Sorry for this late upload – things got in the way. But at least it's still on the correct day! This chapter is kind of a precursor of how things are going to play out in the final chapters, if that makes any sense. Anyways, I hope you enjoy Day 5: Adventure/Home. This chapter fits more with 'home.'

xXxXxXx

A few days had passed since the discovery of the unique hair in the dried blood – neither of which matched or was even similar to that of Maes Hughes. Despite the moment of rejoicing that had brought, almost no progress had been made since then. DNA and hair were completely useless if there was nothing to compare them to. Edward was trying his best, but unfortunately he couldn't just walk up to Neid and Luxure and politely ask them for DNA and hair samples.

Mei chuckled to herself. The obnoxious officer had said he would be completely on board to do that, but both she and Alphonse had advised against it. In the end, being so blunt wouldn't really work in their favor. If anything, it would make getting samples even harder.

She took the coffee off the pot and poured it into a cup, mixing in only a little sugar. She'd preferred her coffee black for as long as she could remember – it dark and bitter, like how she felt at the end of every day. Such a thing was only too fitting.

She sighed as she headed to the main room and slowly sat on the couch, taking extreme care not to spill the hot liquid onto anything. The Xingese woman had been so tired lately. She assumed it was a mixture of performing an average of four autopsies a day – which really was sad when one thought about it – and stressing constantly over the Hughes case.

Mei knew they had to be close to catching the killer. And this time around, it wasn't just her gut instinct telling her that. She'd started receiving more threatening letters, and after dusting the prints for herself and examining it under the microscope, she was able to determine that it matched not only the prints from other threatening letters but also the one found at the crime scene.

She cursed under her breath upon realizing she'd completely forgotten about checking Hughes' body for latent prints. She'd have to do it first thing the next day. In fact, it'd probably be best if she arrived at the office early to spray the body before anyone got there...

She sighed, taking a sip of her coffee. It was late, and she'd been at the office all day. According to her watch it was almost midnight, meaning she had been up nearly 24 hours, since she'd been called around two that morning to report to a scene. That was why her coffee was decaf – she didn't need to be staying up any later than necessary.

Her own yawn interrupted her thoughts, and the Xingese doctor considered dumping the rest of her coffee and just heading right to bed. For all she knew she'd be called out in less than an hour because someone had tripped and fallen into traffic, resulting in their untimely death.

Unfortunately, that had happened before.

Mei slowly got up from the couch and returned to the kitchen, emptying what was left of her coffee into the sink before rinsing the cup out. She started to head to her bedroom, but paused when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye.

It was the letters.

After a moment of hesitation she picked them up, no longer caring about smudging prints or not. She was almost certain she'd gotten anything she could possibly get from them off already, so she considered herself free to handle them.

If you don't learn to keep your nose out of other people's business, Doc, there'll come a day when you have to face the consequences.

You're dancing awfully close to the fire. You planning to get burned?

Remember this, Doc: you're never alone. And you never will be again.

You are going to die.

Mei hadn't told Alphonse about the new letters. She knew he'd be furious and would probably go so far as to tell her to move out of her house, which she knew she could never do in a million years. He'd also take them a hundred times more seriously than her – she just wasn't bothered by them.

Well... There was one letter. She'd only received it that morning, and for some reason it was getting to her in a way that the others weren't. It was only two words:

Watch out.

Unlike the other few letters, it seemed to truly be hinting at something. Some sort of action. And she was absolutely terrified it was going to happen soon.

Mei shook herself, trying to get rid of the sinking feeling in her stomach. She couldn't allow nerves to keep her up all night if she planned to report to her office early. She placed the letters back onto the counter and left the kitchen quicker than she'd care to admit.

She'd deal with it all tomorrow.

xXxXxXx

Mei was awakened by the smell of smoke slamming roughly into her nose and rapidly filling her lungs. Her eyes flew open only to find that dark, thick, 'fog' was creeping into her room from the crack underneath the door. Coughing, she jumped out of bed, mind reverting to autopilot strictly from the will to survive. Instinctively she pressed her hands to the door, only managing to keep them there for a second before jerking them away.

The heat was intense even through the door, which meant the fire was either started just outside of her bedroom or had spread there – and either way it was threatening to burn through the wood.

Her coughs grew faster and more the frequent. The Xingese woman knew she couldn't stay in there much longer if she wanted to escape at least relatively unscathed. She hesitated before grabbing her phone off of her dresser and shoving it underneath her arm. Relieved her bedroom was on the first floor, she flung open her window and jumped out, running all the way to the edge of her yard before turning around. What she saw nearly made her heart stop.

Her entire house was on fire.

Flames appeared to be shooting out the windows, and black smoke was leaking out of places she didn't think were possible. She could faintly smell the familiar stink of gasoline, and suspected that was the accelerant used to set her house ablaze as quickly as possible.

Watch out.

The words danced in her mind and spiraled right in front of her eyes. Alphonse had been right. She'd been a fool not to take those letters seriously.

Mei pinched her arm and snapped out of her reverie. She couldn't dwell on what she could – should – have done. What was happening now was happening now, and that was something she had the power to change.

She dialed 911 into her phone, unable to stop herself from anxiously tapping her foot on the ground as she waited for the operator to pick up.

"911. What's your emergency?"

"My house is on fire." The Xingese woman winced at how exhausted and scratchy her voice sounded. "I live at 1628 Willow Street. Please hurry."

"I'm sending people your way immediately, ma'am. Is there any way you can somehow contain it?"

"No. I was lucky I woke up before it spread into my room." She laughed, a strained laugh full of bitterness. "I'm not going to have a house after this."

"Firemen and police officers are headed towards you, as well as paramedics just in case. I ask that you do not leave the immediate vicinity, ma'am."

"Of course." Mei hung up, her heart heavy. Everything. Everything was gone, or was going to be. Anything that made it through would have done so by a hair and would be rendered completely useless. She'd be lucky if the framework of her house was still standing at the end of this.

Out of the corner of her eye Mei noticed something sticking out of her mailbox. Frowning, she walked over to it, her burning home momentarily pushed to the back of her mind. She pulled it out, realizing it was an envelope.

"Oh no..."

Not caring whether she destroyed any prints or not, the Xingese woman practically ripped it open to get to what was inside, ignoring her gradually building nausea.

You continued to play with fire – and now you've gotten burned. Don't say we didn't warn you, Doctor. Soon you'll be ashes like everything else.

Mei knew her face had to be white as a sheet. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. She wanted to give up and yet she didn't. How could she give the killer that satisfaction? The answer was simple – she couldn't. And yet she still felt as if something had just been broken inside her. Something she wasn't sure could ever be fixed.

Thankfully her attention was taken away from the letter when she heard sirens wailing, getting louder by the second. Before she knew it three firetrucks and several police cruisers were in her driveway. It was almost a blur as they hooked up their hoses to the fire hydrant and started dousing her home.

But what really distracted her were the strong arms that suddenly wrapped around her body.

"Mei," Alphonse mumbled, burying his face in her messy hair. "I was so worried. But you're alive." He inhaled a shuddering breath. "Thank God you're alive!"

Mei crumbled, turning and throwing her arms around him, pressing her face into his chest. Tears starting flowing, she knew they wouldn't stop anytime soon.

And together they stood as the fire blazed, neither one daring to break away.

xXxXxXx

"And this is the one I found in my mailbox after – or during, I suppose – the fire."

Mei watched Alphonse's hands tremble in rage as he read the letter that had made her burst into sobs and not stop for what felt like years but couldn't have been longer than twenty minutes.

"I swear," he said, his fist clenching and crumpling the corner of the paper, "that I will kill whomever's responsible for this with my bare hands."

She gave him a soft smile. "That won't be necessary. Locking them up in prison will do just fine."

He sighed. "I don't understand how you can be so calm about this. Mei, you've just lost everything. I hate to put it like that, but you know it's true. And yet you don't seem to be angry at all. If I didn't know you so well, I'd say that you don't even care."

Mei shrugged. "I attribute part of it to exhaustion. It's three in the morning and I only slept for a few hours before I was rudely awakened. It doesn't help that shock is one hell of a drug." She ran her hands through her hair. "I still haven't come to terms with it, in all honesty." She shook her head. "Tomorrow it's going to slam me in the face. I already know it."

Alphonse looked as if he wanted to say more, but stopped himself. "I understand. You should get some rest. I'll –" His phone rang, interrupting him. He rolled his eyes before answering. "Yes?" He frowned. "You want me to – alright, alright. Fine." He removed his phone from his ear and tapped the screen. "Alright, Ed. You're on speaker."

"I've got some good news and some bad news, I'm afraid. What do you want to hear first?"

Mei groaned. Just when she'd thought things couldn't get any worse. "Get the bad news over with, please."

"Alright. Tell me – were the photographs of Hughes' case as well as any other paperwork relating to it lost in the fire?"

Her eyes widened, then shut in relief. "No. I left them at my office."

"Is it possible that the person who burned your house down was not only targeting you but also the evidence gathered that could incriminate them?"

"I... I mean, it's certainly possible, though I can't say for sure –"

"That's okay," Edward interrupted, though his voice held no malicious intent. "I don't need confirmation. I just need your agreement that it's a possibility."

Mei hesitated, then nodded, though she knew he couldn't see her. "Yes. I agree that it's a possibility. In fact, it's likely it was a case of two birds with one stone."

"I figured that, too. Now here's the bad news – Yoki has been arrested. Or will be, anyways. Neid got a warrant and plans to arrest him early tomorrow morning at your office, Mei."

Her face paled. "What?" She shook her head fervently. "That's impossible! Yoki is innocent! How did Neid manage to falsify evidence so well he was able to convince a judge?!"

"I don't know, Mei – but Neid's been in the FBI for nearly fifteen years. He's got a lot of experience under his belt."

Mei groaned. "That's not fair! Is there going to be a trial?"

"Not if Neid can help it. He's undoubtedly going to at least try to convince Yoki to plead guilty. Probably gonna threaten him or something."

Alphonse noticed how distraught this was making the Xingese woman, and decided it was time for a change of subject. "You said you also had some good news, Ed – what is it?"

"Oh yeah," his brother said. "That's right. I'm afraid I'm going to have to hold off on that a bit. I'm almost at your hotel. Another five minutes and I'll be knocking on your door." He chuckled. "I noticed you were Mei's room, Al. Any particular reason –"

Alphonse immediately hung up and shoved his phone into his pocket, cheeks bright red. "I'm so sorry. Ed is such an idiot."

Mei just shook her head, his words going in one ear and out the other. "I can't believe Yoki is going to be arrested without any proof. And it's my fault! If I'd just been a little faster with figuring everything out – with putting the pieces together – then maybe I could have prevented it. Our killer could be locked up right now if I'd just –"

Alphonse clamped his hand over her mouth, effectively silencing her. "Mei, I want you to listen to me. This is not your fault. Okay? You've worked harder and done more with this case than anyone else. Don't undermine your efforts and make them seem less because of things that are out of your control. You've got the killer in your grasp – now all you've got to do is grab them."

Mei chuckled. "Easier said than done."

"Maybe, but you've got all the evidence you need. Almost everything you've gotten would hold up in a court and convict someone."

She sighed. "I know. But the DNA samples and all those prints and that hair are completely useless at the moment because I don't have anything to compare them to. I also forgot to check for latent prints on his body, so I need to do that first thing tomorrow morning."

"And you can," Alphonse interrupted her. "Though maybe not first thing in the morning. You need some rest. After Edward gives us whatever his 'good news' is, you're going to bed. I don't care what you say. You've had too long a night to be up any longer than you have to be."

Mei wanted to argue, but decided against it. "Fine."

"And I'm ordering that you don't get out of bed until at least eight tomorrow."

Now that was something she couldn't agree to. "I can't sleep until eight! Winry would be forced to open up everything on her own. I can't do that to her. She's already had to cover my shifts several times when I was out investigating the Hughes case."

Alphonse sighed. "Fine. Seven o' clock."

Mei nodded, playing along, though she knew she would be getting up around five or six to head to her office. It was just that Alphonse didn't need to be aware of that information.

A knock at the door started the two and caused both to jump slightly.

"Hey!" It was Edward. "What are you two lovebirds doing in there?"

Alphonse looked as if he wanted to strangle his brother as he stood and walked over to the door before unlocking it. "Your 'good news' better be worth all this talk you're making us put up with."

Edward laughed. "Oh, don't worry – it is." He stepped into the room, allowing Alphonse to shut the door behind him. "I have two bits of good news, actually. Hopefully that'll make up for what you've had to go through this evening, Mei." Edward's eyes were heavy. He wasn't an idiot – he knew no matter how good the news was it couldn't change how much had been destroyed for the Xingese woman. Even so, if he could so much as lessen the burden by even a tiny bit, he wanted to do so.

Mei managed a laugh. "Is that so? What's your good news, Edward?"

The older Elric sat down in the chair across from them. "The best news is that Winry and I have a date tomorrow. I'll be picking her up from work and we're going to go to a nice restaurant and have a grand time."

Mei's eyes widened. "Really?" She laughed again, this time with more energy. "I can't believe you managed to snag Winry! Just so you know, Officer – Winry is way too good for you. I'm going to remind her of that every day. So you'd best tread lightly, understand?"

Edward mock-saluted her. "Roger that, Captain."

"What's the rest of your news?" Alphonse asked, not wanting to seem impatient but also not wanting the conversation to drag on too long. He wanted Mei to be able to get as much rest as possible.

"Well, it's not as great about the fact that Winry and I are going on a date together, but..." He reached into his pocket pulled out four plastic bags, each with a label stuck near the top. "I may have managed to get DNA and hair samples from Luxure and Neid."

Mei's eyes widened as she snatched the bags from him, not caring that such actions could be perceived as rude. "No way!" She looked up at the two Elrics, eyes twinkling in excitement. "This is amazing! I can run tests tomorrow morning, and I think today – yesterday? – was the last day of prints being added in the system, so I can scan those for hits, and we might be able to –" She shook her head, unable to find the right words.

"You'll be able to nab them tomorrow," Edward agreed confidently. "I've been around Luxure and Neid a lot lately because I was trying to get these samples, right? Let's just say I don't like how they were acting. Maybe it's personal bias, but their behavior was kind of shifty."

"In what way?" Mei asked curiously.

"Their whole demeanors were already kind of odd," the older brother explained. "Neither talked to many people, and if they did, it was concise and either really arrogant or simplistic. I'm sure you can figure out which of them acted in what way." He frowned. "They mostly hung around each other, in all honesty. I get the feeling they've known each other for a long time." He snapped his fingers as he was reminded of something. "I almost forgot!" He reached into a different pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper. "I got an FBI profiler to give us a basic idea of what our killer may look like and what their past could consist of." He handed it to his brother. "You read it, Al. I've gone over it so many times my mind's completely numb."

Alphonse unfolded the paper. "White male. Late twenties to early thirties. Likely has a past history of violence but on a smaller scale. An emotionally troubled person. Both verbally and physically abusive family." He continued to read off traits for another five minutes or so before placing the paper in his lap when he was finished. "While this list is definitely a realistic list of your typical serial killer, I don't think that's what we're dealing with right now."

Mei nodded. "There's a chance some of those qualities could apply to him, but as a whole it just doesn't sound right."

"That's what I was thinking," Edward agreed. "But when I asked the profiler to try to create a different profile aligning a bit more with some of the ideas we've gathered, he refused, saying it was pointless." He rolled his eyes. "I disagreed, of course, but I couldn't pressure him. I'm only a guest on the FBI campus, after all."

"Even so, it's still information I think we can use to some extent," Mei said. "So it wasn't a total loss."

"Some is better than none," Alphonse added.

The three talked for a few minutes before Edward decided to take his leave. Soon it was just Alphonse and Mei in the room again.

"I want you to get some sleep, alright?" Alphonse said, crossing his arms. "If you need me I'll be in the room across the hall."

Mei yawned in response, already feeling tiredness overcome her. "Fine. But you need to get sleep, too – understand?"

He chuckled. "I think I can work with that."

xXxXxXx

Hopefully this chapter wasn't a disappointment. It was interesting for me to write – and we finally got a real AlMei-type moment! Yay! Anyways, I hope you return tomorrow for Day 6: AU-Crossover/Early Mornings!