AN: Hello everyone! Long time ne? Here's another chappie to keep ya'll happy !:)
"Mr. Elric, please…"
The exasperated voice of the doctor rang out in the room as he slipped on a fallen book. "I can't have you living in a hospital room without reason."
Ed looked up momentarily, tearing out his eyes from a thick yellow volume he was leafing through. "I'm quiet, I don't loiter around and I only took up a corner of this room Doc, not to mention Lieutenant Hawkeye ordered a private room for Mustang so…."
"So you sir, are missing the meaning of the word private." The Doctor gave Ed a sour look. "I declare I haven't seen a stranger sight in the five years I have worked here."
Indeed, the room was a mess. Ed had taken permanent residence in Mustang's hospital room deciding that since it was large and with the exception of Mustang, uninhabited, it was allright to live in until the man woke up. He'd checked up on Al regularly, but since he was being kept in an induced coma for safety's sakes, he wasn't all too worried. It was that and some quick trips to the library across the square from which he came loaded with thick tomes and heavy volumes with which he had built a fortified wall. Ed didn't peek out from behind this unless absolutely necessary, piling read and useless books behind the wall. The amount of which caused the tottering pile to collapse as the doctor came in to make his regular rounds of patients.
"Doc, is there really a problem with me staying here? At least you can be sure if anything goes shitty I'll be here to let you know." The doctor didn't look convinced and if anything, he looked pissed. He quickly checked the status report and poked around the man under the watchful eye of Ed.
"I'd appreciate it Major, if you would at least not glare at me, I'm by no means going to hurt the General."
Ed looked away quickly, pretending to read once more. The doctor left in haste, not sparing the blonde any more words. Ed looked up to the figure of Roy. It's been three days and still there was no sign of him waking up. He got up and groaned, stretching his aching legs. Then he sat himself in the chair beside the bed. He'd done this so many times now that it was a simple and natural gesture. He'd grabbed everything that seemed remotely able to explain what had happened in the desert and was in fact pouring over old texts and figures. Some of them he recognized and some were entirely new. Those he decided to learn just in case and he was working on that now. There was something odd about the transmutation circle he had activated then and he couldn't quite put his finger on it yet.
He had however, found a book on Alchemical types and cores. The basics were based on Water, Earth, Air and Fire. He'd known Roy's alchemy was spectacular and rare but he had no idea just how so, and how destructive it had the potential to be. He doubted even Roy himself knew the extent of that alchemy. He'd never seen the three other elements in use by anyone but he supposed that would be possible if one would base the finding on Roy. For now, other than data and facts, he had nothing but a uncomfortable feeling that things were going to get ugly.
xXx
For days now all Roy felt was a dull throb around the vicinity of his heart. There was no pain, no sound or sight. There was only this and it alone assured him that he wasn't dead yet. He had, if he remembered correctly, only used the stone twice.
He was hovering in darkness peacefully and thinking over everything that had happened. He was in deep shit, and he realized that now. He had no way of knowing whether his deal was done fair and if truth be told, it was all Edward's fault. The overzealous blonde had thrown himself headfirst into a situation he knew nothing about. But that was Ed, do first, think later. He couldn't be mad at him, he'd made the choice consciously after all and he didn't regret it one bit. Though he would have liked the whole situation to never have happened. The boys should have known better not to try shit they didn't know, since it was what landed them where they were in the first place. Now however, well, now Roy was in it too and he was debating heavily with himself whether he should tell Ed and Al what really happened.
They deserved some sort of truth, but he honestly couldn't see how he could give them that without them figuring out the rest. Mostly, he was afraid that Ed would try to fix what had happened. He dreaded the consequences of another such quest. Ed had a tendency to not think about himself when determined. He felt sure that the blonde would give up everything to repair what was done and Roy had enough sense to know that it could never be done, even if some white little man told him otherwise.
Decided then, he'd play the amnesia card. He could easily pull it off. The accident had been stressful and he could easily say he didn't remember shit. It was better that way, if anything, he'd keep the brothers safe. An image of Ed flashed before him and he felt a tug in his belly. The yearning seemed to propel him forward as if to the surface of a lake and then pain.
xXx
It was day five, tomorrow they would be waking up Al and there was Ed. More disheveled than ever, deep into reading and grumbling to himself when the hoarse intake of breath caught him unawares.
He flew to the bed and hollered over his shoulder, hoping anyone would hear. Hawkeye burst into the room, closely followed by the doctor and two nurses who got to work quickly an efficiently. Ed kicked the books to the side of the wall in order to give them more room. He was beside Hawkeye, hands clutching the bed footboard and drilling a hole into the face scrunched up in pain.
"We cannot let him get away now, he's been in this state for way too long." The doctor barked out orders in a demanding tone while the nurses sped up their works. A needle was inserted into the pale arm and a shudder ran through Ed's spine. He remembered the salty texture of the crevice exactly and just thinking there was something there to pierce it had him queasy and furious. At himself, mostly.
"Will he be…?" He can't bring himself to say it. He's afraid that the answer is going to be devastating.
"if he doesn't fall back into a coma then yes." She tries to give him a look of assurance, there is no place for a smile. She swiftly flies past him and joins the other nurse at the beeping machine. The beeps speed up and so does the beating of Edward's heart. He's praying, and he catches himself in fright. That had never occurred before. Through all the shit he's been dragged through, he'd never once found himself muttering "Oh please God, save him…" he's moored to the bed, can't move a muscle and finally, FINALLY one eye breaks open and then the other, they stay on him for about two seconds and they close again. And he knows he's safe. The nervous laughs of the doctor and nurses tell him all he has to know. They too, weren't sure if this was going to be a breaking point. But it was.. .Goddamnit it was and with a deep, tired sigh the man before him laid in a deep slumber, no longer comatose.
xXx
Roy was weak, now that he was back from his inner head he felt like he had the whole world laid atop him. The doctor seemed to understand exactly what it was that was bothering him because even though Roy had no power to speak, the tall, graying man in the lab coat knew exactly.
"you were shot sir, and broken ribs were the last of your problems. Besides the significant bloodloss that led to your coma, your lung was pierced . You will not object then, to staying here and then on rehabilitation for a good while before I can agree to you returning to active duty.
He didn't get even a chance to nod. "He agrees to everything doc, how long is he going to stay here?"
There was no way to throw Ed a scathing look and have him notice, although the doctor did. Roy could see by his slight chuckle that he'd caught his protest. "You, Mr. Elric, are not the best authority on following orders, as you are sure I'm aware."
He couldn't help that snort, and this time he caught Ed's furious golden eyes. He stopped short by a flutter in his chest before he was saved by the doctor. "In any case, I'm glad to have your determined friend on my side general, as you can see", he added, gesturing to the pile of books in the corner of the room. "Mr. Elric has determination enough for half the Amestrian army, I think he's too much even for you."
Roy nodded at that, turning his head slowly to eye the hefty pile of heavy volumes. He was surprised that they were all piled around the second bed in the room. He raised his eyebrow in question.
"Mr. Elric has made this his permanent home since he had woken up, about a week ago. No amount of persuasion could get him to leave." He saw by the peevish look in the Doctors eyes and Ed's slight smirk that many attempts at this have been tried.
"Water?" he croaked, to hide his sudden flaring of cheek. He hadn't blushed in … he never blushed, and yet this simple affirmation of Ed's loyalty had him flaming up. It took an eye blink to get Ed, who was standing cross armed by the doctor at the foot of his bed to spring into action. Grabbing a paper cup and turning to the small adjoining bathroom. He heard the tap run and he finally emerged with a filed cup.
He observed this action with as much interest as the doctor did. Who likewise, raised an eyebrow and quietly slipped out.
Ed leaned his hip on the bed and Roy felt a large, warm hand behind his head, lifting and tilting him to the cup held out to him. He felt helpless and he didn't like it but if there was anyone who understood that hate better than him it was Ed. He let himself be mothered by the absolute last person anyone would expect.
Short of Al, Ed seldom showed any emotions that bordered on affection to anyone. And especially not between himself and Roy. They bickered, fought, ironically grated each other but that was as far as Roy perceived they went. Ed had never shown any inclination of favour for him and as his superior, he couldn't honestly expect any. Still, it was… nice.
He gulped down a few times and was gently laid on his pillow once more. He sighed relief, his ribcage still hurt like hell. "How's Al?" he whispered out. Speaking at a normal tone still caused pain.
"They're waking him up later on today, Im to be notified of it so I can be there." Ed put the cup on the little side table to Roy's right and looked at his chest and finally fully into his face and eyes. Roy found speech impossible. "How do you feel?" the golden eyes paced back and forth between his lips and eytes, looking for answers.
"I've been better." Roy smirked. "Tired though…"
"No shit, when I first saw you, you were almost completely covered by bandages…" He didn't finish the sentence. Choosing to just look at Roy instead.
"I'm still covered by them Ed, almost completely." Roy noted, trying to lighten up the mood. "Look like a goddamned mummy."
"I prayed…"
That stopped him. "you did what?" He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Ed wasn't looking at him anymore, his gaze was outside the window, but his hand was on his wrist, squeezing gently. "Not like I had some sort of epiphany or anything, but when you gasped out like that and they were trying to get you to wake up… I asked fucking God to help…"
"Thank you then." Roy honestly had nothing to say. As far as he was concerned, Ed didn't believe in shit, and neither did he, really, if it's what it came down to. Still…
"I didn't even do that when Al was taken, and I lost my arm and leg… I was just cursing then, and now, I dunno.. I was feeling so helpless I had to call for help."
"You don't sound pleased with yourself."
'I'm not, I don't ask for help, especially not some nonexistent God…"
"But you did, for me… thank you." Roy had honestly nothing to say still, it was surprising and revealed the blonde on a level he never thought he would see if he wasn't bandaged up to his nose and barely breathing.
"I felt helpless…" Ed repeated. "Just as helpless as when I laid my hands on that transmutation circle." Their eyes met again and Roy could feel Ed prying into his mind, trying to read him for information.
"I don't remember anything Ed. But by the looks of it, you did it."
AN: Yosh.. taking forever but here you go!