A/N: You get two chapters in two days (as opposed to the usual four) because the last one was so sucky (I mean number 8) and because I haven't updated in ages. Sorry, sorry, I got a computer virus, then I got a real virus and had to stay off school and then I had work experience and then I had to doextrarevisionformyGCSEsandit'sbeenverybusyandbesidesthat…

I'm very lazy. --;

Anywho, thanks for sticking with me. New chapter! Yay! No, I don't bloody own it. Sheesh. Do fanfictioneers really have to do disclaimers? Surely, as a fanfiction, the very concept makes disclaimers irrelevant…Ah well. Oh, and I'm uber sorry, but I kinda' forgot about Winry last chapter. Because of that little cock-up, I've rewritten chapter 9, but the changes aren't that big; I just sort of added her in here and there. There's no point going back to read it or anything. I kinda' forgot her in this one too, in fact, it was only thanks to a review that I realised at all. So, I just got rid of her suddenly in this chapter, because I am so NOT rewriting it just for her.

Reviewer of The Chapter

Ame Mika'zuki: Because you review so MUCH! Add they're all so nice. As the juvenile delinquents would phrase it; luv ya babez.

Don't Slip on The Splinter

Chapter 10 Ooh, double digits. Written whilst watching the Eurovision Song Contest (bleh).

Rosetta was quite a dancer, for a woman past her prime wearing spectacles in a night club…

Roy found it hard to keep up with the spry woman and her sometimes insane moves, but when she eventually slowed down into a slightly less hectic tango, he found it even harder to keep up with her conversation.

"If you hurt him I swear I'll string you up by your balls and, let me tell you, Winry will do worse."

"Pardon?" Roy stuttered.

"I don't know what your intentions are, but I do know he's easily put down; he puts too much faith in people. So I'm telling you now, if you treat him badly, even once, I will, how you English say…make your life a living hell?" Roy swallowed slightly.

"Uh, alright Miss Rosetta, I'll keep that in mind."

"Good." The Russian woman tapped him on the nose as the song ended. "Thank you for the dance, you're a good young man really. And Roy, I'm only saying this because I know how he feels about you." With a nod she released him and went to sit back down. Roy followed, torn between being completely confused and scared skinless. However, some higher-power-that-be didn't deem it the time to dwell on such new information.

When the table was in view, they both knew something was wrong. Someone was talking to the Elric brothers, someone leaning uncomfortably close to Alphonse. Edward looked like he was going to spring up and punch the guy at any second, and Roy quickened his step slightly.

"We don't want you here."

"Hmm, aren't you Mustang's new toy?"

"No I'm bloody well not, now get your hands off my brother and leave, before I make you." Ed clicked his knuckles menacingly, golden eyes glinting eerily in the fluorescent lights.

"You're a regular little spitfire, aren't you? Why don't you let your brother answer for himself, and then we'll…"

"Leave, Kimbly." Roy cut in darkly.

"Ah, Mustang. We were just talking about you; bad things only, I assure you." Kimbly replied, lopsided smirk in place as he turned, revealing an arm around a very uncomfortable Al.

"I said leave." Rosetta turned up at that point with Hughes and Riza looking serious behind her.

"No wonder it's so hard for folk to make conversation around here. Fine then." He yawned widely and released the blond boy, who looked considerably relieved. "Catch you losers some other time." He swaggered into the dancers, and Roy turned to the youngest brother.

"You okay Al?" He asked quietly. Al nodded.

"I'm fine, he didn't really do anything."

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Roy squeezed his shoulder, and then went to calm down Ed.

The blond was seething as he watched Rosetta talking to his brother. When Roy came over he barely noticed.

"That pervert, I could have killed him. God only knows what he would have done if Winry were still here." He simmered.

"Alphonse is okay, it's better off that you didn't start fighting him...at least not here." Roy told him, silently in awe of the skater's icy fury. He looked strangely beautiful, murderous eyes of molten gold glowing and hair coming a little loose from Elysia's provocation, all illuminated by the light strips behind him. Roy shook his head slightly. He realised the alcohol wasn't helping him deal with Edward, neither was it helping Edward deal with the situation. "You should drink some water." He instructed. Without thinking, Ed reached over for Al's glass, shirt riding up and revealing a strip of flat stomach. Roy looked away quickly and shook his head again.

"Come on, it won't be any more fun in here with that lot hanging around." He motioned toward Kimbly and his group of brutish friends. Hughes and Riza agreed, so they all finished their drinks and grabbed their coats, exiting the Seven Sins. On the way out, Roy told bouncer Pride to keep an eye on Kimbly and his group. The refined older man just nodded and wished them all a good night.

Ed felt dizzy, realising he shouldn't have stood up so quickly after having consumed alcohol. He didn't drink often, but now he had, and a little more than he usually would, admittedly, he felt quite sick.

The cold air outside made him feel a little better, and he pulled his coat closer against the wind. Occasionally he'd see two lamp posts instead of one, and he wondered absentmindedly if he was drunk.

"Brother…" A quiet voice came from a small way behind him.

"Yeah?"

"I don't feel well." Ed turned to see his younger brother and gasped. He was deathly pale and shivering, swaying slightly as he walked. Edward stopped and felt his forehead; it was burning hot. Suddenly, the boy fell forward, and he caught him clumsily, falling to the ground under the weight.

"Al!" He cried, gaining the attention of the rest of the group.

"What happened?" Riza asked, the first one of them to reach them.

"He said he wasn't feeling well, and then he just toppled over. He's burning up." Ed looked down at Al, the younger brother barely able to keep his eyes open.

"Okay, this isn't going to be pleasant Al, but I'm going to need you to make yourself sick." Riza told the boy, rubbing his back consolingly.

"What the hell?" Edward protested.

"Riza's a trained paramedic. It's for the best that you listen to her." Roy told them. Ed nodded his head reluctantly and handed his brother over to the older woman. She lead him over to a nearby patch of bushes, and the rest of them considerately turned away.

"What's wrong with him?" Ed asked, a little shaken and not aided by that night's earlier events.

"Well, she wants him to get something out of his system, perhaps he's got food poisoning of some sort." Hughes answered. Ed massaged his temples.

"Are you alright Ed?"

"Yeah, it's just the alcohol. Damnit, but he hasn't eaten anything that could have given him such a violent reaction!" Roy put an arm around his shoulders consolingly.

"It's okay, we'll go to the hospital if Riza says he needs the care there, if not my house is just around the corner. We can take him there." He offered. Ed nodded in thanks, and felt his head spin. Unconsciously he leant a little more on the older man for support. "You sure you're okay?"

"I'm perfectly fine."

"Okay…"

"Okay Al, do you just want to sit down for a minute?" They turned to see Riza returning with the young blond. He shook his head.

"I just want to go to bed." He replied in a hoarse whisper.

"Well, we can do that. The hospital won't be necessary. Someone spiked your drink, but whoever it was wasn't very thorough. I think only about half of the intended dose managed to get into your glass."

"Okay."

"Edward, are you feeling alright? I remember you drinking some of Al's water." Riza asked.

"I've been a little dizzy." Riza put a cool hand on his forehead.

"You don't have a temperature. Be sure to tell me if it gets worse, okay?" Ed nodded and went to support his brother.

"Come on, my house is only two minutes away." Roy prompted. It was a torturous two minutes for Al, and he was ready to give up and sleep on the pavement by the time they reached the front door. Roy and Ed helped him to the spare room, and settled him into the bed. There he quickly fell into a restless sleep.

X

Roy could only look at the boy and his brother, carefully resting a cool compress on his sweating forehead, for a few moments before anger gripped him.

He left the room and descended the stairs, passing the living room and Hughes.

"Roy?" The police officer called him back softly. Roy returned holding his coat, noticing Riza curled up on the couch, ready should anything unexpected happen and her medical knowledge forced to resurface again.

"I'm going out." He replied.

"Where?"

"I have something I need to do." With that, he turned and left, grabbing his shoes from the porch as he passed. Walking back the way they'd come around fifteen minutes before, he retraced his steps and passed the bar. He walked to a nearby abandoned parking lot-cum-factory, and there he entered.

Inside was dark, lit by emergency lighting that wasn't meant to be on. Through trial and error, he worked his way through the unforgiving cement corridors, listening for any sign of life. Voices down the far corridor alerted him to the location of those he sought. Just at the moment he was considering his course of action, the man he was looking for exited the room.

He hastily hid himself behind a corner, and waited for the figure to pass him. Dark hair, sloppy grin, Kimbly.

Roy stole behind him, silently stalking as Kimbly made his way from the room his companions were in, and further into the compound. He worried over getting out again, as he recognised less and less of his surroundings.

It came to do or die; he could continue to follow Kimbly, successfully doing nothing other than getting lost, or he could confront him there an then in the corridor rather than wait for him to go into a room. So be it.

"Kimbly, I swear, one day I'm going to kill you." The man turned round, a look of mock surprise schooled onto his features.

"Mustang. Hmm, I knew you'd turn up sooner or later. Looking for your cute little blond?"

"Looking for a fist in the face?" Roy countered.

"I don't want to go anywhere near your fist, I don't know where it's been." Roy grabbed the scruff of Kimbly's jacket.

"Don't try me." He growled.

"What crawled up your ass and died, Mustang?" Roy shook him.

"If you ever, ever, go so much as five meters near that kid again, I promise you that you'll never have children."

"Well actually, I have quite a few illegitamate...Okay, I get it, inappropriate time to mention that..." He submitted as Roy sharply brought up a curled fist level with his eyes.

"Now, are you going to leave me, and them, the fuck alone or do I have to make you remember?"

"Sure, whatever, you're the boss man."

"Right." Shoving him roughly against the wall, Roy released Kimbly and began striding back down the corridor.

He couldn't believe he trusted Kimbly enough to turn his back on him, and it proved to be a costly mistake. Suddenly, his legs were pulled from beneath him and he fell back, smacking his head on the unforgiving concrete floor. All at once, Kimbly was above him, his own fist formed and ready to use.

"That's something you should never do, Mustang; threaten me and then expect me to sit in the shadows, cowering like a little dog while you walk away. I've been wanting to do this for a very long time. You should consider yourself lucky; I don't usually give people private treatment." He drew his lips back in a feral grin and thrust the fist forward. Roy saw stars.

Taddaa. Chapter 10. 11 is gonna be FUN!

I don't know how many people who read this aren't American, but if you're European…I was appalled at our Eurovision Song Contest entry! Did you see? They were wearing smocks! O.O And oh the innuendo. But MAN did we suck, 2 votes total. HAHA!

Anywho, I'm sorry about the ending, it was corny and unoriginal...But I was tired from my first day of work. T.T Don't hate me.

Please review!