A/N: Woohoo! Hello! Thanks for all the reviews... So uhh… we're getting closer to the climax and stuff…. And uhh… poor Ed, he's sick and all. Homunculi won't make another appearance again. So I hope you said your goodbyes… Let's see… This chapter isn't filler but there isn't action happening… It's just parentellness. Even though it's a bit hidden. xD
StellatheAlchemist : I write the chapters first in my notebook and then I type it up. So since you wanted me to suffer Al, I (kinda.) did. I added that part in that wasn't there when I first wrote it. Just a tiny little bit. I don't even think it worked the way I wanted but still… I tried…
-Actually now that I look back at it, it looks more like angst instead of suffering. I guess my attempt failed. X( But at least there is Parental!RoyxAl, right? Usually people never do that since…Al has Ed to lean on. And Ed doesn't have anyone to lean on and that's why we have Roy, right? Yeah, anyways I should stop babbling.
ENJOY!
Chapter 7
The Calm Before The Storm?
"Edward Elric?" called the nurse holding up a file in her hand. She had short brown hair and smiled brightly as Ed stood up. She beckoned him to the room.
I wish nurses wouldn't smile. It's creeping me out.
Roy stared at him, arms and legs crossed. "Hurry up."
Alphonse was about to follow only to be stopped by Ed.
"Just wait here." He said annoyed.
Ed walked inside the room with quick steps. The nurse gave Roy and Al another smile and shut the door.
The doctor was also a female with black hair tied as a ponytail. She had black rimmed glasses and was wearing a dark blue miniskirt.
"Please sit down." She told him to sit on a stretcher.
"Hello Mr…" She looked at the file in her hand. "Elric. My name is Katie. Would you remove your jacket and shirt for me please?"
Ed removed them without protest. He noticed an ugly blue bruise on the right side of his chest. He crossed his arms in an attempt to hide it.
"Do you have a headache?"
"Yes…"
"Stomach ache?" She said as she touched his cheek. Ed's forehead was bandaged so she had to check his temperature somewhere else.
"No."
"Seems like you've got the flu. It is normal. We're in the middle of the flu season. You have two prosthetic limbs and your brother's telling me you're not comfortable with them." She raised her eyebrows, questioning him. Ed shifted uncomfortably.
"It's been two years since I've got them. It's normal for them to hurt sometimes…" he murmured.
The nurse came beside him and grabbed him and grabbed his automail arm. She raised it slightly and put pressure where the automail connected. Ed gave a hiss of pain. She released it and did the same for the leg. Ed winced.
"It shouldn't hurt this much though. Linda removed his arm."
"Wha-what?" But the nurse already disconnected it. She held it out for Dr. Katie to see. "This automail is really a masterpiece, I haven't seen anything like it. Though you see, it's moist. More than usual. That's the reason it's hurting. When you go back home, dry your automail. She put his arm next to him. "Now for this…" Her nicely manicured-fingers pulled Ed's arms away. She pointed at the blue little bulge on his chest."Broken rib? What kind of trouble have you been getting yourself into, young man?"
Ed didn't respond. He just suspiciously stared at the nurse waiting at his side with a needle in her hand.
"Lay down. My assistant here will give you a medicine that helps fix broken bones. It will stop internal bleeding too. That's all I can do. Would you like for me to prescribe a medicine for the pain?"
"No thanks." Edward lay down on the stretcher.
"Don't move please." The nurse smiled sweetly once again as she poked the needle in his chest.
"There, all done. You can sit back up. Don't exert yourself and don't move a lot. Rest. Now I'll check your weight." Katie said.
Edward didn't really pay attention to the scale till she mentioned the automail again.
"This is pretty heavy. How come you got it at such a young age?"
"Uhh…It was an accident…"
"I see. Now for your height."
Ed scowled as he got up, clearly not liking this.
After Dr. Katie signed off Ed's height on the paper, she turned back to him. "Rest, eat a lot of fruits and vegetables and stay warm."
"Sure….You…You're not going to tell them about my height, are you?"
Katie chuckled. "Sensitive?"
Ed reddened.
"Alright, I won't tell them about my height if you don't want me to."
The doctor exited the room, leaving Ed with the nurse.
"What's wrong, Alphonse?"
Roy examined the boy sitting next to him, awfully quiet, as he watched him fidget non-stop.
"It's just that I…"
"It's okay, you can tell me."
Al began to shake. "I doubt myself sometimes…wondering if I'm even real. I mean I can think and use alchemy and speak but… But I can't feel, eat, drink, or sleep. I feel like some sort of machine…programmed to be like this."
Roy nodded. He wondered what it would be like if he was empty. Just a soul…not able to feel…laugh…cry…
"But then I feel so guilty. I see Ed every single day, and he's trying to bring me back to my body… He gave up his arm in order to save me and he was conscious the whole time. He was bleeding all over when I woke and he still feels guilty. It worries me so much when I see him sometimes and he gets injured and he throws himself head-first into trouble just so I could be whole again. I mean I get injured too. My armor gets scratched or cut in few places but it's not like I can feel anything. But he does…"
Al put his head between his hands. "And he tries to hide things from me… When he's injured, he pretends that he's not hurt. You saw him now, didn't you? He began coughing blood. He's trying to hide it from me but I don't like it. It worries me. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if Ed hadn't brought me back. I would die and he would go on with his life without losing an arm and without all this pain…"
Roy put a hand on Al's shoulder. "Woah, woah, woah! Alphonse, you know that Ed feels guilty about what happened to you, right?"
"Ye-yes…"
"What makes you think he'll be fine if he let you die and failed at bringing you back? Do you think he would be able to go on with his life when he thought he killed you?"
Al raised his head, surprised. "I…I…Yeah but…I don't want him to get injured because of me. It's not his fault, it's mine too. We attempted it together and I just lost more than him. It's just not fair he has to go through all this. I do want to get my body back, but I don't want him to hurt like this. And he thinks I have it worse, and that if hurts me when I can't eat, feel, or sleep. But it doesn't. Not that much at least. I look at him and remember the automail surgery he went through. And I remember those nights he tried to stay up so that I wouldn't be alone…"
"Ed wouldn't want you to think like that Al. You're not a burden to him and he doesn't blame you for what happened. Your relationship with him is strong so you shouldn't be thinking that way. Maybe one day, you guys should just talk for a long time and settle things, alright?"
"Right…"
They sat in silence for the rest of the time.
Roy raised his head as the pretty doctor wearing a skirt came towards them with a paper in her hand.
That's how I want the military uniform skirts. A bit shorter though.
"For Mr. Elric?" she asked.
"Yes…" Alphonse stood up.
"He's got the flu. His automail is moist so it needs to be dried. Also, he's got a broken rib. We gave him some medicine but that's all we can do. Broken ribs heal themselves and all we can do is making the process faster. And…"
She glanced at the file in her hand.
"He's slightly underweight. Just slightly. I mean he does have impressive muscles for someone his age but he just needs to eat more. And the automail he got at young age must have stunted his vertical development. That's why he's short I assume."
Roy thought back on the night they came back from the warehouse. He had thrown the automail on his ribs. And he hadn't even given a reaction.
He bit his lip.
"By the way, I haven't told him the last two things I've told you. Does he get enough rest?"
Roy turned to Alphonse. "Well, I think so."
"Let him rest a bit more. If he stays in bed for a while and doesn't exert himself then he'll be fine."
"Thank you, doctor." Alphonse said as he went to his brother who had come out of the room.
"Are you his father?" Katie asked Roy.
"Huh, what? Oh, no…just his officer…"
Roy stood up, following after Al, and Ed who wore his red jacket. "I told you that it wasn't anything serious yet you-"
"You had a broken rib!" Al yelled.
"It's not like they could put it in a cast!"
"Still, you were coughing blood!"
"It could have repaired itself!"
"The doctor said-"
"I don't care what that woman said!"
Roy sighed. Over all the responsibility and the guilt the kid carried, he was still managing to hide his pain just like Al said. He could see Ed slightly limping and his breathing was shallow. Yet he kept sparring with his brother as if there was nothing wrong with him.
"So when did you break your rib?" Roy asked as he watched Ed dry his leg with a towel on the sofa.
"Envy did when he knocked me out." Edward mumbled. He put his leg aside as Ed removed his arm.
"Why didn't you tell us?"
Ed gave him a glance. "It's nothing important and it's not like you can do anything about it. The doctor didn't do anything either."
Yeah right. You just want to hide the fact that you're feeling pain from your brother. Because he can't, right?
"Colonel, would you help me put on brother's automail?"
How do you do that?
He stared at the complicated machinery, confused and twisted his lip.
Fullmetal's not against it…surprisingly.
"I'm not sure if I can do it correctly…"
"You just push it in…"
Edward stared at the ceiling as Al and Roy placed the automail into position.
"One." Ed nervously glanced at the Colonel just before returning his gaze at the ceiling.
"Two."
He clutched the bed sheet.
"Three."
He snapped his mouth and eyes shut just before the nerves connected with the automail. His body was on fire.
"Damn, I'll never get used to this." Edward wiggled his fingers. "Thanks…Let me help prepare lunch."
"No, you need to rest." Was the response he got from Roy. He looked away, ignoring Ed's angry eyes.
"What's wrong with you?"
"That's what the doctor said, it's not me."
"You-" Ed sat up, holding his chest.
"Just lay down." He pushed Ed back on the sofa and pulled the blankets on top of him. He smirked and walked towards the kitchen.
"Hey, Al?"
"Yes brother?" Alphonse turned to find Ed shivering.
"Can you get me another blanket? It's kinda cold."
"Sure."
Edward watched his superior officer dial someone. Probably his girlfriend.
"Uh, hello? Yes, I would like to order pizza. Just plain cheese. No olives, no peppers. Garlic bread? No, thanks. Alright. Yes, yes. If you tell him Roy called, he'll know where to come. Yeah. Thanks. Goodbye."
"You like pizza?"
"Sure." Ed replied, eyes on the books on the shelf.
"Colonel?"
"Hmm?"
"Do you think I'll be able to do Flame Alchemy if you lend me your gloves?"
Oh my God! He actually swallowed his pride and asked me! I can't believe it!
"Sure, - wait why do you have two blankets?"
Ed pulled his covers up to his chin as if he was scared of them being taken away. He shivered.
"Your house is unnaturally cold. Kinda matches your personality."
Roy ignored the little insult. Instead, he walked towards Ed. "You idiot."
Without warning, he pulled away both the blankets from Edward, leaving his subordinate shivering.
"What really is wrong with you?"
Roy touched his cheek. Ed backed up.
"It's because you have a high temperature. Do you want your situation to worsen?"
Ed crossed his arms, still shivering. "I don't care."
He looked away.
"Fine, then you-"
There was a knock on the door. "Colonel, it's the pizza."
"Oh yes, hold on."
Roy walked towards the door, grabbing his wallet.
Ed went to the bathroom. He was feeling sick in his stomach. He knelt over the sick, ignoring the pain in his chest while emptying all he ate down the drain. He took some antibiotics and swallowed them. Then he went back to the sofa. Ed snatched the blankets that Roy had taken from him. He lay down, pulling the blankets over his head. And he closed his head.
"Thanks. Goodbye." Roy closed the door, sighing in relief. What a talkative person that guy was! The pizza must have gotten cold from all that talking. He slowly sat the pizza on the counter. Then he took out two cups and orange juice from the refrigerator. He was about to begin pouring but Al stopped him.
"Uhh…Colonel?" Alphonse pointed at the lump on the sofa.
"Fullmetal, I leave you alone for a second and you manage to fall asleep."
No response.
"Hey, Edward?"
Roy slowly pushed the blankets slightly. Ed had his pale face buried in the pillows, his breathing constricted. His bangs were falling over the bandage on his head.
He pushed away his hair to look at his face.
Damn, the kid really was burning.
"Leave me alone…" he mumbled, turning his back towards them.
"But brother, you need to eat. Or you'll never get better."
"I can't…" Ed replied, pulling the covers back to his head.
"You're not going to get any better like this. Get up, that's an order."
Ed opened his eyes slightly but closed them back.
"You need to drink something warm, shorty."
"You…you've been telling me to rest…. Go away…"
"I never said you shouldn't eat anything. I'm ordering you to get up Edward."
But again, he was ignored. Alphonse poked at Ed but he didn't budge. He whined as Al's fingers came in contact with his ribs and forehead.
"Just let him be, Al. He'll be better tomorrow. I highly doubt he'll eat anything even if he managed to get up."
"Alright."
That night, Roy also slept on a sofa, afraid that Ed would wake up if Al moved him.
"So how are you feeling?"
"Fine."
"Fine enough to eat?"
Roy observed his subordinate sitting up on the couch with a blanket draped over his shoulder. His temperature had gone down but he was still shivering. His braid was undone. And he hadn't moved an inch. The doctor had told them that Ed was slightly underweight and the kid had refused to eat again.
Well, Roy had to try.
"I made some soup. And Alphonse made salad. You can't be weak when that guy appears." He looked at Ed but he seemed to be observing the floor.
"Colonel?"
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry."
There it went again. Why was Ed apologizing?
"Umm…What for?"
He coughed. "For putting you through so much trouble. You had to sleep on the couch and took me to the doctor."
"Well, it's my job."
"No, it's just that I can make my own food. You're supposed to act like my guard or officer. Not like our…Never mind. (1)"
What was Ed about to say? He stared, examining his face, looking at any signs. But Ed took them all and threw it all back at him.
He smiled. Once again, hiding all his thoughts and emotions behind that mask…
"I might as well try to eat at least. Did you eat?" he said, sitting on the table and picking up the spoon.
"Hours ago… It's four in the afternoon, you know?"
"You never got this sick before, brother. Except for that one time…" Al said, setting the salad in front of Ed.
"Don't remind me that again. But you see, now I'm kicking and ready to go!" he retorted.
"There is milk in the soup, Fullmetal."
Roy chuckled.
Wait for it… Wait for it…
Ed didn't freak out. Roy's face fell.
"It's great. I only don't like milk raw. But it's good when it's in another food." He replied as he finished the soup and the salad.
He stretched but bent down holding his chest.
"I feel so much better now! A little flu can't defeat Edward Elric!"
A little flu?
"Anyways, so where are those gloves of yours?"
Roy glanced up from his newspaper. "There's one in the cupboard."
The face expression on Edward worth seeing.
"What?"
"I always keep a spare here and there. The trouble doesn't say 'I'm coming.' Who knows what could happen..?"
Edward looked at the transmutation circle in front of the circle just before slipping it onto his left hand. He couldn't snap with his automail hand.
"So we raise the density of the concentration of the oxygen in the air right after we snap, right?"
Roy glanced up, dumbstruck. "How did you know?"
Ed smiled. "Really? I was just guessing."
"Good guess. Don't do it so much though. Adjust it correctly. I don't want my house being burned to the ground."
Edward walked towards the oven. He held his hand out and snapped. There was a red spark as the oven began burning.
"That was pretty easy. Wanna try, Al?"
"Maybe later, I'm reading right now."
Ed placed the gloves back into the cupboard and sat back on the couch.
"Great, you got it on your first try." Roy said with enthusiasm, yet his face was hidden behind the newspaper. Edward was a prodigy after all.
"Well, I did figure out what to do." Ed replied.
There was a crash from the window as shards flew out in random directions. Ed and Roy braced themselves. Few of the pieces of glass landed on Alphonse with a big thud. A glass cut Roy's arm slightly.
A rock wrapped in paper lay on the middle of the room. Roy was the first to run and grab the rock. He slowly unwrapped it as Al and Ed looked from behind him.
"I'll be here very soon. Watch out, Fullmetal Alchemist."
They looked at each other in silence as the words sank in.
(1) Ed had been about to stay "You're supposed to act like my guard or officer. Not like our father." Hehee xD
Also, the Flame Alchemy thing I wrote, I found out from Google.
A/N: Eheheheeeee...I just had to leave it like that. So we're almost coming to an end. There are only uhh…four chapters left. Next chapter will be sadistic. And by sadistic, I mean really… I don't know what came to me. xD
Tell me what you liked or didn't like.
Please review, I'd really appreciate.
AND THANKS A LOT FOR READING! ;D
