A Bond of the Heart and Hand: Part 1.

This is a slight AU that follows the same plot line as the FMA, but with the alteration that Roy Mustang regularly administers spankings to Edward out of care.

WARNING: If you have issues with the spanking of a child/teenager, then do not read. This has nothing to do with sex, but with the parental administration of discipline that would have been both timely to the era and helpful to the kid. I don't condone spanking as a punishment for children in real life, but I don't really see Ed completely as a child, even if he's twelve. Again, if you have issues with this, do not read it.

When the boys had managed to reach Mustang by communication, he was pleased. When he tested their ability to deliver a train safely despite terrorists, he was quite pleased. When Ed managed to reach his office in the middle of his paperwork without his brother and cause problems, he was relieved that there was some sparkle of childhood left in the kid. That would make things so much simpler.

Except he had to deal with the brat in front of him now instead of after his paperwork was finished. Mustang rubbed his temple in annoyance when the guards dropped the kid off in his office. Mustang ushered the kid to the leather couch in his office and dismissed the others for their lunch break. He justified it in his head by thinking that keeping Ed as part of the group would make all their lives easier in the end.

"What were you hoping to gain by pissing on the military brass?" Mustang asked, "I told you to wait in the lounge for a few hours and then I would get around to taking you to your mentor's house." The kid stared up at him defiantly.

"Proving to you people that I am not a puppet," Ed growled. Mustang narrowed his eyes.

"So you decided to anger the very people who are willing to give you a chance by acting like a child. Did you think this through? You could have lost your opportunity to take the exam," the words seemed to take an effect on Ed, who was losing his smug look, "Where's Al?"

"I left him in the room. He doesn't know that I'm gone," Ed murmured guiltily. Mustang sighed and reached forward, putting his hand on the blond's shoulder. Golden eyes looked up at him confusedly.

"Look Edward, I need to clarify you on some fine lines that exist in our relationship, mainly the ones having to do with disobeying the right orders and causing the right kind of mayhem," Mustang explained, "I trust your judgment and ability to maneuver sticky situations, so I give you State orders that you can work around. However, there are situations that can give you and me more hell than we can deal with. Causing purposeful mayhem is one of those. Refusing to include your brother, allowing yourself to come to avoidable injury or danger because of guilt or stupidity, and self depreciation are not going to be tolerated while I'm around. Ever." The golden eyes were seething behind a curtain of blonde hair, arms crossed in fury, and Mustang could see this message was not getting across.

"Or what?" Ed hissed. Mustang walked over to Ed's left and sat down on the couch. In one swift movement, he flipped the boy over his knee. The momentary surprise gave Mustang the momentum to grab Ed's good arm and pin it behind his back. However, the boy recovered fast enough to start kicking, and his auto mail leg came down on the coffee table with a crack that drove a split through the wood.

"What are you doing?" Ed yelped, "Let me go you bastard? Who do you think you are?" The mouth had regained some function back, unfortunately. Mustang threw a leg over the two flailing ones, trapping them in place. The auto mail arm was in a difficult to maneuver spot, but Ed managed to elbow Mustang in the side with the metal. Mustang grunted.

"If you don't control your arm, I'm going to call for backup," Mustang murmured as he flipped the red coat up and tucked it over Ed's pinned arm. He loosened the belt beneath the boy and yanked the pants and underclothing down, "As for what I'm doing, I think it's obvious. I'm giving you a spanking."

"You can't do this to me!" Ed yelped, "What gives you the right?"

"The fact that I'm one of the few adults in your life who cares about you," Mustang murmured as he adjusted Ed once more and bit off his glove, "And I think that deep down, that's very important to you."

SMACK! Ed froze under the first slap. That hurt more than he thought it would. With a determined huff of breath, he told himself that he wouldn't give Mustang the pleasure of hearing him in pain. His thought was interrupted by a rain of spanks that fell upon his vulnerable bottom. He gritted his teeth as the sting began to build up on his hindquarters. He wondered if Mustang was as thorough in all his work.

Mustang kept up a steady rain of controlled spanks, being sure to warm up the entire surface and maintain a constant sting. The swears and insults and indignant shouts were fading and the shoulders of the boy were starting to tense. Mustang chose this moment to talk to Ed.

"You know that I'm only doing this because I want you to be successful. I bet on controlled elements. Your intelligence and capabilities as an alchemist I have full confidence in. Your youthful presumption and self damage is something that needs to be controlled because you can't, and that's perfectly ok. You need a firm hand to help you with that, and that's what I intend to be. I'm going to help you Ed, because you know you need this spanking," Mustang drawled in a low, comforting voice. Ed shuddered beneath the words more so from the blows and found himself surprised when tears eked out of his eyes and sobs began to catch in his throat. Deep inside, a parent was what he craved, why he had sought out the teacher in the first place, why he had disobeyed so much. He needed someone to control him. He never consciously would admit it to himself, let alone anyone else, but it was there.

Mustang smiled softly as he kept up his spanking, the pale flesh underneath his palm turning quite rosy. The harsh line of the shoulders was dissolving, leaking tears onto the sofa as the boy began to cry under the blows. He was almost done.

"Do you have anything to say to me?" Mustang asked.

"I'm soorry I wuzza brat, Mustang," Ed sobbed. Mustang sighed and stopped his onslaught, rubbing the small of the boy's back to calm him as he sobbed over his knee. He gently pulled up the boy's pants and pulled him up into his arms. The boy wrapped his arms around Mustang's torso and clung to him, sobbing into his shirt. Mustang gently rubbed the boy's back until the sobs calmed down a little.

"You're forgiven, Edward," Mustang murmured, "Now, once you calm down, I need you to get back to the lounge so that I can finish my work. Ok?"

Edward nodded and his sobs came to a slow end. He pulled away from Mustang eventually, eyes downtrodden.

"Why am I acting like this?" Ed asked hoarsely, "I've been through so much; why does that affect me?" Mustang put his finger under his chin and lifted Edward's head up to look at him. Clear, golden, teary eyes gazed back and him. Mustang smiled.

"Because there's a difference between being hurt and being punished by someone who is looking out for you. The act of a childish spanking and the vulnerability that goes with it, the breaking down of walls, and the simple logic someone else can bring are where the tears come from. Never be ashamed to cry after a spanking," he explained softly.

Ed nodded softly and gave him a soft smile.

"There we go, now head over to the lounge," he said as he ruffled Ed's bangs. With a snort of defiance, Edward waved him off and scrubbed his face clean as he fixed his clothing and left with his hands in his pockets. Mustang sighed and went back to his paperwork.

Edward pushed into the lounge meekly, noticing the look that Al was giving him. With a sheepish smile, Ed waved at him.

"Where did you go?" Al asked angrily, "I hope you didn't get us into any trouble."

"No, no, of course not," Edward brushed Al off, flopping down into a chair. However, his cover was blown when he stiffened up and yelped, his bottom protesting the pressure of his body.

"What happened to you?" Al asked loudly. Edward glared and moved to the couch, his hand disappearing behind his coat in a rubbing motion. If Al had eyebrows, one would be raised inquisitively.

"Nothing," Ed grumbled.

"What?"

"I said NOTHING!" Ed yelled.

"Then why are you rubbing your-" Al started then made the connection, "You didn't,"

"Shuddup," but that didn't stop Al from cackling with mirth. Edward, suddenly exhausted, couldn't find it in him to snap back as his remaining consciousness made to curl up into the couch. Al let his laugh die and sighed lightly. The lines of Edward's shoulders were softer than they'd been in years. After he was certain that Ed was deep in sleep, Al went off to find Mustang.

"Sir?" The soldier looked up at his second interruption and blinked. He had forgotten that there was a second half of this operation that might not have approved of the maltreatment of his brother.

"Yes, Al?" he asked tentatively. The suit of metal looked down briefly then stared up at him.

"My brother has a lot of issues that he shouldn't have. Hey, we both do," Al said with a laugh, "But he has flesh and hormones and such and he's so mortal and so caught up in everything that happens to us. I guess what I'm trying to say is, thank you for helping him." Mustang smiled.

"Your welcome, Al," he said softly, "You aren't the only one who cares about him. And he's not the only one that cares about you."

Part 2 will be up shortly. If you have something positive to say, critique or otherwise, please comment.