dramadramaduck | [Video, accidental...or maybe not.]

Current Mood: decimated
Current Location: Somewhere near Inaba, Japan

[Video, accidental...or maybe not.]

((After this post. Or fight rather, and before this day. ))

[The scenery is white. Inaba is a snowy place when it comes down to it, as Edward's phone is in his automail hand all you can really see is white, and a black sweatshirt. A glimpse of his flesh hand, it's red from the cold and there's dried blood, not that Ed seems to have noticed. As he trudges through the snow it's hard to tell if he's on the road to Inaba proper, or further into the farmland. He's not even sure where he is, when it comes down to it.]
<
[A stumble and the angle is changed, you can see Ed's face, his braid poking out of the hood and little clouds come in fast breaths as he walks. He's getting tired. It's dark, and he's been out there awhile now. Because of the snow he hasn't really made as much progress as he would have liked. Honestly, he's trying to reach somewhere specific, a farm he's familiar with. But he's lost.]

[He pulls his flesh arm around his stomach, grimacing a little. He's so tired. His lips are moving, quietly at first and finally he finds his voice, a soft, muttered litany.]

Come on you motherfucking asshole...that's it, take everything I got. Give it to me, take it away, make it hurt. You fucking little shit. I ain't dead yet, I can take more...come on, what the fuck do you got?! Huh?

[He's quiet for a moment.]

That's what I thought.

[He stumbles and collapses to his knees, hands flat as he takes a few deep breaths before looking at the phone. His eyes close and he balls his fists.]

That's what I fucking thought. Coward.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I'm not scolding him. I'm going to yell at him. There's a big difference.

[Sorry, Winry. But this is how Elrics communicate. This, and hitting. Al can't really move back to physically comfort Naoto, plus armor hugs in freezing weather aren't exactly... comfortable.]

Naoto, this isn't anyone's fault but Brother's.

[Somehow, Hohenheim thinks that in the end, this all comes back to him. Of course, he's the one who started all of this, by wanting to attend the Christmas party. Hooray for family guilt complexes! Now you know where the Elrics get it from!]

I don't think this is the time for... [He squints up ahead, peering through his glasses. There's something far up ahead in the distance... It looks like a small snow drift, but some of the snow looks a bit stirred up.]

Is that...? [A feeling of dread settles in the pit of Hohenheim's stomach.] Come on, let's hurry! I think I see him up ahead!

[Of course, Alphonse would know for sure...]

[Winry can't run as fast as a suit of armor or a long-legged immortal. That doesn't stop her from trying. She will keep her promise and bring Ed home.

And if anyone is planning on yelling or scolding him, they'll have to get through her first.]

Naoto, his device - ?

[Naoto sniffs again, blinking back the tears while she stares down into her cell phone's screen.]

It looks like... about 300 yards or so...? Just a little farther...

[His last thought, before he topples over, is that he'll wait until Ed's conscious to yell. He just wouldn't appreciate it, otherwise.]

Alphonse! [Hohenheim immediately kneels beside the fallen suit of armor. He lays one hand against the armored shoulder and shakes him a bit.] Wake up! Pull yourself together!

[And then suddenly he remembers the reason for Al's current state.]

Edward!

[For a moment, he's torn between two conflicting feelings: to stay by Al's side, or to go and rescue Ed. But the choice is obvious. If Ed dies, then Al will die too.

Pulling himself to his feet, he spares a quick glance at the girls.]

Stay here with Alphonse. Don't let him get buried beneath the snow. I'll go get Edward and bring him back here, okay?

[Without even waiting for a reply, he puts both hands in front of him and places the palms together before quickly throwing his arms out to his sides. The snow before parts before him in a straight line and he hurries down the newly created path toward what is surely the half-frozen body of his son...]

[Winry is torn. She'd told Ed she'd come for him - now, Alphonse has collapsed, too. Shifting her feet, she stares after Mr. Hohenheim, chewing her lip.]

Ed. [This is not what she wanted. This was not how things should have ended up.]

Alphonse...

[Naoto knelt down and rested one gloved hand against his back. He was cold. So very cold. Even if he couldn't feel it... she hated to see him like this. Lying face down in the snow. Lifeless. As if he were no more than an empty suit of armor left to rust in the snow...]

[She, too, raises her head and watches the tall man in the brown trench coat move further and further away from them...

If anything happened to Ed or Al... Naoto would never forgive herself. Never.]

[Hohenheim quickly made his way to what had appeared to be a snow drift in the distance. But as he moved closer, he could tell that is was Edward. The boy was curled into himself, covered with snow. Wet and shivering terribly. His face was drained of color, and his lips had a bluish tinge to them.]

Edward! [Hohenheim dropped to his knees and brushed the snow from the boy's body.] Edward! Wake up! Open your eyes! Say something!

[He shook the boy's shoulders, trying to stir him into wakefulness. Please, please... A single word. A blink of the eye. It would be enough.]

[He was being shaken rather rudely and he'd been dozing, but still. Winry would forgive him, wouldn't she?

He blinks a few times, disoriented.]

You're in the way of the snow.

Naoto, Mr. Hohenheim has Ed. [Winry's voice is level and she touches Naoto's shoulder lightly. It isn't what she wants - she wants to be with Ed.]

[Naoto raises her head and looks at Winry over her shoulder. She couldn't hold the tears back anymore. They felt hot against her cold cheeks.]

I'm sorry... This is all my fault...

[That's all she can say right now.]

[Thank God! They made it in time. He gives a small, hysterical laugh in relief.]

Hush... You're going home. You'll be safe. Everything's going to be all right...

[He scooped Edward up into both arms, cradling the boy's body close to his chest in the hopes that he might derive a little warmth from his body. Though small and slender, the automail hangs heavy. Dead weight. But Hohenheim barely notices. It's like he's carrying a limp doll with mismatched limbs in his arms.

As he begins walking back toward the others, Hohenheim realizes that not once had he ever held his boy like this. Even when Edward had first been born, he'd been too afraid to hold such a beautiful, fragile thing in his bloodstained hands. And yet... why did it feel so natural? To hold his teenage son in his arms like this, so protectively...]

[The fact he's not very aware is the only reason he'll grip onto Hohenheim's neck. Also he is not keen on falling, not when he's already freezing. He's a source of heat, that much is true, and Ed can't help but seek it out instinctively.]

I'm dead aren't I...Winry will cry. Don't...don't let her cry...

[Ed... he's so thin. He shouldn't be this light, not for a boy of his age and body type. Yes, he's on the short side, but still... He grips Ed against his body and quickens his pace. Hopefully, the woolen scarf wrapped around Hohenheim's neck should offer a little warmth to Ed's chilled fingers.]

No, you're not dead... And if Winry cries, it'll be because she's so happy to see you...

[In fact, there are tears streaming down Hohenheim's cheeks. Because he's so incredibly happy to know that his son is alive, and he is thankful for the opportunity to hold him in his arms like this. Like a father holding his child...

In a few more moments, he will have rejoined the others. And then... they can all return home to the estate...]

I promised..not to make her cry.

[It's really hard, out in the chill of the air, to keep his eyes open, so he simply doesn't.]

[He probably should have wrapped Ed up in his coat first thing... but it's too late for that now. In any case, he's finally made it back to the others. Winry and Naoto are both kneeling beside Al's lifeless body.]

He's alive. [Barely.] I think he's going to be fine... But how are we going to carry Alphonse back? We can't just leave him here...

[Naoto immediately scrambles to her feet and touches Edward with one hand. Just to make sure he's really alive. And he is. He's breathing. But his skin is so cold...]

We can use my world-hopping device to travel within the same world, too. Just as long as everyone is touching me, we can all go back together...

[After everyone had gathered close to Alphonse's body, Naoto transported them back to the Shirogane estate. Normally, Naoto didn't like to teleport indoors, but this was a special case. They were all in the family room. There was a fire going in the grate. Good. They could concentrate on getting Ed warmed up now.]

[Winry points at the fire, taking charge.] That needs to be built up. I need hot water and cloth for bandages - and blankets. Ed's going to need something warm - tea would be good, beef broth would be better. And aspirin - he's going to be hurting.

[Picking up Ed's flesh hand, Winry frowns at the caked blood. The warmth in the room was making the wound ooze.]

Naoto, hot water bottles will help warm him up, too. We can wrap them in towels and put them on his ports.

[Despite Mr. Hohenheim cradling Ed against his chest, Winry rises up on her toes, whispering in Ed's ear.] You're home, Ed. It's okay. [She kisses his temple but doesn't linger, she has too much to do.]

[Though she doesn't want to leave Ed, she knows she needs to help get everything together to take care of him.] Mr. Hohenheim. [Winry hesitates and fixes him with a steady stare.] Keep pressure on Ed's arm. Keep him warm. Al's practically radiating ice, otherwise I'd say put them together. Naoto, I need your help.

[Naoto nodded and glanced toward Hohenheim.] Okay, I'll leave the fire to you. I'll be right back with some blankets, and some hot water.

[She stood and hurried to the kitchen to inform the staff of the situation. They'd take care of the hot water and soup while Naoto busied herself searching the linen closet for blankets and towels.]

[As Naoto left the room, Hohenheim knelt near the fire and continued to hold Edward in his arms. He was loathe to release his hold on the frozen boy, but he needed to get the fire going...

Carefully, he laid Edward out on the carpet and spared a glance toward Alphonse, whose lifeless body was lying face down on the carpet. There was a light sheen of frost on his metallic body, but it would melt quickly. Nothing could be done to help him until he helped Edward first.

So, ignoring Alphonse for the time being, the older alchemist threw a few more logs onto the fire and tended to it with the poker, making sure it would blaze up nice and hot before he returned to his son's side once more. Only now did he notice the wound on Edward's flesh hand, which had begun to ooze blood once more now that his body was thawing out.]

What happened to his hand...? It's bleeding...

[Winry presses her hand on Al's chestplate as she passes by him. Ed's jacket is now useless but he'll need fresh clothes. Blood had been splattered on both his trousers and his shirt and Winry didn't want him to wake up to that.]

Mr. Hohenheim, Ed can't be too close to the fire. The automail doesn't just conduct cold.

[She takes Ed's boots off, wrinkling her nose at how damp even his socks are, and pulls those free, too.]

I'm going to get him new clothes, sir. [Gathering up Ed's things, Winry starts out of the room.]

[Ah... That's right. How could such a crucial detail slip his mind? Chalk it up to worry over his son's well-being.]

Yes, of course. [He mumbles as he picks his son up and holds him against his chest once more, moving him away from the fire. Once again, he carefully lays Ed down on the carpet. He takes a moment to examine his son's naked body. He looks a bit thin. How long has it been since Ed's had a decent meal? His eyes linger on the scars surrounding the port affixed to Ed's right shoulder. Hohenheim had always heard that automail surgery was excruciatingly painful. And that Ed had to undergo it at the tender age of ten, and had forced himself to complete his rehabilitation in only the span of a year.

Hesitantly, he reaches forward and lets his fingertips brush against the scarred flesh surrounding the automail port. Those scars... Constant reminders of the sin those two committed... Never to be erased. Symbols of pain both physical and emotional.]

Oh, Edward... I had no idea the burden of these scars could prove so heavy. Such a strong boy you are. But you don't have to carry such a burden alone anymore... If only you could realize that...

Edited 2010-12-17 07:45 (UTC)

[It was at that moment that Naoto returned with a bundle of heavy blankets and quilts, and a pillow. The petite detective had piled so many of them in her arms that she could barely see over them.]

Here are the blankets. [She offered them to Hohenheim, who was quick to take them, and began to spread them out over Edward's body. He tucked the pillow gently beneath his head, hoping that the movement wouldn't disturb him much.] I'll go check on the hot water and see if it's ready now.

[She turned and hurried for the kitchen once again.]

[Al, across the room, began stirring as the warmth pulled his brother back from the edge of hypothermia. Ed, seriously injured, might not wake right away, but with his soul anchored more firmly, Al began to wake.

Moving slowly, the armor crossed the room and laid a hand on his father's shoulder.]

Re: [rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

Re: [rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[rescue party actionspam is go!]

[action spam!]

[action spam!]

[action spam!]

[action spam!]

[action spam!]

[action spam!]

[action spam!]