A/N: Hello again, this is my new Fullmetal Alchemist story.

I hope you enjoy reading it.

Warning: Slight spoilers for the anime and possibly movie in future chapters.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist, but I do own the pictures of Edward that's hanging on my wall.

Summary: Every time they leave her it feels like her heart's being ripped out of her chest. Sometimes you need someone to be there for you and help you along the way to recovery. Life isn't always a dance on roses, especially in Winry Rockbell's case. She knew that loving someone meant painful waiting and secrets but she never thought it would lead her to such life threatening dangers.

Chapter One: Recovery

The sun was shining bright and the birds sang their lovely morning songs to greet the warming sun. All in all it was the beginning of a great day in Resembool.

It was a quiet and peaceful morning except one thing though, "Edward Elric what have you done now?" The young mechanic stood over the helpless golden haired State Alchemist with a wrench in her hand. "How can you be so careless? I said I made it lighter, but that means you must be extra careful and don't put it under too much pressure." Winry scolded him. She sighed in defeat and sat down next to the boy on the ground taking his Automail arm in her small hands, her voice turning soft, "I'll fix it, but please don't do anything reckless next time okay? Promise me Ed. I don't won't you retuning injured every time you come home." She blinked away some tears that had made their way to her eyes and continued to work on the damaged Automail arm of his.

Edward didn't reply to her questions. How could he? Winry didn't know about the dangers Al and he was involved in and neither did she need to know. It would only endanger her to get more involved, so the best he could was give excuses to why he broke his Automail arm and leg.

"I'm sorry Ed, but you have to make do with this, I have to make a new arm. This one is busted really badly and besides you must have outgrown it by now." Her voice was kind and gentle for any outsider listening to their conversation, but to Edward's ears that was just a cover. He knew she had figured out he lied to her when he said his pity excuse for coming back with a ruined Automail. It shone through her voice; loneliness and distrust.

"Winry, you know you I trust you more than anything right?" He asked looking at her with those deep golden eyes.

She looked up from her notebook she was writing in and met his eyes, "Then how come you and Al never tell me what you're doing and how you got injured?" She asked, her voice soft, "You're always keeping things from me Ed, why is that?"

Edward searched is brain for the best answer, not the truth but something convincing. He couldn't tell her that they lied to her to keep her out of harm's way. If he did she would surely worry herself sick. So instead of enlighten her in their current situation the only answer he gave was "It's personal, you don't need to know." He turned his gaze downward not to see her gentle sky blue eyes turn sad.

"Oh I see…then I suppose…" Her voice trailed off and Winry went over to her workbench; starting on his new arm.

The silence once again found its way into the workshop and settled down. Edward with his temporarily arm grabbed an alchemy book and started turning the pages not really reading its containment. His eyes once in a while darted up from his book and landed on the hard working blond haired girl bent over his new Automail arm. Yes, it was defiantly better this way, not her knowing things that would put her in danger. He couldn't stand it if anything happened to her, he called it a strong bond between childhood friends, but deep in his heart he knew it was something more. He wouldn't admit it, but the blue eyed girl with sun colored haired, touched something in him no one ever had. She was his reason for coming back home and he hated himself for leaving her behind. He knew it hurt her every time Al and he left for Central, every time they went out that door and only came back injured. He knew her concern for them was more than they deserved.

He lowered his gaze when he saw Winry slowly turning around, "I need to go visit the town to get some new parts for your arm, I'll be back soon." She said in a hushed voice and walked towards the door, but before she reached the doorknob someone's hand was already there. She looked up and saw the arm's owner.

Edward observed her slow pace over to the door leading out to the outworn dirt path they had played on as children every day. Something was wrong with her movements and she didn't look like she usually did; she was much paler and her blue eyes were glossy. He rose from his place in the soft sofa and reached out for the doorknob before her.

"Ed what are you doing?" She asked and looked at him with glassy eyes.

"You aren't going anywhere like that. Are you feeling alright?" He asked while looking her up and down seeing the sweat droplets form on her pale skin and how her balance was becoming unsteady, so she had to lean against the wall behind her.

"Yes, why do you ask?" She questioned him, her voice a bit impatient. "I should really be going now if you want your Automail to be finished in three days." She said as she tried to push past him but Edward stood his place, his hand never leaving the doorknob.

"You don't look well at all Winry, but if your mind's set on buying those parts I'm going to come along. I don't want you to pass out on the road." He confirmed and released his grip on the door and opened it. Winry stepped past him not saying anything. Edward's mind managed to connect two and two and knew she was a little angry with him for lying to her again so he didn't push her start a conversation. He let her go some meters ahead of him, eyeing her every move. She was swaying slightly and once in a while wiped her forehead with her arm. He wanted take her back home immediately, but he knew Winry better than anyone and she was surely going to make a fuss out of it. So the best thing he could do was watch her from behind and make sure she came home in one piece.

He smiled inwardly, she really was a stubborn girl and like no other girl he had ever known. Other girls at her age were occupied with boys or make up and how they looked, but not Winry. She was so absorbed in her work as a mechanic to care about that kind of things. She was even a tomboy as a child. She, Al and he always played together and they never did anything girlish, but it didn't seem to bother Winry. Sure she had other girl friends, but she wasn't as much together with them as Al and he. But that made her Winry and not someone else and he appreciated her for her tomboyish attitude.

By now they had arrived in the little town. The sun was beginning to set in the west behind the great mountains, making the sky pink and orange. The stores were packing up for the day, but before the mechanic store closed Winry found the parts she missed and went to the storekeeper to pay for it.

"Oh, if it isn't our little busy bee Winry, fixing Edward's Automail again?" The old man behind the desk said and chuckled at his own remark.

"Yes I am." She threw Edward a glance before she paid. "And he's been at it again, ruined the fine work I did."

"Aren't you the lucky one Ed? Having such a nice mechanic fix you every time you break something? I don't know how you do it, but you surly manage to destroy it completely." The storeowner said in a teasing tone.

"Heh…" Ed mumbled as he rubbed the back of his head with his left hand while smiling sheepishly.

"Thank you for the parts and the material sir, see you later and say hi to your wife from me will ya?" Winry asked as she left the store and their journey home began.

"Yeah, see you later Winry." He said and turned towards Edward. "And Edward it has been a great amount of time since I last saw you. It's good to see you again!" The shopkeeper exclaimed chuckling as he waved goodbye to Winry before adding, "You haven't grown an inch!"

"Don't call me short!" Edward yelled back at the man with a frustrated expression.

"And say hi to your brother Alphonse for me!" The cheerful man behind the desk said. Ignoring Edward's short temper he kept going, "I hope he has better luck with the growth."

"Who do you call a pipsqueak so small you can't even see through magnified glasses?" Ed screamed, getting angrier by the second.

"No one said that Ed." Winry answered, tired by his constant overreaction. She waved goodbye and continued the long way back to the warm yellow house she called home.

Ed turned around, following behind Winry. His anger vanished in a flash when he saw how her arms slowly lost their hold on the heavy bag and how she had to stop to take a breath before lifting the bag up again. He saw how she stumbled and lost her balance, the sweat droplets on her skin and how her blond hair was clinging to her pale face. He ran up to her, offering to take the bag. She nodded and gave him the bag full of parts and materials for making Automail.

Winry had to admit it was good to have the extra weight of the bag out of her tired hands. She stretched her arms out in front of her and then over her head to loosen the knots that had formed in her shoulders. She gave a low sigh when she saw the long road in front of them. She was so tired and didn't feel well at all and it was a long way home. She took a deep breath and continued up the dirt path swaying a little from lack of sleep and balance. She had been up for three days straight now to finish fixing the broken Automail leg for a customer who had visited from Youswell. His order was urgent because there were few trains leaving Resembool to go all the way to Youswell. And her client had a pregnant wife he had to leave behind and wanted to get home as fast as possible. He had heard of a young promising mechanic in Resembool and since the mechanic he got his leg from had passed away he needed to find someone else. So Winry had worked hard to build a new leg for him since the old one was as good as scrap metal. She managed to finish in time and her client was very pleased with her handiwork. She had planned on taking a well needed rest but that's when Edward showed up with is broken Automail arm and outgrown leg. So she hadn't been able to get some rest. If she had told Ed about her three days without rest he would immediately send her to bed, but she knew he needed his Automail fixed fast, so he and Al could continue their search to get their body's back. She knew Edward hated himself for what had happened to his brother Alphonse, so the only thing she could do to help them on their journey was to make the best Automail possible. She wanted to have them home again safe and sound, both in their old bodies, wearing their carefree smiles again, free of all concern. One day she would see both of them smile like that again, a real smile free of sorrow and guilt.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't see that her pace had slowed down and Edward was far in front of her. She tried to get her legs to go faster but they wouldn't listen to her, instead they began to fail her. She could feel they were trembling just like her hands were. Her head began to throb and she could feel the sweat on her body. She put a hand to her forehead and indeed it turned hot, warmed up from her feverish forehead. Ed was right she was sick, she had felt it from the start of this beautiful day, but shrugged the feeling of saying she had worked to do when she should have stayed in bed. She concentrated on taking one step at a time, slowly making her way back home.

The sun had set and the sky was turning black, soon stars were shinning on the early night sky. Edward could see the Rockbell's house now. He looked back but saw nobody. He dropped the bag he was holding and ran down the road he just had walked. Winry was gone. He could swear she was right behind him the last time he checked. His mind filled with unwanted pictured of a hurt Winry. He didn't want her in any sort of danger. He nearly lost her four years ago in Central to Barry the Chopper. Through all the frightening things he had been through, that was one of the worst. That and when they tried Human Transmutation to bring their mother back. He was so afraid he had lost his little brother and in a desperate move to get him back he offered all he had left; his heart, mind and body to get his brother back. It worked and Edward managed to attach Al's soul to an armor standing in the corner in the basement of their house. In the attempt to bring their loving mother back Ed lost his leg and right after, he used his right arm as material to get his brother's soul back. He hated himself for the pain his brother now was in. Even though Alphonse couldn't feel physical pain Edward knew he felt the psychical pain of the loss of feeling things like happiness, love and even bleakness. He couldn't feel the chill of the wind or the hot summer days. Edward knew Al was suffering and wanted to restore his body and get him out of the armor he now subsists in.

And now Winry was missing. He continued down the dirt road and eventually saw a slim figure lying on the cold ground. His concern only grew at he recognized the blond hair swaying in the chilly breeze. His worst fears came to mind but vanished quickly only to be replaced with others. He didn't see any blood so she wasn't hurt, but her fair skin was white as a sheet and her face was filled with shinny sweat droplets. He lifted her up in his arms. His right arm went around her waist and the other supporting her back. Her head was leaning against his chest. He could feel the heat from her forehead through his cloths and began running to Pinako Rockbell's house.

Edward burst through the door panting after the long run. Pinako and Al came out from the workshop to see what all the commotion was about. When they saw Edward with Winry in his arms they assumed the worst but Ed quickly told them she wasn't hurt but had a very high fever. Pinako called the doctor and told Edward to put her granddaughter in bed and sent Al up to get a cold bath started to cool her down.

Edward carried Winry up to her room and gently laid her down on the bed. He put his flesh hand on her forehead and was taken aback by how warm she was. He sat down on her bedside and brushed tenderly away the stray hairs from her wet face. Her breathing was faint and her breaths were small but came rapidly, making her chest rise and lower much faster than normal. Her thin body looked so fragile compared to his own. Her hands were so small and yet so powerful with a wrench in them. He remembered it to well, every time he came back with a ruined arm or leg he was always greeted by her wrench. But after her frustration over the battered Automail she always smiled at him and said, "Well then, we just have to fix you up." while playing with her wrench. He smiled at the memory, but his smiled vanished when he looked down on the sick girl. She shouldn't have gone to town, he should have stopped her. Why didn't he? Oh that was easy, she had her mind set on going and no one can stop Winry Rockbell when she set's her mind to something. But this time he should have stopped her. He saw she was sick when he arrived but chose to ignore it, and then she had gotten worse and he allowed her to go all the way to town to by material to fix his Automails. His guilt was growing worse by the minute. It was so much he could have done to prevent this from happening. He looked down on the feverish girl lying on the bed again.

"I'm so sorry Winry." He whispered to her before he rose from the bed, "I should have known you were pushing yourself to hard." Just as he was about to take a step a warm hand grabbed his metal arm.

"Don't go Ed, please stay with me for a little while longer." Winry's voice was so feeble it hurt his ears. She usually had a clear and strong voice, but now it was so infirm.

Her grip on his hand was so weak but he knew it was all she managed to put into those trembling hands. He went back to her side and sat down. Winry still held his hand and a light blush spread across his cheeks.

"Feels good," she said as she put his metal hand to her forehead.

"How do you feel Winry?" He asked with his hand still on her warm forehead.

"Well, I've been bett…" Her answer was cut short by a raid of coughs.

Edward helped her sit up and stroke her back as she continued to cough. He was afraid. Even if he wouldn't admit it, he was terrified. Their mother had caught an illness right before she died and it too began with fever and then coughing. He remembered it clearly; Alphonse and he were running home with some newly bought vegetables to give their mom. It was when they run in the front door they found her. She was lying unconscious on the ground. Her face covered in sweat by the fever. It was soon after that she died. It wasn't only the sickness to blame but their father. One day he just left them. Their mother Trisha was broken. She loved their father Hohenheim so much and he just left them. Edward could feel his blood boil at the thought of that bastard. He was soon brought out of his thought by Winry's small voice, "Ed where's the bag with the materials I need to make you a new arm and fix your leg?"

"I think it's still on the road somewhere. I dropped it as soon as I noticed you were gone. You know you should have told me you were sick. I could have gone by myself to buy the stuff you need." He said in a calm voice while fiddling with his shirt.

"You idiot! How could you just drop it? I need those to fix you and it was the last the storeowner had left. Do you know what that's means Ed? If you don't go out there and find it, you will have to wait until the next delivery of material from Rush Valley!" She exclaimed while throwing her hands in the air at his carefree attitude towards her precious Automail.

Edward blew his bangs out of his face and shook his head. "That's not important right now Winry. The only thing you should worry about is your recovery. I'll go look for it when Pinako comes to up to cool you off with a bath." He said and chuckled slightly at her frustrated face. Even though she was burning up she still worried about not being able to make him his Automail. "You know it doesn't matter how long it'll take you to fix my arm and leg as long as you recover from this sickness, and I won't let you go down into your workshop before that either." He looked down at her, his golden eyes meeting her glossy blue ones. He smiled his usual sheepish smile, "And beside I don't mind staying a little longer away from Colonel Sarcasm and his verbal abuse."

She laughed at him but was cut short by another fit of coughs. Edward continued to stroke her back with a concerned look on his face.

"Don't worry Ed, I'll be fine, remember you still need me." Winry said, a warm smile played on her weary face. She knew why he was so worried about her. She knew Trisha had the same kind of illness as she, but something was different, their father left them and broke their mother's heart into thousands tiny bits. She still had Ed. Even though it felt like her heart was being ripped out of her chest every time they left her to go back to Central. She hated seeing the train take them away from her, knowing their only return meant they had been involved in a fight and got beaten up pretty badly. In some ways Winry felt more like a mechanic than a childhood friend to the young State Alchemist. He only visited when his Automail needed maintenance and repairs. He never came by to see Granny or her.

Ed turned his head away from her and looked out the window. "We still needed her." His voice was low, nearly a whisper, but Winry heard him and immediately understood he meant his mother. She took his flesh hand in her warm ones and squeezed them reassuringly. He looked at her and smiled. He was about to say something when the door opened and Pinako stepped in with Al right behind her.

"Are you okay Winry?" Al asked, his voice filled with concern and if he had his normal body his eyes would have been covered in worry. He too hated seeing her like this. This was not their Winry. She would normally argue with Ed or work on some new project of hers down in the workshop. He walked slowly towards her bed as Edward rose from his seat at her side, letting Al take his place.

"I'm going to go look for your materials Winry" Ed said in a soft tone as he walked towards the door. "So now you just focus on getting better okay?" He turned around and sent her a kind smile before leaving the room.

Edward walked down the same road he had run a few hours ago. To think such a nice day could be ruined so easily. She really means a lot to us even if we don't show it as much as she deserves. He thought and looked down at his replacement Automail arm Winry had made him. It never failed him. Her Automail really was the best and she had proven it time after time. He knew she studied hard to make him the best Automail in Amestris. When he thought about it she really made their searched for the Philosopher's Stone much easier. But what did she get in return? Lies, but it was lies to keep her safe, even if it hurt her feelings. He never wanted to see her bleeding and in pain. Never would he let that happened. He would gladly give his life to protect her and he knew Al would do the same. He could remember it like it was yesterday. They were still children and innocent back then. Not troubled by the world's chaos. They were running around playing all day out on the great green plains that made Resembool one of the most beautiful places in Amestris. Edward had been many places in his young life but nothing was like Resembool, the fresh air, the beautiful fields and the always cheerful town's people. This little place made up from grassy fields filled with flowers was a paradise; it was home, their home.

When Edward got back to the cozy yellow house he went straight to Winry's bedroom but was stopped by Pinako before he knocked on the door.

"The doctor left right before you got home and he said there wasn't much he could do for her. We just have to wait and see if her fever goes down and if not, we must call him again." Pinako informed him. She saw the worried look on the young Alchemist's face and smiled to herself. Even though he might not be ready to show it, she knew he had strong feelings for her granddaughter. "Don't worry yourself child Winry's a strong girl, she will be on her feet in no time." She patted Edward on his shoulders to comfort him.

"Yes I know, but it's just that mom died of the same kind of illness and… and if Winry leave us we don't know what to do." He answered as he looked down at his hands. He could use Alchemy and fight but he couldn't help her, the one that meant more to him than his own life. He loathed how helpless he was.

"Edward, she still has you and Alphonse, and besides all she needs is rest. She may not have told you this but right before you came she worked hard in three days, not resting at all. She had to finish her client's Automail, and to do so she stayed awake and hardly ate or drank. And then you came with your busted Automail. She knows you are in a hurry and will fix you as fast as she can. Therefore her body is worn out and need its rest." Pinako told him before she walked past him and down into the kitchen.

Stupid Winry, it's so typical her to take care of other's needs instead of her own. Edward thought as he made his way back to her room and gently knocked on the door. He heard Winry's small voice say come in and stepped into her room.

Winry lay in her bed her nightgown clung to her due to the sweat that drenched her body. She gave him a faint smile signaling with her hand for him to come to her. She patted the bedside and Edward sat down carefully. He placed his flesh hand on her forehead to feel how high her fever was.

Winry sighed as he placed his hand on her burning forehead, "You don't have to worry Ed" She said in a reassuring voice. "It's just a fever, I'll be fine."

"You idiot, why didn't you tell me you overworked yourself? You know I can wait." He asked and shuffled her slightly in the shoulder.

"Because I know you and Al are in a hurry to get your bodies back and I don't want to prolong you're your suffering." She answered as she looked at him with sky blue eyes while taking his metal arm once again to her forehead.

Edward saw her eyes suddenly lit up and looked at her with a quizzical look on his face.

"Did you find the material?" Winry asked, looking straight at him.

He sighed and nodded. "Yes I did, so now you can relax, see?" He showed her the bag full of parts and wires.

He knew she was getting tired by the way her eyelids closed and opened and decided to leave. He stood up and said goodnight without a protest from Winry. He closed the door behind him and looked up at Al's temporarily body.

"Is she feeling any better?" Al asked, his voice filled with concern. "I hope she will recover soon."

"Yeah I think so. She was able to talk about Automail so I think she will be just fine, she just needs rest." Edward answered his younger brother.

The next day past without much change. Winry slept almost all day so the Elric brothers went to their old house and visited their mother's grave. They got back late afternoon with a bunch of daisies to Winry.

On the third day things were finally starting to look better. Winry's fever had vanished over the night and she was once again on her feet, a little unbalanced. Edward had prevented her from working so she was sitting in the sofa reading a book about Automail. The day was slowly fading away and the daylight was replaced with the darkness of the night. Winry looked up from her book and called out for Edward. The house was completely silent so she rose from her seat to go turn on the lantern that would guide Ed and Al home. She knew they would be able to find the way back without her lantern, but she had always done it and she knew they appreciated it. Their mother had done it while she was alive, so when she passed away Winry took over the job of guiding them home.

Winry opened the door to her balcony and surveyed the open plains filled with flowers. The smell of daisies reached her nostrils. She closed her eyes and let her mind drift back in time, back to a time without worry; their childhood.

A young Winry was chasing a golden haired boy over the grassy fields of Resembool. She had a wrench in her tiny hands ready to throw the minute opportunity strikes. The golden haired boy before her was guilty in opening his mouth and said something bad about her and therefore by her opinion, deserved a wrench to the head. She saw him stumble and fell with a loud thud in the overgrown grass. Winry saw this as a good opportunity to throw her wrench. It hit him hard in the head and he screamed out loud.

"Damnit Winry! Why did you do that?" He yelled at her as he placed a hand over the swelling spot, he could feel the bump slowly forming on his forehead.

"Because you deserved it stupid." She said and sat down beside him, her fair blond hair blowing in the warm summer breeze.

It was so long ago, a time without sorrow. They could play all day with their parents watching them, alive. Things first started to go downhill when her parents died in the war of Ishval, which was said to be started by a rebellion and some even said an officer of the military shot and killed an Ishvallen child by accident, but Winry had been told that it was a massacre. The Ishvallen's were sacrificed to be ingredients in making a Philosopher's stone. The same stone Edward and Alphonse were searching for. She was never quite the same after getting the news of their death. It was soon after that Trisha died due to an illness and heart broke. Ed and Al were broken and were set on bringing her back with Alchemy, using Human Transmutation which is strictly forbidden. It's the ultimate taboo in all Alchemy. Ed lost his right arm and left leg, Al his body. They are doing their best in trying to get their bodies back and therefore Edward became a State Alchemist, to get access to thousands of books full of knowledge about Alchemy. She sighed as she opened her eyes and was met with the sight of an open sky filled with twinkling stars. Back in the old days of their childhood they would always look up at the stars together. She wiped away a stray tear falling from her eye and turned on the lantern that would shine through the darkness as a beckon to get her friends safely home.

Winry walked over to her bed and collapsed on it. Her fever had broken, but she was still tired. She awoke some hours later by some noises coming from the kitchen. She quickly got up and found her wrench. She had it ready to hit someone just in case she needed to use it. She silently made her way through the dark hallway to the staircase and took one step at the time. When she was in the middle of the stairs her balance failed her and she was headed straight down the stairs. Winry readied her body for an impact with the hard floor but it never came. Instead two hands caught her waving ones and pulled her into a pair of strong arms which wrapped around her, keeping her from falling.

"I got you." Ed's voice rang in her ears. Winry stiffened at his sudden appearance and a wince escaped her mouth. She relaxed the moment she understood it was Edward that had caught her and it was he and Al who had been making those noises.

"Thank you Ed." She breathed, her voice was a bit shaken and her eyes reflected fright. "I honestly thought you were someone else." She sighed out loud and a blush spread across her face as she realized the position they were in. Edward had his arms around her waist and hers were behind his neck.

"It was nothing." He said as let go of her and rubbed the back of his neck, a pink blush forming on his cheeks.

"Oh, hi Winry, are you feeling any better?" Al asked as he came out from the kitchen, joining them.

"Much better than yesterday. I think by tomorrow I can begin working on your Automail Ed." She said and smiled at both of them before adding, "And then you will be able to continue your search for a way to restore your bod…" She was interrupted by a new fit of coughing. Her head began to throb and her knees gave under making her fall to the ground still coughing. Ed and Al were at her side in a millisecond, their faces covered in concern.

"Win are you…" Ed stopped midsentence at sight before him. Winry had covered her mouth with her hands which were now covered in blood. "Al, get granny Pinako fast!"

Al retuned shortly after with Pinako at his heels. She kneeled down besides Ed and her granddaughter.

"Edward, Alphonse help her upstairs please."

They carefully managed to get her on unsteady legs. They supported her up the stairs and into her room, helping her into bed gently.

"You mustn't overexert yourself Winry. We have time to wait" Al reassured her as he sat down beside her on the bedside, taking one of her hands in his before adding, "We won't leave you alone until we see you are your old self again."

Edward went outside on the balcony to turn off the lantern Winry had so kindly turned on. When he came back in he was glad to see her coughing had died down and she was asleep. Al pulled the blanket tighter around her and they left the room quietly.

The next days past slowly, Winry was getting better but no one knew why she suddenly had a turn for the worse. Winry looked out the window, it was raining. The always clear blue sky was covered with heavy gray clouds. She could hear thunder someplace far away but it was coming closer to them. It was on days like this she got most of her work done in no time. With no sunshine to tempt her into going out, she work nonstop which of course she wasn't allowed to do now. She listened after sounds from the others but she was alone. They had gone into town. She could still remember Al saying he could stay home to take care of her, even Edward had told her he could stay. She had practically pushed them out of the house, telling them she would be just fine. Winry took this as an open invitation to get some work done. It had already gone five days since she'd fallen sick and she had to make Ed a new arm and do some adjustments to his leg.

She ran down the stairs eager to begin after some days absent from her favorite work. She threw on her working cloths, brought the bag with metal and wires and began on Ed's right arm. Her little paradise was punctured the second she heard Ed's voice calling her name. She quickly concealed her work and took off the overall she was wearing and called back to him.

"I'm here Ed." She closed the door to the workshop and went over to him. He looked at her with disapproval in his eyes.

"What were you doing in there?" He asked as he took a step closer and raised his hand. He quickly brushed away some oil that had planted itself on her cheek and showed his black finger to her, "And why is this here?"

"Well hmm, I was tidying the room. You should have seen it, it's was a mess and I'm tired of doing nothing." She said as she went over to the sofa and sat down. She picked up the book she had been reading and turned through the pages. Edward sighed in defeat and sat down beside her.

"Okay I give up. You are probably well enough to start working again, but don't overdo it okay?" He admitted and smiled at how fast she managed to jump out of the sofa and run into the workshop. He picked up the book se was looking at which had landed on the floor when Winry in true delight had scampered into her workshop. Of course it was a book about Automail and she had probably read it thousands times by the look of the outworn cover.

Edward rose from his seat and made his way into the workshop. He loved to watch Winry do what seemed like the most natural thing for her to do. He knew she was concentrated at the way he could see the metal reflecting in her oceanic eyes concentrated on the Automail. He'd actually never noticed it before, but whenever she got to a bolt or a screw that was particularly difficult to tighten or loosen she bit her lip. He saw the way her eyebrow frowned and a line of concentration was etched in her forehead as she blindly reached for the proper equipment on the table behind her, letting her hands find it by feel. She never once had to put the tool she grabbed back because it was the wrong one. By the end of the day her swift movements were slacken and she got a lot clumsier with the way she lost most of the equipment she grabbed. When she for the hundredth time bent down to grab the screwdriver from the floor her balance failed her and she was headed straight for the cold stone floor but before she made impact with the hard ground Edward grabbed her arms and straightened her up. "I think you should get some rest now Winry." He said as he bent down and grabbed the screwdriver and laid it in its rightful place before looking at her again. "You look tired."

Winry looked at the clock on the wall and yawned before saying, "Yeah, I think your right. It is pretty late after all." She walked back to her workbench to put away her half done Automail arm. She looked at her own handiwork before putting it away with all the loose parts that still had to be connected to the machinery in the center of the arm to get the right signals to the fingers. She took off her work cloths and turned off the lights as they walked out of the room. They bid each other goodnight and went into their separate rooms to let sleep claim them.

A/N: That's it for now. I promise the next chapter will be updated in a couple of days since the finals at school are over and it's soon summer break.

Hope you like the story so far and enjoyed reading it. Please review! I appreciate it. Give me your opinions, suggestions and critics.

Bye for now Taiora Freak.