Chapter 7
Maintenance
"Al! It'll be okay; just hang on!"
"Brother, I'm scared!"
. . .
"Just look at me Al! That's it – right at me!"
. . .
"ED!"
. . .
"Ed, stay with me! No, stay awake – Ed – ED – BROTHER!"
My eyes flew open. My lungs breathed in, but my breath was held. My hands were gripping the sheets under me. I caught sight of something in the corner of my eye and adjusted my head to see better. It was Winry and Alphonse; they looked worried. But they were okay, they looked okay...
It was just a dream... It was just a memory...
Why the heck does my head hurt so bad?
I sat up, rubbing my head. "What happened?"
Al looked like he was going to say something but it was Winry instead.
"Mustang filled me in. Envy flipped you over. You hit your head and Mr. Armstrong brought you here." Winry still looked kinda worried.
"How are you feeling brother?"
"Well, my head's killing me, but nothing I can't handle." I tried smiling.
Winry frowned,"Well... as long as you're feeling all right, I'll head back to the others and let them know you're okay –"
"Ah – actually Winry," I had to stop her from leaving.
"Huh? What is it Ed?"
"Um, well... ya see... My... leg?"
I coulda sworn I saw Winry's eye and fist twitch as she lowered her head.
" . !" She was spitting out hellfire!
"GAH! Wait – no! I – I didn't do anything, I swear, Winry!" It's just been acting weird; I didn't do anything damn it.
"I've been wanting to tell you about it. I don't know what's wrong with it. It's fine when I walk and stand, but bending it makes a weird sound sometimes, and something feels kinda loose. I notice it more if I exert it more than usual."
"Hm... *sigh* All I have on me right now is my wrench and screwdriver. I can take a look, but I can't really do anything until we get home."
"Sure. I don't think that'll be a problem.
Ed's arms were folded behind his head and his right leg dangled off the edge of the infirmary bed so that Winry had better access to his left. Winry removed the plating and began investigating. She also tinkered with the mechanisms in Ed's knee. After tinkering with Ed's leg a little more, Winry put the plating back and told Ed he could sit right again.
"There's a few things wrong. First, it looks like I've messed up when I checked on it last time – there's a screw missing in a space in the ankle. That messed up the calibration, which goes into the second problem – the pressure mechanism located in the ankle, you know, the one that protects the leg and balances you out when you jump and run? the misalignment caused it to basically get crushed under your weight. This is why I tell you not to do the dumb things you always do you dummy!" – "Lay off already; what else is wrong?" – "Hmph. There was also some screws loose in the knee; I tightened them when I was looking over everything. That should have stopped the 'popping' sound you've probably been hearing."
Ed looked at her, surprised she knew exactly the type of sound his leg was making.
"Can you tell me how long it's been bothering you?"
"A few days; just a little before school started."
"I see..."
Ed recognized her self-disappointment – "It wasn't really a problem! ...But during class, it was acting really weird. I was afraid that it'd fall apart." Ed smiled nervously and rubbed the back of his head as he finished.
"You probably pushed it a little too hard during your competitions and that's what nearly pushed the ankle over the edge. I won't blame you for the calibration being off, it's my fault. That missing piece really made things unstable – I'm surprised you didn't tell me about this sooner..." She shot Ed a glance,"You should know better. *sigh*Anyway, just stop by my house after school and I'll see what Gramma and I can do."
"All right, sure. Thanks."
"I'll see you guys later. In fact I'll hitch a ride with you guys after school, okay?" Winry looked at Ed and Al, seeking confirmation.
"All right. See ya then, Winry." Al smiled as Winry parted.
"Hey. I'm ready to go." Winry lightly jogged to Ed and Al.
"Hey Winry. Great, let's go." Al chirped.
"Wait. So he doesn't pick you up right after school?"
Ed began brooding, sticking his hands in his pockets.
Al answered instead with a close-eyed smile that was asking for some forgiveness and patience,"He's still at work. We're supposed to wait for him at the university's library. He shouldn't be long though."
"All right, then."
The three made it to the library, and just as Alphonse had said, it wasn't long before Hohenheim arrived.
"Edward, Alphonse, are you ready to – oh, hello Winry. Are you carpooling with us today?"
"Yeah. Ed's leg is having some trouble, so we're heading to my house as soon as we get home.
"Very well then. Let's get going shall we?" Hohenheim said with a smile.
The four headed for the car and began to drive back to Resembool.
"So how was your day boys?"
Ed laid his chin in his palm as he stared out of the back right window with a glower. Alphonse halfheartedly tossed Ed a glance, from the passenger seat.
"It was fine dad. You know, just a normal day." Al smiled.
"That's good. What about you Winry; how was your day?"
"Oh, mine? The same, just a normal day. Well, aside from Ed asking me to take a look at his leg, but I'm used to that!"
"And we're so very grateful to you and Pinako. Your help is always appreciated." Hohenheim was smiling, but his eyes, though smiling as well, were also tinged with a pensive sadness. "How 'bout I just drop you all off at your house Winry?"
"Sure, that's fine. Why don't you all stay for dinner? I'm sure Gramma wouldn't mind."
"I think we'll take you up on that offer. I sill have some work to sort out, but I'll join you soon enough."
"Great!" Winry hollered.
"Aw, Yeah! It's always fun eating at your house Winry!" Alphonse cheered.
"Yeah... great." Edward muttered. This day's all gone to hell. First, I get knocked on my back, thenI find out my leg's busted, and to top it all off, I get to deal with himduring dinner.
The four arrived in Resembool a short time later. Hohenheim dropped off the three youths and went home after assuring he'd be on time for dinner. Ed, Al, and Winry headed inside the large, two-story, yellow, Victorian-style farmhouse.
"Gramma, I'm home! And Ed and Al are here, too!"
-Bark-Bark-Bark-
"Hey, Den. How are you girl?" Alphonse kneeled and started petting Den,. Her blaxk fur and floppy ears were given a lot of affection. Though Alphonse wasn't expecting a large white-furred, black-nosed muzzle to begin licking his face. "Ha ha ha. Den, Den stop! *more giggles*"
Pinako walked into the room with her pipe in her mouth but still in her thumb and forefinger. "Den settle down. Welcome back Winry. Good to see you Alphonse. Ed... did you get smaller than the last time I saw you?"
"YOU'RE SMALLER THAN I AM, YOU TINY OLD HAG!"
"Oh shut it, you half-pint midget!"
"AAAHH– "
"Hi Granny." Alphonse interrupted.
"Gramma. Ed, Al and their dad want to stay for dinner, is that okay?" Winry popped into the conversation.
"Yeah, sure. I don't mind. Though them being here in the first place must mean there's something wrong with Ed's leg."
"Yeah, but it's not entirely his fault. I was careless last time."
"Ed, come over here. Let's see the damage." Pinako calmly demanded.
Edward walked over to the couch Pinako gestured to.
He removed his trousers, once again revealing his automail leg and his light blue, unpatterned boxers with wide, white, verticle stripes on the left-most and right-most sides. Ed sat down and let Pinako examine his leg.
"Hm, you certainly were carelesslast time Winry." –Winry cringed slightly.– "We could fix this in no time, however your leg needs a few more adjustments than that."
"Looks like your growth isn't completely stunted after all," Winry piped in.
"Hey! Shut up!" Ed barked.
"Fixing your leg's going to take some time, and I need to get a few parts before I can though. I can get them tomorrow. I since we have school, I'll have to divide my time. All that together, I'd say...it'd take about three days."
"It'd take that much time?" Ed inquired.
"You'll have to make due with this spare for now," Pinako placed a simple, yet functioning, spare leg in Ed's automail port.
Ed tried to stand but stumbled,"It's kind of hard to walk on a leg I'm not used to."
"We'll be done before you get used to it," Pinako grinned.
Dinnertime came and Hohneheim arrived to partake of it with the Rockbells and his sons. Although Ed kept silent the whole while, the others made some idle conversation. They talked about work, school, Winry's vacation where she had visited an old acquaintance of Pinako's in Rush Valley and how she befriended some people and a teenage girl named Paninya there, and other miscellaneous topics.
A while after dinner was done, the Elric boys and their father headed home with Winry saying she'll see the boys at school. Alphonse said bye, Hohenheim thanked them for the meal, and Ed just waved.
Back home, Hohenheim went straight to his study and Ed and Al went to their room. Each Elric went to their respective bed. Al sat down while Ed "plopped" on his after undressing to his underclothes.
"The food was really good, wasn't it brother?"
"Yeah, sure was. It always tastes better when someone else makes it." Ed grinned.
"Hm!" Al closed-eyed smiled at Ed's comment while facing the ceiling.
"Brother?" Al started into the silence, still staring at the ceiling.
"Yeah, Al?" Ed, lying on his back with his arms crossed behind his head, turned his head to see his younger brother.
"When you were in the infirmary... When you woke up..."
"What about it Al?" Ed asked with a dopey-innocent face.
"What was your dream about?" Al finally looked over to his older brother.
Edward looked at Alphonse, then went back to looking at the ceiling. "That day... with my leg... Nothing to worry about." Edward shifted onto his right side so that he was facing the wall.
Alphonse stared guiltily at Ed's back. Brother... This school... it'll be good for you... We've already made friends and Winry's there with us. That has to mean something.
Somewhere lost in his thoughts, in his worried for his brother, in his hope for this new path, Alphonse succumbed to the warm embrace of sleep.