Split Second Changes

Hi people. Most of these will not follow all of the manga. This is my first time doing a Full Metal Alchemist fanfic. I plan on doing several though. I hope you enjoy it and that you will give some positive feedback.

Chapter 1

Edward Elric lay motionless on the road. His breathing was harsh and labored. He struggled to his feet. His right arm hung limply, a twisted, torn mess that shone dully in the sunlight. The metal was almost completely destroyed. He started to walk again. He had fallen several times and each time he had struggled to his feet. He was deep in the mountains near Rizenbool, his hometown. His face was flushed from fever and his eyes had a dazed look in them. No one was around when he entered his hometown. It was quiet. He noticed military cars but he paid no heed to them.

'Winry…' he thought, 'Got to get to Winry. She can help…'

He walked alone down the empty streets.

Roy Mustang kept his eyes glued to the road that led in and out of Rizenbool. Ed was long overdue for a visit to him, Winry, Alphonse, and Pinako. He had not come to headquarters in Central nor had Ed come here to Rizenbool. But someone else who was also interested with Ed and Al had come. Izumi Curtis, Ed's and Al's very terrifying master, from what Al said, and her husband Siguar Curtis had come to Rizenbool. Izumi had gotten a feeling that something was wrong. When they had gotten to Rizenbool she had learned just how right she was. Al was a suit of armor and Ed was missing. He sighed. It was going to be another long, boring, torturous day of waiting. Izumi was yet again screeching at the top of her lungs at Alphonse. Something about training could be heard. Suddenly Roy saw a flash of red. There on the road was Full Metal, but something wasn't right. He wasn't walking like usual and he drug his left leg just the tiniest bit, but it alarmed Roy. He ran outside. When he got closer he noticed just how terrible the young State Alchemist looked. He caught Ed just as the boy collapsed.

"Full Metal what the hell happen to you? Winry, Alphonse, Izumi, Pinako come quick! It's Edward! He is in bad shape!"

Izumi came running first with Al right behind her. She snatched the boy out of Roy's arms and cradled the fevered alchemist. "Edward! Oh Edward, look at you. You look terrible." She shifted his bangs out of his eyes. Tears filled her eyes as she thought about what could happen to the small teenager that she held so close to her heart. "We need to get him inside! Winry get your stuff ready. Pinako go help Winry. Alphonse I need you to go and heat up some water for us. Colonel you come with me." She carried Ed in despite the fact that she was ill. Izumi laid him on a bed.

Ed stirred restlessly. "Master? Is it really you? Sorry I caused so much trouble… I always mess things up... I should have listened... But I didn't… Now look at Al and me... It's all my fault that this happened to us... Mom I'm sorry... I promised to take care of Al…" Ed rambled on.

Izumi watched as dreams tortured her student. She knew what he had done. Alphonse had told her everything that he knew. Ed blamed himself for many things that were not even his fault, but he thought they were. He blamed himself for the death of Nina, Alexander the dog, and Lieutenant Colonel Hughes. After his death he had surpassed his best friend, Roy Mustang, in rank. He had been helping Ed and Al in their search and study of the Philosopher's Stone. And that was why he had died at the hands of the homunculi Lust and Envy. He was hunted by the homunculi and a guy named Scar. If she ever met him in a dark alley one night she would obliterated the guy. He would cease to exist. If you wanted to live a nice, long, happy life you did not mess with Izumi Curtis and the people she cared about.

The others came in and things were set up. Everyone except Al, Winry, and Pinako left the room. Siguar was now back from town. He put a reassuring arm around Izumi and she pressed herself close to him for comfort. Roy paced as the hours passed by. Finally Winry opened the door holding the mangled automail arm.

"We're done. Several times we thought he was going to die but he pulled through. He's tough. He won't give up on life. Mrs. Curtis you can go in if you want to. You all can if you stay quiet."

Izumi and Roy went as soon as Al and Pinako left the room.

"Edward? Can you hear me? If you can just give me a tiny sign." She looked down at the sleeping alchemist. "Anything that will tell me that you are all right. Please Ed."

In his sleep Ed shifted slightly and mumbled "Master…"

Tears filled her eyes and she finally broke down. Tears streamed down her face. Roy put a hand on her shoulder and said "He is very strong. You should be very proud of him. Don't worry. He's pulled through many injuries and when he had the automail surgery he didn't scream even once."

"…I can't help but worry. Al and Ed are the only kids I really consider my own. I may not be their mother but when it comes to them I would do anything. When someone messes with the people I care about they have just assured their own fate. I can't let them get away with hurting my family. These two are my children just as if I had given birth to them. They are my babies! The only ones I have. They were little children when they came to me. Proud, brave, determined to learn, they are so different, so unique in their own way. How could I not want to shelter them? How could I not come to love them as I watched them grow? How can I do nothing but worry when some madman has hurt my baby damnit?! How can I not worry when my child is on the brink of death?! Tell me that!"

"…sigh…Your right you know. Some madman is out there and he will be found. Even if it is the last thing I do we'll find that asshole. We'll hunt him to the end of the earth if we must. Full Metal is special. He touches something in you when you first meet him. There is so much compassion, understanding, pain, knowledge, and maturity in him. He may act like the child he is at times but never have I seen such a mature boy in all my life. I will do anything I have to do to help them both. Believe me when I say that Full Metal is like a son to me. For three years I watched him go on mission after mission with the same determination and bravery that a war hero would have when his country was threatened. If it should ever come to war breaking out I know Full Metal would come and help even if he wasn't called to the battlefield. I will do all I can to help him and Alphonse in their quest."

"Thank you. If you find anything on this madman please contact me. I would like to know who or what did this to Ed."

"Don't worry. We'll do what we can."

"Izumi dear? Are you all right?" Siguar came in.

"Yes. Just a little stressed. I'm just fine. I am going to stay here just a little longer. Is that okay dear?"

"Yes. I'll stay with you and the colonel. How is he?"

"He hasn't had any problems yet so we are hopeful that this night will pass uneventfully. Winry is worried about him though. I should go see her." Izumi said.

"No. I will go. Full Metal works for me. This is my fault. I had a feeling that this particular mission would end badly but I sent him anyway." Roy left the room in search of Winry.

(Two days later)

"Oooowwww. My head hurts. God, what hit me?" Ed looked around the room and realized that his very terrifying master was right beside him, fast asleep. She was pale and looked completely exhausted. "Master." He whispered.

Izumi was half awake when she heard "Master." Her head snapped up and she looked into the exhausted golden eyes of the boy that she held so dear to her heart. "Edward! Your awake!" Izumi ran to the door. "You guys he's up."

Ed identified several voices at once.

"Big brother!"-Al

"Ed!"-Granny Pinako

"Full Metal! Finally! We were worried. You had not moved in two days."-Roy

"What is going on? What's all the commotion? Is it Ed? Is he awake?"-Winry

"The boy is up? That's good."-Siguar

"Gggggaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh. Too much noise." Ed whimpered helplessly and curled up on his left side.

"Quiet. He is still quite ill." Winry's soft voice drifted to him.

"Winry? Thank God." Ed shifted so that he could look at her. "I thought I was going crazy. I kept thinking about you. You were the first person who came to my completely scattered thoughts." He smiled softly. "I knew if I could just reach you everything would be alright. I guess I was right. Thanks a lot Winry, you too Granny Pinako. What would I do without you two?"

"Go completely insane I guess." Winry said. "The others helped too. Your master has been watch over you for the last two days."

"WHAT?!" Ed's shock was echoed in his voice. "You stayed up two days and nights? You should have been resting. You know your ill Master. Please go rest now. In a REAL bed not a chair."

Izumi stared at him. "You were the one on the brink of death and yet you are worried about me?"

"I'm not that ill. I'll be up in a few days if Major Armstrong isn't here and if he is, he doesn't decide to tackle me out of worry. Gaw…that really hurts. Colonel you need to keep that man away from me when I am recovering from injuries. When he is around I tend to stay in the hospital longer than normal." Ed shook his head.

"Of course Full Metal. We wouldn't want that at all. I'll make sure you aren't tackled any more."

"Big brother I'm so glad that you are awake now. I was very worried about you. How are you feeling?"

"Better than I was feeling a couple days ago. I thought I was going to die before I reached here. I'll tell you what though, that guy who attacked me won't attack another person ever. He's dead. He was so determined to kill me that he never saw the spikes I had just transmuted. I had to use a transmutation circle because of my arm so it took a little longer than usual. They were met to be protection for me but he impaled himself. It was gross so don't ask about it. Colonel don't even expect me to go into detail in either a written or spoken report. Just take my word for it. The guy is D-E-A-D dead. I never want to see that image in my head ever again…I hope you guys don't see it either. It…wasn't human, but it did die. I was still there when it finally died. It's death wasn't slow but it didn't die immediately either. A sad way to go if you ask me."

"Indeed it is Edward. To die a slow death is very painful if you are fatally injured. You should have put it out of it misery just to be humane." Izumi said

"The thing is that I couldn't even lift a finger to help myself. I was exhausted to the point that I could not even walk. I had to wait several hours to even climb to my feet let alone walk. Luckily Rizenbool wasn't too far away otherwise I wouldn't have made it. All I could do was hope that Winry and Granny Pinako were here to help me. After awhile I could just barely recognize certain landmarks. Colonel did I see a bunch of military cars when I first came into town? I'm not entirely sure."

"Yes you did Full Metal. We came here looking for you. We had search squads and everything else we could think of."

"They sure did Ed. I have almost got half of your automail arm done. Whew…I hope this does the trick. I stayed up all night. I'm so glad you are feeling better. We were all worried half to death over you."

"Yeah. Sorry to make you all worry like that. Thanks Win, for everything. My other arm was completely destroyed. The thing had teeth like razor blades for metal. Ack! I never want to go through that again. I can't begin to describe how much this means to me. I mean to pay you back when I'm better."

"Don't worry about that Full Metal. The military is going to cover everything. Including the automail repairs…Actually it will all be coming from me. I'm the one who sent you on that mission so I'll be the one to pay for everything for you."

"Um…Thanks Colonel." Ed smiled. "So I guess you know all about what happen Master."

"Yes I do Edward…sigh…I can't really blame you though. You and your brother just wanted to see your mother. You were young. But that still doesn't excuse the fact that you did the opposite of what I said. You got some hard core training coming when you're completely healed. So do you Alphonse. That will be part of your punishment."

"Yes Ma'am." They said in unison.

Everyone left soon afterwards. "Master…do you have a moment to spare? I have something I need to say. I couldn't say it while Al was here."

"I guess. Shoot."

"Well you know how me and Al tried to bring back our mother. You know how me and Al paid the price for that." He looked Izumi straight in the eyes. "I won't lie and I won't be polite about it because what I have to say isn't proper master-student talk. Al paid the highest price. He lost his whole body. He shouldn't be punished. What good will it do if he can't feel pain? He can't cry, eat, laugh so hard he falls flat on his butt. He can't sleep like you or me; he can't feel hot or cold, hard or soft things. The worst of it all is that he can't give his only brother a real hug. It hurts me so much to see him like this. Before I could tell if something was troubling him and now I can only tell by how silent he is. He can't do anything normal and it's my fault. Nothing I do will change the past, but I'm determined to get Al's body back. I don't care what happens to me as long I can hold my brother like brothers should be able to one last time. If I die so be it, but I will not leave my brother to suffer like that for all eternity. What good is being in an immortal body if you can't enjoy the riches that life itself has to offer? At one time my brother even asked if his soul was artificially created! I didn't even know he was thinking like that! Why should he be punished for something that he had already been punished for?! He paid the highest price! He lost everything but his soul, memories, and feelings. Everything else is gone! I deserve to be punished not Al. He paid the price for tampering with forbidden alchemy. So did I, but the price I paid was no where near as high as his." Tears had started to run down Ed's face as he spoke. "Please try to understand. I don't speak out of disrespect. I speak from my heart and my soul. I may be just a student but this is my little brother. He is all I have left of the family we once were. I won't lose him and I won't let him be punished for something that he was already punished for! He lost everything except me that day. I won't let him lose anything else. Never again will he have to lose anything. I'm going to make damn sure of that. Nothing I do will give him back the lost years of his life, but I can make sure that the rest of his life is wonderful and full of happiness." Ed fell silent. He did not notice how pale Izumi had gotten during his speech.

"This is how you really feel Edward?"

"I won't lie. Yes ma'am."

"Your determined to take on double punishment?"

"If it comes to that yes."

"You don't care if you die as long as your brother gets his body back?"

"Like I said so be it. At least I'll get to hold him one last time like a real brother would."

"Will you regret this later?"

"My body might protest the rough treatment but my mind and soul will lighter, so no, I will not regret my choice later."

"Your brother will be angry that you took on this much responsibility."

"I know. But it is the only way. To take punishment will lighten the mind and soul. It might hurt the body and the punisher may not like it but it will help those in the wrong see the wrong that they have done. If Al gets angry let him. I know what I am doing and I don't and will not regret this choice one bit."

"Edward you are one of the craziest yet bravest boys I have ever met. When you're completely healed we'll start. You chose the punishment so I have no choice but to go all out on you."

"I know. Just know this. I won't hate you so you can't hate yourself for my choice. Okay?"

"Yes. I'm just sorry it has to be this way."

"Me too, but it is the only way."

"Get some sleep now Edward."

"Yes ma'am."

Izumi left the room. She went and sat beside Alphonse when she found him. "Al, what do you think of your brother?"

"Brother is kind, compassionate, understanding, loveable at times, completely unselfish, and above all else willing to give up everything just for me. Brother may act childish at times but he is really mature. He has pulled many all nighters just to find information that might help us on our quest. He has excepted mission after mission even though he has been down right exhausted when he gets back from one. He does it all for me even though it might get him killed."

"What if I told you that he was taking on your punishment as well as his own?"

"I could not stop him. When brother has made up his mind he won't change it. He has excepted my punishment too hasn't he?"

"I wish it were otherwise but he won't change his mind."

"Ed puts a lot of blame on himself. I wish he wouldn't."

"So do I Alphonse, but the minds of those who feel guilty can only be appeased by punishment."

Up in Ed's room he had gotten up slowly and stood in front of the window. Winry, who had heard the whole conversation, came in and put her arms around Ed's waist. They stood there in silence watching the sunset and dreading the day he would have to face punishment at the hands of his master. Roy stood outside listening to Izumi and Al, Pinako stood solemn faced, and Siguar bowed his head in silent admiration to the brave boy had taught and cared for. For all of them it was a day of deep sadness and regret. But Ed's mind was made up. He would face punishment like a man and he would not complain.

"Winry…"

"Yes Ed?"

"Whatever happens…I want you to know that I love you Winry. I think I always have."

I'm so sorry to those of you that thought it would turn out different. No, Ed will not die at the hands of his master. I hope you enjoy it. Rated PG 13 for now. Will be rated R for later chapters.