Chapter 11 : Love Like Oxygen
You're like oxygen, when I drink you in
I can't breathe you out
Inside this intense agony
Can't you see I'm dying away like this
Slowly the alchemist blinked his eyes open only to immediately slam them shut again when he was blinded by a bright light. He waited a minute for the pounding headache to subside a bit before he warily tried squinting his eyes open again. The light still hurt but he was prepared this time and managed to keep them open. Slowly he looked around, growing more and more confused as he did so. He tried to sit up so he could get a better look at the unfamiliar surroundings but aborted the attempt with a strained hiss. His ribs and leg felt like they were on fire and his head was weighted down by what might as well have been a block cement, but in reality was only a plaster cast.
Slowly he could feel panic starting to creep in. He was in an unfamiliar room, he did not know how he'd gotten there and he was obviously hurt. What the hell had happened to him?!
He again tried to move, just his head this time, but found he couldn't. The heavy cast pressed down on his throat and he found he couldn't breathe. His breathing started to pick up and the sound of his ragged breaths filled the room but Ed couldn't hear it. He felt like he was suffocating, his heart beating heavily against the constricting plaster. He wanted to get out. He needed to get out.
Lack of oxygen made his vision start to grow dark around the edges, his flesh arm desperately scratching the plaster in an attempt to free himself. It was useless though. His vision grew darker and darker until finally he saw nothing at all. By the time the doctors finally came racing into his room and placed an oxygen mask over his face he had already blacked out again.
The next time he woke it was evening, at least he thought it was. The light hurt his eyes just a little bit less and the shadows in the room were just a bit deeper. His mind felt a lot clearer too and… He brought up a hand to touch his neck feeling relief flood his system when he noticed the cast was gone. Wary of his hurting bones he sat up and took a look around. Immediately his eyes fell on the lumpy outline of a battered armor slumped in a chair near his feet and Ed felt himself relax. Al would never let anything happen to him. He was safe.
A lot calmer now he let his eyes wander around the room, coming to the conclusion that it must be some kind of hospital room from all the white and the many beeping monitors that surrounded him, not to mention that sickly smell that seemed to haunt all hospitals no matter how hard they tried to cover it up.
It still bothered him that he didn't know how he'd ended up here though. Ed tried hard to think back but still came up with nothing. He could remember receiving a mission from mustang, something about disappearances in a city somewhere. He also remembered travelling to the city then something went wrong, there was blood and, and a boy. A boy with weird green hair and golden eyes so much like his own. Ivy, he remembered, that boy was Ivy. Those people that had been killed had been taking care of him but since they were dead Al and him had taken him in. He'd gone with them and they travelled to the city, only to hear a boy had now disappeared. There they'd gone to investigate the boys house only to find…something. Ed wasn't really sure what it had been, just that it had been important.
He raked his hand through his hair and let out a frustrated huff. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't remember and it pissed him off. He let out a few slow breaths and calmed down again, no matter he'd think of it soon enough.
He closed his eyes and tried to think back again. They'd found something and he'd been shocked, he knew that at least. Then, stalking the town's alchemists and something went wrong… Ivy!
Ed sat bolt upright as he remembered, something his sore muscles could not appreciate. He'd been kidnapped! They'd been stalking two of the town alchemists and they'd kidnapped him!
Frantically Ed looked around, breathing picking up again as he couldn't find the boy anywhere near. He remembered going to rescue him with Al so where was he?!
Slowly he started panicking when he noticed that the boy really was nowhere to be found. He swallowed hard as a new thought hit him, had they- had they failed? Is that why he was in the hospital now, why Al looked so beat up, had they tried to save him and…failed?
Try as he might he couldn't remember. It was like some kind of haze clouded his mind, blanking out the memories and making him forget. He needed to know though and he needed to know now.
Slowly he moved over to the end of the bed, wincing as every move made liquid fire rush through his veins, and reached out a trembling hand to wake his brother. He needn't have bothered though, as soon as he moved forward Al shot up grabbing his brothers outstretched hand. When he saw Ed was awake Al let out an excited squeal and pulled his brother into a hug, careful not to stress any of his injuries.
"Nii-san! You're awake!"
Not expecting it Ed recoiled, and let out a startled curse when the action hurt his ribs.
"Al." He said, trying to catch his brothers attention.
Said brother was too busy holding him at arm's length and examining every inch (few as they may be) of his body for injuries.
"Alphonse!" Ed yelled this time, he really didn't have the time for this. He needed to know what had happened.
Luckily his brother heard him this time and calmed down somewhat, tilting his head questioningly as he looked up at his brother. "Yes?"
"Where's Ivy?" Ed asked, cutting immediately to the case. He observed with a growing dread as Al seemed to recoil at the question, his formerly happy expression morphing into a more serious one.
"You…You don't remember?" Al asked carefully.
"No, I don't." Ed felt panic set in as he saw his brothers face fall even further.
"Why ? What happened? Is he alright?" Al just shook his head regretfully and Ed was really panicking now. "Al, where is he?!"
Silence rang in the room after his last question, a thick suffocating silence and Ed suddenly wasn't so sure anymore whether he really wanted to hear the answer. Still he persevered and he asked again, tone serious and much calmer now. "Where is he, Al?"
The armor let out a slow shuddering breath and looked down at his gloved hands that were wringing anxiously in his lap.
"They did not tell me this could happen." He started slowly. "You were supposed to remember." He trailed off again and Ed was about to interfere when his younger brother held up a hand and stopped him.
"Brother," he said after another silently suffocating moment, "Ivy…Ivy is gone brother. Actually…he never existed." He glanced up then and the eldest Elric could see the sorrow in the youngest eyes.
"What, what do you mean he never existed?" He asked, a broken whisper as slowly he felt the haze on his mind start to lift at the edges, revealing a glimpse of cruel violet orbs, and even before his brother spoke again he knew.
"Envy."
And with that one word, that one name spat in a desperate whisper everything came back to him. The massacre and Ivy's, no Envy's description of the green haired homunculus that had slaughtered his camp. The small shard of philosophers stone they'd found at the missing boy's home and then their final confrontation and the final moments of an innocent boy, slaughtered because Ed couldn't save him.
Without him even noticing tears had started to make their way down his cheeks and silent sobs now wracked his small frame.
Al felt his heart break as he watched his brother break down and immediately gathered him in a gentle hug, rubbing his back and whispering comforting words in his ear.
Ed just sat there silently, letting it all happen as his mind kept replaying those last moments over and over in his head. Hearing the little boys desperate pleas and feeling helplessly trapped in his own body over and over and over again.
How long they sat there like that Ed wouldn't know but eventually the tears dried and they just sat there together, simply taking comfort in the others presence. A nurse stopped by and said visiting hours would be over in a few minutes and Al reluctantly untangled himself , standing up and promising he would visit again tomorrow. Ed didn't respond, he just nodded slightly and continued staring into space, a vacant expression dulling the otherwise bright gold of his eyes.
The nurse stopped by again and told Al it really was time to leave now, something he did with great reluctance but not before throwing another worried glance his brothers way.
It had been a week since Ed finally woke up again and not much had changed. Al still stopped by every day and Ed still stared at the wall with the same vacant expression. Even Colonel Mustang hadn't been able to get a rise out of the silent blonde when he'd visited and it was starting to worry people.
The doctors in the hospital just said he was in shock and that it would go away with time. Al wasn't so sure though. He'd seen his brother down plenty of times but never like this. Usually he'd fight his way through whatever was bothering him with a stubbornness that bordered on stupidity but now it was almost like he'd lost the will to live. Al knew he was blaming himself for what had happened, but no matter how many times he told him it wasn't his fault Ed still wouldn't listen. Honestly he was at his wits end, if something didn't change soon he didn't know what he'd do.
He cast one last glance in the darkened room of his brother before closing the door with a soft click.
He needed to think.
Perched on a branch near one particular window of Central's general hospital sat one, small, black kitten. Its violet eyes were intently focused on the patient behind the window, a small kitten frown marring its face as it saw the lackluster expression in the patients eyes.
'This won't do.' It thought to itself silently, 'this won't do at all.'
And with a feline grace the small kitten stretched and started to grow, changing shape until finally it was not a kitten, but a man perched on that branch.
The man smirked to himself and prepared to open the window.
"Time to pay Chibi a little visit."
AN/ OMG! so late, I'm so so so sorry *bows down and begs for forgiveness* I'm a horrible person .
To atone for my sins I shallt now start a new segment called the life of Mary, Mary will be the first OC in this fic that survives for longer than 3 chapters so please give her all your support, she'll need it :P (and yes this is random, I blame stress xD)
~Mary walked down the street. TBC
Seems promising ne? anyways on to more serious stuffs, thank you all sooooo much for all the support/reviews/faves/alerts etc. We actually hit 60! omg, if it continues like this we might actually hit hundred! if people even still like this after me making them wait for a month that is *looks away embarrassed* but! next chappie will be up sooner! its a promise :P Also something entirely different, what do you all think of crossovers? Cause I think I have some pretty original Fma crossover ideas. Wouldn't start them till I finish this one of course but I'm curious :) sooo tell me what you think?
Anon replies~
to Sarah D. : Omo I'm so sorry for making you wait like that, and now again x.x I really am a bad person. Still I'm glad you liked it and that it's still a bit unpredictable :) I finally got the whole plot figured out and I think you're all gonna like it ;) it'll be fuuun~