A/N: I was going to write this with just them communicating, not about Ed getting home, but it broke my heart too much to even write that. Maybe I will write another ending. To fit my whims, I had to make a few changes to the storyline, so just pretend it didn't happen… Alphonse refers to Alphonse H. while Al refers to Alphonse Elric
Changes from Conqueror of Shambala: Alphonse did not get shot, Al did not follow Ed through the gate, Al never lost his memories or de-aged, and they met Mei at some point… because I am a total sucker for AlxMei, and I wanted to put her in here.

For Edward Elric, it was a regular morning. He woke up at the regular time, attached his regular auto-mail that he got from Winry the last time he was is his home land, felt the regular tug at his heart that came with thinking of the people and places that he will never see again, and walked down stairs to make his regular breakfast.

He pulled a pan out from a cabinet below the counter and placed the pan on the stove after lighting it. The eggs were then pulled out of the refrigerator and cracked into the pan. Once they had been scrambled, he sat down with them on a plate and took out the milk. Yes, the milk. Edward Elric stared at the milk with an evil glare before pouring some into a glass and knocking it back. Yes, Edward Elric drank milk without having to have it shoved down his throat. He did it because Winry would have wanted him to, and even that little connection was enough for him to drink the vile substance without throwing a fit.
The young man glanced at the analog clock that hung on the wall, and seeing the time, knew it was time to leave. He set out for the factory that lay a few miles outside of Munich, Germany. He and Alphonse Hiedrich lived in a nice house in a suburb of the large city. He still hasn't gotten used to calling it home. However, he knew this was his country now, Amestris was in the past, he could never go back. Cue regular tug at the heart again. Yes, it was just a regular morning for Edward Elric.

When he made it to the factory that Alphonse Hiedrich was working at, (he had to leave earlier then Ed today) he walked inside and went straight to his office. Ooo, more paperwork, I am so excited... Not. Now I get why Mustang always fought so hard against Hawkeye when she tried to get him to do his paperwork. Cue regular tug at the heart.

The knowledge that his paperwork is what lay at the end of his walk gave him no motivation to move quickly through the factory, so instead, he took his time walking past the windows and looking into the main floor of the factory. All of the machines and people working to build the best rockets they could. Ed remembered what it was that made this possible. It is still weird getting help from a man with the face of Furur King Bradley. Cue tug at the heart. Even the things that weren't necessarily good hurt to think about.

After coming back from Amestris the last time, he and Alphonse received a call from a partner of Mabusa. A partner who was willing to sponsor their research and the building of their own factory. The Elric&Hiedrich rocket company has become quite large and successful. As the co-founder and "co-CEO" of the company, it was Ed's job to make sure all of the paper work got done, while Alphonse watched over the actual manufacturing of the rockets.

As Ed closed the door to his office and glanced at the large wood desk close to the back wall, he sighed. Damn, that is a lot of paper piling up. Guess I am going to work a little late today, at least if I want a free weekend. He thought as he sat down on the large, swiveling chair. The day continued as a regular day would. Until about three forty-two in the afternoon.

Ed was signing the last page of a document and was about to file it away when it happened. At first he thought he must be dreaming, there was no way this could be happening. But sure enough, the light that began as just a dim glow on the other side of the room grew into a large blue light that could not be mistaken. It was the light that accompanied alchemical reactions. As suddenly as it started, it stopped, but there was a letter that was lying on the floor that definitely was not there before.

As cautiously and as slowly as he could, Ed rose from his chair and started making his was across the room. It took all of his self control, because Ed was not generally a cautious person. When he finally made it to the letter, it was laying with the flap facing up. There was a wax seal that had a symbol he recognized all too well on it. It was a symbol he never thought he would hear of again, let alone see with his own eyes. The Rockbell Auto-mail symbol.

He picked up the off-white envelope with shaking hands and turned it over to see the front had written on it in neat handwriting, "Edward Elric". He recognized the handwriting, but... Could it really be? Is that possible? Well, one way to find out... He turned the envelope over again and grabbed the sharp, silver letter opener from atop his desk. He slid it under the flap and swiped open the envelope, pulling out the letter...

Letter #1, Date: October 3rd, 1925, sent at 03:42 Amestrian Time

Dear Edward,
Dear god, it has been so long since I have spoken to you. Seven years since you last came to this side. Even then, I didn't get to see you very much before you went back to that side of the gate. I know that you only did what you had to do, but I still miss you more then I had ever thought imaginable.
Al and I have been working on this for quite a while, the letter sending thing, I mean. I really hope this works, because I would really love to hear from you. Anything from you.
Life here in Risimbool really isn't the same without you. There have been a lot of changes since you left all of those years ago. Remember Mei? The little Xingese girl from when you and Al traveled together? Well, she and Al have been dating since about five years ago. She is his fiancee now, he proposed three years ago. Al went to Xing to learn Alkahestry from her after you left. When he was there, he studied under Mei, and when he came home, she refused to leave him and came to live here with us in Risimbool. Izumi lives here now too, due to her work with Al. She and Al are dead set on bringing you home without opening a permanent gate, rather, one that will close as soon as you come through. I really hope that they succeed. I need to see you again.
To send a letter back use the transmutation circle that is in the envelope. It was drawn on this side, so it should still have alchemical power. I can't put into words how much I miss you, and I really do hope that we can see you again.
I hope to hear from you,
Winry Rockbell

As Edward finished the letter, he broke down in tears. Indeed, it has been seven long years, and now he finally got some word from those on the other side. Though he has been busy building himself a life here, he had often thought about what he might be missing back home. Al is going to get married to the little bean girl, and I won't be there to see it. And what about Winry? She didn't say anything about herself, but has she gotten a boyfriend, or engaged, or even married? The thought broke his heart even more. He doesn't really have that much hope of going home, and he knows that Winry deserves to move on and live her own life to the fullest, but, at the same time, the idea of her with someone crushed him. Years ago, he had realized his feelings for her, but it was too late. He probably would never see her again. That said, he still hasn't been able to move on himself. He knows he never will. He loves (present tense) Winry with all of his heart, and he doesn't think he will ever love someone like that ever again. He has been known as their neighborhood's most eligible bachelor, and he could definitely get a girlfriend if he wanted, but there is the problem, he didn't want to.

Thinking about it more, Winry could get a date pretty easily too. She was very pretty and extremely interesting, even when all she can talk about is Auto-mail. Her movements and the excitement in her every word make even the most boring speeches intriguing. The tug at his heart was starting to hurt a little to much, so he pulled out a pen and started writing.

While writing the date, he did a small double take. He clicked open the pocket watch that lay in his pocket. He had it custom made to look much like the one he carried as state alchemist. The watch had not come through the gate with him. He had it made as a reminder to himself, that no matter what happens, he is still the same person he was back then, if not more mature and TALLER than he was back then. Engraved on the inside of the cover of the watch was the same thing that was on the inside of the cover as the last watch. Don't forget 3. Oct. 11. He thought, As of today, it has been fourteen years since we burned down our home and left Risimbool. Fourteen years, it has been so long. It feels like it could have been a lifetime ago. As he wrote his letter back to the place he once called home, he knew that it was pointless to even have that engraved. How could he ever forget? And yet, he felt like he needed to have it in there anyway.

After looking over his page now covered in his, surprisingly, very neat handwriting again, he signed his name and pulled out the transmutation circle from inside the envelope. He looked over the complex array of lines and gave a nod of approval before setting it on the floor with the letter in the middle. He was about to attempt the science he had been distanced from for so long when he remembered something.

Smacking his head at his idiocy, he pick up the letter and his pen again. It only took him a moment to address it. He then picked up the candle from his desk and dripped it on the flap of the envelope, stamping it with his own wax seal. It was a seal he hasn't used in seven years, but he had always kept it. Using it seemed appropriate now. When he picked up the stamp again, the symbol was staring at him from the red ink. It was the same symbol that he had worn on the back of his beloved red jacket for so many years.

Finally ready to send, Edward placed the envelope in the circle again and did what he thought he never would again. Alchemy.