Broken Hearted Disease

The sun pierced through the sky as midday hit the small train station. A young man of about 16 stood with a suit of armor that was a good 2 feet taller than himself.

"Damn it," mumbled the blonde-haired alchemist, "what's taking the train so long?" If he could have, Alphonse would have rolled his eyes. It was about the tenth time that his older brother had shown just how impatient he could get.

"It will be here soon, brother," Al said comfortingly. "We'll be home in no time." Normally, Ed wouldn't be in such an all-fire hurry to get home if his right arm hadn't been rendered useless, making it dead weight on his already exhausted body. Sure, Winry would kill him, but automail conducts heat, and in the weather they were exposed to, it was bad news.

"This never would have happened if that Bastard Mustang hadn't assigned me to round up those chimeras," Ed mumbled, inwardly cursing the Colonel. "Those beasts trashed the nerves." Which was true, and thankfully the pain had subsided. Tearing nerves wasn't pleasant.

The brothers continued to look in the direction that the train would undoubtedly be coming from. A few moments later, they spotted a small grey speck in the distance, causing Ed to nearly jump for joy.

"Yes, about time!" he shouted, picking up the suitcase that he had previously been sitting on. "Next stop, Risembool!" Al was excited to be home again as well, but not exactly for the same reasons that his elder brother was. He wanted to go back and see the people that he considered family. Although, he had his suspicions of how Winry and Ed felt about each other. He figured everyone knew how they felt except the duo in question. He stayed out of it however, figuring it would resolve itself when the time came.

While Al was lost in his thoughts, the train had traveled so that it was barely 20 feet away from them. Ed smiled gratefully as it pulled to a stop and the doors opened, revealing the nearly empty train car. A broad smile graced Ed's lips, as this meant that he could sleep on the way without having to listen to the annoying and useless chatter of other passengers. Not to mention that it would be a good 14 hours before they would see the rolling hills and flocking sheep of Risembool.

Once in an available seat by the window, Ed placed his suitcase on the floor and stretched his legs out so that they took up the whole seat. Even if the train hadn't been empty, he wouldn't have made room for anybody. He was tired as hell, and needed an at least half-way comfortable nap.

Just as expected, as soon as the train began to roll, the soft motions caused Ed to lull to sleep, almost like a baby. However, he was quickly awoken by a man speaking to the passengers through an intercom.

"Attention," he began, "this train only makes 2 stops today; One in central and one in Risembool. If we happen to pick up members of the military and seats run out, you must surrender your seat to them, despite what rank they are. That is all."

Ed rolled his eyes dramatically and heaved a sigh. "Just another way for the military to exploit their ranks," he mumbled. "Damn people and their power trips." It wasn't hard to tell that Ed was in a sour mood. Not only was he dead tired from the lack of sleep from the past week, but he had just gotten comfortable when the oh-so-important announcement had come on.

After a few more moments of scowling and repositioning his right arm to be comfortable once again, he fell back into a still half-way decent sleep.

When he awoke, Ed noticed that it was the middle of the night. He checked his pocket watch and it read 3:30 am. He closed it once again and put it back into his right pocket, which proved to be a slight challenge using his left hand.

"Oh, you're awake," said Alphonse who had been gazing out the window, considering he couldn't sleep. Ed nodded silently in response and stifled a yawn.

"Yeah," Ed added, "we should be home in about 6 hours; we haven't even stopped in central yet, have we?" As if on cue, the train began to slow down and the central station came into view. Unfortunately for Ed, there were actually a few dozen soldiers waiting to board. That struck him as odd, considering the time.

After a few moments, the train came to a stop and the doors opened with an audible squeak. The officers made their way on to the train, some with pocket watches and some without.

"What are they doing traveling at this time of night?" Ed asked, voicing his thoughts. Al shrugged in response, his armor rattling against itself. The soldiers continued to flood in through the doors.

Ed brought his attention back to the station to see if any more soldiers would be gracing them with their presence. Thankfully, there weren't. So, Ed closed his eyes once more, hoping the train wouldn't run out of seats, though he figured it wouldn't since it was pretty decent in size. His attempt to get some shut-eye was once again interrupted though.

"What a coincidence Fullmetal," came a voice above Ed's head. Hoping that it was just a terrible nightmare, he squeezed his eyes shut.

"Hello Sir," greeted Al, who didn't have nearly as much resentment for him. The man spoke again.

"Hello Alphonse," he replied, "What, is Ed pulling the silent treatment over one assignment?" he asked condescendingly. Ed's brow twitched noticeably.

"Shut up Mustang, I don't see you out there getting your limbs busted," Ed sneered, his voice clipping. Roy chuckled under his breath.

If you had been more careful," he began, a cocky smirk on his lips, "you wouldn't have gotten hurt." Ed clenched his one good fist, ready to send it hurling through the Colonel's teeth.

"Just drop it," ordered Ed in response, clenching his teeth as well. "What are you and the rest of these soldiers doing here anyway? The train only makes one more stop, and that's in Risembool," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Well," answered Roy, "that's where we're heading." At this, Ed's eyes snapped open, his body visibly tensing.

"And why is that?" Ed questioned, the anger apparent in his voice. Roy remained calm as he answered however.

"People have reported some stray chimeras around the area, we're going there to round them up." He held on to the back of the seat as the train began to move once more, the whistle blowing and carrying in the breeze. Roy took a seat next to Al, knowing that he wouldn't mind nearly as much as Ed would.

The elder brother rolled his eyes, clearly not believing the Colonel. "Why would you need an entire army to round up a few chimeras?" Ed questioned, the disbelief apparent in his tone. Roy took a deep breath and lowered his voice so that it was barely above a whisper.

"Alright, here's the deal," he began. "The chimeras that you were in charge of are vastly different than the ones that we're after. They're carrying life-threatening diseases. If they attack animals, they'll get it as well. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it pretty likely that people in Risembool will come in contact with animals?"

Ed remained silent, his eyes burning with concern. "Why is it that whenever something happens, even if it effects me, I'm always the last to know?" Ed asked, his voice low and infuriated. He hated being left out of all of the latest news, especially if it was important. It had been the same way when Hughes had passed away..

"You have to understand, Ed," lectured Roy, "you may be in the army, but you're still just a child." He knew that Ed didn't want to hear it, but it was true. Sure, the young alchemist had been through hell, but maturity and experience didn't always go hand in hand. However, Ed surprised the Colonel by keeping his cool.

"Do what you want Mustang, just take care of the problem," ordered Ed with an unusual amount of authority for someone who was speaking to their superior officer.

Roy nodded in agreement and Ed closed his eyes once more, hoping to get a non-interrupted sleep.