Draped in Wires
by. Poisoned Scarlet

Theme 013: Oh, Brother!

"Ed, for the last time, Mei isn't stealing me away from you!" Al rolled his eyes upward, the argument his brother presented ridiculous to his ears. But, his brother continued persistently; grumbling rather petulantly as they both trekked down the familiar dirt path that would lead to their old elementary school.

"Do you remember when we used to play around here?" Al asked, breaking the nostalgic silence.

Edward strayed his eyes to the bridge they were approaching. He allowed a small smile. "Yeah, we used to race up and down this strip everyday after school..."

Al grinned. "Race you!" He dashed off down the path, leaving Ed a little bewildered. However, it wasn't long for the older of the two managed to catch up; his automail leg giving him mild advantage as he caught up with his brother and passed him just as easily – his hand slapping against the familiar oak tree they had marked with an X for the finish line when they were children.

"I won!" he exclaimed, smugly. "Again."

Alphonse came to a slow stop, panting. "No fair!" he breathed. "You have automail!"

"I've always been faster than you, Al," Ed smirked, adding: "But you've always been the smart fighter."

Al straightened, elated by his brothers words. "You're just too brash. If you took time to really analyze the situation, you'd be better at fighting, too, you know!"

"Nah," Ed chuckled. "I kind of like throwing caution to the wind." He walked over to the bridge, leaping up on it and steadying himself on the slabs of stone. "It makes life interesting..." He took a few steps, wobbling to the side precariously but ultimately keeping his balance. "And unpredictable."

"Funny," Al began, slyly. "You say that now but when it comes down to Winry..."

Ed nearly toppled into the riverbed. "What's this gotta' do with Winry?" he scowled, shooting a look over his shoulder at his amused brother.

"Obviously everything!" he laughed. "You say you like throwing caution to the wind and barging into danger like nothing yet you can't even properly tell Winry she's got nice hair!"

"She does not have nice hair!" Ed denied, nose upturned loftily. "Not with all the crap she puts on it." He was very aware of his soft, perfect, locks of hair kept neatly in a pony tail at that very moment...

"Ed, that's the not the point," he shok his head. "The point is: you're a hypocrite."

Edward let his arms fall to his sides abruptly. He pivoted on his foot, crossing his arms over his chest and asking, threateningly: "You've gotten pretty smart these past few years," he growled. "Damn that bean-sprout! I bet this is all her doing..."

"Ugh! Ed! Quit it, already!" Al shouted, exasperated. "Mei isn't a bad influence for me! In fact, I think you're a worst influence on me than she is!"

"How so?" Ed challenged. "I think I've been a great influence on you! I've definitely given you a back bone, haven't I?"

"This coming from the man who once told me teddy bears were monstrous creatures who would eat me at night if I didn't give you my lunch money," Al replied dryly. "Yes, you've been a great influence on me, brother."

Ed's cheeks pinked. "What's your point again?"

Al breathed a laugh. His brother would never change. "You have to make a move," he answered bluntly. "You're going to stay here in Resembool after Mei and I leave, right?"

"Yeah..."

"And I know it's because you finally realized you can't be without her for extended periods of time," Al ignored his brothers spluttering to deny the accusation. "So you have to do something! Wait, has anything happened between you two at all? It's been a month and half already!"

Edward stuck his hands into his pockets. He felt his face go hot. He shifted his eyes away, avoiding the eager look on his brothers face as he recalled the instances: when he had hugged her to him on the couch, when she had teased him so badly in the bedroom – sapphire eyes flaming with a provocative spark of emotion he never knew she even owned...

"Ed...?"

"Yeah, and?" he snapped.

"Great!" Al cheered. His voice became troubled. "But...if some things have happened...then why aren't you with her right now?"

"Look," Ed began, exhaling a sigh. "Just because we've had a couple of moments doesn't mean we're – together or anything. It isn't that easy..."

"It is," Al insisted. "You're just making it out to be some big deal!"

"Am not!" he scowled.

"Are to!"

"Am not!"

"Are to!" Alphonse sighed in exasperation. "Ed, really look at the situation. You've liked her for how long now? Since we were kids or something, right? So you can guess she's also harbored some feelings for one of us – us being you, of course – so I really see no problem just going for it and getting it over with if you know she likes you, too," Al finished simply, his reasons making Ed annoyed.

Why did his brother always have to have his head screwed on right?

He scuffed his boot against the stone of the bridge, broodingly.

"It still isn't that easy!" he huffed, hopping off the bridge and stalking away. "C'mon, lets go prank Mrs. Burlington! I still haven't forgotten the day that old hag made me stand in the corner for proving her wrong with my hypothesis!"

Al sighed. "Oh, brother."

A/N: The only thing I liked about this drabble was the fact that Ed's gonna' prank his old elementry school teacher - kind of. Al would never let that happen XD

Review!

Scarlett.