crucial muse development questions.
1. what would completely break your character?
The loss of his brother or Winry, easily. Edward cares deeply about the people he loves and he’ll do anything for them - he’ll ever cross lines for them. Edward loves with everything he is. He’s excessively protective of Winry to the point that he won’t show his more negative emotions in front of her - leaving her to “cry for him” because “you two won’t cry so someone should do it for you, don’t you think?”
When she finds herself on the battlefield while he’s fighting Scar (round 2) he threatens Scar’s life if the man were to lay a hand on her.
and I can only imagine what would have happened if Winry did actually die. Considering Edward proceeded to use his own body as a shield in order to not only stop Winry from killing but to protect her as well. Edward knew full well the destructive power Scar possesses and the gruesome death he would have earned himself but he still used his own body as a shield regardless.
She’s is family and he was willing to die for her then and there. He was willing to die on top of her if it meant saving her life. The idea of her dying instead might drive him over the edge.
I say this because this is the face he makes when Bradley threatens her:
Further in the series, the loss of Alphonse puts Edward in a near panic like state as he wracks his brain trying to think of a way to bring him back after the conclusion of the final fight. He’s pushing himself so hard that he’s starting to tune out the world around him until his father offers him the use of his life in exchange for getting back Alphonse and Edward does this:
He not only calls Hohneheim Dad but he starts crying. He’s so frustrated and worried and stressed out - generally pushed over his limits that he starts crying. The loss of his brother is a huge blow for him and he hardly knows how to cope. He ends up coming at Father in a near blind rage with an endless onslaught of attacks - not caring if he kills him or not. Alphonse is gone and Edward hits rage.
At the end of the day it’s not that Edward’s depression would eat him alive - it’s that he’d drown in his rage and he might not be able to bring himself out of it.
4. what seemingly insignificant memories stuck with your character?
Stars. Edward used to get lost in them when he was just a kid, laying out in the yard with his brother looking up at the sky taking them all in. He appreciated them more after his month long camping trip from hell thanks to Izumi, but he will always remember just laying outside with his brother taking in the sparkle of the night .
5. does your character work so they can support their hobbies or use their hobbies as a way of filling up the time they aren’t working?
It’s an odd questions because while Alchemy started as a hobby that he used to suck up his mother’s praise, you can’t really call it a hobby anymore. So he’s not really working to support his hobby and he’s not really using hobbies to fill time either. He’s always working - well almost always anyway - and Alchemy is not a hobby anymore it’s a skill by trade like any other skilled labor. He’s a scientist and an alchemist at the end of the day and those are seen as skilled labor - not so much kid’s hobbies. He’s also a master at it. You wouldn’t say that plumbing is a hobby and it’s no different with Alchemy - it’s still work. He just happens to highly enjoy his field of study.
