(Manga-verse. It's set in a vague, post-Ch. 65 timeline where Ed and Al find Mei Chan and Dr. Marcoh.)

Mistletoe, by hlynn

Outside, the weather was frightful. Snow drifts piled 30 feet high, white-out conditions turning visibility into feet instead of miles, and the general knowledge that going out into it would mean certain death made Edward Elric hate the fact that he and Al were stuck in the mountainous north.

The two brothers weren't alone in their weather-imposed isolation, however. They'd found Mei Chan and Dr. Marcoh, and combined with the knowledge in the book brought with them, they were trying to make sense of it all. It also helped that Mei was teaching Al the Xingian alchemy, although Ed was severely put out by her denial to teach him anything.

If it weren't for the frostbite he'd gotten just getting to the Briggs mountain fortress, Winry wouldn't be stuck here as well. She'd make the best of it, though—he had a new, lighter arm and leg to thank for it, and she was eagerly devouring any information on making automail that she could glean from the technicians at the fortress. In fact, he didn't think he'd seen her for days.

It was as he approached the mess hall that he recognized the smell. Cinnamon, nutmeg, apples…and that could only mean one thing.

He pulled open the door into the kitchen, just in time to see Winry taking a pie from the oven under the watchful eye of the mess hall cooks. Her eyes fell on him and she smiled nervously, looking like a child caught with a handful of cookies before dinner.

"I guess the surprise is ruined now," Winry said, placing the pie on the counter.

"Surprise?" He was honestly flabbergasted. Did she actually bake him an apple pie? And if so, why? "What's the occasion?"

She gave him a strange look. "For Christmas, of course. Did you forget?"

It slowly dawned on him that in the midst of all the fighting and countless days of searching for Mei Chan, he'd lost track of the entire month. His panicked look must have given him away, because Winry took pity on him and explained.

"It's December 24th, dummy. Christmas Eve."

"But there aren't any decorations!"

A cook from the side of him spoke up, "We can't hang anything larger than a fist, for fire safety reasons—Major General Armstrong's orders. Which reminds me…you're standing under the mistletoe."

"What?!" Ed looked up to see a sprig of white berries nestled among evergreen leaves, fastened above the doorway. He scooted away from it so fast, his back slammed against the cabinets before he even realized how far he'd moved.

Winry threw him an exasperated look, then turned to one of the cooks. "Is there any place I can put the pie in the meantime? Under lock and key, I hope."

After the pie was put away for safekeeping, and the cooks went back to prepping for the evening's meal, Ed felt a sense of relief. The whole thing with the mistletoe was already forgotten. He headed back to the door, intent on leaving, when Winry's voice stopped him.

"Wait."

Something inside of him screamed at him to run. Instead, he turned around to see Winry approaching him, her face unreadable. He had only a moment to wonder what was going on when he felt his back hit the door and her lips on his, so soft and warm. His higher brain functions shorted out and he was left with instinct, which led him to kiss her back.

A second later she pulled away, flushed and anxious. In silent connection, her eyes told him too many things, things he didn't expect and wasn't sure he wanted to know. He tried to say something, but the only word that came out was, "What…?"

"Mistletoe. You're standing under it." For a moment, sadness crept into her mouth and eyes…then the next second, it was gone, replaced by her usual sunny demeanor. "Merry Christmas!"

"Uh, yeah…you, too—" he began, and then fell backwards as Winry opened the door behind him, sending him sprawling to the floor.

"Oops, sorry!" She waved back at him as she hurried down the corridor. "See ya later!"

Ed was left staring at her retreating form until she vanished out of sight. What had just happened? None of the cooks were looking at him, but he could still feel their undivided attention. Only then did he notice how hot his face felt, how his pulse was racing and how stupid he was for letting Winry go.

Disgusted with himself, he shut the kitchen door with a slam. She couldn't feel that way about him…could she? To be perfectly honest with himself, he knew he felt something deeper than friendship for her, but was it love? This kind of love?

He couldn't. Not now, anyway. Not with Al still stuck in an armor body, thanks to him. It would be cruel to flaunt something like this in Al's face, showing him what he can't have.

It was with reluctant steps that Ed sought out his brother, needing to confess what had happened, if only to assure him that it would not happen again.

"Stupid! Idiot! Moron!" Winry kicked her toolbox and instantly regretted it. Kicking a large heavy metal object when angry was never a good idea.

Limping, she crossed over to the wood stove, the only light source in the room. The automail section of the medical ward was empty, thankfully. Everyone was either celebrating Christmas Eve, or standing guard in case of an attack from Drachma.

And here she was, berating herself over her stupidity while sitting in a darkened room, with only the warmth of the stove to keep her company. At least it couldn't get any worse, could it?

The lights suddenly came on, and a woman's voice broke her melancholy. "Winry? What are you doing here, sitting in the dark?"

Winry buried her head in her hands. It just got worse. "Nothing. I'm fine, Dr. Newman."

She heard the woman's footsteps approaching, and fought the urge to cringe. "I'd be more inclined to believe you if you didn't look like your dog just died."

Looking up, she saw that Dr. Newman was dressed normally—lab coat, sweater and skirt, with her short blonde hair pulled back by a headband. "Aren't you going to a party tonight?"

Dr. Newman smiled, "Once I make sure this place is closed up tight. But I'm not going until I make sure you're okay."

"I really don't want to bother you…"

The older woman waved it away. "It's no bother. You've been training here with us for almost a whole month, and not once have I seen you this depressed. So, spill it."

"I can't. It's too embarrassing."

"It's about that kiss you gave Edward, isn't it?"

Winry whirled around in shock, only to see a triumphant look on the doctor's face. "One of the cooks told me. Oh, don't worry—I told them to keep a lid on it. They're more concerned about you, anyway."

After a moment, Winry replied, "I made an idiot out of myself."

"Are you sure about that?" Dr. Newman leaned up against a nearby gurney. "Because it's pretty obvious that Edward's crazy about you."

"Really? I mean, he kissed me back, but the way he looked at me…I felt like I scared him more than anything."

"You probably did, but that's because the boy is so consumed with taking care of his brother's situation that he probably never allowed himself to think about it. Love is kind of scary."

"So…what do I do? Should I go find him?"

She pondered it over, then replied, "You made the first move. Now let him pursue you. If he doesn't, then he's just not ready yet. But I'm betting he is, and that he'll find you tonight."

Winry didn't know what to say to that, so she simply answered, "Thank you. For listening to me, I mean."

"No problem. I wouldn't be a doctor if I didn't like helping people." Dr. Newman pushed herself off the gurney and headed for the door. "Oh, and make sure you lock up when you and Edward leave."

Winry opened her mouth to reply, but the room went dark and just as quickly, the doctor was gone.

It took Ed awhile to find his brother, mainly because he didn't expect Al to be in the barracks' common room, practicing Xingian alchemy with Mei Chan.

Seeing Al enjoying himself was nearly enough to make Ed turn around and search out Winry instead, but he pressed on—he had to make sure Al knew what happened before it spread all over the fortress.

"Al, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Uh, sure! Go ahead."

Ed glanced at the irate face of Mei Chan, then sighed. "Alone?"

"…Okay. I'll be right back, Mei."

She glared at Ed, but nodded in assent. The two brothers made their way to a remote corner of the large room, away from the rest of the people using the space.

"All right. What's up?" Alphonse said, sounding curious and baffled at the same time.

"I have to tell you something, but before I do, I just want you to know that I didn't mean for this to happen…I mean, I didn't want to hurt you or anything…"

"Brother." Even his most quiet tones could make paint vibrate off the walls. "Just say it, okay?"

Ed took in a deep breath, then replied, "Winry kissed me under the mistletoe in the kitchen, and I kissed her back, but only for a second, and she ran off somewhere. I came here to tell you so you didn't hear it from someone else. I promise you it won't happen again."

After a long, long moment, Al said, "….Winry kissed you?"

"Yes, and—"

"And you're standing here telling me about it, why, exactly?"

Ed looked at Al uncertainly. "Aren't you upset? Or mad, even?"

"No, why should I?"

"Because I kissed a girl, Al! Because it's something you can't do, thanks to me."

Al shook his head. "You do a lot of things that I can't do, Brother. You eat, you sleep, you breathe, you feel. Do you really think I'd want you to deprive yourself of something just because I can't have it? Besides, I, uh, think I might have a girlfriend already."

"Wha…who…wait, that bean girl?!"

"Keep your voice down! She might hear you!"

With his hand over his eyes, Ed sighed and started over. "So, you're telling me that I was wrong to think you'd be upset at me if I had a girlfriend before you could? And that you might already have one, anyway?"

"Yes. Now, I believe it's time for you to go looking for Winry, and for me to get back to my alchemy lessons."

"But wait, what do I say to her?"

Al shrugged, "The truth. You know you love her, but you've been so stubborn about it that any time anyone mentions it, you turn red in the face…just like you're doing now."

"Am not!" Ed lied.

"Anyway," Al continued, "alchemists should always search for the truth, right? Then be honest with yourself, and tell her how you feel."

"Huh. When did you get so wise?"

"I've always been this wise, dummy," Al chided. "Now get out of here."

"All right, all right…but I want details on what the bean girl taught you tonight."

"Of course."

Ed took off and waved behind him, having the appearance of a person who'd just been released from prison. Al just shook his head in amusement.

"But I have a feeling I won't be seeing you for awhile, Brother."

It was hopeless.

Winry had been sitting here, waiting for a person who might never come, for longer than she cared to admit. It was time to leave and head back to her small guest room. Maybe Ed would find her there, if he even wanted to bother.

So why wasn't she moving?

With a sigh, she stretched her arms over her head, trying to work up the nerve to go back to her room. What if he'd been sitting outside her door, waiting for her to come back? Wouldn't that be—

"Hey."

She froze, then spun around to see Ed silhouetted against the light from the hallway. In one hand, he held a small plate holding what looked like a slice of pie and a fork. The other hand was reaching for the light switch.

"Don't. I like it like this."

His hand dropped to his side, causing her to notice that he was shifting his weight nervously. "Can I come in?"

"Sure, have a seat."

Closing the door behind him, he made his way over to the stove and pulled up another chair to the right of hers. "I, uh, brought this for you. It's your apple pie."

She smiled, but didn't move to take it. "I made it for you. You should have it."

"I thought you'd say that, so I cut it large enough so we could share," he replied, giving her a quick grin before turning serious again. "Look, I just wanted to say that I was stupid for not stopping you before you ran away, because...you are everything to me. I couldn't live with myself if I ever hurt you."

"Ed, I feel the same way." The hope she saw in his eyes encouraged her to go on. "In fact, I've come to realize that I've felt something for you for a long time now."

"So have I," he said with a gentle smile, surprising her. "I spoke with Al, and he made me understand that I've been holding back out of guilt. But I'm not going to do that anymore."

The next thing she knew, Ed was leaning in and kissing her tenderly, his left hand caressing her cheek. She kissed him back, and the world fell away, along with all the anxiety she'd felt earlier.

The twang of the fork hitting the floor made them jump apart in alarm, then giggle at themselves for being so paranoid. "Should've put the plate on the floor, I guess," he said sheepishly.

"We might as well have some before the pie ends up on the floor, too," she answered back, picking up the fork and cleaning it off on her shirt. "Here, let me try—"

Ed plucked the fork from her hand deftly. "Ah, not so fast. Allow me," he grinned, the light from the stove making his eyes glow like fire. Curious, she watched as he used the fork to pick up a small part of the pie and hold it before her. "Open wide."

Amused, she allowed him to feed her, feeling silly and excited all at once. Ed's gaze was fixated on her mouth, as she savored the taste of apples and cinnamon.

"How is it?"

"I wish I'd hadn't used canned apples. It's just not the same," she lamented.

"If your hands made it, then it's good," he replied. The certainty in his voice made her blush.

"Your turn," she grabbed the fork and proceeded to do the same for him. They kept taking turns until the last piece was gone. Winry found her right hand intertwining with Ed's left as they sat there, not needing words as they watched the flames inside the stove dance.

They sat together like that until Ed checked his pocket watch. "It's almost midnight."

"Already? I guess we should go, then?"

"Not quite yet." He dug around in his pants pocket for something, then opened his hand to reveal a delicate circle of braided silver attached to a thin chain. "Merry Christmas, Winry."

She took the necklace in amazement. "Where did you...did you make this?"

"Yeah. While I looking for you, I found some scrap metal in one of the workshops down below and used alchemy to make it. Do you like it?"

"I love it." She knew he was good, but this was just...incredible. "Wait, I didn't get you anything!"

"Yes, you did. The first thing was the pie, the second was this," he kissed her lightly, to illustrate his point.

Not willing to let him go so easily, she captured his lips and grabbed a handful of his shirt to keep him from pulling away. He had no intention of leaving, however, not when she was kissing him like this.

Stopping only to catch their breath, the two of them smiled at each other. Winry couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so happy, or so content. "I love you, alchemy geek."

"And I love you, automail geek. C'mon, let's go before Al sends out a search party for us."

Winry quickly agreed, and soon the fire in the stove was left to smolder and the doors were locked, leaving the dirty plate and fork, and the faint aroma of apple pie as the only evidence they were ever there.

The End.