Sorry about the wait Minna-san. I was trying to plot out the next few chapters. That plus a convention last weekend (I cosplayed as Temari) means that I can finally get started on this next batch of chapters.
Your toaster: Yeah, I know the fainting thing was predictable but…meh. I need to go back and rewrite the last chapter. Thanks for the review.
ChibiAzn3: Yay! You're back! Thanks for reviewing!
ed-is-a-shorty: WAAAA! (Hides) don't kill me!
Molly: Yay! I updated!
RealNutcase: I'm really not trying to kill Ed off! Lol. I just want there to be a very real possibility of him dying in the end. I like the irony of Ed dying from some disease he can't stop 'cause he's proved that he can do almost anything when it comes to overcoming physical problems (like getting Al's body back). A sickness is one of the few things that, realistically, could bring him down.
Vicious-Loner: Another vote for angst!
FaLlEn-AnGeL627: thank you!
Birth of Venus: Thanks!
Audre vampire of Drow: Thank you! It still surprises me whenever I get more than 5 reviews on a chapter.
FMAFreak129: Ed isn't going to die! I like him too much. Besides, Al would be sad (I'm an Al fan girl, I admit it).
Zion: Thanks! I am not killing off Ed though. Yay! I finally updated! Good luck with your story!
Legendary Chimera: Thank you! I love the bond between Ed and Al. they're both so dedicated to each other.
FruitsBasketFreak44: I'm not killing off Ed. Thank you! Sorry I took so long to update.
RoseOfSharon28: Thank you!
Silver-Wind scar: Life is evil like that, isn't it? They work hard to simply survive and fix what they did wrong and in the end, life screws them over anyway.
Charmed-Envy-Fangirl: Sorry for the wait. As I said earlier, I had to do the planning for the next few chapters.
Priestess kurumi inu's sister: Thanks!
Thank you for all your wonderful reviews. I dedicate this chapter to all the people who have reviewed. Especially those who reviewed for multiple chapters. THANK YOU!
Chapter 12
I am in the process of editing the previous chapters of this story. Mostly for spelling errors. The only part I will be rewriting is a scene from last chapter that I am really not happy with. None of the information will change; I just want to change how it's written.
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Riza Hawkeye was many things. She was stern, careful, and meticulous when it came to work. She could shoot a bull's eye from 100 feet away. What she definitely was not, was stupid.
And the Colonel knew that. He may not have actively acknowledge it, but it was a well known and a rather obvious fact.
So just why he'd been surprised when Hawkeye had come to ask him about the well being of one Edward Elric, escaped him completely. He had proceeded to inform her that he was recovering from his injuries as well as could be expected and was off having his auto mail replaced. She had, in reply promptly snorted, pulled out her gun and fired three shots into the wall beside his head.
Yes, Riza Hawkeye was not one to mess with when it came to people she cared about. Like the rest of Mustang's staff, she cared about those boys more than she would ever admit.
So it was little wonder that Roy did what any other sane person would have done when faced with an angry blond 1st lieutenant.
He gave her what she wanted. And, of course, she had not liked his explanation that Ed was sick. His office wall had received several new bullet holes to prove it. Roy sighed. He was not looking forward to the conversation he was going to have to have with the blond haired alchemist once he returned to central.
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Winry walked quietly into the room that they had moved Ed into. And since Al had yet to leave his elder brother's side, it was where Al was at the moment as well.
Walking over to Al, she whispered, "Hey Al, I was talking to some of the women in town and their saying that there's a faith healer or something that's passing through. They say that he can cure people that doctors can't help. I was…I was thinking maybe we could take Ed to him when he wakes up." She finished.
"Brother doesn't believe in God, remember?" Al looked up at the young mechanic "What good will a faith healer do for someone who doesn't believe in faith?"
"Do you believe?" Winry questioned, sitting in a chair next to Al.
Al shrugged. "I don't know. I've never really thought about it, to be honest. Mom never really talked about it when we were kids either."
Winry smiled at Al softly. Al was the little brother she'd always wished for as a kid. He was part of the family. So was Ed, just…not in the same way. Somehow she couldn't imagine Ed as a brother like she could Al. She didn't know what she thought of him really. All she knew was that thinking about him made her heart flutter oddly.
"It couldn't hurt, could it?" She asked standing up.
Al looked up at her again. "I guess not.
"Oh! That's right. Grandma had some old books of your dad's in the basement. I thought maybe you and Ed might be able to do something with them." She grinned, placing the books on the nightstand next to the bed. "Night Al. Try to get some sleep. Okay?"
Al nodded as she left the room. Maybe Winry was right. This faith healer couldn't make things any worse. Maybe it really was worth a try.
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Ed groaned as he finally regained consciousness. Refusing to open his eyes, he attempted to turn over but found himself irritatingly unable to do so. His eyes snapped open, determined to find out what was limiting his movement and correct it so he could lie how he wanted. And get rid of those irritating blankets. He was hot dammit. Glancing around the room, he noted that the only one around was Al, asleep in a chair nearby.
Looking down, he noted that the pale blue bedspread that had been used to cover him had been tucked in firmly enough that it allowed only room enough to breath and nothing more. Well, that had to go. Struggling as well as he could with a broken arm, he managed to loosen the blankets enough to sit up properly. Pushing off the blanket, he stood up, testing his freshly installed auto mail. Turning around, he picked up the bedspread and draped it over Alphonse's sleeping form. Just because he was sick didn't mean Al had to be.
His auto mail ports didn't hurt as much as he expected them to, though it made him wonder how long he'd been asleep. Walking felt wonderful, despite knowing that he risked opening up his injuries. Looking himself over, he realized that he had been stripped down to his boxers at some point and began searching the room that he and his brother shared whenever they stayed at the Rockbells'. Finding only his black pants and red jacket, he sighed. He wasn't about to go waking Al up when he was finally getting some sleep. He had been staying up late lately, wanting to make sure Ed was alright.
Wait a minute…what were his father's old research journals doing up here? He'd thought all of them had been destroyed when they burned down their house…Ed shrugged, picking up one at random. Lying down on the bed again, he began to read.
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Al woke to the sound of muffled cursing and turning pages. Opening his eyes, he realized that his brother had woken up while he was asleep. 'Finally. He's awake.' He let out a sigh of relief.
"Hello Brother." He mumbled, letting Ed know he was awake. Ed looked up, a slightly strained smile plastered on his face.
"Hey Al, sorry I woke you up." He chuckled nervously. Closing the book he had been reading, he slowly dropped the smile. "Hey Al? How long was I out?" his tone of voice suggested that he wanted to sound as if he didn't care, but couldn't quite pull it off.
"Almost a week. Winry thinks that your body couldn't take the added stress of having the auto mail reattached when you're already so sick." He explained. "Brother…"Al started, "Winry says that there's someone in town that might be able to help you. She says that he's been able to help other people." Al hid a grimace. So he'd left out that it was a faith healer. It wasn't that big a deal right? It was a minor detail. But if that was true, why did he feel like he was lying?
"Have you met him?" Ed asked, apprehensive about letting a complete stranger know about what was happening to him; But Al was a good judge of character. If his brother said he was okay, than he'd go with it. He trusted Al.
"No, but Winry called him and he's agreed to come talk to us and to look you over. To see if he can help." Al explained.
"When?" Ed could feel himself growing more tired. He fought to stay awake.
"Two days from now." Al looked up as Edward's eyes began to droop. "Go back to sleep Brother. I'll wake you up for supper." His only answer was a tired mumble before Ed fell asleep again.
Standing up, Al sighed. He covered his brother's still form with the blanket and stood at the end of the bed.
"If there is a God, please help him." He mumbled, hunching his shoulders. "Please help Brother, because I'm not sure anyone else can."
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A/N: I know it's short. The way I have this story planned out, there are probably going to be between 5 and 8 more chapters. I may change that later though.
