Please read this before reading! Okay, so this is set in an alternate universe from the show so there're a few things you need to know before reading. 1) Hughes isn't dead. 2) Hohenheim didn't leave until Ed was nearly six. 3) Most of this story takes place in Ed's childhood, but it isn't like episode three. …There's probably more, and I'll be sure to mention them as needed.

Well, a quick word before I begin. I hope you read the above note because it's important. Now, yes, I know, I'm supposed to be working on Assassin's Love…How could you quit after just one chapter?! I know, but currently, I can't play the game so it's a bit harder to write…I'll continue it one day. As for this story, this is my first attempt at a Fullmetal Alchemist story in quite awhile…in fact, it's my first attempt at any story in awhile. It's just an idea that came to me while spacing out during class, and I hope you like it. So, without further ado, it's time to begin!

Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or anything associated with it. Only in my mind…only.

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Al was gone…No matter how many times he repeated it, his mind couldn't grasp it…Al was gone…Forever…He'd never even been returned to his own flesh and blood before his life was taken years before his time. And now the only person who could have shed some light on the questions of "Why?" and "How?" was sitting silently in a hospital bed. It was a hard time for him, Roy knew this, but there were questions that needed answers, and the young blond refused to speak.

"Alright, Edward, let's try this again," Colonel Roy Mustang said with a sigh. "What happened in Maldin? To you? To…Al?"

Edward Elric remained silent. His shaking hands curled into fists, a sign that most would read as someone trying not to cry, but his eyes didn't hold tears. As Roy looked into those golden orbs, he saw a completely different person. These eyes held no spark or fire like the Fullmetal he knew. They held no life. There were no emotions, not sadness, nor anger or anything. They were just dead. Roy didn't know how long he could handle those eyes.

"Edward!" Roy nearly shouted, his patience growing thin. "We need information, Ed, and you're the only one who can give it to us!" Ed didn't even seem to hear him. His normal, calm demeanor gone, Roy roughly grabbed Ed by the shoulders and forced him to look right into his own onyx eyes. "Dammit, Ed! Talk! Don't you even care what happens to the man that killed your little brother?"

"No…"

Roy drew a quick breath and immediately let go of the boy's shoulders. His reply was almost inaudible, but the impact…Roy felt like he'd been shot through the chest multiple times. For a moment, he could do nothing but stare at the alchemist who had already drawn back into his own little world. His mouth had gone so dry, he could hardly even swallow, let alone speak. Something was very wrong here.

"No?" Roy asked praying that he had just heard wrong. The boy gave him no signal as to whether the answer was right or not. "No…Don't you care at all? Without your answers, we won't be able to find this guy or lock him up, and you're saying you don't care? What if this man kills someone else? Just tell me who he is! Where he is!"

"I killed him."

Again, the answer barely qualified as a whisper. And again, Roy was silenced for a moment.

"The murderer?" Roy asked after regaining his voice.

"No…"

"Then…"

Ed turned his eyes toward Roy for the first time in the conversation, and he saw a spark of something though it was gone as quickly as it came.

"I killed Alphonse Elric."

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Yeah, I know, it's short. I'll use the old prologue excuse. It's mostly just supposed to hook you in, and I promise that I will not write a single chapter this short for the rest of the story. The next chapter will be done either tonight or tomorrow (I have a huge test tomorrow so it depends on how much I feel like studying.) and I'll post it just as soon as I get 5 reviews. Hope you enjoyed it!

Equivalent Exchange: I write, you review.