A World Full, A World Empty
In the end, it didn't matter to Ed that he couldn't use alchemy. He was, after all, a brilliant, young genius. He had talents equaling, and sometimes even surpassing, those of older alchemists and scientists, from both sides of the gate. In the end, it didn't matter who was on which side, because, really, people are essentially the same. Friends can be made on either side, and people can be found easily. Some more easily than others, in fact.
In the end, it didn't matter if, on one side, he had a reputation. He really didn't like having the reputation, even though at times, it did come in rather handy, sometimes making things easier, other times even saving his life.
In the end, it didn't matter that, by all rights, he was a complete orphan. Ever since he was a young teenager, he was pretty much independent, and even had someone depending on him for survival.
In the end, all that mattered to his worlds was whether or not his little brother was beside him to chide him, to talk to him, to ask him questions, and to just… be there
----
Winry stared out of the window, Sciezska beside her worried. Winry had been zoning out a lot lately, and it was all due to the infamous brothers Elric.
"Winry?" she asked gently, leaning forward to get a better look at her face.
"Uh, yeah, Sciezska?" Winry asked, startled out of her thoughts.
"You okay?"
"Yeah…"
"No, you're not," Sciezska replied with a sigh. She knew Winry well enough to know whether she was fine or not. And she was definitely not fine. Not at all. She was thinking about Ed again. "Ed? Or is it Al this time?" she asked with a small sigh, glancing out the other window.
"Ed," Winry replied, knowing she had been defeated in the verbal/mental battle. She leaned against the seat, no longer propped up to look outside the window, but now staring at the seat in front of her.
"He… he didn't even look back. He said thanks for the automail, and then… He left. Without another word," Winry explained, tears starting to form at the base of her eyes. She blinked them away.
"C'mon. You know Ed. You know he's too in tune with his sense of duty to be able to consider feelings," Sciezska said consolingly, attempting to relax Winry and make her feel better.
No matter what she said, she never did, though.
Winry sighed and continued staring out of the window.
----
"Brother!" Alphonse Elric called as he dodged through the crowded streets of Germany. "Brother!" he gasped out as he reached his brother. He grabbed the sleeve of his shirt, his red coat billowing behind him in the wind.
"Al! Told ya not to get lost," Ed chided gently with a small smirk.
"Yeah, yeah… It's just…" Al began, shuffling his feet.
"What?" Ed asked, his eyes narrowing. He knew that look.
MEOW
Ed sighed, and looked down at the trench coat. Surely enough, in one of the oversized pockets, there was a huge bulge. And it was moving.
"I'm sorry, brother! It looked so helpless, and it looks like it's going to starve! Besides, it could get hit by a car, or…" Al trailed off, having noticed his brother's single finger put up in an attempt to quiet him.
"It's okay. We live alone now, and our apartment allows pets. You can keep him, but you're paying for it," Ed said with a smile.
As long as you're here with me, and I'm not alone, anything to make you happy…
----
'Al sure is lucky. In Ed's eyes, the only one who matters… is Alphonse…' Winry thought wistfully, back to staring out of the window of the train, and once again thinking of the brothers.
And all she had was Sciezska.
A/N: I just re-watched the movie, and I felt like I had to do this. I'm actually kind of happy with it, even though it makes little sense. It's basically a drabble with more dialogue. The beginning part, in italics, was going to be the entire original thing, but I decided that was a bit short, and, er, elaborated.
And I'm not saying Sciezska is bad or anything. I'd probably be (somewhat, I wish I had photographic memory...) like her. But, ya know, doesn't add up to Ed.