling for the alluring blonde.

"A long time ago I saw an eagle with wings as black as obsidian. Your hair is the exact same color. I never thought I'd see it again. thank you for bringing such a beautiful memory back to me." the man's voice was smooth, like river water running over rocks.

Lieutenant Ross blushed. "...and thank you, what a wonderful thing to say..."

"See!? She's falling for it hook line and sinker!" Brosh declared tearfully, looking anguished, as he conversed with everyone- all the members of their rag-tag search party gone rogue were observing from behind the stone wall.

"That's sad but... don't we have bigger concerns right now?" Winfry asked, looking hesitant.

"Bigger than love?" Mustang spoke up, looking cynical.

"There's something about that guy..." Al spoke up quietly. "He seems familiar, doesn't he, brother?" he looked down to find Ed was nowhere to be found and looked up, alarmed. "Brother?"

Everyone looked around, alarmed, to find Ed charging across the lawn towards the couple, looking pissed as hell.

"What the hell are you doing flirting!?" he shouted shrilly, in the voice he only used when freaking out over being called short.

His metal fist made contact with the blonde's cheek, sending him flying over the railing and onto the ground.

Lieutenant Ross blinked, looking shocked. "Edward what the..."

But Ed payed her no mind, plowing onward.

"You're gone for over ten years and I come back to that!? Damn you old man!" Ed was still shouting, looking pissed.

Al simply sat, reeling. "...Dad?"

He paused for a moment, memories flashing through his mind. "I remember him... from the pictures... Dad!"

Much to the chargin of everyone, Al began sprinting across the lawn as well, armor clanking with every step. "

"Dad! He's home- Dad's home!" Al was visibly happy as he charged over.

Hohenheim was beginning to righten himself from where he laid, knocked spread-eagle on the grass, by Ed, when Al spoke up.

"I...I know you might not be able to tell who I am, because of the way I look, but..."

He was interrupted by his father's smile. "Alfonse. You certainly got tall."

The suit of armor's expression visibly brightened at being recognized.

"How did you know it was me?" he asked, amazed.

But Hohenheim paid him no mind, instead turning to look at the pissed blond standing on the porch.

"Edward." he said cordially, smiling at his eldest.

Ed simply glared down at the man.

"So." Hohenheim began, following that single word with the worst possible question "Do you still hate drinkin' milk?"

In true Ed-like fashion, the small blonde exploded. "Who are you callin' a micro-sized half pint who won't grow because he hates drinkin' milk!?"

"That's not what he said, Edward." nearly everyone chorused, looking amused.

That evening, Hohenheim sat out on the porch with Winry's dog, drinking a glass of wine and eavesdropping on the conversation going on inside the Rockbell residence.

"Are you still mad, Edward?" Winry probed.

"Whoever said I was mad?" Ed asked indifferently, shoving a roll into his mouth.

"There's nothing to be mad about." Ross spoke up, fingering her roll nervously and blushing. "I was just having a polite conversation with that man, nothing else, is that clear?"

"You sure looked like you were enjoying it." Winry teased good-naturedly, and Ross gasped, eyes softening.

"Oh- it was just the cologne he was wearing. You never smell anything like that in the military. No soldier I know every wears cologne."

Brosh appeared to be all sorts of strung lout, leaning over his cup of coffee like a drunk at last call, expression dark and demeanor depressed. "Maybe the soldiers you know don;t wanna smell like flowery sissy boys." he mumbled.

"What's the matter with you anyway?" Ross asked pointedly, and Brosch began to cry into his coffee mug.

The atmosphere had suddenly gone into awkward silence.

As it usually happened, the silence was broken by Ed. "I hate his smell. I still remember it, from when I was a little kid. When Al was born, Dad left the house to do some kind of research. At least, that's what mom said. But we never got any letters, so eventually I caught on. I could still smell the scent all over the house when he was gone. It never completely went away. It's funny- when I saw Lira in Leore- I smelled it again."

"You saw Lira in Leore?" Al asked, surprised. "So she got out of Donte's place safely. That's great." he seemed cheered by the news.

"Hold on a minute- who is Lira and how do you two know her? You two cant keep talking around us." Winfry protested.

Hohenheim had started at the mention of the familiar name, and he frowned, reaching out to pet Winfry's dog and apologizing quietly for startling the animal.

"Ah, why do you have to know everything!?" Ed protested, and he and Winfry got into what was obviously a petty spat.

At some point in the evening, Colonel Mustang made his way onto the porch.

"The furher has been accused of treason." he stated calmly, getting straight to the point. "Your children have as well. But honestly, I'm more interested in discussing the pictures I've seen of you."

"When a homonculus is born, it doesn't have a human shape." Hohenheim supplied, causing Roy to start.

"It never would, if left alone." he continued, finding the red wine in his glass interesting. "The only way for them to obtain one is to be fed sufficient amounts of a vital energy source- shards of the stone."

"You mean they have to feed on human lives?" Roy asked.

"Mmmh." Hohenheim nodded the affirmative. "They may start out like innocent children, but in time their desires and powers corrupt them. You can't trust anyone who lives that long." he still spoke idly, avoiding Roy's eyes as he swirled around his wine idly. "No one. It's important you remember that fact."

Roy appeared to take notice of this, looking serious. "Right. I'll keep that in mind."

"You said stone fragments were created in labratory 5. Homonculi can;t perform alchemy, let how are they able to teach it, and what purpose would it serve them?"

Roy gasped. "There's something else. Someone whose controlling their actions." he spoke aloud, theorizing to himself.

"Ah well." Hohenheim yawned loudly, his demeanor quickly changing from a sort of distracted intensity to a tired apathy. "even if they are homonculi, this country's great. Military's still as honest and powerful as it's every been, right? I'm sure there's nothing to worry about."

The clanking of armor sounded as Al made his way onto the porch. "Dad?"

Roy blinked, surprised. He's never get used to hearing his friend being called that. At least, not for a bit- and it would certainly take time getting used to the fact that Edward- his unruly, spitfire of a subordinate- was going to have to adapt to his father's return at some point.

Roy made a mental note to excuse some of Ed's behavior in the next few days on account of that.

Edward's punching his father had made it perfectly clear he had no excess amount of love for his old man.

Still, Roy was pulled by his musings as Al continued- "why is it that homonculi can't use alchemy?"

"It's because all of them come from beyond the gate." Hohenheim said seriously.

Al gasped, looking alarmed.

"But let's not talk of that. Tell me about Trisha- or about you boys. I wanna know what my sons have been up to while I was away."

Al sighed, and Hohenheim continued. "I...looking at your body, I guess that..."

He was interrupted as Ed strode rigidly out onto the porch. Hohenheim looked down as his eldest began to speak.

"There's not much to tell. We failed the transmutation and I lost my limbs. Al lost his body. That's all." Ed said calmly.

Hohenheim looked up. "But Edward- alchemy isn't something you can-"

"Shut up!" Edward shouted, looking infuriated. "You can't just show up here and start acting like a father! Not when we had to watch Mom die without you." he seethed, gloved hands clenching into fists.

"Hell- even Colonel Bastard here's been a better father than you have over the years!" he admitted freely.

Ed failed to notice how Roy went rigid for a moment, eyes wide with surprise. He'd never expected such a free declaration from Ed, of all people...

But Ed was oblivious to his superior's shock, plowing onward.

"So don't just waltz in here and think you can claim to be my father. That title is earned. And you've failed- miserably." Ed turned to stalk back inside.

"Come on, Al..."

"Brother! Al sounded surprised as Ed moved to pull him inside, before he spoke up. "Brother- I'm staying with him." he said firmly.

"But Al..." Ed looked up at his brother from where he stood in the doorway, pain etched into his expression. For the first time since their mom had died, Al was going against him, refusing to back him up- abandoning him.

"Let's go, Dad." Al turned to leave the porch, not looking back at his brother once.

Ed was left standing on the porch, watching them go sadly. His hands clenched into fists, his eyes stinging with unshed tears.

Al... I took care of you for years after Mom died. We were together through it all. And you abandon me the first chance you get when this deadbeat shows up. Didn't it mean anything to you?

He didn't realize he'd been standing there for several minutes until he heard Roy clear his throat. he rapidly blinked, quickly scrubbing his face on his sleeve.

Roy placed a gloved hand on his shoulder. "Let's go inside, Ed. It's getting cold."

"Y-yeah." Ed agreed, sounding far more shaky than he usually did.

He managed to stumble inside the house and fell into a chair at the table, staring at the wall in front of him blankly.

Still, the melancholy of his own mind was disturbed by Roy placing a steaming mug of something in front of him, sitting down at the table across from the boy with his own mug. "Drink up." he encouraged, sipping his own mug.

Ed frowned, leaning forward and sniffing the concoction suspiciously...

Roy smiled slightly, amused. "It's tea, Ed. No milk. I promise."

Ed looked up at him, gauging his sincerity, before he nodded, taking a hesitant sip.

Roy watched the boy's eyes widen for a moment in surprise at the sweet taste of the drink, before bringing the mug to his lips again and drinking it with gusto...

That was a lot more like the Ed he knew.

They drank their tea in silence, with Ed drinking noisily and Roy watching him with amusement over the brim of his own mug.

Finally, Ed set his empty mug down with a thunk, resting his head on his arms and letting out a contented sigh. "What was that?" he asked, sounding much more relaxed, back to normal Ed.

"Chamomile tea." with honey. Lots of it. Roy said in answer, watching his subordinate with amusement.

"Oh." Ed said, blinking. " 'S good." he admitted quietly, before he was sitting up and yawning.

He blinked slowly, scrubbing a hand across his eyes. " 'm goin' to bed." he mumbled, standing up slowly and stretching.

Roy nodded, taking a sip of his tea. "Goodnight."

" 'night." Ed mumbled, staggering over to the couch and flopping down. Within minutes, the teen was asleep.

Leaving Roy to frown pensively and sip his own tea. He was still reeling, honestly. It was a shock to realize Ed regarded him as a better father than Hohenheim. He'd assumed Ed had seen him as a superior, an order-giver to be resented.

He remembered the first time he'd seen the boys. On that stormy night of October third, in this very house...

Ed, his right arm completely gone, left leg only a stump below the knee. Al- a suit of armor covered in dried crimson. His brother's blood.

He'd never seen anything so pathetic. Ed hadn't even been concious the first time they'd met, and Al had been very well traumatized.

Even then, his heart had went out the the kids. It's why he'd told Al to contact him if they ever wanted to join the military. He'd be able to keep an eye out for them, if they even passed.

They were probably the luckiest victims he'd ever met. Most who attempted human transmutation were killed, or driven insane by what they'd seen.

He knew those boys were something special.

But still, he'd never dreamed that Ed saw him as something special, as well. He figured he was just the officer that Ed sassed constantly and nearly drove mad with his antics sometimes, but looking back on it now, it was clear to Roy the teen saw him as a comrade- someone to be respected... For a kid who's father had been absent most of his life, Ed thought Roy was special enough to fill that role. It both surprised and scared Roy- how on earth could he live up to everything being a father meant?

Roy sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He was starting to get a headache.

Ed shifted from where he laid on the couch, muttering something unintelligible, before he slumbered on.

Roy must've still been watching him, because he didn't even hear Hawkeye when she entered the room.

"Something wrong, Sir?" she asked, blue eyes seeing right through him like they always did.

Roy sighed, looking over at her. "Did you hear what Ed said on the porch? Any of the conversation?"

The corner of Riza's mouth twitched. "Possibly."

The admission was enough to let him know that she;d heard the conversation in its entirety, as Riza Hawkeye didn't do things in halves.

"He said I was like a father to him." Roy said, glancing over at Ed's sleeping form anxiously.

Riza nodded, taking a seat beside Roy, normally sharp features softening. "He did." she conceded.

"I'm not even a good person, after Ishval. How can I be like a father to him? I'm going to let him down..." Roy admitted. "Ed's been let down too many times in his life. I don't want to disappoint him like this."

Riza frowned, gaze hardening. "With an attitude like that, you're doomed from the start." she said sharply, tone clipped. "You said yourself that Ed's been let down too many times- so don't let him down. Ed admitted he thinks of you like a father- so suck it up and be one!" Riza stood, stalking out of the room silently and leaving Roly to stare after her, alarmed.

Roy sighed. Great, now he had Hawkeye pissed at him, as well. You didn't just... become a father overnight.

"Al... come back..." Ed muttered in his sleep, squirming slightly.

Roy looked over at the teen, surprised for a moment, before his gaze hardened. Riza was right- Ed had been let down far too much. Roy wouldn't fail him, too. His jaw set, Roy strode across the room, determined. He grabbed a blanket from the linen closet and carefully tucked it around the slumbering teen, who didn't stir, before brushing the blonde hair away form the boy's face.

"Sleep well, Ed." he said, voice losing it's normal authoritative bite and features softening as he smiled slightly.

He turned and quietly left the room.

He was going to do his absolute best to be the father Ed deserved.

Thoughts? I tried to keep it realistic and down-to-earth, but still emotional. Ed's still jsut a teen, and he's going through a lot in this chapter.

I know Ed and Mustang's relationship is normally limited to trading insults and wisecracks at one another, but I figured in this chapter- Ed would've had the fight knocked out of him.

Meeting his estranged father and dealing with all the feelings of betrayal, anger, sadness, and resentment, as well as watching Al side with his father after it all probably left him at a loss on the porch, giving Mustang the opportunity to usher the kid inside and be there for him during his rough time, share a drink with the him and just mull over what exactly happened.

Mustang also comes to terms with the fact that Ed views him as a father (with some help from Riza) and decides how to proceed.

Please review and tell me your thoughts, what you like/dislike, or if you felt anything was unrealistic. Thanks and godbless! :)