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Unsettling Affairs	By : xkesshoux Category: Fullmetal Alchemist > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1906 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Alchemist, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 24
- 25
- 26
Each
individual chapter will have a different rating, different pairings,
different spoilers, and a different setting and timeline. Multiple
people were involved in writing this fic, I do not claim to have
written anything other than my own characters. I do however claim to
have come up with the plot, story idea, and organizing it all. The
others who write characters in this fic are well aware that I am
posting it, and contribute willingly. This fic is an ongoing project
with an unknown number of parts, with alternate storyline as of the
fifth laboratory incident. Enjoy!

The
one They Called Fawkes

Rating:
R (Language, sex, yey.)
Pairings: HavocxRoy, RoyxEd,
HavocxEd implications
Disclaimer: I don't own
FMA.
Spoilers: Noooooone!
Setting: Central
Headquarters, Ishbar Outpost 1, known as Geriko by its
inhabitants.
Timeline: Ed and Havoc return from Dublith to
Central, then are dragged out to Ishbar by a frantic Roy.

“Second
Lieutenant Jean Havoc, reporting in at Southern Command. I request a
line into my battalion headquarters.”

A slight
pause where the hum and click of connection was painfully obvious.

Mustang’s
voice clacked a greeting. Havoc frowned, surprised. Usually, Hawkeye
picked up the phone.

“Hullo,
Colonel. Yes, I’m fine. Yes, I have the little terror with me.
He’s the one that pulled me out of the Medic Ward in the first
place.” He grinned at Ed’s indignant squawk. “H’m?
Oh, yeah. Command shuffled me into Special Ops. I’m now Major
Elric’s bodyguard – what? I guess they haven’t made
it public. Command seems to think Predator might go for Major Elric
now.”

“-me
on the phone dammit! Don’t just talk about me like I’m
not here and-“

“Predator?
That’s the name of the group that attacked us out in the
desert. Yes, I know. No – no, I don’t. Command’s
already debriefed me. You could probably get a transcript if you
asked –” Mustang said something, and all the blood
drained from Havoc’s face. “What? Sir, that’s...
No, I’m not denying... yes, I know... sir, I... Colonel,
please. How did you find out? It’s classified information on
the skirmish in Ishbar – you weren’t supposed to know
until...” Mustang said something, and his face darkened. “Oh,
really.” Mustang confirmed his previous statement, adding a few
details. “Saw me, then came running to you? That would explain
a few things. No, we’re back on speaking terms.” He
glared briefly over his shoulder. “But maybe not for long...”

There was
a screech of protest in the background, along with the sound of
something breaking.

Mustang
interrupted him. Again, he blanched, even paler than before. “WHAT!
Dear God, no... How? What? No marks? Sounds like the Major...”
An epiphany struck. “Colonel, look. There’s a woman with
one arm running around in Central. Or was, I’m not sure. She
may have escaped by now. But she’s posing as a lieutenant
colonel. She tried to kill Major Elric. It was just a kiss –”
He smiled faintly at the nearly-audible growl. “But it was like
he got hit with some type of poison. In fact she said something about
an anti-venom serum...

“But
she’s not human, as you’d think of it. She’s a
viper chimera of some flavor, and now that I’m looking back on
it, that’s how Stanson died. Check the coroner’s report
for both Stanson and Hughes. If I’m right, the reports should
look similar.

“And
sir, if you see someone that looks vaguely off, or knows too much
about the three of us, kill them... no, I’m not overreacting.
There’s four of them that I know of, and one of them is named
Ashton Fawkes.”

Havoc
held the receiver away at the clatter and thud at the other end of
the line, along with shouted obscenities and Hawkeye’s calming
voice. He frowned. “What the hell?”

Hawkeye’s
voice took up the receiver next, sounding a bit exasperated. “Sorry
about the fuss, Second Lieutenant. No, he’s fine… No, I
just walked in-“ she listened for a moment to Ed squawking on
the other end of the phone, sighing. “You’re expected
back on the next train from Dublith, it leaves in half an hour, I
suggest you hurry. The Colonel will meet you at headquarters.”

Havoc
grunted slightly after hearing a click, hanging up the receiver.

“Well?
What the hell did he say!” Ed tapped his foot, glaring violet
and gold at the chimera.

“We’re
to head back to Central on the next train out of here, leaves in half
an hour so we’d better get going.”

“I
figured that much, I was talking about what the hell made you go so
damn white!” Ed protested, stumbling after Havoc as the taller
blonde started to walk off. “Hey! Wait up dammit!”

Without
missing a beat, Havoc tugged on the brim of his hat, pulling it down
a bit. “We’ll be paying our respects to the late
Brigadier General Hughes when this is over…”

-

Roy was
standing at the main doors of the headquarters, dark eyes focused on
the gate ahead of him, waiting. His expression was set into the mask
he usually wore, revealing nothing of the inner turmoil he felt at
the moment, standing there in that crisp, impeccable uniform that,
unfortunately, still bore the insignia of Colonel.

Straightening
as he saw a car pull up, he watched as Jean Havoc stepped out and
thanked the driver noncommittally. Roy swallowed the lump he didn't
know had been in his throat, and braced himself to face what changes
could have been so shocking that Edward had come running to his
office in such a hysterical, frantic state.

Once
Havoc was within fifteen feet of his person, Roy stiffened to
attention in a respectful salute, knowing it wasn't necessary, but
doing so just the same. Someone who had been through as much as Jean
deserved it.

Havoc's
eyebrows lifted up under the military cap when he saw his C.O.
stiffly at attention. A smile quirked the corner of his mouth, though
not so much as to reveal sharp teeth. He trusted Mustang not to run
in panic at the sight of him, but he still wanted to keep at least
some illusion of normalcy.

These
thoughts brought him a few paces away from the black-haired man, and
he straightened to attention, saluting. "Sir."

Roy
nodded, relaxing his posture, though still retaining the clipped
military air about his actions. "At ease, Lieutenant...or have
they changed your rank as well?"

Havoc's
grin widened. "Hell, no. Even if they did, I'd be busted back to
lieutenant inside a week." He tapped a patch on the sleeve of
his uniform. "Though, they did stick me in the Special
Operations Corps. I'm still under your command, just doing a
different job." He shrugged comically. "Guess Command
wanted to fob me off on someone else."

The
familiar smirk crossed the Colonel's features. "I would've had
strings pulled and you would've been back under my command within no
more than twenty four hours after I learned of such a transfer if it
were to occur, though...but you know that..."

Roy
nodded slightly and turned. "We'll discuss the situation further
in my office." He opened the doors, pausing to wait for a
response. It was then that he finally noticed what felt odd...

"Where
is Major Elric?"

The grin
dropped right off the blonde man's face. "He had some...
problems on the train back. He's in Medical Ward now, but he'll be
okay in a few hours." Havoc slid fluidly through the partially
open door. "He told me to say 'don't worry, old man, you don't
have to drag me back yet.' I'm assuming that means something to you?"

Mustang
made no effort to hide his scowl. "Lieutenant Hawkeye should be
along later, she's currently attending to matters of the canine
variety. Let's go."

Without
waiting, Roy stepped inside the headquarters, and began the walk to
his office, not looking back.

Havoc
gazed, puzzled, at the back of his C.O.'s head. Shrugging, he slipped
off his cap and followed him, making a face at some random petty
officer that had stopped to stare at his leonine features.

Roy made
a meager attempt at casual conversation during the walk, 'how's it
been,' and 'they giving you better cigarettes in Special Ops?', but
it didn't last long. Upon reaching his office, Roy instantly dropped
the mask, slumping wearily down on one of the couches with a heavy
sigh.

The
Colonel that had met Havoc outside and the Colonel that sat before
him now were like night and day. Despite the obviously neat uniform
and hair, Roy couldn't help but give the impression of disorderly
stress, it was like the man had just crumbled under the weight of
three years of hell.

Havoc
leaned against a wall, arms folded. "Things don't look so good
for you. I take it things have been rough in the administration
section?"

"Every
time I think it's going to smooth out again, something like this
happens to fuck it all up...I'm not quite sure what to do right
now..." Roy admitted, running his hands through his hair
frustratedly and making it a bit of a mess. "Tell me again what
happened..."

"Oh,
god, where to begin. I guess you know the basics, beyond what I've
told you. Routine guard duty sent to hell by a bunch of Ishbar rebels
calling themselves 'Predator', or whatever the fuck they're saying
here.

"I
guess you also got the dispatch, didn't you? It's pretty much like
what it said. We were minding our own business, a day or two..."
he caught sight of the bloody letter on Mustang's desk and turned a
peculiar shade of green. "Well. I guess you know that. I didn't
think they'd send that on, but I guess I was wrong.

"Anyway,
the diplomat that we were dealing with was a man by the name of
Ashton Fawkes. Red hair, green eye, strange. Arrogant. I didn't like
him one little bit." A pause. "He smokes, too, but it's
even worse than what they give us here. But the thing that really
weirds me out is that he's not even fully human. He's a chimera, too,
though badly done. He has a tail and I think he's missing an eye..."
His voice became pained. "He's the one that shot me twice
through the left lung and left me to die –" He broke off
at the look on Mustang's face. "Sir? What's wrong"

Roy had
suddenly paled at the man's description, and had stopped rubbing his
temples in favor of a blank, glazed stare ahead of him.

Ashton
Fawkes...smoker...red hair green eyes...

"I...think
I must be hearing things...I thought I just heard you say that this
man's name was Ashton Fawkes..." Mustang still stared straight
ahead. "No...not hearing things at all...it makes too much sense
now..." His eyes suddenly narrowed and he scowled at the memory
of that arrogant kid.

"Predator...he
called himself the Predator Alchemist...Major Ashton Fawkes...that
was nearly three years ago...I'd all but forgotten..." Clasping
his hands, elbows on his knees, his mouth was hidden behind his
folded hands. "Was there ever a long lapse in communication
between the negotiators across the border? Long enough, say, for one
to travel back here to Central and dig around a bit before going
back?"

Roy
neglected to mention the fact that the man had known about Edward's
death, had warned him that he would lose others close to him if he
wasn't careful. He neglected to mention that the man had seemed to
know a little too much about what was going on, and what would
be happening. It wasn't important. Not now, anyway, Mustang thought.
After all, he had the feeling that this Fawkes person had meant
for him to know these things.

The
situation was dropped so plainly and unhidden right in front of his
nose, hiding in plain sight, and he hadn't listened to it. Colonel
Roy Mustang, Flame Alchemist, was the fool here. If Ed had been
around, or even Jean...they would've smelled the rat and gone at it
with fangs and claws instead of continuing to feed it just what it
wanted, thinking that perhaps it was a cat that needed shelter,
rather than such a vile rodent.

Predator...the
Predator Alchemist...Ashton Fawkes...Somehow Mustang knew that the
man was smarter than that, wasn't stupid enough to so recklessly give
out the same name and designation. No. The Predator had left openings
on purpose. He wanted them to find out...and damn it all if
Roy and all the others hadn't been playing right into his hands!

"Three
months and two days lapse, on average" Havoc said warily, still
not quite sure what all was going on. "Sometimes for up to as
long as six months. But that's normal, Mustang. Both parties still
have to communicate with their governments or whatever."
Something clicked. "Three years ago... he would only have had to
have been here a few times – enough to take the examinations
and to show up a few times to keep the illusion going. But he wasn't
the one doing the real snooping. It was the viper woman. The
lieutenant colonel."

His
catlike eyes narrowed. He didn't like the direction this was going.

"We've
been played for idiots. Whoever's pulling the strings here –
and sure as anything it isn't us – wants us to put
certain select things together. Otherwise... why wouldn't they have
made doubly sure that I was dead? I heard what happened to some of
the dead: found in bits and pieces, eaten. Why didn't they do that to
me? Why did they leave three survivors? Why did that woman tell
me..." Another realization. "She must have put the serum
there for me to find. Sir, there's too many inconsistencies with
their behavior to be just a coincidence. It's almost like they want
us to know."

Mustang
sighed, closing his eyes. "I'm well aware of that,
Lieutenant...These people...they're not idiots...quite the
contrary...however..." He shifted his position, leaning back on
the couch again and turning his head to look at Havoc. "That
worries me...because a man only does something like that if he's well
assured of his control over the situation...whether it be on his
turf or the enemy's...We're dealing with something even greater than
anything we've met before, my gut tells me that..." He sighed
again.

"We
know for a fact that the chimerae hiding out with the artificial
human who calls himself Greed aren't much of a threat at all...after
all...we know who created them...how they were created...what their
limitations are..." Shifting again, Roy stood up, walking around
the couch to place his hands on the back of it, seeming to suddenly
be very angry with the wall opposing him. "Already
these...creatures...have done more damage than we had thought
possible...they were unmistakeably bred to kill and only
for that purpose..."

With a
look of frustration, he turned to look at Jean again, eyes finally
just taking in the subtle changes that three years and a
transmutation had brought. "Obviously they're superweapons...but
what makes them so much more deadly than those that came out of the
fifth laboratory? Sure, they've got claws and fangs, but that
shouldn't make that much of a difference...What is it that makes
them such perfect weapons?"

"Chimerae
are often called monsters," Havoc said reflectively. "In
some cases, and I like to think my own case, they're wrong. We still
have our feelings and our memories of who and what we used to love
and our sanity. It's because we were made by someone who knew what
they were doing." He looked down at his hand, unsheathing his
claws. "These... things, really, aren't even remotely
close to what someone could call perfect. They're inhuman, bonded
with animals..." He smiled, somewhat bitter. "They're the
perfect fighting machines because they're not perfect chimerae.
They're ruthless, cunning, and cruel to a fault. They're horribly
strong and quick. They have hardly any human emotions. They've lost
whatever humanity they used to have.

"Some
of their actions are intelligent, almost frighteningly so, but I
think that someone's ordering them around." His mouth quirked up
again. "After all, we can only attack once our masters have
pointed."

"Don't
you dare for a minute lump yourself with the likes of them,
Jean..." There was a dangerous fire in Roy's eyes as his tone
became harsh and angry.

The
undertone of guilt or sorrow might have been there, it might not
have.

He would
have denied either one.

Havoc
spread his arms. "Why shouldn't I? It's the truth. Deep
down, all human chimerae are essentially the same. We're all
monsters, pets, guard animals, pack animals, friends, bodyguards.
Don't say that I'm not – it's no use lying to yourself or me.
I'll allow that I still have my human emotions and they don't, but
that doesn't erase the fact that the Fuhrer ordered me to be made as
an answer to Predator. I was made to kill."

"Maybe
you were made for such intentions, Lieutenant, but you still
retain a great deal of your humanity...and you most definitely
were not born for such intentions."

"I'm
a soldier before I'm a man," Havoc said quietly, looking Mustang
straight in the eye. "I'll do what I was made to do before what
I was born to do."

"Then
keep living." Roy replied, flatly. "Don't you dare
die on me out there, that's an order."

"I
wasn't planning on dying, sir." He gritted his teeth, needing to
point out reality but still wondering how pissed-off he could make
Mustang in the space of one hour. "But sometimes it just can't
be helped."

The smirk
was put in place, a glint in dark eyes. "Good." Roy turned,
walking slowly to his desk and sitting down in the chair, reclining
slightly. "Back to the situation at hand...this viper
woman...one arm and white hair, you said? I believe I've seen her
before..."

"When!
Where?" From the urgent tone in his voice, it hardly needed to
be said that the viper was first on Havoc's hit list. He was in front
of Mustang's desk before he even realized it.

She
took your place in my office... Roy had the feeling that the
truth would only worry his subordinate more.

"I'm
not sure I remember when or where, Lieutenant. I simply remember that
I did. After all, you don't see a dark skinned, armless, white-haired
woman with an eyepatch very often..."

"Sir,
I may be colorblind, but I'm certainly not blind,"
Havoc snapped. "You're lying."

At least
he had intuitive subordinates...Mustang had to give himself that.
Resignedly, he sighed, dark eyes looking up to meet Havoc's. "The
Fuhrer assigned her to me in your place, Lieutenant...I wasn't at all
fond of his decision, but you know what the stakes are, you know I
couldn't refuse..."

"...
my god" Havoc said, appalled. Feeling suddenly very
woozy, he stumbled back, collapsing down onto the couch. "Dear
god, that's how he knew..." He put his head in his hands.

Instinct
had Roy up and around his desk before he knew it, sitting on the
table in front of the couch and eyeing Havoc with a look that
couldn't quite pass as placid. "There was nothing any of us
could have done about it..."

"I
should've realized it earlier, I should've warned you... now look at
it. A hundred people are dead because I'm a stupid idiot."

Blue-green
eyes shifted between pure sapphire and gold-flecked green in his
confusion and guilt, the warring sides of his personality painfully
evident.

Mustang's
hands were suddenly gripping Havoc's shoulders almost painfully hard,
dark eyes glaring into the shifting extremes as he leaned over the
Lieutenant. "You couldn't do a damn thing about it and you know
that! I couldn't have done a damn thing about it! Quit feeling
sorry for yourself, Jean, it's not going to do anybody any good..."

Havoc
snarled at the pain, eyes going completely green for one terrifying
second. He brushed off the man easily, despite the powerful grip.
"Don't touch me!" he snarled ferally.

Roy
straightened, settling his face into its usual mask, but not before
the slightest of hurt, longing looks passed his eyes. "If you
don't watch yourself, Lieutenant, you're going to lose your
humanity..."

Havoc's
eyes slid back into their normal blue-green. He rubbed a hand over
his face. "You think I don't already know that? Trust me, when
you have an urge to hunt and kill your own supper, you get the hint
that your humanity's slipping.

"And...
it's not that I mind being touched, it's just that my body
really doesn't like pain of any degree."

No... he
hadn't missed that look in Mustang's eyes, and he felt terrible for
incurring it.

"I'm
sorry, sir..."

"It's
not like you can help it..." Roy muttered, dropping down on the
couch next to Havoc. "It hurts, you know..."

Havoc
leaned back, digging through his pockets. "Well... I think maybe
I can help it, I just don't know how." He chuckled sourly,
pulling out a half-used pack of cigarettes. "One hell of a
chimera, aren't I? I want to be a human, but there's always those
little annoying reminders that I'm not." He began the long and
arduous search for his cigarette lighter.

"I'll
probably iron out the little quirks sooner or later. I've only been
like this for a month or so, and I haven't quite found out all the
little tricks to control myself."

Roy held
out one hand, fingers poised to snap. "Need a light?" The
tone was friendly, different than the military attitude Roy usually
kept up. He only showed this side to a select few people.

Havoc
held out a cigarette. "Go for it."

There was
a quick snap and a tiny flame sparked forth, igniting the end of the
cigarette and swiftly vanishing again. The smell of raw flint
lingered in the air, and Roy frowned at it, instead opting on leaning
against Havoc, head resting on his shoulder as he sighed.

Havoc
idly looked over at his C.O.'s messy tumble of black hair and grinned
slightly. "Oi, you're going grey." He delicately began to
pick through individual strands. "Not even forty and you're
going silver. It is to laugh."

Mustang
winced as Havoc plucked a single hair, sitting up immediately and
shoving the other man rather roughly down on the couch, firm grip on
the uniform jacket and a slightly predatory gleam in his eyes. "It's
none of your concern, Lieutenant...and I assure you that I'm still
perfectly well-balanced in other areas of expertise..."
That smirk was there, and the silky voice was almost purred.

Havoc
smiled slightly, lidding blue-green cat eyes. "Never doubted it
for a minute."

Roy
sighed, gently cupping Havoc's cheek with one gloved hand, smiling
slightly. "It's...been a long time..." His voice took on a
certain regretful tone. "I only wish everything were the same as
it was back then..."

Hawkeye
rapped on the door twice, briskly- but having known the Colonel for
as long as she had, and never one for too many formalities, she could
afford to not wait for an answer. She paused only for a brief moment,
shifting the folder of paperwork in her arms slightly, before
reaching for the doorknob and unceremoniously pushing the door open.

Sharp
eyes, accustomed to picking out targets hundreds of feet away with
ease, took in the scene mere yards in front of her with speed. She
blinked once, almost imperceptibly- but for someone who showed few
reactions in the first place, it was quite an action. Her slight
confusion was evident.

Upon
hearing the knocks, Roy had suddenly frozen, and by the time Hawkeye
had entered the room, he had barely snapped to his senses enough to
stare with a look of sheer horror, expecting a bullet to be
penetrating his skull at any moment.

Once the
initial shock wore off, he managed to quickly regain his composure,
sliding off the couch to stand and straighten his uniform before
walking up to Hawkeye. "Lieutenant...I see you've returned..."

Havoc
coughed demurely, not caring enough to feel any embarrassment. "Long
time, no see, eh, Lieutenant?" He sat up, took a drag on his
cigarette and waved cheerfully.

"Indeed,
Lieutenant," she replied, fixing him with a level gaze- she was
still too much in control of herself to warrant a glare- that
demanded explanations. With one arm securely around the stack of
papers, her other hand drifted lazily towards the ever-present
holster at her side. Her eyes were still steadily boring into him,
refusing to glance over at the flustered Flame Alchemist fidgeting
off to the side.

Said
alchemist paled slightly at the hand reaching for a holster, if it
were even possible for Roy Mustang to get any paler, of course.

Havoc
leaned back casually, running a hand through a slightly messy mop of
hair. "I see you're just as touchy as ever." He squinted
slightly. "That's an awful lot of paperwork..." He got
smoothly to his feet, moving too fluidly to be comfortably human.
"You want any help?"

She
accepted the suggestion wordlessly, dropping the stack on top of the
desk with a slight thud. She would let him evade the question for
now- for the colonel's sake, she repeated to herself, catching
the dark circles under her superior's eyes- but she vowed that by the
evening, when their work was done, she was not letting either of them
leave the building without giving her answers. "Your help would
be much appreciated, Lieutenant."

And if
all else failed, she'd let Black Hayate- older but retaining the same
boundless energy that was even more formidable than it had been when
he was a puppy because of his current size- have a go at them.

A
momentary dark gaze was sent in Riza's direction, its meaning clear.
'Thanks...'

Running
slightly shaky fingers through raven tangles of hair, Roy moved back
to his desk. "Lieutenant Hawkeye...the files, if you would...and
some coffee..."

"Sir."
She acknowledged the command with a nod, performed what amounted to
an about-face, and strode out of the room in the direction of the
coffee machine.

But once
out of sight around a corner, her composure slipped slightly and she
glanced back at the door of the office almost wistfully. Then the
moment passed, and her face was impassive again.

The
Colonel reached out to pick up the first file in the stack, thumbing
through it. "Hnn..." He mused to himself, moving on to the
next file and thumbing through that as well, repeating the same
pattern until he got about halfway down the stack and had just opened
another file.

Leaving
that open, he skimmed back in the other files, flipping one open and
looking from one to the other, a growing look of horrific
understanding on his face.

Everything
happened in a second, and the next thing Havoc knew he was being
carted out the door in quite a hurry, practically dragged by an
unusually disturbed looking Roy Mustang.

"We
have to get out of Central, no time to explain I'll do that on the
way, where's Edward, we'll need to pick him up, don't bother bringing
your things just hurry up!"

Havoc
blinked, seizing on the only phrase he had picked up in the whole
diatribe. "Elric's up in Medical Wing, Second Floor, Room 201."
Then, when Roy had almost dragged him into the wall, he pulled his
bruised wrist out of Mustang's grip, though he kept up with his
panicky C.O. "Good god, man, what's wrong?"

"There's
no time!" Roy hissed through his teeth, a vehement glare
shot at his subordinate. "How fast can you sprint up there and
get Major Elric back down here?"

"No
idea," Havoc said, taking off his jacket and throwing it at
Mustang. "Where do you want us to meet you?"

"Out
front, I'll pull the car around..." With that, Roy headed off
towards the entrance at a swift pace.

Havoc
nodded, then took off at a full sprint. He was in the Medic Ward in a
matter of minutes, then skidded to a halt in front of Ed's room. He
shoved the door open.

More than
just slightly bored, Edward was glad to see a familiar face, but the
look on said face and the slight sense of panic in the air wasn't
helping. "Jean? What's got you looking like that?"

"Damned
if I knew," Havoc replied succinctly. "Mustang's in a
panic, and he won't tell me what's wrong. Can you walk? Even better,
can you run?"

"Of
course I can!" The braided alchemist hopped up out of bed.
"Thank god something finally happened so I can just get out
of here! Just show me the way!"

"Forget
putting on your shoes, kid – just carry them. We're in a
hurry." With Ed close at his heels, he started off, making for
the front parade ground where Mustang said he would be.

Automail
clashed with the ground as Ed ran after Havoc, trying to keep up,
dodging a few bewildered officers and nearly knocking over a water
cooler. Reaching the stairs, he simply balanced his weight between
his automail hand and foot and slid down the railing, skidding a bit
across the floor before scrambling back to his feet to give chase
again. "Oi! I haven't had anything to eat yet you know! I
think...I..." The clank of metal against tile slowed
drastically, pace starting to become a bit uneven.
"I...don't...thi...Jean..."

Guess
I should've taken it easy...heh...Jean and Roy both'll have a fit
when I wake up... That was the last thought that ran through Ed's
brain before he blacked out completely, right there in the middle of
the hall, the clatter of automail limbs hitting the floor echoing
through the lobby.

Havoc
skidded to a stop. "Oh, for..." He caught sight of curious
personnel closing in. "Back off!" he snapped, not in the
mood for questions.

Deciding
that it would all work out in the end, he swung the unconscious
alchemist up into a secure grip and loped out into the parade ground.

As
promised, a car was waiting out front, engine running and the driver
apparently most impatient, as he kept revving the engine slightly.
Perhaps it was nerves.

Havoc
bundled the boy into the backseat (along with his boots), sliding
into the passenger's side front. "Two questions for you, sir.
One. Where the hell are we going? Two. What the hell is wrong with
you?"

As soon
as the door was closed, Mustang stepped on the gas, gaze set on the
street in front of them. "See for yourself..." He made a
brief gesture at the files between them.

"As
long as you keep your eyes on the road!” Havoc snapped, hanging
on for dear life around a sharp corner. "Whatever's got you so
worked up will be a moot point if you get us killed with shitty
driving!"

He
grumbled and opened up the set of files, organizing them a bit
haphazardly around his seat. As he read further, his eyes got wider.

The
symbol of a chimerical transmutation... the mysterious disappearance
of a certain State Alchemist named Paul Delgardie after the Fifth
Laboratory non-incident... the disappearance or apparent destruction
of Delgardie's research from the half-restored Central Library two
years ago... two dead State Alchemists of high standing who were
researching chimerical transmutations, found ripped to shreds (post
mortem desecrations) thirteen months ago... the sealing of the
homunculus called Greed, three years ago... the cryptic threats that
Fawkes had given both him and Mustang... Major Stanton's death, seven
months ago... Hughes' death, two months ago... his own near-death,
two months ago... Ed's attempted murder, a bare week ago.

The lists
of deaths and disappearances grew longer and longer, and he knew
exactly who to blame. Predator.

"Roy,"
he said in a cold tone that brooked no argument. "We're going
west. Now."

Roy
understood perfectly, veering around another turn and clearing
Central within half an hour.

Within
two more hours, they had crossed the Armestris-Ishbar border, brights
on against the unyielding dark.

"There's
a military outpost, a half mile north from here," Havoc said
quietly. "Leave the car with military personnel. We're going the
rest of the way on foot." He checked the high-caliber pistol in
his shoulder holster and the twelve rounds of ammunition in the
old-fashioned beltpouch on his left hip. "Let me do the talking
and try to keep Ed away from the woman's throat."

"Are
you sure it's safe to go by foot..." Mustang turned slightly,
heading northwest towards the distant lights of the outpost.

"Yes,"
Havoc said firmly. "In fact, it would be better. I can see in
the dark, we'd be less noticeable... you might want to get rid of
your military jacket, sir." Now that his initial panic reaction
was over, he was back to using cooled formality. "You might get
cold, but the people around where Lisa Delgardie live don't take
kindly to military. Ah – here we are."

Roy
brought the car to a stop, shutting off the engine. "And
yourself? ...Nevermind...I'll take him in to get something he can
eat, you wait here..." With that, he stepped out of the car,
hauling Ed out of the back and carrying him inside.

It was
quite clear that Edward Elric would be just fine once a loud and
indignant screech was heard from inside, ten minutes later on the
dot.

"WHO
ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL HE COULDN'T EVEN PASS FOR A TINY MUSHROOM"

Havoc
burst out laughing, leaning against the car hood. Ed was more
inventive creating insults for himself than Havoc and Mustang
combined.

He
grabbed the files when he spotted the two men emerging from the
station. "Ready?" (A/N: Havoc: “Steady!” Ed:
“GO!” –author is shot- )

Unable to
hold back a grin, Roy nodded, dragging the enraged Elric behind him.
'Come now, settle down, Fullmetal.'

Having
discarded the jacket, he was indeed ready to meet this Lisa...he
wasn't sure who she was, but being related to Delgardie...she was
most likely the one who had created...god how he hated that
word...saved...that's much better...Jean...

Fuming
silently, Ed was hit by another dizzy spell, leaning heavily against
Roy for a moment or two and most definitely calming down.
"Where...are we..."

"Welcome
to West Bum Fuck, more commonly known in Central as Ishbar Outstation
I." He turned and started moving off, the sand crunching beneath
his boots. "Where the days are scorching and the nights
freezing.

"The
villagers might be a little hostile at first, but when they see you
with me, they'll relax. Both of you, don't even think about doing
alchemy."

Sighing
slightly, Roy swept Edward off his feet and into his arms, walking
after Havoc without a single word.

"I
don't need to be carried I can walk just fine..." Ed mumbled
against the Colonel's shirt, but didn't protest as his arms slid
around the older man's neck and he nuzzled against the pleasant
warmth and smell of smoke.

Havoc
just rolled his eyes. "Do you two mind catching up? It gets dark
out here, and you might get lost."

Turning
his head for a minute to glare in the direction of the ground, Ed
huffed. "I hate the desert..." (A/N: Yay for dub
lines!)

"It's
full of sand..." Roy chorused, chuckling amusedly at Ed's
reaction when he did. "You haven't changed that much after
all..." In accordance to Havoc's suggestion, he quickened his
pace.

After
traveling quickly and in silence for twenty minutes, they made it to
the dumpy little outpost town. On the edge of the water limit, a
nicer house than the rest stood, a light shining by the door.

Havoc
pointed. "That's Lisa's place. She has an extensive lab
underneath the building in a small grouping of desert caverns. I
don't know how it was built, but the place functions as an inn,
hospital, and tavern. The woman's brilliant," he said, fondness
coloring his voice momentarily.

"Oh,
and sir? Make sure Ed doesn't kill Lisa, will you?"

Roy
simply nodded in response, setting Ed down to walk on his own now.

Ed
snapped awake. There was someone he had reason to kill. Someone by
the name of Lisa.

And if
they were going to this person for reasons other than
to harm them, Ed could only think of one possible reason he would
have to kill them.

"So...it
was her...the one that did this to you...isn't it..." It
wasn't even a question, gold and violet eyes narrowed and burning.
Edward already knew the answer.

Havoc
paused, poised to knock. "Don't you dare raise a hand
against her, Elric. She saved my life. If you try to kill her..."
He let the sentence hang, threat unuttered but obvious.

"Sometimes
it's not worth the cost to live..." The boy pulled his red coat
about his shoulders, his words having a bitter edge. "I've seen
what you do, what's different...stability doesn't last
you know..."

"Then
if you have an issue, take it up with me. She's not part of this."
He tapped gently on the door.

It opened
quickly, Lisa looking out blearily, shoving her hair back with her
left hand, the scarlet flamel tattoo shining in the light of the
lantern. "How may I... Jean!" She threw her arms around his
neck, kissing both his cheeks. "It's wonderful to see you again!
How are you doing?"

"There
are some issues, but there are other things we need to talk to you
about."

"Then
by all means, come in! There's tea, coffee, and brandy. There aren't
any guests or patients in, so you have free run right now." She
nodded back at Roy and Ed. "Welcome, you two. Our doors are
always open."

Roy had
moved to grab Ed's wrist before he did something stupid like try to
punch the woman, but noticed that he simply stared...what was he
staring at...he wasn't angry… "Edward?"

The
blonde boy gaped, raising one hand to point at the tattoo.
"Where...wh-where did you...how...how do you know..." He
couldn't seem to string together the right set of words.

"Yes,"
Lisa replied, pushing Havoc lightly inside and motioning for the
other two men to follow. "You expected that you and your brother
were the only ones of Dante's school, besides Izumi? Hardly. Why do
you think that Jean is a so-called 'perfect chimera'? It's because I
was taught to know what I was doing.

"Would
you two like coffee or tea?"

Havoc had
already helped himself to coffee and was settling down in a comfy
over-stuffed armchair, the files on the low table in front of him.

"Dante!
Sensei's teacher..." Automail and human fists clenched tightly.
"Maybe you were taught to know what you were doing...but you
must not have been taught to know what's right and wrong in alchemy!"

"Ed,
get a grip," Havoc said from the chair.

Lisa's
smile quirked. "Fullmetal, you really shouldn't be talking. Not
only is it the pot calling the kettle black, you don't know the terms
of our agreement. I do chimerical transmutations for hopeless medical
cases, and only if they sign a release form. Yes, there is what
appears to be momentary insanity, but that usually fades after body
and mind reach an equilibrium. The 'perfect' state of matter.

"And
don't go yelling about the evils of chimerae in here. The two of us
might take grave exception to it."

Havoc
just sat calmly through Lisa's lecture, sipping his coffee.

"That's
not the point!" The wall rattled as an automail fist was slammed
into it. "You turned him into a goddamn weapon! Something
that's just going to be used and thrown away!"

A step
closer, violet swirling angrily in his eye that retained some amount
of gold. "He's just going to end up getting killed!"

Immediately,
Havoc was at Lisa's side. "And you think hurting her will stop
that! It's wasn't her decision! It was mine!"

Roy
stepped forward, sensing more instinctively what was coming, and
wrapped his arms around Ed's waist, pulling the smaller boy back
against him and nuzzling his face in blonde hair. His voice was
smooth and calming when he whispered softly. "Shh...Edo...shhh...it's
alright..."

He swayed
gently from side to side, just subtle enough to be calming. It was
obvious whatever he'd done had worked, though, albeit painful to feel
the gentle heaving of Ed's shoulders against his chest.

It was
then that he shot a cold gaze towards Lisa. "I appreciate your
intentions and efforts...but I'm going to have to ask you to refrain
from chiding him...he's been through Hell and back...and not even for
as short a time as you have..."

"I
take orders from no one," she said scathingly. "Major Elric
may have been through Hell and back, but he's still a child. And
children must be punished according to their transgressions, however
I don't have the authority that Izumi Curtis does."

Havoc
could see that this could lead to an explosion of epic proportions.
He rested a protective arm around Lisa's shoulders. "Sir, we
don't have the time for this. If Ed can't understand, send him
upstairs to sleep it off. We can't afford to have him flare off about
something that can't be helped."

"Just...shut
up...stop treating me like I'm a child, Roy...stop defending me I can
do it myself..." Edward looked up, two pure-violet eyes
meeting Lisa's gaze head on and unwavering, despite the tears that
had recently made their way down his face.

"Maybe
you don't know what it's like...maybe you do...I could care
less...but people are supposed to stay dead!"

Havoc had
had enough. "Elric, shut up!" he snarled. "Unlike you,
I wasn't dead yet! You want the truth? I signed away my soul. But I
did it for revenge, which is something you can't even begin to
understand unless you've seen ninety-eight of your best friends
slaughtered before your eyes! This isn't about you! It's about me,
and getting justice for the people who were murdered and disgraced in
death!"

"Revenge..."
Ed sneered at the thought of it. "Vengeance...eye for an
eye...equivalent trade? No. It's NOT equivalent trade...equivalent
trade would mean a life was given as well as taken, and that wasn't
the case. The very concept of revenge is as stupid as we were when we
sat down at the edge of that damn circle eight years ago! And it's
not just about you, either! Can't you ever just look at me for once
and drag out some goddamn compassion! Or am I just a little leech
clinging to your leg all the time that you don't really want there
but you tolerate because you feel SORRY for it!"

Ed tried
to lash out in anger and frustration, held back by Mustang's arms.
"What the hell am I to you anymore, Jean! What was I ever to
you, a good lay? I can't keep doing this!" Tears flowed again,
pain evident behind anger.

Arms
moved from around Ed's waist as Roy stepped back, dark eyes settling
on Havoc. The message they sent was clear.

You
fucked with him, you pushed him, you're going to have to fix
him...there's nothing I can do anymore.

Once he
was sure the message was across, he averted his eyes, taking Havoc's
suggested route for Ed and climbing the stairs.

"Jesus
Christ, Ed!" It was an old oath, one from his childhood, and
everyone jumped when they heard it. "Do you honestly think that
low of me? Have I now just become a monster because I want justice
from those perverts that stole everything that I loved? Since the
first time you ran from me, have you seen me as a monster?" He
sorely wanted to lash out at the boy, but something held him back.
"Should I just kill myself, here, right in front of you, to make
it all better for you!"

He
ignored Mustang. There were some things that not even he could fix.
And this argument had been brewing ever since he had seen Ed again.

"No,
Jean. You should fucking kill me! I was the one who was
supposed to stay dead!" In the following moments, Ed could feel
the silence pounding in his ears, threatening to crush his skull, he
could almost see the things reaching out for him again...

Havoc
screamed his frustration. Four long steps, and his right hand
connected with the side of Ed's face, even harder than he had hit him
in Dublith.

Cat eyes
sparkled gold-flecked green, remorseless and pitiless. "I have
no sympathy for you anymore, Major. If you insist on acting this way,
then we're finished. I've tried to be understanding, I've tried to
keep being there for you, but hearing this over and over again... one
might think you scorn this gift you've been given."

"It's
not a gift, Jean. It's a fucking curse...whether or not we can see it
Al lost something huge in return for my body and my soul...everybody
loses, there's a reason human transmutation is forbidden you
know...and it's not just the high costs either..." Violet eyes
still met Havoc's gaze, cold automail soothing his throbbing jaw.

Havoc
gritted his teeth. "Fine. See it that way, I don't care anymore.
It'll just cripple you and sour you. You'll push everyone away."
He turned, going downstairs into the infirmary. Before he descended,
he said. "If you let that happen, then you aren't the man I
thought you were. If you decide to change your mind, you know where I
am." He disappeared.

"I
never have been..." Ed's voice was shaky, and he didn't move
from the spot he'd landed in, aside from tilting his head back to
stare blankly at the ceiling. "Never was..." An eerie ghost
of a smile drifted onto the boy's face, and he reached out for
someone only he could see. No sound came, but his lips did move.

'Kaa-san...please...give
it back...I need it...'

Lisa had
watched the fight from an unobtrusive corner. "Major Elric?"
she queried quietly.

Edward's
voice squeaked in protest, but the words came out vocally now, even
if just barely. "Kaa-san...give it back, please...I...we need
that...don't leave me here...Kaa-san no! Come back don't leave me
here alone...can't live without that...need it...bring it back..."

Lisa
looked down at the boy, pity and anger struggling for supremacy. She
turned her back on the struggling boy, knowing there was nothing she
could do for him.

Let
him learn, let him live, let him die... the things most precious to
us are never realized until we lose them... and you're damn close to
losing Jean. But you won't care until he's lost to you forever.
She descended down to where Havoc was sleeping, to talk to him and
give him a shoulder to cry on.

Even
though chimerae couldn't cry.

"Why...why
couldn't they take the pain...why did they have to take that part
why!" Ed curled into a fetal position on the floor, shivering.
"I'll trade my other limbs just give me back what you stole from
me you thieving sadistic bastards! Stop coming for me and taking
everything away! Give me back my soul! I'm not one of you! I WON'T
LET YOU TAKE HIM TOO!"

Lisa
intercepted Havoc on the way downstairs. "Nuh-uh, back in bed,"
she said sternly, blocking the stairwell. "Major Elric has to
fight this one out on his own."

"But..."
For all his hard words earlier, Havoc was still plainly worried.

"Jean,
get back in bed. These specters he's struggling against can't
actually harm him. They're a figment of an already stressed and
unstable mind, a way of fobbing off blame for what he's done onto
another, stronger entity. That's not to say they aren't real, but
they don't precisely exist in our reality." It wasn't exactly
the truth, but it wasn't exactly a lie. She didn't want him to get
even more worried than he already was.

Havoc
meekly allowed himself to be shepherded back into his comfortable
bed. "You sound like Izumi..."

"Little
wonder, really. She wrote me a few days ago asking for help in this
case. As a chimera and a chimerical alchemist, I have run-ins with
the Gate all the time."

"Is
there any way to help him?"

"H'mm...
since it means so much to you, when he faints, I'll give him a
sedative and put him down here. I'm not going to risk putting him in
the residential section, so I'll tell the other man –"

"Mustang,"
Havoc supplied thoughtlessly.

Lisa
grinned. "Right. Mustang. I'll tell him that Major Elric is down
here. As for you..." she viewed the obviously stressed chimera
before her. "I can put you into a silent room and give you
something to drink. You still haven't fully adjusted, have you?"

"No."

"I
can give you some medication to help that. It won't completely cure
it, that has to come from you; that is, you have to find an
equilibrium between your two halves. I can run a psychological test
on you, if you want."

"No
thanks..." He cocked his head. "Hey, Lisa? Could you put
some of that medication in with the sedative?"

"Good
idea! If it works for chimerae, then it may work with partial
homunculi." She kissed him lightly. "You're a dear, Jean."
She fluttered upstairs, to get drugs ready, watch for Elric's
inevitable lapse into unconsciousness, and to inform Mustang when
everything was over.

Roy had
tried to ignore it, ignore the rasping screams that grew steadily
louder from downstairs, but he could only take so much.

Upstairs
there was the soft sound of a door opening and closing discreetly,
bare feet creeping towards the stairwell. Roy cringed at another
particularly wrenching cry, pausing a moment before continuing.

Lisa
wasn't quite sure how she managed to do it, but she worked doggedly
through the mounting screams, preparing the medicated sedative for
the hysterical young man.

When the
cries abated briefly, she grabbed the boy's left arm, inserting a
needle and injecting the sedative. She left it to do its work, and
began to make three cups of tea, one laced with the medication for
Havoc.

Hearing
the cries stop abruptly, Roy hurried his pace just slightly, before
he appeared at the bottom of the stairs, dark eyes slightly irritated
from tears he'd never admit to letting fall focused on Lisa. The
questioning was there, when his eyes darted to the prone boy on the
floor, and back to her. But he trusted, and he made no move to
assume.

Lisa
smiled faintly. "He'll be fine. I just gave him a sedative,
laced with the same medication that I'm giving Jean. The only side
effect that I know of is that he'll be quiet for at least a day or
two. If you'll help me to get him down into the infirmary, I'd be
grateful.

“I
made a cup of tea for those of us still awake and I think there's
some poundcake in the pantry."

Roy
nodded. "Thank you for your help..." He stepped up to
Edward's unconscious form, carefully lifting the boy into his arms.
There was a soft gasp of surprise when warm flesh and cold automail
draped subconsciously around his neck. "I...apologize for his
outburst..." Dark eyes averted the woman's gaze.

"No
need to, really. I'll admit that I'm not particularly thrilled with
the way he's conducted himself in my home, but then again, he still
hasn't grown up. For all he's been through, for all his age, he's
still just a little child crying for help in the only way he knows
how." Her voice was non-committal, matter-of-fact. She put the
teacups on a tray with three-thirds of a poundcake, sliced neatly.
"Perhaps if I could still feel compassion, I would. This way,
please. Jean should still be awake." She descended the stairs
into the infirmary, careful of the slightly uneven steps.

With a
brisk nod, Roy followed, just wondering if perhaps he saw just a bit
of Izumi and Hawkeye in that woman that was leading him down the
stairs.

Havoc
looked up wearily at the goon parade coming down the stairs. He was
in the pajamas that Lisa had lent him last time around –
simple, soft gray flannel pants. "Oh, wonderful. Anyone else
want to yell at me? I'm open for the next half-hour."

Lisa
smiled humorously. "Jean, hush. We're not going to yell at you.
In fact, I want to know why you suddenly showed up on my doorstep."
To Mustang, she said, "Go through that door and lay Major Elric
down on the bed in there. He won't be waking up for twelve hours."
She set down the medicated tea. "Here. Drink up, you need it."

Roy
instead just shook his head, somewhere deep down knowing that if he
put the boy in bed he wouldn't be able to manage leaving his side.
And so he just held Edward in his arms as he took a seat, shooting an
apologetic look in Jean's direction before kindly refusing his own
drink.

He
cleared his throat a bit, looking back to Jean.

So...who's
going to be the one to start explaining...?

Havoc
stretched, wincing at the catch and pull of the scars on his back and
chest. "Where to start? Lisa, does the name Paul Delgardie mean
anything to you?"

"I'd
say!" she said, setting down the plate of poundcake at the foot
of Havoc's bed. "He's my uncle. Incidentally, he's the man that
turned me into a chimera. He ran off to become a National Alchemist
and we never heard from him again."

Havoc
glanced over at Roy, rubbing one of the scars at his neck. The
ball's in your court now, sir...

Features
instantly smoothing into his usual mask, Roy nodded slowly. How he
could look so professional and be holding a sleeping bundle of light
in his arms was probably something to be amazed at, but not now.
"Indeed he did become a National Alchemist…" and
he'd cut off there, as this was something he hadn't even let Havoc
know, before continuing, "He changed his name to Fawkes...and
the last the military heard from him before he scampered off to hell
knows where was his project...He called it 'Predator'..."

Havoc
choked on his tea. He started coughing so hard that little spots of
blood showed on his hand. "You're kidding?" he rasped,
horrified.

"Deceit...
I wondered why..." Lisa mused. She showed no shock or horror,
just a faint sadness. "What irony." She seemed to snap to
herself. "Are you sure?" she demanded imperiously. "Uncle
Paul couldn't hurt a fly! And now you're telling me he did that
to Jean?" She pointed to Havoc's bare chest and neck.

"Quite
the contrary...however I do believe he created the
abominations that did that to Jean..."

Havoc sat
and thought about it for a while. "So you're saying that
'Ashton' Fawkes is not the same as 'Paul' Fawkes?" He tried to
look at Mustang, but failed, turning his head away. He sipped his tea
uncomfortably. "But... there's something inherently wrong with
that. I don't know what it is, but there's something wrong."

Roy's
gaze fell on Lisa for a moment. "Your uncle was a very talented
and brilliant alchemist, ma'am, though I'm sure you knew as much. The
so called 'Ashton Fawkes' has no military records, nor is there any
existence of a so-called 'Predator Alchemist'..." Dark eyes
shifted to Havoc. “However, considering the difference in
supposed and known personality traits...as well as the
similarities...I believe it is safe to assume that the two men are in
fact related..."

"Cousin,"
Havoc said abruptly, drawing the others' attention. "Ashton is
your cousin. The scent is too similar to be anything else." He
swirled the dregs of his tea thoughtfully. "Everything that
Fawkes taught you must have been his preliminary research. You must
have been his first experiment." He got up, padding bare-footed
across the stone floor. "I'm going to get those files."

Lisa
watched him, studying the fluid economy of his movements. Nothing
registered on her face. "Jean and Ashton... those two are the
missing links," she said dreamily.

It took a
moment for the comment to set in, but when it did, Roy found himself
holding Edward tighter, one hand slowly stroking the boy's hair.

"And
what about him..." He wasn't quite sure the voice was his until
after he finished speaking, though.

"The
pinnacle of a forbidden research... the pinnacle and pitfall."

Havoc
reentered, holding the stack of file folders. He spotted Mustang
clutching the young man, and his jaw tightened. "Maybe we should
discuss this later," he said shortly.

Lisa put
a comforting arm around his bare waist. "No, the sooner we talk
about this, the better." She reached up, holding the side of his
face in a gentle hand, tracing his oddly-shaped, dark eyes. "Who
knows. Uncle Paul may know you're here and then where would you be?
Without a plan, without a viable mode of attack, without anything."
She smiled warmly up at her friend. Perhaps a bit too warmly for
Mustang's comfort.

Dark eyes
focused on Jean, message too clear to even need to be hinted at.

Havoc
coughed back a giggle. He could feel Lisa trying not to laugh either.
When and if Mustang went back upstairs, they would be laughing
hysterically.

"That
brings up a good point, actually," he said, laughter thick
behind his voice. He was trying so hard to be diplomatic, but it
wasn't working at all. "We do need to figure out how to shut
these maniacs down."

"If
I remember correctly, a chimera is not 'immortal' in the sense that
an artificially created human is...they can still be destroyed by
normal methods..." And if there was a hint of worry in his
voice, Roy would have denied it, along with the slightest flash of
warning in his eyes as they flickered to Jean once more.

"We
may be killable, sir, but we're also better able to take care of
ourselves than the average human being is," Havoc pointed out.
"Respectfully, I would be able to last a lot longer than you in
a dangerous position, alchemy or no. All it takes is one lead slug,
and you're out of business."

Lisa
gently rubbed the scar on Havoc's back, easing the tight tissue. "If
you're not willing to have an absolute nightmare on your hands, you
have to figure out their flaw. Knowing my uncle, he would have built
one in, just to keep them controllable."

Roy
pondered for a few moments, absent fingers trailing through blonde
strands. After a moment he paused, looking up to the others. "Ashton
Fawkes does know alchemy...there's...something inlaid on his
right palm...an array...I remember him tracing it to light a
cigarette when I met him and he posed as an officer..."

"That
would make sense," both Lisa and Havoc said at the same time.
They looked at each other and grinned.

"But
he would have to have something that could turn him into a
normal-looking being," Havoc continued. "He can't always
be looking like a scraggly housecat dredged from the cistern."

He
hunched his shoulders a bit. "M'mm... that feels good, Lisa.
Harder, please?"

And if
there was a growling sound coming from where Roy sat, he'd say it was
his stomach.

"There's
poundcake right there if you're hungry," Lisa said demurely.

And if
Edward let out a startled yelp in his sleep and Roy jerked his hand
back from his head, he'd say he hit a nasty tangle.

Just to
make matters worse, Havoc started purring as Lisa's fingers worked
their way up to massage the back of his neck.

Oh...now
that wasn't something Roy needed. At. All.

Maybe it
would have been a good idea to go with Edward and lay him in
the other room...then again...Roy had the feeling that would've ended
up even worse...

Shifting
slightly in his chair, much to the dislike of the boy in his arms,
who would've probably kicked if he'd had the energy and awareness
despite settling now for a growl of protest, Mustang cleared his
throat, shooting a dark glance at Lisa and hoping for once she
might just catch the goddamn drift and leave before he ended up doing
something they'd ALL regret in the morning...

Lisa
caught the look and grinned, completely unrepentant. "Well,
then. I think I'll go upstairs and lock up for the night. Are you
staying down here, sir?"

"I'm
sure it would be better if I stayed with Edward..." And got a
chance to be alone with my boyfriend so I could make him purr
like that... went unspoken.

"All
right." She scooped up the dishes and the untouched plate.
"Jean, take it easy. That medication doesn't like being abused,
so don't stay up too late." She disappeared upstairs, shutting
the door behind her.

Havoc slid
lithely into bed, turning onto his side and pulling the sheet up
around his shoulder. "Night, sir..."

"If
you think I'm sleeping in that chair or risking a blow from his
automail in the morning you're mistaken, Jean..." Roy purred
lightly as he passed the bed and carried Edward into the other room.
Not long after he was back again, gingerly taking a seat on the edge
of the bed and stretching, spine finally cracking as he let out a
sigh and began unbuttoning his shirt. "And if you think I'm just
going to sleep, you don't know me as well as you should..."

A
slit-pupiled blue-green eye glanced over at the other man, twinkling.
"I never particularly said any of that, sir."

"Call
me sir again and I'll have to take this as one of those 'special'
sessions...and I don't think your friend upstairs would quite like
her laboratory transmuted into...that..." Roy grinned,
tossing the shirt aside and, realizing he'd forgotten his shoes,
shrugged and turned to slide under the covers and scoot over up
against Havoc. "And just what constitutes as 'too late' to her,
anyway..." There was a glint in those dark eyes as he smirked,
fingers already dancing across the exposed chest before him.

Blue-green
eyes lidded. "Dunno," he said. "We could always ask
her..."

"Not
one word..." Roy warned, albeit a bit playful with the grin
spread across his face as he leaned closer to lick gently at the vein
in Havoc's neck.

Havoc
exhaled softly, twining strong fingers through messy black hair.
"Well, why not..."

Roy
nipped a bit roughly at the base of Havoc's ear. "Not a
word...period..."

Muscles
tensed instinctively as he groaned slightly. "Or..."

Roy
growled lightly at the persistence. "Just shut up
already..." And of course, he didn't forget to enforce the
silence by closing his mouth over Jean's lips hungrily.

Havoc
went completely boneless, moaning softly into Mustang's demanding
kiss. His hands drifted down the other man's body, remembering the
quiet strength that he had loved before.

Roy
shifted again, pulling Havoc closer as he ran the tip of his tongue
lightly against the sharp pricks of canines in the other man's mouth,
shivering just lightly.

Havoc ran
gentle claws down Mustang's back, touching but not wounding.

Shivering
slightly, Roy shifted his weight, causing a roll that ended up with
him over Havoc as he broke the kiss, moving down along Havoc's
jawline, down his neck, nipping at the junction of neck and shoulder
a bit roughly.

Tracing
the slightly irritated mark with his tongue, Roy nibbled again in the
same place, hands running down Jean's sides and rubbing back up to
his shoulders again before once more he attacked the inviting warmth
of Havoc's mouth.

Breaking
away from Roy's kiss, he ignored the startled and hurt look in
flint-black eyes. He rolled over and snuggled up to the slightly
smaller man, wedging himself between bare chest and mattress.

"M'mm...
s'comfy..." He stretched sore muscles, needing more than just
physical comfort. He was still upset about the fight with Edward and
he couldn't get the ring of the boy's accusations out of his head.

Roy
groaned slightly, swallowing hard and sighing, resigning himself to
simply hold the man close for now, to ignore himself despite how
fucking hard that was to do.

Fingers
gently stroked through Havoc's hair, half for his own comfort too, as
he forced his breathing to slow to a reasonable pace again.

Havoc
somehow managed to twitch his entire frame so that Roy's fingers were
gently stroking the back of his neck. A low, deep purr resonated
through both their bodies.

Roy
absently noted the slight twitch in his left eye as he swallowed
again, a bit more alertly noted that he wished he'd slipped into some
more lenient pants, and dually noted that he most likely wouldn't
last much longer like this.

"Fuck,
Jean, you can't expect to do that and just sit here do you!"
Roy hissed after the twitching had subsided.

Havoc
looked up innocently enough, and lightly tapped his closed mouth. The
meaning itself was clear – he was forbidden to speak until his
master said otherwise.

Then his
hand slid down to unbutton the first catch of Roy's trousers.

The
corner of Roy's mouth quirked slightly, and he continued to gently
graze his nails along the back of Havoc's neck, shifting the
slightest bit so that they were nose to nose. His grin only grew
broader, eyes glittering hungrily locked with Jean's own.

Still
purring, Havoc brushed his lips lightly across Roy's, more of a
question than a kiss.

His hand
undid the second catch.

Fingers
danced down Havoc's spine lightly, rubbing a bit harder in some
places. Roy tilted his head slightly and lightly nibbled at Havoc's
lower lip.

Havoc's
purr doubled in intensity, making his entire body vibrate. He curled
closer, licking at Roy's neck with a rougher-than-normal tongue.

Roy
shuddered, rough tongue sending shivers down his spine and prickling
goosebumps on his bare skin as he tilted his neck habitually to bare
more of it, trying, and failing, to suppress a soft moan. In the
meantime, two fingers rubbed just at the base of Havoc's spine
continuously.

Havoc
writhed helplessly. Roy had found one of the most sensitive places on
his entire body – the nerves that would have gone into a tail
needed to end somewhere, and that was the where.

Soft,
mewling moans forced themselves from his throat.

Roy
slowed the rubbing, before moving his hand away again and kissing
Havoc's neck. He moved slightly, just enough for a husky whisper to
be muttered in Jean's ear. "As much as I'd love to simply watch
you reduced to a writhing heap of incoherence completely at my mercy,
Jean, I need you to still be at least a little aware of your
surroundings for a while..."

Havoc
loosely draped his arms around Roy's neck, nipping and licking
pleadingly at exposed skin. He didn't really need to speak. His
actions were more than enough to get his point across.

Closing
his eyes, Roy moaned softly once more. "Going to let me this
time?" There was short moment in which he rubbed the base of
Havoc's spine again, an unspoken promise for more later on.

Havoc
gasped in a sharp breath, entire body jerking against Roy's.
Blue-green eyes were liquid with need and want. He nuzzled up under
Roy's jaw, laying careful licks along his strong jawline.

A low
chuckle hummed in Roy's throat and once again he rolled on top of
Havoc, one hand gently teasing at the back of his neck as he leaned
down, bringing their lips to meet. The kiss was gentle at first, but
it wasn't long before desire rose and Roy deepened it with an almost
bruising intensity.

Havoc
easily rendered desire back for desire, hands threading through
slightly damp hair, bringing his master in for a closer kiss –
if that was even possible anymore. Somewhere back in his fogged
brain, he could hear himself whimpering, but he could feel himself
rubbing his hips up against Roy. It didn't really connect.

A low
moan forced itself up out of Roy's throat as he broke the kiss,
momentarily grinding his hips down against Havoc's. Tongue and teeth
heatedly ran along Havoc's jaw, down the underside of that tanned
neck, lightly scraping skin and licking and kissing it better and
moving further down still, nipping at his collarbone, teasing down
his chest.

Hands
glided downwards, light touches at first and then rubbing down
Havoc's sides firmly, slipping up under the elastic waistband and
carressing his hips and thighs and calves as pants were pulled down
inch by inch revealing more of that deliciously bronzed skin Roy had
all but forgotten.

The wet
heat of Roy's mouth moved back up again, breaths hot at the base of
Havoc's ear, and in a deep, husky voice he muttered something there,
though he was sure that the words would take a moment to decipher in
the other man's pleasantly muddled brain.

"Now...tell
me what you want..."

Words
threaded their way through a brain made nonsensical by pleasure.
"Ohgod..." Havoc didn't even bother to answer, catching
Roy's mouth in a kiss that seemed to go on forever. After one or the
other broke the kiss, he lay back panting, eyes showing clear
sapphire under half-drawn lids.

"Anything...
everything... you..."

"Nnnh..."
Roy nibbled Havoc's earlobe while he ran sure fingers through tawny
straw-coloured hair. Seeing Jean like this at completely at his mercy
again after so long made him practically purr the next thing
he said.

"Tell
me what you want me to do..." Roy could probably play this
game for at least an hour or two until he got the answers he was
looking for.

Eyes
momentarily sparked even brighter blue, then settled back into
blue-green. Havoc smiled, baring sharp teeth, then lightly bit down
on Roy's neck. He could feel his teeth sink in just a little before
he licked away the two tiny beads of blood.

"Screw
me senseless... master..."

Roy
winced just slightly and groaned at the sharp teeth on his neck,
shivering as the initial sensation passed. A smirk curled his lips at
the words he heard, and he shifted again.

Propping
himself up on one elbow to watch Jean's reaction as he trailed one
hand down the centerline of the man's bare chest and lower, thumb
teasing the slit as fingers curled around the shaft, just loose
enough to taunt the edge of friction.

"We're
getting to that...tell me what you want me to do first..."
Roy couldn't help but purr as he ran the tip of his tongue up and
down the vein running the length of Havoc's neck.

A sharp
bark of surprise and pleasure emitted abruptly from Havoc's throat.
"M'mm... this... is nice... too..."

Roy's
fingers curled a bit more tightly, then he started to move his hand,
gradually sliding into a teasingly slow rhythm. "Tell me..."

Havoc let
his head fall to the side. "Nnnngg... no..." He still had
his pride, dammit, and he wouldn't beg. And in his book, that
constituted as begging.

Roy let
another low chuckle rise from his throat, as he stopped his hand
again, grip tightening once more, and he rubbed his thumb in the slit
with more pressure than before. "Oh...?" His other hand
slid down Havoc's side, pushing up under him to slowly begin rubbing
at the base of his spine again.

... oh,
hell.

Havoc
writhed, trying to escape the torturing hands caressing him, but it
was no use. Either way he moved, there was a firm touch playing with
him.

His
breath started hissing hard and fast between clenched teeth.

"Tell
me what you want, Jean..." Roy's words were hissed in
his ear, fingernails lightly grazing across tight, oversensitive
skin. "M'mm...?"

"Damn...
you..." he managed, his body arching uncontrollably.

Stupid
pride, stupid body... dammit, Roy!

Roy
hummed lightly, nipping and licking his way up and down Havoc's neck
as his hands remained just as torturously busy elsewhere. "I can
wait..." he purred against Havoc's throat.

I'm
sure you can... bastard... Havoc tugged Roy's head up, engaging
him in a fierce kiss.

Roy
circled the tip with his thumb before rubbing into the slit again,
giving back the kiss as fiercely as it was given to him. He pulled
away for breath, but mumbled against Havoc's lips. "Your
stubbornness is only costing you, Jean..."

Even
though Mustang knew damn well that was a lie.

Havoc
smiled an enigmatic, feline smile at that. "You... know you love
it..." he purred, tongue flicking out to taste the other man's
lower lip.

"Love
watching you wrest with your own pride before finally I'm the one to
break it..." Mustang purred, moving his hand away to rub his
palm over Havoc's chest, circling a nipple and then pinching it
lightly.

"You're
certainly welcome to try..." he murmured, hands lightly sliding
over Roy's damp neck and shoulders. "Though... I doubt you'd get
very far..." He pulled him up for another kiss.

"Oh
really..." Roy mumbled against Havoc's lips, lightly returning
the kiss before pulling away again, head dipping just long enough to
let the tip of his tongue flick across a nipple, fingers dancing
light and slow along the inside of Havoc's thigh. "Looked like I
was pretty close to winning just a few minutes ago..."

"Were
not!" Havoc said indignantly. "You're just an old man
that's lost his touch..." He guided Roy up, licking his cheek
lightly. "You want to prove me wrong?"

The
challenge was out and he had high hopes for Roy's temper tantrum.

"I
will..." Roy willingly took the bait, nails raking
lightly down Jean's hard length as he dipped his head again,
massaging a nipple with lips and tongue, only to nip and tease
harshly as his other hand continued to rub firmly at the base of
Havoc's spine.

"Has
the good Lisa Delgardie taken into consideration the possible uses
of...say...catnip?" Roy purred, in a voice as sultry as
he'd often used to make his lover melt completely before him.

"Mmnnrrr..."
Havoc's entire body arched, calloused fingertips stroking the back of
his tormenter's neck. An exquisite heat began to build, even as he
whimpered and moaned at Roy's touch.

"Roy..."
A harsh cry was buried in the back of his throat.

Not
yet, please, not yet...

"Hhnn...?"
Head dropping further, Roy scraped his teeth lightly down Havoc's
chest, hot tongue tracing the contours of his muscles and the line of
his hips. He paused, breath measured and hot and torturing. "Tell
me..."

"...
n-no..." He wasn't sure how long he would be able to keep from
begging, but he would try his damnedest to keep from it until Roy
finally got sick of his little game. Which would probably be a while.

Fuck...

Roy
purred, lightly blowing against the tip as he slowly drug his nails
down the inside of Havoc's thigh. "Tell me and I'll stop
teasing..." The grin that spread across Mustang's face was
entirely too obvious in his voice.

Honestly,
Roy, you should know me by now... too stubborn for my own good...

A
strangled sound burst out, half way between a cry and a moan, hoarse
and pleading. Too many pleasurable sensations were bombarding him at
one time, and he nearly lost it.

Fingertips
moved again to barely graze down the length as Roy let his tongue
draw lazy circles around the tip, breaths still ghosting over heated
skin. He simply hummed to himself, he'd done this before, and he'd do
it again. He almost always won in the end...

Now...
this was something new... instead of fighting it, he just lay back
languidly, enjoying the pet and caress. It wasn't quite like being
petted like a kitten, but it was still faintly relaxing. Just going
with it seemed to ease a lot of the tension...

Once he
had discovered this... overly relaxed side of himself, he stretched
his arms over his head, closed green-gold eyes, and began to purr
happily.

Sometimes
it was a good thing he wasn't entirely human any more. He
chuckled to think of the look on Roy's face when the other man began
to figure out that it wasn't quite as torturous as before.

Raising
an eyebrow slightly, Roy ceased his motions, instead moving away to
sprawl out lazily next to Jean, dark eyes observing but not touching.

"Giving
up?" Havoc purred, his eyes still closed. "Roy Mustang, the
one who never gives up, is finally admitting defeat? The world is at
an end..."

He yawned
cavernously, canines glinting. His mouth snapped shut with a little
click and he smiled slowly. "I win."

"Whoever
said I was giving up?" I'm just letting you smolder for a
while... Roy smirked, dark eyes glinting slightly.

"I
just did." He stretched, long body getting even longer for a
brief moment, then settling back with a sigh and a groan. He cracked
open a green-gold eye. "Wipe that smirk off your face. It makes
me think you're going to eat me."

A hand
reached out, brushing delicate fingers over Roy's bare midsection.

Roy
purred lightly, smirk only growing. "Maybe I will..." Hands
reached out and pulled Havoc's up to his mouth, kissing fingertips
before drawing in two fingers fully, nipping lightly as the digits
were carressed by his tongue. Not once did Mustang's eyes leave
Havoc's.

Lids
half-closed over a thin ring of green. "Is that meant to be a
threat?" He was pressed up against the other man in a heartbeat,
rough tongue licking over Roy's neck. "Because if it was, I
might have to get you first..." he murmured.

Roy
grinned again, shuddering slightly. "Nn...really now..."
Although he made no move to change the current course of actions.

Havoc
chuckled, nibbling behind the other man's ear and nipping his way
down to the hollow of his throat. "Commendable, sir.
Commendable."

His free
hand slid down to completely unfasten blue wool trousers.

Roy
mimicked Havoc's chuckle, nuzzling his face in the man's hair
slightly and once again scratching lightly at the back of his neck.
"I'm not quite sure if I should be offended or flattered,
Lieutenant..."

"Oh,
flattered," Havoc said easily, smiling somewhat evilly. "How
can I insult you, of all people?" Gently, he tugged down the
masses of blue wool. His hand dipped competently, taking the other
man in hand and flicking his thumb idly over the tip. "Though...
I wonder if this counts as insubordination?" he commented,
licking Roy's throat again.

Shifting
slightly, Roy groaned, one hand moving down to rub at the base of
Havoc's spine again. "Hnn...I'd say-aah..-it would be more along
the lines of-hhn...-fraternization..."

"I'd
expect you'd know better than me..." Havoc murmured, leaving
Roy's throat to tease something a little more fun. He looked up after
an experimental lick. "After all, we know that I'm terrible at
obeying my orders..."

Roy made
something that sounded somewhat like a growl. "Oh? I didn't
notice..." He shifted a bit, raking his fingers up the
back of Havoc's neck and twining them in tawny locks. "Going to
be straightforward or will you take a page out of my book this time?"
By the tone of his voice it was obvious that grin was back.

He
circled his tongue around the tip and briefly licked the slit. He
paused, considering. "H'm. Good question, really. I could
pay you back for being such a smug bastard. Then again, that really
isn't my style." He nipped sensitive flesh. "Any
suggestions?"

Mustang
purred lightly, grinning to himself. "Would you listen to them
if I did?"

Havoc sat
up, tracing patterns with the curve of his claws over Roy's stomach
and lower. "Just in case you didn't hear me I repeat, sir, that
you are a smug bastard. You're going to have to humble yourself
before I let you anywhere near me..." Oddly fluid eyes met Roy's
in something of a challenge.

Roy
grinned back lazily, idly rubbing the nape of Havoc's neck still. "I
am aware of my level of achievement in the smug bastard area of
expertise, Lieutenant...I surely don't need to be reminded of that by
you, seeing as Fullmetal takes care of that every time he sees my
face..."

He knew
it was a childish reaction, he really did. But still, his entire body
stiffened, shutters slammed down over expressive eyes, and his face
went stone cold and emotionless. "Oh."

Even to
himself his voice sounded tight and unhappy. He could only wonder
what Roy thought.

The smug
grin was gone now, and Roy gently pulled Havoc back up so he could
cradle him, unspoken apology. He sighed heavily, gently stroking down
Havoc's back and rubbing soothing circles to get him to relax.
"I...I'm sorry...I shouldn't have mentioned..."

Havoc
rested his forehead on Roy's shoulder, really wanting to cry right
then, thank you very much, and get that horrible tight feeling out of
his chest. "No, don't apologize. You didn't know." He
laughed somewhat bitterly. "Hell, the kid was probably right...
not like it matters anymore."

Roy's
grip tightened, squeezing lightly before relaxing once more, still
reassuring. "Don't you dare start that...not now...not here..."

"You
mentioned it first, dammit." He sighed tightly. "How much
of our fight did you hear after you managed to escape?"

"How
much couldn't be heard easily?" It was a rhetorical question,
really. "Jean..." Roy didn't know if he was trying to
comfort Havoc, or whether it was really he who needed to be
comforted...

"Dear
God... every time I think I'm making progress with him, we always go
back three steps because one of us does something stupid. The only
way for me to get through that goddamn three-foot-thick wall he's
built against me is to hurt his feelings! It's because..." he
stopped short, unwilling to go any further. "I don't think he
realizes how I felt when he ran away from me..."

Roy
continued to stroke soothingly as he mumbled against the top of
Jean's head. "He might not understand...but he's beating himself
up over doing it..."

"Why
should he? It's the normal reaction anyone has when they see me. It's
either that or stopping and staring at the freak." The empty
hopelessness was even worse than the surging anger he felt against
Ed. "Why should he? It's only natural."

Mustang
felt anger rising in his chest at how pitiful Jean was acting, but he
forced down the urge to just slap sense into the man. "He
doesn't have to have a reason, Jean...the point is that he
does...he's sorry..." It took a moment to pull himself back
together. "Stop rolling around in your own self pity..."

"I'm
sorry sir. It's hard to be like this when no one that I care for is
comfortable around me – even you, sir. You always tense up
slightly when I look at you." He took a big deep breath and
killed his pride. "I'm sorry I made you go through this. I'd
like your forgiveness, but you don't have to."

"I
have to admit it's a bit startling...but it's really no different
from the first time I saw an Ishbarite's eyes, Jean...it takes a
little getting used to is all..." Roy lifted Havoc's chin to
bring him into a gentle, reassuring kiss.

If Havoc
had been still able to cry, he would have broken down in grattitude.
It made him feel... not whole exactly, that would come only when Ed
finally came to grips with the world as it stood now, but much, much
better.

He began
to purr contently.

Hearing
the purr again sent shivers down Roy's spine, and he groaned.
"Jean...I trust this little episode is over now...so could we
please continue?"

Havoc
didn't even bother to wait for an answer. He deepened the kiss.

Roy
tightened his grip once more, fingers knotted in straw-coloured hair
and running down Havoc's back, one leg sliding between his thighs as
he sighed into the kiss.

Havoc
growled slightly as he worried at Roy's lower lip.

"C'mon,
Roy..."

Pulling
away from Jean's mouth, Roy shifted again so that Havoc's back was
once more to the mattress. Fiery kisses ran down from jaw to neck to
chest, steadily downwards, though they stopped in between to suck
briefly on a nipple before continuing. Tongue dipped into the taut
hollow of Jean's navel before retreating, teeth grazing down along
the line of a hip.

Havoc
moaned appreciatively, bound and determined to pay back the wonderful
man who was currently making him feel like very happy pudding. He
swallowed the remains of his pride. "Hurry – get me
off..."

Roy all
but purred, ceasing any delay in the matter, tongue swiftly trailing
up the length, circling the head once, and, hands settled on Havoc's
thighs, he swallowed him whole.

Forcing
his throat to relax against the hard, throbbing pressure, he quickly
settled into a fast rhythm, massaging with his tongue and lightly
grazing teeth against taut skin every so often, humming low in his
throat.

Havoc
writhed at the pleasure of it, sincerely grateful for his pride
having died such a beautiful death. Moans and whimpers filled his
ears, accompanied by a distant voice begging for release.

Roy
swallowed impulsively, throat contracting around Havoc momentarily
before he continued, faster, the scents that filled each breath and
the slightly bitter taste with the salty tinge of sweat and other
things distinctly Jean only fueling his own desire more.

Havoc
still had enough dignity not to do more than let out the hoarse cry
that had been lurking in his throat when he came. It was a flash of
sinful pleasure and a surge of heat warming a disturbingly cool body.

He lay
there afterwards, feeling truly content for the first time in nearly
four years.

Swallowing
as much as he could and licking the rest clean, Roy moved back up
next to Havoc, painfully aware of his own persistent arousal. He was
sure that Jean noticed too, considering it was currently pressed
firmly against his hip.

A lazy,
tired smile graced Havoc's lips. "Now... what do you
want?" A cool hand gently caressed the back of Roy's neck.
"I'm... open... to any suggestions."

Roy
reached back and took the hand away from his neck, bringing it to his
mouth as he took two fingers in and sucked for a minute before
pulling back just enough to talk. "Your mouth...your
tongue...your breath against me and your fingers inside me..."
It was less of a request, more of a demand, that's just how he was.

Havoc
rolled over, planting his hands on either side of Roy's shoulder.
There was a devillish glint in eyes more blue than green. "You
think you can not make a single sound?" he purred teasingly. He
dipped his head and placed a hot, wet, biting kiss at the hollow of
Roy's throat.

Roy
hummed lightly, closing his eyes. "Would you prefer I not?"

"Just
shut up, and don't make a sound. Please," he added, because it
was his commanding officer, which made the entire conversation just
slightly bizarre.

He
kissed, licked, and nipped his way down Roy's chest and stomach.
Slick fingers pushed in barely, teasing. His other hand played along
Roy's side. He lightly licked Roy's tip, careful of his rough tongue.

Roy
hissed through his teeth at the combination of sensations, biting
back a groan and swallowing his voice.

"Very
good," Havoc purred. "I didn't really expect you to try..."
He licked again, nipping lightly in 'punishment' when Roy's hips
bucked. "Ah-ah... stay still..."

Fingers
slid in further, curling, twisting and touching.

Letting
out a slow breath he didn't know he'd been holding, Roy just grinned,
dark eyes not quite focusing on Havoc's face. Thought you knew me
better than that...you set the challenge...I'm going to rise to it...
He swallowed hard again, forcing his body to relax against probing
fingers.

Havoc set
about his task with a high level of concentration, enjoying the game
quite a bit. His tongue teased every inch of sensitive flesh. When
Roy bucked violently, he knew he had hit that one particular spot...

It wasn't
long before Roy's hips were rocking. Up into the wet heat of
Havoc's mouth and down against skilled fingers working
intently inside him. Either way he went was sending sparks of pure
electric fire up his spine to explode like fireworks behind
his eyelids.

Of course
by that time he'd nearly forgotten about keeping quiet, though not
entirely, as only the faintest of gasps and moans escaped his throat.
Something told Roy he should've bit them back, but he couldn't quite
think of what that reason was at the moment.

Havoc
noted the little verbal transgressions, and gradually stilled his
pace. "What did I tell you?" he asked after stopping
completely.

Oh...right...
Roy fought back the rising urge to let out a desperate moan, stifling
it in his throat as he swallowed again, nodding slowly.
Sorry...slipped my mind...now please, continue, before I have to
make that an order...

A grin
tugged at the corner of Havoc's mouth. Draping an arm casually across
Roy's hips, he effectively pinned the older man. "Well,
now... this is certainly a surprise," he drawled, before
flicking his tongue against the sensitive slit. "You're losing."
His fingers curled again.

Roy
hissed audibly, struggling against the arm that pinned him from
rocking his hips as he swallowed again, trying to slow his breathing
as he jerked, still cut short by Havoc's arm.

Havoc
lightly bit the inside of Roy's thigh, his sharp teeth making perfect
little marks. "Keep still, otherwise I'm going to boot
you out of bed..." The tone was light and mocking, but the
threat was real enough. "And do I have to gag you to keep you
quiet?"

His
fingers kept moving even as his warm breath ghosted over Roy.

Well
that's an interesting idea... Roy did, however, fight to keep
control of his movements, slightly ragged breaths and the occasional
hiss through clenched teeth the only sounds he made.

After
satisfying himself that Roy would in fact pay attention to the little
rules set down, Havoc continued. His tongue ran down the underside,
just enough pressure to make Roy's brain fritz out. His fingers kept
moving, and he kept up his low, steady purr.

Hands
fisted in the sheets, Roy was having a hard time keeping himself from
moving at the same time as he tried to keep his body relaxed,
considering every time he relaxed he was overwhelmed with the urge to
thrust again and nearly did, tightening up with a slight wince. But
he wouldn't say a word, wouldn't say a word. Fuck...

Havoc
smiled privately to himself, swallowing Roy and still purring. His
fingers stroked deep inside the man and his tongue teased him.

This...
will be interesting...

Sweat
glistened on Roy's skin in a thin sheen, and he had to swallow every
time another lustful moan rose in his throat, cutting it off. His
breaths were harsh and uneven, mostly because of his internal
struggle to not respond as he usually would. Normally he could
control himself...really...

Havoc
swallowed impulsively, then continued purring. His free hand danced
across Roy's stomach, playing off all his sensitive spots. His other
hand just kept working busily, trying to unstring Roy just enough
that he would make a sound...

Stomach
muscles twitched under Havoc's fingers, and Roy was panting, but it
wasn't enough! He'd be damned if he was going to beg, though.
Roy Mustang didn't beg. Period.

Fuck!
MORE dammit!

Havoc
slowed to a pace that could barely be called 'movement'. The purr
dropped several notes, too low to be heard, but just intense to be
felt.

No
shame in begging, really...

Oh,
hell no...

"What
the fuck are you waiting for..." Roy had tried to make it
sound angry, but his mind was a bit hazy still, and he only managed a
light drawl that came out slightly whiny.

Havoc
lifted his head, a semi-sweet, somewhat cruel smile on his face.
"Ahh..." He rubbed the side of his face against the inside
of Roy's thigh, much like a housecat. "My, my. I never expected
you to fail so spectacularly, Colonel..."

Roy made
an attempt at a growl. "You were waiting for something
though, Lieutenant..." He hissed as Havoc's fingers
brushed just barely against just the right spot. "I decided I
would at least give in on my terms..." Mustang reached
down, fingers twining into Jean's hair. "Now hurry up."

Havoc's
eyebrows lifted. "Ri-ight. Always stubborn, aren't you."

Roy
jerked his hips again, giving Jean an extremely heated look. "Is
this any way to repay me for getting you off so quickly when you
asked for it?"

"You
didn't ask. You demanded. There's a difference."

"All
you asked was that I keep quiet...though I kept up my end to the best
of my ability, you slowed, you stopped, I think I at least deserve an
answer as to why..."

"Because
you weren't keeping quiet. Honestly, Roy, your short-term memory is
shot."

"Or
maybe it's yours...I got quiet again but then you stopped again!"
It suddenly hit Roy that he was acting rather like a small child who
wasn't getting his way...

The same
thought struck Havoc and he began to chuckle.

Roy
pouted a bit indignantly. "You don't have to laugh about
it you know..." He rocked his hips slightly, insistently. "But
could you please get on with it? This is starting to become a
bit of a turn off..."

"Much
better..." Havoc purred, licking the tip. "You'll learn
yet..." His fingers began to move again.

Roy
groaned lightly. "That whole quiet thing still in effect or can
I stop holding myself back?"

Havoc
nipped thoughtlessly, thinking. "Oh, hell, why not? You've been
a good boy so far."

That
earned a huff. "So does that mean I have to shut up again?"
Roy shuddered slightly.

"M'mm...
What do you think" He licked again, hardly bothering to watch
his tongue.

Roy
groaned again, hissing through his teeth. "Fuck I don't
know! You're the one who's supposed to tell me!"

Havoc
chuckled at that. "Well, I guess it's settled. Feel free to make
as much noise as you want. But!" he added warningly as his
fingers continued, "stay put. I really don't want to have
to kick you off the bed."

Roy
purred at that, grinning. "Aa...enough delay then...hmm?"

"Right."
He took Roy entirely into his mouth, returning to his previous pace.

Still,
knowing that Lisa was upstairs, Roy kept the noise to a minimum of
low, breathy moans. Sharp gasps accented each time Havoc's fingers
hit just the right spot, earning an involuntary jerk of his hips.

Havoc
giggled inwardly, impressed at Roy's consideration for their other
housemates.

He
stepped up the pace.

"Nnngghfuck
Jean, harder...!" Roy would still deny that it had
sounded more like a plea than an order, now and after the fact. And
Jean would be the only one the wiser.

Havoc
began to purr, moving both mouth and fingers faster and harder. It
just wouldn't do for Roy to get pissy.

Hands
fisted the sheets again, and for a moment Roy forgot where he was,
moaning a bit louder than he'd meant to. His entire body quivered on
the edge. So fucking close...! "Hhhn...god...!"

...
speaking, Jean thought with a little grin. Well... not
exactly, but hey. He pressed his tongue against Roy, his fingers
making a determined little stroke right where it would do the most
'damage'.

And with
that final bit of urging, Roy bit his lip, entire body tensing for a
suspended moment of release before he practically melted into the
mattress at his back, groaning as little flashes of white still
sparked behind his eyelids, the aftereffects slowly dying down as he
tried to catch his breath.

When
everything was clean, Havoc loosed a cavernous yawn, curling up next
to Roy. "M'mgh. Wake me up in the morning..." he mumbled,
feeling ridiculously and pleasantly drowsy. He pillowed his head on
an arm and immediately began drifting to sleep.

He felt
warm, but an acute observer would have noticed that his body
temperature had dropped several degrees.

Fighting
back a yawn of his own, Roy curled up against Havoc, pulling the
sheets up just past both of their waists. He brushed away a few
strands of light hair, smiling and placing a gentle kiss just above
Havoc's brow before settling in to sleep.

Please
review, constructive criticism and questions appreciated, flames will
be deflected back at you by Roy. n.n;
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Unsettling Affairs