Title: Lullaby for a Stormy Night
Author: AkizukiSakura
Pairing(s): None
Spoilers/Warnings: There are spoilers, but if you hadn't seen the series, why would you be reading this? None of the spoilers are too major, though. Un-beta'd.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. I make no monetary profit from the writing and posting of this, or any, fanfiction. 'Lullaby for a Stormy Night' belongs to the very talented Vienna Teng. The lyrics are posted at the bottom to save you the effort of Googling them.
Notes: First in my For the Fuhrer's Love mini-series. No pairings. The reason Al knows Ed can sing. Too long to be a drabble, too short to be a one-shot. The song is Vienna Teng's 'Lullaby for a Stormy Night', as the title suggests. Please enjoy.
Lullaby for a Stormy Night
Edward Elric used to be afraid of the thunderstorms that swept the otherwise calm fields of Risembool. He didn't remember the fear, of course. He remembered his mother's light teasing, though – she always said that she wasn't going to sleep well when it stormed at night.
It was only when Alphonse was born and mommy and papa told Ed that he was a big brother now, and that big brothers were big boys who helped their mommies take care of their brothers, that Ed realized being afraid of lightning and rain was silly. He was a big boy, right? When Al cried and mommy was doing the dishes, it was Ed who toddled over to his little brother with a pacifier.
Sometimes Al just wanted mommy, though, because mommy could feed Al in a way that Ed couldn't (not that he hadn't tried, to his mommy's amusement). Mommy always praised Ed when he tried to help, and as Ed got older and Alphonse got older, Ed realized that Al was scared of thunder and lightning. Ed was still a little frightened, too, but he hid it well, because big brothers weren't supposed to be afraid of anything.
When Al was scared, mommy sang to him. Mommy's voice was soft, and sweet, and Ed always felt something in the brightest part of his heart glow just a little more when he heard mommy sing. Mommy said it made Ed happy because she used to sing for Ed when he was scared, too, and that warmth was because he was remembering.
Mommy sang to Al, telling him that it was all right because she was here, and that the rain would go away. She sang about the howling wind, and how it was only sound, and the booming thunder and the crackling lightning. She sang of the shadows cast by the trees, and about growing up, and how everything was going to be fine when it was morning.
Ed was learning to read because papa was teaching him, sort of (Hohenhiem couldn't resist big gold puppy eyes, as it turned out), and Ed had read a book about storms. He knew all about them, and why he didn't have to be scared, but Al calmed down better when mommy sang than when Ed tried to explain.
Even as a little tiny baby, Al always seemed to love looking at the sky. Mommy would bring Al outside in his little cradle, swaddled in sweet-smelling cotton, when she did the laundry. Ed tried his hardest to help, climbing proudly on his wooden bench so that he could reach the drying line, and when they were done mommy would give him some juice and they would all stare at the sky, watching the clouds skitter by. Al slept a lot during this time, but when he was awake he always seemed fascinated by the sky.
Papa was very rarely there, because he was usually in his lab, but that was all right. Papa taught Ed things, and momma gave him and Al lots of love, so even if pap wasn't always there, they were still a family. They were still happy.
Al loved to watch the clouds, but his little bronze eyes were most often fastened on the moon. Mommy said that it was nice, because Al didn't fuss at night like Ed had, but that it would be all right even if Al did cry at night because she loved them both very, very much anyway.
Ed had almost squashed his fear of the rain completely by the time he was old enough to help Al when he had to go potty at night. Then papa left mommy, and that night it was raining, and Ed found that he was just a little bit scared again, so when Al cried during the nighttime thunderstorms, Ed got up and crept to the door so that he could hear mommy singing to Al. Mommy missed papa, but she took care of Ed and Al and that's all either of them could ever want.
Ed taught Al where the storms came from when they were older, as Ed was teaching Al to read from papa's old books, and even though Al knew, he was still scared. He didn't cry anymore, but mommy could always tell, and every time it stormed at night, mommy would come in with a cup of water and sing him back to sleep.
The night mommy died, it rained, but mommy wasn't there anymore to soothe Al. Ed sat up all night listening to his little brother's sobs and valiantly pretended that he wasn't crying along with Al, because big brothers had to be strong for their little brothers, and strong brothers didn't cry, not even when their mommy died and their papa had refused to come home and make her better.
It didn't rain again until after mommy had been buried, but Al sniffled under his covers anyway. Ed knew, because he and his little brother shared a room now, because the house was so big and they didn't want to feel so alone. Ed listened for a little while before he wiped his eyes and left the room.
He came back with a cup of water and sang quietly to his brother until Al went back to sleep, and from then on, whenever it stormed, Ed sang to his little brother, even when they trained with Teacher. Even when they studied to bring back mommy. Even when Al was armor and couldn't sleep anyway.
When Ed finally plucked his brother's emaciated body from the Gate's clutches, Al was very weak. He had to go to the hospital, and Ed stayed there with him. That night, a storm swept over Central, and Ed had smiled tenderly at his dozing little brother, taken his thin hand, and began to sing softly. For the first time in so many years his little brother smiled in his sleep the same way he used to for Mom. For the first time in so many years, his voice reached his little brother's flesh-and blood ears, and Al was the way he was supposed to be.
For the first time in so many years, everything really would be fine in the morning.
little child, be not afraid
though rain pounds harshly against the glass
like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger
I am here tonight
little child, be not afraid
though thunder explodes and lightning flash
illuminates your tear-stained face
I am here tonight
and someday you'll know
that nature is so
the same rain that draws you near me
falls on rivers and land
on forests and sand
makes the beautiful world that you'll see
in the morning
little child, be not afraid
though storm clouds mask your beloved moon
and its candlelight beams, still keep pleasant dreams
I am here tonight
little child, be not afraid
though wind makes creatures of our trees
and their branches to hands, they're not real, understand
and I am here tonight
and someday you'll know
that nature is so
the same rain that draws you near me
falls on rivers and land
on forests and sand
makes the beautiful world that you'll see
in the morning
for you know, once even I was a
little child, and I was afraid
but a gentle someone always came
to dry all my tears, trade sweet sleep for fears
and to give a kiss goodnight
well now I am grown
and these years have shown
that rain's a part of how life goes
but it's dark and it's late
so I'll hold you and wait
'til your frightened eyes do close
and I hope that you'll know
that nature is so
the same rain that draws you near me
falls on rivers and land
on forests and sand
makes the beautiful world that you'll see
in the morning
everything's fine in the morning
the rain'll be gone in the morning
but I'll still be here in the morning
Word count (without lyrics): 1,000
AN: Just a little ficlet that popped into my head when I came up with the idea for Drunken Promise. It could be seen as a companion fic, mostly because I try not to do flashback scenes in a story unless they're pertinent to the plot. The idea came about while I was listening to Lullaby for a Stormy Night, and I realized how well it could apply to Ed and Al. It had the added benefit of giving a second reason for Al knowing why Ed can sing. The more I can flesh out this mini-series the better.
This was written in a rambling sort of way on purpose, and becomes less so toward the end, as Ed and Al are much older.
This is the first story I've ever written with a K rating. Holy cow. I never thought I'd actually write something that wasn't explicit.