I knew Winry as a child in Resembool, It's where Al and I were born and raised as children, as was Winry. My dear mother passed away and so Al and I lived with Granny Pinako and Winry, that is until I was offered as a state alchemist by no other than Winry's father himself, the Colonol Mustang. I had learned where Winry had got her looks, her mother formally known as Hawkeye a long time ago. He told me later that Winry was staying in Resembool because himself and Riza were too busy in Central to care for her so she was being looked after by his mother Pinako until she was skilled enough to open her own mechanic shop in Central. I was already in bad shape after I attempted to perform human transmutation, but seeing Winry upset and crying to her mother and father that she all ready didn't have them around and now they were taking her bestfriends away, the pain in her tears shattered a little more of me, and I could see the despair in her parents eyes as well, they truly missed and wanted to be with their daughter. And now, eight years later I was a state alchemist and Winry was living here in Central with her own shop here in the Military headquarters, under Colonel Mustang's insistance himself, probably as a way to be closer to her.

well, here goes the story..

"Brother, what do you think it means?" Asked Al, his armor echoing as he turned his metallic head in my direction

Al and I had just learned we considered sacrifices to the humuculis', and yet we havn't figured out why or what it meant.

"If you are referring to the sacrifice.. I don't know Al. But I know it's not something good."

"D-do you think something bad is going to happen?" he asked again, looking down in our tracks

"being a sacrifice doesn't necissarily sound good, I wouldn't doubt it. But still, it gives us an upper hand"

Al flinched at my response "How?"

I calmly let my eyes shut before expressing my thoughts and looked up at him. Even if you could not see emotion in Al's armor, you can sense his caution. "They can't kill us or even harm us, they need us. So we can try and kill them all we want and bring em' down, and they can't even be allowed to defend themselves"

"Thats true, you always know the positive out of every situation" Al chuckled

"Heh, well if I don't who will? It's just you and me"

Al nodded in agreement and as we made our way through Central HQ, we stopped into Winry's shop, she makes me get it checked out and polished every two weeks.

When I entered she was leaning over in her desk, and she had appeared to be talking rather fondly to someone. As I approached closer, the guy looked at me and when Winry saw him look in my direction, she turned her head back to look at me and smiled

"Hey Ed, your early" She greeted me

I looked from her back at the guy and gave a blank expression, I had never seen him before so I had no reason to give a friendly one anyways, I then looked back at Winry.

"This whole place is open every hour, does it matter when we show up?"

She blinked and looked at Al, who gave her a "I don't know" gesture and she looked back at me

"Sheesh, someones not a morning person, think you could greet a woman a little better?" She crosses her arms and looked at me, unamused.

I ignored the question and kept starring at this stranger fellow "And whos this?" I asked her.

The man blinked.

Winry raised an eyebrow and looked back at the man "Thats Toby, hes my new helper in the shop"

"So an assistant?" Al asked and Winry nodded.

"I see." I said simply and walked up to the man

He couldn't have been too much older than me, looked like he had a couple years on me. He had black straight hair with a red tuke and a navy blue auto shop suit that covered his whole body but his face and neck. His hands were covered by white gloves and he had bright green eyes, they looked very 'alive' you could say, and what do you know it, he was taller than me.

"I'm Edward Elric, a state alchemist of this military force." I looked up at him

Toby's eyes widened "Oh, your the fullmetal alchemist? I've heard of you guys!"

My eyes closed and smiled with pride "Yep, the one and on-"

The man flinged to Alphonse "What a pleasure to finally meet you sir I cannot tell you what an honor this is for me!"

"I-it's not me!" Al waved his hands back and fourth with a sweatdrop at the side of his metallic head

I was cringing my teeth with my fists clenched 'I'm not liking this guy all ready..'

"Not you? so theres actually three of you in this? well who is the Fullmetal alchemist?" Toby asked looking up at Al

Winry giggled.

"IS IT REALLY THAT HARD TO TELL?! IT'S ME YOU DUMBELLED IDIOOOTTT!" I yelled and flinged infront of Toby

"Oh YOUR him? Haha forgive me, I didn't realize.. Well it's nice to meet you anyways" Toby put out his hand with the biggest smile

"Hmph, see? Toby has manners at least" Winry added and crossed her arms once more

"Hey! I have manners!" I protested

"Not from what I just saw a couple minutes ago"

"That was different!"

"Tell me how it was different.."

"I just wasn't in a good mood!"

"Oh you always..!"-

As Winry and myself Ed began to brawl it out, Toby put down his hand and stepped back beside Al and were both dumbfounded by the two's buckering.

"Do they always do this?" Toby asked Al

"Even since we were younger, you'll get used to it"

"Hm, maybe I won't have to for long"

"Oh, why not?"

"I have some intentions of my own here besides just learning.."

Al turned his metallic armor towards Toby "Fair enough, just don't do anything reckless.. it's important to remember who her father is"

"The Colonel, don't worry. Nothing reckless will be going on here" Toby assured Al

Al finally looked back at Winry and Ed and sighed at their clashing and finally spoke up "Hey, Winry?"

Winry and Ed paused and looked at Al.

"Shouldn't we get Ed's automail checked out? you said it needed polishing"

"Right! Toby, come here. Heres one of your first lessons on polishing this type of automail" Winry called Toby over as she got out her polishing kit.

I huffed and sat down in the chair waiting for Winry to prepare. I watched Winry as she was applying polish to the cloth, she was so delicate and professional. I then noticed her hair was getting longer and she did say she was trying to grow it to be very long, then came her bangs. Gosh she looked like her mother, they had the same exact hair color and style, she was a spitting image of her except for her bright blue eyes, she didn't get them from Colonel Mustang either, but aparently from Riza's mother is where the blue eyes came from on her. Her eyes were one of her best features, it really brought out the liveliness in her.

Toby stood beside Winry and watched her carefully as she applied the cloth to my automail, a little too close if I might add, and roughly rubbed each beginning rust around the screws, and the rest she wiped smoothly off. She then held up my automail arm to look at it from a distance, carefully examining each side.

"It's good, it just needed polishing, I'm impressed Ed. You usually come in here with a damaged screw or something" Winry said with a humourous smile and passed the cloth to Toby.

"Yeah, Yeah." I I rolled my eyes "You'd have a few screws loose too if you were a dog of the military" I stated and got up off the chair

"Hmph, I have one for a father, he does just fine" Winry gave a teasing tongue at Ed.

Al laughed "Yeah, you must feel proud to have the protection you have"

Winry chuckled "Ha! more like a pain" She put the polishing kit away and leaned on her counter again facing towards me "Come back soon Ed, you know for maintenance" She finally smiled

I turned around "Yeah, I know." And waved as I made my way towards the exit with Al beside me

Outside the door I looked up to see General Armstrong beside it, with his arms behind his back casually.

"Oh, hey Major Armstrong, hows it going?" I asked and stopped

He looked down with a usual happy expression "Why hello Elrics! how nice to see you both"

"Colonol's got you on protection duty for Winry again?" Al asked with slight humour in his voice

"That's right, I cannot leave until further instructed by Colonol Mustang" he responded with a brief sigh in his voice

"Sheesh, talk about over protective" I stated

"Hows that new boy in there?" Armstrong spoke up

I crossed my arms "You mean that Toby kid? Pftt, I give him a week"

Al's armor echoed as he turned to look at me "Gee, Winry's right you are moody"

I opened my eyes wide "I AM NOT!"

"Naturally" Armstrong cleared his throat "What we are experiencing in young Edward here, is jealousy, Alphonse" He winked at Al

Whaaaaat? Theres nothing to be jealous of in that guy, hes a mechanic worker! and hes just helping Winry out.. anyway why would he think that matters to me?

"What are you going on about? it's nothing like that, I just don't think new time workers are fit for a professional shop here in the Military" I said in defence and looked away from both of them

"Riiiiight." Armstrong humoured him "Of course it is" He smiled brightly with a star flashing beside his eye

I looked at him and looked ahead of me "Tch, Let's go Al. See yeah Major." I gave a slight smile and began to make my way to the Colonol's office.

xxx

Knock knock

"Come in" I heard Mustang mutter through the closed doors.

I opened one of the doors and let the light shine through to the corridors from his big view window, I walked in and saw the Colonol's chair facing towards me, while he was staring out the window

Heh, dramatic as always that bastard.

"What can I do for you, Fullmetal?" he asked and turned around in his chair and leaned his chin on his resting hands supporting from his desk.

"I'm here to tell you, I'm continuing my search for our bodies. I'm not going to let all this philosopher stone and scar stuff hold me down" I responded and kept a straight expression on my face

Mustang stared at me for a brief second "Oh? have you now. Do you think that's necessary at these times? you know we can't be acting reckless after what we know about the furher"

I clenched my fists "So I should stop living and be afraid until all this is over? who knows when that could be!" I said in defence, slightly raising my voice

Al flinched "Brother.."

Mustang calmly closed his eyes and used the hand he was leaning his chin on to pick up a pen and begin writing something down "Do what you want, Fullmetal. Consider this a two week break, but understand I will still like you to spend most of your time around here in this building, danger could be anywhere" he stated and before Al and I could say anything against it he said one last thing

"You may go now" Before turning his chair around again towards the window.

"Sure, Colonel" I made my way out the door with Al following me, as I exited the doors and we made our way down the halls I looked up at Al "We midas well stop and get something to eat and then head to the rental condo and look more into those books."

Al nodded "To get our heads off this Homunculis and Scar stuff for a while, it sure would be nice"

"Not that we have much of an option to think of anything else." I stated as we turned around the corner to the main hall

Just as we did, we stopped right infront of Lutenant Mustang formally known as Hawkeye years ago, who smiled as she greeted us "Hello boys, where are you off to?" She adjusted the bag of food she was carrying.

"Just home for now, we asked the Colonel for time off." I looked at the bag of food "Need some help?"

"No, no. It's all right I got it, I just brought Winry her lunch and about to bring some to my husband. The job as the Colonel can put you to hunger" she smiled again.

I dozed my head to the side and muttered "Yeah if you call being a lazy bastard.."

"Brother!.." Al interrupted me, reminding me who was infront of us.

"Huh? did you say something?" She asked and blinked in curiosity

"No, don't worry Lutenant" I chuckled "Have a good day okay? I'll see you around" I began to walk past her

"She gave a light wave back at us "Be safe boys"

'Be safe' That seems to be all we hear these days..