The boy, Hughes thought at first, was an upright-walking porcupine. He was terribly serious, all clenched fists and purposeful gait and weary sideways glances. During their first meeting at central command, when Hughes dared to make a comment on how sometimes famous alchemists come in small packages, the look the boy gave him was fit to freeze an ocean. He didn't talk much, just listened to others talk around him. He ate as if he hasn't seen any food in a week. When Hughes told him to relax and enjoy the supper with them, it changed nothing, the boy just kept eating at a break-neck pace. After he cleaned his plate for the third time, he thanked Gracia for the meal and asked to be shown to a bed. It was barely even nine.

Unable to stop thinking, Hughes gave up on sleep around one in the morning and went to the living room, hoping to get some reading done, at least. The guestroom door was open by a crack, and he heard something… whispering?

Careful to make no noise, he laid a hand on the doorframe and listened.

"…Miss Gracia's quiche was amazing. It looked like mom's and even tasted almost the same. And she's got kind eyes, like mom, too. They're green and bright, like young tree leaves in spring. Her hair is chestnut. She's not overweight or anything, but her face is nicely round, womanly, you know? Lt. Coronel Hues has black hair, and his face is a bit long and angular, but it doesn't look weird, just manly. He has a bit of stubble, but I don't think it counts as a beard, too short. More of a shadow. He's got dark eyes… maybe green, donno for sure, I haven't seen him outside in the sun yet. And the little Alicia is so adorable… It's no wonder Hughes can't stop bragging about her.

I'm so sorry you can't get to know them. I'm so sorry, Al. I hope you don't hate me. Please don't hate me. I love you. Goodnight…"

The broken whispers fell silent, and Maes leaned heavily on the wall, trying to keep his breathing even and quiet, to keep his racing heart from jumping out of his chest. After a few minutes, gentle snoring could be heard from the room, and he risked taking a peek.

He was lying on his right side, facing the window. He was curled up, his left arm above the blankets and hugging his stomach. No, not his stomach. There was something else. Hughes squinted. A… teddy bear?

He breathed in sharply and turned around, walking away. God, this boy… He wasn't standoffish, or rude, or anything Maes thought at first, was he? Instead, he was just heartbroken, and very, very alone.

Maes didn't find any more sleep that night.

They caught the Freezer two days later. When Maes saw Edward running up to the furer president, his shoulder a bloody mess, his heart clenched. He didn't realize they've made him run around fighting dangerous rogue alchemist. He was just a boy, for god's sake!

He tried not to sound too angry talking to Roy, but he probably failed. That was fine with him.

"Why did you make him a state alchemist? God, Roy, why? What reason could there be? He's just a kid!"

Roy have him a long, considering look. Maes recognized that look. This one meant, "You're stepping into dangerous territory, and I'm not sure how much you need to know."

Maes sighed and let him walk away. He knew Roy always had his reasons, even if they weren't obvious at first glance. He just couldn't imagine what they could be, this time.

Roy stopped just short of the door.

"I don't think I should tell you, it's not my place, but why don't you ask Edward? He might tell you. I think he likes you."

Hughes remembered that first night they met. The supper. The stubborn refusal to relax. The conversation with no one under the moonlight.

That boy won't trust so easily, Maes could tell. Maybe one day, then. But now? Not a chance in hell.

Edward came back from Liore with another hole on his shoulder. Roy wished he could say it was the first time something like this had happened. Ed was a good fighter, especially for a boy of his age and statue, but he fought with a recklessness that spoke of internalized self-hatred. Even though his alchemy made him a very dangerous opponent, quite aside from his martial arts knowledge, the boy collected new scars like it was a hobby.

The worst thing about it was, he didn't say a word. He never gave away that he was in pain. Roy would have never found out about the bullet wound, if not for the check that came in the mail two days later, for his hospital care. The letter that came with it, sighed by a surgeon, expressing his concern over the fact that the young major checked himself out against his medical advice right after they finished sewing him up, gave Roy a headache.

That boy was going to be the death of him.

He really needed to do something about this. Edward's mental health wasn't getting any better. He behaved marginally less abnormal around others, and his spells of quietness didn't last for months at a time anymore, but the recklessness and the disregard for his own life had to be stopped.

Roy had no idea what to do. Should he send the boy to a shrink? No, that won't help anything. Edward won't talk to them, the most Roy would get for his trouble is a recommendation to take him off active duty, and then Ed would kill him. As much as Roy wished he could just wrap that kid in a blanket and keep him safe, that wasn't a valid option. The only thing that kept Edward alive was the desperation to keep moving forward, and to take that away… He might as well sign his death warrant.

Roy was doing what he could to be trustworthy. He hoped that someday Edward will come to him. That wasn't enough, by far, but… what else was there to be done?

God… To be honest, he couldn't even blame the insufferable runt. To survive such a terrible tragedy so young… To lose his whole family… To lose his little brother in such an abominable way…

Roy will never forget the look in Edward's eyes that day, five years ago. He hoped he would never have to see it again.

Roy had his own guilt, of course. If he'd just come sooner… If he listened to his instincts and took the train to Risenbool a few weeks earlier, maybe, at least, Ed would have still had his little brother.