You guys are amazing! Thank you so much for the reviews last chapter! :) And I'm sorry if the characters are coming across as OOC (even a little bit); this is my first FMA fanfiction ever, so I'm a little out of practice. XD Anyways, I'm going to do shout-outs for you guys in the next chapter to show my gratitude; my email doesn't always work with reviews that come in, so I'll have to give you the shout-outs next chapter. :D Thank you all so much for your support! :) Here's chapter 2! :)

Summary: Edward takes a bullet for Roy during the fight against a psychotic criminal alchemist. Parental!Roy and injured!Edward.

Roy stumbled down the cracked sidewalk, a bleeding and nearly unconscious Edward held protectively in his arms. Edward wasn't heavy by himself, but with the automail arm and leg, his weight increased considerably.

This was a lonely part of town. Literally, the loneliest part of the city was here, where Roy and Ed were. Roy mentally cursed. It only made sense. Of course the only time they needed civilization - like a hospital or safe shelter - was when there wasn't any to be found.

This was a low part of the city to be sure. There were no cars to be seen, nor were there any civilians striding down the narrow sidewalks other than Roy (and Ed, but Ed certainly wasn't "striding" down anything). There were small buildings that had definitely seen better days, and scuttling and scratching of rats and other rodents could be heard almost everywhere.

Once Roy was certain he had put enough distance between himself and Shredder (if Shredder was even still alive, which seemed impossible), he ducked into an alley, knelt down, and gently - ever so gently - set Ed down against the side of a building. Ed coughed and swatted an imaginary fly with a weak hand, but other than that, didn't move.

"Alright, Edward," said Roy, "let me look at those wounds…"

"I'm fine," Edward muttered, waving his hand again, slapping Roy's shoulder, but he wasn't strong enough to take down Roy on a regular day, much less when he was wounded, so he really didn't have a say in the matter. Roy unwound his makeshift coverings and lifted Ed's leather jacket and shirt, just enough to see the entrance wound piercing his abdomen.

Roy sucked in a sharp breath.

Dangit, it's still bleeding, what do I do now…?

Edward followed his gaze and chuckled hoarsely. "Oh…" he said. "That...that doesn't look...too good."

"You think?" said Roy, leaning Ed forward and checking the exit wound. It was the same story on either side; blood, and lots of it.

"You could...cauterize it…" Edward said, forehead pressing into Roy's shoulder. "Y'know, with...with alchemy…"

Roy didn't know much about healing alchemy, but he knew that yes, he could cauterize both of Ed's wounds...that would stop the bleeding...but he still didn't know…

"Edward-" Roy started, but Ed cut him off fiercely.

"No!" snapped Edward, suddenly very angry, jerking away from Roy. "I said to cauterize it, you…!" He coughed twice, bringing a gloved hand to his mouth. "Y-Y-You b-blasted id-" Cough, cough. "-Idiot…"

Well, the fight certainly hadn't been beaten out of the kid, but that didn't mean he was in good shape - or even decent shape, for that matter. Roy was surprised Ed hadn't already fallen unconscious, or worse...died.

"Alright, alright," said Roy, realizing that, despite what he would have wanted, this was the only way. Without proper supplies, means of transportation, communication devices, or a hospital, Ed would bleed out unless he cauterized the wounds. "Just...relax, kid, alright?"

Edward sucked in a deep breath and nodded, blond bangs plastered to his forehead with sweat; a red streak of blood painted a section of his loose, unwinding braid. "Just...warn me...when you're about to start...alright…?"

"Alright…"

And with a snap of his fingers, Roy got to work. This wasn't the first time he'd cauterized a wound. There had been other occasions, with other subordinates, but this was the first time he'd ever had to do it to someone as young as Ed. And this was the first time he'd done it on someone as quiet as Ed, too. The kid was only fifteen, and yet, when Roy's carefully controlled flames danced over his wound, sealing it shut in the only way they could, the only thing Ed did was grimace and clench his teeth, nothing more.

Sometimes, it was easy to forget how young Ed really was. Sometimes, with the "tough guy" act Ed always put on, it was easy to forget that he really was just a kid.

By the time both wounds had been cauterized, the bleeding coming to a halt, Edward was slumped against the wall of the alley, eyes shut. Roy removed his glove and snapped twice in Ed's face.

"Hey," he said, "you still with me?"

Ed blinked his eyes open and released a long breath. "That was nothin'...compared to...automail surgery," he muttered. And then, he smiled tiredly up at Roy. "Thanks, jerk…"

"Brat."

"Idiot."

"Twit."

Ed opened his mouth to object, but he must have changed his mind at the last second, because he snapped his jaw shut with an audible "click." He leaned back against the alley's wall and let out an exhausted sigh, resting one hand over his stomach.

Thunder and lightning further disturbed the already ominous sky, and this time, it was accompanied by a few raindrops that started making their appearance. Roy looked up for a moment or two, and then back down the alley. Finally, his eyes returned to the wounded, exhausted alchemist before him.

"Come on, we can't stay here," said Roy, re-tying the cloak around Ed's waist, just in case the wounds started bleeding again. "If it starts raining and we're still outside, we're in trouble."

Storms were unforgivable this time of year. They would be shown no mercy.

Roy knelt in front of Ed, his back to him. "Wrap your arms around my neck."

Ed stubbornly shook his head. "Y-You're not carrying me again…"

"Well, you sure aren't walking, so I don't know what else you hope to do," said Roy, frowning.

"Urgh...fine," Ed muttered, going with it without much of a fight (a sure sign to Roy that the kid was in more pain than he let on), and one he cooperated, Roy was able to hoist him up onto his back. Ed hissed in pain, but relaxed soon after.

The rain was picking up again, and Roy headed down the alley, looking between abandoned buildings. "Gotta get out of the rain…" he said. Without proper supplies, they were as good as gonners.

"R-Right…" said Ed, not bothering to open his eyes. "'C-Cause you're useless in the rain...or...more useless, I should say…"

"I could easily drop you. You know that, right?"

"I d-didn't ask to be c-carried...by you…if you drop me, y'know, I could strangle you...if I wanted to...after I recover..."

"You aren't tall enough."

"With that comment...you just stooped low enough...for me to reach…"

Despite the situation, Roy couldn't help but smirk. "You do realize you just called yourself short, don't you, Fullmetal?"

He expected Ed to flip out and shriek in horror, because Roy was right, so Roy was surprised when Edward didn't answer at all. This made Roy pause. He'd just mocked Ed's height, and Ed wasn't threatening him or calling him names no fifteen-year-old should know. Something wasn't right.

He looked over his shoulder. Ed's eyes were shut, breathing deep and normal for the first time since getting shot. Roy sighed; he should've been expecting Ed to fall asleep.

"Alright," he said to himself, as he hoisted Edward further up his back to ensure he didn't fall, "shelter...right…"

The rain was getting heavier, and Roy was growing desperate. It was cold, Ed was hurt, and there was no way they'd be getting back to Central any time soon...so where to go?

Roy thought it over for a sec, then went into the only place he knew: the first abandoned building he saw. The door was rotting, so all he had to do was kick it, and it caved in on itself, giving Roy a clear entrance. He headed inside instantly, finally getting out of the cold storm.

The house was definitely abandoned, but it was still in surprisingly decent condition, considering how the outside of it looked. There was a tiny kitchen crammed in with the somewhat less-tiny living room. A threadbare couch with tears and holes was placed along the far wall, beside a crumbling grandfather clock.

It wasn't much...but it would have to do.

The first thing Roy did was head over to the couch. He sat down on the edge of it and carefully pried Ed's arms from around his neck; after that, he laid the kid down on his side, so he wouldn't aggravate either of his wounds. Ed didn't even protest to being moved around, which proved just how deeply asleep he was (asleep, not unconscious; Roy could tell this much).

After making sure his jacket was wrapped securely around Ed's shoulders, Roy got up, left his rain-damp glove on the counter to dry, then started searching for anything he could use as bandages or blankets. He still wanted to keep Ed's wounds wrapped.

As he rummaged through a cabinet, he glanced over at the couch. Ed was ridiculously pale, and he shivered despite the cloak around his shoulders.

He should really get to a hospital… Roy thought, as he dragged numerous blankets from the cabinet and slung the first aid kit over his shoulder. I wonder if there's a working landline around here…

He traded out Edward's blood-stained cloak previous used to staunch the bleeding for bandages, then threw multiple blankets over him. The two alchemists hadn't come out of the storm particularly wet, but Roy didn't want to take his chances with Ed catching a cold. Their situation was bad enough as it was, so sickness would just be adding logs to the fire.

Once his glove dried enough to use, Roy lit the wood furnace and sat down at the end of the couch Ed was sleeping on. Anyone else Ed's age would have taken up the entire couch, but Ed was so small there was still plenty of room for Roy to sit down.

After checking Ed's bandages one final time, just to make sure they were still in place, he leaned back, his own fatigue finally catching up with him.

He leaned back and was asleep as soon as he shut his eyes.

…

When he woke up again, he didn't know what had woken him right away, or how much time had passed. He felt somewhat more rested than before, but still tired. Glancing at the window told him that not only was it still dark, but the storm was stronger than ever, lightning and thunder cracking and rolling throughout the sky.

It took him a moment, but he finally remembered where he was and why he was there. He sighed heavily; as long as that storm kept up, there would be no going outside and walking back to Central, and in Ed's condition, there would be no walking at all on his part.

This was all very unfortunate.

And speaking of Edward, "Are you awake, kid?" Roy asked, glancing over at his subordinate. Edward was now sprawled on his back, breathing hoarsely through parted lips, the blankets Roy had thrown over him earlier still wrapped around him. He seemed to be sleeping soundly, cheeks red and eyes shut -

Wait.

Cheeks red…?

Roy leapt up from his seat instantly and knelt by Ed, panic beginning to overwhelm him. "No, no, come on, please no…" he muttered to himself. "As if getting shot wasn't bad enough…"

He slapped his hand to Ed's forehead, probably with more force than he intended. Ed didn't even flinch.

Roy cursed under his breath.

Ed was burning up.