Title: Never Easy
Rating: M overall
Pairing: Royxed, but mainly Elricest
Genre: Romance, Angst, Horror, Hurt/Comfort... that sounds like a terrible combination 0_0
Summary: Things have never been easy for the Elric Brothers. Why would love be any different?
Warnings: Mature content, language, and violence in later chapters.
Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Fullmetal Alchemist. *sobs in corner*
Author's Note: Okay, this chapter is where the violence comes into play, so hopefully nobody is offended by it. I tried to keep it relatively tame, I mean considering what they show on tv nowadays *shakes fists*. Anywhoozer, I'm just excited that Kimblee-san is here. Let's see what crazy shenanigans he's going to get our protagonists into!
_,.-"~^~"-.,_
"It's nice to meet you Alphonse. I've been watching you for quite some time" Kimblee said as he slowly reached his hand into his jacket pocket.
My whole body tensed and I dared to sneak a quick glance at the door. "Dammit, why did I close it?"
"What…what do you mean?" I asked slowly, trying to buy myself some time as I crept back, inching my way to the door.
"No you don't" he growled before darting at me. I was going to try to deflect him, but unfortunately, he caught me off guard, and before I could use my sparring training, he kneed me in the groin. Bright pain flashed through my lower body, and the breath was knocked out of my lungs. Kimblee used that second to easily push me to the ground, on my stomach, and pin my arms behind my back. Damn he was fast. With my face pushed up against the floor, Kimblee sat on top of my back and legs, perfectly positioned so that no matter how hard I struggled, I couldn't shake him off.
Using the duct tape he had pulled out of his pocket he taped my hands together, palms faced outwards so I couldn't transmute. Kimblee got off of me, and from the angle I was facing, I couldn't see where he went. I used that moment to try to get up, but without my arms, I just flopped awkwardly as I tried to get my knees underneath my body, attempting to push myself up. But Kimblee was back a second later and pinned me back to the floor, causing my ribs to scream as they dug into the ground, but luckily, nothing snapped. At least, I don't think so. Snaking one hand into my hair, Kimblee pulled back sharply on my head, twisting it so I faced him slightly. Hot pain shot through my neck from the whiplash, and I couldn't help but whimper out loud. I opened my eyes and saw a huge toothy grin on his face, but then my attention quickly changed to what he was holding in his other hand. It was Ed's tie that he had worn to dinner last night: Kimblee must have grabbing it off the dresser where Ed left it this morning. Almost as soon as I realized what Kimblee was going to do with it, did he quickly press it against my mouth, forcing it painfully across my lips as he began to tie the cloth into a knot behind my head. I couldn't scream or yell for help; if I did then the tie would slip into my mouth, gagging me. My only option was to shake my head, hoping that I could twist out of this makeshift gag.
Kimblee saw that I wasn't going to open my mouth through, so he pulled back an arm, and while chuckling, punched me harshly in my stomach, causing me to gasp out from the pain that ricocheted throughout my body. Without hesitation, Kimblee made quick work with the tie, the fabric slipping into my mouth and pushing down on my tongue. I tried to breath, but only a bit of air made it through the cloth, forcing me to breathe through my nose. Kimblee pushed my head back down, and I felt my left cheekbone bruise against the generic tan-colored tiles. I heard the duct tape roll screech as he pulled off another strip and my feet were quickly forced together as my ankles were taped too. With all my strength, I tried to buck Kimblee off of me, but he was just too big and I couldn't get enough leverage. He twisted my upper body slightly, turning me half way onto my right side, but my hips and legs were still facing downwards into the ground. I think he wanted me to be able to watch him; watch him do whatever he was about to do. Panic coursed through my veins; freezing my blood, contracting my muscles, stopping my breath: paralyzing me.
"Get out of this Alphonse! Do absolutely anything!"
My first instinct was to scream, but only a muffled sound came out, not nearly loud enough for anyone to hear. It was the middle of a workday in the military dorms: no one was around. I was completely alone: alone with this psychopath.
"Now…" Kimblee said; his tone that of a person who had finally finished a distasteful chore and could start playing. "Things haven't quite gone according to plan today, but that's alright," he said, almost to himself.
He leaned down so he was completely in my field of vision, blocking out my view of the door. "When I set out this morning, I planned on coming here and killing the Fullmetal Alchemist."
I felt my heart drop into my stomach. No…No, no, no, no, no. Not Brother.
Kimblee must have seen the fear spread in my face because he laughed for a few seconds before continuing. "I bet you can understand my surprise when I bumped into him on the street today, literally!" he paused for another hearty laugh. "Here I was thinking that he'd still be too ill to go to work today. I mean, he did look pretty sick last night."
My eyes widened in shock. How in the world did he know about that?
"I've been watching him for the past few days," Kimblee said, answering my unspoken question, "When he's at work, when he goes to the market, and when you two went to the Flame Alchemist's house last night."
I closed my eyes and shook my head: this wasn't happening, it couldn't be happening.
"Oh Alphonse," Kimblee cooed, running a thumb down the side of my face before I twisted it out of his grasp. My skin was crawling where he touched it. "That's your name right? That's what I heard the blond-haired soldier call you."
He stared at me for awhile, but I refused to turn my head back towards him. I did happen to see though as he dipped his hand into his pants pocket and pulled out a switchblade, hitting the button with fluid ease.
"I'm glad I have this toy to play with while I wait for Fullmetal to return. I hope he's out fucking that little Xingese chick I saw him with, because he only has a few hours left to live," he pronounced while lightly dragging the tip of the knife down the skin on my throat and bit of collarbone that was exposed by my shirt. "You look so delicious Alphonse; I can definitely see why Fullmetal keeps you around." The tip of his switchblade dug into the skin on my chest ever so slightly, drawing just a pinprick's worth of blood. He swiped at the ruby droplet with his finger and then stuck the digit into his mouth, sucking off the metallic tasting fluid.
"Hmm, how should I go about this?" he mused. "Maybe I should spill your guts right now… that way I could use your blood as lube," Kimblee said softly as he used one hand to untuck my shirt from my pants. He slipped said hand under the fabric and rubbed at the skin on my exposed side, drifting slightly to pass over my stomach. My whole body started to shake, and even as I begged myself to stop, I couldn't: the fear was overwhelming.
"Have you ever fucked someone as they died?" that nightmarish grin plastered on his face. "It's absolutely amazing. The muscles contract wonderfully as the body fights off death: it makes for an outstanding orgasm," he remarked as he reached down to start unbuttoning my pants.
I felt myself gag, but forced myself not to throw up. "But then again, maybe it'd be better if I died right now from choking on my own vomit…" I mused, dread joining the panic soaked in every fiber of my being. I struggled to shake those thoughts from my head, but I just couldn't. I figured it was probably around 1:30; still about four hours before Ed came home: before anyone would find me. I allowed the tears to escape my closed eyes. This was it: I was going to die here, after all that effort Ed and I put into finding a way to get my body back, it was going to be broken and used at the hands of this man. And it was all my fault. I shouldn't have let him in, I should've fought harder, and I shouldn't have been so easily tricked. I let Brother down, and with that thought did I finally feel my spirit break. I just prayed that it would be over soon, and that Brother would be okay. I prayed to God that my life would spare my brother's. That was equivalent exchange after all, wasn't it?
It was as Kimblee started to pull my pants off my hips that I heard it: a small creaking sound. It was barely audible, easily grouped in with a thousand ambient sounds, but it was one I couldn't have mistaken. I had heard it every day for the past six years.
It was the creak of an automail limb.
I snapped my eyes open and saw that the door had been pushed open ever so slightly. Through the crack, I could see Ed, crouching down, stalking his prey; becoming invisible. He quickly motioned for me to be silent, and I couldn't help but cry harder; this time in relief.
Kimblee, with his back to the door, never even knew Ed was there until he knocked the knife out of Kimblee's tattooed hand and grabbed his wrist, swiftly placing a transmuted automail blade at the base of Kimblee's throat.
"Don't you dare move," Ed directed, his voice calm and demanding. Kimblee froze, fear visible in his eyes as they darted back and forth, quickly realizing who was behind him.
"Ah, what a surprise Fullmetal. We weren't expecting you until later," he said; adjusting his hips slightly and dropping his other hand down, pulling something out of his pocket with such nimble hands that both Ed and I missed it.
"If you move one more fucking inch without my direction, I will not hesitate to kill you right here," Brother hissed, pressing his automail blade harder against Kimblee's throat, choking him slightly and I could see tiny rivulets of blood slide down the skin and blossom as they reached his shirt. Kimblee coughed slightly, wincing from the pressure on his Adam's apple, but he didn't move. Ed shifted a little, pulling Kimblee's empty hand so that it was uncomfortable twisted behind his back. "Stand up. Slowly."
Very gently, Kimblee shifted his weight off of me, eventually standing up completely. The height difference was a little awkward for Brother, but he still managed to keep the blade in constant contact threateningly at Kimblee's neck.
"Hmm," Kimblee purred, "I guess I must have hit a nerve. What is he to you, Fullmetal?" Brother was silent, apparently ignoring the taunts from Kimblee, but he wasn't over yet. "And here I was, hoping that you'd share your fuck-toy with me."
"You're going to pay for this Kimblee. The whole military is looking for you," Ed warned, keeping his face placid even though I could see his eyes burning with anger.
That little fact didn't seem to bother Kimblee though, a faint smile dancing across his features. "Hmm, I'm sure they are… but I'm still curious Fullmetal, he is nice and tight? I bet he is. Just look at the little slut, he's begging for both of us at once. I'm sure he would look absolutely breathtaking sucking my co—"
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH KIMBLEE!" Ed snapped. His breathing was hoarse and his eyes had dilated and darkened. "You say one more word and you're going to die."
"Oh," Kimblee taunted, "I don't think I'm the one who's going to die today." A second knife slid out of the sleeve on his free arm where he had hit it earlier after he pulled it out of his pocket. This knife was slightly shorter than the other one and the blade was serrated instead of smooth. I realized that Ed couldn't see it since he was behind him, so I tried to scream, but almost as soon as I did, Kimblee twisted out of Ed's grasp. Spinning around, Kimblee slashed at the air where Ed had just been, but thankfully he had slipped out of the way. Brother must have been nicked though, because I could hear him gasp and he winced. Kimblee wasn't going to give him time to catch his breath though: he lunged at Brother full force. Ed dodged it again, jumping back towards the beds. I could hear them fighting behind me, the occasional sound of skin hitting skin or metal.
"You have to help him."
I pulled on my hands and felt my skin burn as the duct tape held them firmly in place. I fought to push the pain out of my head, wringing my hands, hoping, praying, that I could slip them out of the tape, but I just couldn't do it. So instead I tried to wiggle my way into a sitting position. As I was attempting to use my shoulder to push myself up on my hips, I saw Kimblee's knife: the first one that Brother had knocked out of his hands. It had slid under the dresser; if I could only get over there, I could use it to cut this horrible tape. Brother was quick, but Kimblee was more experienced; if I didn't get myself out of these bonds… I shook the thoughts from my head.
There was a crash from the other side of the room as a lamp fell off the nightstand and shattered. Ed had managed to pin Kimblee down on the floor, his automail blade returned to Kimblee's throat. The second knife was nowhere to be seen, but at least it wasn't in Kimblee's hands. Ed was panting hard, using his knees to keep Kimblee trapped underneath him, and I saw that one of Brother's cheekbones were starting to bruise up; probably from one of Kimblee's punches. Great, now we matched.
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right here after what you've done to my brother," Ed commanded, his breathing still very loud and uneven.
"Brother," Kimblee echoed, soft, a grin breaking out on his face.
Ed winced slightly; hearing this sicko breath the word that I said daily with love made me wince too. Ed let out a small growl, and very slowly, pulled his automail back, but not out of mercy: he was aiming, getting ready to strike. I attempted to yell for him to stop, but the gag was still in my mouth. No matter what this man had done, or was going to do, I wasn't about to let Brother have to deal with being a murderer for the rest of his life; not when we had him trapped and could call for help.
With Ed's arm pulled back completely, mere moments away from spilling this man's blood and life along with it, I thought that there was nothing in the world that would stop Ed right now. Thankfully, I was wrong.
The door that was left ajar just an inch was suddenly kicked open full force. The doorknob left a dent in the plaster wall, dust drifting delicately down, powdering the floor.
"FREEZE!"
I looked up and there in the doorway stood Hawkeye, her gun drawn and pointed at the tangles mess of limbs that were Ed and Kimblee. Havoc stood behind her in the doorway, his gun also drawn. Hawkeye slowly stepping into the room, checking for anyone planning on ambushing them. Once it was obvious that it was just us, she made her way towards Ed.
"Are you oka—"
"Help Alphonse," Ed said, cutting her off, not taking his eyes of Kimblee and keeping his arm pulled back the whole time. Hawkeye nodded to Havoc and he went over to Ed instead. Hawkeye knelt down next to me, and first off removed my gag. I felt cool air flood into my lungs again, my heartbeat finally slowing down. She pulled out a small army knife from one of her pockets and very carefully, starting cutting away at the duct tape.
"How did you know we were here?" I asked her as Falman and Breda came in from the hall too. They walked over to where Brother was and handcuffed Kimblee, picking him off the floor and dragging him out into the hall.
Havoc extended a hand to Ed and helped him stand up. "Are you alright, Chief?"
Ed stood up, wincing slightly, and transmuted his hand back to normal. "Yeah, I 'm fine," he reassured, making a quick glance at me. I did notice him slip his right arm around his stomach, holding his side.
"A janitor said he saw a man walking through the building; one who was on the wanted posters he'd seen down at the local bar," Hawkeye said, bringing my attention back to her. "We weren't quite sure where in the building he was, but we heard some commotion over here from the corridor next door. I'm sorry we took so long; it's unforgivable," she bowed her head, cutting the rest of the tape in silence. Finally both my hands and feet were freed, and I rubbed my wrists, trying to get the blood flowing again. It was weird thinking that just a few minutes ago I was so sure I was never going to be able to move my hands freely ever again. That instead of circulating once more, my blood was going to spill out around me; it being the last warm thing I felt as my body grew cold and darkness finally pulled me in. I couldn't help but shake, the extremity of what happened hitting me hard, and I hated myself a little as tears started to run down my cheeks; unbelievably hot, and apparently never-ending.
Hawkeye leaned over and put a hand on my shoulder. "Alphonse, are you okay?"
"Hey Hawkeye," Havoc interrupted; sparing me the difficulty of explaining exactly what I was feeling, which seemed just about impossible right then. "It looks like Kimblee's knife is over here," he said, pointing to right behind me. Hawkeye and I turned around to look at it. Weirdly enough, it too had slid under the dresser, right next to the first one. Havoc used a handkerchief to pull out the second one, and held it up for us to inspect. "Where did this blood come from?"
CRASH
The three of us all spun around towards the beds. Ed had his back towards us and he was leaning up against the wall. The sound must have come from his flesh shoulder hitting the wall. He tried to push himself back up straight, but as he took a step forward, he collapsed, sliding down, finally resting on the floor where I noticed a small pool of blood had formed.
"BROTHER!" I screamed, trying to stand up, but I fell back down; my legs still numb from being bound. I crawled over to him, helping him twist slightly so his legs weren't folded underneath him. Havoc was there behind me a second later, holding a pillow case he had grabbed off my bed. He pushed Ed's red jacket out of the way and we saw his automail hand holding his side; blood seeping through the metal joints.
"Brother…" I repeated as I took his hand. I didn't care that mine was instantly covered in blood. He turned his head towards me, and as I used my dry hand to cup his face, he smiled at me; exhaustion etched into his features.
"Heh, he was pretty quick. I didn't even see him pull that knife," he said chuckling, followed by a sharp intake of breath as Havoc pushed the pillow case up against the cut, trying to stop the bleeding. Hawkeye got up and ran into the hall. I was vaguely aware of hearing her call for someone to get a stretcher. Havoc cursed under his breath as the pillow case was completely saturated, reaching for a sheet off the bed instead.
"Al… you're hurt…" Ed almost whispered. I followed his gaze to my wrists: they were red from the duct tape and one spot on my left hand was bleeding slightly from when I had tried to slip out of the adhesive.
"Ed," I chuckled, even though it sounded forced and I could practically feel my heart breaking. I didn't bother hiding the tears as they fell this time. "You need to start worrying about yourself a little," I sniffled.
He smiled at me again.
This can't be happening. This can't be the last time I see Brother smiling.
Hawkeye and Fuery came running into the room, a long white stretcher in tow. The hardest thing I did was let go of Brother's hand as Fuery and Havoc lifted him up onto the stretcher and carried him out of the room.
I just sat there in a pool of my own brother's blood: blood that was so similar to mine, but wasn't. It should have been mine here on the floor, staining my clothes. I looked down at my hands: one completely red, the blood cooling quickly on my flesh, the other only smeared in a few places. Hawkeye sat down next to me, taking me into her arms, and there, against her shoulder, I sobbed; turning the dark blue fabric on her jacket black with my tears.
Things are never easy.