Chapter seventeen

Ed was furious and hurt and didn't even care where Mustang was taking him. He was just another bastard. They all were. And these two were among the worst. Ed stomped barefoot down the stairs, Mustang still gripping his shoulder and leading him towards wherever they were going. Ed was just done. He was done with everyone. Nobody could be trusted except for Alphonse. Mom and Al hadn't been the rule, they had been the exception. He wouldn't be surprised if Mustang decided to beat him to a pulp. Those two filthy bastards had got what they deserved.

Mustang led him over to the car and unlocked it. "Get in." He spoke with barely contained rage as he opened the door. Ed got inside the car and scooted sideways so that there was enough space for both of them. Mustang sat himself inside the car and slammed the door shut. He took a deep breath while staring out the windshield. "Do you have any idea –" he turned his head towards Ed, his eyes blazing with fury, "-what an UNGRATEFUL LITTLE BRAT YOU'RE BEING?!" He grabbed the front of Ed's tank top, lifting him slightly up from the seat. "THAT WOMAN HAS JUST SPENT HER ENTIRE NIGHT READING THROUGH OVER TWO HUNDRED TESTIMONIES WITH ME IN ORDER TO CATCH A SERIAL KILLER! WE HAVE CERTAINLY NOT BEEN SLEEPING TOGETHER!" He shook Ed a bit with his hand.

Ed was getting a bit concerned now.

"THAT WOMAN IS A FUCKING HERO FOR WHAT SHE IS DOING! TELL ME, EDWARD: EXACTLY WHERE DOES SHE SLEEP?!"

Ed looked up at him, his eyes wide. He hadn't seen anyone be this angry before. He gulped. "Th-the couch…"

"EXACTLY! SHE DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A BED ANYMORE BECAUSE SHE GAVE IT TO YOU AND YOUR BROTHER! HAVE YOU ANY IDEA HOW MUCH SHE HAS GIVEN UP ON IN ORDER TO TAKE YOUR UNGRATEFUL ASS IN?! TELL ME: WHEN DOES SHE HAVE ANY TIME FOR HERSELF?!"

"Wh-when we're asleep…"

"YES! AND THEN SHE HAS TO BE QUIET IN ORDER NOT TO WAKE YOU TWO! SHE WORKS HER ASS OFF EACH DAY IN ORDER TO KEEP PEOPLE SAFE AND WHEN SHE GETS HOME, SHE GIVES HER TIME TO LOOK AFTER YOU TWO! ON TOP OF THAT, SHE HAS RECENTLY HAD HER HUSBAND CHEAT ON HER AND IS STILL DEALING WITH THE SEPARATION! HAVE YOU EVEN CONSIDERED THAT SHE'S NOT EXACTLY IN THE MOOD TO HOOK UP?! THAT SHE ACTUALLY DOESN'T DESERVE ALL THE CRAP THAT YOU ARE GIVING HER?! THAT SHE DESERVES SOME RESPECT AND THAT YOU HAVE NO GROUNDS TO JUMP DOWN HER THROAT FOR EVERY SINGLE THING?!"

"But how can I know that she won't turn out like the rest of them?" Ed said, still feeling like he had shrunk to about an inch. He could feel tears running down his face. What was he supposed to believe?

"Listen here, Edward: she cares," Mustang hissed, still holding Ed by the front of his tank top. "She tries so hard to make things better, yet you immediately assume the worst about her. Tell me: what has she done to you? What bad things has she done to you to deserve you acting that way? To always assume the worst of her?"

"She slept with you!" Ed said, blocking out the words "nothing" that kept intruding into his head.

Mustang sighed deeply. "You know what, Edward? I'll tell you exactly what we've been doing all night."

Ed gulped. He didn't want to know the details about that sort of thing. That was private and dirty. However, Mustang didn't seem to be willing to give him a choice in the matter.

"23.06: I arrived with a large folder of testimonies from the religious group that we're investigating two murders within because I had found a possible way to find out just how to identify our killer or at least to keep more murders from happening. 23.09: I drank the first of seven cups of coffee for the night. She had the first of five. Then we set to work, reading through and trying to sort out possible victims. 23.30: She went to check on you and your brother to make sure that you weren't having any nightmares. After tucking you in again after you had kicked your duvet off in your sleep and lay shivering, she sat back down and continued reading. 00.05: I had my second cup of coffee. She had hers three minutes after that. 00.30: She went to check on you again. I guess that you're spotting a pattern? 00.33: More coffee for both of us. 01.17: We heard whimpers from your bedroom and came to check on you, only to find that both of you were screaming in your sleep, Alphonse was lying on the floor, crying. He had fallen off the bed and slammed his head against the nightstand. Hawkeye went to sit with you while I carried Alphonse into the bathroom just so I could check that he hadn't hit his head so hard that he was bleeding. He hadn't thankfully, so I carried him back to the bedroom and sat with him on my lap and hugged him until he was asleep. Hawkeye sat in the next bed, patting your head while humming to you until you calmed down. 02.56: You were both asleep again and so we went back to the kitchen and had another coffee each in order to keep going through the remaining testimonies. 03.30: She went to check on you again. 03.33: She had another cup of coffee. I had two. 04.05: I had another cup of coffee. 04.30. She had another look at you boys and found that Al had lost Bob on the floor. She put him back under the duvet with Alphonse and then returned. 04.47: We both had a cup of coffee each. 05.07: You started blaming us for sleeping together." Mustang had spoken without hesitation, all the while glaring at Ed.

Ed had no idea what to say. Had he been so wrong?

"So you tell me, Edward Elric: exactly how did Riza Hawkeye earn you shouting that crap at her?"

"Sh-she didn't," Edward whispered. He felt bad. Really bad. Mustang was right. Ed had assumed the worst of her and she had done nothing more than being kind to them.

"Correct," Mustang hissed and dropped Ed's tank top, causing him to land on the seat and lose his balance. Mustang grabbed his right shoulder and sat him back up in the seat. The warmth of the hand was the last straw for Ed's twisted insides and he began crying. He began sobbing actually. He'd been completely wrong and he'd messed things up not just for himself, but probably Alphonse too. What if this had been the last piece of bullshit Riza would take from him and that she'd send them back? Why the hell would she want to keep him after all this? She was the first person he'd met that was nearly as kind as Mom. Maybe things really would have worked out and now he had ruined things for her with her boss even. What if Riza lost her job? He had shouted at her boss and called him a bastard and everything. "I'm s-s-sorry!" Ed sobbed. His insides were a twisted mess and he'd just given the one person who could make things better again one of the strongest reasons in the world to hate him. After all, how could she work with someone who hated Ed's guts? Ed had never felt so guilty in his life. He was so confused and the lump in his chest made it hard to breathe.

Then he suddenly felt a pair of strong arms close themselves around him and he froze. "Why –?" Ed began.

"Because I was there two months ago and I lost my parents when I was young too. It's called empathy, you stupid brat, not a pick-up line." Mustang put his chin on top of his head and began stroking his back.

Ed really wanted to stop himself from crying any further, but he couldn't stop it. It was just too much right now. After all, they were the same arms that had offered him just a bit of comfort on the worst day of his life.

And so he just continued sobbing, apologising all he could, hoping that things would work out.

Mustang kept stroking his back for a long time until he had gathered himself. "Okay, kid, now we're going to go outside and pick a bunch of flowers while you think up the world's greatest apology."