Disclaimer: I don't own FMA. Obviously. c:

Roy Mustang stands from his kneeling position, taking in a deep breath, steadying himself mentally. He had just spent the last hour at the gravestone, lost in memory and paying respects to his good friend. His friend who was taken so quickly from him, with barely a moment to pray.

That makes two.

Two that he could not protect. Two that his flame alchemy could do nothing for, two that he wasn't there for when they needed him most. He pinches the bridge of his nose, taking another deep breath as his emotions begin clashing inside him. He slowly calms down, glancing at the marble stone decorated with a plain flamel before turning to walk away.

Edward Elric

1899-1915

Fullmetal Alchemist
Hero of the people
Beloved brother

"I've been gone too long," the familiar voice speaks, low and still rough. Through aging, his voice hadn't leveled out into a smooth sound as most had thought it would. "Four years."

The black-clad figure stands, looking down at the headstone, running his left hand over it gently. He smiles as he thinks of the love of those who erected the stone; the people who cried at the funeral for Edward Elric, Fullmetal Alchemist. He chuckles lightly, squeezing the stone slightly; the flare of alchemical light cuts through the dark of the moonless night. As the light fades and the man walks silently away, the headstone is left completely blank, not a scratch in its smooth surface.

"Guess it's time to return."

Alphonse Elric had been searching for a way to return his body for four years. Since the fated day his brother was stolen from him from a serial killer. Stolen at sunset, left in an alley to rot.

Though Al has no physical heart, it knots in on himself as the memory resurfaces, as it does every day. He'll never be able to shake the scene from his memory..

"Brother? Brother, where are you?!"

Al races through the streets, fearing for Ed's life. He had heard that the serial killer was targeting short blondes; this meant mostly women, but several children had fallen prey to the madman sneaking through Central. Tonight, Ed just happened to wander around in search of the man, to put a stop to his killing spree, without telling Al. Why does he ALWAYS do this?

"Ed! Ed, where are you?!" Al spots a flash of light from an alley several roads down, and quickens his already fast pace, buildings a blur next to him. He skids to a stop at the entrance to the alleyway, racing in to find one person, lying in the dirt and grime and blood on the alley floor. Al runs to the form, spotting stained golden hair, fear and horror gripping the depths of his soul.

No. It can't be.

Al lets out a piercing scream, gathering up the small body on the ground. Flesh and automail limbs hang limply from Al's embrace, loosely-braided golden hair slapping against Al's armor, staining it with its saturated blood. Golden eyes stare, forever open, lifelessly up at the night sky, into the twilight.

"You can't be gone.."

"You can't be gone," Al whispers, staring out the window. He suddenly shakes back to reality, remembering that Ed is, in fact gone. He held his brother's broken body; he attended the funeral. He was with Winry as she cried and nearly lost it; he spoke with Mustang, who seemed both detached and stoic in the face of his brother's death. He wanted, above all, to cry for Ed. To cry for the loss of his brother; but even he couldn't do that.

Al leans back in the chair, transmuting his unrelenting memories into a steely focus for his search. He will become human again. He will not let up until Ed's dream comes true; until he regains his human form.

Then, finally, he can cry for his brother.