Over the Limit
A/N- Hey! I wanted to thank allmy reviewers, but a special shout out for Kitty Meow for being the only person who reviewed last chapter. I was so happy with all the kind things people said in my first chappy, and then nobody reviewed, and I was very sad. :-( And to top it off, my horse is mad at me, and I have shaving cuts on my legs. Damn.
Anyway, I'm not sure if I should just end this fichere, or if I should go on… If you're still interested in this, will yuh drop me a note so I know I'm writing for SOME one? I was so sad last time. Now my pocky tastes like tears. All 12 boxes. Okay, on with the slightly larger chappy!
It wasn't the first time that he had peered through the obstructively diminutive window joining the two rooms at the younger blonde alchemist. In fact, it would have been the last if he had stopped promising himself that the next time was final. Mustang watched the impractical teen with the comings of a headache as the boy's angry pacing wore away the flooring. He sighed, steepling his fingers and resting his throbbing forehead on them, gratefully thanking his lucky stars for keeping the restraints on the boy. He smirked, rolling his head back towards the window. For the last time, he had assured himself.
…Only to meet smoldering odium filled eyes glaring back at him. He held the scorching glare for all of three seconds before casting his uneasy gaze back to the work at hand. He had never been the last man standing, anyway. Only the soft padding of footsteps on the reverse side of the wall stood for suggestible indication that the teen had resumed his persistent pacing.
Back and forth…
Back and forth…
It was driving the raven haired man's last nerve into suicide.
"Fuuuuck," came the alchemist's exceedingly and decidedly intelligent retort.
"You could always go talk to him, boss." Havoc once again astounded him with his ability to speak legibly around his cigarette.
"You have to, sir, if you want to make him presentable in court today." Hawkeye's voice carried a worse threat than her gun, or any of the silver bullets probably stored in its barrel.
"Presentable? The kid hasn't worn anything but what he has on now since he was…" Roy made an undecided face, moving his hands up and down through the air. "…little…r…" Half the office personnel instinctually swiveled in terror towards Ed, who had obviously not heard the remark in the adjoining room. "In any case, what would I do? Give him a brush, and offer to tie his hair up in pink ribbons?"
"Now would be a good time, colonel."
Roy sighed, tossing one last uneasy glance at the Lieutenant over his shoulder. If there had ever been a Golden Age in the office, it was just about to end… and in a rather bloody confrontation too.
"Why me?"
The smell hit him first. At least, before Edward could get around to it. The scent of body odor hung strongly in the air, but it was possible that days had gone by without the boy having showered. He had to hand it to the kid though. The few kicks that Roy hadn't managed to dodge in time were well aimed, and hurt like hell on impact. He sighed as another blow landed on his hip.
"Give it up, Fullmetal. You're only tiring yourself."
"And you, you fat bastard," he hissed back, lashing out at the alchemist once more.
"But," the man smirked. "I'm not the one off balance." He pushed forward, closing the distance between the two and forcing himself past kicking range. With a calculated leg sweep he upended the teen on his back, pinning him to the ground by sheer weight. "Shackles are a bitch, huh? Totally throws off your stability." He could feel the boy's heavy breath on his cheek, the wooden restraints pressing uncomfortably into his ribcage as they fought to catch their breath on the ground. The teen struggled for a few seconds to no avail, gripping the colonel's shirt and any skin attached with his pinned hands, digging into the man's stomach flesh with his fingers.
"Get off me you fat jackass!"
"A pleasant surprise to see you here too, Fullmetal. I don't recall giving you authorization to go gallivanting anywhere and everywhere taking your own sweet time to return. Really now, I don't have to keep you pinned to Central all the time do I?"
Edward remained quiet, finally giving up any attempts at a struggle, his head turned sideways to glare at the wall. Anywhere but up into those mocking black eyes.
Undisturbed by the silence, Mustang continued.
"I take it you found what you were looking for? But where is your brother? You wouldn't have left-"
"Dammit, don't you dare talk about Al as if you knew what was going on!" So he had hit a weak spot. But the pain in his eyes…how did you know when to keep pushing, and when to just let go and move on? Roy Mustang was used to dealing with the enemy. With Hawkeye and the other impossible subordinates. With men and with women. With Grown ups. Adults. Never with children. So he pushed.
"I have a right to know. He is as much my concern as yours."
"You don't know!"
"So you did perform the transmutation. What happened?"
"Dammit, Shut up!"
"I'll learn somehow, but I'd like to hear it from you. Did he lose limbs, like you?" Edward thrashed under the man, his hands long numbed by the mass on top of him, growling low in his throat. "His voice?"
"I said shut up!"
"His hearing?"
"No, you dumb bastard! You leave Al out of-"
His… memories?"
Everything went deathly still. The rigid body he had pinned jerked slightly, then it too became inflexible.
"Oh." Mustang's voice was soft, and even he could tell he had gone too far. "Look, I didn't know… I'm sorry…" He stood up, giving the boy some room to stand, and when he wouldn't sit up on his own, the older man helped him into a sitting position on the floor.
"Look at me, Fullmetal." He turned his head obediently, and Roy felt something inside him churn when he saw the boy's eyes. They were empty. Of soul. Of hope. Of life. The fire that had burned in them only moments before had died, where not even ashes were left to smolder.
"I'm sorry. I-"
"Just leave it. It doesn't matter anymore," he whispered through numbed lips.
Mustang shook his head and cleared his throat. "Come on. We have to get you ready for your trial."
They stepped out of the room, Hawkeye shooting the man a questioning glance as they passed by, Edward tagging along after him like a lost puppy that had been kicked away one too many times.
"I don't know, Fullmetal Alchemist. You leave me in a very awkward position here. The military appreciates what you've done for us in the past, but your previous actions were strictly forbidden." The Fuhrer looked down at the few assembled officers who had come to stand by Ed through the trial. "You know the penalty." There were scattered moans throughout the group, and Hawkeye's hand made it's way reassuringly to the teen's shoulder. "I would give you a moment to state your case and prove your innocence."
Edward said nothing, not meeting the inquiring and urgent glances thrown at him from the onlookers, and the steady gaze of the Fuhrer.
"If you have nothing more to say, Fullmetal, then this will conclude the case..."
"Edward, say something!" Hawkeye's breath was hot against his neck as he shook his head ever so slightly. It didn't matter what happened now. Hadn't he once told Al that he was the only reason worth living? The only reason worth breathing? He had paid his debt and returned Al to his body, now his life was free to live without holdups, for however long that may be. Mustang had only opened his eyes to the fact that he would never, never truly get Al back. Not without a sacrifice he was unwilling to pay.
"Fullmetal, we are all without question regretful that this course of action must be carried out, but it's the dictum of the military to be fair, and we could not possibly surpass age old regulations and degrade the lives of others in similar state of affairs. We'll hold the execution until such time as…" a censorious murmur ran through the crowd, halting when the Fuhrer took his next breath. "…tomorrow."
"Sir, if I may?" The colonel stood up, face set and teeth gritted…not in his best of moods. Maybe he shouldn't have had so much booze the night before…
"Name your request, Flame Alchemist."
"With all due respect sir, he's just a child." The hairs rose on the back of his neck as he felt not only the eyes of the surrounding bystanders, but a pair of intense golden orbs burning into his back.
"He's a military official," the Fuhrer stated clearly. "And he shall be treated no differently."
"Then give us time to detain and annihilate the homunculus he created. Do you not agree that he should be the one to clean up the mess he made?"
Silence. And then-
"True. I place him under your command until then. Do as you see fit, and if he runs, he will be classified a traitor, and we deal with him as such." He smiled suddenly. "Those homunculi are quite slippery, or so I hear. I'll give you a generous amount of time to work on this case. I think a year should do it, so as not to interfere with the coming assessments and preparation. Any objections?"
"Dammit, no-" a cold hand was pressed against the blonde's mouth, stifling any sentences he could have strung together.
"Thank you, sir. We are indebted to your kindness, and I'm sure we'll have everything under control to your satisfaction." Mustang saluted and turned, the rest of the officers dispersing through the door after him, cheers of congratulation sent to the only person in an infelicitous sulk.
Why couldn't they just have let it go?
Edward stepped into the room to the roar of congratulations from all of thesoldiers he had come to regard with respect over the years. But not for the first time, he paid them no heed as he made his way to the familiar vile door. Without bothering to knock, or even publicize his arrival, he stormed through that same vile doorway to come face to face with the vile colonel.
…who was, of course, busy neglecting his paperwork as he tipped back on the two legs of his chair, feet propped on the desk (of dirty and incomplete paperwork) staring senselessly into the ink tube inside his pen.
"Dammit! What the fuck did you do?" Mustang raised an eyebrow to the teen's vociferous demand and righted the chair onto its four legs, glancing uninterestedly at the person in front of his desk.
"Well, I had lunch about five minutes ago, and then Lieutenant Hawkeye found me and kindly forced me back in here and-"
"That's not what I meant, colonel."
"In any case, it's nice to see you so perky and… lively… at the moment, Fullmetal." He sniffed the air. "And clean. You really were beginning to stink, you know."
"Tell him to take it back! I'm not going to be chained to you for another year." He didn't mention the double of Al he had to destroy. He couldn't. Wouldn't it be like killing Al himself? Impossible.
"You're not in a good mood right now, are you?"
"You don't miss a thing."
"Are you trying to aggravate me today?"
"No. It comes naturally."
Roy sighed. "What do you want, Fullmetal?" When he looked back up at the teen, the fire had died down from the boy's golden eyes as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Why?"
The man snorted. "Why what?"
"Why the hell couldn't you just leave me to…" the younger alchemist caught on his words before trying again. "I just wanted to… You could have left me…"
"To die?"
"That's not what I said!" And there was that recognizable flare of anger again. Maybe anger was better than nothing. At least it proved the kid had a will. A will to destroy or to hate, maybe, but then again, maybe a will to live. Something is always better than nothing.
"But the thing is, Fullmetal, that's what you meant. And in answer to your understandably tactless question, you are a subordinate under my command, and it would look extreme on my rather flawless record should anyone working under me be executed disgracefully." He let out a breath, debating whether or not to continue. "But then, I also have an obligation to defend my acquitted subordinates, and I do believe you fall under that category."
"All you care about is a good mark on your record."
"Haven't you been listening? It's more than just-"
"And did you have the same feeling for everyone one of those soldiers that you murdered during the war? Duty has nothing to do with your actions, sir."
"You don't know what you're talking about, kid." The colonel's voice was dead quiet, his eyes hidden by the bangs he allowed to fall over his face in strands.
"Or maybe you didn't care, as long as the higher-ups patted you on the head and told you 'good boy'?"
"I'm your commanding officer, and I gave you an order. Leave my office. Now." Flames licked at the man's protective gloves, dancing almost like playful children around his fingers, awaiting the command to spring into action.
"Not until you tell the Fuhrer-"
"LEAVE!" The trash bin exploded in an angry blaze beside the blonde teen, who replicated the man's cold smirk.
"I might remind you that I'm also a state alchemist." He brought his two hands together. One metal, one flesh, meeting in the center of his face. "And if you want to fight me…" he looked the older man in the eyes, a look of cruel humor playing in his own. "…then let's go for it."
"And I might remind you, Fullmetal, that I have ultimate say in whatever you do. I can make it so you couldn't so much as piss without my say so." The flames died down as his grin widened and his eyes narrowed. "Leave now, before I make you're life a lot more… complicated."
"Right, you dumb bastard. But this isn't over. Don't expect a good mark on your record this time." Edward grabbed for the door handle, but stopped short as the snug voice amplified behind him.
"I think you're forgetting something, kid."
"What the hell do you want now?"
"Your watch. You can leave it here. I think it's time that you stop acting like a spoiled brat and try working for a living…you know, like most children your age do."
"…"
"I'm temporarily revoking your state license."
"What? You can't-"
"You still report to me on time, and we still have a mission to carry out, but until then, you try living life without getting everything you want by flashing a hunk of metal on a piece of chain." He grinned and flicked his own watch, returning to his paperwork. "Dismissed."
As Edward turned to leave, he let his smirk fall to pieces, and cradled his head in his hands, suddenly tired. And there was that same nagging sensation in his chest. An impossible combination of emotions raging together… the same reaction he had felt before standing up at the trial. He didn't want the teen to leave. Didn't want to see him go.
And the door slammed shut behind Edward.
Had he gone too far?
A/N- Yay! So I made it a little extra long on request of Kitty Meow…but sorry it wasn't longer! Anyone else have any sorts of requests about what they want to happen? Again, I'd love some feedback! Did I disappoint anyone? Everyone? Anyone want me to just hurry the story along to the juicy stuff? Thanks guys!
Oh, and has anyone heard that "Brat'ya" song from FMA sung in English by Vic Mignogna? I was listening to it over and over and over…he has such a nice singing voice! And speaking voice, when he's acting out Edward. If you haven't heard it, OMG, you have to! If you're looking for a place to download it, contact me, and I have a webby that's safe to use. You can also find another (even better, I think) song by him called "Far from Home" there. Such talent!
Okay, ONE last thing...I promise! I really have nothing to do after work, and I was wondering if anyone wanted me to draw them a piccy? I don't do anime anymore, but I'm alright with realistic. If you want samples of my work, ask me, and I'll give you my webby address. I love drawing. :-) THANKS! I will love you like a firey passionate fireball...before it explodes and kills off all the dinosaurs. Except a little less firey...and kinda more shiny, because shiny rocks my socks. Luv yah!
-Tasha (Am I really that evil?)