Okay, this story is an AU about Edward being caught and turned into a slave. Al tries to help him. Ed is nine and Al is eight. Yay for Elric kids!
Prologue:
Alphonse sluggishly walked through the forest, looking for his brother. Al knew he shouldn't have wandered away from Ed; they were bound to get lost. He started toward the noise of the waves, knowing that if he didn't find Ed, they could always follow the river homewards. Al picked his way through trees and bushes headed forward to the sound of rushing water when a new sound reached his ears; a scream. Al's eyes widened and he continued towards the river. He peeked out from the safety of the trees and saw his brother, near the water's edge, being held by two men.
"Brother!" Al cried. He sprinted for Ed, tripping over rocks as he went.
"Alphonse! No!" Ed had seen him.
"Stop! Go back home! Tell Mom-" One of the men hit Ed with the back of a gun, effectively knocking him out. Alphonse stopped in his tracks and tears welled up in his eyes. He couldn't leave Ed there… but, as young as he was, he knew he couldn't combat these men in battle. He started to cry.
"I'll come back for you."
He turned and ran.
I know Al would never leave Edward to fend for himself like that, but it was the only thing I could think of! I'm sorry!! Guess I didn't think this through, huh? And if you've ever read/looked at my other story (the really crappy one I wrote about two years ago), I won't discontinue this one; I've already got the second chapter mostly written. I'm gonna make it a lot longer, so excuse the length of this. Hehe. (and I think my comment was longer than the story… pretty sad huh?)