Another great installment! I loved the interaction between Roy and Al, as well as Roy's callous dismissals of the seriousness of the situation with the betrayal of the concerned undertones. It was all very Roy and very wonderful to read. I cannot wait for the final chapter!

Lots of Love,
Miiamya

How confronting for Al, having people staring at his junk XD As if he wasn't embarrassed enough already, having to deal with things on his own!

Yeah, Al really did a good job at blocking everything off. And not just blocking, but re-routing and expelling unwanted reactions. He's always been good at whatever he studied.

“it was a perfectly good roast gone to waste, and those things aren’t cheap, you know. It’s gone, and you can never bring it back.” XD -scoldscoldscold- Roy puts on his pouty face.

Seven chapters, eh? I can live with that :P It's been awesome fun reading, and I'm glad we'll get to see a bit of the aftermath.

omg I just read "The Unweaving" and this and I'm addicted. Honestly, Al is never a character I took much interest in but you managed to convert me completely. I can see Al going through this sort of thought process and Roy being the one to truly understand it.

lots of love, miiamya

AW! ^^

omg... I'm crying here. Great story, keep it up. God, I am terrible with reviews. I'm sorry.

This story and "The Unweaving" is by far one of the best I've read. I've even reread them, which I never do. And every time, I cry my eyes raw, which is another thing I never do.

Brilliant writing. Brilliant story. Please continue your wonderful work!

Aww, Al's getting too big to wear his brother's coat . . . that's both funny and tragic. Ed matters so much to him, but . . . then, it just points out that Ed was small :P

That idea of planting a sapling behind Maes' stone is sweet. You'd have the be careful about doing that in a graveyard, though, because there's no telling where the roots would go. They'd have to plant it far enough back that it didn't interfere with the tombstone, but not so far that it was near another grave and the roots got into the coffin.

"Edward Elric at one and a half times normal size (he’d have appreciated that)" - ahaha, he most certainly would have. I can just imagine his smug look already.

I like that Roy gives Al the light. Not only does it help Al with his job, but it also means that Roy is letting Al know he's there. He may not be interfering, but it allows Al the choice of doing what he's doing knowing someone's around, or of leaving it. It means Roy isn't intruding on something without Al knowing there is someone else there.

"The smile seemed to deepen, the glint in the eyes to sharpen." Yess, that glint in the eyes would certainly make it more Ed-like. His cheeky eyes are such an integral part of his character.

When the story said Al was heading towards the graveyard I wasn't sure whether to expect some human transmutation or not. Seems like Al was thinking the same thing.

Of course. Everything for Al is about Ed. No wonder her didn't want to change - Ed won't.

"‘I worked all these years to get your body back, and you do something to make sure you stay short your whole life?'" XD Oh LOL. Ed would be disbelieving, for sure, but you know that if he's alive he'd also be thinking "That means I'll be soo much taller than him! Muahaha!"

“Ed? Keep you from being an idiot?" Ed actually kept Al from being an idiot quite well. By being the idiot himself, Al was forced to be the mature one. But . . . whenever Ed was away, Al did have some idiotic tendencies XD Manga example: when telling Mei about his real body, in comparison to Ed's "Of course I'm taller! And more of a gentlemen! And --" (I think he lists a few other things, too, with a very >:3 look on his face)

I guess that now we know what's going on there's only one chapter left, and that's setting things right. Lovely little story here. Next chapter's gonna be fun :D

This was a beautiful chapter. When Al started working on the statue, I got chills. Then I had a big lump in my throat throughout all of his conversation with Roy. What Roy said was perfect. Well done!

Wah! This was so sad...when Roy started talking about the things Edward would never do...how he would always be eighteen...I almost teared up! Nice job!

HAHAHAH xD FUNNY! Love the ending Al can be so stupid sometimes... ._.

Took me a while to get to reading this one - I've been at my mother's house and the internet there was terrible, so I kept it to checking email, and put the time consuming things to the side, then went off and spent my time more productively. Now I'm back at Dad's, though . . . XD

I like the way you've continued the conversation with Al's teacher. At first I was confused because I had a big blank in my mind ("Whut? I thought Roy was talking with that guy at the end of the last chapter . . .") but I like that you're looking back at the past from the present. It has a nice, contemplative feel to it that way.

Al has other reasons for doing this? D: Aww, poor kid has too many problems.

"if he didn’t keep his mouth shut, he’d be reduced to the same condition Al was in. By much less benign means." :D Ahh, Jean. I can just imagine him meeping and trying to protect himself at that point.

I think I can understand Yuen's reasoning - I'd be hesitant to have a doctor so ruthless with his own body work with mine - but that is terribly ** Al. Not that we should never have to go through hard things, just . . . just aww . . ! And he's so angry at Roy!

Ay, that's sad, the two of them grappling. But you're very right in having Al win. He and Ed are so physically practiced (or were, in any case, and Al's still got the memory of how to throw the blows even if his strength isn't one-hundred-percent), and Roy has depended on his alchemy so much more. Not to say Roy couldn't fight if he had to, but his muscles are a lot prettier and more for show than Al's are.

Ahahah, so Al has transmuted to door into a wall. I guess he just wants his little hideyhole at the moment, or else he would have transmuted a hole in one of the other walls, so he could escape without Roy knowing, too. Or maybe he has/will and I just don't know yet XD

Lolol, stalker!Roy is going to find something out. Hmm, guessing where Al's going, I'd say to Ed's grave. Who better to talk things through with that his REAL big brother?

Y'know, I have to wonder if Al might seek refuge at Riza's or Gracia's, given that they're the "mother" figures in his life.

Keep it up!

Wow! This is really cool so far! My favorite scene was when Russell called out for Fletcher and Al thought it was Edward. So sad...update soon! This is really good! Interesting idea!

I loved this chapter! Dr. Yuen's actions were a bit drastic... but if Al isn't listening, then maybe this will help somehow... Also, I love how you toyed with the Ed/Al/Roy relationship, and how since Roy is not Al's big brother, certain actions that Ed would get away with, Roy cannot. That was really great.

I'm looking forward to the next chapter! I have all these ideas in my head of what might happen or if Roy will stop Al, or if Al will discover that he's following him etc... so I'm very excited!

Ay, I was online when I got the notice for this, but I onyl had about ten minutes before I had to leave for Uni and knew that wouldn't be enough time to read adn review properly . . . then since the email was opened I didn't notice it until just now when I'm at my most procrastinatory - just before I go to bed XD So hurrah! Let's see what you've written . . . :D

"Russell had in fact taken the job in Gracia’s flower shop that Al hadn’t been able to handle" - Aww, Al's so cute X3 Just remembering him freaking out at all the scents and senses to become reaccustome to, ay, it's gorgeous! And hooray for the Tringhams being around! I love little Fletcher.

A party that big just so Roy could talk with Al's teacher? Maan, that's like . . . I can't remember the phrase, which makes what I'm thinking sound a lot less smart. Dang. Something like: the best way to hide something is out in the open.

Oh wow, Roy and Jean are turning this whole thing into a giant soap opera, aren't they? All of their "but what if Al doesn't respond to that girl, and Fletcher becomes resentful about him hurting her", etc. etc. is just so twisty. They could think up half a dozen ideas of how it would work out, and it'd still all just sound like a soap, coming from their mouths!

Ahahaha, making a quick retreat after the girlfriend comment, eh, Al? XD Gotta love Mustang's indignation. And the childish touch of Al sticking out his tongue - now that's another thing he couldn't do as a suit of armour. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the things he did, after rediscovering his senses, was to just stand in front of a mirror and pull faces and make expressions at himself. Instead of sold metal in the one shape, he'd have a happy shape for his cheeks, and an angry shape for his eyebrows, and so on.

"“You behave like an adolescent half the time already, Roy, but ‘adolescent girl’ is new, even for you.”" BAHAHAHAHA XD (Oh, and I'm squealing at the Royai. Tha~nk you~!)

Elycia's enthusiam in following Al's request is gorgeous - that "Al said so" is reason enough to do something shows her buoyant (erm . . . spelling?) personality. Her antics are always good fun.

Lovely description of the action in the sparring.

His body is tired because its natural course has been interrupted, and it's trying to break out of that . . . is it? :3 Because I don't want Al to be like this the rest of his life . . . Sure, he had a lot of hard things to go through at once, so puberty might have been a bit much for him at the same time as grieving and recovering physically, but now he's a little more acclimatised maybe it wouldn't be anywhere near quite so terrible.