I HAD PLANNED FOR THIS FICTION TO BE AT LEAST 8 CHAPTERS, BUT BECAUSE I HAVE REALIZED THAT THE CHARACTERS I WAS GOING TO WRITE ABOUT ARE MINOR AND NOT THAT IMPORTANT, AKA "FILLER", I HAVE DROPPED THOSE CHAPTERS, LEAVING THE GRAND TOTAL OF THIS FICTION TO BE 5 CHAPTERS, THEREFORE, THERE ARE ONLY TWO CHAPTERS LEFT, BOTH OF WHICH I HAVE ALREADY WRITTEN PARTS OF.
Pre-Chapter Rant:
:opens mouth:shakes head:walks away muttering: Absolute crap…Gah…
Readers:walk away:
No! Wait! You have to reveiiiiiw!
"Brother?" Alphonse asked quietly. Edward was extremely on edge ever since the appearance of the Ice Alchemist, and would snap and/or alchemically hurt anyone who interrupted his work.
Ed sighed a little bit. "Yes, Alphonse?"
"What do you think it'd feel like to die? For me, I mean." Ed's huge golden eyes blinked once.
"Well that's an odd question." The older Elric rested his head in his hands, still looking at his brother. "Don't go suicidal on me, Al."
"Of course not…Just a question." Alphonse muttered. "Just because I'm a bodiless piece of armor doesn't mean I'm insane…" He trailed off when Ed's eyes got smaller and he pushed his hair back.
"I need to resign," Edward mumbled.
"What?"
"I should have never joined, damn military," He sighed and looked back towards to report he was supposed to be finishing.
"Imagine if you weren't you, brother."
"Al…" Ed said in a warning tone. Without looking up he twirled his finger around his ear.
"I just mean, you get special treatment, sort of. They let you finish your work in the house and stuff."
"That's just because I'm younger. Child labor laws…Or something…I don't know, Al, go ask Mustang." Edward sighed again.
"Anyway, there's no use in you just sitting here with me…Why don't you go check on Winry? She's been so quiet lately…" Alphonse nodded and left.
"Winry?" Al asked, knocking on her door. "Wiiiiinry?"
"Yes, Al? What is it?" Her voice came through the door, muffled, but still sounding strained.
"Just wondering how you are…Brother's anxious because of this new guy…Can I come in?" Al took a step closer to the door.
"Just…Just a second, Al!" The sound of auto-mail and metal being thrown into a container could be heard. She's just working on auto-mail…Al thought. Is that what she does all the time? I'm not sure if she's even left her room since she got here…
Winry flung the door open, leaning on the doorframe, wrench still in hand. "Yeah, Al?" She asked, sounding happier then she did five seconds ago. Is she faking it? Alphonse wondered.
"Are you…Okay, Winry? You haven't really left your room, only to eat or use the phone…Who do you call?"
"People…" Winry waved a hand. "Mostly Lt. Hawkeye while she was stuck at home."
"Oh…Well, brother's worried about you, and I am too. Normally you're not so quiet or exclusive."
"Well, Al, isn't that just what girls do? It's normal, isn't it?" Winry slammed the door shut.
"Winry!"
"Go talk to your stupid brother like always. Keep leaving me out of it."
"But—" Alphonse started. Instead, he sighed and walked past Winry's room to his own.
"She's right…" Al sighed, opening his door and sitting down. "Except that she doesn't know that brother isn't really in a talking mood right now. He'll only talk to Mustang and the rest of them, with his head in a case. I shouldn't have bothered him."
Red and white eyes stared into the darkness of a room with closed windows. "I shouldn't be here…"
An hour later Ed sighed and stood up from the chair in which he was imprisoned in for so long…At least, that's how it felt.
"Al!" Edward called, stretching before walking over to the staircase. "Yo, Alphonse! Winry!" When he didn't get a response he climbed the staircase, pausing at the top. Alphonse or Winry…Hmm… He thought.
"Hey, Winry!" Ed rammed his knuckles on her door as hard as possible. The blonde mechanic opened it a moment later, sighing.
"What do you want, Ed?" Her dark blue eyes looked tired.
"I finished my report….Almost," He grinned. "Let's go do something." Winry brightened up a little bit.
"Like what?"
"Well, I have to go get Al, and then we'll see. Meet you downstairs?" Winry shrugged and walked past the older Elric.
"Hey…Al!" Ed knocked on Alphonse's door. When Al didn't open it, Ed let himself in. Hey, it's not like he's changing or anything… Edward thought, smiling. "Alphonse!"
Al was just sitting on the bed, staring into the wall in front of him. "Al?" Ed asked, staring at his immobile brother. "C'mon, Winry's waiting downstairs…Al? Alphonse!"
Ed walked in front of Al and stuck his face right up into his. "Alphonse!"
"Edward?" Al asked, shaking his head slightly.
"No, it's Mustang. I've been calling you and knocking on your door…Where the hell'd you go?"
"I was just thinking…Guess I was deep in thought. Sorry, Ed." Ed opened his mouth to say something, and then stopped.
"Its fine, Al. We all get that way sometimes…" Alphonse didn't reply, staring into space again.
After dinner Winry came up to Al smiling. "Ed's doing the dishes," She greeted him. She laughed a little. "And then I'll do them after him, just to be sure they're usable."
"'Kay," Al replied listlessly. Winry sighed and looked at the ground.
"Al, Ed's really worried about you," Winry was about to talk more, but Alphonse held up his hand.
"Thanks, Winry." Winry stared at Al a little bit before the inevitable waterworks started. "Winry…What are you crying for?" Alphonse asked, his voice softer. She just shook her head, choking on her own tears, and ran up the stairs.
"Hey, Al," Edward walked up next to him. "What happened to Winry?"
"She's crying."
"Well, yeah, but why?"
"It's all my fault." Al replied, still calm.
"Don't say that, Al! We had a good day, didn't we?"
"Yeah," Al said, his voice lighter. "I'll go apologize to Winry, okay Ed?"
"Sure, brother," Ed smiled anxiously and went to collect his military papers. "Hey, I had better drop these off at Mustang's. I'll be back soon, 'kay?" Al nodded.
"Hey, Winry," Alphonse said quietly.
"Hey, Al…Lissen, I wasn't crying because of you, so don't think it's your fault," Winry continued talking, but Al only saw a knife on her bed.
"Winry, what's that knife?"
"Oh, that?" Winry walked over to it and put it in her open trunk. "Just something Grandma makes me carry." Al's eyes would have widened if they were human.
"Why does it have…Blood…On it?" Winry smiled.
"I accidentally cut myself. I shouldn't keep it in my trunk…It's a hazard when I'm looking for something and accidentally find it." Alphonse tilted his head.
"Winry…Are you cutting yourself!"
"Of course not, Al!" Winry laughed again. Alphonse stared at her before tearing out of her room.
"Oh…He took his work to Mustang…" He spun around when he heard a shriek.
"You. Cannot. Tell. Ed." Winry grabbed onto Al's arm, leaning over the staircase banister. "Please, Al, if you do nothing else, don't tell Ed!"
Al wrenched his arm out of Winry's hands, causing her to flip over the banister and land on her back.
It was a tense couple of minutes before the knob turned in the door.
"Hello!" Ed called, his voice tense and obviously stressed out. "Win—" Ed's eyes fell on the muttering Winry and the backing-up Alphonse. "What the hell happened!"
"Winry tripped over the banister when she was chasing me," Al replied.
"Win! Are you alright!" Edward kneeled down next to her, brushing her hair back so he could look at her eyes. Alphonse watched, pain ripping inside the hollow suit.
Well, Al thought, once again in his room sitting on the bed, except this time he had taken care to lock the door. Edward hates me for what I did to Winry—Stupid girl, she didn't think about what she was doing…It was her fault, not mine—So, I might as well get Winry made at me too, right? Alphonse left the room, wondering if they were aware that he had been gone for about an hour.
He found Ed in Winry's room. "Ed," Their heads shot up as soon as they heard his high-pitched voice. "I need to talk to you." Edward had stood up, whispering promises to come back to Winry, when she spoke up.
"No!" She called after them, right before the door closed. Her eyes pleaded with Alphonse, but he turned away. "No, Al, you don't need to talk to Ed! Ed, don't listen to him!"
"Win, what are you talking about?"
"Winry's been cutting herself!"
I fall down
Heaven won't help me
I call out
No one will hear…
…Stand tall
Stand proud
Every beginning is breaking its promise
Edward's tired gold eyes grew large, then smaller as he looked at Winry. "I once heard our parents talking." He rubbed his eyes with his hand and looked down at the ground. "They always be figured that if any of us had problems like that, it would be me, what with no dad and stuff…"
"Ed…"
Edward sighed.
"I can't deal with this…" His eyes stared out at the window, at the dusk. Without another word, he left.
"Good going," Winry flopped down onto her bed again. Alphonse gave her a glare she couldn't see before following his brother.
"Ed!"
"What?" Edward was right outside Winry's door, staring bemusedly at Alphonse.
"Look…"
"Don't say anything." Ed looked next to Alphonse, giving him the impression of either a very pissed off teenager, what with his leaning against the wall and crossed arms, or a scholar on the brink of a breakdown or breakthrough. "There's nothing to say."
"Nothing to say! Winry's cutting herself, and she hates me for telling, you hate me for hurting her, and you're killing yourself!" Ed raised an eyebrow.
"Killing myself? How so?"
"You're working too hard, and worrying too much! Don't worry about Winry, she can take care of herself!" Al's tinny kid voice annoyed him more then ever—He hated that he didn't sound serious.
"Alphonse, I took this on when I told you we could bring her back. It's all my fault. I carry the burden."
"And if it could be lightened?" Ed stared at Alphonse with hollow, yet beautiful, gold before staring at the space next to him again.
"Don't go suicidal on me, Al. Don't go insane on me, Al."
"I'm not!"
"Well, then, how do you explain your sudden interest in "lightening my burden" and "Brother, what would it be like for me to die"?"
"Just curious. I want your life to be easy. Without—"
Edward turned those frighteningly mature eyes on Alphonse. "Never, I swear to God, Al, never talk like that. Without you, my life has absolutely no meaning. Don't. Think like that. It's not healthy at all."
"And cutting is healthy? You just let her off!"
"Winry's not as dumb as she acts."
"Could have fooled me…"
"She'll stop. Once she knew that we knew, she'll stop."
"And if she doesn't…?"
"Don't doubt me, Al." Edward sighed.
"If she doesn't, hell, she doesn't. Let her do what she wants. She's a big girl now, Al. We're talking about you."
"I'm not allowed to take care of myself?"
"Not while I'm living. For God's sake, Alphonse!" Ed looked positively livid.
"I'm the eldest! I fucked up! It is my burden! It is my. Problem. Let me handle it."
"Can I help?" The small voice emitting from that armor added for a comical note. A little boy asking his mummy if he can help bake cookies.
"Of course, Alphonse. Couldn't do it without you," Ed added, turning back towards the space.
"What's in that space you keep staring at, Ed?" Al asked, still irritable from the argument, and forming a plan in his mind to help his brother no matter what he says.
Edward laughed hollowly.
"Hope."
I do not own the lyrics to the song I put in this chapter.
Can anyone find the one sign I slipped in here that showed Alphonse's attitude change? Well, besides his dialogue and thoughts…--;;
Sorry for the crappy chapter! ((Readers: Hear, hear!))
But its here ((So you can get off my back for another month, okay Mearii, Ace?)), and the next two will be so much easier. ((Already half done…Hee hee))
And they will be much better then this HORRIBLE! AWFUL! DISGUSTING! Piece of $$!$# that you guys just read. I'm not even going to get into why it's so bad…