Innocence
Edward sat up slowly, blinking into the haze of shifting sands and coughed. He felt around for the pocket watch he kept in his loose linen pants, after a moment of searching he retrieved it and clicked the casing open. Sighing he rolled out from underneath the make shift shelter he'd made with a tarp.
Twelve days he had been fighting to survive.
I should be close to the border now. I'm running out of water again. He took a ginger sip from his last canteen.
I thought my days of shaking sand out of my automail were behind me. Damn sand. Damn desert.
Edward's automail scratched as he got to his feet, the sand had coated all of the internal mechanisms, sticking to the oil and becoming impossible to clean out. He carefully rolled his tarp and tied it to his back, and snugly fitting his hood over his braid he pointed his feet southwest and began walking. The dusk became a chilling night, and his mind began wandering too.
"I can tell by your scowl that you're thinking of someone special." Purred a voice behind him.
"Shut up Roy, I didn't ask for your commentary. I'm scowling because my head hurts and my automail port is full of sand." Ed inhaled slowly through his nose. "Furthermore, if I was thinking of someone special you know damn well who it would be. You absolute moron. It is completely beyond me why anyone would want someone so egotistical and, and, and moronic for a world leader.
"Always think you're so great with your face, and your hair and your stupid cologne." Ed turned his scowl on Roy, walking a few feet to the left of him, perfectly unruffled in his military blues with his hair slicked backed from his face. Not a drop of sweat to be seen on his brow.
"Oh Edward, always with the short temper. I'm just trying to keep you company in this miserable place. You could thank me instead of growling at me like a feral cat."
"Who are you calling so short a beansprout would tower over him?" Edward's own shouting made his head pound again. "I didn't ask you to be here, you just came out of nowhere, playing god again. What did you do? Put a tracking device in my automail? How did you even know I was here?"
"Oh come on Ed, you'd miss me if I left. Admit you're glad to have company." Roy's sauntering pace was driving Ed mad.
"Yeah? Well if you're so great, why didn't you bring the cavalry to come get me out of this burning hell hole?"
The Fuhrer made a face and they walked on in silence.
When the moon hit it's highest peak, Edward fished around in one of his packs and removed two round red fruits. He'd removed them from a cactus he had found the night before and stripped them of their spines. He offered one to the man at his side, but Roy just held up a hand and continued walking.
He pocketed the extra and ate the one in his hand.
"Why didn't you stop me? That day, when I handed in my resignation letter?" Ed couldn't bear to meet Mustangs eyes, so watched the stars on the horizon instead.
"Oh, that's simple. I was relieved you left on your own and I didn't have to discharge you myself. You were a terror and we were all glad when you left." Roy had his hands shoved deep in his pockets and continued strolling. Edward felt tears well up in his eyes, and felt like the weight of the Truth was crushing down on him again.
"I never stopped fighting for your causes, you bastard. I spearheaded peace campaigns in the East for you. I was on the ground during the reconstruction of Ishval. I told the Queen of Aerugo you were honorable. You never cared about me though, did you? Just what I could do for you. Then when I lost my Alchemy, you threw me out like trash."
"Edward, that's where you're wrong. You always were trash." Mustangs eyes were cold and distant now.
"I wanted you to want me to stay. If you'd asked me I would have. I wanted to be by your side." He was dragging his feet now, exhaustion and pain welling up inside of him. He felt like he was about to burst at the seams.
He looked to his companion, who was gone.
"Roy? Roy? Please, where did you go? Come back. It's so dark, and I'm so tired. I don't care if you don't want me. Just don't leave. Please don't leave." He searched around for his companion, but Roy was nowhere in sight.
Overwhelmed and exhausted, Ed sank to his knees shivering. Stifling a hot prickling at his eyes that was threatening to overflow onto his cheeks. He curled into himself, holding onto his head until the first rays of dawn began peaking over the sand and gathered himself enough to set up his makeshift tent again.
Alphonse held his sleeping daughter in his arms, Winry was asleep next to him in the hospital bed, exhausted from the labor and delivery of little Trisha. He looked into the face of his beloved wife, and this perfect little angel they had made together, and overwhelming joy crashed into overwhelming grief inside him. He stroked her soft little face and nestled his finger in the clutch of one of her tiny little hands. Winry had done the ultimate Alchemical Miracle. She'd made this brand new life, and brought it into the world. Something Alchemists couldn't do with all the experimenting in the world. He sobbed softly, grief winning the fight for a moment.
"What do you mean Ed is dead?" Al felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach. He was going to be sick.
"I'm so sorry." Al heard the strangled note of grief from Mustang's voice on the other end of the phone.
"I'm coming out to central right now, I won't believe you for one second until I see his body! Until I have proof, my brother isn't dead you just can't track him." With that, Alphonse hand slammed the phone into the receiver and had gone up to his and Winry's room to pack a suitcase, blind with anger and fear.
That's when he'd heard the automail shop door slam open and Granny Pinako calling for him. He'd come down the stairs to see his beautiful wife's face twisted in pain, and all other thoughts were forgotten as he rushed out the door to get the town doctor.
He rose to his feet, still carefully holding his sweet baby, and walked out into living room attached to the shop. He stopped in front of a picture of Winry, Ed and himself.
"Thats your momma and me when we were young, and that right there is your uncle Ed. You'll meet him someday and you are gonna love him so much." His voice was gentle but tears carved their way down his cheeks, as he stood there with his whole world in his arms.
