Omigod! It's an update! A new chappie!
-------------------------
"What's wrong, Alphonse?" Pinako was watching him inspect a piece of bacon Winry had just re-heated on the stove.
"Well, it's just been years since I've had bacon. I'm thinking about it before I eat it."
"You used to love bacon," Winry told him.
"I remember that...but...did it really taste so much better than any other food I like? Better than apples or chicken or-"
"Now you're thinking too much," Pinako stopped him. "Eat it."
Al complied, putting the piece of bacon into his mouth. His eyes widened as he chewed it, quickly making it disappear.
"It is!" He reached for another piece eagerly. Winry grinned.
"I better get Ed and the colonel up before it's all gone."
Al suddenly sat up straight when she was halfway up the stairs. "You might not want to do that."
"Why not?" She turned around.
"Well...they were cuddling when I got up..." Al blushed and looked down.
"Well it's time they got up." Winry continued up the stairs. Al listenened apprehensively for a moment, but then the lure of bacony goodness captured his attention once more.
Winry found the beds empty and frowned. They must be up, but where were they? She walked toward the guest bathroom and saw its door was shut. She raised a hand to knock, then had a sudden thought.
'Are they both in there...?' she wondered with mild horror. She stood stock still, then leaned forward, slowly, slowly, to put her ear against the door.
"...kay...ettle down," Roy sighed.
"Ut your fault," Ed whined. Winry adjusted her ear on the door.
"I'll get another one for you," Roy said. He sounded louder. The doorknob turned under Winry and she jumped back.
"Bacons' ready," she squeaked at Roy. He looked suspicious and not happy. She stared at him. He blinked twice and then walked past her into the bedroom where Ed's suitcase was. Roy opened it and Winry, peeking after him, gasped silently. What could Roy be getting for Ed?
Roy stood and turned, but Winry couldn't see anything in his hand.
"Is there something you'd like to know?"
Winry's natural stubbornness stirred. "What did you get out of Ed's suitcase?" she demanded.
"A hair tie," Roy raised his hand to show her, "He broke one when I reached over to put my toothbrush down and he jumped."
"Jumped? Why would he jump?" Winry noticed Ed was just inside the open bathroom nearby and could hear her when she saw his red face.
"Because he's jumpy," Roy said, brushing her off.
"Am not!"
"Sure you're not, Ed. Here, let me do it."
"No!"
Ed's protest went unheeded as Roy took his partial braid out of his hands. He braided up the rest and wound the tie around the end while Ed stood in front of him, staring at the ground. Winry finally went back downstairs, Roy and Ed on her heels. Al had already eaten all the bacon.
Winry made some hash browns for everyone and Al got his fair share of those too, showing enough desire for them to persuade Ed to donate his. After hash browns, Winry headed into her workshop to do some work, and Al, Roy, and Ed sat around in the living room. The three of them looked around in silence.
Al leaned over and poked Ed's side. Ed's eyes slid sideways in his head toward Al. Al kicked him in the calf and Ed kicked back, harder than Al had. Al wound up and socked Ed's arm. Roy frowned as Ed poked Al hard in the ribs. Al giggled in pain and leaped at Ed. Ed bowled over onto his back on the couch and Al sat on him, pushing his arms down. Ed rolled and shoved, sending Al off the couch and onto the floor.
"Ow!"
Al's exclamation sent Roy into protective mode.
"Alright Ed, that's enough."
But Ed was caught up in play and didn't even register Roy's words. He sat on Al, pinning both hands in his automail and tickling Al with the other. Al gasped and laughed and wriggled and Ed's face lit up with joy.
"Ed…" Roy knew Ed and Al needed to play together, but he was nervous about Ed getting carried away, especially given how tightly he was holding Al's wrists in his automail and how hard Al was struggling against the grip. Al's laughter warped to cries and Roy's restraint snapped. He stood and lifted Ed off bodily, spooking the blond boy.
"Aah!"
Al, who could see the colonel's face, sobered immediately and lay still, waiting in fear. Ed had no idea the colonel was mad and squirmed and wriggled in his grip. Roy set him roughly on the couch and glared at him. Ed stiffened up and stared as Roy gently lifted Al onto the couch as well. Al immediately scowled and pushed away from Roy, miffed.
"Be gentle," Roy scolded Ed. Ed's eyes widened when he realized Roy was angry over something so stupid.
"I would never hurt Al!"
Roy just gave Ed a stern don't-talk-back look. Ed slouched and sulked. Roy shook his head as he sat back down.
"He wasn't hurting me!" Al told Roy. Roy declined to reply. Both boys slouched and sulked. It only took a short while to get on Roy's nerves, at which point he wandered upstairs, leaving the sulking Elrics on their own. He made his bed, then Ed's and Al's as well. He organized his suitcase and folded his clothes neatly. He was gathering Ed's clothes off the floor when he heard screams-multiple-from downstairs. He battled with himself. It was probably just fun and play. Ed would never hurt Al intentionally. But would Ed know it when he did hurt Al? Would the screams by any different if he was already torturing his little brother? Roy walked downstairs.
They were rolling back and forth on the floor, hands on each other's biceps. When Ed saw Roy, he squirmed away from Al and sat on the floor apprehensively. Al crawled after his brother, wondering why he'd stopped playing. He proceeded to throw very dirty looks at Roy as he pushed and poked his stiff, unresponsive brother. Roy sighed. Ed, you can play. Just not rough. Ok?"
Ed turned his head to the side, looking pointedly at the wall. Roy came and scooped him up, Ed fighting to get away.
"Settle down, stop- Hey, I know you're angry- Ed! Stop!"
Ed, frustrated as hell, glared up at Roy. Roy rocked him and squeezed him but Ed just glared more.
"OK, fine, play with Al, hurt him, bruise him and batter him, knock the wind out of him! None of my business, I get it." Roy dumped Ed out of his arms and left the room as the squealing began again.
The playfighting became a routine, one that Roy tolerated and Winry and Pinako ignored for the most part. But the dark day did come when Ed, in the process of sneakily tackling Al, bonked Al's head on the corner of the couch. Not a soft corner either.
"AOWW!" There was no mistaking the scream for happiness or excitement. Ed jumped off and tried to help Al sit up. Roy was on the scene in an instant, getting an icepack from the kitchen for the bump that was quickly forming on Al's head.
Much as Al didn't really blame his brother for the accident, the pain was making his eyes water and making him resentful. Al let Winry hold the icepack to his head, and made no move to stop Roy from taking Ed aside in another room.
"I didn't mean to, Roy no, wait," Ed pleaded as Roy pushed him through the door and closed it behind them.
"I told you to be careful," Roy said, turning around to face Ed. Ed made some protesting noises in the back of his throat, but had no argument.
"I know you would never hurt Al intentionally. But while he's still getting his strength back, I don't want you hurting him accidentally either."
"I haven't been able to play with Al like this for years. I…" Ed huffed, torn.
"I know. But you don't have to be so rough."
"I'm not rough!" Ed yelped at Roy. Roy frowned at Ed and Ed glared back up at him.
"The evidence says otherwise. Like the knot on Al's head."
"But that was the couch," Ed pouted.
Roy gave him a look. Ed bit his lip. Roy sighed and huffed a little in the same breath and put his hand on Ed's shoulder. He leaned down to Ed's eye level and said, "Be careful with your brother." Hestraightened up and brushed Ed's hair, smoothing it out. Ed sulked and followed Roy out of the room. Winry was still holding the ice to Al's head, despite his discomfort. She glared at Ed whenh he walked in and he glared back, sitting down next to Al.
"Y'ok?"
"Yeah, fine."
"Sorry."
"It's okay."
Both of them were awkward and embarrassed, and Ed finally stood and went upstairs to break the silence. Al looked disappointed and tried to squirm away from Winry and her icepack, but she put him in a headlock and kept him where he was, determined to reduce the swelling.
"You're neurotically overprotective," Al shot at Roy. "You're being too fatherly."
"I'm trying to look out for both of you."
"Well do you think anyone in this room appreciates it when you get uptight and cranky? You can look out for Ed, fine. But don't get in our way." Al glared at Roy.
Having been harped on by both brothers, Roy was starting to feel, if not guilty, at least in the wrong. He sighed and shook it off mentally, trying to reconcile his belief that no one is right all the time and his belief that he knew better than Ed and needed to draw the boundaries for his charge.
"Let 'em try to kill each other," Pinako yelled from the porch. "They're brothers, it's normal."
Roy stiffened, remembering his own brother's death. He didn't respond. He wanted to retreat to something, like paperwork or housekeeping, but here in Risembool he could do neither and he felt uncomfortable in the lull of having nothing he needed to do, and being far from the places where he normally did things. He realized he wanted to go back to Central, back to his own house. Everything was familiar there.
He knew that was how the Rockbell house must seem to Ed and Al, but he hoped Ed would consider going back to Central for the last few days of Roy's vacation.
"Ed," Roy said to get the boy's attention.
Ed looked up from twiddling his fingers, sitting on his bed. He hunched his shoulders, expecting more crap about playing with Al.
"I…want to go back to Central before my vacation ends. Will you be okay with leaving soon?"
Ed's shoulders straightened out as he considered Roy's words.
"But why?" he asked meekly.
"Because I don't really feel comfortable here, Ed. I don't belong and it's making me tense.
Ed shifted, torn. "You could go back and then Al and I could come back later."
"I want to spend my vacation with you. I only have a few days left. And," Roy added, "what makes you think Al will want to come back to Central at all?"
" Well he-. To-. To say goodbye."
"To who?"
"Fuery and Havoc and Ross and Brosh and Hughes and Gracia."
"What about me?"
"Well yeah, you too," Ed added quickly so Roy didn't feel left out.
Roy's voice tightened as he got down to his point: "And what about you, Ed? Will you be saying goodbye too?"
Ed's eyes got big and wide. "No, I'll-… I'll-…" Ed's face displayed his misery as he realized he was stuck, not between a rock and a hard place, but between a brother and a father. He loved Al as much as it is possible to love a sibling, and yet to lose Roy…would be unbearable. He was suddenly overwhelmed and Roy saw it, stepping closer and sitting down next to Ed.
"Don't cry, you don't have to decide yet. Shh, it's okay, Ed. It's okay, I just want you to realize what Al being back really means. You can quit the military now. Choose another life. You're-" Roy's voice cracked, "free to go."
"I don't want to go," Ed started to cry into Roy's shoulder.
"You're almost grown up, Ed. It's normal for a person your age to leave their home. Or whatever."
Ed shook his head and cried, and Roy could say no more for mistrust of his voice.
So I don't know what happens next… R&R Please and thank you