Disclaimer: … Already stated in first chapter…
A/N: Not much to comment on the production of this chapter, because this one seemed to just flow easily. The last chapter seemed to leave me unsatisfied for a odd reason, but maybe I'll go back and re-edit that one… maybe.
Chapter Four: Into Town
Brooke had awoken early the following morning to fix breakfast before everyone else had the chance to, but she found that her father had already awakened and was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping at a cup of coffee. She had never liked the caffeine filled rejuvenator, but had always made enough for her father who was the only one who drank it in the house. Her father had beaten her to it this morning. Usually, she'd be up earlier than this, but staying up with Jake and with the incident with him waking up everyone had tired her.
"You're up early." she commented as she opened the refrigerator to collect some eggs. She noted that she would need to add "eggs" onto the grocery list that she would take into town with her later after breakfast. Her father glanced up at her from his reading,
"Your mother stayed up with Jake in his room until he fell back to sleep last night." he said. She gave him a look over her shoulder before turning back to the job in front of her,
"Oh… Did it take long?"
"No, maybe ten minutes or so. It gave your mother quite a scare, though." Brooke didn't know if he had meant Jake waking up as scared as he was or what Jake had said about his nightmare had scared her mother so, but decided to add-in conversationally,
"I'm sure mom will be up in a bit. She's a early riser no matter how much sleeps she gets." her father gave a nod of his head in acknowledgment. A good five minutes or so passed before movement was heard within somewhere in the house and Brooke looked up from her cooking and flickered a momentary glance at the doorway in the kitchen to see who emerged, but no one did. Bryce had looked above his head over his square- rimmed reading glasses before looking at Brooke,
"When do you suppose those guests of yours will come down?" he asked with little interest and turned the page of his book with a flick of his thumb. Brooke blew a strand of her bangs from her face before shrugging,
"I dunno… I guess if they're not up by the time I'm done and Jake and mom are down, I'll send it up to them." she smiled without reason and added, "Al should be plenty hungry; he didn't eat anything last night." she made sure not to mention his absence of eating at the small restaurant she had worked at; her parents hadn't known of her employment there. She'd work there only for a few hours on Mondays and Tuesdays and earned a decent amount for her services (until she was… regretfully fired). She, in the future, would have good use for that money; she wasn't going to ask her parents for it, even though they'd probably gladly give it to her without fear of financial problems, she wanted to earn it.
"I smell eggs…"
"Hm?" Brooke looked over her shoulder at a Jake that looked more than unsettling with his hair sticking up in several places and the side of his face still red from being stuffed in his pillow. "Morning." she giggled. Jake smiled through tired eyes and plopped down in the seat next to his father and put his chin in his hand. His said father gave him a amused look over the side of his book,
"Tired?" he asked, turning a page again,
"No… Jus' woke up is'all…" he slurred as his face began to lull from it's perch in his palm before he jerked it back into it's previous position. Brooke smiled from over the stove as she began to set plates as her mother emerged as well, fully dressed and hair tied back into a loose bun.
"Morning, mom." Brooke said happily.
"Good morning, sweetheart. I see you slept well last night?" she asked as she took a plate to Jake, who had now let his head rest on his folded arms on the table. Katherine tugged at Jake's sleeve and told him to sit up properly before making her way to the plates Brooke was preparing and setting them at the table at their appropriate seats.
Brooke filled two plates promptly, placed them on a tray and said to them before heading for the door way to the foyer,
"I'll be back. I'm going to take these to Ed and Al." she said and with that, made her way to the guest room where the Elric brothers were resting.
Ed lay somewhere beneath the folds of the sheets in his bed, sound asleep and soft snores rumbling in his chest before escaping his nose that was buried in the white pillow. His braid needed to be redone, for several loose strands of golden hair had fallen from it's place during his tossing and turning.
After the incident the night before with Jake's nightmare, Ed had returned to his and Al's room and had taken off his day clothes (since he then remembered to do so after being awoken), and had thrown them unceremoniously to a heap on the floor. He didn't expect any of the Lindaman's to come in unannounced, so the risk of any of them seeing his auto-mail was unlikely.
Al lay in the other bed, back turned away from the room and toward the window that let little wisps of sunlight filter through and cling to the ceiling in a golden haze. It couldn't be any more than 7:00 a.m. possibly, but Al had heard the Lindaman's movement downstairs and knew he probably should expect someone to come to their door and offer breakfast.
As if on cue, someone knocked hollowly on their door and Brooke's voice sounded from the other side,
"Ed…Al…? I've got breakfast… You guys up… ?"Al got up from his position and state of tranquility on the bed and walked over to the door, his armor clanking and thudding against the hard wood unsettlingly. On the other side of the door, Brooke could hear the armor and wondered if Al had taken it off after she had last seen him the night before for a fleeting moment before the door opened.
She smiled at the youngest Elric,
"Morning, Al. I have breakfast for you and Ed… Mind if I…?" Brooke motioned at the tray in her hands and Al opened the door completely for her to walk through, wondering if letting her in was a good idea. Ed's auto-mail would be seen if she woke him…
Brooke placed the tray on a nightstand next to Ed's bed and only now did Al realize that there was two plates of food, rather than one just for Ed. Al would give Ed his food, for he defiantly couldn't eat it…
"Still not up yet?" she asked, Al not knowing if she had asked him or Ed that question, though he couldn't hear her. She placed a hand on her hip and shrugged, knowing it wasn't her position to wake him.
She noticed the clothes thrown everywhere and threw a accusing glance at Ed's sleeping form before she began to collect them and fold them in there respected places on a chair next to the closet door.
"I'll be collecting wash later today, mind telling him that for me?" she asked softly to Al as she scooted Ed's boots beneath the chair with her foot.
"Yes, I'll tell him." Al said as he watched her. She was so caring, and polite, and she truly cared about others before herself. She had a kind heart and aura… just like Clara and his mother. He'd been called "crazy" for thinking the notion that the nurse, Clara, inhabited any similarity to their late mother, so he didn't mention the same of Brooke to Ed.
"Eat." she said softly as she gave him a last glance near the door, "It'll get cold." she warned and shut the door softly so as not to wake Ed. Al looked at the tray of food, light steam curling in the air, and he sighed. She had prepared that food for both of them and yet, only one of them would be able to taste it. He was truly sorry he wouldn't be able to eat it, but he wasn't going to let it go to waste.
He clanked over to Ed's sleeping form and shook Ed's shoulder. Ed gave a audibly louder snort as he rolled over, trying to avoid the force that was attempting to shake him from his slumber.
"Brother, wake up…" he pulled back the sheets and grabbed at his auto-mail shoulder more vigorously. Ed gave a whimpering groan, fully aware of Al's attempts and sleepily grabbed at the sheets that had been taken. Al refused to give them up and gripped the sheets tighter, "Edward, wake up. Brooke made you breakfast…" Al tried to bargain with his brother's deliberate attempt to roll over. Ed, in frustration pulled back, feeling the sheets' fabric tighten beneath his fingers, but didn't loosen his grasp. "Brother! Tsk, you're already awake, just get up." Ed gave a low growl in his throat before tugging harshly with both hands and resulting in the sheets slipping from Al's grasp.
The momentum from Ed's pull and the release of Al's grip gave gravity enough power to pull Ed to the ground below after Ed had rolled over too far after pulling. Al couldn't help but chuckle as Ed lay tangled in the sheets and twitching through pain and agitation.
"You trying to break my back, Alphonse?" Ed said with mock hurt as he straightened himself from around the mess of sheets.
"I had nothing to do with it," Ed opened his mouth to retort, but Al interjected quickly, "Breakfast is here." Al motioned to the tray on his bedside and his recent stumble was momentarily forgotten as Ed quickly scuttled to the tray in earnest and only dressed in his boxers and black muscle-shirt.
Ed began to fork his eggs, but stopped when he noticed the second plate. He gave Al a furtive glance, loosened his grip on the fork in his hand, and sagged his shoulders a bit in slight discomfort and furrowed his brows in unsettling contemplation.
How was he to explain to Brooke that she didn't need to cook for Al? Ed was beginning to think that leaving this family and finding somewhere to campout was the best solution. There was no possible way he'd explain their situation to them, for it wasn't they're place nor they're burden but his own.
Ed finished his and Al's food with slowed enthusiasm than usual before finally turning to Al who had stayed silent as he noticed his brother's sudden change in demeanor for his food. Something was up.
"Al" he said suddenly low, gaining Al's immediate attention, "I think it's best that we leave."
"But, where will we go?" Al asked without missing a beat as he stood in disagreement.
"That's something else I'm going to bring up with Mustang." he replied with distaste upon his tongue. There was a moment of silence where Al toggled on whether he should try to dissuade his brother's decision before he finally spoke in a voice least upsetting that he could manage.
"But, this family is so kind. What wrong would it do to stay?" Ed closed his eyes at his brother's attempt to sway his decision and sighed, but didn't say anything as Al took this chance to continue, "I know that it's awkward, but we don't have to tell them. I have a feeling that they won't ask any questions that feel encroaching. At least, Brooke and Mrs. Katherine won't."
Ed opened his mouth but then closed it. It wouldn't do any good to argue the point when his view on the subject was obviously different from Al's. Ed wanted to avoid confusion and attention with their problems, but Al was more about confronting their problems and seeing things through, unless it posed hurtful to others. The brothers' problems was thus: they were possibly too selfless for their own health.
He didn't say anything else on the subject and Al took it as a regretful, but silent approval. But, he knew the second something came up, Ed would probably take that open opportunity to leave without attention to his brother's persuasion to stay.
"I need to make a phone call in town." Ed said. He wrinkled his nose in exasperation before sliding his lips to the side in a lopsided pout, "That is, if this town has moved up far enough in current technology and has communication with telephones rather than telegraph."
"They have phones; I saw one outside of the restaurant Brooke worked at." Al found amusement in the past tense of "worked." Brooke, no matter how caring and polite she was, she still was clumsy at times. Al wondered what she'd be like angry, but stopped. The thought of the proverb that the silent one's were the ones you had to watch out for became more than overwhelming. He couldn't imagine Brooke ever being deathly angry or livid, but knew everyone did at times… She'd proven she could be violent if necessary when she had thrown the ashtray that narrowly missed Ed's skull.
"Did you do this?" Ed pointed to his neatly folded clothes and cocked a brow, waiting for a answer, " 'Cause I know I didn't do it." he added when Al didn't answer.
"Brooke did." Al said simply as he sat on his bed. Ed nodded in recognition before making note to thank her before he left later. "She said she'll wash them for you later in the day." Al explained."Alright," he looked up at Al with a sort of dawning expression, "What am I gonna wear while she washes my clothes?" he asked more himself than Al. Al fought the urge (with a silent laugh) to suggest asking Jake for clothes. He couldn't walk around in only boxers and shirt… he wouldn't dream of it.
"Um," Al chuckled, "shopping? It's been a long time since you've needed new clothes…"
"What are you implying, Al?" Ed crossed his arms over his chest and looked at him accusingly.
"Absolutely nothing." Al said hurriedly. He'd hoped to avoid his brother's riotous fits this morning, at least in public. "It's not like we'll be going out of our way or anything. You said we had to call Colonel Mustang, so while we're in town, why not buy a new set of clothes." Ed's shoulders sagged in resolution. "Once we come back, then give your clothes to Brooke to wash."
"Yeah, alright." he breathed as he began to pull his pants on.
"What happened at dinner last night?" Ed, who had been pulling on his jacket, looked at him with a raised brow before it straightened into a line across his forehead in realization at what he meant.
"Nothing really," he said dismissively, "Just a close brush with a subject that could have put a wrench in things, is all." he flexed his fingers within his now gloved hand, filling them in fully.
"Like what?" Ed grunted before sitting to thrust his foot into his boot,
"Our great childhood." Ed said to the ground sarcastically as he stood up and started to finger the tie in his messy braid, walking over to a mirror that hung on a otherwise bare wall. He began to redo it when he stared at Al through his reflection, a odd look on his face. The way Bryce had probed him, like trying to make him slip on his current occupation as a State Alchemist in front of his wife, it bothered him somewhere and at some level that he, himself, hadn't quite deciphered yet.
It had gotten quiet in their room as Al raked through what Ed had said in his silent thoughts, and Ed disturbed that silence with a snap from his tie as he finished it. He blew air through the side of his mouth to tickle his bangs out of his face before turning to Al, placing a fist on his hip and smiling,
"Ready to go?"
"Yeah." Al said, a slight jump in his voice at Ed's sudden question. Ed grabbed his coat that lay draped across the back of the chair that settled by the door and put it on before walking out.
Brooke sighed as she turned the page idly, her eyes stopping on a spot on the page. She sat on the porches wooden chair, reading one of the many books she favored in the study, and letting the mornings breezes sooth her. A rather strong breeze caught her hair in it's fingers and pulled it with it in a whirling fury. She looked up, almost expecting to see the cause, but only caught Ed and Al exiting the house in her peripheral vision. She smiled,
"Nice to see you decided to wake up finally." Her smile fell a bit at the corners as she asked with more concern, "Sleep well?" She was obviously referring to last night's incident. Al nodded as Ed shrugged,
"Yes, thank you." Al said politely, "You?" Brook let her book rest in her lap and nodded softly, lifting a hand to tuck a lock of short- brown hair behind her singly pierced ear.
"Very well… You two heading into town?" Al nodded and Ed began to descend the steps of the porch in a gesture to Al to hurry the conclusion to their conversation without being rude. He couldn't when her family was giving them a place to sleep beside the ground outside.
"We'll be back in a little bit, excuse me." Al said hurriedly and clanked loudly off the porch and after his older brother who walked with his hands in his pockets.
A/N: Now, I'm going on the assumption that since my dictionary gives me the definition of sleep as such: physiology state of not being awake: a state of partial or full unconsciousness in people and animals during which voluntary functions are suspended and the body rests and restores itself, or a period in this state
(Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.). I guess it's safe to say that Al doesn't sleep in the same way a person with a body would (since it says that sleeping allows the body to rest and restore itself and Al's armored body doesn't experience fatigue (as stated in a episode that I can't remember; one of the lab five episodes)), but sleeps in the since that he's not fully aware of anything while he "sleeps". In my mind, it makes since, but as far as explaining what I'm theorizing in my head on paper… it's difficult.
Oh, and also, the question came up on whether they have refrigerators yet and the way I see it, they do. On the episode where Winry is kidnapped by Barry the Chopper, she mentioned that the invention of the refrigerated truck was new. Surely, they would have invented a stationary refrigerator before moving on to build them into trucks, right? Why walk before you can crawl…?