Ed was expecting to be in a different place when he woke up, because that's the way things were going lately. To his surprise, he was still in the inn. He wasn't wearing his boots anymore and the covers were pulled over him, but he was still in the same bed that he had collapsed in the night before.

He shuddered at the thought that someone might have gone into his room and tucked him in.

He got out of bed and pulled the curtains back. He wouldn't want to repeat what happened last night. Okay. It was daytime, this time. Good.

He had been planning on going to his apartment first, to find Al, but he was so much closer to Central HQ, so he decided to drop by the Colonel first. If Al was in trouble, he would know. And if not, well, then Ed would get to annoy him.

Yes, he knew that Mustang was now a General. But in Ed's mind, he would always be a Colonel.

Ed left the room and went down to the front desk to sign out. He realized that he didn't have any money, but the receptionist assured him that he had already paid. He was going to argue that he didn't remember ever paying for a room. Then he remembered that he had no idea what happened when he blacked out. Maybe he had paid.

"Okay..." he said, hesitantly trusting the receptionist. He turned and left.

When he reached Central HQ, he noticed the some of the soldiers acting strangely. Most were normal, but the more familiar faces kept staring at him in shock. Ed couldn't understand why. Was it related to the blackouts, and why he had his limbs back? Maybe it was because he had his limbs back. But that was unlikely. Ed was wearing a jacket and gloves. How could they know? A horrible thought seized his brain. Are they staring at me in pity because something happened to Al?

He began to run through the hallways, ignoring the important snippets of conversation from the soldiers around him.

"Was that Fullmetal?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"I thought he was dead."

"He is. The General's been crying over him for a month."

"Then who did I just see?"

"Must've been his brother."

The route to the General's office was still unfamiliar to Ed. Mustang had gotten a new office when he was promoted. He had spent a week complaining about how he would have to move all of his things from the old office into the new one, without actually doing anything. Then Hawkeye had made him spend a whole day moving everything so that he would shut up.

Ed was too wrapped up in his thoughts to watch where he was going. He was forced back to reality when he ran into a teenager in a red coat. "Oof! Sorry, mister..." he trailed off when he saw who he was talking too. His eyes lit up. A million pounds lifted from his shoulders. "Al! You're all right! Thank goodness!" He threw his arms around his brother.

Al tensed. "No, no..." he muttered. He sounded like he was in shock.

Ed's arms dropped. Dread filled his stomach. He cocked his head to the side. "Al? Are you okay?" This was Al, right? His hair seemed longer than Ed remembered and he was wearing the same flashy coat that he had always criticized Ed about, but his face was absolutely Al's.

Al took a step away from him, his eyes wide in horror. "You can't be Brother! I saw you there! I felt..." He turned and ran.

Ed was shocked. What had just happened? "Al! Wait!" he called, running after his fleeing brother.

"Get away from me, Envy!"

That froze Ed in his tracks. Envy? Al thought that he was Envy? He doesn't believe it's really me? What would have let him to believe such a thing?

His shock was replaced with anger. Who did this to his little brother? But even more, why would Al even listen to them? Al, you idiot. Can't you see it's me!?

He ran after Al, a new fire fueling him. He would have to win Al's trust back. He hated that. It was like the time after the Fifth Lab when Al had become convinced that his soul was artificial and that his life was all a lie. Once again, he would have to knock some sense into his idiotic little brother.

But why on Earth would he think that Ed, wasn't Ed?

---

It was Al's worst nightmare come to life. Envy had returned to finish him off, and he chose to do it in the form of his brother.

The worst part was that Al almost believed that it was Ed. But that was impossible. He had been there, laying right beside him, when the last of the warmth had faded from Ed's body. Then he had fallen asleep, and when he woke the body was gone.

The point is, Al knew that Edward was dead. There was no way around it. And as much as he wished it was possible, he knew better than anyone that no one can come back to life.

And when he had finally accepted that Ed was gone, here comes Envy, taunting him by taking the form of his beloved brother.

He wasn't running from Envy, really. If he had been in any other form, Al would've faced him head-on. But taking on 'Ed' was too much. Al knew he wouldn't be able to handle it. And so he ran.

He took as many turns as he could, trying to throw Envy off his trail while making his way back to Roy's office. But Envy was keeping up. In fact, he was closing in on him.

Al's lungs burned. His heart pumped so fast it felt unsafe. If he didn't stop soon, he would be too tired to defend himself.

There was a broom closet to his left. He swung himself inside, slamming the door behind him. He fished a piece of chalk out of his pocket and began drawing the transmutation circle to seal the door shut. It was hard to see what he was doing. The only light source was what shone through the crack of the door.

He put his panic on hold for the moment. With a careful, steady hand, he drew the circle and activated it. The door sealed shut, plunging him into pure darkness. He collapsed in a shaky heap. It was too much for him. Too much.

He had been through worse, but back then Edward had always been by his side, helping him and supporting him. Now Edward was the one trying to kill him.

He heard footsteps outside his broom closet. They got louder and louder... and stopped. Right outside what used to be the door.

If Al wasn't hiding he would have cursed.

"Al?" Ed's voice. "I know you're in there." Al froze in horror. He could barely breathe. Envy was going to break down the wall and kill him. At that moment, Al realized that no matter how much he wanted to see his brother and mom again, he didn't really want to die.

But none of that happened. Still in Ed's voice, Envy continued. "I know how you get sometimes. When you get some stupid idea stuck in your head and get convinced that it's true. Like after the Fifth Lab. When you thought your soul was artificial." He laughed wistfully. How does he know about that? thought Al.

"Well, it's my job to correct you on these things. I don't know who tried to convince you that I'm Envy in disguise. But you have to believe me- I'm not." An angry cry entered his tone. "I'm your brother, dammit! Why can't you see that!?" The door shook where he punched it.

Al didn't know what to think. There was no physical way that this could be Ed, but he knew in his heart that this was his brother speaking to him. Maybe Al was actually dreaming, or maybe even hallucinating.

It definitely wasn't Envy, he knew that now. Envy wasn't capable of even faking those gentle, wistful tones, or that amount of hurt and betrayal. Plus Envy's punch would've brought the whole wall down.

Al decided that even though he wasn't sure what was going on, he wanted to talk to this apparition. It had to be an apparition because it couldn't actually be Ed.

He reached for the doorknob, only to remember that he had sealed it shut. And he couldn't unseal it without light to draw in.

"Um... we can talk about this if you could please let me out..." Al asked nervously. He didn't know if the Ed apparition was still angry, and didn't want him to explode again.

Luckily, he only said, "Really?" in a voice that both sad and hopeful.

"Yeah," said Al, gaining a bit of confidence. "I can't draw a transmutation circle without light to see it."

Ed laughed. "I guess you're right."

There was a clap, and a blinding blue light. Al shielded his eyes. When the light faded, he looked up. Standing in the middle of an open set of Gothic doors, stood his brother.

---

Ed and Al went to a nearby cafe to talk. There wasn't really any place for them to talk at Central HQ, other than General Mustang's office, but the entire team would be there and Al wasn't ready to admit to them that he had started hallucinating.

So they went to the cafe.

The Ed apparition didn't seem to believe that he was dead. "I can't be dead! I mean, I'm right here, aren't I? We both know that no one comes back to life."

Al stared down at his plate. "I told you the story." A tear slipped down his face. "I really, really wish that what you're saying is true."

Ed threw his head back in exasperation. "It is true! Stop crying and believe me! I'm not just some stupid figment of your imagination! I'm your brother! In the flesh!"

Al wouldn't budge, wouldn't look up. Ed punched him in the face. Al's head snapped up in shock. A bruise formed on his cheek. "Would a figment be able to do that?" Ed scowled at him, arms crossed. A determined fire burned in his eyes, a fire which only Ed was capable of.

Al's belief that he was an apparition was slipping away. He tried to grab on to it and pull it back. If he started to believe that this was Brother, but it turned out that it wasn't, the pain would be unbearable.

He tried to pull his belief back, but he failed.

"Brother?" Al whispered. He tried to suppress his hope. He tried to prepare to be disappointed. But he couldn't. The fact that this actually could be Ed, even after seeing him get stabbed, eclipsed everything else.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you, you idiot!" Ed yelled, a mixture of relief and anger and something else. He leapt up and wrapped his brother in a bear hug. He buried his face into Al's shoulder. Al felt something wet on his neck. He couldn't tell if it was his tears or his brother's.

"I'd never die on you, Al," Ed murmered. "I promise I'll never leave you alone."

Because no matter what the odds, the Elric brothers will never be separated.

"I know, Brother."