Storm
Lightning arced across the night sky, a fork of blinding energy lighting up the countryside and providing a source of intense fascination for a young boy with his nose pressed up against the window pane.
"Hey Al, you know that book I'm reading says lightning contains millions of volts of electricity," he said excitedly, bouncing onto the tips of his feet. He had to be on his tip-toes to get a good view out the window anyway. "Just think of all that energy condensed into a single bolt… and it lasts for less than a sec-" he was cut off by a deafening crack of thunder, and a simultaneous shriek from the small form huddled on Ed's bed.
"Al?" He peeled his face from the glass to take a careful look at his little brother. The room was far darker than normal, even at this hour of night. With the moon and stars veiled by roiling storm clouds, he could only make out the vague outlines of shapes, mere smudges of grey in the overwhelming blackness. For a moment it made him a little intimidated- but he swallowed that down real quick. After all, Edward Elric wasn't scared of anything. That was what he'd told Alphonse, and he couldn't let his own brother think he was a liar.
"Alphonse?" he tried again.
"Ed?" Al's voice was quivering- although Ed could tell he was trying to hide it. He took a step in the general direction of the bed, careful to avoid the toys he was sure were strewn across the floor- Al had been having a rather adventurous game of Knights, Horses, and Alchemists (and assorted figurines) in the afternoon, and had even dragged Ed out of his absorption in a physics book to join in the epic battle.
"Hey, Al, what's wrong?" He paused in sudden realization. "You're not scared of the thunderstorm, are you?" He couldn't help but allow some surprise, and a bit of a scoffing tone into his voice.
Al's only response was a small subdued noise that might have been a whimper.
Ed pursed his lips- and then another fork of lightning lit up the room in startling clarity for a half-second. It was just enough time for him to see the figure curled up with a blanket pulled over his head, shaking slightly. The sight made Ed's heart clench.
Scientific observation of the storm forgotten, he rushed across the room- stubbing his toes several times in the process- and clambered up onto the bed beside Al. It took a bit of fumbling around in the dark, but he found the edge of the blanket yanked over Al's head and gently pulled it up. Thunder boomed, sounding closer than ever.
"Al?"
Then he was knocked abruptly onto his back as his brother lurched forward from under the safety of the blanket and clung to him like a baby monkey clings to its mother's back... or maybe like a hawk clings to its freshly killed prey- his little brother's grip was painfully tight.
"Easy, Al," he said, pushing himself up into a sitting position again. His left hand managed to find the top of his brother's head- which was buried in his chest- and pat the hair in what he hoped was a comforting manner. Al was a pretty enduring child, but when he did need comfort, it was generally their mother he relied upon, not Ed. He searched desperately for something to say. "It's just a storm." Maybe that wasn't so good.
"I've n-never heard a s-storm this b-big before," Al quavered into his shirt. "I-it's like it's r-right on top of us!"
Ed frowned. "It can't hurt you. It's only a little thunder and lightning."
Al just hugged him tighter. "But your book says that when lightning hits a tree it can catch on fire. What if- what if it hits our house?"
"You were reading my book?" Ed demanded. He wasn't particularly annoyed… only curious. Al had never seemed quite as interested in research and knowledge as Ed was. "Well, you obviously didn't read the whole thing, silly. Houses have special things called lightning rods that…" he struggled for a way to explain it, "that put the lightning in the ground so it can't start a fire."
Al's grip loosened… but only a little. "Are you sure, brother?"
"Of course I am. I promise… it's not going to hurt you."
"Or you or Mom?"
"Me and Mom are both safe too."
Al leaned back a little and scrubbed at his eyes. "Okay."
Ed let out a breath, relieved. Maybe he was pretty good at this comforting business after all. All it required was a little scientific explanation, and-
The next lightning flash to light up the sky had Al starting so bad his head clipped Ed's chin.
"Ouch!" Ed complained, and Al curled in on himself, disappearing into the folds of the blanket.
"Sorry, brother," he said contritely, voice still unsteady. He was shaking again.
"What's wrong now?" Ed tried to keep the thread of annoyance out of his voice, but he wasn't very successful. He could almost feel Al's wince.
"I'm sorry, brother," he repeated. "I just- I'm sorry." He looked completely miserable, hunkered down with the thin blanket stretched over him, head bowed and eyes faintly glimmering with unshed tears. Ed stared at him- and realized his little brother was embarrassed.
"Aren't you ever scared, brother? Even just a little bit?" Al's voice was impossibly quiet and small-sounding.
Ed opened his mouth to say no, of course not- he had a reputation to maintain- but he looked again at Al's shivering, terrified, and worst of all ashamed form, and decided there were some things more important than giving your brother the impression that you were perfect.
"Yeah," he admitted. "Everyone's scared of some things, Al." When the next round of thunder exploded overhead, he wrapped his arms around his little brother and held tight. "You know, I used to be afraid of thunderstorms too." There went Ed's pride… but Al's subtle relaxation under his hold was worth it.
"Really?"
"Uh huh. I was scared 'cause I didn't know what they were- I didn't understand them. So I went to the library and read all the books I could find about them. Then once I knew what was going on, I wasn't as scared anymore."
"Well, how do storms work, then, brother?"
"Uhh… lightning has to do with positive and negative charges, and the…"
Alphonse was looking up at him with bleary, tear-filled, and sleep-deprived eyes. Maybe now wasn't the best time for a thorough scientific explanation.
"All you have to know, Al, is that the storm is a natural force of the environment. Lightning is just like… like the electricity in a gas light. And thunder is just the sound lightning makes. That's not scary, is it? As long as you stay inside, there's no way it can hurt you."
"Okay, brother." But Al still didn't sound one hundred percent convinced.
"I won't let it hurt you," he said finally. "I promise I'll look after you."
Hearing this vow, Al's shoulders slumped in relief and when his eyes met Ed's they were filled with trust and the assurance of safety. It made Ed feel very big and mature and just a little bit worried that Al placed so much stock in him. Was he ready? Either way, he had to start looking after his brother somewhere...
"We should probably try to sleep 'cause it's late," he instructed, then paused. "What are you doing in my bed anyway, Al?"
"Uhh," Al ducked his head. "...'cause I feel safer here," he blurted out in a rush. Then, quieter, and muffled against Ed's shirt: "Can I stay?"
While a small part of Ed rebelled against this sickening display of ooey gooey feelings that Winry would definitely approve of, most of him was too busy being an older brother.
"Sure," he said, and laid down, pulling the blanket across both of them. Al snuggled into his side gratefully.
He knew when Mom found them in the morning she'd be pleased- she'd kiss Alphonse's cheek and give Ed the more dignified attention of a pat on the head. His mom was smart; she'd know Al had been frightened of the thunderstorm, and that Ed had taken care of him. She'd call him her little man and he'd glow with pride.
But gaining his mother's pride wasn't the only reason he had wrapped his arms around his little brother's shoulders, and let Al cling to him- despite the fact that Al's grip wasn't exactly comfortable. When Al had looked at him with his wide, frightened eyes, Ed knew down to the very core of his being that he had to fix this. It was his job- and not just 'cause that's what people told him, but because Ed could feel a surge of protectiveness and love in his core and it all belonged to the young boy cuddled against him.
He closed his eyes, and relaxed into the rhythm of Al's breath on his neck. When the next lightning bolt struck the earth, his little brother didn't even flinch.
FIN
A/N: Just some harmless brotherly fluff between lil!Ed and Al that I wrote ages ago and finally decided to post. Apologies for the lack of plot xD If you liked it, please drop a review and let me know if you'd like to see more FMA from me. Now that summer's here I actually have time to finish things.. yay!