OMG! Yay! Over th 100 review mark! (Faints) Here are the review responces.
Sailorplutoouterscout – My story is funny? I gave up on being funny so long ago. Nice to know it's funny anyway. Hopefully its serious too. (the whole Edo-kun's dying thing and all…) Thanks for the review! Yay!
Kanashisa no Tenshi – I know not much happened but I had to set stuff up for later on. Yay! Winry is finally here! Sorry for taking so long to get he in the story. (sweatdrop) Yay! Fewer spelling mistakes! (does happy dance)
Vicious-loner – The style is going to stay pretty much the same, don't worry. I know the chapters are short but I'm working on it. Over the summer I'll be posting more, longer, chapters.
PsychoNeko15 – Yup!
Wolf in the mist – Thanks! Here'san update!
Achilea – I blame exams for the writer's block. School is finally over so hopefully the writer's block will go away..
RoseOfSharon28 – Here's an update!
Cherry – Thanks!
SAQ78642 – Thank you!
FaLlEn-AnGeL627 – ThanksQuezo Collette – Here's the next chapter!
jbonanosdad - Thank you, here's the next chapter!
Charmed-Envy-Fangirl – I'll try to add in Envy. I havn't got the whole story planned out yet, so I'll see if there's someway he can come into the story.
DarkInuHanyou – Thank you
KawaiiTenshi –Yay! Thanks!
FruitsBasketFreak44 – sorry for taking so long to update! Than you!
Icewing alchemist – me too
Priestess kurumi inu's sister – Poor winry. Ed and Al never tell her anything.
girlgoneanime – Hee hee. The Elrics are sure in for it.
Legendary Chimera - Wrenches of DOOM! Lol.Rena – hank you. Hope you like the chapter.
So far I have 3 votes for angst and 2 for fluff. So I'll probably go for angst with the occasional bit of fluff thrown in. I don't know how well I'll write the fluff. I've never writen it before. Thanks to the people who voted!
I'm going theough some shit with a friend of mine so I'm really stressed out right now. This chapter will be angst. Fluff will come later.
'Well, this certainly isn't going well." Ed thought as he cautiusly observed Winry's shaking form. "W-Winry?" He asked reaching out to touch her shoulder, only to have her jerk away from his touch.
"Tell her Ed." Came the deceptively calm voice of the younger Elric. Ed looked back at Al, his desperate plea obvious in his amber eyes, despite knowing that Alphonse would not relent on the subject. He only ever called his older brother by his name when he was serious.
"Please?" Ed begged. He didn't want to see the look of pity he knew would cover the girl's face. All his life, pople had pitied him. He could take it from strangers, but not from her. Not from Winry.
Alphonse somehow managed to give his older brother a look that was a strange mix of sympathy and sterness, and shook his head. Ed sighed, knowing that there was no possible way he cold get around it. 'I was stupid to think I could get out of here without questions.'
"I'm sick" he stated simply. Winry looked up slightly, as if daring him to start talking again. Ed felt a sharp jab in his back from Al and took that as a hint to continue.
"I'm" Ed gulped, bracing himself for Winry's reaction. "I'm dying, Win." He kept his gaze fixed on the floor. "My body is shutting down. Colapsing in on itself. I don't know how to stop it. I don't even know how long I have. All I know is that if I don't find a cure, I'll be dead in under six months." Ed stopped, still steadfastly refusing to make eye contact with anyone.
Al let out a strange strangled sound halfway between a sob and a scream and collapsed onto his knees with a soft 'thump'. Winry gave a soft sniff and muttered just loud enough for the brothers to hear: "What are we waisting time for? You have research to do. The sooner I fix your arm the sooner you can find a way to get better."
Edward looked up at her suddenly. "Win…ry…" he trailed off. Winry simply stood up, tools in hand and a soft, sad smile gracing her features.
"Win?" Ed questioned.
Winry simply laughed softly. "Ever since you guys left, you've been doing dangerous things. You've never told me what you do but I know you constantly put yourselves in danger. You managed to win last time. Yu found the stone and got Al's body back. I don't se any reason not to belive you won't be able to do the impossible again."
Al looked up, eyes glassy. "You aren't worried?" he qustioned softly.
"Worried? Of course I'm worried.I always worry. I probably always will, but I can't stop you. If I did I'd probably be killing you. All I can do is hope that you'll be ok." She explained before looking back at the blond haired man infront of her. "Now, let's get working on this arm of yours."
"I don't know how you amnaged it Ed, but the central cluster of synthetic nerves is completely destroyed! I'm going to have to replace it all!" Winry exclamed disbelievingly.
Ed laughed nervously as Al attempted to feed him some soup. So far, with little success.
"Come on Brother! Eat!" Al said, exasperated to the point of wanting to rip his hair out.
"I'm not hungry Al! Besides, I ate a few hours ago!" Ed complained while trying to dodge the spoon.
"You ate half a piece of toast! Now if you don't stop fooling around let me feed you, I'm going to get Winry to pin you down so that I can force this down your throat!" Al growled, sounding suspiciously like his elder brother. Said brother simply roled his eyes and allowed Al to feed him.
Winry simply sighed, shaking her head, and returned to replacing the individual wires that made up the heart of the prosthetic limb. Part of her found it ironic that Al was acting so much like his rather over-protective older brother. The rest of her found it distessing; it took a lot to bring out this side of the younger, and usually more patient, brother. The fact that he had been acting like this ever since they had arived was not a good sign.
He was dying. Edward Elric, the untouchable. The Full Metal Alchemist. It didn't seem possible that the same boy she had seen so determined and strong before could possibly be the thin, fragil looking youth that sat in her kitchen, confined to a wheelchair. She still half expected for it to be a joke; but those wounds she had seen…those were no joke. The abnominal wound, had it been only inches further in could have caused massive internal damage. Needless to say, had that happened, he wouldn't have needed to worry about finding a cure for this sickness of his.
There had to be some way she could help. She wouldn't stand around and do nothing. Maybe Grandma would know.
"Hey Grandma?" Winry questioned, attempting to sound casual. She knew this was a longshot but she couldn't think of anything else
"Yes Winry?" the older wonam responded, glancing up only briefly from the automail she was working on.
"Do you happen to have kept any of Hohenheim's books did you?" the words tumbled out of her mouth fast enough that Pinako had to take a moment to process exactly what her grandaughter had said.
She stopped her work and looked up, her brow furrowed. "I…think so…" she answered slowly, wondering what in the world Winry would want with advanced alchemic texts.
"Could I have a look at some of them?" she asked in what she hoped was a non-suspicious way.
Pinako shrugged. "They're downstairs in the basement. In a box under the stairs." She explained, going back to her work.
"Thanks Grandma!" Winry grinned, before heading for the basement. It had worked! Maybe she'd be able to help Ed after all.
"damnit…" Ed muttered, running the temporary prosthetic arm that Pinako had given him to use.
The good news? He could actually move this one.
The bad news? The dexterity wasn't good enough for him to be able to do, well…much of anything. Including feed himself. Which ment that Al was still hounding him on how much he was eating. Edward shuddered. An overprotective Al was scary thing to deal with.
Still, in the end Ed really couldn't blame his brother. If it had been Al dying, he would probably be acting even worse.
"Hey Ed?" Winry poked her head in the door. Ed sat on the couch as best he could. "I finnished repairing your arm." She grinned at the blond haired alchemist, automail limb cradled in one arm.
Ed grimaced slightly. "Already?" he found himself wondering, not for the first time, just why it had hurt so bloody much to have the automail atached. He let out a groan. "Let's get this overwith."
Winry looked around, slightly confused."Where's Al?" she questioned. In all their time there, she had yet to see the younger Elric leave his brother's side for more than five minutes.
Edward's face softened. "He fell asleep. About half an hour ago. He's been staying up to late trying to make sure I'm alright. He's upstairs right now"
Winry's heart went out to Ed. The guilt was written plainly on his face. Edward had never liked to trouble people, especially those he cared for. The fact that his brother was working so hard to make sure he ws alright was something he couldn't stand. Unfortunitly, he couldn't very well protest, given his current state.
Winry came into the room, followed by Pinako. "Winry, go wake up Al. We'll need him to hold Ed down." The older woman comanded.
"Do we really have to wake him up? He's pretty tired."Ed asked quietly.
"Sorry Ed, but we'er going to need help for this. Especially since your injured." Pinako's stern expression softened slightly.
Pinako disconected the spare prosthetic arm from the automail port as Winry went to fetch Al.
"Brother?" Al muttered sleeply, Rubbing his eyes.
Pinako looked up at the younger Elric. "We're reconecting his automail. We're going to need your help."
Alphonse, now looking far more awke, came to stand next to his brother, ready to help when the time came. He had done this many times over the years. His response was almost automatic now. Winry and Pinako set up the arm carefully, checking to make sure every thing was conected correctly.
"You ready Ed?" Winry questioned
"Ready as I'll ever be"
As the automail nerves connected to his own, Edward wasn't given the chance to cry out, much as may of liked to. He had passed out.
"Ed!" Al cryed out, sounding frantic.
"Move him to the couch" Pinako ordered sternly. Winry sighed, having expected this. The combined stress on his body from both beung sick and the automail had been to much for him to handle.
"Al, can you check to see if he has a fever?' Winry asked absentmindedly, while covering Ed's uncontious body with a blancket. Al shook his head. "He doesn't have a fever?" Winry asked, surprised.
"That's not it." He murmered just loud enough for her to hear. "He's been running a fever for the past week. He won't let me do anything about it though." Worry and guilt were evedent in his eyes.
Winry stopped, mid-movement. It was finnally hitting home that Ed really might not survive. That a month from now, he might not be there. Slowly she turned toward Al.
"This is really happening, isn't it?" she questioned, desperation was evedent in her face.
Al glanced at his brothers still form. "Yeah. It's really happening." He murmured. "It's hard to believe" he finally looked up at Winry. "Isn't it?"
"Why?" the blond girl asked, voice quivering. "Why him? After all you two had to go through, why couldn't it be someone else?"
"He said it was because he had to form the stone inside his own body. He did it because…because he wanted me to have mt body back. He said that…he knew it might happen, but went through with it anyway." Al looked down again. "All of this. Is because of me."
A/N: Sorry for taking so long (chuckles nervously). Exams are so evil. Anyway, I'm finally free, so expact more updates.
