It was at least a couple of hours before Elizabeth awoke. She had mumbled in her sleep once or twice, and otherwise hardly moved or shifted except to turn over on her side. When she finally began to come around, her eyebrows knit and she made a soft sound. Then her eyes slowly opened, she blinked slowly, and looked around with a tired look still on her face. Feeling something in her hand, she looked down, confused and saw...sheet. She was just clutching at the sheets. Elizabeth sighed softly, and then sat up, rubbing her eyes. She stretched her arms high into the air as she worked out the kinks throughout her body. A couple of things popped and she winced and groaned, but got over it quickly.
Looking around slowly, she spotted the glass of water on her bedside table and grabbed it, lifting it to her lips. After taking several large gulps, she set the glass back down on the table and sighed with relief. After flopping down onto the bed on her back, she took another look around and spotted Ed. "Um...hey." She mumbled, blushing with embarrassment. She had not meant to just fall asleep like that, with him lying there, but she had not really had much of a choice. Her body had decided she needed the rest.
Ed was staring at the floor. "I know you figured it out a long time ago…Why didn't you tell me, Lizzy?" He softly whispered, looking back at her, his amber eyes locking onto her.
Elizabeth's eyes widened when he used her old nickname; so he had finally figured it out. She spent several moments opening and closing her mouth, then looking around nervously, trying to think of what to say. How was she supposed to explain herself? How was she supposed to tell him her reasoning for not saying anything to him sooner? She could have reminded him at any time, but she had chosen not to.
He tilted his head slightly, waiting for her response. Ed knew she knew, and it sort of bothered him no one had told him. He just didn't understand why no one told him. He really thought he would never see her again, and after all these years he had almost given up on ever seeing her again. He slowly stood and walked over to her, glaring slightly. "I never thought I'd see you again…" He voiced, clenching his fists as he came closer and closer to her.
Guilt stung her chest when he said that. She had been afraid of the very same thing. When she had first run into him at Central shortly after being accepted into the military as a State Alchemist, deep down she had been thrilled. But when he did not recognize her, when he did not know her as she had known him, she thought he must have his reasons. Perhaps too much had happened, and she was not important enough. Maybe their friendship throughout their childhood and its importance had been one-sided, and she had been the only one to treasure it.
Whatever his reasoning, she had been happy just to be able to see him; even when they became rivals, as long as she could be close to him; that was fine. And perhaps it was better this way; if they did not remain close, and she never showed how important he was to her, her enemies would not harm him, his brother, or any of the people in Resembool she loved. Yet all this time she had not seen how selfish she had been; he had cared, and he had missed her, not knowing she had been right in front of him this whole time. She leaned back when he approached her with clenched fists, briefly worried that he was going to do something rash.
As soon as he was close enough, Edward leaned down and pressed his lips against hers very softly. He knew it was probably a dumb idea, and had done it without really thinking it through. Before she could do anything, he moved away from her and slowly limped to the door, opening it with the intention of leaving.
Elizabeth had been expecting him to yell at her, but this was more of a shock—that had been the last thing she expected him to do. Her eyes widened further and her cheeks flushed a deep shade of red. Before she even had a chance to react, however, he had pulled away and was actually trying to leave. She reacted quickly, jumping up from the bed and closing the distance between them completely. "Hold on!" She demanded, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him back. She was aware of his leg, and careful not to pull him off balance, but even if she had, her next move would likely act to catch him.
Her arms both shot out and wrapped around his lower back, while she pressed her forehead into his chest. Before he could speak, she was going to say what she needed to. "I never thought I would see you again either, Ed... I was so happy when we first met in Central... But when you didn't recognize me, I guess I understood. And I didn't want to be a burden. Not to mention I didn't want there to be any favoritism; I wasn't about to let you go easy on me just because we were friends. And," She added, having guessed what one of the more upset looks on his face had meant. "I didn't tell Roy—anyone else. I kept it to myself because I wanted to keep you safe. What do you think the Homunculi would do if they knew we were childhood friends?" She tightened her grip around his waist gently, burying her face in his shoulder for a moment. This was such a nice, familiar feeling... She did not want it to end, but after a moment she pulled back and away from him slightly, glowering. "How could you just kiss me and run? Jerk." She grumbled, pouting softly as she locked her narrowed blue eyes onto his golden-brown ones.
The blonde blinked as she started to talk about all this, "Please, I still would have kicked your ass, Lizzy." He said smiling softly. "And sorry, but I thought you would hit me." He admitted with a sheepish laugh. "But, I'm not going to go easy on you; after all, you are still my rival, Steel Wing." He said, his golden optics looking into her eyes again a small smile on his lips. His leg did feel a lot better; every now and then there would be a small surge of pain but nothing bad.
Elizabeth tilted her head to the side, raising one of her eyebrows, while a playful smirk tugged at one corner of her lips. "You know that's a load of crap. Not to mention Al is too much of a little gentleman; he never would have let you." She said, and then laughed softly. Elizabeth stuck her tongue out at him playfully. "Sure, sure. Like I would ever take it easy on you, Fullmetal." She smirked then, a very familiar smirk that greatly resembled one her cousin, Roy Mustang, often aimed at Edward when he was teasing the blond.
They would never know it, but their parents—their mothers in particular-had always half-joked their eldest children would get married one day. That or they would kill each other. It had been something the women had often discussed and laughed good-naturedly about while their children played together and with Winry Rockbell. It would seem a mother's insight was quite powerful and accurate…perhaps.
After a moment, the blond male's smile faded. "I'm sorry I didn't figure it out. It's just…so much had happened… I wasn't really focusing on my past, just trying to get Al's body back, nothing else really mattered to me…"Ed murmured.
Elizabeth's expression softened when he spoke again. Reaching up slowly and hesitantly, she touched the gloved fingertips of her left hand to his face gently and shook her head. "I thought of that. I heard...about what happened... I'm sorry... You had your little brother to look out for, Ed, and you still have to take care of him. You have way too much on your plate right now. That's why I didn't tell you then, and it's why nothing needs to change between us now." Stepping back, she removed her hand from his face, and with her right hand, she gently punched his left shoulder. "Come on, we should get moving, right?" She reminded him, grinning brightly.
Things would carry on between the two of them as normal. Perhaps that kiss was an accident, or something he had done "in the moment." She would think almost nothing of it. They had always been friends, more recently rivals, and now they were both aware of it and on the same page. Nothing would change, and it was a relief to both of them to see that now, even if they did not say so out loud.
Besides, Elizabeth thought, with everything Ed was still likely to go through to fix himself and his brother, he did not need to worry about the things she had gone through, and everything she had lost. She would never admit it to him because she refused to admit it to herself, but she was...perhaps jealous of him. He still had his brother, and she had lost her entire immediate family...
Edward looked like he was about to say something, still blocking the doorway. But before he could, a blade stabbed through his stomach from behind. There was heavy breathing from behind him and golden optics held the angriest expression anyone had likely ever seen the blond with. "Get away from her…!" Ed hissed. His flesh arm was barely moving, and there was blood dripping down his finger tips. His sides were badly bruised, beaten, and bloody, and his shirt was ripped up. The knife wound on his leg was still there, and his hair was undone and in his face.
Elizabeth spun around, eyes wide with shock and anger when she heard the sound of a blade cutting through flesh. But when, for a few seconds, she saw two Edward Elrics, that look turned to one of confusion. She knew right away one of them had to be Envy, but the question became which one?
Ed clapped his hand s together and slammed them onto the ground. He coughed up a small amount of blood as concrete move up around the imposter's ankles. The one nearest to Elizabeth smirked. "Now now, Fullmetal how did you manage to get out?" He said before shifting back to Envy blood trickling out of his own mouth.
Edward was in bad shape, but he didn't care. "You son of a—" He hissed, glaring, his bangs shadowing his eyes. He brought his arm around and moved to cut him but as he knew he would, he missed. Envy had escaped and dodged back standing in the door staring at the two Alchemists, smiling slightly.
Her question was answered when the one which had been in the room with her this whole time changed into the Homunculus. Her stomach churned, and she felt sick again. She had basically just given up all of her weaknesses to that monster, including one of her greatest ones: Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist himself. The other reason she felt sick was the fact Ed had been fighting alone while she had slept, and he was hurt pretty badly now. She turned to glare at the Homunculus with violent anger in her eyes when it spoke, mocking her friend. Then, to add insult to his literal injuries, the creature was escaping again.
"I don't think so!" She snapped as she clapped her hands together and slammed them into the floor. The doorway shifted and changed, closing itself up to form a wall through which there would be no escape. She stood between Ed and Envy, standing in a protective stance. She was ready to beat the monster into submission, but she would protect Edward and keep him from getting hurt any further at any and all cost. "It's my turn. I'm your opponent now, you bastard!" She hissed. Envy had made a huge mistake; that monster had harmed the wrong boy.
Envy glanced behind him and smirked slightly. "Oh, Lizzy, I really don't think that's fair." He said before getting into his own fighting stance.
The Steel Wing Alchemist gritted her teeth and glared even more intensely, if that were possible. How dare that monster use her nickname, the one her best friend(s) had given her! Elizabeth clapped her hands together, and then drew her flesh hand across her automail one. Underneath the bright, blue light, her automail turned into a blade nearly identical to the one Fullmetal used. Honestly, she had borrowed the idea from him; it was convenient and practical, so why the heck not?
"But I suppose if you insist, I'm not one to turn down beating you two into a pulp." A wicked grin spread on the Homunculus's face. His eyes locked onto Elizabeth before shifting to Edward.
The Fullmetal Alchemist blinked a few times and glared at Envy. The blade was still on his arm, and despite the fact that he could barely lift his flesh arm, he was in an extreme amount of pain, and he was bleeding and in pretty bad shape, he didn't seem to care. He wanted to kill Envy for ever touching, no…looking at Elizabeth. He had heard most of their conversation; after all it took a lot of time to get up the stairs. His golden optics locked onto Envy; he knew he shouldn't fight, but he had to, he couldn't just stand here! Now that he knew who she really was he knew he had to protect Elizabeth. Not just because if he didn't he would get burned, but because he knew how much he cared about her, and he wouldn't let Envy take that from him.
The raven-haired girl held out her flesh arm to block Edward and Envy alike. "Stay out of this, Fullmetal. I said it's my turn to fight this bastard, and I meant it." Her tone was positively frigid when she spoke, but the icy anger was obviously directed at the Homunculus.
Ed blinked a couple times, and then he simply nodded before looking away. He knew she could take care of herself, he had no doubts in his mind about that, but he was still worried about her.
She did not know if the blond Alchemist had heard the personal things she had divulged, but that would be sorted out later. Now she wanted nothing more than to pound this creature before them into the ground. "You're going to pay for everything, Envy!" She cried angrily, and then lunged at her target. By "everything," yes, she was referring to how it had just managed to trick her into giving up very personal information. Not to mention it had kissed her while making her believe she was being kissed by one of the closest people to her. And to top it all off, Envy had severely wounded one of her dearest friends.
Elizabeth swung her blade at the Homunculus, aiming for his already-wounded stomach, then, whether she hit or not, swung upwards, aiming for its shoulder. She would continue her assault, seemingly slashing wildly and at random, not stopping for a second. She knew how fast Envy was, so she knew she would have to keep moving as fast as she possibly could, and continue to aim for any part she could reach until she actually managed to land a hit. Her attacks were downright relentless; there would be no playing fair on her part for the time-being, especially not when she was so angry.
Envy managed to dodge most of her attacks. With how angry she was, he knew there was no way he'd have time to actually hit her at all. He also knew his only line of escape was hurting Edward past the point he already was so Elizabeth would have to stop going after him in order to go aid Fullmetal, or just trying to get to the window with an angry female slashing at him with ridiculous speeds. After he weighed his options, he smirked before dodging behind her, jumping into the air and kicking the already-wounded blond Alchemist in the stomach, who, in turn, doubled over and coughed up blood, shutting his eyes in pain.
Elizabeth turned on her heel when Envy managed to get behind her, ready to stab him anywhere she could reach, even if it meant stabbing him in the back. It was dishonorable, but she obviously did not care about honor and fairness right now. If she could create flames like her cousin, the Homunculus would have been lit on fire the instant she saw it kick Edward in the stomach. Still, her rage was burning in her eyes and somewhat blinding her.
Edward knew Envy was getting desperate, he could tell by the look in his eyes that with Elizabeth being like this Envy was afraid for his own life. Jumping back and toward the window he smirked some; he was wounded from Ed's initial attack, plus quite a few of Elizabeth's relentless slashing had hit him; he knew when he was defeated. He sat on the window sill and smirked. "Until we meet again Fullmetal Pipsqueak, Lizzy…" He grinned wickedly before falling out the window, easily landing on his feet and transforming into a random civilian in order to disappear into the crowd.
Elizabeth's first instinct was to continue chasing the monster, and only the flash of an image of Fullmetal's face in her mind made her grab the window sill and stop herself from jumping out of it after Envy. She looked around trying to pick the fake out of the crowd, but it was no use. Elizabeth growled, then leaned out the window and screamed "DAMN YOU, ENVY! I'LL FIND YOU, YOU COWARDLY BASTARD!" She yelled at the top of her lungs. Even if people stopped and stared, or tried to find the source of the sudden outburst, she did not care, and quickly retreated back into the hotel room. The monster had fled and that was something; she had it running scared, and doubted it would be stupid enough to come after them anytime soon. At least, she hoped they would be safe for a while...
Ed was glaring after Envy, until his golden optics looked over to Elizabeth. He was still bleeding pretty badly but despite all this he slowly stood, walked over to her. He wiped the blood from his lip onto what was left of his sleeve before grabbing her by the wrist. "I'm glad you're safe—" He stopped and fell to his knees, coughing up more blood as his eyes closed tightly as though attempting to shut out the pain.
Now that Envy was gone and no longer a threat to them for the present moment, her priorities instantly shifted. Ed was her only concern "Fullmetal, try not to move—"Her eyes widened when he stopped speaking and fell, coughing up blood, and she was on her knees in an instant. "Edward!" She cried, panic coloring her lovely features. She grabbed him by the shoulders in an attempt to help hold him up. She was trying to keep it together, knowing that panicking was not going to help him, but seeing him like this, it was hard not to.
"Ed, try not to speak..." She said softly, then grabbed his wrist and pulled his arm around her shoulders again. Standing slowly, bearing his weight on her own as well as she could, she tried to encourage him to walk. "We need to get you to a hospital." She murmured, reaching out and touching her wall with the hand that was not around Edward's lower back. Once the doorway had reappeared and the room was put back in order, she half ripped it open in her hurry to get him out of there and get him help.
Ed shook his head slightly. "What we need to do…as much as I hate the idea of it, is call Mustang…"He whispered, his voice was really quiet. He slowly walked beside her; he was just happy Envy didn't break his automail so he didn't have to deal with the wrath of Winry as well as the pain he was in. He looked up to her and nodded slightly. He knew he needed to go to the hospital as well, he was in a lot of pain after all, plus he was starting to get dizzy from the massive blood loss he was suffering. To be honest, he wasn't all that sure how he was still conscious. Walking beside her, he cringed and inhaled sharply at almost every step they took.
Elizabeth nodded; she was reluctant, but she knew he was right. She was going to have to call her cousin. But first things first: they needed to get Edward to a hospital. She was as cautious as possible when she guided him down the stairs, biting her lip every time he winced or made a sound to indicate he was in pain. She could tell he was slipping as they entered the lobby because he was becoming heavier and heavier. "We're almost there..." She whispered.
The second they were in the lobby, one of the guests glanced up and gasped which made the actual personnel look up and hurry over to the two of them. "Sit him down; we'll call the hospital to come get him. He's pretty pale and probably shouldn't be walking."
Ed just glared at them. "No one asked you." He hissed. He didn't trust anyone, not after what had happened before, no one except the girl helping him walk, if that was what whatever he was doing was called.
Her grip on him tightened slightly when they were approached by the hotel personnel. She too was feeling somewhat paranoid, afraid that any one of these people could be Envy in disguise. At the same time, she was still fairly certain they had succeeded in scaring it off for a while. As she glanced at her friend when they pointed out how pale he looked, however, her stomach flipped and her chest felt heavy and she knew they had a point. "Ed, they're right..." She murmured gently in his ear, then turned and stared the nearest hotel staff member dead in the eyes. "Go call the hospital. And tell them to hurry, please."
Then she led him to a sofa and helped him sit before she took a seat on the left side so her right, flesh leg was closer to him. Elizabeth reached out to help him lie down. "Come on...You need to rest. I won't go anywhere." She smiled softly, blushing faintly. Then her expression turned a little more serious and she leaned closer to him. "Don't worry—I'm still on the lookout for Envy." She whispered.
Ed glanced over to her and sighed; he knew she was right but he was still not trusting. But he slowly nodded, finally conceding. "Thanks…" And at last he relaxed. He gently reached his metal hand over, since it was the only one he could move, and grabbed her hand, smiling before shutting his eyes and passing out. He was in a lot of pain, plus all the blood he had lost; he wasn't moving-still breathing, but barely.
Elizabeth blushed when Edward grabbed her hand, taking his automail hand in both of hers and squeezing it gently. "Anytime..." She murmured, watching his face closely as he closed his eyes. She felt him go limp when he passed out, and she squeezed his hand a little tighter and grit her teeth, beginning to tremble. She had to hold herself together just a little while longer, but it was so much more difficult when he was no longer conscious. Still, she had to stay strong for him, even if he could not see her.
When the paramedics arrived, she was unable to stand, but they were lead to the two State Alchemists anyway. They loaded him onto a stretcher quickly. "Are you joining him in the back?" One asked Elizabeth, tilting his head. It was a pointless question, really, though they may not have known it; she was not about to willingly leave his side any time soon. When she nodded, he returned with a nod of acknowledgement, and then resumed doing his job, starting to get fluids back into Ed's body. She followed them into the back of the ambulance, still holding Edward's hand.
It was a short drive. When they got him to the hospital, Edward was taken immediately into surgery. He was still unconscious from the blood loss, but even so they put him on anesthesia to be safe.
Elizabeth was reluctant to let go of him and leave him, but when they arrived at the hospital, she was held back by a few nurses. She was very close to fighting them, but she knew the doctors needed her out of their way in order to do their job properly. The dark-haired girl stood in the hall for several moments, pacing as her eyes darted over every inch of the bright white walls and floors and chairs and—finally, she could not be alone with her thoughts anymore. She was about to lose it, and she needed someone with her. She found the nearest telephone, and dialed...
Roy was relaxing in his chair in his office. A small yawn escaped his lips, before he leaned back, shutting his eyes. It was so boring; why wasn't anyone here? He glanced out the window, and watched a few birds fly by before slamming his head onto the desk. "Ugh…"
It took some time because she used a secure military line instead of a more open one, but Lizzy finally got through to her cousin, Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist.
Roy blinked a few times as he heard his phone ring, but he quickly picked it up, "Mustang—"
As soon as Elizabeth heard his voice, hers cracked, but she managed to swallow the lump in her throat and speak, though her voice trembled like the rest of her. "Roy," She dropped the formalities; she did not care, it was just her and her brotherly relative. "I need you. Please, come right away." She had to swallow again to rid herself of the tears threatening to spill. Elizabeth had not even called when she had lost her entire family. She had barely managed being alone when the last of her siblings had passed—obviously, she had snapped and performed the ultimate taboo. There was no way she could be alone now, not when she thought she might lose one of her best friends.
He stopped when he heard Elizabeth's voice. "What happened?" He said in complete seriousness. He had a feeling she was fine; if she wasn't she wouldn't be calling from right now. Well, she was at least physically fine…
Elizabeth shook her head before she answered, shaking the horribly painful memories from her head, focusing on the moment. Edward was in surgery, and he was going to be fine; Roy was on the phone, and she knew he would be there as quickly as he possibly could. "Ed-F-Fullmetal is hurt..." She murmured shakily. She did not even think to mention that she was perfectly fine, at least physically, because her sole focus was on Edward. Her personal health and safety, and reassuring Roy they were still intact, were some of the furthest things from her mind.
Roy nodded slightly. "I'll be there as soon as I can, Elizabeth…" He whispered. "I promise." He said before slowly hanging up.
"Hawkeye!" He called, grabbing his coat and his gloves before walking out of his office "We're going on a trip." He stated before walking out of his office and towards Central's train station. He had a look on his face, one that said no one should stop him…no one. He walked into the nearest car after purchasing their tickets, sitting down and staring forward, waiting for his Lieutenant to join him. Then he turned and stared out the window, completely silent.
Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye had heard the concern in Colonel Roy Mustang's voice when he spoke to whoever was on the other end of that phone call. It took less than a second to figure out he was speaking to his cousin, Elizabeth Leone. As soon as he was off the phone, she stiffened; she was already ready to go at a moment's notice. "Yes sir!" She was right behind him all the way down to the car, closing the door behind him. She was right on his heel up until they took their seats on the train as well. Once on the train, she sat in respective silence with her commanding officer. No questions asked; she knew when to speak and when it was best to be silent. Not to mention comforting him right now would be downright useless since they did not yet know the exact condition of the youths they were on their way to meet.
As soon as her family member spoke, and reassured her, even promised her he would be there as soon as possible, Elizabeth's trembling lessened. Her tense shoulders went slack, and then she nodded. "O-okay...See you soon." She muttered weakly, and then hung up as well.
She returned to the hall outside the room Fullmetal was in and dropped into the closest chair to the door. Her shoulders slumped and she fell back against the wall, dropping her head back and closing her eyes. Then she leaned forward, balling her left hand into a fist and wrapping her right hand around it. She raised her hands to lean her forehead against them, placing her elbows on her knees, and there she stayed for the next several hours. She was awake, but anyone who looked at her who did not know her might think she was asleep, unconscious, or generally unaware. But if they bothered to spare a moment to look at her, they would likely notice her shoulders trembling—fortunately, no one did.