Chapter Thirty: Freedom

I called them from the hospital.

Roy answered. "Ed!" he said, sounding tense. "Where are you? What happened?"

"It's..." I bit my lip, unable to speak. "Could I speak to Noa?"

"Of course."

The sounds of the phone exchanging hands.

"Edward? Where's-"

"The baby's fine," I replied tiredly. "He's here with me." I heard her catch her sigh of relief; even if she wasn't touching me, she still knew what I was thinking. Meekly, she asked, "And...Al?"

I looked at the ground, choosing my words carefully.

"He's...alive."

Silence.

"Where are you?" she asked in a hushed voice.

"The hospital."

"The hospital?" I heard Roy say something. "Roy says he'll take me. I'll be there. Tell Al-"

"I can't talk to him right now, Noa."

"Of course you can."

"No, I mean, I can't." I paused, trying not to shake. "He's unconscious."

She said, "I'll be right there, please stay strong."

And then she was gone.

Holding my son in my arms, I went back to Al's bedside. Things had calmed down significantly in the past hour or so. At first there had been doctors and nurses rushing around him, trying to do things to him that I didn't understand, and I felt so helpless as I stood there, a baby in my arms, completely useless. I could just watch. His breathing had been faint, but thank God it was there – I had been terrified. No, I still was terrified. I wouldn't calm down until he woke up.

I hadn't been able to contact Noa until just then, and despite knowing she was finally coming, my nerves didn't settle at all.

I sat there for several minutes silently. The baby finally went to sleep. Al's eyes were closed, his face pale and drenched in sweat. I tried to forget the moment when he started coughing, and the blood had spilled out of his mouth and onto the both of us. I had washed my hands thoroughly, but they still smelled like his blood.

A doctor finally made it to Al's bed. I stood up quickly. "How is he?" I asked.

The doctor did a few routine checks. "It looks like his breathing is as smooth as we're going to get it tonight," he told me. "There's only so much we can do right now. We'll be able to help him more when he wakes up."

"And when will that be?"

The doctor shrugged grimly. "It's really impossible to tell." A pause. "There's a chance he might not."

My heart clenched, constricting my lungs.

The doctor was looking at me sadly. "If it wakes up in the next few hours, he'll likely be fine, with the right treatment." A pause. "I've got a few questions about his health, though. Are you...?"

"His brother," I replied, looking at him. He glanced at the child in my arms. "My son," I explained. The doctor nodded.

"Any symptoms you've noticed prior to this?"

"Well, no," I said, then I stopped myself. There had been something. But that was so long ago... "He was sick for a while," I told the doctor. "Real skinny, lots of coughing. But that was almost a year ago."

The doctor let out a low whistle. "A year. That's not good."

I had to physically stop myself from trembling. "He got medication for that. But to be honest I haven't been living with him, I don't know if there's been anything recently."

"Oh really? Is there any way to contact someone who might know more?"

From the entrance to the ward, I heard voices; I glanced that way.

"I demand you let us in!" raged an angry Roy Mustang; in his tow was Noa, Winnie and – of course – Rebecca.

"She would," I said, pointing to Rebecca. The doctor glanced at me, then her, then waved to the nurses who were restraining Roy and the others. Noa rushed to me, gently squeezing my shoulder; instantly she understood everything that had happened. She took the baby out of my hands and kissed my cheek.

"It's okay," she said, and she almost tried to smile.

"What happened?" asked Roy and Winnie at the same time.

"I don't know exactly," I said. "Why don't we ask her."

I looked at Rebecca.

She looked around at all of us.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said.

"Miss," said the doctor, clearing his throat. "Do you know this man?" He nodded towards Al.

"Yes," she replied cautiously. "I live with him."

"And have you noticed any unusual symptoms lately? Anything at all?"

She looked at all of us again, then shortly, "No."

She barely whispered it, but the lie was so obvious it was like she was shouting in our faces. I stepped forward, ready to make her talk, but before I could, Roy had roughly grabbed her arm. He pulled her around to face him, his anger boiling in his eyes.

"Rebecca," he said, something close to a snarl on his face. "Listen to me. Look me in the eye." She wouldn't. He took hold of her chin and forced her to look at him. "Look at me." She finally met his gaze. "Let me make one thing very clear. This bitch act? It's not cute anymore. And you can laugh all you want but this is one thing that I'm not going to allow you to shrug off. You see that boy on the bed there? He could be dying. And as far as I know, it's your fault. So for Christ's sake, Rebecca, tell us what you know."

"I don't know anything," she said, snatching her arm away from him.

He stared at her.

"You're never coming back to my house, Rebecca," he said quietly, angrily. Winnie almost protested, but she stayed silent. "I swear to God." He took a deep breath and turned around, looking at the room. "I really think you should tell the doctor what you know, Rebecca," he said, refusing to look at her. "Because I'm about ten seconds away from beating your ass worse than your stepfather ever could."

Silence.

Then, staring at the ground, she mumbled, "I got him medicine."

"What?" I asked sharply.

"Medicine," she said, louder now. "I may be selfish but I'm not stupid. I don't want him to die, whatever you think."

"And this...medicine," said the doctor; it was clear what he thought she had given him. "Where did you get it?"

She was silent for a second.

Roy reached out to take hold of her arm again.

"A doctor!" she said quickly, stepping out of Roy's reach. "A real doctor!"

"Really," said the doctor sceptically.

"Really," she insisted, glaring at him.

"Who?"

She looked uncomfortably around.

Winnie laughed. We all looked at her.

"It's pretty obvious, isn't it?" she asked, almost affectionately. "Becca never pays for anything. At least, not with money."

The doctor looked at Rebecca. "Is this true?"

Finally, she nodded. The doctor sighed; then he signalled for a nurse. "We'll sort this out," he said. "Excuse us." He gestured for Rebecca to step away from the rest of us, to talk to the nurse. Grudgingly, she did so.

Roy instantly said, "I am so sorry for her. I-"

"Don't," I said, holding up a hand. "If anyone's fault, this is mine. I should've...well. There are a lot of things I should have done."

Winnie let out a bark-like laugh again. "You two. It's like one big pity party in here. Can't we all just blame Becca and be done with it?"

She was met with silence, and she sank into a quiet sulk.

That was when I noticed Noa hovering over Al, touching his hand gently. I stepped close to her, putting my mouth to her ear so neither Roy or Winnie could hear. "What do you see?" I asked.

She pulled her hand away. "Not much," she murmured in reply. "Everything's so blurred..."

"Aren't you supposed to be able to see best when people are asleep?" I asked, desperate.

"He's not asleep, Ed," she replied gently. "He's unconscious. There's a difference."

I ground my teeth.

"But he's going to wake up," Noa assured me. "Soon. I promise."

Helplessly, I asked her, "How do you know?"

She smiled sadly and touched my face, brushing a strand of hair out of my eyes. "He's not going to let you lose him," she whispered. "Not like this. Not again."

I looked at her, then at him, then I nodded. "Right," I said, trying to hide my fear. "You're right."

It was a few minutes later that Rebecca returned with the doctor. For once, she actually looked embarrassed. "Well, it looks like the medication he received was the best he could've gotten," sighed the doctor. "Which explains why he's not as bad as he should be right not. But that doesn't explain why he is as bad as he is right now. If he'd been taking the medicine, he should be just fine by now."

We all looked at Rebecca.

She let out an exasperated sigh. "He took everything I got him." Defiantly, she added, "And I'm not lying this time!"

The doctor asked, "Did you watch him take the medicine?"

She didn't say anything, only stared at the doctor. Then she looked at Al, and she managed to say, "I... no. I didn't."

The doctor looked at us. "Well, it seems that for some reason, he stopped taking the perfectly legitimate medicine he had out of his own accord." He paused. "But I suppose none of us will know why until he wakes up." Another silence. Then he nodded to all of us. "Excuse me," he said, and he turned and slipped away.

I turned and walked to Al's bed. Roy took a few chairs and set them beside the bed; I sat in one, grateful to be off my feet. I could barely take in all that had happened. All I could think about was my brother's prone body lying on the hospital bed in front of me.

I hadn't even noticed that Rebecca had sat down across from me when Roy said, "Becca. It's probably better if you leave."

She gaped at him, offended. "I will not leave!" she said indignantly. "I think I of all people deserve the right to be with him now! What if I lose him?" She took Al's hand and pressed it against her face, but she couldn't even fake tears. "I couldn't stand that," she sighed. "Not my poor darling."

"Becca," I said.

She looked at me. She put his hand down.

Curtly, she said, "You're not the only one who cares about him, Edward."

"Bullshit."

We looked at Winnie, who was standing at the foot of the bed. She had a miserable smirk on her face. She rolled her eyes, then asked, "What's that on your finger, Becca?"

She instantly covered her hand. "It's nothing. A present."

"A ring?" asked Noa, confused.

Ignoring Noa, Winnie continued, "An engagement present, Becca? Is that it?"

"No," replied Becca quickly. "Of course not."

"Because there's no way you'd marry him," said Winnie, shaking her head. "You wouldn't marry anyone. Because that'd be like telling somebody you love them, and God knows you can't do that."

"Winry."

"Don't interrupt me, Becca. You can reject that poor boy as much as you want, that alone proves nothing." She laughed again. "But the fact that you have the gall to wear that ring on your right hand...well. I've never seen anyone like you, lovely, but I guess that shouldn't surprise me." Silence. "You don't love him."

"You're wrong," sniffed Becca. "I love him very much."

"I bet you wouldn't be saying that if he were awake."

"I bet you wouldn't even be here if you hadn't slept with his brother."

"Becca," said Roy, stepping between them. "That's inappropriate," he said to her, and then he turned to Winnie and muttered, "Don't let her provoke you like this."

But the damage was done. Winnie looked at Rebecca, then at me, then shook her head. And for a second I thought she was going to leave and go back to the house, but she surprised me by standing her ground.

"Don't worry," she said. "I've found her goading doesn't work half as well when she knows she's lying."

A scowl momentarily crossed Rebecca's face. That was when Winnie turned and walked away. I glanced at Noa, who nodded. Then I stood up as well. "Winnie. Winnie, wait."

She stopped and looked back at me.

I began, "You don't-"

"I know," she replied, faking a smile. "But it's fine. She's going to stay, and I'd rather not start a fight in a hospital so..." She shrugged. "Time to go."

Silence. Then I said, "Fine. Tell all the girls that we're okay. Hopefully he'll...wake up soon."

"Hold on. She'll leave as soon as she talks to him."

This time, I almost laughed. "I doubt that. But thanks for the encouragement."

Her smile was closer to being real now. "Goodnight, Ed."

"'Night, Winnie."

She left.

I went back to Al's bedside. Roy said, "I should probably go with her. She needs me to drive her, anyway."

"Yeah," I replied. "Go ahead. It's late, your family needs you. We'll be here."

"All right," said Roy. He looked expectantly at Rebecca. She returned the look. He shook his head and followed Winnie out.

And then it was just Rebecca, Noa, the baby and I. Noa sat against me, resting her head on my shoulder, her fingers resting on the bare skin of Al's hand. Rebecca just sat there, leaning against the wall. Eventually, the silence gave way to her gentle snores as she fell asleep. I couldn't sleep. I couldn't even close my eyes as I began to digest what I had just witnessed.

I had so many questions for my brother. But at the same time, they were things I was almost afraid to ask, because I had almost lost him tonight and somehow I knew it would be hard for him to talk about these things with me. And I didn't ever want to make anything hard for him ever again; when he woke up, I knew I'd be relieved. I wondered if I'd ever manage to ask him the things that needed to get out into the open.

Suddenly, Noa sat up straight, her hand closing around his. "He's waking up!" she said, and Rebecca started awake; something told me she had only been pretending to be asleep, and usually that would have bothered me, but right then I couldn't think about that. I could only see my brother. Al, whose head moved slightly, and then his eyes fluttered a little, and then-

A deep, shuddering breath. His head turned my way.

"Brother," he murmured.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Yeah," I said. "It's me, Al."

He blinked at me. "Are we home?" he asked, his breath barely above a whisper.

"No," I told him. "No, Al. We're still here. Here in America, with Noa."

His eyes travelled past me. Noa smiled at him. The corners of his lips turned upwards the slightest bit. "That's what I meant," he whispered hoarsely. "Home."

Noa had to raise a hand to her face to hide the tears welling in her eyes. She looked away; I put my arm around her. Rebecca put her hand on Al's other arm.

"I'm here too, Alphonse," she said tenderly, lovingly. She leaned down and kissed him. "You're such a fool. Never scare me like that again! I thought I was going to be all alone." She kissed him again. "Why didn't you take that medicine I got you, love? That was so you could be better. So we could be together forever."

He said nothing. Then, he pushed himself up to a sitting position. He mumbled, "I didn't like the way you'd paid for it."

She looked, once again, almost embarrassed. "Nonsense," she said, brushing his hair fondly. "That was all for you, my love."

I barely had enough strength to stay sitting up, and yet a fire was already burning in my belly. I still hated Rebecca. I couldn't help it. Every move she made was so contrived, the look in her eye still icy and cold. But I didn't say anything. I didn't want to upset Al, when he had just woken up.

Except I needed to upset him. I needed to talk to him, regardless of how he would feel about it. And regardless of who was there. "Al," I said. "I need to talk to you."

He looked at me. "You probably want an explanation."

"To say the least."

He looked at me, then his hands. Then he opened his mouth.

And then Rebecca said, "Alphonse, darling. You don't need to explain anything to him."

"I owe it to him, Becca."

"You owe him nothing." She took hold of him and physically turned him to look at her. "He left you, remember? But I'm still here. I've been here since we met. I didn't leave you. I never will. It's probably best if you just forget about him. I'll be happier that way. You want me to be happy, right?"

Al was silent for a long moment. I restrained myself from saying anything, choosing instead to look away.

"It's probably best," said Al slowly, echoing her words, "if you would leave now, Rebecca."

Silence.

A gentle smile still frozen on her face, she asked, "What?"

"Take the house," he said. "And the car. And the money, I don't care. Just give me my book. And then I'll leave, and you can do whatever you want with your life. I won't stop you anymore."

She stared at him.

"Alphonse," she said. "Alphonse, you must still be delirious. Take a good long nap, talk to me later. You'll be all better then."

"Rebecca," he said, looking straight at her. "I'm serious."

She opened her mouth; her breath came out unevenly. Something unhinged in her eyes. "But...Alphonse," she said faintly. "You love me."

"Yes," he said. "I do. And I think that's the only true thing you've said since I met you. I do love you." He stopped. "But you're never going to love me."

"Don't be stupid," she said. She raised her hand, pulled the ring off her finger, and quickly slid it onto the other hand, then held it in front of her face. "Look," she said. "Look! We're engaged now! I'll marry you! You're not going to leave me now, are you?"

He looked at her.

"You can't," she said. "We're going to have it all. We were going to have everything, Alphonse!" A manic look in her eye, she roughly pressed her lips against his. "See?" she asked. "You can't leave that. You never would."

"Becca."

"Stop saying my name!" she screeched. Then, realizing how panicked she sounded, she took a deep breath, and looked to the ground. "I need you," she whispered. "I need you in my life, Alphonse. Why would you leave me all alone? Why would you abandon me?"

He said nothing.

Her eyes shining, she asked, "Did I ever mean anything to you?" Nothing. "Were you...using me?"

Silence.

"Alphonse," she said. "Answer me."

Nothing.

She took hold of him, her nails digging into his shoulders like talons. "Answer me!" she repeated, loudly. Suddenly, she physically shook him, shrieking, "Why would you leave me!"

I was holding her shoulder before I realized I had stood up. "Stop!" she shouted, batting at my hand. "You're hurting me!"

She realized no one was buying it and shut up.

"Rebecca," I said with finality. "It's time to go."

She looked at him, then me, then at the floor.

She stood up quickly, dusting her dress off. "Fine," she said, trying to save face. But it was already too late for that. We had seen her flawless, hardened facade break. She hadn't managed to hide the desperation that usually lay dormant within. "Goodbye, Alphonse," she said. "I'll be taking your money out of the bank."

"I'll come for the book."

She almost rolled her eyes, but she didn't move.

"Becca," said Al one last time. "Please. Go."

She looked at him, then she turned to face me and said, her eyes narrow and accusing, "I will never forgive you for this. This is my entire future you're stealing from me."

And then she turned on her heel and left.

Al sank into his bed with a sigh.

He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

"Thank you, Ed," he said.

And I couldn't help but smile, because he looked freer than he'd been in a long, long time.

In this chapter, everyone is freed from the worst thing in their lives. But it's up to your own interpretation as to what that is, especially concerning Al.

This story has become more of a personal project than anything else. I am determined to finish it, and I know it will. If you all want to abandon the story by now, it's fine. I just need proof that I finished it.

But this is not the end.

By the way, I'm also in the process of writing a Death Note story set after the conclusion of the series. It's a collaboration with my friend Andrea, who I have successfully converted. It's going to involve most of your favorite characters (with the exception of L, of course), and even a character or two you aren't expecting to see. Definitely expect to see some of that by the end of this year. Since it's a collaboration, I'm going to be much more motivated and successful in dedicating myself towards this story. And it has a lonnnng, non-overly-dramatic plot. Involving lots of wonderful death. And everyone's favorite mass murderer, Light Yagami. Yay Light!