A/N: hey guys! sorry for the little wait there, but I've been busy with school and a little bit with my other elricest fanfic. so yeah... but I've still gotten quite a few of these written out in notebooks here and there, I just gotta get off my lazy bum and type them up.

anyway, this one was inspired by Al wearing Ed's old coat during the movie. I always thought it was so cute, but I also wondered what would happen if Ed ever questioned about it.

Disclaimer: see chapter one.

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VIII - "I'll Cover You"

by: If Wishes Were Blue Skies

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"Al, is that… my old coat?"

The brunette turned to face his brother, the two of them having just walked into Ed's apartment. It was the Al's first night in Munich.

But the coat… Edward hadn't even noticed it until just then, having been too preoccupied to notice it earlier.

Alphonse looked down at the red fabric sheepishly, his cheeks turning a light red. "Yeah, it is," he admitted. "Lieutenant Hawkeye gave it to me a little while after you disappeared. She said she thought I might want it."

They walked into Ed's bedroom, the blonde going over to his drawers in search of a spare pair of pajamas for his brother. Once he found a suitable pair of light blue, he handed them to Al and took a seat on his bed. The younger joined him.

"What made you decide to wear it regularly like this?" Edward wondered aloud.

Al fidgeted, his blush growing darker. "Well… at first it was because it… smelled like you," he managed out, feeling embarrassed. He could just hear his older brother's reprimanding, telling him he had been too dependent on him or something. "But when the scent went away, I just… didn't want to stop wearing it. It was like I had a piece of you with me all that time."

Silence hung in the room as Edward looked on at his baby brother. Then Alphonse looked up, silver meeting gold.

"I missed you so much, Brother." Tears welled up in his eyes before he could stop them, and was about to wipe them away, but Ed beat him to the gesture. He reached out both hands to either side of Al's face, tenderly thumbing the tears away, smiling affectionately all the while.

Once all of the tears were dried, though, Edward didn't pull his hands away. For a moment, he was still, but then he gently pulled Al closer, and planted a feather-light kiss on his forehead. The brunette blushed even more in response, eyes widening slightly, frozen hands tentatively coming to rest on his brother's chest.

Then Ed moved away and slowly lowered his hands to either of Al's shoulders, paused for a moment, and then proceeded to take off the crimson jacket.

Al's face burned red instantaneously. "Brother! What're you -?"

"You don't need this anymore," he said, succeeding in getting the whole coat off, and letting it fall into a heap on the floor. After that, he wasted no time in wrapping his arms protectively around his little brother. "I'm here now."

Alphonse was still for a moment, but soon relaxed into the embrace, thankful for it beyond words. He buried his face in the crook of Ed's arm.

"I'll cover you from now on."