Disclaimer: I do not own FMA!!

Chapter One

His Return

Winry sat alone in her house working on some random automail arm. The only one to keep her company was her dear dog, Den. Her Grandma was dead. She had died about a year ago. Her mind drifted to the last two members of her family who was probably miles away. Edward Elric, the older of the two brothers, was probably twenty-two years old. He had long golden hair that was usually in a plait braid with bangs hanging in his face. He had fierce golden eyes to match his hair that looked into the distance.

Edward was short for his age, but since Winry hadn't seen him for six years, she didn't know if his height had changed. Edward was missing his right arm and left leg. Winry felt the only way she could help the two boys was making Edward his automail arm and leg. Edward was a child protégé, a pure alchemy genius. He became a state alchemist at a very young age.

Alphonse Elric was the younger brother. He was an empty suit of armor and like his brother, an alchemist. Alphonse was the opposite of his older brother in many ways, one being their personality. Alphonse was kind and caring no matter what. Edward was tough on the out side and soft on the inside. Alphonse expressed his feelings while Edward hid them from everybody but Alphonse.

Winry wonder where they were and if they were ok while she worked. She was worried about them. Winry whipped the sweat off of her forehead and on to her arm. She looked around at the empty room she was in. Things were sure quieter without her grandma. Even though she had Den and many friends living in her hometown, she felt alone.

Suddenly, there was a knock her front door. Winry starred at it until there was another knock. Winry walked over to the door and opened it, half expecting to see one of her regular costumers. But instead of a regular, she saw him. Edward Elric was standing outside her door wearing a guilty grin on his face. Winry looked around and didn't see Alphonse anywhere behind him. Her eyes shifted to Edward and she glared at him.

"Hey, Winry long time no-" Winry's slamming of the door cut off Edward.

Winry walked back to her table and picked up her wrench. Edward's shouts rang through the front door. "Come on, Winry", Edward yelled. "Open the door!!" Winry walked back to the door and waited for Edward to apologize to her. "Please open the door!!" Winry sighed and opened the door. She knew Edward wasn't going to apologize to her until he had told her she was hurt.

As soon as the door was open, Winry raised the arm that held her wrench and flung it at Edward. The wrench hit Edward squarely in the forehead. Edward fell backward and yelled in pain. He sat up holding his forehead. "WINRY?! WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT FOR", yelled Edward.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE LAST SIX YEARS EDWARD ELRIC", shouted Winry. "And where is Al?!"

"Al is back at central", replied Edward as he stood up. "He's fine! Honestly!"

"Ok… But where have you been in the last six years?!"

Edward looked away from Winry. Winry tensed. She knew that he wasn't going to tell him. Winry raised her wrench and brought it down on top of Edward's head. Edward landed face first on to the ground. Winry turned around and walked up to her room. She locked the door. Winry jumped on top of her bed and buried her face into her pillow. She began wonder why does she even worry about him anymore if he wasn't even going to let her into his life.

Winry heard a knock on the door and Edward's voice once again rang through the door. "Come on, Winry", he shouted. "Can't we talk about this?! I'm sorry I didn't come to see you in six years."

"Shut up", Winry yelled back. "What did you come here for anyway. Another automail repair?! Is that all I am to you anymore?! A mechanic?!"

"Well, yes that is why I'm here, but you're more to me than just my mechanic, Winry!! You know that!! I'm really sorry!!"

There was a flash of light and Edward walked into Winry's room. Winry sat up in her bed as he approached. She glared at him. Edward stopped a few feet away. Tears filled Winry's eyes, but she fought them back and tried to sound calm when she spoke. "It's an invasion of privacy when you transmute someone's lock to open their bedroom door", Winry snapped.

"That's weird coming from you, Miss. Pocket Watch", retorted Edward. "Where's Auntie?"

"She died… about a year ago…"

"You've been alone?"

"Yeah, well, except Den of course…"

"Of course… Look Winry, why didn't you tell me?! Al and I would have visited sooner!"

"Yeah, but you wouldn't have stayed, would you?!" Winry stood up, tears streaming out of her eyes. Edward backed away slightly.

"Winry, you know we can't do that", replied Edward. "We have to get our original bodies."

Winry walked closer to Edward, but this time he didn't back away. Instead he closed his eyes and braced himself for getting hit again. Winry stopped a few centimeters away and noticed for the first time that in her life that she had to look up at Edward. Even though it was only by a few inches, Edward was finally taller than Winry. "I've missed you", whispered Winry as she fell against him and held on to him tightly to make sure that he was really there.

"Winry…", gasped Edward. Edward wrapped on arm around Winry and gently rubbed her back. Winry cried gently into his chest while talking in his smell.

When Winry parted from him, she whipped away her tears and asked, "What's a matter this time?"

"Well…", answered Edward. That's when Winry noticed it.

Edward's right coat sleeve was dangling lifelessly at his side. Anger grew inside Winry. "Ed-ward", she muttered through gritted teeth. Her voice was shacking with anger but she remand still. "What happened to your arm?!"

"Wait a minute Winry", pleaded Edward as he raised his left hand as if to say he surrendered. Winry picked up her wrench and started to sling it at him. Edward dodged her blows as he spoke. "This isn't my fault! Major Armstrong greeted us at the train station! When he saw us, he picked me up and hugged me as tight as he could, crushing my arm in the process! I wasn't in danger or anything and I wasn't being reckless! It was the Major's fault! You can call him up and ask him!"

Winry stopped and glared at him. She was breathing heavily as she watched Edward back himself into the wall. She walked up to him and said, "I will." With that she walked out of the room and to the worktable where she sat earlier. She looked down on at the arm she was working on realized that it was Edward's arm. Winry couldn't believe it. She had been subconsciously working on his arm without even realizing it. It looked as if it were almost finished.

Winry looked around the room to see if Edward had left her's. He was standing at the couch, taking off his red coat and black jacket. He folded them and rested them on the back of the couch. Winry walked over to Edward as he sat down on the couch. He looked up at her with an apologetic look on his face. Winry kneeled down and took of his boots to see how much taller he had got since the last time they saw each other.

There was about a five-inch difference between his right leg and his left leg. Winry looked up at Edward and scoffed. "Well, I guess I can't call you short anymore", Winry said as she looked back down at his feet.

"Hey, don't call me short", snapped Edward. Edward hated it when someone mocked his height. Winry laughed at him.

"That's a comment, Ed", she laughed. "I was just saying that you've grown is all. You're taller than me. I can't believe I have to look up at you now."

"You really think I've gotten taller", shouted Edward in excitement.

"Considering the fact that you left leg is five inches short than your right, yeah. I seriously need to do some height adjustments. You don't mind using a spare for a while do you, Ed?"

"No", said Edward blankly.

Winry stood up to let Edward take off his pants so that she could detach his leg. Winry went to the table and picked up a measuring tape. She went back to Edward, who was folding his pants and placing them on the back of the couch. Edward sat back down on the couch and Winry measured his right leg and left arm.

Winry went to the cupboard when she was finished measuring and grabbed a spare left leg and walked back to him on the couch. She kneeled down and began to detach Edward's leg. When Winry was finished she attached the spare to Edward's thigh. Winry put the leg on the table with the arm she had already started. Winry looked back at Edward, who was standing and trying out his spare.

Winry smiled at him. She had forgotten until now that she was in love with Edward. Winry sat down and started to finish Edward's arm. Winry worked for the rest of the day. When she paused to take a break, she found that Edward wasn't in the room. She went out to the porch and found him waking back to the house. Edward stopped and looked up at her. A smirk appeared on his face and he scoffed. He walked up to the porch and muttered, "No matter how hard I tried, I still turned out like my father."

"What are you talking about, Ed", Winry asked.

"I left my family behind just like my dad. I even met someone who said that I looked almost exactly like him. I guess it is inevitable. I leave and someone dear to me dies."

"Ed… It wasn't your fault that Grandma died! She just got old and died! You had nothing to do with it!"

"Yeah, but Al and I should have been there for you!"

Edward stood quietly for a second and then walked back inside while muttering, "Never mind… Forget it…" Winry watched as he threw himself on to the couch. Winry walked back to her table and sat back down. She looked back at Edward. He was lying down on the couch with his eyes closed. Winry sighed through her nose and looked back at Edward's arm. She was almost finished with it. It would be ready by to night and then she would start to work on the leg.

As she had predicted, Winry was finished with Edward's arm late that night. She whipped the sweat off of her forehead. Winry stood up and walked over to the couch. Edward was asleep. He had his stomach hanging out of his stomach. Winry hated to wake him up but she could let him sleep on the couch. Winry gritted her teeth and gently shook Edward up. Edward's eyes slowly opened his eyes and sat up. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at Winry.

"What's up Winry", yawned Edward.

"I finished with your arm, so I'm going to bed", said Winry.

"You woke me up to tell me that", asked Edward.

"No! I woke you up to tell you that you can't sleep out here! I wanted you to sleep in a bed but if you want to sleep in an uncomfortable couch, then fine! Good night!" Winry turned to go to her bedroom as she said this.

"A bed… That does sound better than a couch", she heard Edward say. She looked back at Edward. He was standing, waiting for her to lead him to his room. Winry walked up stairs with Edward right behind her. He was silent. Winry wanted to break the silence to object to what he had said to her earlier, but she didn't know what to say. She stopped in front of the room Edward would be staying at and opened the door. Winry let Edward inside.

"Good night", yawned Edward.

"You're wrong", muttered Winry.

"Huh… What are you talking about?"

"You're not completely like your dad. I mean… at least you came back… You and Al didn't ditch my grandma and I. And you promised you would be back when you got your bodies back to normal."

"Winry…"

"See you're different, Ed! So stop putting yourself down!"

"Winry…" Winry starred Edward. Edward just scoffed and smirked. "…Thanks, Winry…" He pulled her into a hug and held her with his only arm. "I needed that…" Edward soon let go of her. "Night Winry…"

"Good night Ed", said Winry. Winry turned and walked to her own room. She jumped on her bed and buried her face into her pillow, grinning to herself. Winry soon after drifted off to sleep.

Winry was woken up by the morning light the next morning. She quickly changed her clothes and went to the kitchen to make some breakfast. She ate it quietly, wondering whether or not Edward was awake yet. When she sat at her worktable, Edward came walking down the stairs. He said good morning to her and went to the kitchen to make himself some breakfast.

The day went on like the one before. Fast. Winry was finished around lunchtime. Winry wanted to attach Edward's arm and leg as soon as possible so that Edward won't have to wait much longer. But Edward didn't want his appetite ruined by the pain of the attachment of the nerves. So, they ate silently.

Edward was in nothing but his under wear and sitting on the operating table when they were finished with lunch. Winry brought over his new arm and prepared it for the attachment. When the arm was ready, Winry attached the arm.

Edward grunted with pain and Winry's heart jerked as she heard the man she loved was in pain. Winry quickly finished the adjustments to his arm and brought his leg over. She detached the spare on his leg and prepared his leg for the attachment. When she was done with that, Winry attached his leg and he grunted in pain. Winry's heart jerked again and she quickly finished the adjustments.

Winry helped Edward move to the couch and let him rest for a while. She began to put her equipment away. Edward sat up and watched her intently. When she was finished she sat beside Edward and said, "Aren't you going to try them out?"

"With how? Al's not here", Edward stupidly pointed out.

"Whose fault is that?!"

"Oh… Be quiet…" Edward stood up and stretched his arms and legs. "They're great, as always, Winry! You make the best automail in the world!"

"Oh, stop", replied Winry with excitement. Her face grew red. Edward looked back at her and scoffed.

Winry made dinner for the two of them later on in the day. They laughed and talked as they ate. They talked a little afterwards before they went to bed. Winry was a little sad. Edward was leaving in the morning and there was nothing that she could do to stop him. She really enjoyed the alone time she spent with Edward.

Winry had this bad feeling eat away at her. She felt like Edward wasn't going to come back after he leaves tomorrow. She was worried. The feeling wouldn't let her sleep for hours. When Winry finally fell into an uneasy sleep, it was filled with dreams about Edward not coming back to see her again.

She woke up early the next morning, with an idea. She quickly got dressed and pulled out her favorite earring. She walked out of her room and found Edward getting ready to leave. Edward looked back at her at the sound of her door closing.

"Morning Winry", grinned Edward.

"Morning Ed", she said. "Hey Ed. Can I give you something?"

"Give me something? What?"

"M-mm!" Winry held out her earring. "This is my favorite earring. It would make me very happy if you wore it."

"WHAT?! WHY?!" Edward jumped back in shock. Winry averted her eyes to the floor. She knew he would take it this way.

"Please, Ed… It's insurance that you won't forget me and have another reason to come home safely. This way a piece of me will be with you on your journey and give you luck."

"Winry…"

"Please, Ed… It's just that, last night I got this weird feeling that I wasn't going to see you again."

"So, you're saying that you don't trust me…"

"NO! It's nothing like that… It's more like you won't be able to come back… Like something were to happen to you, Ed… It scared me…"

Winry and Edward were silent for a moment and then, "I guess it'll be ok… It's just an earring, right?" Winry looked up at Edward who was giving her a reassuring smile. Winry felt tears fill her eyes and she fought them back. She walked over to Edward and had him sit down at the worktable. Winry quickly pierced his ear and put the earring in his earlobe. Edward grunted in pain as she punctured his ear. He lifted his left hand to his left ear and a little blood.

Winry carefully whipped the blood away. Edward scoffed. "Do you feel better now, Winry?"

"Yeah… But just remember that you're borrowing it! I want it back as soon as you come home with both your bodies back to normal, ok?! And promise you'll never take it off, no matter what!"

Edward looked back at her with his eyes opened wide. Then his face softened and he smiled at her. "Yeah!" Edward got up and grabbed his suitcase and walked to the door. Winry walked with him. Edward stopped as soon as he reached the dirt road and looked back. "Well, goodbye Winry. I promise I'll be back."

"You better be", said Winry. "Just be careful, Ed."

Edward nodded and turned to leave. When Edward was out of sight, Winry turned around and went inside. She already missed Edward. She wished he could have stayed longer, but…

"But Edward needs to do what he thinks is right", muttered Winry.