Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Gravity Falls. They belong to Hiromu Arakawa and Alex Hirsch respectively. I only own the OC characters.

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Katelyn woke up to an empty bed. Panic began to build up, but she relaxed when she noticed a nurse standing quietly outside the bathroom door. The older woman noticed her stir and pointed at the closed door. "I thought he should take a bath."

Katelyn nodded as she moved off the mattress to the chair, wondering how the nurse had managed to coax Ed away from the bed. She decided not to ponder about it too much, however, and settled to wait for the boy to finish.

About thirty minutes later, which was way too long to spend in a bathtub, Edward finally stepped out of the bathroom, his hospital gown hanging loosely from his body, and his bandages removed. From her position in the chair, Katelyn once again caught a glimpse of the multiple wounds that covered the teen's small frame. They were in the process of healing, but they would never truly go away. She could feel guilt and remorse eating away at her again before forcing herself to bury it. She had been doing it a lot lately.

She apparently couldn't contain the look she gave, since Ed smiled at her when he caught sight of her face. "It's not as bad as it looks." It sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than her, and it made her want to wrap him up in her arms again. Instead, she remained where she sat as the nurse helped him back over to the bed.

"I need to replace your wrappings now," the nurse said. Both Kate and Ed nodded at her, which prompted her to pick up the roll of gauze that was sitting on the nightstand. Ed let the top half of his gown fall to let the nurse wrap it around his torso. Once all his wounds were hidden, and Ed's gown was fastened around his body again, the nurse left them alone.

They both sat in silence for a few moments. Ed knew exactly what Katelyn wanted to say, but she was having trouble finding the words to say it. Katelyn herself knew that the boy was too fragile and broken to go into detail about his ordeal. Besides, he didn't need to tell her anyway. "I know what they did to you, Ed."

That statement made the teen lower his head and wrap his arms around himself. Of course she knew, she had witnessed it. He could still remember crying out for her as Léon pounded into him repeatedly. He shivered. He would rather not dwell on the memory of that.

"What I want to know," Katelyn continued, "is how you ended up there. You just seemed to disappear in the middle of the night. We looked for you for days. Stanford didn't want us to look too far in case someone else was taken. Because of that, I decided to go out on my own. I-I spent so many days and nights chasing every lead I could. Once I finally found you, I..."

As Katelyn trailed off, Ed realized how desperate she had been in searching for him. She had risked her health, probably even her life, to bring him back home. She must have been in anguish, imagining all the horrible things that could have been happening to him. Unfortunately, she hadn't arrived in time to stop those things from happening. He didn't blame her for it, not at all. If she was this devastated by his disappearance, then that meant everyone else was too, even Alphonse. He didn't know exactly how to feel about it.

"I-I didn't see him come in." Katelyn looked up from her lamenting, her focus trained on him. "I just opened my eyes, and he was standing above me. This tall, black shadow. The door was open, and I didn't know how he had gotten in. Before I could do anything, he shoved a rag in my face, and I blacked out. Then I woke up in... in there."

Ed brought his hand to his face when he finished, choking up. He vaguely registered Katelyn taking a hold of his other hand, squeezing it comfortingly in her own. She continued to hold his hand as he shed the tears that he could no longer keep in.

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The twilight sun cast its orange rays over the land below as a 1995 tan Cadillac pulled into the hospital parking lot. The driver inside spotted Katelyn's motorcycle, and he went to go park next to it. Throwing the car into park, the young man inside climbed out of it, his gaze fixed on the building.

He looked to be in his late teens or early twenties, about as old as Katelyn. He wore simple slacks and shoes, his shirt sleeves pulled up to his elbows. He ran a hand through his dark brown hair as he slammed his car door shut. His dark green eyes held a determined stare as he speed-walked into the facility. He knew exactly where he was going.

When he had gotten the call from Katelyn, Michael could hardly contain his surprise. She had called Rosalin and Alphonse first, of course, and then they would have informed everyone else. He was the only one who was by himself, and the closest one to the hospital that Katelyn had brought Ed to. She had kept contact with everyone, including him, while she was out on her mission. Since he didn't stay in Gravity Falls, he wanted to help Katelyn in any way he could. The best he could do was track her. He was a software engineer, he could detect signals easily.

When Michael found out that Edward had gone missing, he had immediately volunteered to assist in the search party. Katelyn loudly voiced her protest to this, but he knew that she was just worried about him. He had insisted, and she finally relented. He could tell how important finding Ed was to her, so it was important to him too. Besides, he liked the kid, even after only meeting him once. He was like the little brother he never had.

Michael winced inwardly. After all Katelyn and Rosalin had been through, they didn't deserve what happened. Quite frankly, neither did Edward and Alphonse. Both sets of siblings had been through their own kind of hell, and he couldn't imagine what it must have been like. With everything that happened recently, it sounded like this wasn't going to make things any better. Katelyn's tone on the phone had made that clear to him.

Michael approached the receptionist's desk on the other side of the waiting room. "Hi," he greeted, "my name is Michael. There's a patient here who was admitted recently with someone named Katelyn. I'm here to see them."

The receptionist looked up at Michael. She dug through her memory to see if that name rang a bell. Eventually, she recalled Dr. North saying that she should expect a young man by that name to arrive. She stood up from her desk. "Of course. Please, follow me." With that, she led Michael into the depths of the hospital.

When they finally stopped in front of a door, which Michael assumed was Edward's room, the nurse left him to go in by himself. Facing the closed door, the young engineer took in a deep breath, bracing himself. He pushed open the door, ready for whatever was beyond.

Nothing could have prepared him for this. As soon as he opened the door, he noticed that Edward and Katelyn had been talking happily with each other before they looked up at the sound of him entering. From where he stood, the sight of the huddled boy in the hospital bed was nothing like the spitfire fifteen-year-old that he knew. His once golden eyes were now dull and lifeless. Bandages covered his body, telling Michael that the damage had been more extensive than he had realized. He couldn't hold back the look of shock on his face.

Katelyn herself could have looked better. Her expression still held weariness, as if she hadn't slept in days. Her posture was slumped over in fatigue. She stood up after seeing their new arrival in the doorway. "Michael," she said, sounding relieved. She motioned for him to come closer, since he had frozen in his tracks.

'What happened?' was what Michael wanted to say but couldn't find his voice to do so. Instead, he cautiously stepped forward into the room, his gaze still fixed on Edward. What in the world could have possibly reduced him to such a state? The boy in question stared at him warily, as if Michael would lash out at him at any moment. The young alchemist was clearly not himself.

As he reached the bed, he moved to the opposite side of Katelyn. Ed continued to follow him with his gaze. As Michael stared deep into the boy's eyes, he realized that he was broken. Someone had hurt him enough to make Edward jump at every shadow. This was even worse than he had imagined. A huge wave of sympathy coursed through him. He didn't need to look up to know that Katelyn could see the remorseful look on his face.

Without thinking, Michael reached out his hand towards Ed. He recoiled when the boy flinched away from him. Blinking several times, Michael was taken aback by the reaction. Katelyn put her arm around Ed's shoulders to steady him. "Shh, it's okay," she assured. "That's Michael. You know him." She looked up. "Just go slowly," she said to the young man across the bed.

Michael nodded, and slowly reached out his hand toward Edward's head. The teen didn't move away this time, allowing Michael to ruffle his hair gently. Michael himself thought that this was probably one of the few affectionate gestures the boy had received in a while. Speaking as calmly as he could, Michael asked, "Hey, Ed. You remember me, right?"

Ed looked at him again and nodded. Michael smiled. He was glad. "It's good to see you again."

Ed finally eased at Michael's touch, getting used to his presence. Michael's attention was pulled to Katelyn as she rested her hand on his arm. Her expression silently conveyed to the young man what she needed. He used his arm to reach across the bed to envelop her in an embrace, encasing Edward protectively between them. He took the time to breathe in her scent, and he resisted the urge to run his fingers through her hair. She needed something strong to hold onto, and Michael was grateful to be that for her.

They stayed like that for a few minutes before Katelyn pulled away. Ed couldn't help but smile at the intimate gesture the two had shared. He could see now why Rosalin loved to tease her little sister about it.

Michael shot a glance at Katelyn that said 'Tell me what happened. Now.' The young woman nodded at him. Before she could speak however, the boy between them made himself known to them again. "When's Al coming?"

Katelyn looked down at Ed, registering what he said. She gave him a soft smile. "He'll probably be here around tomorrow evening with Rosalin. If not, then definitely the next day." Edward fidgeted in the bed, clearly showing his impatience. Katelyn took this time to put her hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "Ed, you won't mind if me and Michael leave you alone for a bit? We'll just be in the nearest bathroom out in the hall. It won't take long, I promise."

The young alchemist instinctively clasped his hand with hers. "Don't go too far," he told her adamantly, his tone bordering on pleading. "Of course," Katelyn answered, ruffling his hair. With that, she walked away from the bed towards the door, Michael following behind her.

Katelyn's strides were brisk and determined. Michael had known her long enough to tell that this meant that she was either angry or scared. Probably both. Either way, Michael's heart sank lower in his chest. The things that Ed had gone through must have been horrendous if Katelyn was acting like this, completely opposite of her normal brash personality. He followed her into the nearest family restroom, closing and locking the door behind them. They were the only ones in the tiled room. Michael turned to face her, but Katelyn stayed in her position at the door, as if she couldn't look him in the eyes.

"C'mon, Kate, talk to me. I know that this is way more serious than you're letting on. What happened?" Michael was distraught at the fact that Ed was reduced to a clinging child. The things that had been done to him were enough to make him afraid of everybody, except for those closest to him. It also pained him to notice that Katelyn clearly knew something that she didn't want to share. She was too afraid. When he spoke, she continued to stand at the door, not looking at him.

"It's worse than you can imagine," she said softly. Michael could barely hear her. "And it's all my fault." She finally turned around to face him, unshed tears gathering in her eyes. Michael was astounded. She was hurting deeply. This had traumatized her on some level.

"They raped him, Michael." The young man in question felt his heart skip a beat. Ed was raped? A mixture of anger and helplessness surged up inside of him. No wonder Katelyn was so upset.

"They all did," she continued. "Every single day." She staggered over to the bathroom sink, leaning over the porcelain bowl, gripping the rim of it. "I-I should've tried harder to find him. Oh god. It's all my fault." Katelyn was muttering to herself, as if she forgot Michael was there in the room with her. Suddenly, she cried out. "Those bastards!" Her outburst was accentuated by her punching the wall next to the mirror. She felt the pain resonate up her arm, but she didn't acknowledge it. She had felt worse before. Besides, it hurt much less than the pain that Ed was obviously going through. Katelyn faintly realized that tears had begun running down her face.

She felt hands on her shoulders, forcing her to turn around. Her watery blue eyes were forced to meet sympathetic ones. "Don't ever say that," Michael said vehemently. "None of this is your fault. You couldn't have known."

"But I saw him do it," she said, voice trembling. Michael's eyes widened. "He made me watch. I was trapped, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. Ed begged me to help him, but I couldn't. I-I couldn't..." At that point, Katelyn broke down into sobs as her knees gave out. Michael wrapped his arms around her, holding her close as they both sank down to the floor. They stayed there, Katelyn sobbing into Michael's chest, clinging to his shirt.

The exchange reminded Michael of a time earlier, just last year. He had held Katelyn like this as she sobbed, after he had projected his consciousness into hers to rescue her, that damned demon mocking them all the while. She was just as helpless now as she was then. And like last time, Michael wasn't going to leave her to face it alone. In any way he could, he would also help Katelyn do the same for Edward. God knows he needs it now.

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Author's Note: Hello again! Here's another chapter for you guys. I didn't want to post another one until I had finished this story. I think there's only two or three parts left in this one.

If any of you guys are inspired to make fanart of or for this series, go ahead. I'd do it myself, but I don't have an affinity for drawing. Send them to me, I'd love to see what you guys can do. Who knows, I might use it as cover art for a chapter.

Praise is appreciated and constructive criticism is encouraged.

See you next time!

-The_Mayflower