A/N: Is it normal to be writing in your head while you sleep? Because some of what I've written has done that. I'll be snoozing and all of a sudden, I see Envy and Edward and they'll be doing. And it'll narrate itself to me. It's strange. And it scares me a little. ; Anyways, here's a longer chapter for you. Think of it as a present for me not updating for a month. Last chapter, too.

Disclaimer: ... Do I really need another one? Because I'm pretty sure everyone knows that I'm not writing this for any kind of gain and that the characters belong to Arakawa-sensei.

---

As the night wore on and twilight fell, the rain thickened. Envy had been searching for over three hours, and still no sign of the boy and his friend. It seemed that they'd had the insight to find Edward's old clothing and get some food before they left. Another surge of anger took hold of the homunculus and he hastily took out his knife.

It was all Pride's fault. "All his god damned, cocksucking, motherfucking fault!" Screamed Envy to the sky. The Sin rolled up his jacket sleeve and stabbed the knife into the soft flesh near his elbow, muttering "If he'd been watching them, this wouldn't have happened!"

Pain rolled over him like a comforting blanket. Envy waited until the pain started subsiding before grasping the handle and twisting it violently. Blood poured down the curve of his arm and dripped into the puddles in pink whorls and shapes as they washed into the gutters and into the sewer.

There was a little scream of horror from beside him as the Sin walked down the street and he shot a furious glare at the woman who'd made it. She instantly shut up and continued on her merry fucking way.

Ed was going to pay.

---

Roy sat in his office again, watching the clock. It was just after 7PM and he was still waiting for Edward to show up. He kept telling himself that who he had spoken to really was FullMetal, but something in the way he'd been talking had made him think that maybe it wasn't him ...

Of course, the only other possible candidate was that shape-shifting homunculus, Envy.

The Colonel had just turned to the window - "To watch the rain," he said to himself, "and not for Ed." - when there was a timid knock at the door. Mustang called, without turning back, for them to enter.

"Colonel? A little help?"

Roy stood and hastily went to the door, where the Rockbell girl stood supporting a very battered looking Edward. The blond boy offered a weary smile as Winry and Roy helped him to one of the chairs. Edward thanked them and asked his friend to have a few minutes alone with Roy.

"S-sure," she said, turning and leaving, shutting the door behind her. Roy sat in the chair beside Edward, waiting.

After several silent moments, Edward finally spoke. "Envy," he said, his voice venomous but hardly above a whisper.

Roy cocked his head to the side, not understanding fully. "What?" He asked, leaning towards the boy who sat with a fist in his lap and his head bowed. Edward took a deep breath and looked up at the Colonel. That's when Mustang noticed the black band of metal encircling his neck.

"E-Envy had me locked up ... and I couldn't get away." Edward pulled up his pant leg to reveal the reason he couldn't walk without support. The bandages that wound around the boy's ankle were stained a deep red and there was a fine trickle of blood coming from underneath it.

Roy looked up at Edward's face, shocked. What he saw in the boy's face startled him more; he was crying. It was then that Roy realized - for the umpteenth time - how much of a child Edward still was. Before Mustang could say anything, Ed spoke again, this time speaking in a stronger voice, recounting all that the homunculus had done to him over the last week. When Ed finished, Roy felt sick to his stomach - how could someone be so cruel against a boy?

"Edward ... Do you have a place to go tonight?" Asked Roy, sincerely concerned for once. Edward shook his head no. "Then .. You can spend the night at my place, if you'd like. Your friend can bunk with Hawkeye, I think."

The boy shuddered a little, drawing his jacket closer around his frame. "Thank you, Colonel," he whispered, head bowed, "for everything."

---

Envy sat outside Central HQ, hiding amongst the leafy branches of an old oak - or elm, Envy didn't give a rats ass what it was either way. He was watching Mustang and his pet talk as the sun slowly disappeared, leaving behind an eerie grey-blue glow to the clouds as the cresent moon rose in its stead. The rain was still pouring on the homunculi's head, but he hardly noticed it as rage and resentment filled his body from head to toe with each passing second the boy spent telling the little puke of a colonel what had happened to him.

Envy couldn't see the colonel's reaction to any of it, but he sure as hell could read Edward's lips. After almost an hour, Edward stopped talking. Then he bowed his head, said something that Envy couldn't read at the angle he was watching from, and stood.

A small bubble of laughter escaped his throat when he saw the Colonel rise too, pulling the boy into his arms in a tentative embrace. The way the boy fought against it was amusing, to say the least. Envy had left an impression after all.

When the Colonel released the boy, he calmed down a little bit. The taller man helped escort the boy to the door like a gentleman would - He's such a fake, thought the Sin - and disappeared from Envy's line of sight.

Oh, Edward would definately pay.

---

As Colonel Mustang escorted Ed to the door, he thought for a moment that he had seen a pair of cat-like magenta eyes watching from somewhere oustide.

But, he thought, brushing away the uneasy feeling he had in the pit of his stomach, I have an overactive imagination sometimes. It was probably just a flash of lightning. Or car headlights.

---

Envy hopped down from the tree, nearly slipping on a muddy tree root, and went around to the front. He lesieurly transformed into a military officer as he strolled in through the front doors, heading for Bradley. He saluted Roy as he passed, supressing another animalistic surge of rage. He nodded to President Bradly's secretary and waved to the Fuhrer.

"Hello, Envy," King Bradly smiled at the Sin, before asking, "What is it you want this time?"

"A distraction for the Flame Colonel."

---

Edward winced as the on-call infirmary nurse swabbed his ankle with rubbing alchohol to disinfect it. He bit his lip and balled his hands into tight fists, his fingernails making little cresent shapes in his palm, when the same nurse dumped a small amount of the stinging liquid into the wound itself.

Soon, she was finished. She smiled at him plesantly and told him that she could lend him a pair of crutches if he needed them.

"I'm fine," he mumbled, "I got away, didn't I?"

Roy smiled from the doorway. "Yes, little FullMetal boy, you did."

Something about the way Mustang had spoken sent shivers down Edward's spine. The blond boy looked into the Colonel's eyes and his own widened. Every muscle in his body screamed for him to run, to get away, but his brain wouldn't work.

Roy's eyes were lavender.

---

Meanwhile, the real Roy Mustang was talking to First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye about Winry. She agreed to let Winry Rockbell sleep in her dorm room, and was leading her off when Roy heard a faint, muffled scream from somewhere down the hall.

Roy smirked. Edward was probably trying to stir up a little trouble. He walked back down the hall, stopping briefly at his office tol lock up, then to the infirmary, where he'd left Edward.

When he stuck his head in, however, Edward wasn't there. Puzzled, he stopped the nurse and asked where he'd gone.

"But .. Sir, weren't you just here?"

Realization dawned on Roy and he cursed aloud. "That wasn't me! Which way did the imposter go?"

The nurse pointed down the hallway, to the back exit. The Colonel was off at a run before the nurse even lowered her arm.

---

Envy had Edward pinned against the muddy ground just outside the exit. The boy was kicking and bucking and trying to scream through the Sin's hand while the other one pressed against Edward's throat. His hand was curved like a talon and, instead of choking him, was cruelly digging into where three, thick white scars ran parallel down his neck.

With a jolt of surprise, Envy tore his hand away from Edward's mouth. The little shit had bitten him.

Edward drew in a great breath of air and let out an ear-splitting howl, but Envy cut it off quickly with a jab to the boy's diaphragm. All the air rushed out of his lungs with a whoosh. For a moment, Envy was sure someone had heard, but the sound of the rain was almost loud enough to drown out Edward anyways.

With a smile, Envy - still in the guise of Ed's beloved Colonel Mustang - pushed apart the boy's knees, grinding their hips together cruelly. Choked gasping noises emanated from the boy, but the Sin ignored them. He undid the belt that held up the boy's pants, yanking it out roughly. He sat up between the boy's legs and whipped him across the face with the belt with a satisfying crack.

Edward shut his eyes tight against the pain, his body momentarily stunned. Envy took that as an opportunity to flip the boy over, pinning his flesh hand up between his shoulderblades. Edward's renewed struggling only seemed to make Envy more excited.

"That's right, Edward. Keep fighting it," purred Envy into the alchemist's ear, reaching down between the boy's legs to cup his groin.

Envy chuckled softly as the boy's efforts waned slightly. He withdrew his hand and hooked his fingers into the waistline of the boy's pants and boxers, pulling them both down to expose his rump. A horrified groan escaped the boy's lips as the homunculus forced both of the boy's knee's beneath him.

---

Roy's path was blocked to the door. King Bradley was standing in his way, smiling like everything in the world was absolutely fine. "Colonel Mustang," He said, "I need to have a quick word with you, if you would .." Bradley motioned for Roy to walk with him, and he did.

"Please, President Bradley, Sir, if you could make it quick, I think FullMetal might be in trouble," pleaded Roy, trying to hide his growing panic from the Fuhrer.

King Bradley chuckled and waved off the comment like a fly. "Nonsense, Roy! FullMetal's absolutely fine, I'm sure."

Roy shook his head, growing frustrated. "Sir, what is it you wished to speak to me about?"

Bradley smiled at Roy, drawing him further from the door. "I've just been informed that you're late with some of your reports. Looking back on your record, Colonel, I assume that this has become quite a habit, hm?" He chuckled warmly, ignoring Roy's stricken face. "I just need to know that your reports will be coming in on time from now on. Can you do that?"

Roy nodded impatiently. "Of course, sir."

"Good. I'll see you later, then." Fuhrer President King Bradley saluted the Colonel, and when recieved one in return, continued his brisk walk down the hallway.

Roy turned back the way he'd come and bolted for the exit.

---

Envy heard rushed footsteps as he stood, looming over the broken alchemist as he lay sobbing in the mud. He crouched down once more, petting the boy's blond hair almost lovingly. He felt satisfied when the boy screwed shut his eyes and curled up tighter, trying to make himself as small as possible.

"See ya, shorty." Said Envy over the rain. "Next time, I won't be so ... nice."

Edward shuddered, and with one last smirk at the boy, Envy turned and disappeared into the night.

---

Roy burst out of the building and into a torrent of rain, sweeping the ground frantically with his eyes. For a moment, he thought he saw a figure running out into the rain, but he didn't pay attention. It wasn't too hard to see Edward against the mud - despite his dark attire - because his hair acted almost like a beacon. Roy quickly rushed to the boy's side and knelt next to him, trying to survey the damage. Besides a few new claw-marks, Mustang couldn't see anything wrong.

"Edward?" Asked Roy, trying to disentangle the boy from himself. "FullMetal, what happened?"

The boy let out an anguished sob and launched himself away from the Colonel. He tried to stand, and fell to a heap in the mud. When Roy stood and tried to get closer, the boy backed away frantically. "G-get away from me you bastard!" Screamed Edward. He scrabbled at the ground for a moment, and Roy had to duck to avoid being brained by a rock.

"Edward, stop it! Stop it right now!" Yelled Roy, ducking and dodging a flurry of rocks being thrown in his direction. Roy was surprised when Edward obeyed his command, looking absolutely terrified. With a sigh, Roy pinched the bridge of his nose and sloshed over to Edward. He scooped the trembling boy up and carried him back into the building and to his dorm room.

It took Roy nearly a half hour to convince Edward that the Colonel really was himself. Once they had that established, Ed finally started to calm down.

"Here, drink this. It'll help you relax." Roy held a cup of tea out to the boy, who took it timidly. He'd never seen Edward act the way he was, and it frightened him. Edward was supposed to be a headstrong, stubborn little shit that couldn't keep his mouth shut when he needed to. Not this timid, quiet, unresponsive lump of a boy. "Why don't you tell me what happened, Ed?"

Edward shook his head, sipping at his drink and not looking up at the Colonel. "Not .. Right now." Roy sighed, and Edward added in a softer voice, "Please ..."

Mustang reluctantly agreed to wait until the boy had rested. With a glance at the clock, Roy let out a small groan. It was already half past 11, and he had to be up before 4 so he could finish the report he'd promised the Fuhrer.

Edward glanced at him sideways.

"Ed, you can have the bed tonight. I'll take the couch." Edward nodded, quickly averting his eyes when the man looked at him. Whatever it was that the homunculus had done to him had obviously rattled him something fierce.

---

Envy padded down the halls of a newer apartment, disguised as a civilian. He counted the doors - Nine, ten, eleven - until he reached First Lieutenant Hawkeye's room. Envy needed to do something about the little blond slut before she went and ran her mouth to the wrong people.

It was easy business to pick the lock - it was such an old one - and soon, he slipped into the room unnoticed. The light was off, but it was no problem for the homunculus. He could see rather clearly in the hazy gloom. He picked his way around the apartment, quickly finding Hawkeye's sofa. He peered at he figure sleeping under a mass of blankets and decided that it was the lieutenant. Winry wasn't so tall.

The Sin padded across the room and tried to spy through the slightly ajar door. Envy spotted his target and quietly slipped into the room - the hinges were well oiled, to Envy's advantage. He silently tiptoed over to the bed, drawing his blade as he went. Envy bit his tongue to keep from saying anything.

Everything else had been easy, why couldn't the bitch just lay on her back?

Being as cautious as he could, Envy rolled the girl onto her back and recieved two bullets to the head. His body slumped to the ground in a heap and Winry uttered a muffled scream. As Envy's head healed itself, he was up and off the ground and lunging for the window. He dove through it as another three bullets followed him. He wasn't about to be pumped full of lead, those bullets hurt.

As he scampered off, cursing silently, another shot was fired and it hit him dead center of his back. He crumpled to the ground once more, eliciting a soft moan of pain. He struggled to his feet, feeling the hot lead embedded into the flesh of his back. It seemed to him that every nerve screamed in pain, but he pushed on, scuttling off into the night.

---

Roy didn't sleep. He waited until Edward had fallen asleep, before leaving his room for his office. He picked up the reports he needed for the day and went back to his dorm room, despite his exhaustion. By the time Edward woke - nearly noon - Colonel Roy Mustang had all his paper work complete and was fast asleep.

The boy decided that Roy deserved a nap and went ahead and took a shower. He sat in the scaldingly hot water for almost fourty minutes, until it abruptly turned icy, scrubbing at his skin. It felt like he would never come clean, no matter how much he scrubbed. When he finally did step out of the shower, he was shiney and pink all over. The metal of the collar had warmed up in the hot water, so Edward shattered the lock using alchemy, but - unable to identify the metal compound it was made of - strained to bend the metal enough to slip it off his neck.

With he collar taken care of, he redressed and, seeing that the Colonel was still fast asleep - and drooling like a dog - Edward helped himself to the food in the cupboards. There wasn't much. When he was full, Edward sat down beside the Colonel - telling himself that it wasn't Envy and therefore wouldn't hurt him - and picked up the phone.

He needed to talk to Al.

Edward had left Alphonse in Resembool with Panako. He'd promised Al that he'd come back as soon as he could, that it wouldn't take more than three days at best. He'd been gone for ten days already.

When Panako picked up on the other end.she told him that Al was just out doing some chores for her. He'd be back in a little while. Ed promised to phone back in an hour and hung up. At least Al was alive and well still.

Unlike me, thought Ed as he stared at the reciever in it's cradle.

Roy gave a snort and jerked awake, looking around frantically. Edward supressed the urge to shrink away from him. As the man rubbed the sleep from his eyes and the drool from the corner of his mouth, he asked what time it was.

"About one in the afternoon, Colonel," replied Ed, glancing at the clock. Roy cursed and stood up, gathering up the paper that was strewn everywhere.

"I'll be back in twenty minutes. Do you think you could stay here for that long by yourself, shorty?" Roy asked sarcastically. He half expected the boy to jump up and try to attack him for the comment on his height, but was surprised when Edward just nodded wanely.

With a sigh, Roy saluted loosely and left the boy - with a pistol - by himself as he dropped off the reports.

---

There was a grin on the homunculi's face as he watched the Colonel depart, leaving the boy alone and quite defenceless. He waited a few moments before strutting down the hallway in a slightly arrogant manner. He halted just outside the door Mustang hadn't locked behind him and knocked politely. There was a rustling of cloth and footsteps muffled by carpet, then Edward's voice floated through the door.

"Roy's not here. Go away," he said. More footsteps, this time retreating. Envy sighed and knocked again.

"Edward, open up. It's Hawkeye," Envy said, disguising himself as the First Lieutenant. Edward halted, then doubled back to the door. He opened it a crack, saw what Envy wanted him to see, and opened the door to stand in the frame. The Sin noticed that Ed managed to remove the collar he'd put on him and a momentary pulse of rage coursed through his body.

"Lieutenant, what're you doing here? Where's Winry?" Edward's eyes scanned the hallway, then the fake Hawkeye's face. Envy opened his mouth to reply as Hawkeye but was cut off before he could start by the door slamming and the locks clicking into place.

Envy growled angrily and banged on the door, discarding Hawkeyes form for his 'cute' one. "Edward, open this door right this second or I'll break it open," he hissed through clenched teeth.

"Get the fuck out of here, you bastard," replied Edward in a shakey voice. Envy could hear the boy's shallow breathing, even as he backed away from the door. Then, he heard something resembling the hammer of a pistol being cocked. He cursed under his breath.

That motherfucker left him a gun, thought Envy angrily. With one last kick that left a crack up the wood of the door, Envy fled.

---

Roy had tried the knob of his door, only to find it locked, failing to see the new crack up his door. He unlocked it, but found the deadbolt in place. Mustang sighed, thinking, he's such a paranoid freak ...

He knocked on the door, once, twice, three times, without an answer. The fourth time he knocked, Edward finally asked, "Wh-who is it?" through the door. He sounded terrified.

"It's Colonel Mustang, FullMetal. This is my room, so let me in," he replied, colour flushing his cheeks as two cute female officers strolled by with giggles hidden behind their hands. Roy heard the boy put the chain on before pulling back the bolt and opening the door.

"Prove it," he said through the crack, his eyes wide, fearful and alert to anything that might be a trick.

The Colonel pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation and said, "Just let me in, little pinto be--" The door closed and the chain was removed, even before Roy finished his sentence. Roy smiled despite himself, and pushed open the door only to have a gun shoved to his head.

"Hands up where I can see them."

Both his arms rose up beside his ears, and the door was closed behind him. A cold sweat broke out under Roy's collar. This was more than just paranoia. Edward had all the blinds closed and the lights were off, so that the room was bathed in a strange, dappled light. The gun was removed from the Colonel's temple and he started lowering his hands, but the click of the trigger being squeezed made them shoot back up.

The barrel of the gun prodded his back so Roy moved forwards a few paces. "Edward, please, lower the gun. You're just being silly."

"No. Not until I'm entirely sure you're the real thing. Keep going, Colonel."

Another prod in the back. Roy sighed and moved forwards obediently. Edward directed him to the love seat and Roy sat with his hands still in the air. Edward stood in front of him, just out of arms reach, with the gun pointed at Mustang's head.

He backed up two and a half steps, then sat on the coffee table. Both hands were on the handle of the gun, and they were both trembling. For a moment, no one said anything. Then, Roy asked in a soft voice, "Envy tried to get in, and that's why you're acting this way, isn't it?"

The boy's golden eyes narrowed and his lips pursed together, making a tight line. He nodded curtly and his grip tightened on the butt of the gun. "He ... He looked like Hawkeye when he tried to get in."

Roy sighed, leaning back into the cushions of the love seat. "And now you think that he might be impersonating me again." Edward nodded in confirmation. "Do you think he would have tried getting in as Hawkeye if he had a key?"

"... No." Edward lowered the gun and his grip relaxed a little bit. Roy sighed and lowered his hands. Edward got up and flicked on the light, then, as he passed Mustang, conked him upside the head with the butt of the gun.

"Hey! What was that for?" Roy asked, rubbing his head.

"For calling me shorty and saying that 'I'm so tiny that you can't even see me over a piece of paper,' Colonel." The boy glared good-naturedly at his superior. Roy chuckled.

"You know, I could put you on suspension for that," retorted the Colonel, stretching.

"But you won't," said Edward softly as he sat down on the couch opposite the Colonel, turning his face away.

Mustang shook his head, "No, I won't, because I'm such a nice guy." Roy got up and went to the dingy little fridge, pulling out two bottles of soda. He plopped down next to Edward, who accepted the soda with a word of thanks. Roy noticed how edgy the boy was around him and remembered that he had yet to hear what the homunculi had done to him the night before. So he asked.

And Edward told.

---

For almost a week, Edward was on edge so much that Roy had to threaten him with a jail cell before he stopped holding the Colonel at gunpoint everytime he entered the room. He got to talk to Al, and his little brother took the train out to Central where he, Ed and Winry stayed at a hotel for a few days - that Roy had to pay for. Edward took pleasure in racking up the tab so much that the man was utterly broke by the time Edward had resumed his hunt for his and Al's bodies. Winry returned to Resembool, telling Garfiel that she would be back just as soon as she could, but a week later she was found dead, three miles down river from the Rockbell house. The local authorities said that she'd drowned due to the spring floods - with all the rain they'd had, it was easy - but Ed, Roy, Al and Hawkeye knew that it was Envy's doing.

Edward eventually did see the Sin again - but that is another story.