DISCLAIMER Ok so this might be a bit long, but I am answering some questions regarding this story in particular.

A comment was made calling this story a "joke" and that it's basically "lol this character is being treated like a child". No. That is not happening here. Yes, this story centers around spanking, which is considered a fetish, but this story has a plot. Unlike the previous rendition I am not having Envy put in a diaper or being treated like an infant. This is a story of rehabilitation sprinkled with spanking every now and then.

Although this should be obvious, if you don't like/don't enjoy spanking, please do not read this. While it is not as prominent as my other stories, I do make it fairly common. It's kinda what I do.

Why these take so long. I am now 22 and have a full-time job as well as commission work as a freelance artist. Plus, these stories take time to make, and I want them to be the best they can be. I am unfortunately discontinuing a lot of my stories for this reason and because ideas/inspiration for them don't last. I at least feel lucky to get a chapter out every few weeks or months rather than a few years.

I do apologize if I seem rude during this, but this was on my chest for a good while as I wrote this chapter. I'm hoping to get the next one done asap as it does indeed have a spanking in it. (aka my favorite scenes to write if you couldn't tell~)

Now without further ado, the story.

When Envy woke up next, it was already around noon. The sun was higher in the sky over the small town, and there was a distant sound of farmers and work horses outside if one listened close enough. Envy stirred in the bed, Ed having to have carefully removed the homunculus from him to tuck him in.

He blinked, slowly opening his eyes and groaning as the sting in his rear reignited as he moved about. Rubbing his eyes with one fist, he sat up slowly, being wary of his sore posterior as he looked out the window.

"How long…?"

"Decided to join the land of the living, Sleeping Beauty?"

The voice made Envy jolt, and he turned to his right to see Ed standing at the doorway, having just come in to check on him. The military man crossed his arms with a slight smirk, resting one foot on the door frame in a typical "cool guy" pose. Envy blushed a slight pink, averting his smug gaze as his lip jutted out in a pout.

"Hey, I didn't exactly choose to fall asleep…"

Ed shrugged. "Maybe not, but I don't blame you for it. You probably haven't had a decent sleep in who knows how long. And after what just happened-"

"PLEASE say that was a one-time thing…"

Ed had to stop himself from laughing as he shook his head, his smile dropping a little. "Nope. Like we said you can expect that and more if you misbehave. So I'd tread very lightly if I were you."

Envy groaned, looking down at the carpet as Ed walked from the doorway, grabbing a chair from the desk near the corner of the room and dragging it closer, sitting down across from Envy. He looked rather mature-and slightly intimidating-when he sat. One leg crossed over the other, his hands folded on his knee and his gaze focused on the homunculus.

"Speaking of which, what happened to you? Last we ever saw of you you were a little parasite after Mustang tried to roast you alive."

Envy paused, his mouth hung open a little as he looked up at Ed, as if he were thinking of what to say. That had been painful, in more ways than one. Mustang was intent on killing him slowly and painfully, and if it hadn't been for Fullmetal, he definitely would have. But…what Ed said…

"I had a brush with death, I can say that. If he had snapped his fingers at that moment before you stepped in, I would have been done for. After I bit you, I squirmed down under the cracks you made and rebuilt myself. It took a lot of work, but with those transmuted soldiers all over the place I was able to at least scrounge up enough to get me back to this…but…" Envy looked down once more into his lap, his fingers fidgeting as the gears turned in his head in remembrance of that day. "By the time I killed the last one, I still hadn't recovered enough to heal myself completely. And by that time you guys had already defeated Father."

"You spent that whole time in the tunnels?"

"I had to! It was the safest place I could think of at the moment where I could regenerate. Even then, I can't heal, or use any of my powers. I can't even use alchemy…"

Ed put a finger to his chin in thought, glancing away as his index finger rubbed his chin.

"That explains a few things…so what did you do after you found out?"

Envy shrugged, rolling his eyes. "What else could I do? I stayed hidden as much as possible and fended for myself. Now that I think about it, I probably got these injuries trying to get food from stray animals and drunks…everything is a bit fuzzy."

Ed nodded, putting his hand back down onto his lap and his gaze now more focused on Envy. "You were probably knocked on the head a few times in the process. If you really can't heal we should get you to a doctor soon-"

"NO!"

Ed's eyes widened at the sudden outburst, and for once during this conversation he looked startled, almost fearful if it weren't for the fact, he knew Envy couldn't do much of anything right now. Envy realized what he did and said and winced as soon as the word left his lips. After a quick moment, he backpedaled, putting his hands up in front of him defensively.

"I…I mean…that won't be necessary. I'm sure this is just temporary."

Ed had to take a second or two to inwardly calm himself, raising an eyebrow as he processed what Envy said. "You sure about that? You just said you can't heal cause you don't have enough souls inside you."

"I-I know what I said!" Envy said defensively, his eyes narrowing. "But maybe…maybe I'm wrong about that!"

Ed made an unimpressed face, staring Envy down as he measured the amount of bullshit in his statement.

"How about no? We're not taking risks of you getting an infection or hurt any worse. As soon as possible you'll be seeing a doctor."

Envy groaned, slightly shuddering where he sat. Ed had no clue why he was so apprehensive, but right now might not be a good time to ask…

"For now though, I'm sure lunch is ready, so how about we go eat?"

Envy nodded, thankful for the change of subject as he followed Ed to the dining room, sitting gingerly in his seat as Al served the grilled ham-and-cheese sandwiches and juice. Ed sat across from him, almost immediately digging in while Al put the dishes away in the sink before sitting and beginning to eat.

"So did Ed tell you about the chores?"

Envy rose a brow in confusion. "Chores? What chores?"

Al looked over at Ed, and it was almost comical how slowly he did it. He had this look of "really?" plastered on his face, and Ed could only look back and smile sheepishly.

"Really Ed?"

"I was kinda preoccupied…"

Al sighed. "Since you're going to be living with us, we figured it'd only be fair if we gave you some chores to do around the house."

Envy narrowed his eyes, glaring at the both of them. "So I'm to be your slave now?" He didn't see them as the type to do that, but with how power-hungry Ed seemed he wouldn't put it past him.

"No, nothing like that! You'll earn an allowance at the end of every week for all the chores you complete, as well as a little extra if you go the extra mile and do some without being asked."

Envy's gaze wavered, and he thought. Earning some money of his own in exchange for helping out…? That seemed fair. He was never given anything of his own before, so it could be a nice change.

"That makes sense…okay then."

Ed nodded. "Alright then! We have a plan. Al can make you a chart to show you your chores and any optional ones you can do."

With that agreement in place, the three of them finished lunch, Al going to make the chart and Envy going upstairs to his room. Passing by the full-body mirror, Envy grew curious, and turned his back to it, hooking his thumbs into the pajama pants and pulling them down just below his rear. The skin was still bright and red, a bit darker near his thighs where the brush hit. Tentatively, Envy reached down and touched it, wincing as he did so. Yup, definitely still hurt.

"Oww…"

If it were up to him, he thought as he pulled his pants back up, then he would never do anything to earn that again.

A week passed, and so far the arrangement was working well. Envy stayed out of trouble as much as possible, and the only trouble they had was Envy sometimes smarting off. He had a natural talent for smart-assery it seemed…

At the moment the homunculus was dusting the bookshelf, back in his normal outfit and glancing every now and again at the various alchemy books and mystery novels they had. He guessed they kept them since Al could still perform alchemy, but he couldn't guess who the mystery novels were for…

Al came into the room to check on their ward, smiling as he saw him working peacefully. He was gleeful that this was working so well, and he was sure Ed shared the same sentiment despite his demeanor around Envy.

"Nice job Envy!"

Envy flinched, blushing slightly at the praise. He turned to look at Al, wondering how long he had been there watching him. That was one thing Envy felt he would never get used to: praise.

"Eh…um, thanks."

"I just made some tea; would you like to take a little break and have some with me?"

Envy thought about it. A break would be nice, even though he hadn't been working for very long. He set the duster down on the shelf, before turning to Al.

"Uhm, sure."

At the table, Al took a sip of tea from his cup, the hot liquid sweet from the sugar he often put in it. He looked across from him at Envy, who sat somewhat cross-legged in his seat and just stared down at the cup, absentmindedly rubbing the handle with his thumb as he held it.

Al tilted his head, raising one brow slightly in worry.

"Is something wrong?"

Envy seemed to come out of his trance, finally looking up at Al with his eyes slightly wide. He glanced away, trying to find the right words to ask this with…

"Just…why are you being so nice?'

"What do you mean?"

Envy set down the cup.

"Pipsqu-I mean, Edward, was ready to throw me out on my head, but you talked him into letting me stay. Why? I killed and hurt so many people, even people you loved!" Envy tended to gesture as he spoke, spreading his arms out at the last sentence as if to emphasize how much he killed.

Al paused, before sighing, setting down his own cup in silence as if preparing himself to say something.

"I know…and as much as it hurts, I know there is nothing I can do to bring them back. I could pummel you to the ground and so can Ed, but we both know that won't solve anything."

Envy shivered involuntarily. That sounded rather foreboding coming from the nicer of the brothers…

"Ed may be a bit strict, and I think it's cause he does tend to live in the past still. He has trouble letting things go. But maybe once you show him that you can be a good person he'll lighten up."

At this, Envy looked back down at his cup, seeing his reflection in the tea looking back up at him. Someone who did so much wrong and yet is being given a second chance…something his comrades never got the chance to receive.

"Maybe that's also why to came to us."

Envy almost jolted up at that. Was he really that easy to read?

Al smiled a little.

"You knew Ed and I wouldn't let you die out there, didn't you?"

Envy paused, processing what Al said before glancing off to the side.

"Kind of…during the tunnel confrontation Edward…revealed something I thought no one would ever know. He understood me, he knew how I really felt…and I couldn't stand it."

"Sometimes the truth is hard to face…"

"So when I did finally get back on my feet, some part of me did know you guys wouldn't throw me out without hearing what I have to say."

Al nodded, smiling more as he picked up his cup once more. "Well I think you made the right choice."

Envy grimaced, shifting slightly in his seat. "My ass isn't so sure of that now…" While most of the pain and redness from his first spanking had dissipated, sitting was still a bit of an endeavor for him.

Ed, with almost perfect timing, came into the dining room, some papers under his arm and looking mildly disgruntled. When he saw the two at the table he seemed relieved.

"Oh, there you are. Al, I need a couple things from the market. Think you can get them for me? General Bastard is wanting this report asap since I couldn't come in and he's getting on my ass about it…"

"Oh, sure!" Al looked to Envy. "Envy, you wanna come? It'll be fun to get out of the house for a bit!"

Envy rose a brow, surprised he was even being considered to go with. Ed also winced, raising a hand to point to Envy.

"Al, are you sure you should take him out in public?"

"I don't see why not. No one except us and the military have seen him, and for all anyone in the military knows he's dead."

Envy had to bite his tongue from making any comment. Ed meanwhile contemplated, the gears almost visibly turning in his head as he considered any possibilities. The military wasn't prominent in Resembool, and it was true Envy was in disguise more often than not.

"Alright, but keep a very close eye on him."

Al nodded, standing up to get himself ready.

"Don't worry! I will!"