Pills and Buttons

A House Is A Home

Mustang shuts the car off, turning around to look at his passenger in the back seat. Fast asleep, Ed wrinkled his nose adorably and snored softly. The driver got out and opened the back door, glancing behind him as Riza pulled up in a second car with Hayate. Bella was curled up on Ed's feet, snarling at Mustang. Coaxing the dog out took a few moments, but finally she was out. Roy shifted Edward into his arms, the blonde's head resting on his shoulder once again.

"Come on, Black Hayate." Riza ordered, whistling quietly in a sharp manner as the two hounds dashed ahead. Roy had decided that a house would be a better option than his small apartment, so he had traded for a three bedroom townhouse near the edge of Central. Bella sat on the welcome mat, her large body next to the door.

"Get the keys out of my front pocket. My hands are full." Riza dared a snort, reaching into the pocket of Roy's jeans and fishing the keys out. She slipped the matching one into the lock, swinging the door open quietly for the Flame Alchemist. Hayate and Bella darted inside, beginning to sniff every inch of the place. They started upstairs, leaving the humans downstairs.

"First bedroom is down that hall, the other two are upstairs. I'm going to be up there for Ed, but I'm not sure if he would want me in the same room as he is. The other upstairs bed is open if you want it." Roy jogs up the stairs with Edward relaxed in his arms. He used his hip to nudge open the first door in the hall, using his shoulder to flip the light switch. They light up softly, the shade he put on working well to dim everything. It would be gentler on Edward's eyes.

He draped said alchemy master on the bed, the sheets and comforter already pulled back. He tucked Ed's feet under, pulling the blankets up around his shoulders. He shifted in his sleep, Roy freezing in place. Ed was saying something, calling his name at least once. He sounded scared, like he was trapped in a nightmare.

"Scream all you want. No one can hear you." Shou laughed, his teeth stained red by something he really didn't want to think about. Luna was shaking, breathing kinda loudly next to his chamber as she was forced to alchemise his automail leg into chains for his foot and thigh. She waited as long as she could, said things like 'he wasn't in his Prime's and to wait one more year. The mad man wouldn't have it anymore. He would start today.

"Give me C-23." He held out his hand, Edward watching with such fear in his eyes that Meyer had the urge to paint them like that. He would have to wait though. "Now." He held out his hand again, Luna slapping a plastic syringe of clear liquid into his hand. Muscles tight, Ed started to breathe heavily.

"Roy! Mustang, you promised!"

"Y-you promised!" Edward shifted in his sleep, thrashing as Roy backed away to avoid being smacked. He moved in again, tossing the covers off and hugging him close.

Luna sat inside the box, hugging him close to her as he screamed. It burned his thigh and his hand, so much that he lost the feeling. His wrists burned where truncates held blood flow back. His hand was swollen and red, and Ed was afraid it would burst. "Shhh... I'm sorry Edward. I'm sorry. Just calm down, please. It's okay."

"Just calm down," Roy shushed the tiny alchemist, holding him close as he cried. Bella and Hayate had scampered in with Riza on their tails with her gun drawn just to find them there, Edward sobbing in his sleep. "Please. It's okay." He ran a hand over Ed's hair, untying the braid to really run his fingers through the blonde tresses.

She ran her hands through his hair, soothing him and his cries. She had nearly gone deaf, but she had to stay with him. "There there, it's okay. Shhh..." Her thumb drove away a tear as he pants for breath. The burning was a dull numb now, his hand fading into a pale color. It didn't look healthy. His thigh, without the automail, was dead to the damn world. "I'm really sorry. I am. I got something that'll take your mind off it." She pulled a book out of her back pocket. It was called Almost Home. "A favorite of mine, really."

"There there, it's okay." Roy shushed him, pressing their cheeks together. "Shhh..." the boy's head rested on his shoulder and he was shocked the blonde was still sleeping. He should wake him, but he had been tired beforehand...

"Edward, wake up. It's time to wake up. I'll pour syrup all over you and let the dogs lick you until you get up." Ed broke out of his fog somehow, groaning and coughing to clear his throat. His hands gripped Mustang's coat, his breathing strangled from his crying and screaming.

"What a-about syrup?" That was all he heard as he awoke, turning his head in the direction of Roy's voice. The bandages over his eyes were wet with tears and Riza went to fetch more.

"I threatened to pour it over you and let the dogs free." Colonel Mustang ran his hands through Fullemetal's hair again, touching the silky blonde strands with care. "I won't though."

"That's good. Bella's huge." Edward rests his cheek against Mustang's shoulder, breathing better now.

"Great Danes tend to be such." Upon hearing her name, Bella nosed her way in between the two. Her nose was wet against Ed's neck as she licked him in comfort.

"How do animals know?" Edward asks suddenly, running his fingers over Bella's short clipped tan fur. He scratched behind her ears, smiling as there tail thumped against the bedpost.

"How do they know what?" Roy rose a brow, catching the bandages Riza tossed at him. She disappeared downstairs, Bella and Hayate following close. Ed wrapped his arms around Roy, sighing.

"How do they know when you hurt? Psychologists say they know the human brain, but do they?" He inhales the charred smoke smell that bounced off Roy with every inhale. It was soothing.

"Maybe." Roy wrapped his arms around the small alchemist in return, rubbing his back. "Maybe in their own way. They must think every brain is the same and everyone has the same reaction to pain or love or... anything. But they don't." His fingers slipped into Ed's golden waves. "They don't understand everything with the brain of a master mind or the heart of loyal military officer." He slowly untied the bandages, balling them up to stare at Ed's golden eyes. "Or the eyes of a blind boy."

"Or the words of a Colonel." Fullmetal smiles softly, his arms still around Mustang. "But you're right. For once." His voice is a whisper, hair a shower curtain of amber.

"Once is better than not at all." Roy's fingers are gentle as he rewrapped Edward's eyes, the image of their piercing passion clouding his vision. Ed doesn't reply, just traces a finger over Mustang's jaw. It was sharply square, his ear soft and slightly curved. When finished, Roy cups each of Ed's cheeks with a hand. His thumbs rubbed away any left over moisture, clearing away slightly blotches of red. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Ed was silent a moment, flashes coming back to him. "Not now." The Colonel could respect that. He pressed his lips to Edward's forehead, moving his bangs back to contact the skin. Under the one hand that cupped his left cheek, Roy felt the skin heat up slightly.

"Mustang..."

"Call me Roy." He insisted.

"Can I tell you something?" His fingers are still tracing Roy's jaw and ear.

"Of course." He wraps his arms around Ed's waist.

"I want you to kiss me."

OKAY PLEASE DON'T KILL ME I HAD TO CLIFF HANGER IT WAS NECESSARY. 😯😫😧😓😥😶