Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Full Metal Alchemist characters, if I did I would be rejoicing right around now...
Author's Comment: Takes place right after the Ishbal Massacre episode. Ed is in the hospital because of any injuries he might have aquired from the battle with Scar.
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Chapter 1 - Why He Never Kept Cats...
Ed lay on a hospital bed, sleeping with a frown gracing his face. He was silent ever since his brother, Alphonse, mentioned that he heard their mother's voice after Ed was nearly killed by Scar. One would occasionally visit him, but there was only a single person that would stay by his side for hours on end, watching over him. Not that he knew of course.
Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist himself, observed Edward. He liked to watch as the sun played on Ed's hair, making it turn a glorious golden color. He reached out with his left hand, the one that didn't have his glove on, wanting to touch the hair that looked so soft. He stopped, however, when he saw a pair of yellow eyes staring at him.
"Na, neko," Roy told the cat sitting right behind Ed's head, "Don't scare me like that."
The adorable cat just meweled at him, walking over Ed and towards Roy. As it stepped past Ed's nose, he woke with a start. Ed sneezed suddenly, startling both the cat and Roy at the same time. Sitting up quickly, Ed scrambled to the far side of the small yet luxurious bed he was on, pointing at the cat in accusation.
"N-NEKO?!" he shouted, finger and eye twitching in unison.
"Aa," Roy replied, silently glad that Ed was finally awake yet disappointed that he didn't have a chance to play with Ed's hair a little. The man would never let him do it while he was awake. "A neko. What of it?"
The dazed cat wandered towards Ed blindly. He froze, feeling the soft fur of it brush against his skin before breaking out in a fit of sneezes. While he had the time to, Ed jumped over the side of the bed, but the cat followed him like prey. Ed swiftly took Roy's alchemist suit collar in his hands and shook him vigorously.
"What is it doing here?!" Ed shouted at him, now shaking Roy with one hand while the other pointed at the neko again.
Roy simply shrugged, raising both of his hands in defense. Before he could explain anything, Ed took off with the cat hot on his heels through the corridor. He sighed, guessing that he should follow Ed before he ran into any more trouble. The nurse would no doubt have his head for this one.
"Oh, Ed!" Hughes waved at him as he raced towards him. On reflex, Hughes took out his pictures of his family that was concealed in his pocket, ready to start ranting about them to the poor Full Metal Alchemist. He had no chance to though, for Ed ran straight past him yelling, "Not today, Hughes!".
As if insulted, Hughes slumped, a gloomy look plastered on his face as he watched Ed and the cat's form disappearing at an alarming rate. Deciding not to get discouraged, Hughes set his glasses up high and stood up straight, turning to see Roy running towards him too.
"Ah!" he exclaimed, his happy look back on his face again as he reached for the pictures. Roy shot him a warning glare before speeding off towards the same direction that Ed and the cat had fled to. Finally giving up, Hughes sighed and walked back towards the main office, deciding to wait for Roy to come back. If not today, then surely he would be able to show off his lovely daughter tomorrow. And possibly the day after that too.
He also needed to tell Roy about what he learned about Ed from the nurse, and he needed to tell Roy quickly. Hughes sat down in one of the cushioned chairs near the large ash wood desk. He looked out the glass window to the garden where he could spot Ed running around, the neko and Roy following him. Hughes smiled a bit. Maybe things would work out anyway, despite what he had learned. He had hope.
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About fifteen minutes later, the door creaked open. Hughes turned to see Roy coming in, looking exhausted from his frantic chasing of both Ed and the cat. Roy sat behind the desk, turning to look at his friend.
"What is your business? I hope you're not here because I didn't stop to see your pictures earlier," Roy said. He winced as he heard screaming followed by a sneeze and water splashing. It looked as though he would have to fetch a towel for Ed afterwards.
"It's about Edward," Hughes started, a serious look etched onto his face. Roy's face suddenly became serious also, his hands gripping the chairs arms tightly.
Roy stood suddenly, hands slamming down onto the table making paperwork fly everywhere. "What about Edward?" he demanded. The situation looked grim with the way Hughes was acting. He didn't like it one bit.
"Well, you see," Hughes continued, slightly intimidated by Roy's reaction to the mention of Edward,"I asked the nurse about how his health was, and she noticed a very...interesting thing."
Hughes unconsciously scooted his chair back a bit when he felt Roy's anger waves coming at him for not telling him already. It wasn't as though he hadn't tried earlier, jeez. /Well, I guess I'll just have to explain it all to him.../ He took in a deep breath, ready to explain everything he had learned to the angry Flame Alchemist.
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Next Chapter-
Hey everyone, Edward Elric here! On the next chapter of "To Never Say Goodbye" - My health secret gets revealed to Roy! What's up with that secret anyway? Only the author would know...There's more cat and dog trouble in store for all of us! Where did that cat from anyways? It's driving me nuts! Al and myself restart our quest for the legendary Philosopher's stone, but I have to spend seven more days with that crappy Colonel...Well, see you later in the next part, "The Inerasable Sin"!
End Comments: Hehe, small cliffhanger there. I felt like torturing poor Roy since he's such an easy target, ku ku ku...*notices all the people looking at her like she's crazy* Anyways, I hope that the first chapter was okay! I'm really interested in FullMetal Alchemist, and their songs are pretty too ^_^ Well, C&C is always welcome, and I'll try to keep on writing as much as I can! I estimate that there will be somewhere around 10 or so chapters, depending on my inspiration level. I thank everyone who has read this, commented, and who has written their own fics, as I got the inspiration to write this fic from other FMA fanfictions. Thank you, minna-san! *bows*
