Chapter 28

A cool breeze swept through the area, complementing the warmth from the sunshine that was occasionally blocked by gently passing clouds. Birds chirped carelessly in the distance, oblivious to the world below them. The cemetery was mostly empty and perfectly peaceful, besides the low hum of traffic beyond the black iron gates that encircled the neatly mowed lawn.

Roy began his trek up the hill that was lined with gravestones as grass brushed against every step, tossed carelessly through the wind along with his dark bangs.

He hadn't gone to the grave site since breaking out of Envy's trap almost a month ago. For the longest time, he didn't want to do so much as remember its existence. He wanted to forget about what had happened there in hopes of moving on. And it worked in a way, but he eventually had to give in and acknowledge it once again, in spite of how his spine tingled and skin chilled at the very thought. It got better in time; not healed completely, but better. Given how lost and broken he once felt, that was more than enough.

The dark gray pointed roof of a familiar mausoleum caught Roy's eye as he continued his march, slowing his movements but not interrupting them. That was one place he certainly had no desire to return to. Maes, however, did check it out after things had calmed down. From what he heard, the investigations officer kept an eye on it for a while, looking out for any signs of movement and finding surprisingly little. Maes eventually clamped a very sturdy lock on the metal door and returned from time to time to see that it had not once been tampered with. From what they could tell, Envy was the only one to ever use the old tomb as an entrance to that labyrinth of underground tunnels. They considered bringing the suspicious crypt into light or investigate it personally, but as things were, it was decided that they were better off not bringing more attention to themselves; at least for the time being.

Roy and the rest of the team had gathered together multiple times since then, whether he was physically up for it or not, to further discuss what could be taken from what they already knew. Unfortunately, they did not uncover much besides speculations. He clearly remembered there being others- one more, at least- and Edward attested to that as well. But if the evidence was to be trusted, then it appeared as if Envy liked to run off and do his own thing, killing time with pet projects as their main goal progressed elsewhere.

Maybe that was why no one ever came after them to avenge Envy's defeat. Maybe Envy just wasn't worth the effort as the others focused on whatever their main objective was; something about the Promised Day. Envy was clearly involved, seeing as Roy was apparently a potential sacrifice, but the key word 'potential' made him wonder how much he was worth to them. It had to be just as Envy had said: he was proving to be much more trouble than he was worth.

After the hell Roy had been through to prove that, he wasn't about to complain. The less attention he drew the better. But even so, he rarely went a day without wondering if it was truly over, or if there was more just around the corner.

But at least for now, Roy allowed himself to just enjoy the sensation of not needing to look over his shoulder every five seconds. Even if it was false peace, it was better than nothing. Besides, both he and Maes needed the rest, as well as Edward.

But that wasn't to say it was possible to not think about the events that occurred on a daily basis, especially when so many mysteries remained.

Maes was true on his word and dealt with Envy. Roy still recalled the relief he felt when he discovered that his friend shared a similar opinion, but didn't quite realize at the time that he intended to keep the bugs' fate a secret from him. Roy tried to guess, tried to get as much information out as possible, but more times than not, Maes would just smile knowingly and say he'd tell him eventually. Said it was for his own good that Roy wasn't tied to it. Hawkeye wholeheartedly agreed, but Roy suspected that she had a part to play in the surreptitious decision in the first place.

With a mildly unsatisfied sigh, Roy scanned the rows of gravestones as he passed by, counting them down from the instructions he was given, until he spied his own name engraved into a stone slab. He stopped in front of it and looked down at the plainly sentimental blurb that was inscribed under his date of death, quietly scoffing at it's simplicity.

Loved by many

He couldn't help but doubt that many were moved to tears by the emotional epitaph, maybe excluding his small inner circle.

But nonetheless, his eyes were trapped on the gravestone, finding it nearly impossible to look away. Roy knelt down in front of it, eyeing the engraving as he wondered how many others stood over this grave with the firm belief that he was lying six feet beneath it.

Unlike a few of the surrounding graves, his was lacking any signs of flowers or anything of the like. They probably stopped coming in completely once his team learned that he wasn't quite as dead as the stone made them believe. The only thing that made his grave stand out among the others was a strange bump in the ground where some of the grass had been uprooted and pushed aside- it almost looked like the product of an alchemic reaction.

In fact, it was. It had to be.

The shallow dome was no wider than his hand and didn't look terribly sturdy either. Roy flexed his perpetually sore fingers for a moment as he considered it, then dug into the dirt, easily breaking through to whatever the alchemic shield was hiding.

As soon as he spotted something inside, he broke the dirt down completely, revealing that it had covered a patch of fading grass, and a note.

A folded piece of paper, dirtied and stained by the grass it sat on and the elements it had endured even while shielded looked up at him, addressed to Uncle Roy in what looked to be blue crayon. It didn't take him two seconds to know that it was written by Elicia's hand, but remained staring at the withered note out of pure shock. Finding this left on his grave, obviously for him, felt similar to discovering a lost relic- that just so happened to have his name on it.

He gingerly picked up the paper, half afraid that it would crumble in his grasp as he fumbled it to open, gently pulling apart the corners that stuck to one another.

Inside was half a page containing small doodles, such as a rain cloud and simple frowning faces, while the other half was covered in the young girl's handwriting, all in the same shade of blue.

Dear Uncle Roy

Daddy said that you passed away and were not coming back because a bad man did a bad thing. I don't really get it, but I didn't want to ask because he looked sad, and I don't want to make him sadder. But Mommy said that if I want something, I should write it down and make a wish. I wish that you will come back so Mommy and Daddy won't be sad anymore. Please please please come back, Uncle Roy. I miss you and I know that all of your friends do too.

Love Elicia

Now that he was looking, he could easily differentiate the handwriting. The paragraph was all Elicia's, but under it was a row of signatures, all still in blue. For some, he recognized the handwriting before he could make out the names.

Maes and Gracia, Riza, Jean, Heymans, Vato, Kain, and Alphonse.

Surrounding the names were a random arrangement of hearts, some full, some cracked, some crying from cartoonish eyes. But the sight of it- the entire letter- it made Roy's own heart throb painfully in his chest. He had been focusing on recovering this past month and chose not to make any visits until his survival went public in a few days. But damn it, he should have gone to see Maes' family. His friend asked him to, more than once, but he never pressed when Roy shrugged it off and said he'd do it later.

And better yet, that little girl made the point to find the members of his team and ask them to sign her note, perhaps hoping that the more people who wished for it, the greater the chances that he would miraculously return.

It was almost funny in hindsight- grimly funny. Chances were, not one of them thought it possible, besides Elicia herself. And yet she had predicted it correctly.

He really needed to visit them.

Roy read through the note again and again, down to the last name.

And curiously enough, he noticed that Edward's name was missing. Even Alphonse signed it, with his large yet somehow elegant handwriting. The older Elric must have given her no time to find him during the funeral, seeing as that must have been the only time she could have gotten all of those signatures. The kid probably dashed right after the event to wallow in his usual brand of self-induced guilt.

Roy shook his head at this and folded the note carefully in his hands and held it for a moment longer, eyes gazing over the childish handwriting idly.

It was so innocently heartfelt and obviously hurt.

If only he had seen this sooner, he wouldn't have been so dense.

But to be fair, the past month had not been filled by him lounging on his couch day after day. Albeit only when Hawkeye and Hughes allowed it, Roy had been working on recovering his strength, brushing up on his alchemy, taking all the steps that were necessary before approaching the military. And for what it was worth, it worked out fairly well.

When Hughes arranged a meeting with Fuhrer King Bradley himself, he had boldly stated the truth; that Roy had been capture by a hostile individual while presumed to be dead. It was safe to say that they only said part of the truth, however. They left out that this person was a powerful monster or that he was working with a larger group for some grand scheme- they played ignorant, partially because they still were. They had no idea who could be trusted and the incredibly unbelievable events that occurred were much better kept secret.

When Roy was brought in to prove his survival, Bradley was elated. Strangely so, in fact. He was surprisingly pleased with how they presented themselves and even more happy when they insisted that the events had been taken care of, and were a matter of the past that they had no interest in revisiting.

There were plenty more details to be discussed before Roy could fully come out of hiding; there was a proper way to do everything, after all. But all in all, things were looking quite promising. But as they left that meeting, both Roy and Maes felt unnerved in a way neither quite knew how to communicate. But whatever was bothering them, it was an issue for another day.

A quiet shuffle lightly brushed his ears, just noticeable enough for Roy to glance behind him, half expecting it to be nothing more than the wind rustling the trees. But standing a few meters away was Edward, pausing mid-step once he was spotted. His gaudish coat and golden bangs were caught by the wind, but he was otherwise perfectly still, watching Roy with an expression that betrayed nothing besides a mild curiosity.

He felt himself smile thinly as he pushed himself to his feet. He had been keeping the others waiting long enough, he supposed as he brushed any dirt or stray blades of grass off of himself.

"Come on, we don't got all day," Edward called after a beat. "The others are waiting."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming."

Roy cast one last thoughtful glance at his own gravestone, mutely hoping that he would never see his own name in a cemetery. Then with a soundless exhale, he turned and began taking steps down the grassy hill.

He wasn't entirely sure what his expression was when he approached Edward, but he could guess that it wasn't entirely stoic, considering how the kid tilted his head and gave him a strange look.

"You alright?" he asked after a moment, stuffing his mismatched hands into his pockets.

"Hm?" Roy blinked out of whatever vacant thoughtful trance he was toeing. "Oh yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking... Actually, Fullmetal- do you recognize this?" He pulled out the old letter from his pocket and held out the front cover to the blond, who stared down at it blankly for a moment, eyes slowly reading over the words Uncle Roy.

Then after a beat, his eyes widened as realization hit. "Oh yeah, I remember that. I-" Edward cut himself off and looked past Roy to the grave, connecting the dots quickly in his mind. "I forgot about it," he mumbled under his breath, eyes caught on the note for several seconds. He opened his mouth again, but decided against whatever he was going to say.

"Figures you were the one to protect it," he mused quietly, gently brushing some dirt off of the old paper with his thumb.

"Yeah, well…" Ed trailed off and drifted his gaze to the ground with an indifferent shrug.

"And you never decided to read it?"

"Wasn't mine to read."

Roy couldn't help but softly chuckle without thought as he felt the smile pull at his lips. As opening atheistic as Edward was, he had quite a lot of respect for the dead. Then again, anyone who had experienced as much loss as he did at such a young age would. Whenever he saw that note by Roy's gravestone, he probably figured that the supposedly dead colonel would never get to read it. And yet, he had no interest in opening it for himself. "You're a good kid, Ed."

The blond scoffed abruptly, almost awkwardly. "Is this really the time to be getting all sentimental?"

"Maybe not, but…" Perhaps Ed was right, but he couldn't help it. Finding the old note and being reminded of how far he had come didn't give him much of a choice. "But I'm glad you came today."

"You're not even supposed to know what today is," Edward corrected, finally bringing his eyes back to look at Roy pointedly.

Of course, that's what they said, but it was nearly impossible for him not to have a pretty good guess as to what the occasion was, and why he felt the impulsion to come to the cemetery on today of all days.

"Right," Roy heard himself breath, but his gaze had been drawn back down to the note in his hand one again

"… Mustang?"

He heard the kid's voice, but it sounded distant and obscured as he flipped the letter open again and grazed over the words. They were written down months ago and had sat alone and unread for just as long, but he heard the words just as clearly as if someone was there reading it to him.

"Why didn't you sign it?"

"What?"

Roy didn't realize what he had said until Ed's confused reaction hit his ears, bringing him a little further out of his thoughts. He exhaled slowly as he scrambled his thoughts into something orderly enough to explain.

"Elicia had every member of my staff sign her letter, as well as her parents and even Alphonse. So why didn't you?" He didn't mean to call Ed out for not partaking in the girl's activity and hoped that the calm, nonchalant tone of his voice would make that clear. He was honestly only curious.

But as he asked the simple question, something akin to regret flashed across Ed's visage for a moment, almost too quickly for him to catch. "I uh… I saw her going up to everyone a bit after the funeral. I didn't know that that's what she was doing, but… After seeing how upset she was, I couldn't bring myself to face her- or anyone. I still felt too guilty."

Roy finally lowered the note in favor for studying Edward's comportment for a quiet second, the only sounds being the faint rustling of trees and the distant city traffic.

"But you don't felt guilty anymore, right?"

"Umm…"

"Right?"

Edward didn't respond for a beat as his eyes jumped up to Mustang for a moment. They landed on the thin scar on his neck, then quickly leaped away. Of course, this was nothing new. He caught people glancing at it from time to time, and had long since gotten over the shame he felt. It was just a reminder now.

"Let's- let's just say that I feel as guilty as you do."

"That's a complicated answer," Roy huffed as he felt himself frown- not at Edward, but because he knew exactly what the kid was saying, and it was almost strange to hear him acknowledge it.

"Exactly."

"Well, we are quite alike," he shrugged, deciding to go along with it. They both had a tendency to take on the blame, even while it was unneeded- even though they would both be hard-pressed to admit it aloud. Roy just shook his head, silently deciding that he would question Ed again about it later, and would continue to until he was sure the kid had moved on.

"For better or for worse," Edward replied with a knowing smirk pulling at his lips, returning his usual brand of confidence to his tone.

Again, Roy could only chuckle buoyantly. "Right."

Edward glanced behind them, further down the hill, beyond the black iron gate, and down to the street where a car waited alongside the curb. "I think we've been procrastinating long enough. They're still waiting, you know."

"You're probably right. Let's go."

The drive wasn't a particularly talkative one. Riza drove in relative silence, keeping her careful eyes on the road and speaking up mostly to answer questions or make offhanded comments about the rare irrelevant comment. The passenger's seat beside her was offered to Roy, which he took without much thought, primarily keeping his attention on the passing scenery as the buildings flashed by and eventually faded into the fields and trees of Central City's outskirts.

Maes and Edward took up the back of the car, equally as solemn as the others. Ed was one matter, but when Maes was quiet, it was usually a bad sign. But such a thing wasn't a concern this time. Roy could feel the air in the car; there was no stress, no tension or trepidation, nothing to make him feel the slightest trace of unease. Even the fact that no one ever bothered to mention where they were going or what they were doing failed to set him off. No one ever needed to explain it.

The road turned into something more of a dirt path not long after they had officially left the city, driving through the empty spaces of nature between Central and the next nearest town. The sun had reached its peak by the time Hawkeye turned off the path and pulled up under the shade of the large shady trees that covered the area.

"Alright, here we are," Maes breathed as he climbed out of the back seat with the others following suit.

Roy scanned the arrangement of trees that surrounded them and took a deep breath of the clean air, all while wondering how long the others expected him to play ignorant.

The sound of the car's trunk opening convinced him to turn around just as Hughes pulled out a shovel with Ed and Hawkeye standing by.

"Hmm I wonder what that could possibly be for," he lightly mused out loud, earning himself a deadpan glance from Ed, an amused scoff from Maes, and absolutely nothing from Hawkeye.

"You can stop playing dumb, Roy," his friend replied with a thin smile as he passed the shovel to Hawkeye and picked up another for himself. He then closed the trunk and started walking further into the threes. Edward watched them for a second, gave Roy another look, and began to follow.

Of course they went along with his idea, Roy thought as he began walking as well. Part of him figured that Hawkeye and maybe Hughes too were not eager to go along with Roy's plan of burying Envy somewhere on the outside of town where no one would find him. But what else was there to do to a shape shifting immortal monster who would no doubt be hell-bent on getting revenge the moment he got an ounce of freedom?

They walked for several minutes, once again in a relatively peaceful silence. Edward looked slightly uneasy however, and was likely just nervous to see what was waiting for him. Roy caught Hawkeye glancing at him from time to time, studying his comportment, but made no comment on the matter.

Then without any warning, both Hughes and Hawkeye stopped at the same time and eyed a single spot in the ground. Roy could find no difference in where they looked compared to the rest of the earthy forest floor, but there had to be one based on how confident they looked.

"Roy," Maes began with a breath as he dropped the sharp end of the shovel into the ground and rested his arms on the pole. "I assume you know what's happening here."

Roy, suddenly unsure about how to feel at the moment, just nodded.

"There's something you need to understand," Hawkeye spoke up beside him, her voice focused and calm. "We dealt with Envy, but not out of cold blood or revenge. We wanted you to be as disconnected from it as possible. I still clearly remember that look you had when you cornered Envy; you wanted revenge so badly that you would have done anything to get it. It was mindless and cruel and not something that the future leader of this country should ever express. We took control of this because we couldn't let you get that satisfaction. It would have changed you for the worst."

Roy, despite how badly he wanted to avert his gaze, kept his eyes sternly on Hawkeye and Hughes as Edward stood besides him. They were right, as they always were. He acted mindlessly, silently agreed that the time that had passed since then had truly done him good. He nodded to her words, easily able to hear the truth they rung with. He would have fallen straight back into that hellish pit that Envy had pulled him into had he not listened to her back then.

"I understand," he said with a faint smile. "I am very fortunate to have all of you here to stop me from being an idiot."

He heard Ed laugh besides him. "It's a full time job."

Roy smile widened slightly at the harmlessly light remark, but it soon faded when his eyes fell on the spot of ground that Maes had dug his shovel into. He knew why they were there and what was happening without needing to be told, but he had no idea what to expect. Far too many questions wanted to voice themselves, but he found it easier to just block them out and go with it.

"In that case," Hawkeye breathed as she too looked down at the ground, tensing her fingers around her own shovel. None of them knew what to expect, but they needed to see for themselves. If Envy was still down there, still demanding retribution, or if he had died long ago. Or perhaps, if someone had rescued him without leaving a trace. But regardless, they all had to see it with their own eyes, and deal with the answer, whatever it may be.

"Let's get this over with," Hughes huffed as he raised his shovel, then pushed it back into the ground, uprooting lose dirt and tossing it aside. He grimaced ever so slightly at the action, but continued the motion nonetheless, ignoring the pain that remained from his all-too-recent surgery. Hawkeye did the same without comment, adding to the pile of dirt behind them.

Roy and Edward watched quietly, exchanging an equally uncertain glance with each other as they watched the two. The blond really did not need to come to this, but Roy was thankful to not be standing there by himself. Besides, Ed was just as involved in this as he was, even though he wasn't the target audience of this little display.

In fact, it was very appropriate that the four of them where here. No one else was more involved in this fiasco than Maes, Hawkeye, and Edward. They had endured just as much as he had in very different ways, and he couldn't ask for a better group of people to support him. As Roy continued to watch the hole in the ground grow wider and deeper, he slid his stiff hand into his pocket and felt the old withered note against his fingertips, hiding the names of all those who had supported him. And even now, when not all of them were present, he could feel them backing him up, a silent reminder that everything would indeed be alright, even as he was looking down at the face of uncertainty and even as so many questions remained.

He truly could not ask for more.

A light cling came from the hole and both Maes and Hawkeye stopped in their digging and withdrew their shovels. Maes knelt down and brushed through the dirt for a moment longer, revealing the cork lid of the familiar jar. He carefully slid the glass canister out of the ground and held it up in his arms with the inside obscured by the dirtied rag that was still tied around it. No obnoxious screaming came from inside, but even so, the four still held their breath as Maes untied the knot that kept the fabric in place.

The rag fell away and Roy saw Maes' eyes widen before he could see why. From where he stood on the other side of the hole, he copied his friend's expression without thought, seeing absolutely nothing inside the jar.

His heart beat into overdrive and he took a step forward, mindful of the hole that separated them, mouth opening to say something- express his confusion somehow but his tongue froze as he watched Maes turn the jar at an angle, allowing Roy to see a grey dust slide into the corner.

Ash was all that remained.

But Maes wasn't there when he had finally destroyed Envy's body, burning it to a similar dust and exposing him as the small green worm that he truly was. He had no idea what to make of it, while the other three knew just enough to assume. It was understandable why he looked confused, while the others all had a solemn expression of acceptance.

"What… does this mean?" Maes muttered, turning the jar around to get a better view of the inside.

"He's gone," Roy answered simply, allowing his shoulders to slacken as the tension rolled out with ease. "He's finally gone."

Maes looked up at him for a moment, then at the others, realizing that he was missing a detail, then dropped his eyes back down to the jar. The silence stretched on between them, none quite knowing what to say.

"Is that really it…?" he asked slowly and softly, as if speaking to no one but the air around them. But nonetheless, Roy heard himself answer.

"Honestly, probably not," he said, recalling their discussions about there being others and a grander plan behind it all. "But at least for now, I think so."

Roy rested his gaze on the empty jar for a moment longer as his thoughts strayed, but the sensation of eyes on him caught his attention rather quickly. Hawkeye was watching him carefully, searching for a reaction, waiting to see if he would smirk victoriously or anything of the like. But he just sent her a reassuring nod, tacitly telling her that she had nothing to worry about. Despite how eager he was for blood earlier, it had all vanished and was replaced by peace of mind. It had taken a while, but he knew not to take so much satisfaction in a destructive victory, and would not allow himself to go back to that state of mind again.

More eyes on him. In fact, he noticed that all three of them were watching him now, all with varying degrees of curiosity and concern, looking for a reaction. But he felt no desire to give one. So many questions were left unanswered, but he found no need to worry.

"I'm fine," he said in response to their silent questions, and was for once able to truly mean it.

He noticed Edward smile beside him, Hawkeye nodded back, and Maes grinned. "Good," his friend said for them all, lowering the jar to his side as it no longer mattered.

"Now then," Roy said, cleared his throat, and smiled as he looked at his trusted companions who had all planned a part in teaching him how to live once again. "Let's go home."

Well, here we are. This chapter gave me some trouble, but I'm satisfied with the result. Even though there's some stuff left unsaid, we all know how the promise day and all that is going to go. But thank you all for followings this story. I didn't not originally plan for it to go this long, but I'm glad it did. It was a fun time, and now I can start to focus on my next project. More info about that will be on my profile.

Thanks again, everyone. Hope you enjoyed. :)

P.S. Ranowa Hikura posted a very nice post-fic oneshot thing for Postmortem! It's called Birthday Cake and Broken Hearts Taped Whole and I strongly recommend everyone read it. :D