This is supposed to be a drama and the first chapter, I admit, is rather short. Please like, and respect.
Edward was shocked. Beyond shocked. Too shocked to speak. Too shocked to move. To do anything.
Alphonse walked into the room, holding a suitcase. Putting it down, he opened his arms for a hug from his beloved brother. "I haven't seen you in ages since you moved down here!"
Ed didn't answer. In fact, he put his head in his arms and sighed, a long, weary, melancholy sound. His brunette brother saw that Edward now wore simple clothes, just a white shirt and black leather pants. His red coat hung off in the corner.
Forgotten.
Trying to strike a cheerful note in the noticeably dismal room, Alphonse said, "Well, my two children are growing up fine. Adeline lost two teeth the other day…"
"That's fine." Edward answered. His voice was rough and husky, considerably shaken. "I haven't seen my niece and nephew in a long time. I wish they came along this time."
"I tell them you said that! They begged to come, but I didn't want the hassle of lugging around a five and a six year old, too. What about Matthew and Sena?"
"Oh. They're just dandy. Matthew just turned fourteen. Sena is twelve. They get along, I guess. They've been trying to do alchemy, but it takes 'em a long time."
His disturbing manner put Alphonse at unease. The boyish man could see the drops of crystals slipping down Ed's tanned face.
Tears.
"Brother, what is the matter?" He asked, putting a large hand on his sibling's shoulder. "Please, what's wrong? Do you feel sick?"
"N-no Alphonse. I'm fine. In fact, in the physical sense, I feel fine. Just, my heart is broken. And it can't be fixed."
"Wh…why?"
Ed had turned bloodshot and teary eyes to his brother. Alphonse now was startled. Ed looked completely torn apart. The Fullmetal Alchemist, crying. Golden eyes full of pain and sorrow. Emotional stress was clearly coursing in Edward's veins, and Alphonse knew something was terribly, terribly wrong.
"Please, brother, tell me!" His pleas were like the call of a seagull against ocean waves. It just sunk into the mist. Edward's gaze stared, but not on anything. It didn't connect with anything in the room. Then finally, sadly, angrily, in distressed, he said:
"Winry has cancer."
Alphonse stopped, every muscle in his body screaming to a halt. Each thud of a heartbeat throbbing through his head. His mind wouldn't comprehend. "What?"
"Winry has cancer. A form of bone cancer that no alkehestry can cure."
"No. No Brother. This has to be a joke. I don't believe it. Winry is the healthiest person I know. How could she get cancer?"
"She was complaining of extreme pain in her left shoulder and left leg. She said her head was pounding and she felt sick to her stomach. So I took her to a doctor that lives in the town. He diagnosed her with bone cancer."
Alphonse began weeping quietly. "My sister-in law is sick and ill, but I can't do anything! H-how long does she have?"
"Six months."