CA: Chapter 5 Part 2
Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist, hell I don't own the title to this fan fic. FMA belongs to Arakawa-sama and the title and song belong to the writers, editors, and whatnot of Martina McBride. I do not condone abuse nor am I a fan of it. I also do not own any characters from Naruto or familiar characters from other series; they belong to Kishimoto-sensei and their respective artists.
A/N: Dark themes, child abuse, violence, language. This story is fictional and should it offend anyone please do not read. Flames will be used to make smores and comments and constructive criticism is welcome. This story is un-beta'd and edited by me. Oh and here's a shocker, Hoenheim is the good parent in this, OMFG. Lol.
Eight Months later . . .
Summer vacation, well the end of considering school would be starting up again in three more weeks. Nonetheless, it was still summer and Ed was a little surprised by the invitation he received in the mail. Apparently Sasuke had invited him to his birthday party which was in three more days and two days after his actual birthday. The invitation was sitting on his desk in the study and he was currently glaring at it for what it said.
Mr. Elric,
On behalf of the Uchiha family we would like to invite you to the celebration of Uchiha Sasuke's thirteenth year. We would also wish to invite your family and the lovely young lady who accompanied you at the party where we were previously introduced. Please have your father reply with your response promptly. Festivities shall begin at precisely noon, Saturday, June 25th at our residence. We look forward to your presence.
Ed hated the formality of the invitation as well as how he was addressed as Mr. Elric and that pissed him off because he didn't want to be addressed the same way his father often was. He was Edward or Ed, nothing else. He figured that he would no doubtedly have to put up with the whole of Sasuke's family and while he did consider the quite, prideful classmate of his a friend he never did like large social gatherings.
Ed's head fell forward to bang on the top of the desk and he let out a groan, the damn party was tomorrow and he still hadn't managed to walk next door and pry an answer from Winry's foster parents on whether or not she could go with them. He'd asked after his father had read the invitation and called to confirm that they would be there a week ago. Obviously the Uchiha family liked to be prepared enough to send invitations out a week and a half before the actual function or whatever.
Ed turned his head on his desk to glare at the wall, why the hell was he being pulled into this kind of shit? He would have preferred sitting in his study doing summer assignments, studying alchemy books or hell going into the backyard and training over having to attend birthday parties. He hadn't even wanted to throw a party on his own birthday back in January and yet his father had refused to not throw one. Then there was Al's party and being dragged to all of Al's friends parties in between then and now. He was partied out, he hated birthday parties, all the kids were younger than him, boring, and then there were the parents wanting to talk about pointless things, and of course how he managed to get coerced into participating in the activities.
Ed closed his eyes, maybe Al was right, maybe Ed was just thinking this way because he wasn't socially adept and never knew what to say to anyone. Ed knew how to be polite when he felt like beating someone's face in, like with Winry's foster parents, or some of the students and teachers at the academy, or that smug headmaster. A scowl formed on his face then, that smug bastard was going to be at this party no doubt, he was Sasuke's uncle after all so of course he would be there. He'd have to put up with him and his friends, who worked at the academy, and their families, it was going to be even more annoying than the last party he'd been dragged off too.
He perked up a little bit when he remembered that there was a possibility that Winry could go with him this time. She had only been able to come to his and Al's parties after they'd all gone to Naruto's. Then his mood dropped as he remembered that Naruto and his family were going to be at the party, he didn't mind them too much and Naruto was interesting and entertaining, but with Naruto going there was a chance that all his friends would show up.
Ed jumped and banged his knee on the desk when his cell phone started ringing, damn he hated that thing, his father had bought both him and Al one once they started being invited to more parties and outings with friends. Though Al had more friends than Ed did. Ed had Sasuke, Winry, and Tidus when the older kid wasn't being a sardonic, pompous ass anyway. Ed pulled his black cell from his pocket and looked at it as it rang with the ringtone of some song by Slipknot he couldn't remember. It was Sasuke calling and Ed flipped it open and sat up as he answered, "Yeah, what's up Sasuke?"
"Hn. My mother keeps pestering me about whether that girl is coming with you or not."
"I don't know yet, I was just about to go over there and ask them, again."
"Hn."
"This party isn't going to be like Naruto's is it?"
"No. But he will be here."
"I already knew that, the two of you grew up together after all."
"Hn."
"I'll go over there and ask again and let you know."
"Hn."
"You're an ass."
"Hn."
Ed hung up and pocketed his phone before he made his way out of the study and downstairs to head next door. His father called out to him just before he could walk outside, "Where are you going?"
"Next door," Ed called back before slipping outside and closing the door behind him before Hoenheim had the chance to say otherwise. It only took a few second before Ed stood before the door and knocked on it, a few more for the door to open and for Mr. Wetherton to stand before him looking at him in question.
"Can I help you with something Edward?"
Ed put his hands in his pockets and shrugged, he'd let at least three days go by since the last time he'd asked the same question that came out of his mouth, "I was wondering if you and Mrs. Wetherton had decided on whether or not Winry can come with us to my friends' party."
Mr. Wetherton was silent a few moments before he stepped aside and motioned for Ed to come inside. Ed stood there looking at him with curiosity. Ed had never been invited into their home before without his fathers' presence and that made him feel unnerved but he stepped forward into the house anyway. The door was closed behind him and he was led to the living room and instructed to sit down while Mrs. Wetherton was fetched.
Now that Ed thought about it he hadn't seen Winry in a week, she wasn't outside, she hadn't come over even though she often liked to hang out at Ed's house upstairs in the study and try to convince Ed to play his violin for her when they weren't studying or researching something. That was one of the things Ed liked about Winry, she could devote herself to something as fully as he could and their interest in sciences often gave them things to talk about. While he discussed alchemy with Al silently so his father didn't complain or anything, he could talk to Winry about their common interests.
Winry wanted to study martial arts for instance; Ed suspected it was so she could learn to defend herself against those he already had his suspicions about even if he didn't have any proof. He and Al had spent time in their home country studying martial arts with their alchemy teacher so Ed was confident he could teach Winry what he knew if she really wanted to learn, but he didn't think he could teach her much as he couldn't bring himself to swing at her.
Ed looked up when both of Winry's parents entered the living room and looked around them hoping to see Winry but finding she wasn't there.
"We haven't had the time to ask you the specifics about this party," Mrs. Wetherton said with a polite smile.
"Uh . . . well I thought my dad told you all that already," Ed answered feeling that uneasiness grow.
"Ah, that's true, but as we've been busy we would like to hear them once more from you," Mrs. Wetherton continued as she and her husband took seats in the chairs across from Ed. Ed shifted from where he sat and shrugged, "Well, its' my friend Sasuke's party, he goes to school with me."
"Ah yes, I believe it’s Sasuke Uchiha you speak of."
Ed nodded, "Yeah," he'd already broken the habit of saying yes, he'd have to get back into that habit before school started or put up with some crap from his teachers.
Ed rubbed the back of his neck as he was looked at expectantly, "Umm, well it's in North Cambridge. I guess from what I know of Sasuke's family it's kind of formal. There's uh . . . going to be a lot of people there and I'm supposedly staying over there for the night or something. But my dad's going to bring Winry and Al home, if she can go."
Silence fell over the room again and it was a few minutes before the Wetherton's exchanged glances and looked at Ed again, who shifted restlessly under their scrutiny. He didn't like the couple and he sure as hell didn't like how much they seemed to enjoy how uncomfortable they were making him. He didn't like that they'd suddenly invited him into their home and were asking for details on a party they were already told about last week.
"Very well then, I think we can allow her to go even though she's still grounded."
"Grounded, for what," Ed let slip out before he could stop himself.
Mr. Wetherton scowled but Ed glared back at the man feeling his anger at the look override the unusualness taking place. Mrs. Wetherton chuckled and got to her feet, "I believe the party is tomorrow afternoon correct?"
Ed let the glare fall to look at her with a nod, she smiled, "Thank you. Why don't you go upstairs and say hello to Winry and let her know?"
Ed jumped to his feet, more than ready to get the hell out of the living room and away from them and ran up the stairs to Winry's room. There was startled yelp from upstairs before a door closed. The couple downstairs chuckled and exchanged glances before the husband said with a smirk, "It seems we make that young man quite uneasy."
"I believe our earlier suspicions about him were correct dear, it may prove to be troublesome."
"We'll just have to be careful and make sure that we ensure his silence."
Winry stared at Ed, "What the hell are you doing just barging into my room like that?"
Ed glowered at her, "It's not like you were changing or anything."
"That's besides the point," Winry hissed angrily as she glared at him.
Ed let out a sigh and relaxed, "Sorry, but your foster parents creep the hell outta me."
Winry sighed and sat back down on the edge of her bed where she'd previously been before Ed had barreled into her room so suddenly. She felt Ed's gaze on her and immediately remembered that while she had been confined to her room for the past week she hadn't bothered with her long sleeves and pants to cover up the bruises or evidence of her foster parent’s apparent 'disciplinary' actions. Before she could fold her arms over her chest in an attempt to hide the marks Ed was there and had seized both of her wrists. It wasn't a painful grip but it was strong enough to keep her from pulling or twisting free.
"What the hell is this," Ed motioned with a nod at her arms. There were bruises like handprints on her arms, a pair on her forearm just below her elbow and then on her biceps, the bottom showing just under the short sleeves of the light blue shirt she wore. She had on a pair of worn out blue jeans as the clothes she wore were better for doing household chores than her usual outfits.
"Nothing," Winry muttered. Ed released her and glared at her, "Bullshit Winry."
Winry looked away as she crossed her arms over her chest and felt a blush rise on her cheeks when she very well felt Ed looking at her legs and the marks there. She had at few violent, purple bruises, faded yellowish ones and a few scrapes here and there. Winry unfolded her arms and shifted to tuck her legs under her on her bed and then recrossed her arms and met Ed's gaze as he finally looked back into her face.
"What the fuck are they doing to you?"
Winry was caught off guard by the venom in Ed's voice, she could tell that he wasn't angry with her but at her foster parents and she felt flattered by that. Ed cared, he really did, and that was something that she had never really felt that she could remember, having someone care about her.
Winry kept silent, she couldn't answer him, and even though Ed cared there was really nothing he could do to help her. He'd already tried once before and while she did appreciate that he'd tried it had cost her dearly. She didn't want to go through that again, she didn't want Ed to try and help her because it would just make things worse for her. But she also worried over the fact that Ed was here, by himself, and that he'd barged into her room and made a comment about her foster parents being creepy. What was going on, did they have some agenda with Ed other than what she already knew? Did they plan on hurting her friend?
Winry tensed up immediately at that thought, No, I won't let them hurt him.
"Don't worry about it Ed-"
Ed glared at her in disbelief, "Don't worry about it? How the hell can I not worry about it, they're hurting you and I-"
Winry cut him off; "You can't do anything about it."
"The hell I can't!" Ed growled, "I'll go down there and beat the shit out of both of them," Winry flinched at the rise in volume to his voice but she was on her feet instantly when Ed turned to leave the room. She wrapped her arms around his middle and he froze in his tracks.
"Don't! I don't want them to hurt you Ed," Winry muttered where she'd buried her face into his back. Ed slumped in her arms and turned forcing her to let go and stepped back to put some space between them. Winry wouldn't look up at him, she knew she'd pretty much admitted to what he'd been saying now and there was no going back. She hadn't known Ed for a very long time but she knew that now that she'd admitted it he wasn't going to back down, she knew that he was stubborn.
"Have you tried to do anything, tell someone, report it, anything?"
"Who would believe me Ed," Winry demanded finally looking up at him.
"Hell, I don't know, teachers, other adults. You could just as easily just show them all those bruises, that's evidence of what they're doing, anyone would have the common sense to figure it out just by seeing them-"
Both of them jumped when the bedroom door was suddenly slammed open and Winry let out a cry of distress at seeing a very pissed off Alex standing in the doorway. Ed had turned around only to back up at the sight greeting him. Winry had taken a few backwards steps but she didn't want to move to far away from Ed.
"I think it’s time you went home young man."
Ed recovered from his shock of the angered entrance and glared darkly at the glowering man towering over him a few feet away, he was still blocking the doorway. Ed didn't take kindly to threats and this man was very obviously trying to threaten him, not to mention he was also one of the people hurting his friend and that pissed him off more than anything.
"Fuck you," Ed spat out.
Ed jumped back when the man stepped into the room looking as though he was about to strike Ed. Ed clenched his fists at his sides and continued to glare at the man challengingly, as though to say he dared him to hit him. Winry had raised her hands to cover her eyes so she didn't have to see her foster father hit Ed but now she had them folded over her chest. When Ed had jumped back she'd moved to sit on the edge of her bed.
"I think you're biting off more than you can chew Edward, its' best you returned home and I believe I've changed my mind about my daughter-"
"She's not your daughter you piece of shit! What kind of human being beats on a young girl who can't defend herself?! You're a sick son of a bitch! I'll leave but there's no way I'm leaving her here with you."
There was a knock on the door and all three of them looking to see a smiling Mrs. Wetherton standing in the doorway. She looked at everyone with the same easy smile on her face and then she addressed her husband, "I just spoke with Mr. Elric, it seems he doesn't mind Edward staying with us for the night."
Ed's jaw dropped in utter disbelief and then he clenched his jaw as he glanced at Winry's pale face before he turned to glare at the couple standing before him.
"Hell no, there's no way I'm staying here with you two psychopaths."
Ed was forced back a few steps when Alex stepped towards him, Ed stopped and stood his ground when he noticed that he was close to Winry. He refused to give this guy a chance to take a swing or grab at her so he made a split second decision, he swung with his right fist and when it was caught he swung with the other. The man smirked and caught that fist as well but his smirk fell when Ed smirked right back and then brought up his left knee and hit the man right in the groin. He was released immediately and fell to his knees with a grunt. Ed backed up but was caught off guard when something sharp struck his right arm cutting it deeply and forcing a hiss from Ed's lips.
Winry was on her feet then and at his side after that and Ed looked up to see Mrs. Wetherton standing there with a calm expression on her face and throwing knives in her hand. Ed's eyes widened when she made to throw another and he was caught by too much surprise to dodge the knife which landed painfully in his right thigh. Ed gritted his teeth and glowered at the woman as his hand dropped to the knife and gripped the handle sticking out of his leg.
He smirked when the woman looked startled to see him pull the knife out without a sound and threw it back. She easily dodged and went to throw another but Ed was prepared this time. He grabbed Winry's hand and pulled her behind him across the room towards her. Ed delivered a kick to Alex's face when the man made to grab him and swung at Jasmine as he passed by her and down the stairs. Ed heard feet shift behind him and pulled Winry around, turning on the stairs so that she was in front of him. Both of them ducked just in time to dodge a pair of knives and then Ed got to his feet, pulled Winry to hers and made for the front door. They were out of the house and running across the yard before either adults could stop them but not before Ed felt another pain flare in his lower back.
Winry and Ed were breathless when they finally made it inside and slammed Ed's front door closed behind them. Winry was sitting on the ground in front of Ed in the entrance while Ed stood trying to regain his breath, his hand reached back to try and remove what he assumed was a knife from his back but froze when he saw his father running down the hallway towards them.
"What's going on," his words died in his throat when he took in Ed's dishelved appearance and his eyes widened when he saw Winry sitting there on the floor. It took Hoenheim only a few seconds to take in the injured appearance of both kids and he rushed forward at the same time Winry clamored to her feet when Ed suddenly hit his knees.
Ed let out a hiss of pain when the knee of his injured right leg hit the ground and let out growl between clenched teeth when he managed to get a hold of the handle of the knife sticking out of his back and pull it out. When the metal landed on the floor Hoenheim grabbed his chin suddenly and forced Ed to look at him, "What the fuck happened, who did this?"
Ed blinked at him, he felt light-headed suddenly and his fathers' words sounded slurred to him when they finally registered in his mind. Ed glanced at Winry but regretted that movement when the world spun around him, [i]What the hell, a few knife wounds shouldn't do this much damage.[/i] Ed wasn't aware of the blood pooling from his leg anymore than he was aware of the blood soaking through his black t-shirt and blue jean shorts. When he nearly fell forward when his eyes had nearly closed Hoenheim caught him.
Winry was paler than a ghost at the moment and Hoenheim's mind was racing. He could figure this out for himself; it was obvious that since Ed had gone over to Winry's house and brought her back with bruises and marks of obvious abuse and injuries of his own what had gone on. The only good thing to come of this was that now they had evidence on the Wetherton’s. Hoenheim pulled out his cell phone and quickly called 9-1-1, he wasn't well versed with any knowledge on medical things despite his expertise in alchemy and science.
Winry shook her head beside him to clear her mind as Hoenheim moved to turn Ed over.
Winry found her voice then and said in a confidant tone, "No, don't lay him down yet, we have to find out where the wound on his back is and then lay him on the opposite side."
Hoenheim looked at her startled while he waited for the operator to connect him to E.R. Winry moved around to examine Ed's back and carefully peeled his blood soaked shirt up to find the wound. She looked up at the startled cry that came from Al as he ran down the stairs and her voice took on an authorative tone when Al stood there at the bottom in shock.
"Al, go and get some towels so we can stop the bleeding."
Al didn't move for a minute and Hoenheim looked to his youngest son, "AL! Do as she says!"
Al nodded, swallowed and then turned and ran back upstairs to do as Winry had instructed him. He was back in minutes with an armful of towels and then he was at Winry's side. Al let out a horrified gasp at the blood and all the color drained from his face, Winry worried over whether or not Al might faint but turned her attention back to Ed. When she pressed a towel to the wound she'd put her hand over to try and get it to stop bleeding Ed let out a groan but still didn't open his eyes.
"Lay him down on his left side," Winry said to Hoenheim who did as she said and spoke into his phone insistently and quickly. Winry glanced at Al and then said, "Al, press a towel to the wound on his leg," Al nodded numbly and grabbed a towel with shaky fingers but managed to hold the towel against his brothers' thigh. Winry let out a heavy sigh, she was still sore and shaken from what had happened as well as shocked by what Ed had done. He'd deliberately put himself in harm’s way to protect her, he'd stood up to both of her foster parents and was injured for it, how could someone as young as Ed be that stupid, crazy, and selfless?
She glanced at where Al was holding to towel to Ed's leg and said, "You have to put more pressure on it Al," he nodded and did so forcing another of those low groans from Ed. Winry carefully reached over Ed from where she was knelt down behind him and felt his pulse on his neck. She counted to herself as she watched a minute go by on the simple watch Ed wore on his right wrist. His pulse was too low, she hoped the ambulance would get here soon. She wasn't an expert or a doctor by any means but she'd spent a lot of time studying medical information and biology and since meeting Ed and Al she'd added mechanics and the theories of artificial limbs to her studies. Ed was bleeding too much and it wasn't stopping or slowing down and she numbly worried if an artery had been hit but couldn't remember fully where the arteries were specifically located.
She kept her fingers on Ed's pulse and didn't like how pale or clammy his skin was. It was the longest fifteen minutes Winry had even known before the paramedics finally knocked on the door. Hoenheim had regained some of his composure and moved quickly to carefully move Ed from being directly in front of the door. Hoenheim took in the quickened, short breathing, the pale skin, the sweat, and the blood on his floor within seconds and opened to the door. The paramedics didn't have Winry move aside right away when they saw what she was doing but Al was pulled up on his feet by Hoenheim seizing him around the middle and stepping out of the way with a firm hold on his younger son.
Both of the paramedics were young men but Winry didn't look at them directly even as they told her to move back. She barely noticed that one of them was talking to her when he asked, "How long has he been bleeding?"
Winry swallowed and looked up with startled, frightened eyes, now that she wasn't focused on trying to keep her friend alive the shock and horror of what was going on had set in. She let out a shaky breath and shuddered, "Umm, his leg was bleeding first, about two or three minutes before we managed to run over here," she hated how weak and small her voice sounded as she spoke.
The paramedic nodded to her with a reassuring smile and for some reason Winry felt irritated by it, she cleared her throat and looked at him directly, taking in pale skin, pale green eyes, and unusual silver hair and it made her pause for a moment in awe before she managed to find her voice.
"We were at my house; it was my foster mother that hurt him."
The paramedic nodded, "Alright, you're going to need to come to the hospital as well."
Hoenheim spoke up and the paramedic's gaze turned to him, "Of course, we'll follow you there. Is he going to be alright?"
This time the other paramedic was the one to speak but he didn't answer Hoenheim directly, "Get the gurney Riku."
The silver haired paramedic nodded and ran outside to the waiting ambulance, he returned with the gurney and Winry got to her feet and moved aside as both paramedics moved Ed onto it. The brown haired paramedic fixed a oxygen mask to Ed as the other connected a respirator to it. They were moving Ed to the ambulance without answering Hoenheim and all of them felt sick with worry about that but Hoenheim were moving down the hall to grab his keys, he ushered Winry and Al out of the house, turned and locked the door behind him and then they all made their way to the car. Hoenheim had Winry sit up front and once he made sure everyone was buckled up he started the car and eased out of the drive just as the ambulance pulled off, sirens blaring loudly.
Winry glanced towards her house and saw both of her foster parents watching from the living room window, she felt the twisting of hatred turn in her stomach as she looked at them but they turned away from the window as they passed. Winry looked forward again and minutes of tense, thick silence settled over everyone before Hoenheim cleared his throat and spoke up without looking at her.
"Tell me what happened Winry."
Winry nodded solemnly before forcing herself to take a deep, calming breath. The anger she felt towards her foster parents faded as her distress over Ed came back to the forefront and she was finding it harder and harder to keep calm. With all she'd already endured this was truly a trail for her. She knew she was shaking but she took a few more deep breaths and turned her gaze out the window, "Ed came over, I didn't know he was there until he barged into my room. I found out later it was because he was asking whether or not I could go to Sasuke's party."
Hoenheim nodded, "Yes, he's been bothering me to go over and pester your adopted parents about that all week," his voice had taken a sullen, regretful tone and Winry felt it wasn't fair that Hoenheim blame himself. Ed was hurt protecting her and her voice shook when she continued, "It's not . . . he was hurt because he was protecting me, he stood up to my foster father when he burst into the room-"
"Burst into the room?"
Winry nodded, "He was angry about something then, I don't know, maybe he overheard us talking."
"Talking about what?"
Winry shifted but was silent for a long time and when they had to stop at a red light, now very far behind the ambulance Hoenheim looked at her. The bruises, the marks, he'd forgotten noticing them because of how stressed and worried he was over Ed. He nodded, "I understand, what happened then, when Mr. Wetherton arrived?"
Winry closed her eyes and curled her arms around her middle, the guilt added in with the dread and she let out a distressed sound. She took a few more deep breaths to try and steady her voice before she went on, "He told Ed he needed to go home. But Ed refused, he cussed at him and told him he refused to leave without me . . . My mother showed up, saying you said Ed could stay over for the night," Winry paused to glance at Hoenheim and saw that it wasn't guilt but anger that showed on his face. She was lying, Winry thought to herself.
"Ed swung at him when he advanced and managed to kick him in the groin, but then my foster mother threw a knife at him. That cut on Ed's arm . . . "
Hoenheim let out a breath through clenched teeth and nodded, "What else?"
"She threw another knife, that's how his leg was hurt, he pulled it out and threw it back at her," she smirked as she remembered the shocked look on Jasmine's face and noticed that Hoenheim was smirking as well.
"Then Ed pulled me behind him and we made a run for it. He turned us around on the stairs and managed to keep both of us from getting hit with the throwing knives. I heard his breath hitch right before we made it outside so I assumed he'd been hit with another one . . ." Winry trailed off and clamped her mouth shut closing her eyes. Hoenheim reached over and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Brothers' going to be alright," Al said suddenly with absolute confidence and conviction in the back seat. Winry turned to look at him and she offered a weak smile at the determined look in those honey colored eyes. Winry nodded, "I think so to Al."
Hoenheim smiled at them as they finally made it to the hospital and pulled into the E.R. parking lot. "Of course he will, he's strong and an Elric after all." Both of them smiled at him as Hoenheim shut off the car and they removed their seat-belts. He was glad he had a picture phone because now that his sense had come back to him in his need to console the kids as well as find out what had happened he was going to get pictures of his son's injuries and then have pictures done of Winry's.
His son had been right and there was no way to deny it, he refused to let this happen to his son and not do all that he could to have the Wetherton’s pay for all the pain they had caused. He wasn't going to turn a blind eye or walk away without doing anything, not this time, never again. They walked silently into the E.R. entrance and up to the desk where Hoenheim was handed a clipboard with paperwork to fill out. They had to wait for the surgeon or doctor to arrive to be told of Ed's condition. It was a wait that would be the longest of their lives up until now.
TBC . . .
Part 1
Next Chapter
A/N: Dark themes, child abuse, violence, language. This story is fictional and should it offend anyone please do not read. Flames will be used to make smores and comments and constructive criticism is welcome. This story is un-beta'd and edited by me. Oh and here's a shocker, Hoenheim is the good parent in this, OMFG. Lol.
Eight Months later . . .
Summer vacation, well the end of considering school would be starting up again in three more weeks. Nonetheless, it was still summer and Ed was a little surprised by the invitation he received in the mail. Apparently Sasuke had invited him to his birthday party which was in three more days and two days after his actual birthday. The invitation was sitting on his desk in the study and he was currently glaring at it for what it said.
Mr. Elric,
On behalf of the Uchiha family we would like to invite you to the celebration of Uchiha Sasuke's thirteenth year. We would also wish to invite your family and the lovely young lady who accompanied you at the party where we were previously introduced. Please have your father reply with your response promptly. Festivities shall begin at precisely noon, Saturday, June 25th at our residence. We look forward to your presence.
Ed hated the formality of the invitation as well as how he was addressed as Mr. Elric and that pissed him off because he didn't want to be addressed the same way his father often was. He was Edward or Ed, nothing else. He figured that he would no doubtedly have to put up with the whole of Sasuke's family and while he did consider the quite, prideful classmate of his a friend he never did like large social gatherings.
Ed's head fell forward to bang on the top of the desk and he let out a groan, the damn party was tomorrow and he still hadn't managed to walk next door and pry an answer from Winry's foster parents on whether or not she could go with them. He'd asked after his father had read the invitation and called to confirm that they would be there a week ago. Obviously the Uchiha family liked to be prepared enough to send invitations out a week and a half before the actual function or whatever.
Ed turned his head on his desk to glare at the wall, why the hell was he being pulled into this kind of shit? He would have preferred sitting in his study doing summer assignments, studying alchemy books or hell going into the backyard and training over having to attend birthday parties. He hadn't even wanted to throw a party on his own birthday back in January and yet his father had refused to not throw one. Then there was Al's party and being dragged to all of Al's friends parties in between then and now. He was partied out, he hated birthday parties, all the kids were younger than him, boring, and then there were the parents wanting to talk about pointless things, and of course how he managed to get coerced into participating in the activities.
Ed closed his eyes, maybe Al was right, maybe Ed was just thinking this way because he wasn't socially adept and never knew what to say to anyone. Ed knew how to be polite when he felt like beating someone's face in, like with Winry's foster parents, or some of the students and teachers at the academy, or that smug headmaster. A scowl formed on his face then, that smug bastard was going to be at this party no doubt, he was Sasuke's uncle after all so of course he would be there. He'd have to put up with him and his friends, who worked at the academy, and their families, it was going to be even more annoying than the last party he'd been dragged off too.
He perked up a little bit when he remembered that there was a possibility that Winry could go with him this time. She had only been able to come to his and Al's parties after they'd all gone to Naruto's. Then his mood dropped as he remembered that Naruto and his family were going to be at the party, he didn't mind them too much and Naruto was interesting and entertaining, but with Naruto going there was a chance that all his friends would show up.
Ed jumped and banged his knee on the desk when his cell phone started ringing, damn he hated that thing, his father had bought both him and Al one once they started being invited to more parties and outings with friends. Though Al had more friends than Ed did. Ed had Sasuke, Winry, and Tidus when the older kid wasn't being a sardonic, pompous ass anyway. Ed pulled his black cell from his pocket and looked at it as it rang with the ringtone of some song by Slipknot he couldn't remember. It was Sasuke calling and Ed flipped it open and sat up as he answered, "Yeah, what's up Sasuke?"
"Hn. My mother keeps pestering me about whether that girl is coming with you or not."
"I don't know yet, I was just about to go over there and ask them, again."
"Hn."
"This party isn't going to be like Naruto's is it?"
"No. But he will be here."
"I already knew that, the two of you grew up together after all."
"Hn."
"I'll go over there and ask again and let you know."
"Hn."
"You're an ass."
"Hn."
Ed hung up and pocketed his phone before he made his way out of the study and downstairs to head next door. His father called out to him just before he could walk outside, "Where are you going?"
"Next door," Ed called back before slipping outside and closing the door behind him before Hoenheim had the chance to say otherwise. It only took a few second before Ed stood before the door and knocked on it, a few more for the door to open and for Mr. Wetherton to stand before him looking at him in question.
"Can I help you with something Edward?"
Ed put his hands in his pockets and shrugged, he'd let at least three days go by since the last time he'd asked the same question that came out of his mouth, "I was wondering if you and Mrs. Wetherton had decided on whether or not Winry can come with us to my friends' party."
Mr. Wetherton was silent a few moments before he stepped aside and motioned for Ed to come inside. Ed stood there looking at him with curiosity. Ed had never been invited into their home before without his fathers' presence and that made him feel unnerved but he stepped forward into the house anyway. The door was closed behind him and he was led to the living room and instructed to sit down while Mrs. Wetherton was fetched.
Now that Ed thought about it he hadn't seen Winry in a week, she wasn't outside, she hadn't come over even though she often liked to hang out at Ed's house upstairs in the study and try to convince Ed to play his violin for her when they weren't studying or researching something. That was one of the things Ed liked about Winry, she could devote herself to something as fully as he could and their interest in sciences often gave them things to talk about. While he discussed alchemy with Al silently so his father didn't complain or anything, he could talk to Winry about their common interests.
Winry wanted to study martial arts for instance; Ed suspected it was so she could learn to defend herself against those he already had his suspicions about even if he didn't have any proof. He and Al had spent time in their home country studying martial arts with their alchemy teacher so Ed was confident he could teach Winry what he knew if she really wanted to learn, but he didn't think he could teach her much as he couldn't bring himself to swing at her.
Ed looked up when both of Winry's parents entered the living room and looked around them hoping to see Winry but finding she wasn't there.
"We haven't had the time to ask you the specifics about this party," Mrs. Wetherton said with a polite smile.
"Uh . . . well I thought my dad told you all that already," Ed answered feeling that uneasiness grow.
"Ah, that's true, but as we've been busy we would like to hear them once more from you," Mrs. Wetherton continued as she and her husband took seats in the chairs across from Ed. Ed shifted from where he sat and shrugged, "Well, its' my friend Sasuke's party, he goes to school with me."
"Ah yes, I believe it’s Sasuke Uchiha you speak of."
Ed nodded, "Yeah," he'd already broken the habit of saying yes, he'd have to get back into that habit before school started or put up with some crap from his teachers.
Ed rubbed the back of his neck as he was looked at expectantly, "Umm, well it's in North Cambridge. I guess from what I know of Sasuke's family it's kind of formal. There's uh . . . going to be a lot of people there and I'm supposedly staying over there for the night or something. But my dad's going to bring Winry and Al home, if she can go."
Silence fell over the room again and it was a few minutes before the Wetherton's exchanged glances and looked at Ed again, who shifted restlessly under their scrutiny. He didn't like the couple and he sure as hell didn't like how much they seemed to enjoy how uncomfortable they were making him. He didn't like that they'd suddenly invited him into their home and were asking for details on a party they were already told about last week.
"Very well then, I think we can allow her to go even though she's still grounded."
"Grounded, for what," Ed let slip out before he could stop himself.
Mr. Wetherton scowled but Ed glared back at the man feeling his anger at the look override the unusualness taking place. Mrs. Wetherton chuckled and got to her feet, "I believe the party is tomorrow afternoon correct?"
Ed let the glare fall to look at her with a nod, she smiled, "Thank you. Why don't you go upstairs and say hello to Winry and let her know?"
Ed jumped to his feet, more than ready to get the hell out of the living room and away from them and ran up the stairs to Winry's room. There was startled yelp from upstairs before a door closed. The couple downstairs chuckled and exchanged glances before the husband said with a smirk, "It seems we make that young man quite uneasy."
"I believe our earlier suspicions about him were correct dear, it may prove to be troublesome."
"We'll just have to be careful and make sure that we ensure his silence."
Winry stared at Ed, "What the hell are you doing just barging into my room like that?"
Ed glowered at her, "It's not like you were changing or anything."
"That's besides the point," Winry hissed angrily as she glared at him.
Ed let out a sigh and relaxed, "Sorry, but your foster parents creep the hell outta me."
Winry sighed and sat back down on the edge of her bed where she'd previously been before Ed had barreled into her room so suddenly. She felt Ed's gaze on her and immediately remembered that while she had been confined to her room for the past week she hadn't bothered with her long sleeves and pants to cover up the bruises or evidence of her foster parent’s apparent 'disciplinary' actions. Before she could fold her arms over her chest in an attempt to hide the marks Ed was there and had seized both of her wrists. It wasn't a painful grip but it was strong enough to keep her from pulling or twisting free.
"What the hell is this," Ed motioned with a nod at her arms. There were bruises like handprints on her arms, a pair on her forearm just below her elbow and then on her biceps, the bottom showing just under the short sleeves of the light blue shirt she wore. She had on a pair of worn out blue jeans as the clothes she wore were better for doing household chores than her usual outfits.
"Nothing," Winry muttered. Ed released her and glared at her, "Bullshit Winry."
Winry looked away as she crossed her arms over her chest and felt a blush rise on her cheeks when she very well felt Ed looking at her legs and the marks there. She had at few violent, purple bruises, faded yellowish ones and a few scrapes here and there. Winry unfolded her arms and shifted to tuck her legs under her on her bed and then recrossed her arms and met Ed's gaze as he finally looked back into her face.
"What the fuck are they doing to you?"
Winry was caught off guard by the venom in Ed's voice, she could tell that he wasn't angry with her but at her foster parents and she felt flattered by that. Ed cared, he really did, and that was something that she had never really felt that she could remember, having someone care about her.
Winry kept silent, she couldn't answer him, and even though Ed cared there was really nothing he could do to help her. He'd already tried once before and while she did appreciate that he'd tried it had cost her dearly. She didn't want to go through that again, she didn't want Ed to try and help her because it would just make things worse for her. But she also worried over the fact that Ed was here, by himself, and that he'd barged into her room and made a comment about her foster parents being creepy. What was going on, did they have some agenda with Ed other than what she already knew? Did they plan on hurting her friend?
Winry tensed up immediately at that thought, No, I won't let them hurt him.
"Don't worry about it Ed-"
Ed glared at her in disbelief, "Don't worry about it? How the hell can I not worry about it, they're hurting you and I-"
Winry cut him off; "You can't do anything about it."
"The hell I can't!" Ed growled, "I'll go down there and beat the shit out of both of them," Winry flinched at the rise in volume to his voice but she was on her feet instantly when Ed turned to leave the room. She wrapped her arms around his middle and he froze in his tracks.
"Don't! I don't want them to hurt you Ed," Winry muttered where she'd buried her face into his back. Ed slumped in her arms and turned forcing her to let go and stepped back to put some space between them. Winry wouldn't look up at him, she knew she'd pretty much admitted to what he'd been saying now and there was no going back. She hadn't known Ed for a very long time but she knew that now that she'd admitted it he wasn't going to back down, she knew that he was stubborn.
"Have you tried to do anything, tell someone, report it, anything?"
"Who would believe me Ed," Winry demanded finally looking up at him.
"Hell, I don't know, teachers, other adults. You could just as easily just show them all those bruises, that's evidence of what they're doing, anyone would have the common sense to figure it out just by seeing them-"
Both of them jumped when the bedroom door was suddenly slammed open and Winry let out a cry of distress at seeing a very pissed off Alex standing in the doorway. Ed had turned around only to back up at the sight greeting him. Winry had taken a few backwards steps but she didn't want to move to far away from Ed.
"I think it’s time you went home young man."
Ed recovered from his shock of the angered entrance and glared darkly at the glowering man towering over him a few feet away, he was still blocking the doorway. Ed didn't take kindly to threats and this man was very obviously trying to threaten him, not to mention he was also one of the people hurting his friend and that pissed him off more than anything.
"Fuck you," Ed spat out.
Ed jumped back when the man stepped into the room looking as though he was about to strike Ed. Ed clenched his fists at his sides and continued to glare at the man challengingly, as though to say he dared him to hit him. Winry had raised her hands to cover her eyes so she didn't have to see her foster father hit Ed but now she had them folded over her chest. When Ed had jumped back she'd moved to sit on the edge of her bed.
"I think you're biting off more than you can chew Edward, its' best you returned home and I believe I've changed my mind about my daughter-"
"She's not your daughter you piece of shit! What kind of human being beats on a young girl who can't defend herself?! You're a sick son of a bitch! I'll leave but there's no way I'm leaving her here with you."
There was a knock on the door and all three of them looking to see a smiling Mrs. Wetherton standing in the doorway. She looked at everyone with the same easy smile on her face and then she addressed her husband, "I just spoke with Mr. Elric, it seems he doesn't mind Edward staying with us for the night."
Ed's jaw dropped in utter disbelief and then he clenched his jaw as he glanced at Winry's pale face before he turned to glare at the couple standing before him.
"Hell no, there's no way I'm staying here with you two psychopaths."
Ed was forced back a few steps when Alex stepped towards him, Ed stopped and stood his ground when he noticed that he was close to Winry. He refused to give this guy a chance to take a swing or grab at her so he made a split second decision, he swung with his right fist and when it was caught he swung with the other. The man smirked and caught that fist as well but his smirk fell when Ed smirked right back and then brought up his left knee and hit the man right in the groin. He was released immediately and fell to his knees with a grunt. Ed backed up but was caught off guard when something sharp struck his right arm cutting it deeply and forcing a hiss from Ed's lips.
Winry was on her feet then and at his side after that and Ed looked up to see Mrs. Wetherton standing there with a calm expression on her face and throwing knives in her hand. Ed's eyes widened when she made to throw another and he was caught by too much surprise to dodge the knife which landed painfully in his right thigh. Ed gritted his teeth and glowered at the woman as his hand dropped to the knife and gripped the handle sticking out of his leg.
He smirked when the woman looked startled to see him pull the knife out without a sound and threw it back. She easily dodged and went to throw another but Ed was prepared this time. He grabbed Winry's hand and pulled her behind him across the room towards her. Ed delivered a kick to Alex's face when the man made to grab him and swung at Jasmine as he passed by her and down the stairs. Ed heard feet shift behind him and pulled Winry around, turning on the stairs so that she was in front of him. Both of them ducked just in time to dodge a pair of knives and then Ed got to his feet, pulled Winry to hers and made for the front door. They were out of the house and running across the yard before either adults could stop them but not before Ed felt another pain flare in his lower back.
Winry and Ed were breathless when they finally made it inside and slammed Ed's front door closed behind them. Winry was sitting on the ground in front of Ed in the entrance while Ed stood trying to regain his breath, his hand reached back to try and remove what he assumed was a knife from his back but froze when he saw his father running down the hallway towards them.
"What's going on," his words died in his throat when he took in Ed's dishelved appearance and his eyes widened when he saw Winry sitting there on the floor. It took Hoenheim only a few seconds to take in the injured appearance of both kids and he rushed forward at the same time Winry clamored to her feet when Ed suddenly hit his knees.
Ed let out a hiss of pain when the knee of his injured right leg hit the ground and let out growl between clenched teeth when he managed to get a hold of the handle of the knife sticking out of his back and pull it out. When the metal landed on the floor Hoenheim grabbed his chin suddenly and forced Ed to look at him, "What the fuck happened, who did this?"
Ed blinked at him, he felt light-headed suddenly and his fathers' words sounded slurred to him when they finally registered in his mind. Ed glanced at Winry but regretted that movement when the world spun around him, [i]What the hell, a few knife wounds shouldn't do this much damage.[/i] Ed wasn't aware of the blood pooling from his leg anymore than he was aware of the blood soaking through his black t-shirt and blue jean shorts. When he nearly fell forward when his eyes had nearly closed Hoenheim caught him.
Winry was paler than a ghost at the moment and Hoenheim's mind was racing. He could figure this out for himself; it was obvious that since Ed had gone over to Winry's house and brought her back with bruises and marks of obvious abuse and injuries of his own what had gone on. The only good thing to come of this was that now they had evidence on the Wetherton’s. Hoenheim pulled out his cell phone and quickly called 9-1-1, he wasn't well versed with any knowledge on medical things despite his expertise in alchemy and science.
Winry shook her head beside him to clear her mind as Hoenheim moved to turn Ed over.
Winry found her voice then and said in a confidant tone, "No, don't lay him down yet, we have to find out where the wound on his back is and then lay him on the opposite side."
Hoenheim looked at her startled while he waited for the operator to connect him to E.R. Winry moved around to examine Ed's back and carefully peeled his blood soaked shirt up to find the wound. She looked up at the startled cry that came from Al as he ran down the stairs and her voice took on an authorative tone when Al stood there at the bottom in shock.
"Al, go and get some towels so we can stop the bleeding."
Al didn't move for a minute and Hoenheim looked to his youngest son, "AL! Do as she says!"
Al nodded, swallowed and then turned and ran back upstairs to do as Winry had instructed him. He was back in minutes with an armful of towels and then he was at Winry's side. Al let out a horrified gasp at the blood and all the color drained from his face, Winry worried over whether or not Al might faint but turned her attention back to Ed. When she pressed a towel to the wound she'd put her hand over to try and get it to stop bleeding Ed let out a groan but still didn't open his eyes.
"Lay him down on his left side," Winry said to Hoenheim who did as she said and spoke into his phone insistently and quickly. Winry glanced at Al and then said, "Al, press a towel to the wound on his leg," Al nodded numbly and grabbed a towel with shaky fingers but managed to hold the towel against his brothers' thigh. Winry let out a heavy sigh, she was still sore and shaken from what had happened as well as shocked by what Ed had done. He'd deliberately put himself in harm’s way to protect her, he'd stood up to both of her foster parents and was injured for it, how could someone as young as Ed be that stupid, crazy, and selfless?
She glanced at where Al was holding to towel to Ed's leg and said, "You have to put more pressure on it Al," he nodded and did so forcing another of those low groans from Ed. Winry carefully reached over Ed from where she was knelt down behind him and felt his pulse on his neck. She counted to herself as she watched a minute go by on the simple watch Ed wore on his right wrist. His pulse was too low, she hoped the ambulance would get here soon. She wasn't an expert or a doctor by any means but she'd spent a lot of time studying medical information and biology and since meeting Ed and Al she'd added mechanics and the theories of artificial limbs to her studies. Ed was bleeding too much and it wasn't stopping or slowing down and she numbly worried if an artery had been hit but couldn't remember fully where the arteries were specifically located.
She kept her fingers on Ed's pulse and didn't like how pale or clammy his skin was. It was the longest fifteen minutes Winry had even known before the paramedics finally knocked on the door. Hoenheim had regained some of his composure and moved quickly to carefully move Ed from being directly in front of the door. Hoenheim took in the quickened, short breathing, the pale skin, the sweat, and the blood on his floor within seconds and opened to the door. The paramedics didn't have Winry move aside right away when they saw what she was doing but Al was pulled up on his feet by Hoenheim seizing him around the middle and stepping out of the way with a firm hold on his younger son.
Both of the paramedics were young men but Winry didn't look at them directly even as they told her to move back. She barely noticed that one of them was talking to her when he asked, "How long has he been bleeding?"
Winry swallowed and looked up with startled, frightened eyes, now that she wasn't focused on trying to keep her friend alive the shock and horror of what was going on had set in. She let out a shaky breath and shuddered, "Umm, his leg was bleeding first, about two or three minutes before we managed to run over here," she hated how weak and small her voice sounded as she spoke.
The paramedic nodded to her with a reassuring smile and for some reason Winry felt irritated by it, she cleared her throat and looked at him directly, taking in pale skin, pale green eyes, and unusual silver hair and it made her pause for a moment in awe before she managed to find her voice.
"We were at my house; it was my foster mother that hurt him."
The paramedic nodded, "Alright, you're going to need to come to the hospital as well."
Hoenheim spoke up and the paramedic's gaze turned to him, "Of course, we'll follow you there. Is he going to be alright?"
This time the other paramedic was the one to speak but he didn't answer Hoenheim directly, "Get the gurney Riku."
The silver haired paramedic nodded and ran outside to the waiting ambulance, he returned with the gurney and Winry got to her feet and moved aside as both paramedics moved Ed onto it. The brown haired paramedic fixed a oxygen mask to Ed as the other connected a respirator to it. They were moving Ed to the ambulance without answering Hoenheim and all of them felt sick with worry about that but Hoenheim were moving down the hall to grab his keys, he ushered Winry and Al out of the house, turned and locked the door behind him and then they all made their way to the car. Hoenheim had Winry sit up front and once he made sure everyone was buckled up he started the car and eased out of the drive just as the ambulance pulled off, sirens blaring loudly.
Winry glanced towards her house and saw both of her foster parents watching from the living room window, she felt the twisting of hatred turn in her stomach as she looked at them but they turned away from the window as they passed. Winry looked forward again and minutes of tense, thick silence settled over everyone before Hoenheim cleared his throat and spoke up without looking at her.
"Tell me what happened Winry."
Winry nodded solemnly before forcing herself to take a deep, calming breath. The anger she felt towards her foster parents faded as her distress over Ed came back to the forefront and she was finding it harder and harder to keep calm. With all she'd already endured this was truly a trail for her. She knew she was shaking but she took a few more deep breaths and turned her gaze out the window, "Ed came over, I didn't know he was there until he barged into my room. I found out later it was because he was asking whether or not I could go to Sasuke's party."
Hoenheim nodded, "Yes, he's been bothering me to go over and pester your adopted parents about that all week," his voice had taken a sullen, regretful tone and Winry felt it wasn't fair that Hoenheim blame himself. Ed was hurt protecting her and her voice shook when she continued, "It's not . . . he was hurt because he was protecting me, he stood up to my foster father when he burst into the room-"
"Burst into the room?"
Winry nodded, "He was angry about something then, I don't know, maybe he overheard us talking."
"Talking about what?"
Winry shifted but was silent for a long time and when they had to stop at a red light, now very far behind the ambulance Hoenheim looked at her. The bruises, the marks, he'd forgotten noticing them because of how stressed and worried he was over Ed. He nodded, "I understand, what happened then, when Mr. Wetherton arrived?"
Winry closed her eyes and curled her arms around her middle, the guilt added in with the dread and she let out a distressed sound. She took a few more deep breaths to try and steady her voice before she went on, "He told Ed he needed to go home. But Ed refused, he cussed at him and told him he refused to leave without me . . . My mother showed up, saying you said Ed could stay over for the night," Winry paused to glance at Hoenheim and saw that it wasn't guilt but anger that showed on his face. She was lying, Winry thought to herself.
"Ed swung at him when he advanced and managed to kick him in the groin, but then my foster mother threw a knife at him. That cut on Ed's arm . . . "
Hoenheim let out a breath through clenched teeth and nodded, "What else?"
"She threw another knife, that's how his leg was hurt, he pulled it out and threw it back at her," she smirked as she remembered the shocked look on Jasmine's face and noticed that Hoenheim was smirking as well.
"Then Ed pulled me behind him and we made a run for it. He turned us around on the stairs and managed to keep both of us from getting hit with the throwing knives. I heard his breath hitch right before we made it outside so I assumed he'd been hit with another one . . ." Winry trailed off and clamped her mouth shut closing her eyes. Hoenheim reached over and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Brothers' going to be alright," Al said suddenly with absolute confidence and conviction in the back seat. Winry turned to look at him and she offered a weak smile at the determined look in those honey colored eyes. Winry nodded, "I think so to Al."
Hoenheim smiled at them as they finally made it to the hospital and pulled into the E.R. parking lot. "Of course he will, he's strong and an Elric after all." Both of them smiled at him as Hoenheim shut off the car and they removed their seat-belts. He was glad he had a picture phone because now that his sense had come back to him in his need to console the kids as well as find out what had happened he was going to get pictures of his son's injuries and then have pictures done of Winry's.
His son had been right and there was no way to deny it, he refused to let this happen to his son and not do all that he could to have the Wetherton’s pay for all the pain they had caused. He wasn't going to turn a blind eye or walk away without doing anything, not this time, never again. They walked silently into the E.R. entrance and up to the desk where Hoenheim was handed a clipboard with paperwork to fill out. They had to wait for the surgeon or doctor to arrive to be told of Ed's condition. It was a wait that would be the longest of their lives up until now.
TBC . . .
Part 1
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