Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ Our Brothers ❯ For the Child ( Chapter 9 )

Our Brothers

By: joyfulmusic

 

I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. None of it… Ain't that just so sad?

Warnings: A few small spoilers. There are some thoughts of suicide, and there will be an eating disorder... or two.

 

Chapter 9: For the Child

 

Memories came flooding back as I watched Alphonse. It seemed that every move he made was that of my younger brother's. The way his hair bounced as he turned his head. His smile could light up the darkest room, on the gloomiest days. The child's eyes stayed full of wonder as he seemed to experience everything for the first time.

 

 

“Hurry Ona!” He rushed ahead of me when he saw the stream. “It's right over here!” He pointed gleefully. I'd already put a ton of sunscreen on him so that he wouldn't end up burnt to a crisp.

 

The sun was high overhead, its rays keeping us warm. The flowers were slowly fading away as autumn came into the world. The leaves were slowly changing color. Everything seemed to be preparing itself for the coming winter. Everything that is, except for Al, who didn't care what the weather was like.

 

“Can we go into the water?” He was wearing shorts and was already sitting under a small tree pulling off his shoes. “It'll be alright. Won't it Ona? I mean if we get in just to get a little wet.”

 

Setting the picnic basket down beside him I ran the back of my hand along the forehead. It wasn't exactly hot out but then again it wasn't very cold either. Yet I knew from experience the water would be freezing. “Yes, we can wade if you want to.” I smiled down at him.

 

He grinned up at me then pulled at his socks. “Great! And maybe I'll catch a fish! Then we can have it for supper.” He was rushing to the water within moments, leaving his socks where they lay.

 

“You better not catch a fish.” I warned. “Unless you intend on being the one to clean and cook the thing.” Personally I didn't like the flavor of fish, but if he would be willing to do all that, I'd oblige him.

 

I took a seat and started to pull off my shoes. I carefully folded my socks and laid them inside. Before standing I did the same with Al's. That way they wouldn't get blown away should a wind come swooping by.

 

Looking up I could see him concentrating on the stream below. Silently he stood watching the fish swim by. His hands were already in the water, just waiting for an unsuspecting perch to swim between them. Oh no, he'd better not catch one of those stupid things!

 

I stood and walked quietly over to the edge of the brook. It wasn't full of fish but there were a few small ones swimming around. Then I couldn't help it. I dipped my foot into the water. Slowly I drew it back, just far enough. Then I kicked sending a splash of water at Alphonse.

 

“Hey!” He yelped standing straight up. “That's not fair! How about if I did that to you?” I didn't have time to move before he'd bent down and splashed me. The water was, just as I had assumed, freezing cold.

 

“OH!” I shivered, then smirked at him. “Is that how you play huh? Well then fine!” I waded quickly to the middle of the stream and pushed the water up at him.

 

Laughing we both splashed each other. Suddenly I slipped and fell flat on my butt. “Oh!” I winced at the hard rocks. “That hurt.” I rubbed my hip gently as Al walked over to check on me.

 

“You're ok aren't you?” He leaned over looking at me with concern. I frowned then held out a hand to be helped up. He took it before realizing what I was about to do. I gave his arm a short tug and he came falling into the water.

 

I'd already noticed that he'd land in mud rather than the rocks so he wouldn't be hurt. “Now I am.” I laughed splashing him.

 

He laughed too and we ended up having another war of water. Neither of us seemed to win. By the time we got out each of us were soaked through and through. Not to mention we smelled like fish.

 

 

That night, to my great dismay, we ended up eating perch. Al had caught them after we'd eaten our picnic lunch. As agreed he had cleaned and cooked the things himself. So now one lay before me on a plate.

 

“Eat is Ona, it's good.” Alphonse smiled, taking a bite of his own. He'd ended up catching one for each of us. “Besides, fish is healthy for you, so eat up.”

 

I wrinkled my nose a little before taking my fork and cutting it. It looked horrible, but he had worked so hard on this meal. It meant a lot to him so I took a bite. We would have to buy some tarter sauce if he was going to keep catching fish for diner.

 

 

“See I told you it wasn't that bad.” I washed the dishes as he dried them. “You just have to get used to them is all.” He sighed slightly before putting a plate up in the cabinet.

 

“I have a better idea.” I told him letting out the dish water. “How about if you don't catch anymore and then I won't have to get used to them.” I was flicked water at him. So he giggled a little splashing me back.

 

 

“Brother.” Al murmured in his sleep, reaching out for an unseen person. He frowned as if in pain. “Brother.” His cries were soft but strained. Dreams seemed to haunt him, steeling the rest he so desperately needed.

 

I moved to the bed and gently rubbed his cheek. His face was in a deep scowl. I rubbed his forehead lightly, causing the lines to relax. “Brother, please.” He whispered, reaching out again. I took his hand and he squeezed it tightly.

 

I turned and with my other grabbed the pillow I was going to take to the living room with me. Instead I slid it gently into his arms. He latched on tightly and buried his face in it. He mumbled something that I couldn't quite understand. I shifted the blankets and tucked him in.

 

 

Walking back to the hall I turned to my left. I opened the door which led into the tight little washing room. I pulled a towel out of the dryer and folded it into the shape of a pillow. Then I took a pillowcase from one of the shelves. I tucked the towel inside then made my way back to the living room.

 

I laid down and tried to sleep. It bothered me that I still had no leads on Al's brother. It seemed like the task was becoming more difficult by the day. I didn't mind the thought of having to care for Alphonse. In fact I wanted to.

 

I'd been alone for so long that having someone to care for now meant a lot to me. It meant having someone to spend the day with, someone other than myself in the house. It was nice having someone to talk with. The sound of his laughter seemed to make life more bearable.

 

Yet I knew that there was a chance that we would find his brother. What that meant I wasn't sure of. It could be that he had changed his name to avoid his past. What would it mean to now have his brother standing before him again? If he had married, would his wife be willing to take care of Al?

 

Another possibility was that he had gone mad and been put into an institution. All that I had heard for sure was that he'd had a breakdown. None of the reports mentioned how severe it had been. I hoped that it hadn't been bad enough to have put him in a mental hospital.

 

The worst possibility was that he had killed himself. Suicide was something that State Alchemist did too often. People said that they would see so much devastation and pain that they simply couldn't take it. Fullmetal had seen more than his fair share, according to the papers I'd read. Believing his brother had been killed before his eyes could have pushed him over the edge.