Chapter 9: Nightmares and Dreams

* A/N: Sorry the plot is being sluggish... it's just not cooperating... maybe it's karma for having killed that kid... definitely not procrastination...

"Why couldn't you save me Edward?" Maes Hughes cocked his head, frowning at Edward. "I had Gracia and my darling daughter." He bared his teeth cruelly, "Yet you had nothing. You didn't have a family, hell, all you had was Al in that suit of armor." Edward stared at disbelief at him.

"I'm sorry."

"Everybody's sorry hun." He turned at the sound of the feminine voice. "You two just didn't learn and kept screwing people over." His mother smiled at him, then clapped her hands together in a mock transmutation. "You two never learn."

"Mom…" Edward felt his blood run cold. "Why?-"

"Big brother?" he turned, fearing the dog-girl that would face him.

"Nina…" he turned and gasped. The little girl and her dog were two souls, two bodies, and standing next to them was Karon, his scars whiter than ever.

"Big brother, why did you let us get hurt?"

"Yes Edward… why did you let me get hurt?" Karon finished, glaring at him, "You could've stopped it. You were in the room when it happened." He looked hurt, dejected.

"I-I-" Edward gasped as Hughes wrapped his arms around him and jerked hard, upwards, cutting off his air supply.

Everyone was piling onto him, ripping at him with sharp claws, and he didn't have his alchemy to defend himself. Vulnerable…

"AL!" he sat up quickly and coughed, limply grasping at his leg under the blankets. The harsh dull pain was lingering, and he could feel the limb swelling.

"Brother!" Al was in front of him, eyes alight with worry.

"It was just a dream…" he murmured, lowering his head and feeling his stomach grumble at the smell of food.

"You're okay?" Al asked, stepping back hesitantly. Edward didn't fail to notice that his brothers hands were poised ever so slightly upwards, like he had just finished a transmutation.

"Yeah…" he trailed off, his eyes glazing over as he smelled food. "Who's cooking?" Alphonse chuckled.

"Dr. Knox's wife." Alphonse looked to the kitchen and lowered his voice, "him and his son went to go help Major Armstrong…" Alphonse shifted, obviously uncomfortable with the turn in the conversation.

"Smells good." Ed tried to remark casually, don't think about it. Don't think about how it felt-

"Brother?" Alphonse knelt by his head and Ed wondered vaguely how long his brother had been sitting like that.

"Yeah?" Edward laid back down and turned to face his brother, wincing at the pulling at his leg muscles.

"It-" Alphonse hesitated, "I've never seen anything like it." He looked at Edward and smiled, decidedly trying to remove the dark atmosphere. "Come on, I'll go get you some food and you relax." Alphonse moved to get up until Ed's hand grasped his arm.

"What happened to him?" Edward chocked out, his eyes softening, "Please Al… I need to know."

"I don't know…" Alphonse settled back down and stared at his brother, "What do you remember?"

"Seeing him… lying there…" Ed shuddered, then looked up at Al, "then it gets kinda fuzzy…" he leaned back and breathed through his nose.

"Oh!" piped up a voice from the kitchen area, causing the brothers to jump. "You're awake!" looking up Edward saw a graying lady, her face smiling at him as though he were a grandson. "I bet you're hungry." She made her way over with a tray, plates clattered and wiggled as she hurried over.

"Thank you." Al murmured, always polite. He took the trey from her and held it out to Ed, frowning when Edward pointedly ignored the milk. "Ed." He warned, handing his brother a fork and watching him lean up, shoveling food into his mouth as fast as he could. "You should eat slower." Al chided, taking a slow bite and looking at Mrs. Knox with a smile. "It's very good."

"Well thank you dear." She smiled in return and looked at Ed. "My husband said that if you felt up to it you could start moving around with the crutch." She smiled at him and slowly made her way out of the room, offering privacy.

"Crutch?" Ed scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I don't suppose there'd be anyway I could talk you into transmuting my leg?" he joked, looking at Al.

"Don't joke about that Ed." Al gave a short laugh, spooning some more food into his mouth.

"Worth a try though." Edward shot back, retreating back to silence as he practically inhaled more of the food.

"So go our plans, huh?" Al looked at the floor and tapped his foot. "What now?"

"We'll," Edward swallowed and looked at Al with a slight smile, "we'll need to figure out what happened to him." Edward looked down, "I'm sick of people being hurt by alchemy."

"Me too." Al agreed, setting his food aside and murmuring, "Me too."

"We'll catch a train tonight… maybe go visit teacher, then go find some information."

"I do want to go to Xing." Al offered.

Edward wasn't sure what told him that Al wanted to go alone. Looking back on it he guessed that maybe it had been because they knew each other so well that they could just read each other. Something in Al's eyes told him that his little brother wanted to go alone… and Edward had to admit it stung a little.

"And I want to go to the West and South." Edward smiled at him comfortingly and put the dish on the floor. "I think it'll do good to split up- y'know… cover more ground." He saw Al mouth 'thank you' and left it at that.

"So we're gonna go visit teacher?" Al asked after a moment, staring at his brother.

"yeah…" Ed sighed, "It'll be slow though, with this leg." He tapped it gingerly and smiled at his brother apologetically.

"no… it's fine." Alphonse looked at Ed.

"Al…" Edward frowned, a thought came back to him, It wasn't alkehestry… "If what killed Karon wasn't alchemy or alkahestry… than what was it?" Edward looked at Al and put a hand to his head. "Damn it!" Edward opened his mouth to shout another profanity when the door opened to reveal Dr. Knox and another doctor.

His face scarred and elderly Dr. Marco looked at Ed's leg with skepticism.

"I can patch it up quick, but it won't be pretty." He murmured, laying cool hands on Ed's exposed leg.

"It doesn't have to be pretty, just get me from point A to point B." Ed replied, gritting his teeth together as he felt the usual twist of atoms and materials rearranging themselves. Preforming alchemy on yourself was never a fun experience. It was uncomfortable, it hurt, and you never had a pretty limb afterwards.

"There." Dr. Marco looked at Edward and sighed. "I've repaid you now…" he looked at Alphonse. "You did it." He remarked, nodding once in approval. "I'm happy that if any good came out of that mess that you two received it."

"Thanks?" Al asked, nodding. "And thanks for helping us get out of here quicker." Ed nodded and gently sat up, taking care to lean as much pressure as possible off of his aching limb.

"I felt like I should help you two." Marco looked at Edward. "I suspect that you two are going to head out?" when the brothers nodded he smiled gently, "Then I wish you luck." Edward stood up, leaned on Al and walked towards the door.

"You don't have to leave now-" Knox stopped, seeing Ed's face frown.

"I need to go see someone… speaking of favors…" he smiled gratefully as Al grabbed his suitcase and walked out behind him, offering a small goodbye.

"Brother…" he hesitated, "are we going to see them?"

"Yeah…" Edward hobbled as quick as he could, "Just to check up on them."