Chapter 9
The day drug by slowly, Ed mostly laid on the couch all day either reading or sleeping. Al had came back at around 12, he pulled out supplies for sandwiches and commenced to making them. Roy had sat at his desk most of the day reading the pile of books on bioalchemy. At times he had to take a break and drink coffee or something to keep his brain from melting from all the reading. He was amazed at how long Fullmetal could read, until he needed a break.
One of Ed's ears twitched.
Roy just managed to see it.
Ed's ear twitched again, this time he set his book down.
"What's wrong?" Roy asked.
Ed didn't answer. His ear twitched again.
"Ed?"
Edward bolted off the couch and ran into the kitchen.
"Edward?" Roy followed Ed into the kitchen. Roy found Ed sniffing Al's chest plate. Roy raised an eyebrow at Al. Al responded with a shrug.
"What's inside your armor, Al?" Ed finally asked.
Roy listened intently to hear a faint hiss.
"I was hoping you wouldn't notice." Al said sadly and opened his chest plate to show a cat. Al took the cat out and it started hissing at Ed.
"Get rid of it!" Ed yelled. Ed's ears pinned down and his tail grew still.
This is almost funny. Roy thought as he watched the cat and Ed glare at each other. As the cat hissed, Roy could hear a weird sound coming from Ed, it almost sounded like growling.
Roy walked over to Ed and dragged him to the living room, against his wishes, and told him to stay there. Ed reluctantly obeyed Roy's orders as Roy walked back into the kitchen. Roy walked up to Al as he still clutched the now purring kitten. "Listen Al," Roy said calmly.
"It's alright. I'll go put it back outside, in the rain." Al sighed and walked to the door.
"I never said that you had to do that."
Al paused midstep.
"If you want, you can keep it in the laundry room."
"Really?" Hope rising in the boy's voice.
"Yeah, the smell of the detergent in the room should be able to mask his scent." Roy smiled stroking the cat's head.
"Thank you, Colonel!" Al shouted in delight and pulled Roy into a hug.
"It's alright. Don't mention it." Roy wheezed as the armored boy's hug constricted the air from his body. "I can't breathe." He mentioned to Al.
"Oh! Sorry." Al released the Colonel and ran off to the laundry room to make a bed for the fluffy cat.
