What if Ed had been shot instead of Hughes?
Ayala felt her teeth sink into Fake Gracia's neck as she let gravity, her momentum, and her weight push the pretender to the ground. The fake let out a shocked gasp when Ayala's teeth tore through their neck muscles and Ayala's ears rang painfully with the sound of the gun being fired as they both went crashing into the ground. She barely registered the taste of the rotten blood in her mouth as the right side of her abdomen flared in horrendous sympathy pain. She yelped at the strength of it, her teeth coming out of the fake's neck and causing arterial spray to hit herself, the fake, and the immediate area around them. She ignored the feeling of the warm, sticky blood coating her as she looked frantically over at her human, only to find him sprawled on the ground next to Hughes and Leo, not moving.
Forgetting all about her opponent, Ayala pushed the sympathy pain aside and covered the few metres that separated her and her human in no time. She ignored Hughes, who was now picking himself up and looking mildly stunned and confused that he wasn't in pain at all as she reached her boy's side and the faint sound of Mustang's voice from the phone that was dangling from its cord. "Ed!" she called; voice panicked as she used her muzzle to roll him from his side onto his back. Though she couldn't see the blood spreading over his black jacket, she could smell it and the fact that Ed hadn't responded to her was only making her panic further.
Before Ayala could figure out what she could do to try and save her boy's life, Hughes finally brushed of the last of the dazed confusion Ed's tackle had caused and was by his side. "Ayala, you need to move," Hughes ordered her, his voice strained with his own concern and the control he was exerting to keep his tone somewhat calm. Ayala glared at him but when she saw him rapidly undoing the buttons of his military-blue jacket, she was quick to move. "One of you needs to contact Lilith or Nala or someone and tell them to call for an ambulance," Hughes ordered, glancing at both Animals as he pressed his jacket against the right side of Ed's chest where the blood was seeping from. Leo immediately offered to do so and Ayala nodded in thanks. She wasn't sure how she would've gone answering their questions while her focus was on Ed.
Ayala snarled lightly as the pressure Hughes was putting on Ed's side caused her own to flare with new sympathy pain. Hughes obviously noticed but before he could apologise for it, another voice interrupted them. "Aw, shit, the pipsqueak better not die on me," Fake Gracia said, an undertone of annoyance in their voice as their face screwed up in irritation, as though the idea of Ed dying was a massive inconvenience to them. Both Hughes and Ayala glared at them before Hughes' attention fell back to the blonde bleeding in front of him. The imposter scoffed at them before red energy encased their body and they shifted forms again, going from looking like Gracia to the person Ed had described from the Fifth Laboratory. "Well, this does mean I can deal with you without such an important sacrifice getting in my way. I'm sure his Animal will keep him alive until an ambulance arrives," the green, spiky haired person in front of them said, moving to pick up the gun with the intention of using it against Hughes.
Ayala didn't let him get that far. Knowing that Leo was speaking to an Animal so their human could pass on the details needed for an ambulance to be sent out for Ed and that even if he wasn't, he wouldn't be able to inflict as much damage as she could even when she wasn't fuelled by the red-hot anger that currently writhed under her skin, she launched herself at their enemy. Getting in between the shapeshifter and the gun, Ayala sunk her teeth into his wrist before shaking it violently while she kicked the gun further away from them both at the same time. She heard the satisfying shout of pain from her opponent as their bones snapped wetly from her attack. She grunted as she was kicked at but she didn't let go of their wrist, holding onto it and gnashing her teeth as best she could to inflict maximum pain and damage. No one shot her boy and was allowed to simply walk away without her say so.
So intent on getting her revenge against this being, Ayala didn't notice Leo rushing for the gun and bringing it to Hughes so that their attacker would have to get past Hughes in order to grab it. A vicious kick to her ribs had her finally letting go of the wrist she'd bitten into as her ribs flared in enough pain that Ayala saw Ed grimace from his sympathy pain. "You can't kill me, you stupid animal!" the green-haired person snarled at Ayala as red alchemic energy danced over his wrist, healing the damage Ayala had done. "You should be focusing on the pipsqueak instead of trying to protect that idiot!" he snarled, gesturing at Hughes. "It's not my fault he stuck his nose where he shouldn't have and that I have to kill him now! Just get out of my way!" he growled, kicking out at Ayala again, who dodged it easily.
The green-haired being tried to get past her, obviously intent on getting to Hughes but Ayala blocked his path, her teeth bared in a ferocious snarl. The drying blood around her muzzle and splattered on her face and chest only added to her fierce look but the being didn't look phased by her. Rather, his irritation seemed to grow at the fact that she was still getting in his way. "Fine," he snarled, a cruel glint in his eyes. "It's not like pipsqueak will die if you do," he said, a malicious grin on his face. "I can stay here to make sure he doesn't die from the gunshot wound you caused until the ambulance gets here once I've dealt with the three of you," he stated before he launched himself at Ayala, intent on taking her down so she would no longer be in his way.
Ayala heard Hughes' gasp but she paid no attention to him. She was Ed's Animal. She'd trained under Izumi and Koda for as long as Ed and Al had and she'd been by their side for the entirety of Ed's military career. She was not some pushover who'd run in the face of a death threat and she certainly wasn't going to start now. She dodged his fist and grabbed him by the material that made up his skort, pulling him backwards. She was a little surprised that the material didn't break or rip but since it helped her yank him almost off his feet, she wasn't going to question it.
The being snarled in annoyance but Ayala didn't give him the chance to connect his retaliatory blow. She lashed out with her claws and ripped into the exposed skin of his thigh, causing her opponent to shriek in pain. The red sparks barely started forming to heal the gashes she'd inflicted when she'd looped around him and grabbed his hair in her teeth, yanking him viciously down to the ground. Once he was on his back, unable to adjust to the sudden weight and shift in his centre of gravity quick enough to save himself from hitting the ground, Ayala was at his throat, tearing as much of it out as she could fit in her maw. She spat the chunk of flesh and muscles she'd torn out onto the ground next to her and made sure she got rid of as much of the foul blood in her mouth as she could.
As Ayala had expected, red sparks flashed over his throat, the chunk of neck she'd torn out disintegrating into nothing where it sat, and the injury was soon healed. However, Ayala was nowhere near done with this enemy and she attacked his exposed abdomen next, tearing into it with teeth and claws, causing the being to shriek and writhe in pain as she continued her attack, unperturbed by his screams. She could feel Hughes' eyes on her but she refused to meet them. She didn't want to see the horror or fear in them that would stop her from taking her anger at what these things had put her boy through out on the one at her mercy.
Ayala had just finished tearing into her opponent's gut, ready to rip out whatever organ she came across first when he managed to spin on his back and get his feet under Ayala, shoving her off him and throwing her back several feet, sending her into the base of a tree. He climbed to his feet unsteadily as his red alchemic energy healed the gaping wound in his abdomen. His face, while pale and edged in shock, was screwed up in a sneer as he watched Ayala climb to her feet and shake her head, trying to clear it of the pain she'd felt when she'd hit the tree and the knobbly roots that surrounded the base of it. He stalked over to where Hughes was still kneeling by Ed's side, ignoring the fox as he arched up, teeth bared in front of Hughes, and went for the gun that Leo had placed on Hughes' other side.
Ayala started for the group, pushing her own pain and the sympathy pain she could still feel from Ed and winced when Leo was swatted aside viciously enough to send the fox into the glass of the phone booth hard enough that Hughes winced, which meant he pushed harder onto Ed's injury and caused Ayala to stumble from the fresh wave of sympathy pain. Before Hughes or Ayala could do anything, their attacker snatched up the gun and was aiming it at Hughes' head, standing opposite him so Hughes was looking up into the shapeshifter's eyes. Though she knew she wouldn't get there in time, it didn't mean that Ayala was just going to sit back and watch Hughes get shot.
Their attacker grinned at them both but whatever he was saying to Hughes was drowned out by a voice in Ayala's mind. "Help me take Palm-Frond down once and for all?" Ed asked her, showing no outwards signs that he was even conscious. Ayala could feel how strong the pull to slip back into sleep was for her human but she knew there was no way Ed would give into it right now.
Ayala grinned as she continued heading for the shapeshifter. "Let's do it," she said, a vicious undercurrent in her tone as she aimed her next attack for their attacker's wrist once more.
As had happened the first time, Ayala managed to pull the shifter off centre enough that when they squeezed the trigger, the shot went wide, shattering the glass of the phone booth behind and to the left of Hughes, causing the older man to flinch. Before the being could get himself free of Ayala's teeth or do anything, Ed's left hand moved lightning-fast and grasped the ankle of their attacker. Ayala released the wrist she had in her mouth and quickly placed her paw on the being's left foot, completing the circle Ed needed to transmute the array he wanted.
The shapeshifter stumbled back as blue alchemic energy danced its way up his form, starting from where Ed's hand and Ayala's paw had been. "What the -?" the being asked, eyes wide in shock and fear, if Ayala wasn't mistaken, as he watched as his form started disintegrating. "This isn't possible! You can't kill a homunculous! We're immortal!" he gasped disbelievingly.
"Suck it, bitch," came the gasped retort from Ed, his golden eyes open a sliver as he glared as best he could at the self-identified homunculous.
"Ed!" Hughes exclaimed, leaning over Ed's wound a little so he could catch the blonde's eyes, ignoring the homunculous as it faded into nothing. "Ed, can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear, Hughes. I was shot, not too close to a bomb when it went off," Ed muttered, twisting his head as he tried to find Ayala and Leo, wanting to make sure they were okay. His pain-glazed eyes fell on Leo as the fox limped back to Hughes' side and his eyes flooded with concern. "Are you okay, Leo?" Ed asked, moving to sit up only to held down by Hughes' and Ayala's firm grips on his shoulders.
"I'm fine, Ed. Just a little banged up and bruised. Nothing that Maes can't heal up later though," Leo said, speaking so both Ayala and Hughes could hear him as well as Ed.
The blonde gave the grey fox a look before he nodded slightly. "Ayala, you holding up okay?" he asked, turning slightly so he could take in his wolf's appearance. "Bloody hell, did you bathe in his blood?!" Ed asked, eyes widening slightly as took in his blood-soaked wolf.
"Don't be silly and I'm perfectly fine," Ayala sniffed at him, nuzzling the side of his face. "Are you okay?" she asked him. She could still feel the sympathy pain caused by Hughes putting pressure on the injury still but Ed didn't seem to be in a lot of pain and that caused Ayala a fair amount of concern.
"I'm pretty sure my body's going into shock," Ed said conversationally, causing Hughes to curse. "I'll be fine," he tried to assure them. Ed frowned when he heard the sirens of the rapidly approaching ambulance. "Ugh, you guys called for an ambulance?" Ed asked, looking a little annoyed.
"Ed, you got shot in the chest. Even you have to admit that you need to visit the hospital," Hughes told him, eyes filled with concern as he kept applying pressure to the injury. "Ayala, when you think the ambulance is close to us, would you mind finding them and leading the medics to us?" Hughes asked, eyes flicking from Ed to meet the wolf's briefly.
Ayala gave a nod of agreement but she didn't move from Ed's side since the ambulance wasn't in the park yet. Ed didn't appear to have heard Hughes' instructions to Ayala as he struggled to stay awake. "If I go to the hospital, Doctor Overland is going to lecture me. You wouldn't put me through that, would you, Hughes?" Ed asked, trying to convince Hughes to help him evade the hospital.
"Sorry, kiddo, but you have to go to the hospital. I'll speak to Doctor Overland and make sure he knows this wasn't your fault," Hughes said, guilt lacing his voice, though he tried his best to hide it. Leo pressed up against his side as much as he could with his injuries and Hughes used his elbow to nudge his fox in thanks.
"'s'not your fault," Ed muttered, causing Hughes to flinch in surprise, obviously having thought Ed wouldn't pick up on his tone with everything else going on. "You didn't shoot me. Was the walking palm-frond's fault," Ed said, conviction in his tone even if his struggle to not slip back into unconsciousness was becoming evident to everyone now.
"Ed, you need to stay awake so the ambulance medics can assess you," Hughes told him, shaking his shoulder a little in an effort to keep the blonde awake.
"Hmm, you know I don't follow orders that well," Ed joked weakly, frowning in an effort to stay awake. It was an effort that was in vain and Ayala felt the moment Ed gave into the irresistible urge to slip into sleep once more. A soft "sorry" was all they got before Ed's eyes closed completely and he didn't respond to Ayala or Hughes when they tried rousing him again.
"Dammit," Hughes swore as he pulled off a glove and pressed his right hand to the side of Ed's neck, sighing in relief when he felt a steady, if slightly weaker than usual pulse under his fingertips. "He's just unconscious," Hughes sighed.
Ayala wondered if he was speaking to himself or one of the Animals near him but her attention was grabbed by the sound of the sirens – something she'd been tuning out while Ed was talking – piercing the quiet night air. They didn't sound too far away now and Ayala got to her feet, ready to go find them once she heard the ambulance stop. Hughes watched her for a moment before he put his attention back on Ed and Leo, who was now curling up beside him, his injuries catching up to him now. Ayala didn't give them any warning when she took off into the trees in the direction she heard the ambulance's brakes coming from but she figured they knew where she was going anyway. It wasn't like there were many things that would have her voluntarily leaving Ed's side right now.
Ayala would've been lying if she said she didn't feel a strong sense of pride when the medics baulked when they caught sight of the blood-soaked wolf heading rapidly for them. Thankfully, it only took them a moment or two to realise that she was obviously the Animal of someone on the scene and that they needed to follow her, which they did after grabbing the stretcher out of the back of the vehicle. Ayala had to force herself to slow down enough that she wouldn't lose the pair as she led them to Ed but she felt like no one would judge her for her rush.
"What happened?" the first medic asked as they caught sight of Ed's unconscious form and Hughes kneeling on his right, holding a bloodied military jacket against Ed's side.
"We were attacked and he took the bullet," Hughes told him as the medic gestured for his partner to get on Ed's other side while he knelt next to Hughes.
At the medic's gesture, Hughes moved out of the way, making sure to take Leo with him, so that the medics had room to do what they needed to. The one who replaced Hughes removed the jacket Hughes had used to slow the bleeding before he pushed Ed's own jacket aside and lifted his tank top up so he could get a look at the injury. "Looks like it went in between the fifth and sixth ribs," he told his partner. "Let's roll him and see if it's a through-and-through," he instructed. His partner nodded and helped him roll Ed so the blonde was on his left side. The medic pushed up the jacket and shirt once more and nodded. "It is," he said.
"I'll grab the kit if you've got him," the second medic said and with a nod from the first, got up and headed for the stretcher which had the bulky bag of medical equipment on it.
While he did that, the first medic tugged Ed's right arm out of his jacket sleeve, being careful of his injury and pushing it as far to the left as he could so his partner could get it off the rest of the way, which he did when he returned with the gear. While he was busy doing that, the first medic rolled Ed back onto his back and searched for a pair of scissors that he used to cut open Ed's tank top for easy access to the injury once he found them. He was quick to cover the injury with some gauze and a piece of medical bandage that was haphazardly taped in place. "Roll him," came the next instruction and the second medic did as he was told. The first medic pushed Ed's top out of the way, cleaned the injury sight of any grass or dirt that was on it from being in contact with the ground before he repeated his actions with the entrance wound. "Get the stretcher," he ordered the second medic, who let go of Ed to do as he was told.
The first medic rolled Ed carefully back onto his back and packed up the gear and rubbish next to him in the pack while the second medic rolled the stretcher over to Ed's left side. He fiddled with something on the side and stretched collapsed on itself so it was almost as low as Ed was. The medics moved so the one who'd patched Ed up was at his feet and the one who'd brought the stretcher was behind Ed's head. They glanced at each other, their hands holding onto Ed's feet or under his shoulders before the first medic nodded and as one, they smoothly lifted Ed up and onto the lowered stretcher. They both then grabbed the stretcher and pulled, tugging it back up so it was waist level before the lead medic gave the other one the nod to start wheeling Ed towards the ambulance while he turned to Hughes.
"You can ride with us. We need to know everything about him that you can tell us," he told the older man, who nodded and scooped up Leo so the injured fox wouldn't have to walk. The medic looked at Ayala and nodded at her. "You can come with us but you can't be on the stretcher unless you can get cleaned up in the next few seconds," he informed her before he grabbed the medic bag and started after his partner. Ayala huffed but followed him closely, Hughes and Leo only centimetres behind her.
They got to the ambulance in time for the medic to help his partner load Ed and the stretcher into the back of the vehicle before he threw in his bag and gestured for Hughes, Leo, and Ayala to climb in. Once they had, he went around to the front of the vehicle while the second medic pointed to a chair that Hughes could sit in, which he did with Leo in his lap. Ayala wedge herself between the chair and the stretched Ed lay on and nosed her human's cheek while the driver got the ambulance heading for the hospital.
"Who did you ask to call the ambulance?" Ayala asked Leo as she watched the second medic hook Ed up to an oxygen machine and ready the I.V. bag full of fluids he would administer once they were on the bitumen roads.
"Nala," Leo told her as his eyes stayed fixed on the steady rise and fall of Ed's chest so he could be assured one of his favourite humans was still breathing. The guilt Hughes felt was nothing on what Leo was feeling. After all, Ed wouldn't have known about what was happening to them if Leo hadn't called for his aide. Of course, Leo was beyond happy that he and Hughes weren't dead but he couldn't bring himself to feel as happy as he should since the only reason Hughes hadn't been killed was because Ed had taken the bullet for him. "Roy was on the phone when that creature had turned into Gracia. He heard everything that happened and I knew Nala would be panicking so I figured it would be the best way to tell Roy what was going on while getting Ed an ambulance and calming Nala down," Leo said, answering the question she didn't ask.
"Good call," Ayala said, leaning on the stretcher as much as she could so she could still be touching Ed. She knew Chester needed to be told what had happened so he could make sure Alphonse stayed in Rush Valley until Ed was awake and could talk his brother into sticking with the plan and heading to Dublith to speak with Izumi and Sig. However, all she could bring herself to do was send the leopard a quick reassurance that Ed would be fine and ask him to keep Al in Rush Valley until they heard from Ed before her complete focus went back onto her human as the ambulance raced through the streets of Central to get Ed to the hospital as quickly as possible.
Ayala looked up from where she lay on the end of Ed's hospital bed when she felt an Animal she knew approaching the room. It had been several hours since Ed, Ayala, Leo, and Hughes had arrived at the hospital in the back of the ambulance and it had been at least five hours since Ed was finally left alone by the doctors and nurses. Gracia, Lilith, and Elysia had arrived in that time, Elysia unsure of what was going on and it was only thanks to Gracia that Ayala was given the bath she needed so she could join Ed on his bed. Maes had apologised to Ayala when Gracia had led her out of the bathroom, her golden coat clean and dry once more, and Ayala had asked Leo to let the man know she wasn't holding a grudge against him. Both Hughes' had spoken to Ed's doctor while Elysia was left with the two foxes and it was only thanks to Ayala's snarled insistence that the attending doctor had given the Hughes any information at all. She could appreciate and respect doctor-patient confidentiality but not in that moment.
Ayala's golden eyes watched the door intently and wasn't surprised when Nala pushed her way inside. She watched as the lioness slunk into the room, the door closing most of the way behind her as she did so. Ayala caught a glimpse of Mustang in the corridor, speaking with Gracia and Hughes, having obviously run into them on their way back to Ed's room. Ayala glanced over at the cushioned chair and saw that Elysia was still curled up on it, fast asleep, before the wolf focused her attention on Nala, who was now nudging Ed's flesh hand gently. Ed didn't react to the touch by waking up but his fingers did move, as though trying to pat the Animal touching him, and Ayala could feel Nala's relief at the movement.
"How is he?" Nala asked Ayala, glancing over at the wolf for the first time since walking into the room.
"He's okay," Ayala said, shuffling so she was facing the lioness but still touching Ed. "The doctor told us that it was very close though," she added, her voice low as though she didn't even want to say the words in case they might come true. "He got hit in the pleural cavity. Half a centimetre to the left and his lung would've been hit. A couple of inches higher and the bullet could've ricocheted and caused untold damage that he probably wouldn't have survived," Ayala said. She was still shaken by how close Ed had been to needing months to recover or getting himself killed.
Nala's stricken eyes fell to Ed once more, taking in the white bandages around his chest as she imagined what could've happened if that bullet had hit him somewhere else. "I can't believe it was so close to be so much worse," Nala said, her voice as low as Ayala's had been.
Ayala felt her heart go out to Nala. She knew exactly how close her human and Mustang's Animal was and she would be lying if she said there weren't times where she was jealous of how close the two of them were but this moment was not one of them. "He's gonna be fine," Ayala repeated. "The doctor said it'll be a couple of weeks before he can do anything and honestly, you and I both know that that'll be the most painful part of this recovery for him and those around him," Ayala said jokingly as she tried to cheer Nala up, even a little.
Nala huffed lightly and nodded. "I don't envy you guys with that," she told Ayala, her eyes glinting with a dulled amusement. "Is he going to wake up soon?" Nala asked.
Ayala shook her head. "Probably not tonight. He might be awake by mid-morning though," she told the lioness, who nodded her head unsurprised.
"What do you think his reaction will be to Roy being here?" Nala asked.
"Depends on what Mustang says when Ed asks why he's here in Central rather than in East City getting ready for the move," Ayala said, a small grin working its way on her face. "Though I think he'll definitely be shocked, definitely suspicious, and there might be a bit of happiness that Mustang cared enough to come to Central immediately to see him," Ayala said. "Not that he'll ever admit that last part," she added with an eye-roll.
Nala understood the eye-roll all too well. She had the exact same reaction every time her human or Ed pretended to still hate each other's guts. Though it was now an engrained habit on both their parts, she knew Ayala was also waiting for the day where Mustang – because it would be Mustang who started that kind of conversation considering how stubborn Ed was – sat Ed down and had an honest conversation about how much he cared for the blonde and how much it hurt him to get reports of Ed being injured, kidnapped, threatened, etc. and be unable to show his concern because the military's regulations decreed it inappropriate for a commanding officer to show too much concern for their subordinates. However, both Animals were fully aware that that day was likely very, very far in the future and would likely need to be preceded by a disastrous event that involved both Ed and Mustang.
"Roy was beside himself with worry the whole drive," Nala revealed to Ayala. "I thought my worry was causing him to feel more concerned than he should but when I got word from you that the doctors had said Ed wasn't in danger anymore and relaxed, Roy's worry was still through the roof," she told the wolf. "He'll never admit to that either, which is thoroughly annoying. It would do both of them so much good if they could just be honest with how much they cared about each other's wellbeing," she sighed.
Ayala made an agreeing noise. "It definitely would be," she said with a similar sigh of her own.
The sound of the door being pushed open had the pair looking in the direction of it and watch as Gracia quietly crept back into the room. She gave both Animals a quick smile as she walked over to the chair Elysia was sleeping on so she could check on her daughter. Lilith was following her human and gave both Animals a quick hello before she curled up underneath the chair Elysia was on. Ayala noted that the fox's eyes were on Ed for a the few moments between her curling up and closing her eyes. Gracia pulled the blanket that covered Elysia up a little more so the young girl was covered better before she took a seat on the second chair in the room and took up her vigil next to Ed's bedside. Neither Animal commented on her appearance nor did they comment on the fact that Mustang had used Gracia's entrance as a chance to look through the door and check on Ed once more. The both of them stayed silent, Ayala laying her head back on her front paws while Nala sat with her chin and head on the side of the mattress, as the both of them prepared to wait however long they needed to for Ed to wake up this time.
A/N - And our second what if...? is all done for you guys! Hope you enjoy this one and I'd love to see some of your thoughts on it, please! Also, my update next week might be several hours late as my mum is getting married the Saturday coming and I need to hang around on the Sunday to help clean up so won't be back home with my laptop and internet until the afternoon or possibly night. Until next week!