Authors Note: A short fic done a while ago off an idea posted on tumblr that amounted to "what if Ed was instead kidnapped during episode 8 of the Fullmetal Alchemist 2003 anime and it was up to Winry to find him?

Full disclosure: I hate the 2003 anime exactly for stuff like the stuff they pulled with Winry in episode 8- turning her into a damsel in distress, who is tied up and crying for the man to rescue and silent for the majority of her ordeal and never allowed to comment on it or be focused on during it because of course, Ed and Al's manpain is more important than her pain, when she was never put in such a position in the original manga and always had agency and focus on her OWN pain and heroism whenever she appeared and was certainly never made to be a agency free damsel in distress- but I digress. Don't worry, no further bashing in this.

The point is, because I haven't watched it in a while and I just really like the fic idea,so don't expect this to be positively free of any inaccuracies to 2003's continuity. It's an AU anyway.

Wire Cutters in Her Purse

He would have never left his pocket watch behind.

His pocket watch and his brother… yes, those were the two things he would never leave behind.

She wasn't on that list, of course. No problem leaving her behind. But he and Al were still her family, which was why she'd come all the way to this city to see them. Only to find the wrecked remains of a fight, and that Ed had been kidnapped in that fight, probably by the serial killer he was pursuing.

"Why did he go after him alone?" Al moaned. The huge suit of armor that was his body now was trembling.

Winry picked up the pocket watch from the ravaged ground. It was heavy, too heavy for such a small thing. He'd been so proud of it. The symbol of a State Alchemist. The sign that he and Al were moving forward. He'd written to her about it, and warned her that she couldn't try to steal it and take it apart next time he saw her. He knew her too well. Normally she'd be elated to have such a thing in her hands. She'd already have her tools out and it would be in pieces. But now, she wanted nothing to do with it. It should be with Ed. He should have it, and he should be here and safe with her and his brother. But he wasn't. She handed it to Al, who barely even noticed, he was still talking frantically with Mustang and Hawkeye, trying to figure out where Barry the Chopper could have taken Ed.

There was rubble everywhere. She closed her eyes, trying to fight off the tears. It reminded her of the rubble of Ed and Al's house after they burned it down.

"We can't go home anymore," Ed had said.

Idiot. He'd always have a home while she was around. But now, it might not be true. Maybe Ed really never would come home. He'd die in this city.

She clenched her fists. No. Focus. This can't happen to you again. Not after Mom and Dad. There has to be a clue here. A way to save him.

She forced herself to open her eyes and look at the rubble again. That when she saw it. Tire tracks. Ed had definitely been taken away in a car. Cars were one of the things she had been looking forward to seeing the big city for. All the different kinds- it was like some sort of sick joke that a car was what had taken Ed away from her.

Then she saw it. Among all the rubble, there was her clue. A car bumper. No, not just a car bumper. She rushed over and knelt down to look at it. A truck bumper. It had been torn off during the fight, probably by Ed. He was always wrecking quality machinery so he could use it in his dumb alchemy.

"Everyone!"

Al and the others kept talking. As usual, she wasn't even on anyone's radar.

"EVERYONE!" She said again loudly. "Ed was taken away in a truck. The bumper's right here. I…"

Something clicked in her mind. She'd seen an ice cream truck earlier today. Before she'd met up with Al and discovered Ed's predicament, she'd gotten a bit lost in the city. She'd seen the truck as she was getting directions from a local shopkeep. It had been sitting the across the street from her near some building that didn't look to be in use much (which had struck her as a bit odd). Seeing the truck had been incredibly exciting at the time. She'd even tried to go over and take a closer look, but by the time she'd finished getting her directions, the truck had pulled out of the lot. Just her luck, she'd thought.

Well, it really had been luck- but the good kind. That truck had definitely had a bumper similar to this. Whatever they said about her, the fact she was a maniac who automatically absorbed and remembered the details of anything mechanical she could fasten her eyes on sure came in handy at times like this.

"I know what the truck looks like! It's an ice cream truck! I think I even know where it might be!" She exclaimed, jumping up and waving the bumper in the air.

Al, Roy and Riza all stared at her, utterly dumbfounded.

"What…?"

"No time for questions. We have to move it!"

—

She'd had to come with them to lead them there by memory, since she didn't know the street names or anything. Normally, riding in a military vehicle would have been thrilling, but all she could focus on was finding the road that led to Ed.

And there it was. The truck.

Everyone had told her to stay in the car and she had- for two seconds. Then she'd followed in after them. No one had noticed.

Ed was chained up on a…what was it, a meat rack? Gross. Riza, Roy and Al were busy converging on Barry the Chopper, who was trying to fight back. Winry went straight to Ed, who was barely conscious.

"Win…ry? "

"It's okay, Ed", Winry said, tears of relief streaming down her face. "I'm here."

"I…can see that, crybaby."

"Shut up." Winry rummaged through all the tools in her back and pulled them out.

"Wha…" Ed was groggy and bleeding, but apparently that wasn't going to shut him up. "You have bolt cutters in your purse? Are you kidding…"

"Wouldn't go anywhere without them, duh!" Winry snapped the chain with a little effort. Ed fell, his legs too weak to support him, but she grabbed him before he could hit the ground.

"It's okay," she murmured, holding him up. "It's okay. I've got you."