author: carla, aka cali-chan
rating: PG-13, because of some swearing... Can't be helped,
since there will be people calling Ed "short" once in a while. Rating
might go up to R, though, depending on my mood when writing later
chapters.
genre: AU, romance, a bit drama, really cheap humor ;;;
canon: manga ONLY!
pairings: EdxWin, RoyxAi. Hughes will definitely be gushing about his wife a lot...
summary: AU, chaptered, high-school themed, but not your usual
sweet-valley high school fanfic. Edward Elric has to become the best
track runner there is, for his mother, for his brother, and for
everyone else in his life. But will triumph come at a high cost?
in this chapter: we learn the story of the elric brothers.
Chapter 2: Not without looking back
"...And that's why you should join the military!" Second Liutenant Jean Havoc exclaimed, as a conclusion to his short speech. "Not only will you be a national hero, but we will also give you an introductory DVD and a wristwatch when you sign in!"
Ed snorted, leaning back in his chair and looking up to the ceiling. "National hero, oh yeah," he muttered under his breath, sarcastically. "That's why HE'S in a secondary school in the middle of nowhere giving teenagers a lame recruiting speech." Some of the students around him sniggered too.
"Edward, be quiet," Winry, who was sitting beside him, whispered. She had been paying attention to the speech and he kept making rude comments about the Second Liutenant.
As it was their last year of schooling, they'd been subject to at least seven of these "So what are you going to do with your life when you get out of here?" speeches. And it was only the end of April. The kids were growing a bit tired of them. They thought the speeches were a bit of a joke.
"And sure you'll be risking your life, but who cares, you've got a free wristwatch!" Ed continued on, as if he hadn't heard her.
Winry fumed. "E-do!" she glared at him, a threat in her tone. Oh, how she wished she could just pick up her biology book and clobber him with it.
"Is there a question in the back?" the voice of the Second Liutenant interrupted the argument. Both teens snapped their attention back to the front of the classroom, Ed with a somewhat shocked look and Winry with a deep blush.
Second Liutenant Havoc looked at both of them, and then smiled at Winry. "Anything you want to know, pretty lady?"
Winry smiled back at him, still blushing. "No, Second Liutenant. You've told me everything I needed to know, thank you."
Havoc nodded at her and again looked around the room. "Well, I'm glad. It's been a pleasure to come and talk to you and I hope to see some of you in our ranks next year!"
When the soldier's attention was away from them, Ed turned to Winry with his best "WTF!" expression. "...The hell--! You were flirting with that guy!" he roared at her, pointing with his finger.
Winry giggled a little. "Well, maybe. He's cute."
Ed couldn't believe his ears. "He's like FORTY!" He flailed his arms around. The people surrounding them only took it as another of their "lovers' quarrels," so they didn't think much of the argument.
Winry rolled her eyes. "He's NOT forty..."
She was interrupted by the sound of the bell ringing. Their teacher asked them to give a round of applause for Second Liutenant Havoc before declaring the class over.
"So, are you going to help me study for our Biology test?" Ed asked her. He wanted to get a good grade since it was their first test of the schoolyear, but sadly he was quite hopeless in the subject. Granny Pinako berated him time and time again for his Bio grades, wishing he could be half as good in it as he was in Chemistry, or in Physical Education. But alas, his grades were still rather low. Winry, on the other hand, being the daughter of two doctors and wishing to become one herself, had read and understood the Biology books they had back at home since even before she was out of primary school. So Ed was always pleading at her to help him.
Winry put her backpack on. "Yeah, we can go over the material tonight. I already have it summarized so it won't take too long, I guess." She hoped they finished before dark. Her Granny had been increasingly anxious lately about the two of them, or even her and Al being alone in a room after dark. Winry didn't see her point; the three of them had been living under the same roof since they were 11, after all...
"Is it ok if we stop somewhere in the way, though?" he asked her, as they left the classroom to look for Al. "I want to go see Mom."
Winry gasped. Usually Ed and Al would go visit their mother's grave once a month, the third Saturday. Just the two of them; it was something very private and she never liked to interfere in their family moments. The whole of the track team had to run this past Saturday, though, to update their records, so Ed couldn't go to the cemetery and Al didn't want to go without him. And as her Granny had strictly forbidden Ed from staying after school to practice, of course he was going to make the best possible use of his free time.
"Um... If you want, I can walk home by myself, it's okay..." she left the phrase open-ended, waiting to see how he'd reply. She really didn't want to intrude.
He just looked ahead as they neared the door to Al's classroom. "...No. It's okay, you can come. We won't be there long, anyway."
Soon Al joined them, chatting happily about the great grade he'd gotten on a test he'd been studing for a week for. They told him of the change in plans, and he agreed. He'd been feeling a little guilty about not going to visit their mother the past Saturday. So they stopped to buy flowers and then made their way to the cemetery.
They finally reached the site. Ed stared fixedly at the name in the tombstone: Trisha Elric. Al put the flowers down over the grave and very carefully knelt down, already starting to babble about everything that had happened to them in the past month. Winry respectfully stayed a few steps behind them. But Ed kept quiet, standing beside the grave, looking at the name in the tombstone.
Coming to visit their mother always brought back memories of the day she died... and the day of the accident.
Their mother had been sick for a long time, but they had never known, as they were just kids. They had never seen the signs... never suspected... Until that day she went into the kitchen to make breakfast and they found her ten minutes later, sprawled on the floor.
They had rushed her to the hospital. She had been under intensive care for the most part of a week. The boys, scared as they were, kept their hopes up. The doctors had told them that the probabilities of her getting better were high.
But when your reason for living has left you waiting for so long, it is very hard to hold on.
They had been there that day. She held both of their little hands, and looked into their watery eyes. "My boys... I love you so much. I'm sorry I have to go..."
"Mom, don't talk like that! You're gonna be ok!" Al had cried, burying his face into their joined hands.
She had smiled at him. At them both. "Promise me you'll both be the very best runners you can be... I know how much you love it... Your father would've been proud... He loved it so much, too."
"Don't talk about him now, Mom. Just try to feel better. You don't have to talk, you have to rest..." Ed had tried to reason with her, still hoping that if she stopped exerting her strenght, she could fight against the illness.
"Ed... please take care of Al. You'll need each other now..." She closed her eyes and took a breath. Her last. "I love you..."
The burial ceremony had been within the next couple of days. Alphonse had cried for hours that day. Edward didn't cry; yet he took his mother's death the hardest. After their father left them, he had become by default the man of the house, and yet he could do nothing to save their mother. He didn't even see it coming. But he would not let her down; he would make sure her final wishes were fullfilled, no matter what the cost.
A couple of weeks after the burial, they had already moved into Pinako Rockbell's house. Their house had been sold by the State, and was already demolished. Ed liked to sit by the window and look at the land where it had stood. Al would cry himself to sleep at the same time.
One of those days, though, near midnight, Edward had turned to his little brother with a determined expression on his face. "Get dressed, Al. We're going out."
"At this hour, Brother?" Al had wondered, but did as he was told anyway. He had always looked up to his brother. He was reckless like that, but if he said no, he was sure Brother would go anyway. And he couldn't let him go alone. "Where are we going?"
"To the track," Ed replied, lacing his trainers.
"What for?"
"Because Mom wanted us to be the best," he explained, his tone strong, as he walked to the door of their room. "And we will be. So we need to practice. And we can't lose time like this."
So they had sneaked out successfully and started made their way towards their school. They hadn't made it, though.
Edward could still remember the bright headlights as they came towards them...
They had been rushed to the hospital, too. Granny Pinako and Winry had heard the commotion and went out to investigate.
In the end, after surgery and much pain, they were left in pieces again. Ed had broken his left tibia, dislocated that same knee, and fractured his right arm; he hadn't been hit as hard, though. It would take some time, but he would heal. He would have to be careful with what he did with his appendages from now on, though. Al, on the other hand, had taken the heavy burnt of the hit. He sustained various injuries, but the graves of them was his right leg... it was so crushed, they'd almost had to amputate it. They'd managed to heal it enough, putting together the bone with four screws and complete immobilization. He'd only been able to move in a wheelchair for months. Later on, after an incredibly difficult season of therapy, he managed to walk again. But he'd have to use a walking stick for the rest of his life. And his running carreer was over.
Edward blamed himself. Al was the better of the two of them... and now he wouldn't be able to run again. All because he hadn't thought before acting.
Alphonse never blamed him, though. He was just happy to be alive.
When Ed saw the bright smile in his brother's face the first day he'd been able to walk again, he'd vowed to himself, yet again, that he'd be the best. For his mother, and now for his brother. No matter what the cost.
"...We should be going now, Mom. It's late and we have to study," Al finished, wiping away the silent tears that fell down his cheeks. Ed finally looked up from the tombstone, and taking his hand out of his pockets, walked towards Al to help him stand up. They turned to leave, noticing that Winry was wiping her tears, too. She smiled at them and moved to hold Al's left hand. He smiled gratefully at her. She didn't say anything, but they knew she was there for them.
They made it to their house, silent but for the sound of their footsteps. When they entered, Al went to his room to drop off his things, leaving Winry and Ed alone. Ed turned to her with a goofy smile.
"So, you're still going to help me with Biology, right? We can start after we eat something, I'm starving..."
He turned to go up the stairs to his room, but a sound from her stopped him mid-step. "Ed?"
He turned to see her. She was looking at him with the saddest expression on his face. A tear ran down her cheek. And she moved forward, wrapping her arms around his waist, burying her head in his neck.
He tensed up; didn't hug her back, just stood there. She understood. It was just the way he was. She knew it was hard... her own parents had died even before Trisha did, it had been years... but the pain never went away. She just hoped he would let himself be comforted. He didn't always have to be the strong one.
"Yeah... we'll study after we eat," she murmured against his neck. The feeling of her lips against his skin made him shiver, but he said nothing. She slowly disentangled herself from him and walked around him, up the stairs.
He saw her leave. Then closed the door behind him.
Unbeknownst to any of them, they were being watched from outside. "How sure can we be that he'll concentrate on running?" the man wondered aloud.
Second Liutenant Havoc sighed. "Was it necessary to follow them even to the graveyard, Sir?"
The same dark-haired man that had spoken before turned to Havoc. "Before even checking out his track record, I have to know his personality. Many potential medallists have failed in their projects because of personal issues, or because they are mutinous and cannot take orders. I will not risk it again." That definitely shut Havoc up.
He turned to the blond-haired woman that was standing beside him. "Make a note of this, Miss Hawkeye. We will have to keep an eye out on his issues about his mother. But have his address listed. Perhaps we will pay him a visit if we have an open slot."
"Yes, Sir," the woman replied, already jotting everything down into a Palm Pilot. "If you don't mind me asking, Mr. Mustang... do you really think this boy has potential?"
Roy Mutang frowned. "Hughes insists he's a good runner... Of course Hughes has no idea what a good runner is. But either way, it wouldn't hurt to check him out. Hopefully it won't be another waste of time."
Miss Hawkeye nodded at his reply, jotting even more notes into the hand-held computer. Second Liutenant Havoc just frowned and pulled a cigarette out of his pocket, lighting it and bringing it to his mouth.
author's notes-- well, here you go. this chapter is longer than the first, but i can't promise you that they will all be long. i can't promise you i'll update as regularly, either. i'm an awfully slow writer... if you've read any of my other fanfics (non-hagaren), you'll know. this is only coming out as fast as it is because i'm strangely inspired. if my muse goes away one of these days, then this will definitely take some more time to complete.
now, about the chapter itself.
first, second liutenant havoc is still in the military because i just can't picture him anywhere else. and before you can start accusing me of promoting pedophilia, he wasn't really flirting with winry. i think he's just naturally charming with women (even if he never gets a girlfriend, though -.-;;). the whole scene stemmed from the fact that i think that after hughes (who's TEH HOTT!), havoc is the cutest out of all the military guys. and i feel really sad about what happened to him in the last few chapters of the manga. so i had to include him here.
and second, there you have it: the story of the MF!elrics. hopefully it's to your liking. oh, the drama... i know nothing about medicine, so please forgive me if the decription of their injuries was completely wrong. that's what happened to an uncle of mine, but then again he was inside a car during the accident and he's much older than al...
if you want to know about the next chapter before it's up here, check out my livejournal: my username is girlsareweird. i might even post snippets of the next few chapters if i'm doing well with them...
please review!