A/N: Hey! What's happenin'? I decided to write a story for these two, for now a oneshot.
It seems songfics are now being banned from here, but I'm only using a tiny snippet of the song, not all of the lyrics, as that is illegal. (You can look up the song yourself if your interested). Still, if you happen to have a problem with this usage, PM me about it before reporting, and I will address your issue.
Also, I know absolutely nothing about the history of alchemy, so anything written about in here is made up by me and my odd brain. xD Hope it doesn't seem too hard to believe. (Tell me if Ed or Winry seem OOC, too).
Now, that that's out of the way, go ahead and read already! :D
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Underneath the moon, underneath the stars
Here's a little heart for you
Up above the world, up above it all
Here's a hand to hold unto
"Don't Let Me Fall" by Lenka (Kripac)
Ed couldn't fall asleep that one night at the Rockbell's house, and had crept out of his room, into the backyard. It was a nice, clear night outside, and he lay there admiring the stars and the moon. The weather was not cold, but a bit chilly, so he had quickly shrugged on his red cloak.
The backyard door opened, and a young blonde girl stood in the doorway holding two mugs. She had seen that Ed had not fallen asleep yet, and was a bit surprised considering how often he slept, even during the day. She herself, had to work on some automail for a customer, and so decided to take a break.
So Winry had made two cups of hot chocolate, one for her and one for him.
Stepping outside, she walked toward him lying in the grass, and said in a soft voice, "Hey."
Ed looked up and saw gentle blue eyes. He quirked an eyebrow at her and responded with a "Hey," as well. She smiled, still standing.
"Couldn't fall asleep?"
"Nah, got a lot on my mind... You?"
Winry shrugged.
"I still have work to do."
"Hm." He nodded, turning back to the stars. That was when Winry offered one of the mugs to him, leaning down. At first, a curious glimmer entered his golden eyes as he sat up and reached out his hand, but then he hesitated. Ed wrinkled his nose.
"It's not milk, is it?"
The blonde rolled her eyes. "No, just some hot chocolate. Sometimes it helps me relax, so I thought maybe you wanted some too?"
That look of disgust vanished from his face as quickly as it had appeared and he couldn't help but grin at her, raising his eyebrows. Ed accepted it, sipping the tasty drink, as she too sat down in the grass beside him.
The two drank their hot chocolate in silence, looking up at the sky. It wasn't an awkward silence, no, but rather... a peaceful one. Ed felt a pleasurable tingling feeling as the hot chocolate traveled down his throat.
It wasn't long before they both had finished their drinks, and then lied back down into the soft patch of grass beneath them. Winry closed her eyes, and breathed in the fresh air, relaxing. She tried to clear her mind, which had trouble getting rid of the stress of working overtime, when a voice interrupted her. "Hey, Win?"
She opened her eyes.
"You know those stars up there?" asked Ed, unaware of the questionable look she gave him. "That group there is called the 'Dragon Claw'. It's an alchemical constellation."
Laughing, Winry rolling her eyes. "You're such a geek..."
Ed sat up, throwing her a heated glare. "Shut up, Gearhead!"
This only caused the blonde to laugh some more. Finally though, she hushed and said in a quiet, but genuine voice, "Okay, sorry, sorry. Why is it called that?"
After glaring at her a little more, and letting out a deep sigh of forgiveness, Ed lied down again, his mind circling with thoughts.
"Well, that's because it mostly depicts the claw. See? The heads waaay over there, but its foot is closer." The golden-haired alchemist made gestures with his hand as he pointed up to the sky.
"I kinds see what you mean..." Winry murmured, squinting her eyes. She raised her hand up too, and swerved it to the left.
"I'm pretty sure that one is called, 'Moon Alchemist'," she said. "It was one of the first constellations ever named."
Giving her both a curious and suspicious look, Ed questioned her remark. "How would you know? You're not into alchemy..."
Shrugging, she replied, "It was when we were kids. After you two began learning about alchemy, you never told me about any of the things you were doing. Always keeping secrets. So, once, I decided to snatch a book from Al, but it turns out it was an alchemical constellation book he was reading for fun. Though I couldn't make sense of anything that was written there, I do remember one fact."
"The 'Moon Alchemist'..." Ed repeated, slightly surprised that Winry would remember such a vague fact from her childhood, let alone have any interest at all in alchemy. She was always making fun of him for it, after all.
"Uh-huh. I read in the book that it was named after a legend. Centuries ago. That this alchemist could control the tides with his own self being..."
"But turns out, that all was just a bunch of crap," declared Ed, shaking his head. Winry raised an eyebrow and looked at the defiant boy beside her.
"What makes you say that?" she asked, the side of her mouth curling up into an amused half-smile. He glanced at her.
"Didn't it say so?"
"Oh, yes, Edward. The book said, and I quote, 'it was just a bunch of crap'."
Ed scowled at her sarcasm. "Well, Winry, it just so happens, he was a fraud trying to gain attention by claiming he could 'control the tides'." He made air quotes around said legend. "But in actuality, he wasn't even an alchemist. The moon's gravitational pull was actually moving the tides, not some idiot with an unmistakable God complex..."
As he explained this to her, he couldn't help but be reminded of Mustang in the last context. Ha. Idiot with a God complex.
Classic Ed.
"Really?"
"Yep."
"Wow...Well that was a waste of time. I thought I had finally learned something interesting about alchemy..." Winry teased.
When he didn't reply, the girl noticed that he had had his eyes closed, and was breathing peacefully, too quietly to be asleep, but soft enough to indicate he was listening. She liked seeing this rare bit of tranquility in him, the way his lips were curved into the slightest smile, the way his chest rose with each breath, and the way the moonlight seemed to reflect the feelings she felt.
"...Ed? How did you know he was a fraud? Did your Teacher tell you, or something?" Winry finally asked, genuinely curious. As soon as she saw his golden eyes shoot open, the peaceful aura around them disappearing, she was almost sorry that she had even uttered the words.
Ed hesitated, processing the question. He then sighed, refusing to meet his friend's eyes. "Before Hohenheim... left us," he started, grimacing at his father's name. "Him, Al, and I used to sit outside, and he told us about 'star pictures' in the sky... Heh, I was so gullible. Didn't think I guy like him would just walk out on us like that..."
Winry watched her best friend's expression carefully. He appeared to be putting up an indifferent front as he said that last sentence. But, behind the mask he wore, Winry knew he was hurting, trying to forgive his father, and knowing that he simply couldn't.
So she apologized for Hohenheim.
"I'm sorry."
Finally meeting her eyes, Ed saw a mixture of both grief and compassion in her pretty blue eyes.
He turned away.
"Don't be."
Another silence entered the atmosphere, and this one was slightly uncomfortable.
"Maybe we should head on inside. I still have a lot of work to do," the blonde mechanic remarked, breaking the rather tense air. "Plus, you're not getting any taller out here..." Winry added.
Ed glared at her. "DON'T CALL ME SHORT!"
She laughed, good-naturedly. "Come on, let's go."
Winry held out her hand.
Normally, Ed wouldn't have bothered as he would simply ignore her and stand up on his own... but tonight...
Her fingers and palm looked soft and warm in the silver glow of the moon and the stars, as did the gleam in her ocean blue eyes, always swimming with emotions he could never hope to fully understand.
And so, he took it, holding on gently at first, inwardly admiring the feeling of her smooth, ivory skin. Of course he would never tell her that, but even thinking about it made his cheeks flame up.
But as Winry seemed to involuntarily tighten her grasp on his hand, he immediately did the same, knowing her fingers would eventually unclasp from his when he managed to stand up.
Still...
For once, he hadn't wanted to let go.
