Chapter Three: Calmed Rage

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Glacia set the table, humming a little tune as she did so. Maes was sitting at his spot, a folder in front of him and a frown on his face. He had his head resting in one hand, was was flipping through the pages of the file with the other. After a few minutes he groaned in annoyance.

"What's the matter?" asked Maria from the stove where she was stirring a large pot of soup.

"Oh, these files they gave me are all mixed up," he said, heaving a frustrated sigh. "All that I can gather is that they've been to around 10 foster homes in the past three and a half years. They were removed from several do to domestic violence, and most were just temporary placements for a few months at a time. The last one they ran away from, and they've been on the run since then. Almost seven months now."

"That seems pretty straightforward to me," said Glacia pointedly.

"That's the only part that IS straightforward. There's no details on their background, no medical history on the boys themselves, and nothing mentioning the older of the two having an automail arm. It's got their names, ages, and a list of where they've been, and that's it." Maes sighed again.

"Well doctor Rockbell is making a house call tomorrow morning, right?" replied Glacia. "They'll get a full check-up, and hopefully the boys themselves will be able to tell us a few things. For tonight, lets just let them rest."

"Yeah..." he replied, stretching. "Guess you're right." He cleared away his papers so that Glacia could finish setting the table, and hardly had he returned them to his briefcase, when the sound of a bedroom door closing upstairs reached their ears. A few minutes later Al peered nervously into the kitchen.

"Come sit, Alphonse," said Glacia warmly. Al smiled and climbed up into the offered chair.

"The soup is hot," said Maria with a smile as she ladled some into his bowl. "So be careful, okay?" Al stole one last glance warily towards the stairs. He didn't like the idea of being being so far from his brother with so many strangers about... especially when he couldn't see him. But the aroma of the soup quickly captured his attention.

After having consumed two bowls of the soup, a piece of bread and butter, and two glasses of milk, Maria said gently "you'd better not eat any more tonight, or you'll end up getting sick."

Al grinned and sat back in his chair. "Alright," he said. His smile faded suddenly and he glanced back toward the stairs. He felt suddenly guilty for having eaten while Edward had gone hungry again. The adults caught his worried expression.

"Do you want to help me bring some soup up to your brother?" Maria asked.

"Sure!" Al's face lit up. He pushed his chair back and Maria stood up to prepare a tray for Edward. "Thank you for the meal!" Al added politely.

"No problem," said Glacia. She stood as well and began to clear the table. As soon as Maria had finished filling a bowl with soup, she followed Al up the stairs, letting him carry a glass of water for his brother (Al had said that Ed would prefer water over milk). Al pushed the door open to their shared bedroom and headed in. The light was still on, but Ed appeared to be asleep.

"Brother," Al was saying quietly, and Ed was curled in a fetal position on the bed. The sound of his raspy breathing worried her as Maria set the tray down on the night-table - not to mention the fact that he was shivering even though the house was certainly not cold. "Brother, we brought you some soup."

Ed sighed and cracked open his eyes. They were calm looking at Al, but when he shifted his gaze toward Maria his eyes hardened immediately with distrust and bitterness. With a sigh he pushed himself into a sitting position and let his legs dangle off the side of the bed. With Ed staring at her through narrowed eyes, Maria couldn't help but feel like a mouse looking into the eyes of a lion. His gaze was finally broken when he doubled over in a fit of coughs.

She instinctively reached over to rub his back, but at the sudden motion he jerked back before she could touch him. Maria retracted her hand and waited for his coughs to subside on their own. She smiled when they finally did. "Eat what you can, okay?" she asked. Ed simply nodded.

"Thankyou," said Al with a smile - a hint of an apology in it for her.

"It's no problem," replied Maria. She turned from the room and closed the door behind herself, but not without the icy feel of Ed's eyes on her the entire way out. With a sigh, she headed back down the stairs.

"How is he?" asked Maes as soon as she walked into the kitchen.

"Not very good," she replied, her face creased in worry. "I think maybe we should see if the doctor can come tonight instead of tomorrow."

"He looks that bad, huh?" he asked with a tired sigh. Maria nodded.

"Well it's only 8:30," said Glacia. "I'll give him a call and see if he's free."

"Hm..." Maes sighed again.

"What's wrong?" both women asked in unison.

"Hm?" he replied, startled out of his own thoughts. "Oh, nothing!" He waved his hands for emphasis. "I was just thinking... well, I'm just worried that Edward might not like doctors. But I guess we'll find out soon enough, won't we..."

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Edward felt sicker than he had before. Almost as if now that he was here where he could actually "relax," his body was finally shutting down and refusing to function properly. And he hated that because it meant he would have no choice but to rely on these people for a while.

"Look at this, brother," Al said from the far closet where he was pulling a small rectangular box off of a shelf. Ed looked up from his almost-empty bowl of soup and watched as Al spread out the contents on the floor between their two beds - a large puzzle. He put down his spoon and watched in mild interest as Al started to fit the pieces together.

"How'd you know that was there?" Ed asked curiously.

"Glacia said that we can use the toys and stuff from the closet. There's a whole bunch of them, see?" Al motioned to the closet door, which he'd left open. Sure enough Ed could see that the shelves inside were full of toys and puzzles, all neatly put away.

"Hm..." he replied, setting the bowl back down on the night-table. "Just don't make a mess, okay?"

"Don't worry, I won't." Ed sighed and fell back on the bed, staring at the roof. He shivered, despite the long-sleeved shirt he was wearing. And his shoulder ached where the metal connected to his skin. He rubbed half-heartedly at it for a minute before he gave up and lay one arm across his eyes to block out the light. His body ached in far too many places to bother easing the pain.

At the sound of a doorbell ringing, Al looked up from the puzzle and Ed groaned softly. "Where are you going?" he asked when he heard his brother walk over to the door and pull it open.

"Just to see who's here," replied Al. He stepped into the hall and was gone before Ed could remind him it was none of their business.

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"I'm glad you could come, Dr. rockbell," said Maes as the middle-aged, blonde-haired doctor stepped into the house. "And I'm really sorry about the late-night call."

"Oh, it's no trouble," replied the doctor, stepping up into the entry and allowing Glacia to take his coat. In one hand he held his large black bag, and with the other he shook hands with Maes in a friendly greeting. "So I understand that you've got two boys for me to take a look at?"

"Yeah. As a matter of fact, here comes the first one now," replied Maes, looking up to Al as he came to the top of the stairs and peered down warily. "Don't worry, Alphonse; come on down," he said cheerfully. Al glanced back toward the room where Ed was, and then slowly came down the stairs.

"This is my friend, Doctor Rockbell," said Maes. "He's going to give you a little check-up, okay?"

"Um..." Al took a step back, his eyes betraying his nervousness.

The doctor smiled warmly and offered the boy his hand to shake. "Don't worry," he said gently. "It won't hurt at all." Al shook the hand, studying the doctor's face. The man winked and smiled. "I'll tell you what; if you let me give you a check-up, I'll give you a little treat."

"A treat?" asked Al, intrigued. He was distracted from his nervousness by the offer. "What is it?"

"It'll be a surprise," replied the doctor. "So what do you say?" Al gave him a small smile and nodded his agreement.

"Great. Why don't you guys use the usual room down the hall then," suggested Maes.

"Alright. So how old are you, Alphonse..?" Their voices drifted off down the hall. Maria followed them and Glacia turned back to the kitchen. Hughes was about to follow her when he glanced up the stairs. His eyes met the cat-like gaze of Edward for a few seconds before the boy turned and disappeared back down the hall to their room as silently as he had come. Hughes shook his head sadly. At least Ed knew what was coming now... but he highly doubted that a treat would be enough to bribe the older boy into anything he didn't want.

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Al liked the doctor right away. He was older than the Hughes were, but still had a youthful spark in his eyes, and a kind face. And he asked easy questions too, like what king of animals Al liked and what his favorite color was. Al had to take off his shirt and sit on the counter, but the doctor kept him distracted with stories of his own daughter, who apparently was about the same age. Al, having no real recollection of having a check-up before (at least not recently), asked a lot of questions. By the time they were finished the examination the doctor had named and explained almost every tool in his bag. Dr. Rockbell even let Al listen to his own heartbeat through the stethoscope.

When they were finished the doctor presented him with the promised treat; a large lollipop. Al was ecstatic over it, and the doctor hoped that he wouldn't get too much of a sugar-high right before bed for the Hughes.

"So what's the verdict?" asked Maes as the two emerged.

"Well, it's not as bad as I though it might be," replied the doctor. "Malnutrition, but a mild case, and a bit of light frostbite on his toes." The doctor smiled. "It's nothing a little TLC won't cure. I would just recommend not letting him eat too much at once for the first little while. Break down meals into smaller and more frequent quantities until his stomach adjusts. He's pretty thin, so too much at once might just make him sick."

"Alright," said Glacia, smiling at Al. "That's easy enough, isn't it?" He grinned back at her.

"Now what about the other boy?" asked Dr. Rockbell.

"He's upstairs. It's probably easier to just check him up there," replied Maes. The two men headed up the stairs after a grinning Al. Maria watched Glacia head into the living room and then headed up the stairs after them, to be ready to help if the need arose.

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Edward hated doctors. It wasn't anything about them in particular that he disliked - apart from the fact that they poked and prodded and sometimes gave needles - he'd hated them for as long as he could remember. It was a deeply-rooted fear. He seemed to have many of those, and some of them he passed on to his brother. But there were some things that he feared that Al could never understand why (and neither could Ed, really). For instance he hated loud noises, raised voices, or the sound off breaking glass - he didn't like bright lights, especially ones that flashed, and he didn't like doctors, officers, or anyone else in uniforms. He just didn't.

But he knew what was coming, and so he braced himself for the inevitable visit. The sound of his brothers laughter drifted up from the floor below, and eventually there were footsteps on the stairs. "Brother?" the door creaked open and Al bounced over to him. Ed was sitting cross-legged on his bed, shivering as usual but too stubborn to pull the covers up around himself. "Look what I got?" Al said excitedly, waving a large red lollipop in front of Ed's face. "And you get one too if you're good for the doctor!"

"Joy..." replied Edward under his breath. Behind Al, Maes and Doctor Rockbell stepped into the room as well.

"Hello Edward," said the doctor, a warm and relaxed smile on his face.

"I know that you're tired," said Maes apologetically, "but Doctor Rockbell here is just going to take a look at you, alright?" Ed didn't reply. He fixed his gaze on the doctor, who was unfazed by it, and only looked away when Al pulled on his left arm to get his attention.

"You'll let him, right?" Al asked, a pleading look in his eyes. "He really IS nice." After a short minute of silence, Ed slowly nodded his head.

"That's great," said Maes, rubbing his hands together. "Well why don't I wait outside, and if you need anything you can just call for me," he said. The doctor nodded, and after the door closed he turned back to Edward. Ed shivered beneath the gaze, even though there was nothing cold about it.

"Alright," said the doctor, moving further into the room. He set his bag down on the floor next to Al's partially-started puzzle. "I'm going to need you to take off your shirt for me, okay? Just so that I can take a quick look at your upper body." He dug around in his bag until he found his stethoscope, and when he looked up, Ed hadn't moved an inch.

The doctor seemed to know how to play the game though, because he just stood and waited patiently until finally, with a sigh, Ed pulled his shirt up and over his head. The doctors eyes widened slightly at the sight of Ed's automail arm, and the 12-year-old didn't fail to notice. He lifted his left hand and put it on his right shoulder protectively, a hot glare in his eyes. But Dr. Rockbell was quick to recover from his surprise, and he moved toward the bed calmly.

"Let's take a look here," he said softly, lifting the stethoscope towards Ed's exposed chest. Ed stiffened and leaned back and away from it, his untrusting eyes locked on the instrument. Dr. Rockbell paused with it mid-air and waited, earning a quiet noise of approval from Al. He really did know how to play the game well. One of the ways Ed tested people, to see if they were really trustworthy or not, was to see if they forced themselves on him. The doctor had just passed the test twice by waiting for Ed to make up his mind instead of being forceful.

He waited until Ed had visibly relaxed, and when it was clear the 12-year-old had accepted it, he pressed the cold metal gently against his chest. As he pretended to listen to the heartbeat, the doctor instead scanned over Ed's upper body, taking in the few odd scars and the fresh scrapes that were obviously from a very recent struggle. Not to mention his very visible ribs and constant shivering. Then he refocused on the task at hand, timing the pulse on his watch. It was a bit faster than what would be normal, but he assumed that part of the reason for the increased heart rate was the obvious discomfort caused by his own close proximity. The sound of breaking glass from the kitchen downstairs set Ed's heart pounding very rapidly for a moment, and the doctor frowned. He was obviously very easily agitated, and very nervous.

As he moved the stethoscope around along Ed's chest, listening to his breathing, he kept talking calmly, trying to keep the boy at ease. Ed wasn't listening - not really - but the doctor had a deep and gently voice, and it was soothing. He caught the name Winry, and something about his daughter, but for the most part he just tuned him out. Dr. Rockbell moved the tool around to Ed's back for a moment. "Well you are a bit sick," he said matter-of-factly. "Can you take a deep breath for me?"

Ed tried to do as told, but breathing deeply only sent him into a fit of coughs. The doctor stepped back a bit to give him some room until the coughing subsided. Ed was trembling worse than before, his small frame struggling to pull enough air into his lungs. Al had climbed up to the bed to sit next to him and was rubbing his back for him silently with worried eyes.

"Well let's not do that again," said the doctor with an apologetic smile. He moved to stand directly in front of him and lifted his chin a bit, using both hands to gently feel along Ed's upper neck for swollen glands. He continued to talk softly as he shone a light in his eyes and mouth, looked in his ears, and finally put away the light and took out another instrument. Ed didn't like the look of the little tool one bit, and he shifted uncomfortably.

"This just checks your knees," said the doctor. "Just hang your feet over the side of the bed here. That's right." Ed licked his lips nervously, and the doctor soon discovered why.

"An automail leg too, huh?" he said, sliding the pant-leg up a bit to look at it more closely. "Does Maes know about this, I wonder?" Ed shrugged and kept a steady glare. The doctor just smiled. "This is quality workmanship," he complimented. "My mother works with automail," he added. "Maybe someday we can get her to give you a tune-up, huh?" Ed didn't answer. "Alright; that's it for the physical exam. Now I'll just clean up these scrapes and we'll be finished." The doctor pulled a jar of cream out of his bag and quckly but carefully applied a bit - first to the scrape on his forehead and then the few on his stomach, chest and left arm.

Dr. Rockbell sighed and frowned, looking at Ed's right arm. He had noticed it right away, of course, but had intentionally left it for later. "I'm going to put some special cream around here where the metal touches your skin," he said, motioning to Ed's right arm - right where it ached. "You've got some frostbite around there. It'll feel kind of weird at first; kind of tingly, but it shouldn't hurt." Ed remained silent and allowed the doctor to apply the cream around his shoulder. It did feel strange as it started to sink in. It felt... warm. Like a heating pad.

Finally the doctor took out a small roll of gauze, and set it on the bed while he shifted through his bag for a few other things from his first-aid kit. Ed had caught the glances at his left wrist a few times, and he could guess that the doctor had left it for last because it would hurt to treat it. "Alright," said Dr. Rockbell once he had set out a few more things. "Now lets see that wrist of yours." Ed hesitated, and then nervously held it out to the doctor. He had expected a little pain. What hit him as the doctor pressed a wet cloth against it was like a sledgehammer.

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Hughes and Maria both stood outside the bedroom, waiting anxiously for the doctor to finish looking at Ed, and hoping that the 12-year-old would make it through the examination without 'blowing up.' Unfortunately for them, after about 15 minutes the sound of a panicked shout followed by a sudden crash came from within the room. Hughes pushed open the door and hurried in, only to have Edward collide with him and send them both toppling.

"Brother!" Alphonse's voice called fearfully. Maes made a grab for the 12-year-old, but Ed twisted out of his grip violently and made a second dash for the now-open door. Maria moved swiftly into his path, and he couldn't stop fast enough to prevent colliding with her as well. Although he had prepared himself for another struggle, she didn't grab at his arms as most people did when trying to restrain him. Instead she wrapped her arms around him.

Edward gasped, taking a deep breath, then another. He couldn't move, but it wasn't because anyone was restraining him. His body just wouldn't move. A surge of emotion rushed through him, and he trembled violently, but felt his body relaxing.

Maria's eyes widened as she felt Edward relax in her arms. She had expected him to fight her, but he didn't. So doing the only thing that seemed appropriate at the time, she kept him in her embrace and rubbed his back soothingly. The doctor and Al from further inside the room, and Hughes sitting on the floor a few feet away all stared at her in shock. Slowly they began to move again, and Hughes started by picking up the small wooden shelf that Edward had apparently crashed into in his rush to escape the doctor.

"Are you alright now?" asked Maria softly, pulling away from Edward slowly. With her crouching down, they were eye level. She kept her hands on his shoulders, but once the distance between them had increased a bit, Ed looked up at her face and immediately moved back a few steps. She caught an agonized look cross his eyes briefly before it was replaced by hot anger once more.

Edward allowed himself to be guided back to the bed and sat quietly as the doctor attempted for the second time to disinfect the large raw scrape in his wrist. Although he still pulled back slightly and hissed, he clenched his teeth and bore through the pain. He looked slightly defeated - still as angry as hell at the world - but defeated. He made no reply or even aknowledgement as Dr. Rockbell explained his ailments to the other two adults present while wrapping the gauze around his wrist and hand and taping it.

"He definately has pnemonia," the doctor explained, "and malnourishment. I'll prescribe him some antibiotics, but he should also get some vitamin supplements. They could probably both use them, actually. And cream for the frostbite around here," he added, running a finger along Ed's shoulder and earning a shiver from the boy. "Although automail is usually pretty resistant to changes in temperature, it seems that the constant cold has caused it to irritate the skin."

The doctor sighed and stood up. "Ed, do you and your brother eat the same amount of food?" he asked. Ed didn't even react to the question. His eyes were half-closed and he had an almost dazed look on his face from exhaustion. After a moment, when it was obvious he wasn't going to answer, Al spoke up for him.

"We always share the food we get," he said. He seemed to understand what the doctor was wondering, because he added, "but Ed stays skinnier than me."

The doctor turned to Al. "He seems to be cold," he said.

Al nodded. "He's always cold. Even when its warm, he's cold." The doctor smiled in thanks.

"That's what I thought. Thankyou Alphonse." He turned to Maes and Maria. "I suspect that there's a problem with the lining of the automail just around the edges here. That would cause it to draw away the body heat, which in turn would explain why he's so much thinner and always shivering. There's not really much you can do about it right now, so just make sure he stays indoors and warm."

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Ed tuned them all out. His last outburst and then the emotional surge he'd felt, had drained him both physically and mentally. He let the doctor finish bandaging his wrist and then waited for them to leave so that he could just curl up and go back to sleep. He could feel Al's presence next to him, and vaguely smelled the faint scent of strawberries from his candy.

"Do you want some?" Al offered, holding the lollipop out to him. Ed shook his head slowly, his eyes softening as his brothers voice brought him back to reality.

"Edward," said the doctor gently. "I'll leave this here for you, alright?" He set a lollipop on the bed next to him and touched Ed's hair briefly in farewell. "Thankyou. You were very good." Finally, they were leaving. Their voices drifted off down the hallway. Ed fell back on the bed and curled up, not even bothering to pull the shirt back. He closed his eyes, and shutting out the world he felt an instant calm wash over him.

With a sigh, Al pulled the covers over his brother, since he didn't seem willing to move on his own anymore. "Goodnight brother," he said. Ed didn't open his eyes.

"Goodnight," he muttered softly, already half-asleep.

In the kitchen, the adults sat around the table with mugs of tea. Doctor Rockbell, who was also a close friend, had also stayed to enjoy the drink. "It's been quite a while since I've treated anyone in as bad of shape as Edward," the doctor said quietly. "The mistrust and anger in his eyes is so blatantly obvious."

"Hm... you should have seen them take him down earlier," said Maes quietly, taking a sip of his tea. "He fought them tooth and nail, right to the end. That's one kid that did not want to be caught."

"I suspected there was a struggle," said the doctor. "That scrape on his wrist was obviously from concrete... there was a bit of gravel in it, and when I took it out and disinfected it is when he got upset. I warned him, but I don't think he expected it to hurt that much."

"Speaking of which," said Maes innocently. "After all I've seen, I was rather surprised by his reaction to a certain individual..." Maria choked on her tea.

"That's right," said the doctor with a smile. "I know that you're good with children Maria, but I didn't know you had such a calming nature to you."

"I wonder why he did calm down for you," said Maes thoughtfully.

"Yeah..." Maria looked toward the window. Outside the snow was still falling. "I wonder..." But in truth her thoughts were wondering about something else - something she couldn't put into words. When she had hugged him, and he had calmed down from his panic, he had whispered something. The very reason he'd stopped had even shown in his eyes for a second before he'd masked it again. For an instant, he had thought that he was being held in the arms of someone else. What she didn't understand was why. And more importantly, who?

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END

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Authors Note: Okay guys, sorry that took me so long to get typed out... thank goodness it's done. I hope it didn't sound too bad at the end. I couldn't quite word it the way I wanted to, so that's what I got... sorry. Anyways, I'll try to get the rest of it typed out as soon as possible. I've just about finished it now; there are 10 chapters and I'll write a sequal once this is all up. Winry is going to be a main character of the sequal, too. And by the way, if anyone knows the first names of the Rockbell's, please let me know. I don't recall every having heard their names... maybe it says in the manga? If not, it's not really important I guess... I just hate making up names for actual characters... thanks for reading, and please review! I need reviews to keep me motivated! Constructive critisism is welcome too!