Wasuremono (Something Forgotten)

Standard Disclaimer Applies

Second Hagaren fic; and this time, it's a crappy one-shot. At least, I think it is. –Sweat drop- Also, I wasn't sure whether to label the Roy and Ed interaction as shonen-ai…but I like them as a coupling as much as when they're in a platonic/father-son relationship, so I decided to make it so. I apologize for anyone who doesn't like it…! –Starts to get a bit nervous-

In any case, here we have a slight Christmas-y flair to the story, and also watch out for flying fluff. Hope everyone likes the fic, and enjoy the holidays, whatever and however you celebrate.

Synopsis: -Semi-AU, hinted shonen-ai, borderline TWT, Restored!Al- Simply put, the elder Elric brother had become quite frustrated.

Edward was certain that something had been forgotten back in the library he had just departed from.

Yes, something had most definitely been misplaced. But however much his brain tried to, whatever it was that he could not remember refused to reappear as a constant, clear image. His conscious seemed to be attempting an eviction of thoughts; the usual nagging of an object overlooked or a time only distantly recalled obstructed by an annoying, persistent mind-block.

Simply put, the elder Elric brother had become quite frustrated. It was over that very sentiment Edward leaned back in the chair located in front of the colonel's desk, glaring at the window defiantly.

The hardened expression quickly faded into something akin to a calm, at-ease stare when Ed detected falling snow beyond the glass pane. Ethereal downy flakes of ivory, trembling from looming gray clouds overhead and blanketing the world in their mysterious, freezing beauty. Nothing else soothed the boy more than wintertime. Serene, wonderfully nippy weather and he enjoyed it thoroughly for that alone.

Perhaps it was his childlike affinity for the cheer people began to portray around Christmastime; the chance to curl up in one of the library's easy chairs when Central's soldiers were granted a day off for holidays' sake, flipping through the pages of a good book; or maybe it was the snow itself that excited him. Whatever the case may have been this momentary distraction, simple and trite in and of itself, fascinated him, making him forget exactly what it was he had been distraught about before.

Breathing delicately onto a now ice-covered window, Ed watched, curious and wide-eyed, as steam began to gather around the section of the pane he just blew on. Once more, unpretentious details caught his attention and captivated every fiber of his being. The blonde was just about ready to curse the weather outside or his surroundings for such wildly eccentric behavior—since when did Edward Elric, a military major, regress to being a kid all over again?—when a restrained knocking at the door prompted a start from him.

"Fullmetal? Is that you in there? Hawkeye told me you had already gone to give in your report…"

Resisting the urge to lock the door in his superior's face right then and there, Edward tentatively slid the door open. "Yeah, and you weren't here, so I obviously had to wait for you."

Golden eyes slid into suspicious slits upon noting Mustang's parcels, which were apparently fairly cumbersome judging from the trouble the man was having just getting through the entryway. "…And where did those things come from? It looks like you had some last-minute Christmas shopping problems or something."

After muttering something obscene under his breath, Roy managed to get both himself and the shopping bags through. "…If you really want to know, they're for Hughes. He wanted me to bring them back to his place for him, but I told him it was getting too late. Besides, it looks to me like a snowstorm's going to come around…"

Ed almost snorted in amusement over the first comment; it did seem like something the lieutenant colonel would request. For that reason alone, he wasn't so interested in what could be inside the bags anymore. "That sounds like him. And you're probably right, the snow doesn't look like its gonna stop any time soon…not that it matters to me. I've got a dormitory to go back to, and that's in this building."

"You sound almost as though you're gloating about it." Mustang's unusual cordiality faded, replaced with the usual condescending smirk.

Fullmetal was obviously back to his old self as well, boyish grin apparent. "Who says?"

"Your superior officer, Edward, which happens to be me." Roy gave emphasis to his teenage subordinate's name purposely, sauntering over to his desk and peeling off the thick winter coat in the process. "Also, kindly remove your feet from my desk. The mahogany wood was just recently polished."

"Good to see you know your colors, Roy, but we're off-duty now." Apparently, Ed assumed the extra edge in his smirk could intimidate the elder male, as he pressed thick-soled boots even more against the wood. "So I'm not required to listen to you."

But if he was going to be a devious little bugger, Roy thought, almost inclined to chuckle, then he too had a right to say something of an equally uncivil air, correct? Though he knew the consequences might be damaging to both mahogany desk and office, the satisfaction of knowing that he had gotten under Edward's skin was too great to pass up. Besides, the look on the youngster's face would simply be worth all the trouble of their verbal repartee.

"Strange how, when a person is so short-tempered, I simply don't feel as much inclination to feel threatened by them…"

Hawkeye, who had been standing outside waiting for the pair to finish their conversation, immediately glanced at Black Hayate, who was peering at his master timidly and adoringly. She imagined that if dogs were able to flinch, then Black Hayate might have done just that as the room exploded in an indignant screech of fury.

"WHO'S SO SMALL THAT HE COULD BE COMPARED TO THE SNOW OUTSIDE?!"

Roy's rich, mirthful laughter rang through the air, mingling with Edward's growling and irritated threats. Black Hayate barked at the doorway that had finally stopped shuddering, and Riza resisted the urge to smile.

"Nii-san! You look very tired. Is anything…?"

Edward said nothing to his brother when he came tromping back to his dormitory, not even really giving notice to the fact that Al was apparently visiting him.

"That idiot colonel…someone seriously has to give him an attitude adjustment!" The smaller blonde shouted, grabbing a water bottle from the small refrigerator in the makeshift kitchen of the dormitory. "And if it was up to me, I'd be the one to gladly do it!"

Timidly, Alphonse Elric patted his sibling on the shoulder. "I'm sure he was only teasing you for fun, Brother…why do you have to take everything Mustang-taisa says so literally?"

For a moment, the teen was spluttering, vaguely articulate and apparently at a loss for words over the question. "W-Well…he's just such a…sometimes, I wanna seriously—ARGH!! Do me a favor and stop confusing me already, Al!"

Flinging his hands up and trying to guard his face, Al made a sound something like a squeak as Ed came storming toward him, hands heading for his sensitive sides. "N-Nii-san, stop it—ha-ha…! You know that I'm—ha-ha!!—ticklish around my sides!!"

Foul mood retreating to the back of his mind once more, Edward tackled his younger brother, pinning both arms above the boy's head and grinning impishly. "Say, 'Uncle'…"

"Ha-ha!! You can't make me, Brother—ha-ha! Iiyaaaa…Nii-san, you aren't being FAIR!"

"Hey, you were the one who teased me first! That means I'm allowed to!" Ed retorted, continuing the tortuous actions.

Their good-natured performance might have continued, if a knock on the door hadn't interrupted. Starting, both younglings then sat motionless for only a moment longer, even when the tapping persisted. Twin pairs of golden eyes locked together, equally bewildered.

"Who could that be so late at night? They must have something important to see one of us about." Al mused this out loud, tilting his head to one side curiously.

"Dunno…" Ed began walking toward the door, stopping only a second later to look back at Al. "I'll go see who it is. You get some sleep, okay? I bet you're tired from traveling all the way from Rizenbul."

His brother nodded, not requiring any further prompting. Still grinning over their earlier play, Alphonse headed down the corridor that led to their shared bedroom.

Edward kept his gaping to a minimum, or at the very least to the smallest degree he could manage, when he realized who was standing outside. "C-Colonel? What's HE doing here at ten-'o-clock at night? Maybe Al's idea wasn't so far off after all..."

Opening the door uncertainly, Ed peeked through a small crack he had allowed to between wooden object and doorframe. "Taisa? What're you…?"

"Visiting, obviously. I thought you might be lonely all by yourself." His straightforward reply only annoyed the blonde further, and Roy was entertained by a scowl replacing apprehension upon Edward's countenance.

"I kinda figured out THAT much! And what's that supposed to mean—'I thought you might be lonely all by yourself'?" Edward lowered his voice an octave to match Roy's resonant baritone. "Cut the crap and tell me what you're really here for!"

Mustang seemed to be ignoring him, scrutinizing the small table Alphonse had apparently just brought over today. "Something you bought recently, Fullmetal? This didn't use to be here…"

Only vaguely shocked when his youngest soldier came stomping to where he stood, Roy's dark gaze flickered indolently upon the furious Ed. A pregnant silence lay taut against the vicinity, with neither Roy nor Edward daring to wrench their stares from one another. That would mean surrender, and succumbing was not desirable to either of them. At least, not in the minds of two unfortunately stubborn people; one outwardly so, and the other, internally.

"It seems that you're rather upset with me, Edward-kun. What could possibly be the matter? Is it something that I've said or done?" Roy drawled.

He wanted to make a comment about the teenager being juvenile for glowering and being short-tempered, but Ed was already speaking again.

"What do you think? Everything about you pisses me off! And don't give me that reproachful look; I'm being serious! Do I have to spell it out for you, Taisa!?"

Deciding to bait the boy even more, Roy leaned back into an adjacently located chair, smirking. "If you would be ever so kind enough to tell me, then by all means, do so."

And how Edward positively seethed in anger, predictably so, tense fists trembling in the effort of holding back his fury. And how terribly cute he was, full cheeks flushed in vehemence, amber orbs shuddering in the most infuriated glower they could muster. Again, there arose such a horribly long stillness between them that even Alphonse, who had been eavesdropping on the argument between his brother and the military officer thus far, leaned over from his spot behind the wall, listening for anything indicating both of them hadn't killed each other yet.

Waiting was painstakingly awkward, and keeping immobile for so long was beginning to wear thin on Alphonse's muscles. He shifted slightly, cracking a stiff ankle joint the process; he almost yelped over the noise alone, scrambling quickly backward and abruptly stopping when the talking resumed.

"Listen….I'm sorry for blowing up on you like that, okay?" Ed glanced at the carpet, obviously too ashamed by his behavior to meet Roy's gaze. "I wasn't thinkin' straight, a-and even though I know that's not good excuse—"

"I forgive you." Earlier contemptuousness forgotten, Roy's voice was noticeably softer; and gentler, Edward acknowledged, enough to calm the both of them. "…Edward, come over here. To the window, please."

Flinching in surprise, Edward immediately looked up to find the colonel already halfway across the room from him. "A-Ah…sure. What's the matter?"

The dark-haired adult almost smiled over Ed's wide-eyed expression upon noticing the snow, which evidently had slowed from its whipping storm before. "Here. As you can see, the snow has slowed down. Isn't that somewhat ironic?"

Bright honey held its own beneath resolute onyx. "How's that?"

"Well, what to you think?" Roy wrapped his arms around the boy from behind; and despite a small sound of surprise, Ed did not protest. "We've stopped arguing, and the snow has begun to slow down. Don't you think that's rather symbolic?"

"Maybe." Edward suddenly yawned, jaw nearly splitting with the motion. "Y'know, I think Al's was spyin' on us this whole time, Taisa…"

From far off, Alphonse almost face-faulted, nervously holding his nose and hoping to the great entities that he wouldn't be forced to sneeze.

Something akin to a chuckle resounded against Edward's back, and he tiredly leaned into its source. The room had been somewhat chilly before and watching the cold outside was only making him colder, he decided. A sort of human security blanket. He imagined it was at least less than zero out there tonight. That was all there was to it.

"That's alright. Alphonse-kun can watch all he likes, though I would imagine that there isn't much to see."

Edward shut his eyes, boredly tugging at the sleeves of his colonel's uniform. "That sounds so wrong coming from you."

Roy merely laughed. The snow outside had slowed to a tranquil flutter, and the winds ceased their attack against the windows.

Winter had arrived.

-END-

Footnotes

Nii-san: "Brother," and a word that Al constantly uses. He does admire his big brother, after all, and he's almost always with him. So that was to be expected, right?

Taisa: I switch between this and, "colonel," only to remain faithful to the original series. Roy's rank in the military, and the manner that Edward almost always refers to him as. I say, "almost,' because there is an exception in the earlier part of the story, if you notice. This was blatantly done because Roy dropped his usual, "Fullmetal," for Edward.

-kun: commonly used suffix for familiar intonation or showing equality in rank. Mostly used in male names, but can also be added to the end of a female's family name with the same denotation, as well.

Hope everyone enjoyed the story, even though it came out longer than I intended. I apologize for that, but I hope the effort to make the story flow was worth it.

--Keruri