I feel late, but I don't think I am…am I?

I had so many puns I wanted to name this chapter. For instance, 'Yu Can't Control Me!'

So anyway, here's a chapter with an appropriate length today. Hooray for me! :D It's not too long or too short, so I'm happy. (What length do you guys like, just for future reference?)

Apart from that, here's the actual update! I hope you like! (I'm finally getting somewhere, by the way – the chapter after next, we're in the North! !

Sometimes, there comes a point in heavy exercise where the pain of everything is so intense that it becomes completely irrelevant. The whole world fades away, leaving just you and your thoughts. One might think this would be an alright way to go by, however to the colonel, it was anything but.

For the colonel was a man who liked to be aware. He liked to know what was going on around him, to hear people speak, to see the motions they made and the expressions they showed. He didn't like not knowing. He didn't like not being able to see. He didn't like…isolation.

Most of all, he hated the pain that came with struggling for breath every time he landed a hit. That burning tightness that stung his throat every time he gasped, every time he kept himself going, drove a sick feeling into his stomach. He had stamina, yes, but not this much. He was almost at his limit.

Let it end already. Please just let it end. Thoughts like these once again found their way into Roy's train of undisturbed thoughts but he never let them hinder his movements. Things may have all faded away, but that didn't stop him from feeling the pain.

"Match end!" The two words sounded like sweet salvation to Roy's ears. He'd been sparring for three rounds straight now, against fresh opponents from the group each time. Captain Ferguson. Sergeant Meinhardt. Lieutenant Rothford.

None of them had let up, not even though they knew the general had been picking on Roy all day.

"Fifty extra push-ups!"

"You can kick for longer than this! Don't switch for another two minutes!"

"I'm sure you can lift more than that! No? Forty push-ups!"

"Really, Colonel, are you that exhausted already?"

It was about all Roy could take. The man's somewhat pudgy face, built specifically for leering at undesired annoyances...Roy was itching to politely place his fist in it.

"We're moving on to doubles now!" came General Yu's call from across the training hall. "Fullmetal! General Rothford! On the floor! Meinhardt! Keep at it over there!"

The older man was tooting away with a whistle as if the peeping metal device gave him the authority of a Fuhrer. Roy could see Edward making obscene gestures and faces behind his back.

The colonel doubled over, breathing heavily in this brief pause. He stood in the middle of the sparring ring, Aidan Rothford just across from him and surrounded by the other teams all engaged in their various activities.

The Meinhardts were at the weights, General Yu shouting to them from across the hall. Next to the man were Felix and Ulfric, the younger doing a handstand on his father's back as the man continued his push-ups. Tyrell was by their side, cheering in awe.

Dominico was over by the weights, gingerly testing the limit he could carry.

Amory and his father were at the training bags, the elder holding one to his thigh as his son belted it with kicks.

The smell of sweat was strong in the air and none of the teams were looking overly neat, but Roy wasn't complaining. Just seeing straight was almost more effort than it was worth at this point.

General Yu with his experienced organisational skills had ensured that each person had a break from the hard work every so often.

Everyone except Roy, naturally. He had hardly stopped to catch his breath since he'd set foot inside the room.

He straightened up as his teammate stepped into the ring beside him, the two facing the Central team. A two-on-two sparring match, much like when Roy and Edward had faced Claudio and Tyrell back in Kambei.

"How're you holding up, Colonel?" Edward managed to mutter before there was a shout from Yu that sent all four fighters into an attacker's stance.

Roy nodded breathlessly, flicking one fist into a quick thumbs up. "I'm…just…fantastic."

"Glad to hear it. Let's go!" Edward ducked and dashed forwards, his metal arm flashing under the light from the ceiling.

Roy took a defensive stance behind the boy, raising his arms to cover his face and daring the other team closer.

General Rothford ducked to the side of Edward's charge, but the young alchemist kicked out with one leg and caught him in the stomach as he tried to pass.

Swiftly, he drew his leg back and tossed his arms in front of his head to block the punch Aidan threw at his head. The young man's fist shot backwards as he hissed in pain at having hit solid metal.

Reece straightened up after having recovered from Edward's blow and let the chance of a revenge blow distract him from his original target.

However, Edward sensed the man attacking from behind and swung a high back kick right into his chest and forced him back. He dropped his leg and ducked under Aidan's next punch before shooting back up to ram the Central officer's inner shoulder with his elbow.

Aidan ignored the pain, unexpectedly grabbing Edward with his good hand and wrapping him in a tight grip from behind.

Edward wrenched his arm free and dropped his weight as Reece aimed a punch at the trapped alchemist's head. The teen reached up and grabbed hold of Aidan's shoulder.

Good thing he was tall, lean and built for office work, or else Edward would have had trouble tossing him at his father.

Roy watched, amused, as Edward pulled down on Aidan and hurled him over his shoulder, straight into his father. The kid sure was something, managing two older, larger officers all by himself.

"Mustang! Stop slacking and get in the fight!"

Roy scowled. General Yu was standing some way behind him. Without turning, the colonel called back, "I don't see the point! The lesser member of my team is managing to hold his own quite well. Involving myself as well would just be overkill."

"Hey!" Edward shouted, from where he had one foot in Aidan's face and his fist in Reece's gut. "Who are you calling 'lesser'?!"

"I don't like to see fighting within teams!" Yu called out, annoyed. "East, fifty push ups! Central, take a short break!"

Roy's spirits plummeted along with the only break he'd got this whole event. He could almost see his brief happiness lying shattered down there on the ground in front of his face.

Edward stalked over and took up a position next to him. "You idiot. I managed to cut you some slack and you ruined it."

Roy grunted in reply. His whole body burned and strained with the effort of supporting himself in this position, let alone raising and lowering his entire body weight.

"Just don't pass out on me," Edward grumbled as he started his push-ups. "One, two, three, four…"

Roy gritted his teeth and lowered himself, arms shaking with what could well have been his five hundredth push up that day.

He had barely reached seven by the time a pair of feet appeared in his field of vision. He barely registered the voice of Reece Rothford before he felt the impossibly heavy weight of a foot pressing down on his head.

"What's wrong, Mustang? Can't get up? Don't you have the strength?"

Get off. Roy strained to lift himself again, trembling with the effort as Reece pushed lazily against his head. He couldn't lie down and give in to this disgrace. This was just the kind of problem within the military he was aiming to fix, so he was damn well not going to let it defeat him!

"…eight…n-nine…"

Reece sneered and pressed harder, forcing Roy to the floor of the hall. "Don't ignore me, Colonel."

Roy didn't have time to wonder if the fact was that Yu hadn't noticed what was going on yet or if he had seen what was going on and just chosen to ignore it. If he was wondering, he'd make up a third option for 'yes, he'd seen it and was watching with a gleeful grin'.

Edward growled savagely at Reece, earning Aidan's foot on his head. The boy twisted and snapped, getting him a subtle kick in the side.

"Watch it, Fullmetal. I don't like it when brats like you fight back."

"Screw you!"

A slightly harder kick.

Roy felt fury bubbling up in his chest, the kind he only felt if it involved the harm or harassment of his subordinates. The kind that roared and burned and demanded that you lash out. The kind that out of all the angers he experienced, Roy had the most trouble controlling.

With an almighty shove, he forced himself back up. Reece, shocked the colonel had pushed him back, removed his foot and watched in surprise as he rose to his feet.

"General," said Roy in a low tone reverberating with anger. "Please tell your son to kindly refrain from placing the Fullmetal Alchemist underneath his foot."

Reece glowered. "Aidan."

The younger man stepped down and Edward pushed himself into a motionless plank position.

"Now, I would be most thankful if you would kindly move back to the sparring ring and allow us to complete our push-ups," Roy continued darkly. "We will be with you momentarily."

Reece snorted defiantly. "Do not try to control me, Colonel."

"I am not," countered Roy carefully. "That was but a polite request."

Reece glared a moment longer before turning sharply on his heel and stalking off with Aidan.

As soon as they were gone, Roy dropped to his hands and knees and gasped a few times. He closed his eyes for a moment. I managed to hold out 'til he left… "You alright?"

Edward twisted his head and sat up. "Am I alright? Me? I'm not the stupid-ass pyro-freak who almost got himself court-martialled!"

Roy didn't react. "But are you alright?"

Edward shook his head and sighed. "I'm fine, dammit. But—"

"Flame! Fullmetal! Push-ups! Twenty extra for slacking off!"

Roy bared his teeth, brushing his hair out of his eyes. His fringe was getting annoyingly long. "Damn him."

"Smug-ass bastard," Edward commented venomously as he glowered and moved back onto his hands and knees. "What I was saying was try not to collapse in front of everyone. That'd be really stupid."

Roy grunted in reply as he lowered himself to the ground again. His arms felt like they were made of over-stretched elastic. Over-stretched elastic that was on fire. And had a broken elbow.

He suffered through it for as long as he could, trying to attach his focus to anything but the pain. Think about something else. …We'll be going north soon. It's going to be cold. I don't like the cold. It's going to be snowy too. I don't like snow either. I wonder if we'll see General Armstrong. I hope not. It would be a hassle…

This went on for a bit, 'til it interfered with his counting. When he realised he was risking extra push-ups by losing count, he stopped thinking.

Edward dropped back, finished, with sweat streaming down his face and his auto-mail joints clicking as he trembled. The boy breathed heavily as he watched Roy continue to struggle. He'd reached fifty, but was starting to slow down.

"C'mon, Mustang," he said. "If I could do it, so can you."

No response. Roy's mind was preoccupied. The last few were the worst.

"Sixty-six… Sixty-se…seven…" Roy's teeth were bared tightly, his counting little more than a whisper.

"Colonel?" Edward leaned forward, concern flashing in his eyes. This was pushing too far… Something was wrong.

"…eight…"

"Colonel?!"

"…si…sixty…"

"Roy!" Edward waited until the man was down and shoved him onto his back. "I don't know if you've noticed or not, but you've kinda stopped breathing?"

Roy looked at him blankly, surprised to find himself on his back. His chest was now heaving quickly with loud, unsteady breaths. His face was flushed red and soaking, the shadows under his eyes made obvious on his normally pale face.

Edward frowned down at the man, folding his arms. "You're an idiot. You know breathing is kind of a good thing to do for yourself. It sort of keeps you alive and other nice things like that."

Roy didn't bat an eyelid. His teammate grew even more concerned as he heard the quick wheezing sounds emanating from the man.

"Mustang…?" He cocked he head, shifting himself to a better position. "Y-you're not asthmatic or anything like that, are you?"

Roy shook his head. He tried to anyway – it was kind of difficult given that he was lying on the floor.

"Just out of shape then?" asked Edward, prodding the man's side.

The colonel flapped his hands at Edward, laughing hoarsely as the boy hit a ticklish spot. "Too much paperwork, not enough training," he replied breathlessly. "And not breathing tends to make this happen anyway."

Edward smiled tensely as Roy's steadying breaths set him at ease. "This whole comp should bring you back up then."

The man nodded and sat up, wiping sweat from his forehead. His gaze clouded a little. "Yeah."

Edward rose to his feet. "Shall we go back to sparring then?"

"I guess we have to," Roy replied with a sigh. "Before we give General Yu another excuse to give us more push-ups."

Edward held out one hand but Roy waved it away. "I can at least stand up myself."

Edward shrugged. "Fair enough."

Once the two were both up and ready, they stepped back into the ring. This time, Roy took up his rightful place at Edward's side as his teammate. A teammate who wouldn't just sit back and let his subordinate take the brunt of the blows.

He raised his fists into position and Edward dropped his weight. The consequence of the boy's previous charge would likely be a full-on counterattack from Reece and Aidan.

Roy smirked, thinking how lucky he was to say he was allowed to depend on the boy at his side. Where he previously would have felt shame to associate with Edward in anything but a professional relationship, he now felt pride in the fact he had been allowed to hold the kid's hand, he was one of the lucky few whom the boy truly trusted, and he was one who could happily say Edward loved him.

Well, he decided after thinking about it, probably not the last one because that would create a very awkward situation. Okay, he could happily think to himself that Edward loved him and then immediately deny the fact that it made him happy and completely erase that moment in time from his memory before feeling like he wanted to relive it but being ashamed to even think about the words that had left Edward's lips.

Better.

Emotions were a complex thing, Roy also decided as he swerved out of the way of a quick punch. He couldn't really think about his without thinking the emotions that he felt about feeling them as well.

How confusing. Roy blinked and spotted Aidan winding up for a swinging punch to his head. Let's leave feelings out of this for a while…I think I've had quite enough of them of late. It's starting to interfere with other matters.

Roy misdirected the punch but messed up his footing slightly, giving Aidan the opportunity to drop an elbow into his ribs. Roy shoved his aggressor's head forward and away instinctively.

On the bright side, I won't have any more papers for a while. Roy grunted as he was hit in an already bruised spot and struck back as best he could. And a good thing too. I was close to getting overwhelmed…and I don't think that's really ever happened before. I guess now that damn General Yu is here…and Fuhrer Bradley…the pressure is on.

The day continued without further event, bar Roy nearly staring a war by accidentally elbowing General Rothford when he was trying to flick his hair out of his eyes.

They went on their way to the Mess Hall after getting washed up and changing clothes. Roy had swapped his old, spare trousers and singlet for his good uniform and Edward his black muscle shirt and trousers for a white shirt and jeans.

"I'm starved," the boy complained as they drew close. "I don't think I've eaten since last week!"

"No, of course not," replied Roy wearily, shrugging his shoulders several times out of numbness. "That whole steak you ate the other day – just an illusion."

"What about you? Aren't you hungry? You've been working so hard all day…"

"Not particularly," mumbled the colonel. "I'll be fine with a sandwich or something…"

"Sure?" Edward folded his arms. "You're acting weird again."

"I'm just tired," came the reply. "And my arms are killing me."

"Oh." Edward paused, his nose twitching. He sneezed loudly before sniffling and looking disgruntled.

"Alphonse must be talking about you," commented Roy. He shrugged. "Or you're catching a cold."

"Don't say that," complained Edward. "You're a walking jinx!"

"…Thanks."

They settled down in the hall, the sound of chatter drilling into Roy's head. He longed to grab his sandwich and go back to the dorms to lie in bed for an hour, but he didn't want to go back alone and Edward always ate a lot.

What if he went to sleep on the table? Roy nibbled his sandwich uninterestedly. He registered tomato and cheese.

Edward was usually hacking away furiously at whatever he had picked by now. He had what looked like shepherd's pie with a side of beans and roast potatoes, but had barely touched it.

"Thought you said you were starving?"

Edward frowned. "I guess not. I was before, but…"

"Typical." Roy sighed and leant his chin on one hand, closing his eyes. Images flashed behind his eyes, pictures like burnt flesh and bleached bones, old experiments, festering wounds and the slavering, bloody maws of chimeras. Any dark pattern his mind could conjure plagued him under his eyelids, forcing them back open. Being that the images – or maybe they were memories? – were eighty percent burnt and bloodied flesh, he'd lost his meagre appetite to his turning stomach. He was used to having this happen every so often.

"Colonel."

Roy dropped his sandwich as he jumped out of his skin and very nearly yelped at the shock of someone smacking a small pile of books by his side.

He glanced up, heart thumping, at the face of Lieutenant Hawkeye.

"Sorry to startle you, sir," she said. "I should probably refrain from sneaking up on you."

Roy shook his head. "Never mind it. Everything seems to make me jump nowadays."

Hawkeye looked at him silently for a second and took a seat next to him, the stack of books in front of her reaching a height of about six inches.

"So." Roy picked his sandwich up from the floor and set it aside. "What's the story?"

"It seems the office will be able to manage just fine without you," the female officer began. "Contrary to our previous predictions, the lieutenant colonel is doing his part to complete the papers he is sent through, with the exception of a small percentage he saves for you. On top of this, he is managing to work several investigations for both the East and somehow Central sectors."

Roy raised his eyebrows. Hughes might not be a State Alchemist or a renowned sharp-shooter like the rest of us, but I admit he's a genius in his own field. And if the work he passes on to me is only a small percentage…

Roy smiled to himself as Hawkeye continued her update. The woman's brown eyes were as calm and clear ever, the sharpness that had made her a first-class sniper always evident. She was such a dependable second-in-command, a bodyguard ready for anything and sometimes even just a familiar face for Roy to find comfort in.

And then there was Hughes; ever the annoyance, but the most loyal of friends. At any time he saw Roy spiralling into a position of helplessness, he was always there to help him up. And then bore him with a hundred pictures of his family, five stories to go with each.

Thank you. Both of you. Roy's smile was only for himself, but that was all it needed to be.

"As for all this," Hawkeye gestured to the books at her side, "I brought you some reading material. It might come in handy."

Roy peered at the title of the first book. 'Mental Stress'…'Life After War'… They're all books like that.

"So I need self help books now, do I?" he asked, somewhat amused.

Hawkeye shrugged defensively. "I just thought it might be nice for you to actually know what's going on in your own head, sir."

Roy nodded and placed his chin back on his palm. "No, I get it. I'm just messing with you. I'll make sure to read them. Thank you."

The pair turned their attention on Edward, who was still prodding at his food like it was something alien. He glanced up. "Don't suppose you want this?"

Roy shook his head distractedly and Hawkeye declined politely.

"Hold on." The colonel straightened. "Did you just say you didn't want food?"

Edward scowled. "Yeah. Big deal."

Roy's eyes widened, his face showing a mix of concern and awe. "Are you feeling alright? Hawkeye, the kid might be dying! It could be the apocalypse! Where's Alphonse?"

Edward's grumpy look worsened as Roy threw his arms up into the air and Hawkeye laughed quietly.

"It's the end of civilisation as we know it! The kid actually isn't hungry!" He folded his arms again as a burning sensation gnawed at his shoulders. "Okay, remind me never to move again. I think I just broke my arms."

Edward snorted and smiled, shoving his plate aside. "Whatever." He sniffed again.

Roy leaned forward and touched a hand to his forehead. "Sure you're not coming down with something?"

Edward knocked his hand away. "I'm fine, you idiot. So, are you two done chatting? If so, we should head back to the dorms."

Roy nodded. "I get the feeling we'll need an early night if I'm planning on being anywhere near up to travelling tomorrow."

Edward rose, grabbing his untouched food and glancing around. He spotted a young soldier and grabbed his shoulder.

The man looked back and then down. He jumped out of his skin at the sight of the teen behind him – this was the infamous Edward Elric, the crazy-strong State Alchemist he was absolutely not to piss off. This was the kid they warned you about. This kid was one of the Drill Sergeant's greatest threats.

He gulped.

"Here you go," the blond said, shoving his tray into the new recruit's arms. "It's your lucky day. Enjoy."

"Th-thank you, sir!" the man almost shouted, shuffling the tray to free one arm for a salute. "Your kindness is most appreciated!"

Edward turned around. "Whatever floats your boat."

He trudged after Roy, the colonel looking at him with an entertained glint in his dark eyes.

"What?" asked Edward.

"Nothing." The man faced his lieutenant. "Thank you for the update, Lieutenant. Good to see you."

"Sir." Hawkeye gave a quick salute. "Good to see you too. I'll return to the office and should be seeing you tomorrow before you make the trip north."

"Right." Roy yawned and waved her off.

The group split up, the boys heading back to their dorm.

Edward rubbed his eyes tiredly and looked down. Yes, there was a definite favour there. Roy's leg was hurt. "You're limping," the boy said simply. "You weren't before."

Roy kept walking. "It's only the pin. My knee acts up sometimes." Another yawn.

"I know how that feels…"

As they reached the dorm, Roy fumbled around for the key before handing it to Edward to unlock the door. "You handle it. At the rate I'm going, we'll be out here all night."

Edward rolled his eyes and opened the door. He walked inside and waited for Roy to follow before locking up again. The man always seemed to make it just far enough before crashing.

"Does your brother know you're here?" he mumbled.

Edward nodded. "He does. He's been rooming with a cat for the time being. And occasionally Tyrell – they seem to really have hit it off."

Roy nodded slowly in comprehension and made for his desk. He put down the books Hawkeye had given him and sat, flicking one open. He narrowed his eyes against the harsh black and white, trying to focus on turning the letters into words.

Edward shook his head and walked over. "What are you doing?"

"Uh." Roy scratched his nose and pointed, eyes drooping. "Books. Yeah, reading."

"What are you reading?"

"Books for crazy people," came the drowsy reply as Roy shrugged off his jacket.

"What are they about?" Edward asked with a smirk. The man sometimes acted hilariously when he was this tired.

"Brain fails," mumbled Roy. "To tell me just how nuts I am."

"You seem tired, Roy." Edward leant against the desk. "And it's only quarter to six."

The man gave a half-hearted glare, but a yawn cut him off. "Go away. I'm sleepy."

Edward snickered. This was the best yet. He sniffled, feeling a sneeze building inside him.

Roy jumped as it escaped, blinking in shock. "What was that?"

"I sneezed."

Roy frowned, blinking a few more times. "You're sick. G…go to sleep."

Edward smiled at the colonel's exhausted muttering. "Yeah, sure. Come show me where the beds are."

Roy nodded and stood up unsteadily, walking towards the small bedroom. "Stupid Fullmetal… Can't even find the beds…"

Edward nodded. "That's right, stupid me. See that? That's your bed, right? Looks comfy."

Roy glared. "My bed. You can't have it."

Edward held up his hands. "Oh, I know! I wouldn't dare. But it looks so nice, right? With your pillow on it and everything."

Roy's glazed eyes darted conspicuously between the desk and the bed. He blinked again, obviously struggling with the whole 'eyes open' idea.

Edward grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the bed. "Sit down."

"'Kay."

"You're tired, right? Well, Hawkeye told me to tell you to go to sleep."

Roy nodded sluggishly. "'Kay. But she told me to read the books too."

"Aren't your eyes heavy?" Edward asked, feeling his own eyes itching. It felt like he needed more than just rest – maybe he was catching a cold. "And your leg hurts."

Roy's head bobbed and Edward fought back laughter. The colonel was acting like a little kid.

"Hurts…" Roy agreed. "…everything."

"It'll go away if you lie down for a while," Edward promised. "Just stay in here."

"But I don't like the dark…where I can't see. You know that…right?"

"I know. You've told me. But the light's on in the other room. You'll be fine, 'kay?"

Roy closed his eyes. "Ugh… Fullmetal."

"What?"

"Stop…stop treating me…like a kid." That said, Roy slumped down, passing out like he'd been hit in the head. He gave a soft moan and rolled over to nestle his face into his pillow.

Edward grinned at his handiwork, clearing his throat as an annoying tickle scratched at it.

"Goodnight to you too."

"Roy… It's time to wake up. Roooy… Your father is taking you to work again. He wants you ready."

"Mm… Mother?"

"Yes. It's time to get up. Roy…"

"H…huh?" Roy rubbed a sluggish hand over his face, blinking blearily. He took a deep breath as he brushed a damp line trailing down his cheek. Is this… He held his hand before himself. What… What did I just dream?

His arm felt tight, a sharp ache that increased with each movement. Why was he awake? He just wanted rest…

"R… Roy…" The man stopped rubbing his eyes at the sound of a gut-wrenching moan from above. "Colonel… Please…wake up."

"Edward?" Roy's voice was groggy and strained as sat up quickly, cringing as his abdomen burned with the effort. He swung out his legs to stand.

He anticipated pain, but not at the level he got.

Roy cussed as his stiff legs buckled under the unexpected weight. The cold ground pressed into his shaking palms as he rose once more to his feet. His muscles hadn't ached this bad since his academy days. "Ed?"

He peered into the darkness around Edward's bunk, hearing a weak groan. "What's wrong?"

"Ugh… I don't know… My head is killing me…" The boy's voice was stuffy and wavering, toned with sickness. "I think I did catch a cold…"

Roy stepped back. "I'll get the light. Hold on."

He limped across the room, unable to straighten his legs due to the cramping in his calves. He flicked on the light, grateful for the illumination. He walked slowly back to Edward's bed.

The boy was curled into himself, trembling and sweating. His face was red and damp, his hair stuck to his face and his teeth clenched. His hacking cough drove a stake of worry into Roy's chest.

The man's face hardened and he reached out to lay a palm to Edward's forehead. He held it there for a few seconds.

"You're running fever," he commented. His frown deepened. "You did catch something."

Edward whimpered, opening his eyes to glance at Roy. "My head hurts."

"I know." The man stroked Edward's hair briefly. "I'll get you some water. Should help."

Edward nodded weakly, golden eyes downcast.

Roy limped into the kitchen, rolling his stiff shoulders and muttering under his breath. He grabbed a glass and filled it from the tap. Just as he turned it off, he heard a clank from the bedroom. He glanced back.

Edward had clambered out of bed and was standing in the doorway. His auto-mail clanked again as he put his foot down.

"H-hey!" Roy walked over, eyes wide. "Get back in there!"

"But we're leaving today," mumbled the teen, clutching his stomach. "And I still have…packing to do."

Roy grasped the boy's shoulder gently and steered him back to bed. He pointed at the bottom bunk, holding out the glass. "Just you rest. I'll sort it all out. You're in no condition to be travelling."

Edward nodded, stiffening as a series of coughs wracked his body. The sound was more than Roy could take and he coaxed some water into the teen.

After he'd stopped coughing and laid down, Roy stepped towards the door. "Leave it all to me. I'll sort everything out, so just rest for now. Don't get up while I'm gone, and even if you think you feel cold, remember that you need to keep cool. I'll be back as fast as I can."

Roy left the room and grabbed his jacket off the chair by his desk. He shrugged it on, buttoned it up and tousled out his hair.

"Just leave this one to me," he said with a determined look in his eye.

Aaand there we go! Hope you enjoyed it! Next is me lapsing back into fluffy sickfics and all that… *sweats* At the request of dragoscilvio. (Thank you very much for all the ideas!) :3

I'm really sorry I don't have time to respond to all your reviews (mostly 'cause I'm a doofus and I forget which ones I've already replied to), but I expect you all know by now how much I love your feedback. You guys are all amazing, never forget that. You manage to make me very happy, and that in itself is a skill!

See you next time (but not literally)!