Episode 7: Flames of Wrath
Winry sat on the front porch waiting for Ed and Al to return from their assignment. She yawned and stared out into the dusk horizon. The wind blew gently, throwing back her blonde hair. She caught sight of Edward and Alphonse as they walked up the street.
"Hey, you guys! Welcome back," she smiled, gleefully. "How was your trip?"
Ed walked past her without saying a word. Winry turned and watched him enter the house and close the door behind him. She turned back to Alphonse, who towered above her. Her expression was less happy.
"He wanted me to tell you that he was taking his room back," Al said, feeling guilty for Ed's sudden action. "You can take my room, Winry."
"That's okay, Al. I'm leaving tomorrow night, anyway," Winry said, trying to hold a smile. "I'm guessing things didn't go too well for you guys?"
Al shook his head. He glanced up at the window that was Ed's bedroom. "Ed took a huge hit by what happened. He thinks that it was his fault."
"What does he think is his fault?" Winry asked.
Ed lay on his bed, watching the moon cross the night sky. He was in thought about what had happened. Since he had returned home, that's all he had done. He hadn't left his room and it was now about two o'clock in the morning. All that Ed could think about was himself walking down the stairs in Dayus's house and seeing Danielle lying on the table, motionless. He kept thinking of ways he could have bettered the outcome, but then he remember what really happened and it only threw him deeper into his sadness.
Ed looked up as his bedroom door opened and Winry peered inside.
"May I come in?" she asked.
"Sure," Ed replied, not really taking notice. Winry came in and sat on the foot of his bed. They were silent.
Time seemed to stand still for Ed. Nothing seemed real at the moment, so many things had gone bad, and he didn't want to believe any of it.
"Al told be what happened," Winry said, breaking the silence.
"Yeah?" Ed said, staring out of the window.
"You do know that it wasn't your fault?"
"That's what I am told, but I can't help but feel that I played a big part in what happened," Ed explained, looking at her. "I keep thinking of all the things I could have done differently; things that could have helped."
Winry sat silently looking at Ed. He still had blood smeared on his face. Was he really so troubled that he didn't care about his cleanliness?
"You really care about her, don't you?" she asked.
"Maybe the Colonel was right. Maybe I just became obsessed because I wanted to know more about her. Maybe that's the only reason why I cared about what happened to her," Ed replied. "But, then why do I feel so bad?"
Winry looked down at the floor. "Maybe you feel so bad, because you consider her a good friend. I hope that you would feel bad if something like that happened to me."
"Of course I would," Ed exclaimed. "I wouldn't see why you'd think that!"
"I'm just saying that you aren't just 'obsessed' with finding out who she is, but that you care for her because she is your friend."
Ed sat up and smiled at her. "Thanks, Winry."
"I'm glad I could help a little bit," Winry said, smiling back. "Oh, and Sergeant Brosh came by and said that tomorrow, they're allowing visitors into Danielle's room at the hospital."
"That means she's going to be okay," Ed said, letting out a sigh of relief.
Winry stood up and picked up Ed's dirty clothes. She wasn't comfortable with all the blood, but she kept her bearing. She walked over to the door and turned around.
"I made dinner for you if you want something," she said.
"I'm not hungry, but thanks anyway," Ed replied, giving her a weak smile. Winry closed the door behind her. Ed sighed and lay back down. He returned to his thoughts. He thought most of the night until he fell asleep and into grim dreams.
When the sun rose the next day, Ed was woken by the smell of bacon. He got up and walked downstairs into the kitchen.
Winry was in an apron, cooking over the stove. She put some bacon on a plate. They looked burnt.
"Sorry, guess I was never much good at cooking. Be careful with the eggs, I think there may be some shells in them," she laughed. "The noodles are almost done. Hopefully they'll turn out alright."
Al walked in behind Ed. "Wow, Winry, why are you cooking all of this?" he asked.
"I know how Ed has his huge appetite," she laughed.
"Thanks again, Winry," Ed said. "But I'm not very hungry."
Winry looked at him. "Oh, I see," she said, sounding a little hurt. Al's hand came out of nowhere and slapped Ed in the face. Ed looked around, perplexed. He realized what had happened and rounded on Alphonse.
"What the hell was that for!" Ed yelled, holding the side of his face.
"Ed, you have to eat something! You can't just live off the air!" Al said crossly. "Besides, Winry made all of this, hoping to cheer you up!"
Ed looked at Winry. She stood beside the stove, holding the spatula in her hands.
"Maybe just a bit," he said, sitting down at the table. Winry smiled with joy, placing everything she had made in front of Ed. She sat down on the opposite side and watching him, waiting for him to begin eating. Ed took his fork and tasted the noodles.
"These are delicious!" he yelled. He began eating faster and more ferociously. Al sighed. He turned and looked at Winry, who was smiling at Ed's enjoyment.
"I thought he said he wasn't hungry," Al muttered. Winry just laughed. They both heard loud crunching as Ed devoured the bacon.
"Colonel, sir," Lieutenant Hawkeye saluted, as she stood in front of Mustang's desk. "Visitors are permitted at 1500 hours, sir."
"Thank you, Lieutenant," he said calmly. "And what of Dayus Rogers?"
"He is in critical condition, sir," Hawkeye replied. She shuffled threw papers in her hand. "The gunshot wound he received barely missed his heart."
"You would have been better off just killing him. I know you didn't miss killing him by accident. Has his sentence been announced?"
"Death - sir," Hawkeye replied. She seemed to have wanted to hold this information back.
"Tell the Führer that I personally want to be his executioner."
"But, sir - don't you feel that you may be taking this too personally -""Of course I'm taking this personally! That damn monster almost killed her! And she'd still in danger! I want to make sure that he gets exactly what he deserves!" Colonel Mustang, realizing his behavior, stood up and calmly walked over to the window. "This is the second time, Riza. I want to make sure I do something about it this time. Now please fulfill my request."
Lieutenant Hawkeye saluted him. She walked to the door and glanced back at the Colonel. He continued to look out the window. She quietly closed the door behind her as she left.
"I won't just sit here and let everything happen again," Mustang muttered. He looked around, as if to see if anyone was listening to him. He walked over to his awards frame and pulled it back to reveal a safe. He turned the knob several times. It opened and he pulled out a folder.
The Colonel walked over and sat at his desk, staring at the folder. He folded his hands together and closed his eyes. He thoughts began to wonder.
He could remember everything like it had happened yesterday. He got a call from an anonymous source that something strange had happened at his sister's house. He was told that there had been bright lights coming from the house.
Mustang had raced over there as soon as he could. Once he arrived, it seemed that no one was home, but he entered anyway. Everything seemed in order. Nothing had been broken. Nothing was out of place. He had figured that maybe the anonymous call was just a prank and that Charista, his sister, and her family had went out for the weekend. That's when he had noticed that the basement door had been left open. Charista's husband never left the basement open to anyone for any reason. It was his laboratory/study.
Mustang walked over and opened the door. The basement was mostly dark, except for a faint glow. He walked down the stairs quietly. He stepped down onto the floor and into liquid. They must have had a leak in the house. Maybe that's why the door was left open. But Mustang followed the glow to a small mass on the ground. He couldn't tell what it was; the light was too dim. He snapped his fingers for a quick glimpse of everything. Light flashed for a split second, and Roy Mustang fell to his knees in horror.
The Colonel seemed to snap out of his daydream. He opened his eyes and looked around. He was alone in his office. He looked back down to the folder.
"I'm not just going to sit here and do nothing. It's time I took action for what I lost; for what she lost. "We'll see just how far the Fullmetal Alchemist has come."
Ed grabbed his red coat and put it on. He turned to leave his study, when he saw a book lying on the floor. It was the book Danielle had taken off the shelf. He picked it up and opened it, flipping through the pages.
"Any of these things could have caused it," he sighed, turning page after page. He turned to a page with a huge transmutation circle on it. The transmutation circle he and Al had used when they tried to bring back their mother. He closed the book, not wanting to look at anything else. He and Al had to leave.
"See you in a bit," Ed said, walking to the front door.
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Al asked.
"No, you guys go ahead," Winry called after them. Ed and Al waved goodbye and closed the door.
"Winry is really trying hard to cheer you up lately," Al pointed out, as he and Ed made their way to the hospital. Ed looked at him.
"Yeah, it's kinda creepy," he replied.
They walked up to a huge hospital. Inside, they found the nurse's station.
"May I help you?" a nurse asked, noticing them.
"Yes," Ed said, "we want to know what room Danielle Faize is in." The nurse looked through her book. She stopped on a page and ran her finger down it.
"She is in room 1093, but no one is allowed to visit until three o'clock," she informed them.
"But it's two o'clock!" Ed argued. "What's it going to matter if we go in an hour early?"
"Sorry, doctor's orders."
Ed started to say something, but Al stopped him. "We can just wait an hour outside her room. It's not that long."
Ed sighed, and he followed Al down the hallway to find room 1093. They turned the corner and saw Lieutenant Bradshaw harassing a troubled looking doctor.
"Tell me what you know about her! I know that you know something. You were her doctor when she was little!" Bradshaw said, his face turning red.
"I cannot tell you, all information is confidential," the doctor said. Bradshaw seemed to loose his temper and he shoved the doctor against the wall.
"Hey!" Ed yelled, disapproving of the situation. He clapped his hands together and threw them to the ground. Large hands grew out of the ground and pulled Bradshaw to the wall.
"What the- what do you think you are doing?!" he yelled.
"You need to respect other people, there, Lieutenant," Ed said, walking up to him.
"You mind your own business, boy," Bradshaw spat.
"Sounds like you need to do the same."
Bradshaw merely glared at Edward. Ed grinned.
"Now, I'm going to let you go, and you're going to walk away without another word," Ed explained. Ed clapped his hands again and the hands around Bradshaw disappeared. Bradshaw walked away glaring at Ed. Edward ignored it and turned to the doctor.
"Thank you, young man," was all the doctor said before turning away. Ed, confused, sat down in a chair and waited for three o'clock to come. Al sat next to him.
Ed laid across two chairs asleep.
"It's amazing how you can fall asleep so fast," Al muttered. Ed mumbled in his sleep.
"I see you boys are here," said a voice by them. Colonel Mustang walked around the corner and stood in front of them.
"Yeah, so what's your point?" Ed said, his eyes still closed.
"No point. But I have another assignment for you, Elric. Report to my office a week from now. I'll have everything ready."
The doctor that Ed had saved from Bradshaw appeared and unlock Danielle's door.
"Dr. Clarkson, it's been a while," Mustang replied.
"And you, Mustang. I am guessing you are all here to see Danielle. I am afraid she is still unconscious; stable, but unconscious," the doctor said. " I must say, she is a strong girl. Whoever wrapped her wrist most likely saved her life."
Colonel Mustang looked at Ed. He, Ed, and Al walked into the bedroom. Danielle was lying on the bed. Her wrists were bandaged and she looked very pale. Ed couldn't help but feel a guilty pain in his stomach. He and Al looked at Colonel Mustang, who just stood in silence. None of them knew what to say.
"Would you mind leaving me alone with her for a moment?" Mustang asked. Ed and Al nodded their heads and left the room. Al closed the door and looked down each end of the hallway. He heard Ed behind him.
"Ed! What are you doing?!" he gasped.
"Nothing," Ed grinned, holding one end of a cord he had transmutated from the wall to his ear.
"Ed!"
"Don't worry. I'm just listening."
"Obviously."
Colonel Mustang walked over to Danielle's beside and looked down at her. "Don't worry," he said, "I plan on dealing with the man who did this to you. I'll make sure of it. He'll pay for everything. I'm sure Edward will help."
Mustang walked over to the door and opened it. Ed stood there, staring at him.
"I'm not going to help you execute Dayus," Ed said.
"I don't need your help with that," Mustang said. "I'm on my way there now."
"Look, I'm angry about all of this too, but we don't need to take drastic measures."
The Colonel stood there for a moment before walking past them both. He had a smile on his face. "I wasn't talking about Dayus." And with that said, he walked away.
"I don't understand what he means," Al said.
"Neither do I," Ed agreed. They both walked into Danielle's room. They each sat down in a chair near the bed. Both of them just stared at her, not really sure on what to say.
"This is kind of – awkward," Ed murmured.
"Just a little bit," Al said.
The door opened and a nurse walked into the room. "Oh, hello," she said. "I didn't think that anyone was in here."
"Sorry, do you need us to leave?" Al asked.
"Oh, no. I just came to check up on her." The nurse turned to leave but stopped. She turned to Ed, saying, "What is your name?"
"Edward Elric," Ed replied suspiciously. The nurse nodded her head as if she had just confirmed something.
"Danielle was talking about you in her sleep."
"WHAT?!" Ed and Al said, both surprised.
"Yes, I do believe she called you an idiotic, self-centered, midget," the nurse said, smiling.
"What?!!" Ed yelled furiously.
"Doctor Clarkson said that she would be thankful to you anyway. He's been her doctor since she was a little girl," the nurse said. Then she left the room. Ed turned back to Danielle.
"I doubt she will be thankful," he mumbled.
"Brother, I almost forgot! Winry said she was leaving today. We should be with her," Al said.
"Yeah, let's go," Ed replied.
The train sat on the track as smoke billowed out from the engine. The platform was full of people waiting to leave Central and people who wanted into Central. Al and Ed waited with Winry while she waited for her time to get onto the train.
"Hey, I'm gonna miss you guys," Winry said. "I'll come and visit again, soon, okay?"
"We'd like that," Al said.
"'Cause we're friends, and we'll always have each other," she added.
"And we'll always care about each other, no matter what," Ed chimed in. Winry smiled at him, glad that she convinced Ed that he cared for Danielle as a friend, instead of an obsession.
The train whistle blew and the three knew that it was time for the departure.
"Well, I guess I'll see you guys soon," she said, smiling brightly. Ed smiled back. Winry climbed onto the train and waved to them out of the window. Ed and Al watched as the train pulled out of the station and out of sight.
"Do you want to get something to eat?" Ed asked.
"Ed, you have such a one track mind. Is food really all you think about?" Al asked, disappointed in Ed's words.
"Great! Let's try that new café down the street," Ed said, walking away.
"Ed!" Al complained as he tried to catch up with his brother.
