Okay! It's time to update! Sorry for the wait, everyone!
I'm enjoying making Ed suicidal and crazy...I don't know why, but I like torturing Ed alot...mwahahahah!!!!!!!
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Three youths sat at the side of the road, all dressed in cobalt blue military uniforms. Two young boys sat besides a girl in the middle. The girl was laying on her back, her black hair strewn around her, staring up at the sky. The boys looked at her and smiled, following her example and watching the clouds.
"Hey, Ed, Al? Do you think this battle will change anything?" The girl asked quietly. The blonde turned his head and looked at her questionably. "What do you mean?"
She sat up and shrugged. "I dunno. It's just a feeling...don't you think this war will change how we are?"
"I don't think so, Ayumi." Al replied, smiling a bit. "It's not like fighting is going to change how we are. We'll still be the same people afterwards."
"Of course we will! Maybe even stronger, we'll be using our alchemy all the time, right?" Edward exclaimed excitedly. Ayumi looked down at her hands and sighed. "I don't like the idea of using my alchemy to kill though..."
"We don't either. But we have to anyway, for the good of the country. It's not like we really have a choice...and besides! There's nothing really to worry about, right? We're all gonna stay together and make sure none of us get hurt." Al smiled reassuringly.
"Yeah! We all promised Winry we'll get back safely." Ed agreed. Ayumi smiled. "You guys were right, I dunno why I asked."
"It's because you think too much." Ed teased, sticking out his tongue. Ayumi wrinkled her nose and poked his forehead. Al laughed a bit, grinning at the two of them. "We made a promise..." He echoed, lying back again. The other two smiled and nodded. "A promise..."
-
"A promise..." Ed whispered to himself, clenching his already gripped fist. Ayumi looked at him strangely from where she sat on the floor, examining her wound. "What?"
"...it's nothing." Ed sighed, standing up and staring at her bloody hand. "You okay?" Ayumi nodded, showing him her palm still stained with crimson and dripping with scarlet. He grimaced. "See, it's that deep; it didn't go through my hand, how lucky." She told him calmly, drawing her hand back to peer at it.
"I'm sorry..." Ed whispered sheepishly, much like a child would apologize for a mistake. Ayumi smiled slightly, before turning back to her hand. "It's not your fault, she has your mind..."
Ed stared at her. "W-what?" He asked, his voice cracking slightly. "Huh? Oh, it's nothing..." Ayumi smiled again, poking her finger around inside the hole and wincing as she pushed a second finger in and dug around. Ed stared at her, or rather at the blood now spurting from the wound. "What...are you...doing...?"
"Ow!" Ayumi yelped instead of answering, tugging something out of her hand. "Ha! I got the bullet out!" She cheered too herself, waving it around in her air. Ed blinked slowly at her as she stopped and frowned, gently placing the crimson bullet on the nightstand before her. "Here she comes..." She murmured, gently lapping away the red smudges on her arm. Ed looked questionably at her when the door burst open. It was Eli, looking frantic when she ran in, a gun in her gloved hands that glowed silver transmutation circles. Underneath her, her shadow was already warping around to envelop any opposing danger in darkness. "What happened; I heard a gunshot!" She asked quickly.
"Yup!" Ayumi replied in a strangely cheerful tone, holding her hand out. Eli cursed under her breath, rushing over as the transmutation's light turned blue. The shadow underneath her flew into the air and wrapped themselves around her hand, warping to its shape before fading away; the wound completely healed.
"Oh...! That was cool, I never got healed by your shadow alchemy before, Eli." Ayumi's eyes twinkled happily as she examined her healed palm. Eli blinked, looking at Ed. "Ed, what happened? Someone try to break in?"
Ed stared at her in slight disbelief. Couldn't she tell that he was the one who shot her?! He didn't know how to tell her, deciding to hide it. He nodded simply, his eyes downcast and shadowed by his bangs. Eli sighed. "And they got away too...at least you guys are okay." She muttered, scratching the back of her head sleepily. "Alright. You two get some sleep; we're going to HQ tomorrow."
Ayumi nodded, waving her off as she left. She narrowed her eyes, hastily wiping away any remains of blood. "We have no right to lie to her...she'll find out anyway. You can't hide it forever." Ed frowned slightly. "I know..." She smiled. "Okay then. Come on, let's get to sleep." She reached over and grabbed his arm, pulling her onto the bed, playfully patting his head before lying down to sleep. Ed copied her, rolling over to not see her.
Can I really do it? Just...try and forget it all... Ed told himself, closing his eyes and awaiting the nightmares that were sure to come.
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Sure enough, Ed woke up that morning screaming. His voice died down as he opened his eyes, instead hoarsely panting through his dry throat, sweat beading down his face, making his damp hair cling to him. He sat up, staring down at the sheets that wrapped around him, noticing that he was alone. He looked up and squinted at the morning light and groaned, covering his face with his hands.
Minutes later, he was dressed and headed blankly for the kitchen. He was greeted with smiles, though for some reason he felt they were fake as he sat down and stared down at the breakfast plate before him, feeling strangely empty.
"Come on Ed...you have to eat something." Ayumi frowned at him, giving him a gentle push. Ed sighed, picking up his fork and poking at the small pile of eggs given to him, before shoveling it into his mouth. Ayumi smiled widely. "There ya go!"
"This is great; I knew it was only temporary!" Eli grinned. "So. Plan for today. We're going to check out Headquarters, since you two haven't been there in a while. Everyone's been missing you guys."
"Oh, really? Heh." Ayumi snorted, reaching for her glass. "I doubt it."
"Why? It's not like you did anything wrong." Eli replied plainly, raising her eyebrows at her friend. "Unless you forget me freaking out back there..." Ayumi muttered into her plate. "And I meant every word I said..."
"Oh...right..." Eli coughed slightly, glancing at Ed who had finished off hi food and was now staring at his plate. "Good, you finished. Would you like some more?"
Ed didn't respond at all. Everything felt like it was spinning. There was this strange feeling in his chest that made him feel sick. He couldn't breathe from the dizziness. Without warning he toppled sideways, sliding to his knees on the floor. He could almost hear the girls screaming his name but the sound was distorted. Everything was tumbling out of control. He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt something hot rise up in his throat and push past his lips to splatter on the floor in thick, slimy chunks. He heard the screaming sounds again but didn't respond to them, covering his mouth as he heaved again. It was a lost cause as it only slipped through his hands and onto the floor. He felt arms wrap around him and pull him close as he vomited again, this time, dribbling all over himself.
"Ed...! Speak to me, are you okay???" Ayumi asked as he retched over himself again. He finally got control of himself. "I...f-fine..." He croaked. "No you're not, Ed. Something's wrong with you..." Eli breathed out gently. Ayumi let him go as he shook his head, his body shaking slightly as he wiped his mouth. "There's...nothing...wrong with me..." He rasped out, staggering to his feet, only to fall back.
"Ed, sit down, just listen to us." Ayumi tugged gently on his arm. "No!" Ed yelled, jerking his arm away. "Okay, I'm tired of you all talking to me like I'm crazy or sick or something! I'm fine! There's nothing wrong with me, so stop treating me like crap!"
"But Ed..." Eli started when he threw a mad glare at her. "Shut up, I don't want to hear it!"
"Ed, the war did something to you!" Ayumi burst out. Ed stared at her angrily. "The hell are you talking about..."
Ayumi looked desperately at Eli, who sighed and nodded. "Eli and I...we were talking...and don't get mad, but we think that something happened to you when Al died. At first, we were thinking that you maybe lost your mind or something, but-"
"Oh, that's right. I've lost my mind. I'm crazy for caring that my brother's dead!" Ed growled out, slamming his fist into the table.
"No, that's not it!" Ayumi frowned. "I think it was some chemical in the air...the same thing that made Al die! I don't think it was completely gone from the air and you accidentally breathed it in when you entered the trench too early-"
"Shut up, okay?! Just shut up!" Ed roared, grabbing a glass and throwing it at her. She quickly scrambled away, the glass shattering, shards of broken glass spraying everywhere. "Stop talking to me! Stop acting like you care when you really don't give a damn about me! You can't help me, and you don't know shit, okay?!!!"
"Don't you dare talk to her that way!" Eli growled. Ed ignored her, throwing Ayumi one last hateful glance. She didn't seem to notice, as she was staring hard at her clenched fists in her lap, avoiding his eyes. He turned, dashing down the hallway, knocking down objects at random. He could hear one of them chase after them, making his rampage more wild. He ran through the door and down the street, pushing past crowds of people, hearing them calling their names to come back. It only made him run faster, even though he was running out of breath quickly. Too quickly...there was a sudden, hard pounding in his chest. He could hear it in his ears. Pain was suddenly coursing through his veins. He staggered in his run clutching at his heart and wincing hard as he still fought to run away. It only hurt more. His legs went numb and gave way, making him fall hard. A loud crack pierced the sky as he hit the ground, blood marking the concrete of the street. His head was spinning again, darkness creeping from the corners of his vision. Random people were screaming, some for help, others just for pure terror.
"Ed!!!" He heard someone shriek. He couldn't quite place the voice; it was already to dark to even think. He closed his eyes as he was enveloped in darkness.
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Mwahahaha! This chapter's my favorite so far! And, because I'm just SO nice...I've added a torturing cliffhanger! -evil cackle/ lightning flashes- Dun worry, I'll update soon!
Please review!