Author's Note: There is a drawng (rated G) that inspired this drabble, and may be found here: http:// peace-of-hope . deviantart . com / art / Fireflies-77149517 (just take out all the extra spaces)

This was written for wenrenee's (on livejournal) birthday. Happy Birthday!

F I R E F L I E S

The house was lonely, with Winry away in Rush Valley again, Pinako slumbering peacefully upstairs, and the oppressive void of his better half.

Alphonse leaned against the open windowsill, taking in a deep breath of the June air. It was warm out, the humidity clinging to his clothes and hair. The occasional breeze relieved him of the discomfort of summer, yet for all the heat, he refused to take his red coat off. The worn fabric had seen worse in the desert, endured numerous punches and hits in attempted training, and had been showered with both rain and tears over the last few months; it could last the summer.

He stared out at the midnight sky, aimlessly wondering if he could count the starts like when he and Ed were children, if he could reach out and grasp the Dipper by the handle, cook up a meal to give to Edward wherever he was, looking out at the same sky, wondering if he could burn a meal to give to Alphonse. Or so Al hoped, heart sinking… his grip grew harder on the pane, and he realized it needed another coat of paint badly.

The cicadas chirped noisily, but rhythmically. Al had grown used to them after all the summer nights spent in Risembool, with the window to their room open. Fireflies would lazily fly inside and illuminate the room in short bursts.

"Brother! Catch me a firefly!" Al exclaimed in excitement after a second firefly had floated in their room.

Ed rubbed his eyes, sitting up in his bed across the room. "Catch one yourself," he complained, flopping back down and rolling over.

Al pouted and whined, "Please…?" If it hadn't been pitch black, Ed would have seen the puppy-dog eyes Al was pulling again in an attempt to sway him. But Al's voice was enough to spur Ed to action.

Al heard the darted movements among the sheets as Ed sought to capture a firefly in his hands, a fumbled flop on the bed, and then a grunt of success. He darted out of his own bed to Ed's, grinning as he approached the flickering neon light.

The glowing bug was imprisoned in Ed's small hands, kept confined but not tortured by the enclosure. It beat its wings furiously against the human cage, but couldn't escape. Al watched with curiosity as the abdomen of the insect lit up green and then flashed back to nothing.

"There's a chemical in its body that makes it glow," Ed explained, a hint of pride in his catch evident in his voice. "Animals like that are called bio-lumi-nes-cent." He sounded out the syllables, pride swelling at pronouncing such a big word.

Al's smiled widened, although invisible in the dark. "Thank you, brother," he whispered, placing his hand over Edward's. Gently, he pulled Ed's fingers back so that the cage was open and the firefly buzzed back into the gloom. They watched it glow out the window, where more fireflies waited to light up the night sky.

Al stood in the grass, barefoot. The coarse feeling of the grass tickled the bottom of his feet, but it felt nice after being inside all day. The breeze blew through his hair and his coat, cooling him off again but not enough to relieve the sticky feeling of his shirt on his skin.

Fireflies danced glowing waltzes around his form, sending out the little shoots of neon green light. Al giggled a little, despite the lingering loneliness, as he caught one in his hand with a quick swipe. He let it go a second later, almost regretting imprisoning it for the short time in his palm, hearing the anime struggle so futilely. But it flew away unharmed and his smile returned.

When Edward comes back, they will catch fireflies together.