Hundred Themes EdWin - 034

'It's not anxiety'

You totally cannot blame me for the tora-uma thing. Blame Ouran.

Many thanks to Shingmei for pointing out that yes, I got the chapters mixed up. Again.

When Winry was in labor with their second child, Edward did not do much better than the first time.

"Winry... Winry, Winry, Winry, Winry..." he paced the waiting room floor frantically, scuffing the polished surface. "Winry..."

"Brother," a voice piped up behind him.

He continued pacing, not seeming to have heard.

"Brother."

No response, aside from Edward's mumbling rapidly turning incoherent.

"Brother!" Al finally yelled, sticking his foot out and cringing as Ed tripped over it and hit the floor.

He seemed to not see - anything. He stayed on the ground, muttering something about cheese and sapphires and death.

Al knelt beside him. "Brother... Winry's fine. She's strong, and she did survive your first child."

Ed's lips moved, but Al couldn't hear what he said. He moved his ear closer, a bit gingerly. Ed might bite. "Winry, Winry, Winry, Winry..."

Al picked up the phone.

"Yes? Pinako Rockbell speaking."

"Granny? I think Ed's having an anxiety attack."

"It's not anxiety," Ed complained from the floor. "It isn't."

Al sighed. "He's having a panic attack, Granny."

"Get someone to knock him out, there's a good boy, Alphonse."

"But Granny!" Al exclaimed, horrified. "I can't do that!"

"He'll knock himself out this way sooner or later," Pinako pointed out reasonably. "Winry would understand that Ed's a bit... excitable. He'd as well break something or disturb people if this goes on."

Al sighed.

It was so tempting for the very reason that it was all too true.

When Winry woke up, she was mostly curious as to what had happened to Ed.

She was surprised by the sight of him grumpily keeping watch over her.

"Ed?" she rasped, and he pushed the glass of water towards her with his flesh arm grumpily.

"Hey."

She raised a skeptic eyebrow. "Don't 'hey' me, Ed. What happened while I was out?"

"I watched you, for -hours-," he answered. "They knocked me out for about five minutes and and detached the automail in my arm. 's gonna be a bitch to get back on... and -ouch-."

Winry glared at him. "Is that quite -all- you have to say to me, Ed?"

He managed to glare briefly before wilting. "I was going to say they tied me up to the bed and--"

"He was having an anxiety attack, Winry," Al informed her, popping his head into the room before promptly skipping off.

"WAS NOT!" Ed yelled after his brother frantically. "It wasn't anxiety. It isn't..."

"It's okay," Winry soothed. "It's fine. Breathe, Ed."

When he'd calmed down, he said in a whisper as he stared at his bedsheets and pointedly not at her, "It's just... you wouldn't like it if I cried or was worried, would you?"

Winry felt a small smile grow and spread across her face. "Don't worry, Ed. It's kind of cute how you worry for me. It's a bit strange having to wait for someone like you, isn't it?"

"Huh?" he asked, drowsy. Winry would bet that he clung to every shred of consciousness after being knocked out and tied to the bed.

"It's you," she explained. "You like -doing- something. You're not used to having to stay still, wait, and hope for the best. You don't like having no control of the situation."

He grunted. "I don't see how you can wait for us all the time."

"That's why I do all I can," she said simply.

"Brother! Winry!" Al called, cheerfully entering the room.

He beckoned people into the room, and Granny Pinako entered, with Den in tow and holding their one-year-old son, Jon Elric.

Then, various military personnel filed into the room, beaming widely. Armstrong sparkled. Black Hayate wagged his tail beside his mistress, standing beside the Führer.

"Skipping work again, Sir?" Ed greeted mockingly.

"I'll let you go because you're so small and defenseless right now tied up in your bed."

"WHO'RE YOU CALLING SUCH A TINY SHRIMPY MIDGET THAT HE DOESN'T NEED TO STRAIN HIS EYES TO LOOK THROUGH TINY CRACKS IN THE WALL BECAUSE HE CAN EXPLORE THE LONG WINDING PATHS ON HIS OWN GIVEN A FEW DECADES OR SO?!"

"Ed, aren't you, um, forgetting something?" Al asked.

The personnel let out a hearty chuckle as a blushing Ed suddenly turned his gaze back at the door, where Jean Havoc entered in a wheelchair. Behind him, a nurse had a blanket-wrapped bundle.

"It's a girl," the lady announced, and Ed would have flopped back down on the bed if he were able to do much more than roll over.

So much could happen so fast, he thought. Nine months of a pregnant Winry to a very pregnant Winry was all gone.

Thank goodness.

"Mom! Dad! Look, she was so TINY!"

"So were you, you midget," Ed said fondly, rubbing his son's head as he glanced at the photo album.

"You can't call me that, Daddy. You'll tora-uma-tize me."

"Smart kid," Ed smiled. "It's traumatize."

"That's what I said."

"Hey, protect your sister, okay?"

"Of course I will!"

"No matter what?"

"With my life!"

"You're a good kid," Ed said softly. "Never lose sight of your beliefs, and understand the consequences of what you do."

"I will."

"It's a man to man promise, huh?"

"Yep!"

"Ed? Jon? Dinner!"

"Now, let's get back to your Mom and eat apple pie!"

"After you drink your milk, Dad?"

"Oh, shut up."

"You're not supposed to say that!"

"You'll stop me, pipsqueak?" As his son grumbled, Ed laughed. It felt good to call someone short.

Besides, Jon would grow tall one day. Tall and strong. Like his dad.