This was just a one-shot before, but I decided to add at least one more chapter to it, because I love so many of the characters.

A visit from the flame alchemist

Brigadier General Mustang took a sip of his tea as Edward put the baby down slowly in her crib. He hovered over the tiny form for a minute, checking to make sure that she was indeed fast asleep, and then returned to his seat.

"She is sneaky, this one." He said with a sigh. "Just when you think she has fallen asleep, she will open her little eyes and start bawling, loud enough to wake up the entire neighborhood."

"Looks like she's going to be every bit as rowdy as her father." Mustang surmised, a smile touching his lips. He still hadn't gotten used to seeing Edward as a family man. It seemed like only yesterday when the two young brothers had set out to return to their bodies, a dangerous journey they had had to undertake after an unfortunate incident in the past that had almost cost them their lives. Having been a part of the journey himself, he knew how much the past still had the power to affect everyone that had been involved. Even now, there were days when he found himself waking up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night, his body shaking with the aftermath of his recurring nightmares.

Father.

Though long gone, memories of that man—or rather, that thing—still haunted him. What would have become of the world if it hadn't been for the Elric brothers? Father, who claimed to have swallowed God Himself, had been hell bent on destroying humanity in order to become "the perfect being".

The brothers, although having been no more than kids at the time, had fought tooth and nail to protect the ones they loved. He had been amazed by the maturity that the youngsters had displayed during those moments of despair. A lesser man would have lost hope and succumbed to misery.

So many lives had been lost. The corrupt upper echelon of their government had caused so much destruction. The death of one man in particular, had driven him to an angered frenzy, to a point where he was willing to seek out everyone who had been responsible for it and kill them himself. Edward had managed to keep him from going down that path of self-destruction, which would have ended his chance at everything he had worked so hard for. He remembered the hatred that had been burning deep inside him for so long, the thirst for revenge that had brought forth the madness. Had it not been for Hawkeye and Edward, he would have let his feelings get the better of him.

He would remain eternally grateful to the young man sitting in front of him right now, for forcing him to choose what was right.

"Well, her brother is already more than a handful, I'll tell you. If she follows his footsteps, it won't be long before my hair starts turning prematurely grey." sighed Edward, snapping the General back to the present.

"With all that you have been through, I thought taking care of your own children would be a piece of cake." Mustang laughed.

"Hey, wait till you have kids of your own and you have to wake up every night to the sounds of them shrieking and howling. Then you'll understand how hard it all is!" Edward sniffed. "And speaking of kids", he added slyly, "when exactly are Riza and you planning on getting married and having babies?"

Mustang choked on a piece of cookie he had just taken a bite out of. "W-what? Marry? Riza? Babies? What the hell are you talking about?" he coughed, yanking on his collar to loosen it.

"Oh come off it Colonel! We all know you two have a thing going. Let's not keep everyone in suspense anymore, okay?"

"Fullmetal", Mustang murmured, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation, "I think lack of sleep has turned your brain into mush. Perhaps I should let you get some rest before you start sputtering out any more non-sense." He got up to leave.

"Fine fine, I'm sorry!" Edward said quickly. "Gee, I was only kidding. Don't go just yet. It gets lonely around here with Al gone."

Narrowing his eyes at Edward as if to dare him to bring up that subject again, Mustang sat back down. "You might also try to remember, for once, that I'm no longer a Colonel."

"Ah, well. Old habits are hard to change. I may never get used to calling you General."

Mustang rolled his eyes.

"By the way, where are Winry and your son? Haven't seen them since I got here."

"They're both taking a nap." said Edward, sighing. "The baby kept us up all night, and obviously that seemed like a good opportunity for the older kid to run amok in the house."

"Hm, maybe Alphonse should come back soon to help you both with the kids. He was always better at things like these than you anyway."

"Hey!" cried Edward sullenly. "That's not true. I'm just as good! Who do you think changes the diapers around here, huh?"

"Winry of course", Mustang replied without missing a beat. "You don't really expect me to believe that you do it."

Edward scowled at him. "I help, you know!"

"Of course you do" Mustang returned, smiling at the disgruntled look on his face.

Edward leaned back on the sofa. "I guess you're right. Having Al here would certainly be a lot of help. The last time he called, he said he was almost done with learning about Eastern Alchemy. Maybe he'll be back sooner than we think."

Mustang stared at Edward quietly. After a while he asked:

"Do you miss it?"

Edward didn't have to ask to know what he was talking about.

"Sometimes" he said. "Mostly when my two-year old starts breaking things and I need to fix them", he added with a laugh. "But I gave it all up to bring my brother back from the other side. If I had to do it all over, I wouldn't change a thing. My family is more important to me than anything else in the world."

The General nodded his head in understanding.

"Besides" said Edward, "After Al is finished with his studies, he will have learned enough about alchemy for the both of us. When he gets back home I'll get him to do everything around the house while I sit back and relax."

"Of course. There are no better incentives for wanting to come back home than household chores" Mustang muttered sarcastically.

Edward sniggered.

"In all probability though, Winry'll put a stop to it immediately and drag you in to take care of the work yourself."

"Bah! Can't you even let a man hope for good things?"

Shrugging, Mustang replied "Your brother deserves the break a lot more than you do. He has been travelling for a lot longer. He's still living in Xing isn't he?"

Edward nodded, "From what I hear, little Mei Chan has been taking good care of him. She's 14 now, and still hasn't gotten over her crush on Al."

Mustang stared at him. "Good care…? Um, isn't she a little too young to be taking "good care" of him?"

Sputtering out the tea he had been sipping on, Edward coughed.

"What perverted things are you thinking about now!? I meant she was showing him around their country and teaching him about their culture and traditions!" He put his cup down. "Anyway, Al has always been quite fond of her and feels protective of her, but only like a brother."

"Are you saying he hasn't noticed the fact that she has a huge crush on him?"

"Oh he definitely hasn't missed that. I've teased him about it enough times for him to completely ignore it. But right now, he feels nothing more for her than brotherly affection. Of course, I still wonder if that will change a few years along the way. Mei is an exceptionally bright young lady, talented, kind and loving. When she's older, my brother might start looking at her differently and then return her feelings. Who knows, in a couple of years, she may become my new sister-in-law."

"Hm, that might prove to be useful for us." Mustang murmured, stroking his chin. "It could help strengthen our alliance with their nation."

"Sheesh Colonel, do you always have to make EVERY thing about our country and the government? Leave my brother's relationship out of this, will you?!"

"It doesn't hurt to look at things from the nation's perspective you know", Mustang countered. "Also, it's General not Colonel!"

"Whatever!" Edward grumped. "And we don't need Al getting married to Mei to build strong ties with the East, for crying out loud! Have you forgotten all about Ling? The Emperor of Xing?!"

Mustang eyed him indignantly. "Please, Fullmetal. I think I deserve a lot more credit than that. As a General, I have had the opportunity to meet with Emperor Ling Yao far too many times to forget about him."

"Oh, that's right. I forgot that the two of you meet on a regular basis. Perhaps you can ask him to come visit me? It would be so much fun if we could hang out again, like old times."

"He's the Emperor Edward! Do you expect him to just come, traipsing along to this part of the country to meet you in person?"

"It's possible!" Edward defended. "We can't cross the desert with the baby right now, but I'd like for him to see her. Even though he's the Emperor, I'm sure he hasn't forgotten the old days when he used to climb up the windows to meet us. Plus, he'll have Lan Fan along with him. Having her is as good as having an entire hoard of bodyguards!"

Mustang sighed. "Fine. The next time I have an opportunity to meet with him; I'll let the Emperor know of your…wishes."

"Thanks Colonel, you're a peach!" Edward grinned.

"It's not Colonel! It's…oh never mind!" cried Mustang, resigned.

XXX

A few hours later, the General rose to his feet. "Well, I should be getting back now. Riza is probably going to give me an earful for taking so long."

"Bring her with you the next time. Don't leave her alone there to attend to all your work while you're out, relaxing!"

"I take offense to that! I don't make Riza do all my work!" Mustang cried.

"Right, maybe next time I'll get to hear the truth from her." Edward returned, walking him out.

They reached the gate and just as the General bade goodbye and turned to leave, Edward placed a hand on his shoulder, halting him.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you!"

Eyebrows raised, Mustang glanced back at him. "What? What is it?"

"This is really important, okay? I need you to go back, and think about this very carefully!"

"Okay. I understand. What is it?"

"It is imperative, that you give this matter a lot of consideration. You'll probably toss and turn, wondering if this is the right thing to do, not wanting to take my word for it, but in the end, I'm only trying to tell you what I think is right!"

"Alright. What is it?"

"Promise me that you will give serious thoughts to this! Both Winry and I think this is for the best. In fact, you shouldn't even question it, because we know that it will ultimately be for your own good! So promise me you'll regard this matter with utmost seriousness!"

"Fine fine I promise! Just tell me already, Fullmetal!" cried Mustang, exasperated and curious beyond belief.

"Okay" Edward let out his breath. "Here goes."

Mustang stared at him with wide, expectant eyes.

"Shave the 'stache, Colonel."

Muttering about making it legal to kill annoying brats, the General walked away, not looking back to see Edward roaring with laughter as he waved him goodbye.