A/N: Hi all, and sorry about the wait. RL hit me pretty hard, and I am only just recovering. I'll spare you the gory details.

This chapter covers a lot. In my experience, a lot of HP crossover fics spend a lot of time focusing on minute, often unimportant details in the beginning, and I've read far too many fics where you're halfway through before you even get to Hogwarts, and nothing particularly plotty has happened, and then shortly after we get to hogwarts everyhting become rushed and all of the plot is shoved at us way too fast, and then it's over, because the author lost the momentum to keep going at the pace they started out at. Which is why I want to try and keep a more consistent pace throughout, and also get to Hogwarts as soon as possible. We're not quite there yet, but we will be next chapter.

Also, the first hints of the promised RoyEd in this chapter. It's nothing explicit, or even explicitly romantic, just Ed his feelings towards Mustang, and mostly just being confused. But I know there are a few of you who weren't psyched about the whole Yaoi thing, so be warned.

That said, please R&R, and I hope you enjoy!

A heavy silence settled over the table after Ed's statement, weighted with the unspoken questions of all those in the room. Ed, never one to waste good food, dug into the plate in front of him, which had gone very regrettably untouched during his story. There were an assortment of greens, some carrots and potatoes, a slab of what looked like meatloaf, and, thank god, nothing remotely dairyish. Ignoring the silence that still lingered - Ed could practically feel it's needy little fingers begging for attention, in a metaphorical sort of way, of course - he speared a chunk of the meat and brought it to his mouth.

Holy shit. Holy shit.

The meatloaf he was currently eating had to be the best damn meatloaf Ed had ever tasted. It was moist, but not soggy, firm, and savory, perfectly seasoned with just a little bit of a kick, a veritable chorus of rich meaty flavor and soft subtle spices. He froze, chewing slowly with an intense look of concentration on his face, then swallowed. He slowly looked up, to find the whole table still staring at him, waiting for him to give them more answers. Ed, however, had more important matters to discuss.

"Lady," he said, finally breaking the silence, which had reached an almost insufferable level of poetic weight, "This is the best fucking meatloaf I have ever tasted."

There were scattered gasps around the table - Ed guessed they weren't the kind to hear too much swearing - and Molly looked horribly turned between anger at his language, flattery at the praise. In the end, she settled for both/

"Well thank you, Edward dear, I'm glad you enjoy it." And then, "But do try to watch your language. We do not tolerate that kind of cursing in this house."

Edward went a little pink, and muttered an apology. Edward knew that, realistically, he was likely a fair match for anyone in this room if it came to a fight - more than a fair match, in most cases - but there was something about Molly Weasley that awoke a small frightened little boy inside of him, and shook it into submission. Maybe it was because she reminded him of his own other. A bit plumper, to be sure, and more fiery, but with the same motherly, nurturing presence that had always made him feel so safe at home, back when his mom was still alive at least.

"Sorry, mrs. Weasley," he replied, with a small, bashful grin. "Old habits, you know?"

She tutted. "Well I don't know what kind of habits they taught you where you came from, but over here, that is no way a young man like yourself should be speaking. Now finish up your food, all of you, and we can talk more about this once you're all done."

Ed had no argument against going back to his meal, and the others were soon digging into plates of their own, with much the same gusto. There were small bursts of chatter here and there, a few mild, surface level questions thrown Ed's way, and soon Mrs. Weasley was clearing away the plates in the same magical manner in which she had summoned them to begin with. Food eaten and plates gone, the group of wizards, witches, and Ed settled in for a long, complicated discussion.

Harry was the first to ask a question, and he started with the most obvious matter.

"Do you have any idea how to get home?"

Ed sighed and shook his head. "No, I don't. Like I told you, I came here through the portal of truth, and the only way I know to open it is human transmutation, which is not an option. I have the beginnings of some theories but… Well, I'm going to need a lot of time, and probably a better understanding of your magic. And books," he added. "As many books as I can get my hands on."

The brown haired girl's eyes had begun to sparkle, and she jumped in eagerly. "If it's books you need, I can get you started with some of mine. I don't have anything particularly advanced, not with me at least, but I could get you started on the basics."

Ed sent her a smile. "That would be great, thanks." SHe blushed slightly, and nodded.

"If you need somewhere with books to do your research, then it might make sense for you to come to Hogwarts," Ron pointed out, looking around the table for approval. "There's nowhere else that's got a library as good as Hogwarts, and Ed'd have the professors to help him out. We could ask Dumbledore, he'd probably agree."

Ed let out a sharp snort. "What sort of name is Hogwarts? Is that really the name of your school?"

Most of the people gathered around the table looked vaguely offended, but Hermione gave him a soft smile.

"I thought it sounded a bit ridiculous too, the first time I heard of it. I'm muggleborn, you see, I wasn't raised in the wizarding world, so unlike this lot I'd never heard of Hogwarts until I got my letter. I thought it was a prank at first." She turned to Ron. "It's not a bad idea, Ron, it's worth at least sending Dumbledore and owl. Although, we don't even know if Edward's a wizard or not…"

The conversation quickly turned into a heated debate that Ed had no interest in taking part, choosing instead to muse over Hermione's last comment. She may not know whether or not Edward was a wizard, but Ed was fairly sure that he did. Madame Pomfrey's comments from the night before made it fairly clear that he had a magical core, which he assumed made the difference between a wizard and a non wizard, and if she was to be believed Ed's magical core was fairly large, and probably quite powerful. Anyway, it wasn't something he felt the need to share with the rest of the table, at least for now.

Eventually, it was decided that yes, an owl would be sent to Dumbledore, and Molly bustled off to write said owl. Ed stayed at the table a while longer, making conversation with the teens, who seemed fascinated by him and his life story. Ed realised that he hadn't spent much time with people his own age for longer than he could remember, with the exception of Al and Winry, and he wasn't sure they really counted. To the average teenager (although Harry, Ed was coming to find out, was not quite average himself), Ed supposed he must actually seem… cool. Dangerous. Exciting.

He felt a wry smile twist across his face. If only they knew. They'd barely scratched the surface of all the million kinds of fucked up that was Edward Elric, and Ed was perfectly content to keep it that way.

Two weeks later found Ed sitting aboard the Hogwarts Express, a brand new wand tucked into his pocket, and his nose buried in the latest of a long line of books that he had been devouring with unparalleled ferocity. Harry and Ron had been shocked by the rate at which he had been tearing through the book Hermione provided for him, while Hermione had looked immensely pleased. Dumbledore had given Ed permission to begin practicing some basic spells, under the tutelage of Mrs. Weasley, and Ed had done nothing but study since he had gotten his wand, advancing by leaps and bounds. In the two weeks he had been at the burrow, he had managed to draw roughly equal to a third-year level of magic, a feat which had astounded the entire Weasley household. He was perfectly sound on the theory, although his practical application was a bit inconsistent, something Molly had assured him would improve only with practice.

About an hour into the train ride, Ed found himself at the end of his book, which was, regrettably, the only one he had with him that he had not already read. Feeling his eyes burning from tiredness and overuse, he elected not to delve back into the covers of a book he had already read. The carriage was occupied by Harry, as well as a somewhat chubby, black haired boy, and a dreamy eyed, blond haired girl, who Ed vaguely remembered being introduced to, but whose names, for the time being, eluded him. Ron and Hermione had parted from them when they boarded the train, something about a prefects' carriage, which had left Ed alone with Harry and two strangers, both of whom had been deemed trustworthy by the Harry, and filled in on Ed's backstory, or at least the basics. Now, book finished, Ed chose to simply sit back and observe the new witch and wizard before him. They appeared to be close friends with Harry, talking and laughing quietly with Harry. They were discussing their grades from the previous year, and the black haired boy - Neville, Ed was reminded - seemed particularly concerned that he wouldn't be able to take Transfigurations this year.

A few minutes into this discussion and Ron and Hermione reappeared, pushing into the carriage and plopping themselves onto the seat beside Ed.

"I wish the lunch trolley would hurry up, Ron groused. "I'm starving." He said a quick hello to Neville and Luna - that was the girl's name - before turning to Harry. "Guess what?"

Ed saw Harry's interest pique, and he too turned his attention towards the redhead. Ron continued.

"Malfoy's not doing his prefect duties, he's just sitting in the compartment with the other Slytherins. I saw him when we passed by."

And Ed immediately felt his interest wane. He had heard all about Draco Malfoy over the past few weeks. Apparently, he was a bully and a snob, and, according to Harry, now a death eater, one of the followers of the evil dark wizard Voldemort who wanted to take over the wizarding world. Ed couldn't help but find Harry's accusations a bit over the top - at least from what he'd heard of Malfoy from the others, he sounded like a bully, but also a coward. Certainly not evil. He, however, had never met the boy before, so He would have to reserve his judgement til he did.

Ron and Harry were still talking, Ron pantomiming the rude gesture that Malfoy had reportedly made at him as they passed by his carriage.

"Not like him, though, is it. I mean this - " the gesture again - "Sure, but why isn't he out there bullying first years?"

Harry seemed lost in thought, Ed could practically see his mind racing. "Dunno," He said, simply.

"Maybe he preferred the Inquisitorial squad," Hermione interjected. "After that, maybe the Prefects seem a bit tame."

Harry shook his head. "I don't think so. I think - "

Before he could continue, he was cut off by the door to the carriage sliding open, and a young girl poking her head inside, holding two scrolls of paper.

"I'm supposed to deliver these to Neville Longbottom and Harry P-Potter." She squeaked out, breathless and starstruck. Harry gave her an uncomfortable, bashful sort of grin, and took the scrolls, and the girl stumbled back out of the compartment, staring at Harry the whole way.

The scrolls turned out to be invitations to Lunch with Professor Slughorn, the new teacher that Harry had helped Dumbledore recruit, and son the two boys were bustling out of the compartment, leaving Ed with Ron, Hermione, and Luna.

"So Ed," Hermione said as soon as the door slid closed behind them. "What house do you think you'll be sorted into?"

Ed shrugged, unconcerned. "I don't know, I don't really care either. The whole house system seems a little bit bullshit anyway. I mean, you take all these young kids, split them up into groups based on personality, and expect it not to turn into a bunch of bullying and pissing contests?" Ed slouched a little further down in his seat. "I don't know if I'll even be in a house anyway, I'm not gonna be attending as a normal student, so what's the point."

Hermione seemed offended. "The point of having a house is that it's your family while you're at school. It's a group of fellow students who you can rely on to support you and to have your back."

Ed scoffed softly. "Whatever." he said, gaze firmly fixed on the window. "Like I said, I don't really care about which house I end up in. I don't plan on spending much time here, I'm getting home as soon as I can." Here he swallowed, eyes turning sad. "I left my world in a pretty bad place, and I've got people I need to get back to."

Al. Winry. Mustang. All the countless citizens of Amestris who would die if Ed couldn't stop the Humunculi's plans. He had to get back, before everything came crashing down in his absence. God he hoped everyone was alright. If any of them ended up dying because his stupidity got him landed in another fucking world, Ed didn't think he'd ever be able to forgive himself.

The other's in the compartment seemed to sense his foul mood, because they quickly turned the conversation away from him, talking quietly among themselves, and leaving Ed to wallow in his thoughts.

How were, they, over in Ed's world anyway. When Ed had left his friends had just split up, headed in different directions with different mission. Winry with Scar and the others, making their way through the tunnels under Baschool. Al fighting through a snowstorm all alone to find them. And Mustang… Ed hadn't seen him since that night in the car. He can still remember it in pristine detail, From the moment Mustang had pulled up to the curb, something urgent and unreadable in his face. It had been strange, seeing him out of uniform. He had seemed more human, somehow, more vulnerable. In the uniform, with a smug smirk plastered over his face, he seemed untouchable, but now, bent over a steering wheel with his brow furrowed in worry and concentration, he seemed much more approachable. And when he had switched topic, demanding his money back and then nearly throwing a fit over a measly 20 cen difference, Ed had felt something tighten in his chest. He had grown up a lot since he first came under Mustang's command, and for the first time, Ed had found himself coming to full appreciate that under all the swagger and bravado and his general assholish facade, Mustang was just another human like all the rest of him, trying his hardest in a world that never gave any of them a break. And especially after learning the true story of what had happened in Ishval…

Ed's hand had clenched almost involuntarily around the gold in his hand, and when he spoke he had felt himself desperately hoping that Mustang would understand what he meant, under the cocksure grin and antagonistic words. I see who you are now, I understand. And i have your back. I believe in your cause. I believe in what you're trying to do. And the way Mustang's eyes had glinted as he looked at Ed, the sharp flash of understanding, had been exhilarating. It had sent a rush of something unnameable through Ed, which had left him shaken. And the grin that Mustang had given him before he pulled away from the curb, had set his heart racing. Because in that grin, Ed had seen it all reflected back at him. Just had he had come to see Mustang clearly, in that one look, Mustang told Ed that he saw him too. They had come to a mutual understanding and all of a sudden everything felt… different. That exchange with the colonel had been unlike any he'd had before. They had met not as commanding officer and subordinate, and not as friends either, but as something different. Something charged and powerful, something that Ed had never experienced before. As the colonel had sped away, Al had remarked. "Wow, brother. It looks like the colonel is finally starting to treat you as an equal." An Ed had felt a small fire flicker to life inside him.

Mustang's equal.

He liked that.