A/N Hello guys! I'm really surprised that I haven't posted anything for about 3 months, but today this idea came to me and I just had to write it. It's nothing serious - just a short one-shot that was literally written at 3am today as a means of taking a break from my Fem!Ed multi-chapter stories, hehe.

Just some Parental!RoyEd 'cause you know I love it. You do know, right? RIGHT? Yes, you do. So, anyway I don't want to ramble but I want to point out that I have no idea how cenz work so I hope 100 cenz isn't too much but not too little either(I changed it now though to 10000 cenz lol). Oh well. Also, let's just assume for a little while that Ed doesn't have a bank account probably full of money, kay? Kay.

Disclaimer; I really don't own Fullmetal Alchemist. c:

Reviews are welcomed!

- A Good Deed -

His day had been going fairly well today, but it had also been incredibly boring. Nothing worth of mentioning had transpired; he had just been practically locked in this small office all day signing papers. At least, he thought, Edward was supposed to come in soon for his report – he was meant to come at two, so Roy guessed he'd be here by three, judging by his bad habit of turning up late. Surprisingly though, the lateness didn't particularly bother the Colonel today; frankly, he just wanted to get as much paperwork done as possible before the boy came in to offer him some entertainment since he knew that once his attention span had been broken there was no way to regain it. He knew that from experience.

Signing another paper, time passed quietly with only the occasional murmur from the outer office, most likely being Hawkeye threatening his subordinates back to work. He didn't let it interfere with his attention and continued the painful signing, reading only the documents that were of slight interest to him. Separating the two piles neatly, he grabbed another document and signed his name on it, not bothering to make his handwriting seem appropriate.

The signing continued and Roy had subconsciously extended his hand to grab the next paper in the pile when his fingers came in contact with the smooth desktop. He blinked and glanced at his hand only to realise the two piles had now become one, labeled 'Completed'. He had actually finished his work in time for once. Now he really couldn't wait to get home – maybe he'd pass by the Hughes' to see how Gracia was doing. He hadn't visited in a while.

But first, he realised with a sigh, he'd have to wait for Edward so he could evaluate his report, which was bound to suck.

The door burst open a few minutes later and Roy frowned, glancing at the clock; the boy had actually turned up on time today. Weird. Once he looked at the blond though he came to notice that his punctual arrival wasn't the only thing strange about him today. Ed's hair was a mess, tied in a messy ponytail seemingly done hastily at the last minute. Under his eyes, which were a murky gold instead of that bright yellow they usually were, resided some dreadful black bags. His clothes were wrinkled and Roy noticed his gloves and coat had some unidentified stains on them. In addition to all that, the younger Elric was nowhere to be seen.

The blond had an extremely troubled look on his young face and seemed to be moving on autopilot as he threw the report at his commander, his mind elsewhere, and started pacing the office, the frown adorning his face only deepening.

The Colonel pushed the manila folder where the pile of uncompleted paperwork used to be and rested his elbows on the desktop, intertwining his fingers and resting his jaw on top. He'd read the report in a minute; first, he needed to see why Ed was so perturbed.

"Is everything alright, Fullmetal?" he questioned nonchalantly, keeping his face carefully blank.

His words had seemingly snapped Ed out of his reverie and he halted, gazing back at the Colonel in mild surprise. "Oh, right," he said, his voice a mere mumble.

Just then, he yawned widely, and Roy mentally added 'extremely tired' to his list. The boy was really acting weird today; he hadn't even offered some kind of insult. It was like he was drowning in his own thoughts, the severe trouble in his eyes not supposed to be present in the golden orbs of a mere sixteen year old kid.

The blond shifted uneasily under Roy's stare but lost himself in his thoughts again.

"What is wrong, Fullmetal?" Roy inquired once more, this time his voice holding a bit more of an authoritative tone.

The blond emitted a heavy sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Colonel, can we end this quickly today? I really need to get back to Al." The worry in the boy's voice as he spoke piqued the Colonel's curiosity, and slight concern made itself know in his chest. Something was wrong – but what could it possibly be? Alphonse had had his body back for nearly a year now, and the two of them should be enjoying their lives, not suffering.

"Tell me what's wrong, Fullmetal." Roy now opted for ordering the boy to tell him; he had tried the nice way but now Ed was going to tell him whether he liked it or not.

Ed sighed then and stopped pacing around. Cursing under his breath, he relinquished, something Roy added to his list of Ed being weird today, and looked at the Colonel with troubled golden orbs. "It's Al," he confessed to the older man. Roy had guessed as much. "He…He's really sick."

Before Roy could say anything, Ed was rambling. "I stayed up with him all night as he vomited and I swear I gave him everything we had to get his temperature to lower but it's not! He can't even walk and I don't get paid for another month so I can't take him to a doctor or buy him some proper medicine! And I know which medicine he needs but I just can't fucking afford it!" He took a deep breath, his eyes filling with anguish as he stared at Roy. "I don't know what else to do, Mustang."

Roy gazed at the teen solemnly. Frankly, he had been anticipating something much worse, but then he reminded himself that Ed tended to exaggerate, especially when his little brother was concerned. And indeed the boy didn't get paid for another month…

Roy lowered his hands from his face and sighed; that's what he got for poking his nose into other people's affairs.

"How much do you need for the medicine, Fullmetal?"

Ed paused in his rambling and blinked, staring up at Roy. But then he sighed and plopped down on the couch unceremoniously. "About 10000 cenz," the blond replied dejectedly. "That's how much more I need." He pouted and crossed his arms, but the agitated look never left his face.

Roy shook his head and fished around in his pocket for his wallet. What else could he do? He did get a higher wage than Ed and 10000 cenz wasn't really that much for him. Plus, he really didn't want to see the boys suffer anymore – they were still young and they should be enjoying life to the fullest not having one of them sick and the other worrying his ass over him and being concerned about not having enough money for goddamn medicine.

He pulled out 10000 cenz from his wallet and held it out. "Here."

Ed's gaze snapped up to him and then his eyes trailed downwards to his hand, in which rested the money. He stared at Roy as if he'd said the most absurd thing he had ever heard. Slowly, he stood up and walked over to his commanding officer, staring at him straight in the eyes.

"What are you…?" the blond tried to ask but failed miserably at formulating the question. Mustang stood up from his chair and gently enveloped Ed's gloved hand in his own, in which he rested the coins. Ed's eyes, still impossibly wide, followed Roy's every move.

"Take it," Roy told him casually, sitting back on his chair. "If it's not enough come and tell me."

Ed blinked, but Roy saw that he already looked better. "R-really? I…I can take this?" He didn't really know why but the stunned tone in Ed's voice annoyed him; did the kid really think he was heartless?

He nodded, not letting his irritation show. "It's all yours." Seeing Ed's reluctant look, he offered a smirk just to make things a little more natural. "Don't worry; you can pay me back in a month, Shorty."

Edward's face was momentarily blank, before slowly but surely a small, grateful smile etched its way onto his face. "Thanks," he said softly.

With that, he turned and left, leaving a smiling Roy behind. The man shook his head and stuffed his wallet in his pocket again before grabbing the report, smirking at the terrible handwriting and inappropriate formatting.