Hello, there! Thought I'd break away from spiral for a little bit and venture over here to fma land. Umm, let's see...this is my second fma fic, and the last one was just a fun little oneshot. So, I guess this is my first real fic for Fullmetal; hope you like it! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal or any of it's characters. I do, however, own this slightly warped plot line, as far as I know.
Rating: T for most violence and a little action.
Pairings: RoyEd as of now, and slight EdAl, I guess (no lemons with these two, just brotherly love, don't worry!). Other pairings may develop as the story progresses, I'm not sure.
Warnings: Let's see...no warnings for this chappy! I'll post the warnings in chapters that they apply to so you know what to expect.
Full summary: Ed and Al are left orphaned and are adopted by Roy, an employee of the Underground, a secret service of alchemists. Fired and targeted for harboring a Renegade alchemist, Ed, Roy turns to a mysterious stranger who promises his job back. What are this stranger's true intentions? And why are the higher ups in the Underground so fixated on Ed? (also slight romance)
A boy of about 8, with golden hair, hugged his brother closely. Tears were threatening to stream down his face, but he refused to let them fall. He needed to be strong, if not for himself, then for his younger brother, "Don't worry, Al." he whispered, "It'll be okay."
Al looked up to his brother, tears actually falling from his eyes, making it harder for the older one to keep his back, "How can you say that, brother? They're both gone now, where will we live?"
Ed shook his head, "I don't know." he confessed, his voice cracking, "I don't know, but we'll find somewhere." He stared at the ashes of their house, thinking about how everything had turned so wrong. Their father had passed away many years ago from a heart attack, but they still had their mother. It was hard at first, especially on the older woman, but they eventually learned to move on and start to live their normal lives again. Everything had been going great for a few years, and the three really couldn't have been happier giving everything that had happened.
They weren't a wealthy family, but they got by, and they were content with what they had. Everything was perfect...Until, that is, Ed and Al left that morning. If they had known was about to happen, they would have stayed. If they had, maybe things would be different, maybe their mother would be standing there with them, maybe their house would even still be standing. They had gone though, just for a little walk through the woods like they always did. It had been Ed's suggestion, of course, and he had raced Al to the lake by their house. When the older one had turned to rub it in his brother's face that he had won yet again, that's when he saw it.
Flashback
Ed turned, "See, Al, I told you I'd win." he grinned, puffing his chest out.
"It's not my fault." Al objected, "Your legs are longer."
Ed opened his eyes, "Al, making excuses won't..." he trailed off as he stared at something over the hill that led to the lake.
"Making excuses won't what, brother?" Al asked, looking to Ed to see why he had stopped talking. When he saw the horrified look on his brother's face, Al turned to see what he was so fixated on. Seeing the sight, Al gasped, "Isn't that..."
"Our house." Ed thought. Smoke was rising from the general location of their home, "Mom." Ed whispered, and took off with Al close behind. Once they reached the now destroyed house, Ed froze in his tracks. His gaze swept all around the burning building, searching for any signs of life, "Mom?" Ed asked, quietly, "Mom!" he shouted louder. He heard Al crying beside him, "No, she can't be..." he began, unable to believe what was happening, "It's all a dream." he thought, "This can't be happening." He shut his eyes to the flames and tried to block them out, tried to make them disappear. Opening his golden eyes, which so closely matched his hair, he saw that it wasn't just a dream, and that their house was burning down; their mother inside.
Tears continued to stream down Al's face, "Brother?" he asked, begging the older one to tell him that what he was seeing wasn't real. When Ed didn't respond, his gaze glued to the flames, Al began sobbing again.
End Flashback
That had been nearly three hours ago, and the flames were dying out now. Ed hadn't moved much, and Al hadn't stopped crying. Though, the tears were starting to slow, and Ed was blinking, slowly absorbing everything that was happening. The younger brother sniffed back his tears, and looked up at Ed once more, "Brother?"
Hearing Al's voice calling his name finally tore Ed's gaze away from their smoldering house, "What is it, Al?" he asked, trying to sound like everything was alright, even though they both knew that was far from reality.
"We need to tell someone." Al replied, trying to think things through.
Ed sighed, "I know, Al, but once we do, everything's going to get so crazy."
Al looked up to the older one, "What do you mean?"
"I mean, we'll have the funeral, and once someone finds out we have nowhere to live, we'll either get sent to a relative, or some foster home."
"Foster home?" Al asked, not liking the sound of that.
Ed nodded, and finally turned to leave, "Come on, Al, we should go." He saw his brother hesitate, and grabbed his hand, "Don't worry, even if we do get sent somewhere, there's no way I'll let them split us up." That seemed to satisfy Al, as he followed behind, squeezing Ed's hand, "You're all I have now, and I won't lose you, too."
I know this is kind of a short first chappy, but most of mine are. I'll update soon, though, so review! Oh, and it'll get better for them, don't worry!