A/N: Appy-polly-loggies my droogs, I did hate the last chapter. Unfortunately, once that plot twist was inside my head, it refused to be written any other way. And I wrote three others. If you can believe, all three sounded worse. Esh. Whatever. Here's chapter five; no more Nadsat, either. Promise. Though, I'm almost as upset at this chapter, but then, I've said before, I hate writing for Mustang. Sorry its so late. Sometimes life just gets in the way. ::mumbles::Stupid cloudy Southern California...cold in June...mountains in the middle of nowhere...satellite internet stupidest invention ever...::mumble:: And its very easy to tell that it was written while I was hungry, cause the stupid doctor said I couldn't eat wheat...did you know that wheat is in practically everything?! How, after 24 years of eating something, you are just suddenly allergic to it?!

Normal is Subjective

Chapter 5

Roy wanted to slam his head against his desk. First, he was on the phone for over two hours with command, for them to tell him that there was no record of The Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric, ever being arrested; that, as far as they knew, Alphonse Elric was a simple dependent, nothing more, and perhaps, he should, "keep a better eye on his subordinates." His search for answers was only drudging up more questions.

Then, Alphonse storms in, all but demanding to join the ranks?!

There was no chance in hell that he would allow that boy to do that. Not now. Maybe after he became Fuhrer, so he could watch over the boy closely. And that was only maybe.

At least he had discovered what had been bothering Alphonse. Roy sighed, children were stupid. He had seen the way Edward looked at his younger brother. Roy had seen it since he went to Edward's hospital room, and it just became more prominent every time Alphonse failed an attempt at something that should come easily.

What he didn't understand was why Edward wasn't reassuring his brother.

He looked at the piece of paper Alphonse had handed him. The boy had been right, it looked very familiar, but the symbols within the circle didn't make sense. Triangles and a hook...what did they mean?

His stomach growled, reminding him that he had been headed to a late lunch when Alphonse dropped in. He stepped out of his private office, catching the end of a conversation.

"—wonder what happened," Fury said more than asked.

"Must have been bad if he won't call him 'brother' anymore," Breda answered.

"He was acting weird last week too," Havoc said.

Roy announced that he was headed to the mess hall to get lunch and stepped out. He would have to speak to Edward about Alphonse's behavior.

The teen in question actually walked right into Roy, when the colonel was a little more than half-way to he hall that held his mediocre lunch. Edward looked up at the colonel, startled. "Oh, sorry, colonel," he mumbled. The boy's shoulders were slumped and he had that lost look Roy had seen with increasing frequency on the boy's face. "Did Al talk to you?"

"Yes," Roy nodded. He mentally groaned, he'd have to postpone lunch, again. "Will you come back to my office? I think we need to talk."

Edward was instantly on alert. He straightened, "What happened? Is Al okay?!"

"Al is fine," the teen quickly relaxed, "but I am worried."

Edward's brow furrowed, "Why? He's been doing much better. He..." Edward lowered his head, "he really doesn't need my help that much anymore."

Roy wanted to grab his subordinate and shake some sense into him. Instead he decided to be blunt, Edward had always responded to that. "He just asked if I would sponsor his application to become a State Alchemist."

Edward's head snapped up and he shouted, "No! You can't let—" the boy stopped, guilt filled his eyes before he lowered his head until his bangs covered his eyes and continued softly, "If-if that's what he wants, you should. People don't usually give him a second thought, but he's just as good as me. Maybe not as fast, cause he has to draw a circle, but he's still good."

Could he get away with punching Fullmetal in the jaw, right there in the hallway? No. "They wouldn't allow you two to be in the same unit. You would most likely be stationed on opposite sides of the country. You wouldn't see each other for months, possibly even a year at a time."

Edward gasped, and gave Roy a look the colonel had hoped for; the fear of loss. Good. Roy could work with that. Fullmetal was easy to read, easier to manipulate. Roy had done it a few dozen times before, why did he suddenly feel guilty for using the tactic? Edward turned his face away again. "I can transfer. He'd be a good State Alchemist, I've never beaten him in a fight, and look at all the fights I've won. His body should be fine by the time the exam comes again."

"He wouldn't need to retake the exam." It was the truth, but it helped to make this choice as unappealing as possible. Alphonse seemed determined to do this, if Roy wouldn't be his sponsor, he'd find someone else. That would be dangerous, not just for Alphonse, but for Roy's plans as well. Roy needed Edward to talk his brother out of it. "His score was well above average. All they would require is an interview and to prove who he was."

Edward looked ready to tear his hair out. "He's not ready!" The boy started walking. Roy followed, much to his dismay, it was away from the mess hall. "I won't stop him, if that's what he wants."

"I don't think it is." Edward looked up, hopeful. "He said he wanted to do it because he no longer wanted to be a burden to you."

"A burden?!" He froze, "Al's not a burden." He scoffed and started walking again, "You're wrong. He won't let me help him. Its easy to see. He's finally mad at me for messing up everything. Like he always should have been."

Oye. For being so close to each other, those two sure couldn't read each other very well. Roy sighed, no, they probably were seeing what they wanted to see. Edward was so consumed by guilt, he saw anything as proof that Alphonse hated him. "No, Edward, he's frustrated..." he trailed off, Edward wasn't paying attention, he was staring at the growing number of soldiers gathering around one section of the wall. The soldiers were all talking over each other.

"Oh, man, what happened?"

"Did someone call a medic?"

"He's just a kid!"

"Is he even breathing?"

"Go get a medic!"

"Do you think he's someone's kid?"

"He's too young to be in the military."

"Hey! Give him some air!"

The crowd stepped back, all Roy got was a flash of dark-blond hair, but that was enough. "Attention!" They immediately stepped aside all at attention except for the one young second lieutenant crouched beside Alphonse. "Report!" The colonel ordered.

The young man seemed to scramble a moment before answering. "I was just walking down the hall, sir, this kid seemed to be having trouble breathing. He leaned against the wall, I asked if he was okay, and then he just collapsed."

"Collapsed?" Roy turned at Edward's whisper. The boy had that same lost look Roy had seen the night he'd come home to Alphonse's high fever. The boy's wide eyes didn't seem to be seeing his brother at the moment, though. Roy got his answer half a second later as Edward breathed the word, "mother."

The second lieutenant stammered a moment, then continued, "I turned him onto his back and checked to make sure he was breathing."

Before Roy could react, Edward shook his head and knelt down next to his brother. He slid his automail arm under Alphonse's shoulders and lifted the boy to cradle him against his chest. Alphonse gave a slight moan, Edward brushed stray locks from the younger boy's forehead. "Al?"

Unfocused eyes fluttered open, "B-brother? What...?"

Hushed voices spoke all around Roy.

"Isn't that The Fullmetal Alchemist?!"

"I thought his brother wore that weird armor."

"I heard that the doctor who made his automail arm made the armor for his brother."

"Yeah, I heard that, too. Cause the brother was very sick. Like his own person bubble."

"So that's why I never saw him eat when they were in the mess hall."

"Yeah, poor kid. I heard the Fullmetal became a State Alchemist to cure his brother."

"Aw, how sweet. I hear Medical Alchemy is the hardest of all."

"They do call him a prodigy."

Roy sighed in relief. At least the rumors he'd started so long ago about the brothers were being believed. He looked at the younger boy. He looked dazed, confused, as he struggled to get his eyes to focus. "Brother? What happened?" Alphonse asked, slightly more lucid.

"They said you collapsed," Edward said quietly. "Let me help you up."

Alphonse tried to stand, wobbling slightly, "I can walk, Ed."

Edward pulled away quickly, even though Alphonse's hand was on the wall to steady himself. Roy sighed, "But you shouldn't," he said, lifting the boy easily. While Alphonse had gained a substantial amount of weight, he was still far too light in Roy's hold. "You need to be looked at by the medic. We'll go to my office."

Alphonse sighed but leaned his head on Roy's shoulder, complying to Roy's order without argument.

Edward followed closely behind. He stopped mid-stride and looked over his shoulder at the man who had helped his brother. "Hey, what's your name?"

The young man snapped to attention and saluted, "Second Lieutenant Stephen Matherson, Major Elric, sir!"

The young alchemist gave him a soft smile and said, "Thank you," before continuing after Roy.

Edward threw the door to Mustang's office open and the colonel stormed in, gently laying Alphonse on the couch.

Breda was the first on his feet, "What happened?" The rest of the group followed suit awaiting orders.

Alphonse sighed, "I'm fine, now, rea—"

"Call a medic," Mustang ordered. Hawkeye, always anticipating the colonel's needs, was already on the phone. The colonel continued, "Havoc, get some water. Falman, find a clean cloth."

The younger teen started to sit up. "Really," Alphonse insisted as Roy, none-too-gently, pushed the boy back down, "I feel much better now."

"You collapsed, Alphonse." The colonel said coldly, "People don't just collapse. You will be looked at by the medic."

The boy opened his mouth to argue but closed it quickly at Roy's glare. Havoc offered the small pitcher of water and a glass, when Roy turned to accept, he noticed that Edward was still standing in the doorway. The older teen's head was down, his hands clenched into fists. He needed something to do. Roy filled the glass, handed it to Alphonse and took the cloth Falman had found. "Edward," the boy jumped, "come here." Edward walked to Roy's side, "I need you to keep him lying down," he dipped the cloth into the pitcher, "keep this on his forehead." Edward followed the orders mutely.

Alphonse made sure to avoid his brother's gaze.

"The medic will be here in a few minutes, sir," Hawkeye said, she was the only one not huddled around the brothers.

The colonel nodded, hoping that Alphonse had nothing seriously wrong. He appeared to be fine now, but looks could be deceiving. Roy didn't want to think about what would happen if it really was life-threatening.