Hey guys! It's a new story on the horizon! And it's about Ed and Winry, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the anime or manga! So no spoilers and such, well this is a new turn on things, I don't think I've really seen an idea quite like this so I hope it's a huge hit! Well, here is Kiss the Rain.
Summary: His finger left the keys, his eyes following the movement of her long gracious legs, her muscular arms twirling above her head delicately. She was beautiful.
Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Fullmetal Alchemist, I do however own Kaede! He is all mine and from my imagination! :) I looove him too, and I hope you all love him also
Chapter 1: Roses upon the keys
The auditorium was pitch black, no sound was to be heard but the very breathing of a beautiful creature that sat upon the stage slouched forward, hands splayed out in front of her body in the dim light of the moon that pooled around her. She slowly lifted her head to the ceiling exposing creamy pale skin. Her arms circled above her head then back down to caress her slender legs. She jumped up and started to twirl and flip with a melody no one else could hear. She kicked her long leg out in front of her and began a pirouette, tucking her arms in tightly to gain momentum. Her toes were pointed and curved when she drawled her leg back down to continue her waltz along the darkened stage. She was preparing to flip when the lights came on, blinding her into falling down. The young girl rolled onto her back, panting for air, gazing up at the lights casting down upon her.
"Winry, how many times do I have to tell you to stop practicing so late at night?" A calm voice came from behind the curtains. Said girl lifted herself up into a sitting position and wiped away the sweat that dripped down her cheek on down to her neck.
"I'm sorry Kaede, but I just can't stop. I love dancing in the dark. I feel like I can let out all of my secrets." She stated. He came out into the light and threw a towel at her.
"Well that's fine and dandy, but might I remind you that you have a huge test in math tomorrow that I don't want you to fail." He said running a hand through his spiky black hair, his purple eyes filled with annoyance and worry. Winry stood up with the towel draped around her neck.
"Don't worry, I'm really smart so no need to worry." She said with a smirk. He rolled his eyes. "Will you just go home and get some rest, you have rehearsal tomorrow too, and the pianist is coming in to accompany you." He said grasping her hand. She sighed.
"Why can't you just play for me?" She asked as they exited the stage. He switched off the lights and locked the door behind him.
"Because, you know very well that I am a teacher right now at the college and I don't have time to learn new music on the side while I'm already teaching my students their dances." He said. Winry shivered and untied her jacket from her waist and put it on.
"Yeah, you tell me every day." She muttered placing her hoody over her golden sunshine hair. She could feel the small pit pats of the rain that was starting to fall from the now dark sky. She gazed up at the clouds.
"Funny, the moon was out only a minute ago." She mumbled stuffing her hands into her pockets. They continued to walk down the abandoned roads to their apartment as the rain started to quicken.
"Is Katie visiting?" Winry asked. Kaede nodded his head which caused water to fly every which way. She growled and started to speed walk. Kaede sighed and tried to catch up to her. Once they finally reached the apartment complex, Winry took out her key with a shaking hand and inserted it into the slot. She tried to turn the golden key, but it wouldn't budge.
"Damn it! I thought they fixed this?" She yelled out in frustration. Kaede pushed her aside and tried his key.
"It isn't working." He muttered. He tried once again but the key slipped and dropped into the now forming puddle from the pouring rain. Winry clutched her arms around her body trying to gain body warmth, but had no such luck.
"At this point I'll be too sick to take my damn test!" She growled. Before Kaede could protest, the door was opened to show a surprised blonde. The two friends looked at the newcomer in surprise.
"Uh, I heard you two arguing from my room, is everything alright?" He asked. Winry stood there stunned. He had the brightest golden eyes she had ever seen. His hair was a fierce gold tied messily into a pony tail and long bangs that framed his face and complimented his pale skin tone. He had only a tank top and shorts on showing off his well-toned muscles.
"Oh I'm sorry that we disturbed you, we were just stuck out here because the key slot is jammed." Kaede said breaking Winry from her reverie. The man stepped aside to let the two into the complex.
"Its fine, I'm glad I could help I guess." He glanced over at the hidden girl, tilting his head slightly and narrowing his eyes. She shivered and gazed down at the ground. The air got still and awkward.
"Well, uh, thank you," Kaede trailed off. "Edward, Edward Elric. I just moved into the complex with my brother today." He said. Kaede held out his hand and shook it.
"Kaede, and this is Winry here." He said gesturing to the shivering girl. Edward raised an eyebrow. "Interesting name for a guy." He said. She felt a sudden jolt run through her body and shot her head up to glare at this jerk before her. Kaede brought a fist to his lips and stifled a laugh, trying to pass it as a cough. She glared over at him making him shut up instantly.
"For your information tough guy, I'm a freaking girl!" Winry yelled. This wasn't the first time this happened. She always wore jackets that hid the fact she was girl, and her legs were so long that the dancer was usually mistaken for a man. It's not that she didn't want people to know her sex, it just so happened she looked male while wearing a jacket. Edward looked at her from head to toe as if checking her out.
"I guess you're right, you're too curvy to be a guy. I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to say something so rude." He said with a nervous laugh. Her anger instantly vanished. Maybe he wasn't too bad.
"Well I hate to say this, but we have to head back, my girlfriend is waiting for us." Kaede said. Winry huffed and walked up the stairs without saying another word. She entered her apartment and greeted Katie with a lazy wave of her hand. She shut her door behind her and collapsed on her bed, still soaked to the bone. The ceiling fan above was clicking every time it made a circle around, almost like a lullaby. Her eyes drooped, muscles sank into her old mattress. After lying down for awhile, the air from the fan started to chill her and remind that her clothes were still wet. She sighed and sat up, peeling the skin tight jacket off of her bare arms. She gazed into the mirror at her form, her hands tracing her curves and then resting them on her bony hips. Her skin was smooth from the cold, her dark blue eyes standing out harshly against the pale white. Her lips were turning plush red again from the warmth of her heater that just kicked in. Her hair was tangled and matted to her face.
"Stupid guy." She mumbled throwing a towel over her shoulder and stepping into her connected bathroom. She turned on the water and stripped her clothes from her body. Once she could feel steam from the water pushing against her, she got into the searing hot water and sighed in content. The drops drilled into her aching muscles and slid down her now relaxed body. She felt the pain in her toes and ankles slowly fade away. Once she was done bathing she stepped out and dried off. She pulled on her favorite fuzzy pajama pants and black tank-top and pulled her hair away from her face into a pony tail. As soon as she exited her room, her ears were met with noises from the next room. Noises that she really didn't want to hear.
"You have the got to be kidding me!" she groaned. She grabbed her pillow and a blanket and exited the apartment. Her eyes scanned the dim hallway and at the stairs. It was worth a shot right? She slowly descended down the carpeted stairs and to the only apartment on the first floor. She stared at the golden number 1 for what seemed like forever before her knuckles finally connected with the wood. Her eyes scanned the number again, entranced by how the 1 glimmered in the lighting, and flashed whenever she moved. There were clicks and shuffling before the door was pulled open to show Edward and another person behind him who was rubbing his eyes.
"Who is it brother?" The man asked yawning. Said man raised an eyebrow and shrugged.
"I don't know Al, who are you?" He asked glancing down at the pillow and blanket in her arms. She sighed and held out her hand.
"We never really got properly introduced. I'm Winry, the girl you had mistaken for a man. I know it seem sudden, but my roommate is, well how should I put this, 'playing,' with his girlfriend, and I was wondering if I could just sleep here for tonight. I have a huge test tomorrow and I need some sleep." She drawled out. He chuckled and grasped her small hand with his large one.
"That was quite the introductory. We would be willing to help, so come on in." He said gesturing the girl inside. She sighed in relief.
"Thank you so much, I promise I won't ask for something like this again." She said. Edward led her to the couch while Al went back into his room. The room was deadly quiet except for the grandfather clock that was ticking loudly in its corner. The room was very comforting, a nice white couch with two black seating chairs angled beside it. There was a small wooden coffee table placed in the middle, all of which was facing the fire place. She examined the grey stone and followed the pattern until her blue eyes landed on the mantle. There were many pictures of the two brothers as kids with a beautiful mother that had a kind face. She felt herself smiling. On either end of the mantel were gold tinted curvy candle sticks with silver candles in them. Her eyes wandered along the blank wall and to the un-packed boxes piled in the corner.
"What are you looking at?" Edward asked, his voice deep and slow with confusion. Winry jumped about five feet in the air before turning to the attractive man behind her.
"I was observing your living room, it's quite nice actually." She said, feeling a bead of sweat fall from her forehead. He sighed and walked closer to her, a glass of water in his right hand.
"Thank you again," She said making him laugh. "If you keep thanking me I'm going to have to kick you out." He said handing her a glass of water. She gladly took it and gulped down the cool liquid.
"Anything else you need?" He asked sitting on the coffee table facing her. She shook her head, causing an awkward silence to blanket the room, the grandfather clock still ticking away the seconds that Winry was wasting not talking to this man. Her eyes lifted up to the mantle at the picture again.
"Is that your mother?" She asked, the words slipping from her lips before she could stop them. Her question was only left with more silence.
"Yes," He said quietly. Winry bit her lip, she could feel the depression radiate off of him which made her shiver.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." She stated shifting her gaze back to the golden eyed hottie. He shook his head
"No, its fine, she died over ten years ago. We both miss her a lot, but she lives on in us, more me than Alphonse though, much to his disappointment." He said with a chuckle.
"Why is that?" She asked, mentally cursing herself for speaking before thinking. He stared at his hands that were positioned on his knees. "Well she used to play the piano for us all the time. It was amazing, she was like an angel, her songs were so gentle and pure. That talent was passed onto me, but not Al, it really hurts him sometimes, but he loves to hear me play. Damn, what am I doing, I'm telling a stranger my past." He looked at her obviously annoyed with himself. He stood up and shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Go to sleep." He muttered shutting off the light and shutting his bedroom door behind him. She pulled the blanket around her and tucked it underneath her body so no cold air could find its way in to her cocoon. Her eyes stared at the ceiling in a daze, the sleep from her body had slipped away from her so she was now wide awake. She might as well have stayed in her own apartment; she would have gotten more sleep anyways. So with that thought on mind, she sat up, the blanket draped around her shoulders like a cape, and explored the apartment. It was bigger than she had first thought. When you first walk in you see the kitchen to the right, it had a bar in the front which looked out into the living room. To your left was the hallway with four doors, three bedrooms and a bathroom. Then she saw it, a small doorway on the left side of the living-room. She gazed down the hallway to make sure she hadn't woken anyone up yet, and started her trek forward to the secret room. She ran her hand along the wall until her finger connected with the light switch. Her eyes were met with something she wasn't expecting. The room was huge. It was a patio that gazed out into the park behind the complex. It was empty except for a black grand piano pushed to the corner.
"Wow." She whispered running her finger along the key cover. A piece of music slipped to the wooden floor with a wisp and finally settled upside down. Winry picked it up and almost dropped it again.
"Kiss the rain? But that's the song that I'm dancing to for my huge recital." She hissed to herself, puffs of air swirling before her plush pink lips. Edward was her pianist. That meant they were going to be spending a lot of time together. Her heart started to quicken at the thought.
"What are you doing?" The soft gentle voice echoed off the walls and bounced around the empty room. Winry slowly turned around, eyes wide with surprise.
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to snoop around, I was just curious and-"Whoa, calm down. It's fine. You're just lucky I found you instead of Ed, he tends to get a little testy when people touch the piano." Al said grabbing her hand and leading her out of the freezing cold room. Once they reached the living room, they both sat on the couch.
"Is it because it's your mother's?" She asked. His eyes widened, but then he relaxed and his lips formed a sad smile.
"Yes it is, brother cherishes that piano as if it were his own child." He whispered. The room was filled with a heavy silence, only the crackle of the warm fire kept it from being awkward. The grandfather clock chimed five times signaling that it was midnight. Winry stood up and grabbed her pillow.
"Thank you for letting me stay Alphonse, but I think I'm clear to go back, otherwise Kaede will flip out if he sees that I'm not in my room." She commented with a light smile.
"No problem Winry." He said hesitantly, puzzlement clear on his soft features. She nodded at him and headed towards the door. She thanked him again before stepping out into the cold hall. A shiver ran down her spine at the pounding rain and drumming thunder. She crinkled her toes as if to try and gain the warmth back, but the tile was too cold. She held her pillow closer to her slim body and scurried up the stairs as quickly as she could. Once the number 14 came in sight, she ran a little quicker. However it was yanked open before her fingers could grasp the knob.
"Where have you been missy?" Kaede asked crossing his arms. I frowned at him. "Well a nice friend of mine helped me out since you two were being louder than ever, I'm surprised you haven't woken up the whole complex yet." She said with a roll of her sapphire eyes. His face turned bright red with embarrassment.
"You're just jealous because you don't have a boyfriend." He sniped. Winry glared at him before shoving him to the side and storming to her room. She threw her pillow against the wall and nearly screamed in frustration. Instead she fell to onto the mattress with a huff and felt tears form in her eyes.
"He's right." She whispered.
Winry rubbed her heavy dark circled eyes and sipped her coffee as she examined the confusing jumbled mess that was called math. Normally, this would be a piece of cake for the blonde haired adult, but she hadn't gotten a wink of sleep last night because her mind was filled with regrets and most importantly Edward. She knew she was going to see him later in the day to practice Kiss the rain, and she couldn't stop thinking about his mesmerizing golden eyes. Her thoughts were broken when the bell rang. Panic came to her when she realized that she only did two problems and doodled pictures on the border during her daydream. Everyone had already filed out of the room to get some lunch
"Miss Rockbell?" The teacher ask holding up her nearly blank test. She winced and stood up.
"Can I please retake it tomorrow during my lunch, I had a really bad night, my friend went into the hospital and I stayed by her side all night." The blonde lied. It seemed to strike a heart string for the teacher when his eyes widen with sadness.
"Well I understand then, please do so. I advise that you go home and get some sleep though." He said before shuffling back over to his desk. Winry smiled in victory before throwing her backpack over her shoulder and taking her coffee into her hand and heading over to the auditorium. She quietly entered the room so she wouldn't disturb Kaede's class. He was currently dancing across the stage, demonstrating for his students. They all clapped once he finished and bowed.
"Ok, sorry I kept you after the bell everyone! Have a great day." He shouted. As the students left in large groups, Winry greeted hello to some familiar faces before walking down an aisle towards her best friend, teacher, and pretty much father.
"Hey Kaede." She said setting down her bag and coffee. He frowned at the coffee.
"Winry, how many times do I have to tell you that coffee will ruin you beautiful dancing figure!" He said snatching the mug from her palm. She growled.
"Hey! It's decaf! And I have splenda in it." She said taking it back into her grasp. He sighed and grabbed a bag from the floor and handed it to the dancer.
"Here, this is your outfit for the dance recital, Katie made sure that it represented you and the songs quite well. Why don't you go try it on and wear it for rehearsal today to get a feel for it?" He asked. The girl nodded and headed out of the room just as the two Elric's entered.
"Edward? What are you doing here?" Kaede asked. The blonde looked just as surprised.
"Well, I'm the pianist for the huge dance recital. The Yiruma pieces, he's quite an exquisite artist." He said with ease.
"Well this should be interesting." Kaede muttered. All three turned around when they heard the backstage door slam open.
"Kaede," A frustrated Winry came waltzing onto the stage, fumbling with the ties to her dress. Her bra was exposed for the men to see, not to her realization though.
"Tell Katie to make these ties a little longer, I can barely get them around my neck." She mumbled shoving her long blonde hair to the side in irritation.
"Maybe it's because you drink too much coffee." He joked. She glared at him, but blushed when she realized that the two Elric brothers were staring at her in shock. She made a really high pitched squeal and jumped behind the thick red curtain. Kaede sighed and jumped up onto the stage and went to her.
"What's wrong?" He whispered. Winry finally succeeded in wrapping the fabric around her neck and tying it into a bow, the ribbons cascaded down her exposed back.
"I'm must say Katie did a fabulous job on this, I love the design." She said ignoring his question. She twirled, making the flaps of the skirt fly up to expose the underwear of the skirt. The dress was a dark red, it started wrapping around the neck and splitting down the right side of her torso, so her right breast was exposed. Silver swirls ran down her left breast and around her hip to the back. There was a maroon bra underneath with a bead sequence donning the fabric. Her midriff was exposed slightly in the front on the right, and the skirt slanted down starting high up on her right hip and so on down. There was a black bow sewn to the right side completing the look.
"It does look great on you, your hips have gotten very defined, though your stomach is a little pudgy missy, I'll let it pass since your leg strength has grown immensely. Anyways, come out onto the stage, we need to practice." He grabbed her smooth arm and pulled the dancing beauty to the center of the stage. Edward had just reached the top of the stairs while Alphonse was sitting in a chair. Kaede sat next to him.
"Ok Winry, why don't you warm up a little, do a couple of flips for me." He shouted. She nodded and cracked her neck, bent her legs slightly to stretch out the sore muscles. Her chest stuck out from her deep breathing and she finally leaped into the air, doing a front flip and leaping across the stage. She landed on her toes, posing perfectly. She had yet to realize that during her concentration, she jumped over to Edward, who now stood right in front of her in shock. Winry opened her eyes and nearly fell over in surprise.
"Ah, I'm sorry, I should have started a little further back." She said scooting backwards towards the middle of the stage. He nodded his head slowly and walked over to the grand piano in the corner.
"Do you want to start from the top?" Edward asked as he arranged his music and sat on the bench. The hinges on the cover creaked when he opened it. She could almost hear him take a deep breath, taking in the scent of the old piano keys and fabric lining.
"Yes please." She whispered. The auditorium was silent. Winry closed her eyes, listening for the breath of beginning. Edward's fingers finally came in contact with the keys. As he played each note, Winry moved her arms delicately in the air and threw her leg to the side and brought it back in before she started to prance across the stage elegantly. She flipped in the air and spun out to the edge. She leapt with great concentration, her pirouettes were swift and slow, with the beat of the music. Edward, who had been playing with his eyes closed, finally glanced up at the blue eyed dancer, but he instantly regretted doing so. His fingers left the keys, his eyes following the movement of her long gracious legs, her muscular arms twirling above her head delicately. She was beautiful. She was about to leap but must have realized that the music had stopped. Her gaze shifted over to him, sweat was sliding down her cheek flushed from excitement and work out.
"Is something wrong?" She asked, panting only slightly. He felt a blush come across his cheeks.
"Ah no, I just didn't know how to play this part quite well yet." He lied. She nodded and grabbed a water bottle that was near the front of the stage.
"Well why don't we move onto the river one?" She asked after taking multiple gulps of water. He swallowed thickly and nodded, shuffling through his music to find the song.
"Hey you two, me and Al are going to go get some lunch for us, why don't you take a break and chat?" Kaede said. Winry look at him with furrowed eyebrows. He gave her a knowing smirk and walked out of the auditorium. The two blondes turned to look at each other.
"Well, I guess this means you can look over that part you couldn't figure out." The blue eyed one said. Edward's golden eyes widened and then shifted to look at the music in front of him.
"Ah, I know how to play it I was just distracted is all." He said standing from the piano bench and stretching. Winry plopped onto the floor and started to do leg stretches.
"So how long have you been dancing?" He asked sitting a good two feet away from her. She gazed over at him and raised her eyebrow.
"You know, I won't bite. And I've been dancing for about eighteen years, ever since I was three." She said grabbing her foot that was in front of her and lying her head down on her legs. Edward scooted closer to the girl.
"So that means your twenty-one?" He asked, it was more of a statement then a question though. She brought her body back up with a deep breath out. She glanced over at Edward, he was wearing tight black jeans with a black button-down shirt and black boots.
"Is black your favorite color?" She asked. Edward blushed and shook his head. "No, I like red, I just chose to wear this today." He muttered. After his answer, the air plunged into a thick awkwardness that Winry thought she could cut a knife through it.
"So Edward," She started hesitantly. "Where did you and Alphonse live before you came here to Iowa?" She asked, avoiding his intense eyes.
"Ed is just fine please, and we've lived here all our life, we just happened to move out here to Iowa City a week ago because-" He cut himself off making her look at him.
"Because what?" She asked he shook his head. "Nothing." He muttered. Winry bit her lip and stood up.
"So how long have you been playing the piano?" She asked as she walked over to the large instrument and sat down on the bench. Winry never was very good at music, she had to play the violin in elementary, but it never suited her. She knew how to sing quite well though. Edward, or Ed, leant up against the piano and watched the girl stare at the music confusingly.
"Sixteen years, since I was five." He stated. She could hear some humor in his voice at her attempt to play what was written in front of her.
"What are you doing?" He asked, a smile beginning to form on his plush lips. Her fingers hit another sour note making both wince.
"I know how to read treble and I'm trying to figure out what keys are which." She stated, before her fingers could hit the wrong key again, a larger hand grabbed her finger and placed it gently on the correct key.
"That's the A." He said. She looked up at him, his face was gentle and relaxed, something she had yet seen on the man. She scooted over to make room for him.
"Will you please show me the song?" She asked. He smiled in amusement and placed his fingers upon the black keys and played the first few measures of Kiss the Rain without the bass part.
"You are so amazing." She said in awe. He chuckled and grabbed her hand. "Practice makes perfect, though I think you know that." He said running her fingers along the right notes. She wasn't even paying attention to what she was playing, all she could think about was the warmth and gentleness of his large calloused hand.
"Ok why don't you try without me now?" He asked taking the warmth away. She nearly groaned in protest, but felt panic rise, she hadn't been listening at all. She tried to play it but failed.
"I guess I really can't play any instrument." She mumbled. "That's not true, dancing is your musical instrument, it may sound weird but it's true. Music is art, and I think dancing is definitely an art. Just the way you were so elegant and flowing across the stage like you were swimming in water. It takes so much time to become a great dancer, just as it is to become a pianist or cellist." He said. Winry felt herself blush at his compliment. "Thank you." She mumbled. She slid her finger across the keys making a note crescendo. After the piano was done echoing the notes in its chamber, the auditorium grew silent, neither blonde knowing what to say next.
"We brought food!" Kaede yelled storming into the room making the two jump up high. Alphonse was right behind him with a large smile upon his face. Edward jumped down from the stage and looked up at her
"Need help?" He asked holding up his arms. She shook her head. "I'm perfectly fine with jumping on my own thank you." She stated placing both hands on her defined hips.
"I don't think so Winry, I don't want you to risk getting injured now let Edward help you down." Kaede said getting into his father/teacher mode. She sighed and knelt down so the man could grasp her waist in his hand. She hopped off, expecting to fall quickly, but landed lightly instead. She glanced at Ed and blushed.
"Thank you." She mumbled pulling from his grasp. He stepped back and glared at Alphonse who had been stifling his laughter.
"Ok let's eat I'm starving." Winry said grabbing the paper bag from her best friends hand.
Ok well that was the first chapter! Woot, please don't be mad people who are real dancers! I'm not very knowledgeable about that stuff, only music, so if you wish you could help me out with some of this :3 I don't own any of the songs btw! All credit to Yiruma! He's amazing, look him up. Hope you enjoyed the first chap! And don't forget the dark side always has cookies :D.