Well guys, I didn't want to be that writer. You know, the one that takes months to update because life is crazy. But alas, here we are. All I can say is I am terribly sorry for the wait. It wasn't so much that I lost inspiration. I just couldn't find the time to sit down and do the tedious editing that no one likes (or maybe you do.) I always want to give you my best work. I still don't think it's perfect, but I felt if I waited any longer, it would never end up getting posted.

An FMA story that I have fallen in love was put on hiatus recently, and I'm pretty, like, devastated about that, so I promise to NEVER do that to you, k? Also, I almost split this up because it got so long, but I thought, you guys deserve the long chapter after the horrendous wait I put you through. You're welcome :)

So here it is, the last chapter to Sacrifices. I hope it doesn't disappoint you guys too much. Thank you for sticking with this for so long. As always, your reviews and kind words are the inspiration that keeps me writing, and don't worry, this is certainly not the end for me!

There wasn't much that scared Roy, save losing his beloved first lieutenant, but in this moment, he was scared to die. Scared because Ed was right there, and seeing that fear in his face terrified him.

The young alchemist was kneeling beside him, holding his famous red coat to the wound and shouting orders to stay awake. He didn't want to leave the boy all alone, but if it meant Ed would survive, he had to, right? Then a thought struck him. If he died, who would protect the kid the next time someone was after him? Suddenly he realized what a mistake this had been. He cant die. He had to live. He promised he would protect Ed, and he couldn't do that in a grave.

You're gonna fight this, Roy. You're not gonna die, because that kid still needs you!

Ed rested his head gently on Roy's chest. He gripped the material of his shirt tightly, pleading with the man to stay with him.

"Don't you dare leave me Roy…Please…I love you…and I need you to stay.."

Roy wasn't sure if it was because Ed was too traumatized to notice, but he was definitely still breathing.

Shouldn't he go get help or something instead of wasting his tears?

Or maybe Ed just assumed he was beyond help.

As if! I'll show him.

He reached up shakily and ran a hand across Ed's back. The boy froze mid-sentence.

"…Roy?"

"Help…get help.." Come on, kid. I'm bleeding out over here!

"R-Right! S-Sorry!"

He ran away quickly, and after a few moments, he heard Ed's clap of alchemic power. More footsteps came running back over to him.

"Colonel!"

Another blond head popped into view. It was his most trusted lieutenant, Riza Hawkeye.

He smiled, ignoring the worried look on her face while Ed went back to inspecting the wound.

Sitting on her knees, she gently lifted his head into her lap and ran her hand slowly through his raven hair. "I've got you." She whispered softly. It was really a shame he was too busy dying at the moment to enjoy the moment. "I already called a medic."

Ed wiped his eyes quickly to remove the tears that had been falling and looked at her inquisitively.

"I had a feeling one or both of you would need it, so I used the phone upstairs to call. They should be here any minute."

That's why she was his most trusted. "T-Thank you."

He looked back over to Ed, who wasn't saying much. He wasn't crying or freaking out anymore. He just stood there, watching him. Roy knew something was up. Either he was on the verge of a breakdown…or he was coming up with a plan. Truthfully, he preferred the latter. Then he remembered the boy had been injured earlier as well.

"Y-Your shoulder."

The boy's glazed eyes seem to come back into focus. "He barely grazed me. I'm fine."

Finally, he knelt down in front of Roy, inspecting the wound once more. "I'm going to try something." Was all he spoke before transmuting himself a writing utensil of sorts. He then began to etch something into the ground around the man.

Roy watched with intense curiosity. A transmutation circle?

"N-No!" He reached for Ed's arm, gripping it weakly.

Ed merely shrugged out of his grip. "It's not for human transmutation! I'm not an idiot!"

That's when Roy finally noticed the fire in his eyes. Ed wasn't sad or upset. He was pissed. Pissed that his superior was stupid enough to give up his alchemy, rendering him defenseless against Raymond. Pissed that he was now bleeding out in a basement, death knocking at his front door. Pissed that the man he dubbed father was only in this situation because of him.

He wasn't sad in the least bit.

Finally, he finished the circle. "It's Alkahestry." He looked at Roy once again, still that hint of anger in his features. "You've already lost too much blood. I need to at least close the wound or you'll never make it to the hospital."

"Are you sure about this, Edward." Riza asked, concerned for Roy's safety.

"Yeah. It's our only shot. Since Roy can't use his alchemy to sear the wound shut, this is our only option now."

Roy cringed at the bitter tone in his youngest subordinate.

"Ed…" He started to speak, but the boy cut him off.

"Save your breath."

The young prodigy closed his eyes and took one huge breath of his own. He then placed his hands on the circle's edge, activating a bright light that engulfed them all. When he could finally see again, Ed inspected Roy's wound closely. It wasn't perfect, but it appeared he had actually managed to do it. He smiled ever so slightly, noticing that the bullet had been spit out onto the ground as well. Sometimes he even impressed himself.

"I can't believe I actually did it…"

"You said you were sure…" There was that tone in Riza's voice again. The one that made grown men cower in fear.

"I've just never tried it before is all." He offered sheepishly.

"You are something else, kid." Roy mumbled, before slipping into unconsciousness.

As if right on cue, they heard sirens echoing outside the house.

"I'll get them." Ed offered quickly, and ran out the room.

Riza looked in his direction for a moment, confused. Were those…tears she just saw?

Maybe he was just relieved it all worked out.

Clearly she didn't know Ed very well, or she would have never let him out of her sight.

The first thing Roy noticed was multiple people were touching him. There was a hand grabbing his, and another pair touching his stomach. He also felt something warm on his forehead. Where was he? Who was he with? What were they doing to him? Panic started setting in as he remembered the recent events, and his eyes immediately shot open.

"Stop!" He tried to pull away from whatever grasped his hand, but as he moved, pain shot through his whole body. He squeezed his eyes close once more.

"Sir!" He heard a female voice speak and recognized it instantly. "Just stay calm, Colonel. Everything's fine. You're at the hospital now."

When he opened them again, he looked for the voice and found his first lieutenant seated next to him.

He wanted to smile. To take advantage of the affection that was being shown by the woman he loved. But right now, there was only one person on his mind

"Ed. Where is he?"

"He's fine, sir. Don't worry." She smiled, letting Roy know that she understood. Oh how he wanted to marry that woman.

But still, if Ed wasn't here, then…

"You didn't answer the question."

"I'm not sure, sir. He ran off to get the paramedics when they arrived and never came back. I assumed he just needed some time."

Roy honestly expected Ed to be the first person he saw. Sure, he had a lot to make up for, but Ed would still be there. And if he wasn't, that could only mean one thing...

He began to rip out the IV that was feeding him blood. "We have to find him now."

"Colonel! You lost a lot of blood. You can't just walk out of here!" There was genuine fear in her voice and he hated causing her to worry, but right now he didn't have a choice.

"You don't understand Ed, do you? He's going to blame himself for my situation. He thinks it's his fault that I lost my alchemy and almost died. And He's going to do the one thing he does best to fix it. Alchemy."

"Human transmutation? But he wouldn't really try that again, would he? He knows what it did to his brother. He knows that he could lose his life altogether. Would he really throw away your sacrifice like that?"

"He's not going to throw his life away. He's going to offer his own alchemy in exchange to give mine back."

"Oh. I see."

"But there's only one problem. It's not going to work."

****Flashback****

"Colonel Roy mustang, the great flame alchemist. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Cut the pleasantries truth. Just hurry up and name your price. What do you want from me."

"Who says I want anything from you?"

"You always want something from us humans. Because you know we're weak and will give up anything for someone we care about."

"True I suppose."

"Well I care about that kid. A lot. And I want you to save him."

"He's been through my gate before, you know."

"I'm aware. And he's fought with every inch of his life since then to get to where he is today. I'm not letting that get taken away from him so soon."

"You're right. Humans can be the dumbest of creatures sometimes. So, it's a deal you want to make? Can you handle the consequences?"

"Yes. Whatever you want, I'll give it up. My arms, legs, my soul. My entire body if I have to."

"Hmm I think I know exactly what to take from you, Colonel. I don't know if you're going to be willing, though."

"I already told you, you can have whatever you want."

"Alright then. I suppose we have a deal."

"Good."

"But just remember, what I'm going to do to you will be irreversible. Meaning, when the kid finds out and attempts this very thing to change it back -and you know he will- I will have no choice but to take his life this time. You will never see him again."

"I wont let that happen!"

****End Flashback****

"If he activates the circle, there will be no more Edward Elric. And that is something I cannot allow."

"Perhaps if you had just been more honest with him..."

"Look I know I should have told him the truth from the beginning, but it's too late to regret it now. I just need to find him before it's too late. Are you with me or not?"

"Always."

After some convincing, or more realistically, after Riza threatened most of the hospital staff with her gun, Roy was finally allowed to be released. But not without a severe lecture and a ton of pain medication. Even though it was extremely painful for the Colonel to walk, he wasn't in any life threatening danger by leaving. Not that it would have stopped him from getting to Ed either way. He was just thankful for Riza's help at the moment in getting him to the car. Once they got in, the lieutenant began to drive, but quickly realized she didn't have a destination.

"Do you know where he is?" She peered from the rearview mirror at Roy while he tried to hide his discomfort.

"I'm working on it." Was all he said as his mind was evidently trying to figure the boy's location out.

"Should we try your house first?"

"I doubt he would go home. And I know he wouldn't waste time going all the way back to Risenbool. It has to be somewhere here in central. Somewhere away from people who would notice. He may be foolish enough to do it a second time, but he's not going to let himself get caught."

Somewhere he feels comfortable...

"Actually, I think I may have just figured it out."

Ed sat in the middle of the circle, tracing his finger along the edges and admiring his handiwork. It looked much better than that night. The night his life changed forever. Maybe that's why he came here. It reminded him of what his own home would feel like if he still had it. So much pain and death surrounded him. He could still see the outline of their bodies..

"Nina…"

She was such a bright light that was blown out way too soon. Well, more like stomped out by her father, Shou Tucker. His death wasn't retribution enough for what he did to her. The memories would plague Ed forever, just like his nightmares of trying to bring his mother back. And here he was, ready to commit the taboo again. It was a fitting place to sin again. All he had to do was press his hands together and…

"Fullmetal!"

Ed's head snapped to the side to see Roy stumbling towards him.

That man was really something else...

After a short drive, they finally pulled up to Tucker's old mansion. Even though the house appeared normal on the outside, they both knew the horrors that happened within.

"Are you sure this is where he would go, sir?"

"I'm sure." Roy stared at the abandoned home, suppressing a shiver down his spine. "Trust me. I know exactly what he's thinking."

"Let's go." Hawkeye opened her door, but Roy gently grabbed her arm to stop her from getting out.

"I need you to wait here."

"But sir. You said yourself Ed is unstable right now. We have to stop him before we lose him forever."

"I know that. That's why I need to do this alone. Ed and I have come a long way over the years. I know I can get through to him."

Riza stared at him a moment with those cold brown eyes. "And what if you can't?"

"Then I'll have to live with it. Look, I've already caused enough damage. Just let me fix this."

"Fine." She shut her door. "But you better not come back without him."

"So, you found me." Ed sat in the middle of a drawn human transmutation circle. It looked as it he had been contemplating what to do for a while. "How are you even here right now? Or was you getting shot somehow faked too?"

"Please come out of the circle, Ed. Come home with me. Everything's fine now."

"Fine? This is seriously what you would call fine!? You lied to me!"

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"I want to know how you did it. Or can you even tell me that much?"

Roy sighed and sat down a comfortable distance away from the boy. Truthfully, he was in so much pain that he afraid he would fall down first.

"I arranged the whole thing with truth. My alchemy for your life. He left enough of a wound so you would believe my story and erased the transmutation markings on the floor."

"How could you deceive me like that!"

"I'm sorry okay. It was the only way. I knew you'd never allow it and I wasn't going to let you die like that. You have so much life still ahead of you, Edward. People to help. Discoveries to make. The world is a better place because of you."

"Fine. Then I'll give up my alchemy to bring yours back. I'll do whatever it takes."

"You can't." Roy stated matter-of-factly. It didn't sit too well with Ed.

"No, you can't! You can't stop me or tell me I'm being foolish. You're not allowed that luxury anymore."

"I mean you physically can't. If you activate that circle, I'll never see you again."

"What?"

"Truth knew you wouldn't be able to resist. That's why he made the deal. He wants you to make the same mistake you made with your mother."

Roy bowed his head and stared at the floor. "I can't loose you again, Ed."

"So what, I'll just become trapped inside the gate forever?"

"Or whatever he plans to do with you.."

Ed swore at the man. "How dare you make that decision for me. I've never hated you so much."

Roy pinched the bridge of his nose in aggravation. Not that he was mad at the boy. He just hated that he wasn't getting through like he had hoped.

"I have an idea. Let's think about someone else's feelings other than your own right now."

The young alchemist stood up furiously. "I am!"

"Then listen to what I'm saying!" Roy slowly stood up, pressing an arm against his side, and began to walk carefully towards Ed.

"You're right, okay. You're right about me lying and you're right about me being an idiot for doing it. I thought it was the only choice I had at the time and I'm sorry for keeping it from you. But you have to understand why I did it. It didn't feel like a sacrifice to me. I didn't feel like I was giving up something. I was giving something to someone I cared about. The greatest gift anyone could- life. And I've never been more happy to do it."

Ed closed his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. "That's some really twisted logic you know."

"Ed. Look at me. You've given up so much of your youth to try and fix the mistakes you made. You make time to help other people just because. Heck, you'd give your life for someone in a heart beat. And I know you'd do the same for me. Why not let someone return the favor? Let me do something for you just this once."

"I…" He turned away from the man, embarrassed. "You shouldn't have to."

"I don't have to. I want to."

"But you need your alchemy. I know everyone jokes about you being useless, but that's just because we know what a great alchemist you really are. How are you going to protect your team? How are you going to keep Riza safe? You're a war hero. Amestris needs the flame alchemist.

"No."

"No what?"

"What we need is the Fullmetal alchemist. I can protect my family the same way I always have. It's never been about the power that's made my team so successful. It's because we're a family. We have each other's backs. We look out for one another. And we never give up. That's true power, Ed."

"Then what about Ray? If you had your flame alchemy, you could have easily stopped him."

"Ray was determined to kill one or both of us regardless, Ed. That's just a matter of vengeance. I'm not invulnerable. Heck I'm no where near perfect. Though I like to pretend to be."

He smirked at the kid, who didn't seem to take the bait like he normally did. Oh well. At least he seemed to be pretty calm at the moment. Now to talk him out of that circle.

"This is still all my fault...it always is." Ed buried his face in his hands.

"No it's not."

"Yes, it is! I screwed up again and got myself killed. You wouldn't have had to do any of this if I had just been more careful!"

"Look if it's anyone's fault, it's mine. Ray only came after you because of me. And he's just one of the countless enemies I've made over the years. I risked your life the second I put you under my command. I should have known better than to bring you into my house."

Ed peeked out from underneath his hands. "You...you want me to leave?"

"No that's not what I mean. I just...I don't want something else to happen to you because of me."

"Well I don't need you to take care of me. You're not my dad!"

Before he could do something rash, Roy pulled Ed into a tight embrace. He held onto the boy for dear life, as if he would lose him forever.

"Let go!" Ed yelled beneath his grip.

"I'll always protect you, no matter what."

"I don't need you! Just leave me alone!" He continued to push away, but Roy held firm.

"I know you're scared. Scared that I won't keep my promise. That I'll leave you just like your father. But I'm not going anywhere. Not in this moment and not ever."

"Stop…" The boy began to cry.

Ed finally managed to get his auto mail leg in between them and kneed Roy in the stomach. He had forgotten to be gentle with his injuries, causing the once flame alchemist to yelp in pain. He instantly released the boy and sunk to his knees, clutching his side.

Ed realized all too late what he had done and immediately crouched beside the man.

"Roy! I didn't mean to…I'm sorry!"

He could see the sweat forming on his face and the distorted look of pain in his eyes.

"I'm fine...but I..." He grunted in pain as he pressed harder against the wound. "I think it re-opened."

"You're not fine!" Ed immediately went into panic mode and began brainstorming ideas on how to fix the mess he had made once again. "I-I could do alkahestry and close the wound again. Though I'd probably just screw it up like everything else lately."

"Ed."

"Or maybe truth would make a deal with me if I-"

"Ed! Stop!" Roy grabbed his wrist to get his attention. "All I need right now is a real doctor and some pain killers." He began pushing himself to his feet.

"Wait!" Ed wrapped his hand around the man's and helped him up. Once standing, he then wrapped Roy's arm around his neck to keep him from falling over."

"The lieutenant has a car out front with my medicine. Hurry. P-Please."

"Right. Let's go." They made their way to the car where a worried Hawkeye was waiting anxiously. As soon as she saw them, she ran up and grabbed the other side of Roy, helping him in the car.

"You can't push yourself like that, sir. You know what the doctor said." Once he was settled in, she gave him his painkiller.

What are you doing?!" Ed interrupted. "We have to get him to a hospital!"

"A hospital?" Hawkeye glared at her superior as if she was about shoot him for being reckless again. "What did you do, Colonel?"

Leaning his head against the back of the seat, Roy chuckled. "You can relax, lieutenant. I may have stretched the truth just a bit, Ed. Sorry."

He glanced at the worried boy, who's expression was slowly starting to change into shock. "What? I had to get you out of there somehow."

Ed's face suddenly went from complete shock to a deep scowl.

"You little jerk! I thought you were really hurt!"

"Well, In my defense, you did knock the wind out of me."

"Whatever." He began to open the door to leave.

"Wait! I really am in a lot of pain over here. Seeing as you did try to beat me up just a moment ago, you should at least help me out until I'm healed."

"Yeah well you deserved it after all you've put me through." He crossed his arms.

"Fine. You got your revenge. Now will you just come home already? You can't leave me all alone at the house."

Ed's expression went soft and he looked down. "I thought you didn't want me to live there anymore."

"I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I guess I am just scared of what could happen. But we're better off together. A team, remember? We look out for each other. Plus I live with the Fullmetal alchemist. I think we'll be fine."

"Well you know how well that worked out the last time."

"Nobody's perfect kid. I think we both learned that. As long as we learn our lesson and move forward, there's nothing to worry about, right?"

"I guess…"

"So, you'll stay?" Roy held out a shaky hand for Ed to shake. "Cause if you run away I'm just going to have to chase you down again, and that might be a tad difficult, seeing as I can barely walk at the moment."

"Well, since you wouldn't even know what to do with yourself if I left, I guess I can stay a while longer." Ed took the hand and shook it. "But don't even begin to think that we're even."

"Fine. Just no more human transmutations. No matter what. Okay?"

"Deal."

"And let's not mention that to anyone else either, seeing as I could lose my job and all."

"What's this?" Ed's face lit up with a devilish smile. "Something I can finally hang over your head?"

"I'm serious."

"Well I'm serious when I say I want a raise." He put his hands behind his head casually and leaned back.

"Please. Don't try to be me. Blackmail is my job. You should just stick to what you're good at."

"Oh you mean destroying things and causing you all kinds of paperwork? If you say so."

"You know what? I can't believe I'm gonna say this, but paperwork sounds pretty good right now."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, I'll gladly help you out with that. Just give me a mission, boss!"

They both laughed and enjoyed the rest of the car ride home, finally accepting what had happened and moving on.

As they pulled up to Roy's house, the ex-alchemist couldn't help but smile. Smile because this was their normal, and he had been missing it for months. He caught a glimpse of Ed, who was trying to hide his own smile as well. Neither of them had to ask what the other was thinking. They were both feeling the same emotions. And they both knew, even though the future could hold anything for them, it would be all right as long as they had each other.

So yeah, another story finally wrapped up on fanfiction. That's pretty exciting, even though I wish the ending had been better. I'm also excited because I can finally start working on all the other ideas swimming around in my brain. I don't think I will post on here for a bit, but I will certainly be doing lots of writing! I still have a sequel to work on, and at least three other one-shots. My goal for the next two parental one-shots is to write Roy and Ed's character more like the show. It's going to be challenging, but I think you guys are going to like them! I also had an idea that came to me recently about an AU where alchemy has been banned…so yeah, I'm definitely not going anywhere.

A quick side note. I recently discovered Miraculous Ladybug, and while the show is just okay to me, I'm kind of in love with the concept. I would love to write a fan fiction for it, soooo you may be seeing something from me in that world soon :)

Endings make me sad, so I'll just say thank you again for making me feel like I'm writing all of this for a reason. I used to write stuff all the time before I knew about fanfiction, and it was never as rewarding as having someone else read it and say they enjoyed it. I hope all of you did just that. There are things I want to work on as I continue to write. My hope is to improve with each story. Thank you for all your tips and encouraging reviews. I will certainly put them to good use in the future :)