Disclaimer: See chapter one

Take It All Away 8

Fullmetal

Ed had never felt so warm in his life. As he felt himself waking up he became aware of the feeling of arms around his waist and the soft whistle of breath in his ear. This caused the blonde to frown. What had he been doing before he fell asleep?

Slowly Edward remembered the events of the former day. He remembered waiting in the hall, he remembered ear splitting screams, and Mustang's-

"Mustang!" He yelped, sitting up with a start. The movement startled the other occupant of the bed, who only groaned and pulled Ed to him once again. This caused the blonde to panic, struggling to get out of the General's iron like grip. The bed was too small for such activities and Ed found himself flailing in an attempt to stay on the twin sized bed.

The General somehow managed to sleep through Edward's yelps until Edward began to fall off the bed. Mustang's eyes flew open when one of Ed's feet connected with his leg in an attempt to maintain his balance. A searing pain coursed through his limb. He gritted his teeth in agony, eyes sliding shut once more.

"Mustang I-!" Edward stuttered, scrambling back onto the bed. He saw the agony on the older man's face and realized what had happened. "Shit!" He swore softly, rising from the floor and standing beside Mustang's head. He gently laid a soothing hand on the General's forehead. "Shh…it'll pass in a second. Hang in there." He cooed, his voice a hoarse whisper.

Just like the day before, Mustang relaxed under the blonde's touch. The spell passed slowly, but finally Mustang went limp and his eyes slid shut in relief. This gave Edward the perfect opportunity to study him.

Mustang's raven hair curtained his forehead and hung unevenly in front of his eyes. His naturally pale skin had regained a bit of color since his awakening, Ed noted with relief. The man still looked sickly thin, but that was something he was sure he could fix easily enough.

"Thanks." Mustang grunted, his eyes opening once more. Dark brown eyes met liquid gold and confusion seeped into the former. "..What? Something on my face?" Mustang inquired brusquely. He absentmindedly lifted his hand and ran it over his face.

"Nah, it's nothing." Edward replied, waving it off. The blonde was relieved when his superior let it go. He wasn't sure if Mustang had done it out of mercy for the blonde or if he'd simply not thought much of it. It only took a moment's thought for Ed to conclude to the latter cause.

The pair fell into an uncomfortable silence after that, both lost in their own thoughts. The only sound in the room was the ticking of a clock on the wall. The clock's sound echoed through the room, seeming to bounce off of the walls endlessly. Finally they became fed up with the silence.

"It was your-"

"Why the hell were you-"

Both men stopped mid-sentence, waiting for the other to finish. When neither made any move to do so it only frustrated them further. Ed glared at Mustang, while Mustang glared a random spot on the wall. They were getting nowhere.

"…I'm sorry, alright! I didn't mean to kick you." Edward relented, tiring of the silence that had once again stretched out between them. He turned his angry eyes to the small window, determined not to meet Mustang's eyes.

"What were you even doing here, kid?" Mustang demanded, still trying to piece together recent events in his mind. To say that the blonde's presence had startled him was an understatement.

"I'm not a kid!" Ed snapped automatically, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Would you rather I call you squirt? Shorty? Half-pint?"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING-" Edward began, but his words died in this throat.

Mustang suddenly pitched forward, his head held in his hands. The look of pain that now stained his features was enough to send the younger man flying to his side. "Mustang?" Edward demanded, his voice firm. "Mustang!"

"Fullmetal…my..head…" Mustang gasped out, his eyes wide and staring unseeingly at his lap.

Ed froze completely, his eyes the size of saucers. He gaped at the General's bent head as if seeing him for the first time. "What did you just call me…?" He demanded softly, but his question was forgot as Mustang began shaking. He looked as if he was having a seizure. "Mustang!"

Edward looked around frantically, searching for something to help ease his superior's obvious pain. He scanned the room but came up with nothing. Seeing no other alternative, Edward gathered the older man in his arms and began rocking him back and forth. "Somebody, help!" He called desperately, his grip on Mustang tightening protectively.

The Fullmetal Alchemist felt completely helpless as Mustang trembled in his arms. He shut his eyes tight and buried his face in the black locks and waited for the attack to subside or help to arrive. In all truth Ed was unsure of what had just happened, but he felt that he had a pretty good idea of the cause of this attack.

After what seemed like an eternity the door opened and Washu, Central's head healer, came into the room. "What happened?" She demanded, taking in the situation in a heartbeat. The way the blonde was holding the General it was obvious the older man was in pain of some sort.

"I'm not sure. He called me Fullmetal…and then grabbed his head…" Ed explained uncertainly, looking over Mustang's bent head at the elderly woman. "H-He won't stop shaking." He whimpered, absentmindedly stroking Mustang's back.

"It's alright, Edward." Washu said gently, moving to the side of the bed. "You can let go of him now. I'll take care of him."

Ed's eyes widened at the simple request. He suddenly felt like his fingers were made of lead. It took a large amount of physical and mental effort just to release his hold on the man, but when Washu went to help Mustang out of Ed's arms he found himself longing to reach out and pull him into his arms once again.

Washu eyed him for a moment before returning to the problem at hand. Mustang's shaking had subsided and was now only an occasional shiver, but his face was still etched in pain. The accompanying nurse that had gone unnoticed until now helped the doctor get Mustang settled in his bed and hooked up to an IV.

Ed watched from his seat next to Mustang's bed as Washu gave the General a sedative. After making sure her patient was comfortable and adding a few notes to a clipboard at the end of Mustang's bed, Washu turned to leave. She hesitated a moment at the door before turning back to the blonde young man. "Elric-san, he'll be alright now. He's just sleeping. It would be best if you returned to your room and got a decent sleep yourself. I'll keep an eye on him."

"Thanks sensei, but…" Edward glanced up at her, a small smile on his face. "I'll stay with him a while longer."

Washu found there was no need for a response when Ed's eyes returned to the General. She took her leave quietly, leaving the two men alone once again.

The sound of the door shutting reached Edward's ears, but his gaze never turned away from Mustang's face. The General's eyes were growing heavy, and it was becoming obvious that staying awake was a conscious effort on his part. When Mustang forced his eyes open again Ed smiled at him and put a hand to his forehead. "It's fine, Mustang. Go to sleep."

"Full…metal." Mustang sighed, leaning into the hand and letting his eyes slide shut once more. His hands fisted in the sheets, his body tensing in an effort to ward off the invading sleep.

Edward moved closer, perching lightly on the edge of the bed. "I'll be here, Mustang. You don't have to worry about anything." Edward whispered, wondering faintly when his mouth had decided to run on it's own accord. "I'll protect you."

"…I know…" Mustang sighed, still waging a useless war against the sleep that was clouding his senses. "Don't leave." He begged, the anesthesia revealing it's full effect as his words began to slur together.

"I'm right here." Ed assured, stroking the man's hair out of his eyes. Over the time he'd spent in the hospital with Mustang, he found the raven locks fascinated him. Even now he couldn't resist the opportunity to touch them. "I'm not going anywhere."

Mustang lifted his hand and covered Ed's with his own, gazing sleepily at the blonde. "I'm…glad." He murmered, finally giving into the tempting call of sleep. His hand slipped off of Ed's and fell softly on the mattress.

"Me too." Ed whispered. He yawned as he felt the wear of the morning catching up with him, and he couldn't resist the urge to crawl back in the bed beside Mustang and return to sleep. He slipped into Mustang's limp arms and snuggled up to the stronger body, sighing contentedly. For the second time in three months Ed slept peacefully.

Author Note: Finally, an update that didn't take me two months to do! I'm sorry about how short this was, but this encounter stretched out much further than I originally planned.

A huge thanks to all of my reviewers! Without you guys I would have already ditched this story. Thank you for the motivation, I hope I won't let you down!