Brief
Commentary:
I'm sorry, I've lied to some of you when I said there would be little to no violence in this chapter...and I'm very sorry...(HA HA, SUCKERS!)...um...really. :) Honest. I've been surrounded by kittens all day - I'm a little...-giggle-...uhm...ha ha...-gigglesnort- KITTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENS. -gigglesnort- So, uhm, if...hee hee...this chapter is kind of -cracks up- weird...then...hee...you know why! -giggle- LOL, it's chapter SEVENTEEN, BEECHES! -head bangs to 'A Devil in a Midnight Mass'-
A place called Hell is close to here,
Put my trust in God that day,
Not the man that taught His way
Reasons
Not For Your Ears
Chapter Seventeen
Not waiting for an answer, the younger Elric strode into the apartment, brushing rudely past Winry as he made his way towards his older brother. Edward, already having noticed his "dearest" silbling's presence, tensed visibly on the bloody couch as fierce glares between the two were exchanged wordlessly.
"Why, hello, Nii-san," Alphonse hissed. "What a pleasure to see you again."
"Al," was all Edward snarled in return.
Pinako stared at them blankly from across the room, eyes automatically shifting to Winry, who stood, still frozen, in the foyer.
"Winry, can you please explain to me what the fuck is going on?"
She gave her grandmother a startled look, before she glanced back at Edward and Alphonse - she felt a wave of panic almost immediately.
"Um, I have to tell you later!" she threw the elderly Rockbell woman a pleading look - Pinako merely responded with an angry grunt. "They had better not get blood on the tiles."
Winry ignored her comment as she ran forward, tumbling into Alphonse's path and throwing her arms out, as if hoping that she would actually keep them separated. Sweat coated her body from her increasing level of anxiety, and she visibly flinched as Alphonse whispered,
"Winry, please move."
She vigorously shook her head, legs shaking from the promise of pain in his voice...hopefully for Edward, and not herself.
"What the fuck are you doing, Rockbell-san?" Edward growled in her ear, shifting behind her so that his feet were on the tiled floor; he would easily be able to stand up and throw her aside.
"D-don't fight," was all Winry could say, her voice wavering in doubt as she felt their glares burrowing deep into her flesh.
"Why the hell not?" Edward again.
"Y-you're badly hurt, a-and-"
"Who gives a shit? Just because I've got a couple scratches," here his voice grew mocking, "doesn't mean I can't kick this damn brat's ass."
"But your left ar-"
"Yes, please, try to this time," Alphonse interrupted her coolly, his eyes as sharp and deadly as splinters of ice as he stared unblinkingly at his older sibling.
"Shut the fuck up!" Winry was carelessly shoved aside, landing painfully on her left arm as she struck the tiled floor. Wincing, she attempted to regain her footing, only to be stepped over and therefore knocked back down as Edward approached his younger brother. Winry bit her lip to suppress a wail of pain as she crawled out of their line of conflict. Her eyes seemed sunken with hopelessness as she began to realize that this could not be stopped or even postponed. The young Rockbell escaped to the side of her room, opposite her grandmother, who was glaring at her as if hoping to burn her to cinders. She shuddered and watched on, gravely, as it began.
"Let's make a deal," Alphonse's lip curled up a cold smirk, "If I put some actual effort into this, then you will actually make this worth my time."
Edward spat,
"Shut your mouth, pretty boy. You're probably just concerned about breaking one of your perfect nails."
"You're still spouting such immature nonsense? And I'd thought you might have grown up some from the last time I defeated you," his voice matched the sneer that was now on his face. "I see I was wrong. Perhaps I should beat some more sense into your worthless self?"
He snarled and lunged at Alphonse, attempting to land a kick in his brother's gut. Expertly blocking it, he in turn let a fist fly, nearly catching Edward in the cheek - he managed to avoid it at the last second and attempted a reach with his other leg, grinning triumphantly when it struck his younger brother's hip. Alphonse barely staggered as he whipped around, smirking when his other fist caught Edward just below his rib cage, effectively knocking the air out of him. Coughing out a few spare droplets of blood, he wiped at his lips with the back of his right hand, disregarding his limp left arm as he launched another kick (which missed by a centimeter), followed by a punch as he managed to catch Alphonse unawares - his younger brother had evidently not been expecting him to try anything with his arm. He backed up slightly, gently touching at the swell in his jaw (where the punch had landed). Alphonse hissed,
"That hurt, Nii-san. Perhaps we are actually getting serious here, even in your pathetic state?"
"That had better hurt," it was Edward's turn to smirk, "pretty boy."
This seemed to stimulate a response out of him, as he suddenly charged forward, expertly driving two fingers into the spot just below his older brother's gut, knocking successfully knocking him over. With a grunt, he regained his footing and glared at him, before swiping at him with another kick, just barely catching his shin. Alphonse snarled and dove forward, Edward avoiding a kick sent his way before he realized that his younger brother now had a hold on his useless left arm and a death-grip on his right wrist.
"FUCK!" he screamed, his voice expressing his agony as Alphonse tore mercilessly at it. Winry's mouth opened in a silent shriek of disbelief, managing to choke out a pathetic, hoarse,
"Don't!"
She was ignored as he continued his work, as if intending to tear Edward's arm off completely. The elder Elric was not at loss, however, as he managed to slither out of his brother's grip and land another kick at his gut, this time actually landing his mark. He stumbled backwards before regaining his balance (with the assistance of the wall), blood beginning to dribble down his lip from the slight damage done to his internal organs. Spying the immense amount of bandaging done on Edward's back (ridiculously near his spine), he lunged at him with two fingers at the ready once again, digging them deep into his brother's flesh and grinning when he found the bullet hole. Edward almost immediately fell limp, his breathing hoarse as he struggled away from Alphonse.
"What's this, dear Nii-san? Another gun war? I certainly hope you didn't involve any innocent bystanders," Alphonse mocked him, glancing pointedly at Winry's trembling figure. His older brother whipped around to glare at him, clearly tired from his panting and the sweat coating his skin.
"On the contrary," he glowered, "I was protecting her, from Scar, no less."
"I hope, with your poor aim, that you landed a shot - assuming you even had a gun with you," he sneered.
"I always have a gun with me, otoutou-san," Edward replied heatedly. "I even got him on his arm, the damn fucker."
Alphonse pretended to look happy for him.
"Oh, good for you, Nii-san - too bad he didn't manage to kill you...although it's quite entertaining to see you having been taken pity on and bandaged up by local innocents."
"Shut your trap, dammit!"
"Then shall we continue this until you finally surrender?"
"It'll be the other way around, you damn brat!"
Edward launched another kick at Alphonse, who calmly side-stepped the attack and spun around to drive his fingers into his sibling's back for a second time. Cursing loudly, he aimed a punch at his gut and smirked as it caught Alphonse in the side. His victory was short-lived, however, as soon as his younger brother counter-attacked with a punch of his own.
"Fuck," Edward hacked out another spattering of blood as he was knocked backwards, landing haphazardly on the couch. He glared at Alphonse as he took a few steps forward, a hand brushing the dirty-gold hair back from his forehead. With a sigh, he returned the glare and said tiredly,
"Aren't you ever going to die? This is beginning to bore me."
"Damn...fucker," Edward panted, lifting himself up sluggishly from the couch.
Winry remained pressed against the wall, eyes swollen red with tears that would not fall and trembling hands that clutched at nothing. Her stomach churned with every attack the brothers made, wincing as one was hit or knocked down.
God, she pleaded silently. Please make them stop...please do something...
God was not listening.
Edward managed to block an on-coming right-hook from Alphonse, barring the way to his gut with his right forearm, snarling in frustration as he realized that he had no opportunity to return the punch. Instead, he was forced to kick at him, at least in an attempt to back him away. Alphonse smirked coldly at his helplessness.
"You're so weak in this state, Nii-san. Perhaps this will give me an opportunity to shut your annoying mouth once and for all."
Winry found herself praying harder at these words, not that they had any hope of being answered. Edward hissed in return,
"Bastard...I'll kick your ass."
"Then do it," his younger brother's tone was mocking, his eyes glittering with sadistic amusement.
"Watch me!" the older Elric roared, launching up from the couch and socking his brother in the jaw, where the last punch had landed. Alphonse fell backwards, ungracefully, onto the floor, his skull making a sickening thunking sound as it met the cold tiles. Edward stood, panting and with a triumphant smirk dancing across his face, until a violent yank at his left leg brought him down onto the floor to join his brother. Miraculously remaining conscious, the younger Elric stood again, pressing a foot sharply into Edward's back until, eventually, he stopped moving.
With a glance at Winry, whose terror was blatantly obvious, he assured her gently,
"He's not dead. Just knocked out. My brother is a worthless moron, who would be better off rotting in hell, but I appreciate your extended pity."
Stepping over his older brother's body, he made his way over the the trembling Rockbell and placed a reassuring hand on her head, smiling as he did so past the blood staining his lip.
"You're forgiven."
Pinako chose this time to speak up from her side of the room.
"If you two are quite done making a mess of our apartment and beating the shit out of one another, would you mind some bandaging on your way out? We don't want the neighbors talking; with their imaginations, they'll be thinking we've been holding mafia meetings here."
Alphonse chuckled.
"Certainly, thank you."
The elderly Rockbell nodded at her granddaughter.
"Winry, get him back onto the couch and get ice for his back," here she glared disapprovingly at Alphonse, "I understand you wanting to punish him for his stupidity, but next time, please don't aim for infected bullet wounds that need to be healed."
Alphonse nodded sheepishly as he strode over to her.
"Yes, yes, I'm sorry. I wasn't aware that it was quite this bad."
Confused by this complete one-eighty in Alphonse's behavior, Winry cautiously did as asked, hoisting Edward up and dragging his limp form onto the couch, hurrying towards the tiny refrigerator to fetch ice. Anything to keep the violence at bay.
I actually got really sore and tired while typing out the battle. -stares in amazement- That's actually the first time I've ever done something like that. Hope to God it's not too bad/disappointing.
