Qu'est-ce que c'est? Je ne sais pas! Just a little oneshot I wrote a while back. I'm uploading it now to hold you guys over while I *ahem* continue working on my other FMA fic… yeah I don't wanna talk about it…

So, mangaverse, some mild end-of-series spoilers. I wrote this after reading Chapter 107, and this is a scene I envisioned happening later. Definitely better than the actual ending… asd;klfjasd.

So, yeah, read it. Peace.

Hohenheim was face-down several yards away. Ed threw himself at the ground beside him.

"Hohenheim!" He wrapped both his hands around the big man's shoulder. "Are you alright? Say something!" He couldn't be dead. He just couldn't be.

There was a grunt, and Ed felt a wave of hope. Slowly, Hohenheim turned his head. He peered up at his son out of the corner of one squinting eye. "Edward?"

"Are you okay?"

Hohenheim coughed. With a tremendous amount of exertion, he pushed himself into a kneeling position. "Edward…"

The slap took him so by surprise that it wasn't until his hand was on his cheek and he was facing a slightly different direction that Ed even realized it had happened. The space under his hand felt warm and was starting to prickle. He turned wide eyes on his father, who looked… angry?

"You idiot," said Hohenheim.

"Wha… hey…" said Ed. "What the hell was that for?"

"I told you to run! And you just sat there!"

"Well—what the hell was I supposed to do?"

"You should have gotten out of there when you had the chance! If it weren't for Al and Mei, Father would have destroyed you!"

Ed was too shocked to argue further, and after a moment, Hohenheim heaved a sigh. He reached tentatively forward and touched the hand on his son's cheek. "Ed… you've got to stop trying to get yourself killed," he said. "One of these days, it's going to work, and then where are we going to be?"

"If I have to die so that others survive—"

"Don't be naïve, boy. That's not the way the world works, and you know it."

Ed felt something stinging behind his eyes.

"If you want to protect the ones you love," said Hohenheim, "you have to be alive to do it. What about your brother? If you're dead, who's going to get him back?"

Ed swallowed, and it felt like a rock was traveling down his throat. "I'm sorry," he said.

"You're too selfless," said Hohenheim. "Both of you. That brother of yours—I've got a thing or two to say to him when he's back on this plane." He meant this lightly, and he chuckled, but the laugh turned into a hacking cough. Ed was instantly alarmed.

"Hey—are you okay?"

"I'll be fine," said Hohenheim, but his words sounded like he was choking.

"You need a doctor!" said Ed. "We need to get you to a hospital."

"Look at me, Edward," said Hohenheim. "I'm barely even human. What doctor is going to know what to do with me?"

"I don't know… There are alchemists trained in medicine! Maybe…"

Hohenheim shook his head. "My time is over. Leave me here… you focus on your brother."

These words sent a wave of fury through Ed's being. "No way, old man," he said through gritted teeth. "If I'm not allowed to give up, damn it, then neither are you."

Hohenheim paused, and then he started to laugh again. The effort made him cough. "Wow… I didn't know you cared," he said. His voice was hoarse.

Ed pursed his lips. "I don't want you to die." He stared at the ground. "I just got you back…" His voice was very soft. "You can't leave me again. You can't." He looked up, and his eyes were fierce. "I won't let you."

"Alright," said Hohenheim. "If you won't die on me… I guess I can't die on you, either."

"You'd better keep that fucking promise, you bastard."

As the medics crowded around, Hohenheim's laughter echoed through the empty evening sky.