Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ Descent ❯ Therapy ( Chapter 15 )

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Descent

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Chapter Fifteen

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Therapy

 

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“We had a fight.”

 

Roy opened his eyes. Truthfully, he had been beginning to think that the boy wasn't going to answer him. With the stressful day, and the liquor, he had dozed off in the long silence. The younger alchemist looked away when his eyes met Roy's. The Colonel reached out his hand, and gently traced a finger on the bruise covering Ed's eye. It had faded quite a bit and would soon be gone completely.

 

“Al did this?” Roy asked softly.

 

Ed nodded. “But…”

 

Silence.

 

“But…?”

 

The blond's breathing was becoming heavier as he tried to hold back tears. “But… I did worse.”

 

Roy only lay there, silently waiting for Ed to say more.

 

“I… I kicked him… hard.... and I used my automail leg to do it. I think it broke something in him, because there was a loud crack. He fell to the floor, and when he tried to get up again I … I couldn't stop… and I kicked him again…”

 

A painful sob broke through and Roy pulled the boy close, wrapping his arms around him protectively. To think that those two could go at it like that… It was almost unthinkable. They'd always been so close. Of course, he'd known them to argue and even rough each other up a bit. That was the way of brothers, and they hadn't ever actually injured each other.

 

“… he was just… laying there on the floor, and I… I rolled him over… I was ganna punch his face in… but then he just looked at me…” Ed continued brokenly. “… and I thought, `what the hell am I doing?' It just… all happened so fast… I… I….” The boy buried his face in Roy's chest.

 

Roy sighed deeply, and rubbed Ed's back for a time before asking simply, “Why did you hurt your brother?”

 

“He started it. He hit me first.” Came the muffled reply. A small smile touched Roy's face. Al had started the fight?

 

Unlikely.

 

There had to be more to this story.

 

“Why did Al hit you?”

 

There was silence for a moment, then, “Because… because I pushed Winry against the wall.” A pause. “And… because I called her a skanky whore…”

 

The Colonel felt a flash of protectiveness for the blonde girl, a byproduct of his guilt from murdering her parents he supposed. But this wasn't about him and his problems. Right now it was about getting Ed to keep talking.

 

“Why did you push her?”

 

“Because that bitch was yelling at me! Like always…” He answered, a note of anger entering his voice.

 

“Why was she yelling at you?” Roy asked calmly.

 

Ed was silent for several minutes before he whispered, all traces of anger gone, “They were playing a game at the table by the fire place… the power had gone out… because of the storm… and I… I pushed the table over…”

 

“Why did you push the table over?”

 

He felt Ed's body stiffen slightly in his arms, and it was almost five minutes before the teen whispered, “I don't know…”

 

Okay, now we're getting somewhere... He thought and wished that he could talk to Hawkeye again before continuing. She was much more sensitive than he was. When they'd had to interrogate suspects in the past, she was always the `good cop' while he did the `bad cop' routine, at least when it came to male suspects. With the female ones, he was the `good cop' all the way… Not that this was an interrogation, exactly… well… it kind of was…

 

“I think you do know.” Roy replied. Interrogating criminals was easy; pretending to be a psychiatrist was hard. “You can tell me.”

 

The Colonel wasn't sure how much time passed, perhaps ten minutes, before Ed said simply, his voice unsteady, “We were going to travel together.”

 

We? Ed and Alphonse, Roy supposed, but things were starting to click in his brain. While Ed had been in the hospital, the Colonel had noticed Al's crush on Winry and seen how her feelings had seemed to grow a bit for him, but hadn't really thought anything of it. Roy was beginning to see how this could have become a problem in the brothers' relationship, especially if Al wanted to spend more time with Winry than hanging out with Ed.

 

“Al wanted to stay in Rizembool?” Roy asked gently. Ed nodded, but didn't say anything. “And you didn't?” Ed shook his head. In a way it was a bit surprising to think that Ed wouldn't want to stay in that peaceful town, but in another way Roy also saw why he wouldn't want to. Ed had lived the life of a free bird in many ways. He'd traveled and seen the bigger picture. It might be hard to go back to one little town.

 

Roy stroked Ed's long blond hair. “You knocked the table over because you found out that Al wanted to stay in Rizembool?”

 

Ed nodded after a moment.

 

“I see.” He said simply, knowing it was time to get down to the dirt of it all, and not looking forward to it. “So you're saying that you were so jealous that you couldn't control your temper and attacked your brother and your friend?”

 

He felt the boy stiffen then pulled away. “I'm not jealous!” Ed said angrily. “What do I care if Al hangs around with that slut?”

 

“Really? You aren't jealous? Then why are you so angry?” He said, then thought, Oooh, I hope I'm doing the right thing here...

 

“Shut up!” Ed snarled.

 

“Ed.” Roy reached over to touch the boy, but Ed pushed his hand away.

 

“You don't know anything!”

 

“I know that you were jealous and that you couldn't control your temper, so you beat up your brother and now you're just letting yourself wallow in self pity.”

 

“I'm not jealous!” Ed made to get off the bed, but Roy grabbed his arm, pulled him down on the bed and leaned over him.

 

“You're jealous! Admit it Ed!”

 

“NO!” Ed yelled, tears flowing down his face.

 

“Say it Ed. `I'm jealous'.”

 

“No.” He sobbed.

 

“Stop lying to yourself! You need to face this, now say it!” Roy demanded.

 

“No…” Ed moaned through the tears.

 

“Say it!” He shouted loudly.

 

A sob burst from the boy and he whimpered, “I…wasn't…I…. I was…” Then screamed, “I was jealous! Are you happy now, you son of a bitch; you fucking bastard!”

 

Roy nodded as he pulled Ed into a sitting position, wrapped his arms around him and murmured, “Yes.”

 

Ed wrapped his arms tightly around Roy and whispered, “I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you.”

 

The dark haired man almost felt like crying himself at those words, but only nodded his head. “Yeah, I know…”

 

“Stupid Colonel… You think you know everything…”

 

“I know that your brother still loves you very much.”

 

“NO HE DOESN'T!” Ed yelled angrily, and pulled away from Roy again.

 

“Ed, calm down.”

 

“If he cared so much, why would he want to stay with her, and not with me? We've always been together! Always! He doesn't care about me at all! He's probably hated me all this time for putting him in that armor, and now he hates me even more for kicking his ass!” Tears leaked from Ed's eyes and he was breathing heavily.

 

“Edward, that isn't true and you know it.” Roy said, trying to maintain a calm composure. “If Al didn't care about you do you think he would call me trying to find out where you were?”

 

“If he cares… why… why doesn't he want to stay with me?” Ed moaned through a sob. “I did everything I could to get his body back. Even…” But at that he cut off and looked away.

 

Even what Ed? What did you do? Roy wondered silently, but decided now was not the time to deal with that problem. One thing at a time.

 

Roy pulled the young alchemist against him once more. Ed didn't protest the touch, but leaned into the hug.

 

“I never wanted to hurt him.” Ed sobbed.

 

“I know.” Roy soothed.

 

“I'm such a horrible big brother.”

 

“Enough of that Ed.” Roy shook his head, tipped Ed's face up and stroked the yellowing bruise. “Al is not a defenseless kitten. He's mild, but he can defend himself. You of all people should know that.”

 

“But…”

 

Roy pressed a finger to Ed's lips. “Al is strong. He sounded fine on the phone. Even if you did break some of his bones, he can heal. He's young and healthy.”

 

Ed shook his head. “But he's my little brother…”

 

Roy tried to hide the smirk that came to his mouth and raised an eyebrow. Little?

 

Ed glared at him, hearing the thought even though no words had been spoken.

 

The Colonel smiled warmly down at the blond boy. “Alphonse couldn't have a better older brother than you, so I don't want to hear anymore of this `I'm such a horrible older brother' angst, alright?”

 

Ed swallowed hard and nodded.

 

“Good.” Roy tenderly kissed Ed's forehead, and the younger alchemist blushed slightly, then pressed his face to Roy's chest. They sat that way for a long time before Ed spoke.

 

“Colonel?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“I… I don't hate you…”

 

A soft smile curved on the older man's lips. “I know Ed.” He lied. Sometimes he really wasn't sure… But he could at least hope that the teen cared for him…

 

The short alchemist sighed contentedly and after a few more minutes he spoke again. “Colonel?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

There was a moment of silence before Ed asked hesitantly, “When we're alone… is it… is it alright if I call you `Roy'?”

 

Roy's smile widened and he squeezed the boy tightly. “You can call me whatever you want.”

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Thanks to:

MasamuneReforged for being my beta.

 

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So there it is, a whole chapter devoted to Roy getting Ed to open up. Hope you liked the ending to this chapter better than the last. I know it's short but the next one will be longer.

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