Hey guys, I'm back.
This isn't the new AU that I talked about at the end of Princess Bride. I'm still working on that. This is something I've been thinking about for a while. This will be a short story and should only be about four chapters long.
This is a sequel to my one-shot 'Drunken Confessions'. If you haven't read that story then I recommend that you do. I've thought about making a series of short stories that follow each other. In DC, I mentioned that I was using elements of the 2003 anime even though I hate it. I've decided to set this new series in the 'Star of Milos' verse since that movie seems to exist in a universe of its own. DC happened before Milos and this story takes place after.
OoO
OoO
June 12, 4:17 pm. Eastern City.
Two young children, a boy and a girl, were sitting on the sidewalk. They sat together outside their apartment building. In their hands were large crayons used for drawing on hard pavement. The little girl was currently drawing her third butterfly when the sounds of tires screeching in the distance caught her attention. Both she and her brother looked up to see a large truck screeching around the corner. The vehicle lurched for a second before speeding past the children and down the street. They turned back to the corner as several military vehicles followed. As the two young ones stared in amazement they didn't see the small figure in red running on the rooftops after the truck.
The truck itself was also military, with a large canvas roof for the back. In the passenger seat was a very tense man named Rorke.
"Drive straight you fucking idiot! Are you trying to get us killed?" He barked at the driver.
"Oh apologies that I don't want to get caught. You just don't steal 50 billion cenz without repercussions." The driver, Dreyfus, shot back.
"30 billion." Rorke muttered before knocking on the back of the truck's cabin. A sliding window opened to reveal three more men, one by the window and two more near the back. Around them were the boxes containing the stolen cenz.
"What?!" The window man asked impatiently.
"Are you assholes done putting that thing together?" Rorke asked. Behind Window Man, the other two were assembling a Browning M1917 heavy machine gun.
The man grinned. "Just about."
Rorke looked past him and saw the military cars chasing them. "Then light those fuckers up." He grinned as well.
Window Man nodded and closed the slide. Rorke turned back to the road in front of him. Dreyfuss kept trying to find a way out of the city.
Soon the deafening sound of rapid gunfire erupted from the back of the truck. Rorke glanced into the rear view mirror to see the cars behind them being riddled with bullets. The car in the front of the convoy's windshield shattered and multiple bullet holes punched their way into the vehicle. Blood splattered on what remained of the windshield and the car immediately veered to the right, crashing into a street lamp. The remaining cars slowed down and ceased their pursuit.
"Fucking pussies." Rorke chuckled as he turned back to the clear road in front of them. "Looks like it's sm-" He was cut off as the truck suddenly, and violently, stopped in its tracks.
Rorke and Dreyfuss both slammed into the windshield but were saved by their seatbelts. Behind them they heard several loud thuds.
"What the fuck was that!" Rorke muttered as he gripped his throbbing forehead. He could feel blood seeping through his fingers. There was no sound from the back of the truck, meaning his three comrades were unconscious. Rorke kicked on the acceleration but the truck didn't move. With a snarl, Rorke unhooked his seatbelt and stumbled out of the cabin. Leaning against the side of the truck for support, he made his way to the back of the vehicle. His eyes widened at what he saw.
A giant hand, made of cobblestone, had grabbed onto the back of truck, keeping it in place. The hand was connected to an arm that appeared to have emerged from the sidewalk. "Oh for fuck's sake." Dreyfuss muttered as he came up alongside Rorke. He too, had a gash on his forehead and appeared to be limping. In his right hand was a Colt M1877 revolver. They both turned to head back to the front of the truck.
"You know, if you wanted to make a quiet getaway, might I suggest calling a taxi next time. It's a whole lot more conspicuous than a large military styled truck barreling down the street with a machine gun in the back." Drawled an unknown voice.
Both Rorke and Dreyfuss turned quickly. Two feet away from the source of the giant arm stood a blond haired teenager in a red coat leaning casually against the wall of a building. He wore a silver lined black jacket under the coat, as well as black trousers and boots. His golden eyes stared at them with an almost bored expression.
"Who the fuck are you kid?" Dreyfuss growled as he aimed his revolver at the teenager.
Edward Elric's monotone look never broke as he glanced at the pistol. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you. But personally I think you should be more concerned about the guy behind you."
"Wha-AGH!" Dreyfuss was struck from behind and crumpled to the cobblestone street. Rorke whirled around and blanched at the large figure in front of him. Before him stood a tall figure in a large suit of armor. The armor joints creaked as the giant turned towards Rorke.
"You know it's not nice to steal." The armored man reprimanded him in a childish voice. "Or to point guns at my brother."
"Brother…?" Rorke turned to run and saw the blond alchemist charging him. Quickly he pulled his own pistol from his belt and aimed it at the teen.
Ed stopped in his tracks two feet from the armed criminal. Reacting quickly, he kicked his right leg up in a roundhouse kick, knocking the weapon from the man's hand. Ed landed back on his feet. Rorke didn't have any time to react before Ed brought his right hand back and slammed his fist into the older man's face. The thud of metal hitting flesh sounded before the robber fell back unconscious.
"That was for the soldier you wounded." Ed muttered darkly as he stepped over Rorke. "Thanks for the assist, Alphonse." He looked up at his younger brother.
"You're welcome, brother." The younger Elric sibling said. "Nice kick."
"Yeah it was." Ed grinned cockily as the sirens of approaching military vehicles grew closer. "I've been wanting to try that for a while."
"You've been wanting to roundhouse kick a gun out of someone's hand for a while?" Al asked dryly.
"Hey it looked cool." Ed defended.
"I'm surprised that you didn't just grab the gun." Al commented.
"Huh?"
"Well usually, when someone's pointing a gun at you, you'll block the gun's barrel with your automail hand and cause it to backfire." Al said, the brow of his helmet was raised slightly. "That ways easier yet you didn't do it."
Ed's cocky grin faltered a little and a small blush appeared on his face. "Well…I thought about doing that but…"
"But what?" Al asked teasingly. Around them military cars parked and soldiers began to emerge.
"I...uh...didn't want to damage my automail." Ed mumbled, looking away from Al. Silence followed before Ed looked up and saw Al staring at him with what he guessed was a shocked expression.
"What?" He asked defensively.
Al seemed to break out of his shock and rubbed the back of his helmet. "Nothing, it's just nice to see you're finally listening to Winry."
Although he would never admit ,even under torture, Ed's heart always skipped a beat at the sound of her name. His face immediately began to heat up as images of his childhood friend and automail mechanic flashed through his brain. Her long blond hair flowing in the calm Resembol air as the sun illuminated it into a halo. And another of when she was hunched over her automail bench covered in grease yet still managing to somehow look cute.
"W-well, I uh, I um, guess that all those damned wrenches finally left some kind of impact." He stuttered before regaining his composure.
Al's helmet cocked to the side. "Brother are you okay? You look like you're overheating."
"No! I mean…I'm fine. It's uh nothing. Just…forget it." Ed muttered before walking away.
Al watched him walk away and shook his head. "Oh brother." He mumbled.
Meanwhile Ed was having some sort of strange internal argument with himself. 'Stupid Al poking his nose where it doesn't belong.' He stopped walking and stood there, absorbed in his thoughts. 'Well to be fair, he wasn't actually accusing me of anything and was just being concerned. But why was I was acting up in the first place?! All I was doing was thinking about Winry….Oh no.'
Suddenly another image of Winry flashed through his head. This time she was smiling at him with that smile that always seemed to brighten his mood, her azure colored eyes were sparkling in the sunlight.
'Aaaahhhhh!' Ed grabbed handfuls of his hair in an effort to clear his mind. Why couldn't he stop thinking about her?
"Major Elric sir?"
Ed turned to see a young soldier standing awkwardly a few feet away. It looked like that he had been trying to get Ed's attention for several moments.
"Yes?" He said more harshly than he meant.
"We need you to fill out the arrest forms sir. Standard procedure." The soldier motioned behind him to where all the criminals were now conscious and in cuffs.
"Oh yeah, uh, right." Ed ran a hand through his hair. The soldier rolled his eyes and turned around. Ed followed him but his thoughts still remained on a certain blond gearhead. 'These damn daydreams have got to stop. At first they were…interesting, but now they're a real pain in the ass! Agh, since when did I start daydreaming about Winry?!'
Ed let out a sigh as he knew the answer to his own question. These daydreams, as he called them, had started ever since that night four months ago. The night that his relationship with Winry changed forever. A poorly conceived prank by Mustang's stooges had ended with Winry getting drugged with laced cookies. What had started off as an annoying inconvenience quickly turned into a slap in the face for Ed.
With the alcohol and drugs coursing through her system, Winry's mental filter had completely shut off. With no restraint at all, Winry had broken down and laid bare how much Al and his' absence affected her. Ed had known she didn't like them being away but hadn't realized how devastating their absences really were for her.
Ed remembered feeling like the biggest prick in the world at how much pain he had unintentionally caused his best friend. Even now, as he stood in the street mechanically filling out paperwork, the guilt still gnawed at him like a pack of rabid dogs. On that day, he had promised himself that he would fix his relationship with Winry.
'I guess that's when it changed.' Ed thought in his head. 'My opinion of Winry that is. Well it's not like she knows that it's changed. She was…uh drugged after all and didn't remember anything the next morning. But there's no way in hell she hasn't noticed that I've been more…careful since then.'
In the four months since the night of drunken confessions, as he liked to call it, Ed hadn't broken his automail once. Just one of his automail arms cost 10 million cenz to make, but the cost didn't really matter to him. Winry poured her heart and soul into every single inch of those arms. She really went out of her way to give him the best automail. Apart from being more considerate about her automail, Ed had also taken to calling Winry much more frequently than before.
Ed chucked at the memory of his first call to Winry, three and half months ago.
February 8. 1:05 p.m. Eastern City.
Ed was sitting sidesway on the large hotel couch, the speaker of a phone held nervously in his hand. Al was down the hallway and out of earshot but that wasn't what concerned him. As he heard the phone being connected to Rush Valley, he grew more nervous about the upcoming conversation. Never before had he just called Winry simply to converse with her, but he didn't know what else to do. He had to fix the rift that had been unknowingly growing between them. On the morning after, a few weeks ago, he hadn't said anything to her about the specifics of what happened, just the general circumstance. By the time he'd worked up the courage to talk to her about it, Winry was on her way back to Rush Valley. And so now here he was, sitting on his couch, calling Winry out of the blue and having no idea what to say.
Eventually he heard a click as his call was finally connected.
"The is Studio Garfiel in Rush Valley. Winry Rockbell, assistant automail mechanic, speaking." Her voice sounded so professional that Ed couldn't help but chuckle.
"So I guess you're the receptionist now huh? Kinda seems like a step down from an automail assistant."
"Ed?" Her surprised voice came from the phone.
"Were you expecting someone else?" He spoke with as much smugness as possible.
He heard her give a sigh. "Not really I guess. So, uh, how are you Ed?"
"I'm good, how's your obsession with useless junk going." Ed grinned.
He heard her give a small growl. "Are you calling my work junk, you twerp?!"
"No, just the ones you don't make for me."
"Whatever." He heard her scoff before some of the anger left her voice. "So apart from from getting under my skin, why else have you called?...You've broken my automail haven't you!"
Ed sighed and shook his head. "Believe it or not Winry, my automail is fine."
"I don't believe you." She replied sharply.
Ed glanced at his metal limbs and flexed both of them. "Trust me, both my arm and leg are perfectly fine." He couldn't keep the prideful grin off his face.
There was a short pause before Winry spoke again, her voice laced with confusion. "Okay…if your automail is fine then why are you calling me?"
Ed chewed his bottom lip as his grip around phone tightened. Moment of truth. "I was…uh just calling to…um see how you're doing and…uh, you know, talk."
The silence that followed lasted for almost two minutes before she finally spoke.
"Who are you and what have you done with Edward Elric?"
Ed let out a laugh but also couldn't help the sting that he felt. Was she really that surprised? He felt his initial confidence return slightly.
"I have him locked in my basement. C'mon Winry can't I just call and say hi?"
"Sorry it's just…it's just unexpected." Winry sounded slightly flustered.
"Yeah I guess it would be unexpected. I…I've never really called you before, haven't I?" Ed's voice turned somber.
There was a pause before Winry gave an uneasy chuckle. "Are you finally admitting that I was right." Her voice was trying to keep the attitude cheerful and joking.
Ed sighed. "I guess I am Winry. I'm sorry it's taken so long." Ed's nervousness was gone, he wasn't going to hold back. Not any more.
"Ed you've called me before." It sounded like she was trying to slightly reassure him.
"Yeah but it was always about automail. Frickin hell, I've never checked in on you have I? I've never even checked if you're okay." His voice grew shaky as his eyes got misty. Fuck, the damn guilt was back and stronger than ever. It had been a few weeks, but still, he felt like he was back in his room with Winry yelling accusingly at him, calling him out for the things that he had done.
"Oh Ed…You've never needed to..." Winry began but Ed cut her off.
"Like two years ago. W-when you were kidnapped. I-I wasn't there for you. I didn't call you or anything!" He heard her gasp at the mention of the incident with Barry the Chopper. They had never truly spoke about it until now. "You're my best friend and…I'm sorry."
"Why are you saying this, are you okay? Did something happen?" Her voice trailed off sounding both confused and also concerned for him. What he had said was probably the last thing she had expected him to say.
"No…everything is okay, Winry. I just really wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."
Winry was once again silent for a moment before speaking again. Her voice was once again shaky but there was also a hint of happiness as well.
"Ed, I don't know what to say."
They talked for 16 more minutes before they decided to hang up. The conversation had been awkward and at some points forced, but both of them were glad that it happened.
June 12, 4:30 p.m. Eastern City.
But something else had changed besides the calls and the automail. Something much, much deeper. On that night he had seen Winry at her most vulnerable and he never wanted to see her like that again. His appreciation of her had grown into something else, something that he knew was beyond friendship. This wasn't a sudden change; he had, for a while now, known that his feelings for Winry were changing. He'd had a crush on her for almost a year, how could he not? Winry had been him and Al's most loyal friend since they were children. She had always stuck by him, no matter how crazy Ed drove her or vise versa. Every time he needed automail, she was there for him. She was kind and sweet, but also wasn't afraid to speak her mind or kick someone's ass.
Sometimes he wondered if it was more than just a crush. She was no longer the little grease monkey who him and Al had played with as children.
"Brother…brother?"
Ed shook from his flashback and looked down at the papers in front of him, seeing that they were all filled out. Ed sighed and turned towards Al. "Yes Al?"
Al gave him a deadpanned look. "You were doing it again."
"Yeah I know." Ed mumbled before handing the arrest forms to a waiting officer.
"Have you thought about drinking coffee?"
"Coffee?"
"Breda told me that it helps him stay focused." Al said.
Ed shook his head and then surveyed the crime scene. The street had been closed off by military personnel who were keeping the civilians back. The gang of criminals were being escorted into a prison van as another truck was being used to load the stolen cenz.
"Well Al, it would appear our work here is done. C'mon I'm tired." Ed turned to walk to their apartment.
"Actually brother there's still the same reports that you have fill out, and a report on the incident itself. Also a soldier was shot so you have to mention that as well." Al informed his brother sheepishly.
"God dammit!"
OoO
OoO
June 12, 8:25 pm. Rush Valley.
"C'mon…got it!"
Winry sat back on her stool and used the back of her hand to wipe the sweat off her forehead. In front of her was a large automail arm. The metal limb consisted of a hand, wrist, forearm, and bicep. It belonged to a factory worker whose original left arm had gotten caught in a gear three years ago. He had brought it in earlier that afternoon complaining that the gears and screws were too tight. Winry had spent the last hour loosening the screws to a satisfactory degree. She had just finished with fixing the final screw.
'Another day, another piece of automail.' Winry thought to herself as she washed her oil stained fingers in a nearby sink. As the water washed away the black smudges, the blonde mechanic glanced out of her window. Several miles away were storm clouds that were drawing closer, but that wasn't what grabbed Winry's attention.
'Wow is it that late already!' Winry thought as she could see the sun setting over the mountains in the distance. She wiped her wet hands on her grey work overalls. 'That arm took me a lot longer then it should have. I guess I was more tired than I thought.' The last several days had been rather hectic for Winry as customers and requests had been pouring in every day.
Winry chewed her bottom lip. 'How much sleep did I get last night? Five…four hours max? I need a vacation.' She joked as she began to put away her assortment of tools and scrap metal.
'Crap look at this mess.' She grumbled to herself as she surveyed her rather untidy workspace. 'It looks like Ed was here.'
Suddenly the ringing of a phone sounded from down the hallway. It was followed by Garfiel calling out for Winry to get it. Moving quickly Winry rose from her stool and exited the backroom. As she neared the front desk, Winry could could feel a small tinge of excitement building up in her stomach. She reached the phone and held the ear-piece to her head.
"This is Studio Garfiel in Rush Valley. Winry Rockbell, assistant automail mechanic, speaking." She rehearsed the greeting, hoping to hear his voice.
"Hello Winry, this is Marcus Ryan. I brought my arm into your shop a few hours ago."
Winry felt herself deflate and some disappointment creep into the back of her mind. "Yes, hello Marcus. I actually just finished with it a minute ago."
"Oh that's great."
Winry sat down on a nearby chair. "Yes it's ready for pickup whenever you are ready."
There was a pause. "Um…actually I can't pick it up tonight. How about around noon time tomorrow?"
"Um…" Winry reached over and grabbed a schedule of clients for the next week. "Yes, that should be fine. But are you sure you don't want to pick it up today?"
"Well I was going to, but…something's come up. I think I can survive one night without my left arm." He said with a chuckle.
Winry bit her lower lip. "Alright then, I'll have your arm ready for you tomorrow.
"Okay, I'll see you then, Winry." Marcus said cheerfully before he hung up. Winry put the ear-piece and frowned slightly. Marcus' voice had sounded kinda strange, as if he was sick or something.
'Well he does work in a mine.'
Deciding that it was probably nothing Winry hopped of the chair and walked back to her work room. As she passed an open door she heard her boss' feminine voice.
"Were you hoping for someone else?" Mr. Garfiel asked as he leaned against the doorway. "Namely a blond, golden eyed, not to mention, handsome state alchemist? Hmm?"
Winry's cheeks turned pink as she almost tripped over herself. "I…I don't know you're talking about Mr. Garfiel." She stuttered as she avoided any eye contact.
"Don't give me that, honey." Garfiel chastised her. "You wanted it to be Edward on the phone didn't you?"
At that Winry turned to glare at Garfiel. "Okay so what if I was hoping Ed would be the other line? He's my friend and it would be nice to hear from him." Winry spoke defensively and put her hands on her hips.
Garfiel chuckled at Winry's defensiveness. "Yes I guess there is nothing wrong with wanting to hear from your boyfriend."
Winry's eyes widened and her face went from pink to beet red. "B-b-boyfriend!" She stuttered. "Don't be ridiculous."
"Oh Winry, you poor thing." Garfiel sighed and shook his head with a smile.
Winry, already flustered enough, turned back to her workroom. I-If you'll excuse me sir, I have work to do."
At this Garlfiel's face softened and he straightened up. "Winry, how long have you been working today?"
"Uhhh…a few hours, why?"
"Try eight and a half. That's more than enough work for one day."
"But Mr. Garfiel…" Winry protested.
"Go upstairs and get some sleep. Goodness knows you could use some." Garfiel said with a wink. "I'll call you down when it's time for supper. Till then get some rest, you've been working hard all week and deserve a break."
"Yeah I guess a nap would be nice." Winry mumbled as she rubbed the back of her neck. Closing the door to her workroom, she then made her way upstairs to her bedroom. But as she moved, her thoughts were elsewhere.
'He's right, I was hoping Ed would be on the phone. Which is ridiculous and unrealistic. I mean he can't call me everyday right?' Winry thought to herself. 'Ugh…Ed calls me a couple times and now I can't think straight.' She sighed as she entered her room and closed the door behind her.
But to be honest, Winry was overjoyed at the fact that Ed was being more…talkative and open with her. For the last four months he had called her many times, roughly two to three times a week. It wasn't even about his automail, which to her shock hadn't been broken in any of that time. Ed often called her simply to check on how she was doing and talk about her week. The frequent calls had stated ever since…that night.
'Oh god how could I forget?' Winry groaned. She only had vague memories of what transpired that night. But from what Ed had told her she'd been drugged by a prank that had been meant for him. She had woken up the next morning with a splitting headache and no memory of what had happened. Ed had told her that he'd found her in a drunken state in his hotel room.
'Ugh I thought I was going to die from embarrassment! At least Ed didn't tease me about it, which was…odd.' Winry mused to herself as she unzipped her overalls and shimmied out of them. Stepping out, Winry was clad in a simple pair of tan cargo shorts and a black tank top. 'I guess I can sleep in this.' She thought before turning back to Ed.
'I must have said something on that stupid night. Something to make Ed act so different and well…nicer. But what the hell did I say?! He wouldn't tell me anything the next morning and he's been annoying vague about it.' Winry cursed to herself as she folded her overalls and placed them on a drawer. 'Not that I'm complaining though. I-I just never knew he cared so much.' Her cheeks blushed.
When Ed had first called her, they had talked about the Chopper incident. Ed had apologized profusely for what had happened and for his 'negligence' of her after the the incident. He didn't need to, she had never held that against him. Winry blushed even more as she thought about how much Ed had babbled about how sorry he was and how he wasn't appreciative enough of her.
'I guess the constant lecturing and head bashing finally got through to the pip squeak. I guess Edward Elric is finally maturing.' She thought happily before her thoughts took a different turn.
'Mental maturity aren't the only recent changes he's had?' Said a voice in the back of her head.
'Well in the last few months he has gotten taller, I guess, and he has…filled out more.' Winry's face turned bright red and she fell back on her bed with her hands tangled in her blonde hair. 'Damn puberty, and damn it for making Edward hot!'
The blond mechanic had long ago realized that her feelings towards Edward had moved beyond friendship. 'Why did I have to fall for him of all people?' Winry sighed before answering her own question. 'Because he's one of the most stubborn, selfless, and caring people that I've ever met. He cares about the people who are close to him and will do anything to protect them. He puts everyone else's problems ahead of himself and doesn't give himself nearly enough credit. He values human life highly despite being in the military and he tries to always do what is right.' She ran a hand through her hair. 'Ed can be a real dumbass, but he's really one of the smartest people I know. Maybe even the smartest that I know. And despite him having to leave all the time; he always does comes back…it's taken me a while to see that last part.'
Winry was now laying back on top of her bed; staring up at the ceiling. 'But…how do I tell him? Should I even tell him? How would he react? Well it's Ed, he probably doesn't even feel the same and he'd freak out. Or we'd be super awkward around each other and our entire friendship will be ruined!'
Winry let out a groan and rolled onto her side. 'But…I guess he deserves to know. It wouldn't be fair if I just pushed all this under the rug; phhff not that I could.'
A loud clap of thunder in the distance startled Winry from her thoughts. With a sigh she hopped off the bed and crossed the room to her window. When Winry reached it, she poked her head outside. The sun was setting over the mountains in the distance, but there were also large thunder clouds approaching Rush Valley.
'I hope everyone get's their stuff inside before all the metal gets rusted.' Winry sighed before closing her window and returning to her bed. She plopped down on the mattress and closed her eyes. But as she began to drift off, her thoughts remained on Ed.
'I think I will tell him.' She thought optimistically in her head. 'One day. Maybe when they no longer have to search for their bodies. And maybe…he'll love me back.'
OoO
OoO
June 12, 8:32 p.m. Eastern City.
"You know when Mustang came to Resembool and asked me to be a State Alchemist; he forgot to mention all the damn paperwork that goes into it!" Ed barked.
Alphonse merely nodded as he patiently finished his own paperwork of the arrests. He had stopped listening to his brother's complaining a while ago.
Ed continued to run his mouth as he wrote. "This is why being on the road is better than being stuck in the city. Nobody makes us do paperwork out there."
After a little while. "There!" Ed proclaimed as he threw his pen on the table. "I'm done. Let's get out of here Al." With that he rose from the table and began to walk away. Al meanwhile stacked his paperwork neatly before doing the same for Ed's and handing them to a nearby receptionist.
"You comin Al?" Ed asked, looking back.
"Coming Brother." Al said as the large suit of armor caught up to his older brother. The two Elric siblings then started to make their way out of Eastern Command. As they neared the lobby, they suddenly heard someone calling Edward's name.
"Major Elric? Major Elric sir?"
Ed turned around to see a communications operator running towards them. The slightly out of breath young man reached them while Ed waited impatiently.
"Something you need?" He asked and got lightly elbowed by Al.
"Sir, there is a call for you from Col. Mustang in Central." The operator told him.
Ed let out a long suffering groan "Can't this wait until tomorrow?"
"I'm sorry sir, but it's urgent. If you'll come with…"
"Okay, okay let's see what the bastard needs." Ed sighed and followed the operator.
"What do you think the Colonel wants, brother?" Al asked as they walked back down the long hallways.
"Whatever it is, it can't be good for me."
The operator led the two brothers to a phone booth and handed the device to Ed.
"What do you want Mustang? I was just about to turn in." He spoke into the phone.
"Fullmetal." Came the Colonel's deep voice from the other end. "About time, I've been trying to reach you all day. Now listen som…"
"And this couldn't have waited until tomorrow?" Ed drawled as he sat down on a nearby chair.
Mustang's voice grew serious. "Edward, this isn't the time for your immaturity. Barry the Chopper has escaped from prison and is currently on the loose!"
"What!" Ed shot to his feet, causing Al to jump in surprise. "How?! When?!" He shouted into the phone, his voice echoing down the hallway.
Mustang sighed. "I don't know all the details yet. Apparently his execution date was set for today. As the guards were moving him from his cell, he got out of the cuffs by apparently dislocating his thumbs." His voice then got angry. "Those idiots only had two guards escorting him, they knew what he was capable and…" Mustang trailed off as he regained his composure.
Ed felt the phone slip from his fingers and fall to the ground. He could barely hear Alphonse calling his name and shaking his shoulder. All he could think about was that he had escaped.
Barry the Chopper.
A demented sociopath who had brutally slaughtered twenty three women, including his own wife. He was one of the few men to have ever outsmarted Ed, catching him off guard. After his arrest, the serial killer was sent to a prison outside of Central. It was considered to be the Fullmetal Alchemist's first major achievement.
'But it almost cost me and Winry our lives.' Ed let out a breath as he felt something that he hadn't felt in awhile; terror.
'That was it. The closest I've ever come to being killed. Not even anything at Milos came as close as that. He had me without my right arm, I couldn't do alchemy. He cut me so many damn times, I was fucking helpless! Winry was helpless! It was only through sheer luck that we made it out alive.' Suddenly fear was replaced by a burning rage and anger.
"Ed?...Ed!"
Ed shook out of his thoughts as Al shook his shoulder harder. He blinked several times before turning to his concerned little brother.
"Brother, what is it? What's wrong?" Al asked.
"Barry the Chopper escaped from prison." Ed mumbled hearing Al gasp before he picked the phone off the ground. He held it to his ear as Al leaned in so he could listen as well.
"Colonel, you still there?"
"Yes Edward. I want you and Alphonse back in Central by tomorrow morning." Ed began to protest but Mustang continued. "And I know you'll say that you can handle yourself. I don't care. I want you two on the first train to Central."
Ed sighed and leaned against the phone booth. "Do we have any idea where he could be?"
Mustang sighed. "No, he escaped from Central prison about five days ag-"
"FIVE DAYS!" Ed shouted, slamming his fist against the wall. "Why the fuck am I only hearing about this now?!"
"Don't get angry at me, I was only informed this morning. Damn idiots the lot of them. Anyway, I fear that he might come after you for revenge. So-"
Suddenly Ed's face paled, all the color leaving him at once. His throat instantly went dry and his breathing came out in pants. 'No…he wouldn't.' Ed's heart was beating so loud that hurt his head.
"I'm going to call you back Colonel." He spoke rapidly.
"Fullmetal don't do any-" Ed hung the phone up and stumbled back out of the phone booth. He could feel a cold sweat starting to form all over his body.
"No no no no no!" He muttered, his hands meshing in his long golden hair.
"What now?" A concerned Al asked.
Ed turned towards his brother, Al stepped back in shock at the look of utter panic on the young Alchemist's face.
"Winry!"
OoO
OoO
June 9, 4:50 pm. Resembool train station and post office.
It was 4:50 p.m. as Gavin Reynolds was about to head home at the end of shift. The tired 63 year old man had had little sleep the previous night and couldn't wait to get home. As he was stepping out from behind the desk, the phone on the wall suddenly rang. The old man stopped and let out an annoyed groan before shuffling over to the phone. It continued to ring irritatingly until he grabbed it.
"Yeah what do you want?" He grumbled into the phone.
There was a pause before a strange, slightly high pitched voice spoke. "Hello my good sir. Have I called at a bad time?" The man asked with a girlish giggle.
"Not really." Gavin sighed before regaining his composure. "How can I help you?"
The voice spoke quickly. "Well you see, I'm calling from Central City with a message for a Ms. Winry Rockbell."
Gavin raised an eyebrow. "A message?"
"Yes, it is from a Edward Elric regarding his automail. Apparently he damaged it badly and is unable to travel to Resembool for repairs. I am a communications operator at Central Command you see. I called the Rockbell residence but her grandmother informed me that she wasn't there. For whatever reason she wouldn't tell me where her granddaughter is. Guess some people just don't trust the military. Anyway, I really need to talk with her; it's quite urgent."
Gavin sighed, he really wanted to get home. "Fine, um, Ms. Winry is currently staying in Rush Valley. She opened up a new mailing address there, do you want it?"
If Gavin had been paying more attention he would have heard the man on the other phone's reaction. The unknown male let out a breath that almost sounded like a pleasured groan and a dark chuckle left his lips.
"Yes, I would like that very much."
OoO
OoO
June 12, 8:24 p.m. Rush Valley.
A one armed man, in a five room two floor house, was putting on his jacket when he heard a knock on his door. Frowning slightly, the 30 year old man walked to his door and opened it.
A tall, skinny man with short yellow hair stood in the doorway. His figure was adorned in gloves and a large black trench coat. His mouth was set in a twisted grin while his small, lifeless black eyes shown with malicious intent on his feminine face.
"Hello Mr. Ryan." The unknown man spoke in a serpentine voice.
Marcus Ryan swallowed nervously as he watched the stranger with unease. "Um hello, c-can I help you?"
The man's grin grew and his small eyes suddenly widened in excitement. "Yes, you can."
Suddenly the stranger lunged forward, knocking Marcus to the ground, while closing the front door behind him. The one armed man hit the hardwood floor with a pained cry, his leg hitting the table and knocking over the lamp. His eyes closed in agony before he opened them to see the stranger standing above him. A shiny, metal meat cleaver in his gloved hand, his eyes wide and crazy. The upturned lamp casted dark shadows over his face. The man let out a giggle before swinging the cleaver down. Marcus didn't even have enough time to scream before the cleaver was embedded in his forehead.
Barry the Chopper wrenched the bloody cleaver out of the corpse with a squelching sound. Moving quickly he grabbed the body and dragged it into the nearest bathroom. Once he had deposited the dead body in the bathtub he paused to look down at his work. Pitiful little man, he didn't even scream.
Disappointing.
He returned to the living room. Spying a phone off to the side, he grinned and walked over to it. The serial killer then pulled a small paper with a certain phone number on it from his pocket. He chuckled and took a seat in Marcus' armchair. He looked at the line of blood leading towards the bathroom as he began to dial the numbers. Once he had finished, the killer waited patiently as the phone connected. While he waited, Barry remembered what Marcus Ryan's voice sounded like. He was pretty certain that he could replicate it. Thunder clapped in the distance before the phone clicked as it was picked up on the other end.
"This is Studio Garfiel in Rush Valley. Winry Rockbell, assistant automail mechanic, speaking."
Her voice was still the same. Still so sweet and innocent.
Perfect.
"Hello Winry, this is Marcus Ryan. I brought my arm into your shop a few hours ago."
While it wasn't the best impersonation that he'd ever done, it was good enough to fool her.
"Yes, hello Marcus. I actually just finished with it a minute ago."
It worked! The poor, innocent little lamb.
"Oh that's great."
"Yes it's ready for pickup whenever you are ready."
"Um…actually I can't pick it up tonight. How about around noon time tomorrow?"
"Um…Yes, that should be fine. But are you sure you don't want to pick it up today?"
"Well I was going to, but…something's come up. I think I can survive one night without my left arm."
"Alright then, I'll have your arm ready for you tomorrow." Came her reply.
'Poor little Winry.' He smirked. 'Always too trusting for her own good.' He remembered how willingly she had gotten into his meat truck. It was so easy. Tomorrow he would get his little lamb back. As he sat there he could remember her deep azure colored eyes, long blond hair, and soft fragile skin.
Oh, her skin.
Long had he dreamed about slicing her tender flesh and hearing her screams fill the air like a beautiful melody.
She would be the perfect bait.
"Okay, I'll see you then, Winry." He said cheerfully before putting the phone back on its receiver.
He sat in the armchair, smiling. The distant sounds of thunder closing in.
OoO
OoO
Might as well mention that this story will get pretty messed up. Please review and tell me your thoughts.