A/Ns:
Again, I own nothing but the plot.
Sorry, guys, this one's a bit shorter than the others. It's also probably the closest thing we're gonna get to NC-17 material. As usual, T for language. T+ in general. YAOI IS ADDICTIVE.
Much thanks to my epische beta, who doesn't have an account here. I shall call her P-chan... in no way related to the P-chan from Ranma 1/2.
Days had passed since Al's momentary 'death' of sorts, and Edward had decided that if things were going to rocket around like a snowball in hell, then they might as well enjoy the time they had left. However, finding somewhere they could be alone- and not eventually found by Winry- was a problem. The only bathroom couldn't be monopolized, and most of the other rooms were too public for anything serious to be done in them. That left the bedroom, which apparently wasn't all that safe either.
Though her first instinct was to get the hell out of the room, Winry's legs were frozen in place as she gaped at her two best friends. She would recall details later, but her mind comprehended only a few things at the moment.
1) Ed and Al.
2) In bed.
3) Half a step away from fucking.
"What the hell are you two doing!?" Golden eyes shot over to her, and as Edward growled possessively, Winry could almost see why Al would want to get laid by someone like that. Except for the small problem of being related! Then the yellow-haired teen seemed to register what had happened, sitting bolt upright, removing his hands from his brother and hiding them behind his back, spluttering and turning red.
"Um, ah, er, nothing?" The brunette beneath him groaned in protest of the sudden lack of stimulation, cracking a single eye open to see what had so interrupted his pleasure. It took less than a second for his already-flushed face to become purple as Alphonse tried to make his current situation seem like anything but what it actually was, and failed miserably.
"'Nothing' hardly involves having a hand down your brother's pants!" Ed recoiled as if stung, shifting his eyes away from Winry's blue gaze.
When was the last time that Ed and Al had gotten caught doing something wrong? There were multiple times, but those seemed so minor compared to this entire situation. Comparing the time that the two were caught by their mom stealing cookies to getting caught by their best friend, getting intimate (hey, look, into it and intimate sound alike! Ed realized, then wondered why his mind would only focus on irrelevant things) when they were supposed to be in bed sleeping was like comparing the weight difference between a feather and a boulder. Even the time where they broke that vase and tried to hide it wasn't close. The only thing that might come close enough to the scene at hand was when they tried human that was the cause of this new mess. Maybe if they hadn't done that, the bond the brothers had built up in those past years wouldn't have gotten strong enough to have caused the new sexual bond and tension between the boys. What was worse was the fact that their best friend now knew, and the look on her face... it killed some part of Ed on the 's expression was a mix of confusion, hurt and maybe what seemed to be a pinch of... jealousy? The female seemed to snap out of her trance, shaking her head and casting a last, scathing glance at the boys before stalking out.
---
Ed crumpled on the kitchen table, arms folded over his head. Al had bolted for the door as soon as he was decent, choosing the smart way to get out of Winry's line of questioning. The blonde young woman couldn't tell whether the tension visible in the clenching of her friend's jaw, was due to anger, embarrassment, or distress. The teen had so far refused to speak, shoulders quivering in tension.
"Ed, you know it's wr-"
"Yes, I know it's goddamn fucking wrong! I know we shouldn't! But..." A choked sob emanated from the vaguely human pile of muck on her table and chair.
"I just... I can't. I'd... I'd leave him if he told me to, if it meant keeping him safe, hell, I'd die to keep him safe and happy. Just... mm." The alchemist trailed off, but even his best attempts couldn't hide his tears from his childhood friend. Winry sighed, mind strangely blank. She knew she should have some sort of reaction to something like this, but she couldn't get mad at Edward, not when he was crying. The mechanic snorted at her foolishness.
"To think I used to love you, Ed. What a way for a girl's hopes to be crushed." With that, the blonde turned on her heel and stalked away, leaving her golden-haired client to cry himself out.
---
Alphonse sat in the graveyard, ignoring the chill of the October night air. Tear-trails stained the teen's cheeks as he stared at his mother's headstone.
'Mom... what would you think of us, Ed and I? You... you wouldn't be happy with us. We... we're together, mom. As in, together together. Going out. Dating. However you wanna say it. I... we're wrong, aren't we? I knew that when I got into this, but...' A watery chuckle burbled its way out of the brunette's throat. 'Stupid, aren't I? It's not as if we've done anything different, but as soon as someone else knew, even if that someone was Winry... it seems like everything just kinda got worse. I... I still love him. I know I do. And I know that I shouldn't.' Al leaned forward, resting his hands on the weather-worn stone, bronze eyes closing. 'But what do I do? I'm... I'm scared. What do I do?' Tears found their way down the boy's cheeks once more, falling unheeded to the ground.