So sorry for the wait! Without further ado, chapter four!

Edward stared.

The old man stared back.

Edward blinked.

The old man was still there.

Deciding that what he was seeing wasn't a hallucination wasn't as easy as it might have sounded. The old man was wearing the oddest assortment of clothes that Ed had ever seen. Underneath the long black cloak, Ed could clearly see the edge of a violently purple and sparkling robe. But it didn't stop there. A tall pointy hat projected more than a foot off his head, and he had a long silver beard that reached his waist. He had half-moon spectacles that were perched on his somewhat crooked nose, and he was staring at Edward expectantly from the confines of a very large and very comfortable looking armchair.

He also looked slightly amused, something Edward thought was wildly inappropriate for a time like this.

He opened his mouth to tell him so, but before he could get anything out, he was interrupted by the strange, amused, and now slightly annoying man.

"Ah, I see you have finally woken up. Your vitality is to be praised, young man. It would have taken most people much longer to wake up from a bump like that, if they were to wake up at all." The man's smile seemed kind, and he reached a hand forward in a gesture of greeting. "I am Albus Dumbledore, pleasure to make your acquaintance. And you are?" He waited genially for a reply, hand still outstretched in welcome and smile still on his face.

Edward was having none of it.

Still reeling from the force of his returning memories, he slapped away the proffered hand. Attempting to swing his legs off the bed in an effort to stand up, he spat "That's great old man, but I really don't have time for this. Where the hell am I?" This didn't match up. Last thing he remembered, he had been in the midst of a terrible transmutation, fighting for his life deep in Father's lair. This cozy little room was the farthest thing from that underground hell hole that he could imagine. Well, maybe not the farthest, but still. This was no Central sewer system.

Something darker flashed in the old man's eyes, and his tone abruptly turned quite serious. "I'd advise you not try to move just yet, young man. You see, although you are conscious, you were quite badly injured. You shouldn't be up and moving just yet." With a flick of the wand concealed under his voluminous sleeves, Dumbledore cast a silent Jelly-Legs curse on the boy in the bed. No need for him to get up and running around just yet; Dumbledore wasn't finished questioning him. In fact, he hadn't gotten any answers yet at all, and that simply would not do. The boy could not be allowed to leave the room. However, this young man was innocent until proven guilty, and he rather keep this conversation as civil as possible. It was best to confine him to the bed as discreetly as possible.

Edward paid no heed of this. To hell with this man, he felt fine! Light headed, certainly, and a bit confused, but fine! He wanted to get up and run, his panicked thoughts sending his brain into a frenzy. Where was Hawkeye? Mustang? Hell, even SCAR would be a welcome sight for him right now. He propelled himself to his feet in his urgency to find them. Unfortunately, he couldn't even complete one step before his legs gave out on him, sending him with a huff back into a sitting position on the bed.

"See, what did I tell you," Dumbledore said patiently to the young man, who seemed to be growing more and more irritated the longer he sat on his comfortable sheet-and-mattress prison. "You're in no shape to go running around just yet. Now, since it seems we're going to be here a while, let's start over. Would you like to tell me your name?"

The boy did not answer immediately, but instead his gaze flicked to the closed door. He seemed to frantically search for some form of an exit, his eyes flying around the room. His gaze lingered on the curtained window for a moment, and his desperation was clear.

"Look, this is important." The irritated mask on the boy's face had started to crack a little, and panic was slowly leaking into his voice. "I need to get to Central Command as quickly as possible. I'm sure you've heard of the Fullmetal Alchemist? Well I'm him, and it's urgent I get there as soon as possible." He had no qualms whatsoever using his title to get what he wanted. Edward figured he didn't play the 'Fullmetal Alchemist, Hero of the People' card often enough anyway; and besides, it had served him well enough getting into the 3rd Laboratory. No one but the higher ups in the military knew he was technically a fugitive of the State anyway, and this man looked decidedly civilian. Strange, obviously. But civilian none the less…unless this is what the generals wore on their days off.

Dumbledore was having his own private realization. He looked Edward up and down once more, taking in his appearance at large. Had this boy just said he was an alchemist? Not just an alchemist, but one with a title he wielded like a sword. He didn't look nearly as fierce as his name suggested; excepting the strange armor he was wearing, of course. Clearly, this 'Fullmetal Alchemist' was one important person; or at least he thought he was. But the only alchemist Dumbledore had ever known was his dear friend Nicolas , who had long since departed this life. He had never heard of any others; at least, Nicolas had never mentioned them. For all he knew, there hadn't been another real practicing alchemist in years.

"I see," Dumbledore said slowly, still analyzing the boy on the bed. "I am sorry to disappoint you, but I can't say I've ever heard of you. Where did you say you were from, Central? Central where, exactly? And does your haste in returning there have anything to do with the blood on your clothes?"

Dumbledore saw the young man start at this and glance down at his clothes, pulling his red cloak this way and that to see the amount that was permeating his cloak, darkening it considerably in some places.

"As you can see, there is a rather lot of it, and we could find no such obvious wounds on your person besides that bump on your head and a few scratches," Dumbledore stated softly, surveying the young alchemist over is steepeled fingertips. The boy's complexion paled as he took it in, and he seemed rather dazed for a moment as he stared. Then he shook his head as though to banish some thought from his mind, and when he looked up his gaze was steely and determined.

"Look, it's none of your business. I'm not exactly going to Central for a picnic old man." Inside, Ed was reeling. Never heard of the Fullmetal Alchemist? All of Amestris knew who he was, at least by reputation. Had this guy been living under a rock? Dumbledore's words finally seemed to reach him in that moment, and he looked upon the man in indignation.

"And what the hell do you mean, Central where? The only Central there is, Central City. You know, the capital. Military headquarters. Bradley's Evil Lair, whatever the hell you want to call it." The old man might not have heard of him, but there was no way he hadn't heard of Central. That is, unless he really did live under a rock…or was going senile in his old age. Edward squinted contemplatively and looked the man up and down, making mental note about that one. That would certainly go a long way to explain his odd choice in clothing.

Meanwhile, Dumbledore was reassessing his earlier determination about the head wound. Obviously, this boy was confused, or else very, very lost. He had traveled all over the world in his lifetime, and there were very few, if any magical areas run by any sort of military. There were many muggle areas like that, of course, but that thought was put to the side. After all, the boy had materialized in a burst of lightning and sparks. Muggles had many impressive means of transportation in this day and age, but that was not one of them.

"And, what country would that be in?" Dumbledore figured it was best to get straight to the point; obviously, this boy was not where he thought he was.

Edward Elric looked at him as though he were crazy.

"Amestris!" Edward's eyes studied Dumbledore's face, but there was no recognition whatsoever at the name. Okay, this was getting weird. Senile or not, he was pretty sure someone couldn't forget a country. Could they?

Unless that transmutation circle he messed with had sent him farther than he thought.

Dumbledore grew concerned as the boy paled considerably, staring unseeingly at the far wall. Edward seemed lost in thought for a moment, and then he focused back on the old man.

"Alright." The boy's voice was gruff, and his eyes showed the beginnings of panic behind the determination. "Alright, Creta, is this Creta?"

He saw no recognition on Dumbledore's face.

"Aerugo?"

Again, no answer; nor any indication of recognition. What was this man playing at?

"…Drachma? Xing?" Edward could feel his panic rising. He was gripping the sheets, leaning farther forward towards the other man with every word he uttered. "Where the hell am I?"

The aged wizard looked on in interest, his eyebrows almost disappearing into his hat, then abruptly straightened in his chair and gave Edward a grave look.

"You, young man, are just outside Ottery St. Catchpole in the country of England. Does that mean anything to you?"

Receiving nothing but a blank stare, Dumbledore thought he better give this boy some help.

"Could you just show me your country?" Maybe all they had here was a failure to communicate. If the boy really was from some obscure magical community, (an idea that excited Dumbledore to no end) it wouldn't the far of a leap to imagine that he might know countries by different names. The boy hadn't even heard of England, for goodness sake. Mentally reciting a spell, he reached into his sleeve and pulled out a large map of the continents, with every country clearly outlined. Edward, not even realizing the strangeness of such an action, practically tore the map from the man's hands in his haste. Dumbledore could see his agitation growing as his eyes rapidly scanned the paper once, twice, three times.

After the fourth pass, his searching seemed to lose some of its vigor.

After the fifth, his hands had started to tremble.

After the tenth, he seemed to deflate completely, his shoulders slumping and his long bangs hiding his eyes from view.

"Edward?" receiving no reply, Dumbledore stood and placed his hand firmly on the boy's shoulder.

"What's wrong?"

Edward's golden eyes, glazed over with horror and blank confusion, slowly rotated upwards to meet with Dumbledore's. His answer came as a hoarse whisper.

"…It's not on here. None of them are."

Meanwhile, many hundreds of miles away, a snake-like, corpse of a man paced at the far end of a darkly lit room. The flickering fire light reflected off the polished skull-like sconces holding the candles to the walls, wax dripping like thick tears down their gaunt faces. He was contemplating the information he had just received from one of his loyal spies at the ministry (one of the few he had left, after that blunder in the Department of Mysteries last spring). This one had a knack for being at the right place at the right time, as well as for going unnoticed when important information was being relayed. The report was vague, lacking details in any form.

But it was whispered that someone had gotten through the impenetrable defenses that cursed Dumbledore had made for that boy.

It was a rumor, more likely than not. A false report, a misremembered word or two.

But if it proved to be more substantial...well, suffice it to say, he would kill for whatever ability had enabled it.

I am so, so sorry haha. This last chapter took much, much longer than I though it would to put together.

Basically, I was vastly unprepared for the pure amount of STUFF that takes up your time in college. From meeting people, to orientation, to classes, service projects, club meetings, activities, homework, tests, and a speech (shudder), I was only able to sit down and write for this one sporadically. And then, when I did, I found myself stuck many times in the conversation between Dumbledore and Ed, unsure how to continue. I'm so glad I finally got it all out haha.

Thank you for your patience, and as always, reviews/advice/comments are appreciated! Thank you for reading!