Fortnight

by o Mischief Managed

AU. OneShot. FullSummaryInside - "They say when you die your entire life flashes before your eyes. But at that moment, for me, all I saw was my life since meeting him." EdWin. Come on, every writer needs a good tragic love story in her arsenal, right? :D

FULL SUMMARY:
AU - "They say when you die your entire life flashes before your eyes. But at that moment, for me, all I saw what my life since meeting him." Despite her aunt and uncle's wishes, a wealthy town girl falls in love with a poor traveler. Can they stay together against all odds, or will his mysterious past catch up with them and threaten to tear them apart forever?

Okay, now that that's over, let me just say WOW HOLY JEEZ I DUNNO HOW IT HAPPENED BUT I'M REALLY FREAKIN' OUT ABOUT THIS TURNED OUT WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY LONGER THAN I ORIGINALLY PLANNED. Heh, this was definitely 34 (yes 34) pages in Word... 34 full pages... over 15,000 words... I don't know how it happened. But you know what I DO know? I SOOOOOO LOVE IT! Yeah, I think this turned out reaaaaaalllly good, and I'm actually glad it ended up being so long.

So this is an AU, even though it's pretty obvious after like the first two paragraphs. It's also a one-shot, done, finito, never-gonna-be-continued kinda thing, right? Haha, sorry if I'm bein kinda like weird right now, cuz it's 10 a.m. and I've been writing this nonstop since like 8 p.m. last night, sooooooooo I'm like reaaaaallly tired but I wanted to get this up before I went to sleep... in the middle of the morning... when I usually wake up... but okay! Anyway...

Oh, yeah, this is a songfic, too! My last fic turned out being like three times as long as I thought at first, and then it ended up changing so much it didn't fit the song I'd had planned for it, but luckily that didn't happen with this one! Go figure, right, since it's like epicly longer, but whatever. Anyway, the song is Your Arms Feel Like Home by 3 Doors Down. I had to like reaaaaallly spread the song out, since this is over 15,000 words and all... And I didn't start it until like almost halfway through... But it's down there! You'll see it eventually.

Okay, I should probably just shut up and let you read now. Especially since I so loooooooove the ending of this, and I want to share it with the world! Haha. Wow, what is wrong with me today?

All craziness aside, enjoy the fruit of my 14-hour insomnia of obsessive writing! Hope you like it! (I honestly cried while writing some parts of this... Those with weak emotional states like me, be warned!)

---

This thing weighs a ton… I complained to myself as I slung the grocery bag over my shoulder. Why do they always make me do the shopping?

It was that time of week again, the time when my aunt and uncle would hand me a portion of that week's profits and send me to the grocery store to stock up. It wasn't as though they were trying to torture me, they were actually very overprotective when it came to taking care of me, but considering we were buying food to feed upwards of ten adults for a week, naturally it was the kind of load that could really take its toll on a girl's shoulder when held for long. Luckily, it wasn't far from the grocer's to where we lived.

My family (my aunt, uncle, and grandmother) and I own the self-titled Rockbell Inn in the small town of Risembool. It's not a big, fancy place, not like the ones in the big cities, but it still pretty much made us the wealthiest family in town, which was something my aunt and uncle didn't like people to forget. Personally, I didn't care much for the whole ordeal, no matter how much they tried to make me into their perfect little rich girl. I was happy just trying to be a kid. I was only seventeen, after all.

"Excuse me, miss," came a voice from behind me. I jumped and turned to see a boy about my age, maybe a year or two younger, with bright hazel eyes and short hair of about the same color. He jumped slightly as I did, my reaction obviously startling him. "I'm sorry," he said politely. "We were just wondering—"

"There you are," a second voice from behind the boy interrupted. "Why do you always have to run off like that? One of these days I'm just not gonna come lookin' for you anymore."

As he turned around to greet the newcomer, I noticed a second boy approaching, this one a bit older than the first, probably closer to my age, I guessed. He had golden hair which seemed to reach just past his shoulders, tied behind his back in a braid. His eyes were a luminescent amber color, and they narrowed in slight annoyance as he looked at the younger boy, who laughed uneasily.

"I'm sorry, Brother," the first boy said. So they're brothers, I noted silently. Figures, they look a lot alike. The older one's kind of cute, though… I shook my head, clearing my mind. I rationalized that since there really weren't any other kids in town around my age, I was instantly fascinated by any teens I met from outside the village. Besides that, my uncle, as I said earlier, was very overprotective, especially when it came to boys. I wasn't allowed to even talk to anyone of what he viewed a 'lesser status' than us. So, needless to say, I had never actually been in a real relationship before. Realizing my thoughts were still wandering, I shook my head again and attempted to focus on the present. I noticed they were each carrying a single suitcase, not too large in size. They're travelers… Inexplicably, I found myself becoming more interested in these two mysterious boys by the second. "I was just looking for someone to ask for directions." Both boys turned to look at me, and I immediately felt a sense of self-consciousness. What are they staring at? I wondered.

"What, and you didn't think to help her with that bag?" the older boy said playfully to his brother, setting down his suitcase and walking toward me. "It's twice as big as she is!"

"Heh, heh… Oh, yeah…"

"Let me give you a hand with that," the older brother said to me, reaching out to take the heavy grocery bag from my shoulder. I noticed he was wearing white gloves on his hands, but didn't think much of it. It was fall, after all. The weather was starting to get colder.

"No, that's okay," I protested, not wanting to cause them any trouble. They were obviously headed somewhere. "I'm almost home anyway. I'll be fine."

"Aw, come on," he went on, not giving up. "That thing looks like it weighs a ton." Funny, that's the same thing I said earlier… I noted with a small smile. Well, if he really wants to I guess it makes my life easier.

"Okay, fine," I gave in, letting him take the bag from my hand. "Thanks."

He shook his head. "No problem." He slung it over his right shoulder almost effortlessly, but it hit his back rather hard on the backswing. "Man, what do you got in here? It feels like it's full of rocks."

I giggled as he made to pick up his suitcase with his free hand. "It's groceries, actually." I started walking back toward the house, the two boys following along. "My family runs the inn in town, and we need to feed all the residents, so a good bit of food's pretty much necessary."

"The inn?" the younger brother repeated. "That's actually where we were headed. I stopped you earlier to ask you for directions."

"Really?" I asked. "Well, we're almost there now. My aunt and uncle own the place. I guess you'll be meeting them soon."

As we reached the front door, I opened it and let the two boys in. My uncle looked up from the paper he was reading at the front desk, as my aunt entered from the kitchen.

"Winry, who are these people and why are they carrying our groceries?" she asked me in a high voice, eyeing the two brothers suspiciously.

"They're just travelers, Aunt Lydia," I answered, embarrassed at how rude she had sounded. "They saw me carrying the grocery bag back from the store and offered to help. They were already on their way here anyway."

With a frown, my aunt strode forward brusquely and snatched the heavy bag away from the older boy, who raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything. She then turned on her heel and walked straight back into the kitchen, the door swinging closed behind her. I looked at the older brother and gave him a small half-smile, as if to apologize for my aunt's rudeness. He only shook his head, returning the smile. He then proceeded to look around the room, taking in every detail. After a moment, he exchanged a glance with his brother, then took a step toward me.

"Is this the…only inn in town?" he whispered so my uncle wouldn't hear, sounding a bit uneasy. I nodded, wondering what he meant, as my uncle cleared his throat loudly, clearly disliking the boy's proximity to me. He took a step back and looked over at the front desk.

"So you wish to stay here?" my uncle asked in a business-like tone. The boys looked at each other again, before heading to the front desk. "For how long?"

"Two weeks," the younger boy answered. My uncle looked at something below the desk (which I knew to be the rate book) and told them the price. They looked at each other again, seeming apprehensive. It was then I realized the problem, why they had asked if there were anywhere else to stay. "We…only have half that…" the younger boy said slowly, speaking both to his brother and to my uncle.

My uncle scoffed. "Then I'm afraid we can't help you," he said almost snobbishly. I narrowed my eyes in anger. There were nicer ways to handle situations like this, but apparently my uncle wasn't familiar with them.

"Brother," the younger boy began again. "We have to—"

"Can't we make some kind of deal?" the older boy said to my uncle, cutting his brother off. "Like something we can do to pay it off?"

My uncle looked thoughtful for a moment. I was sure he would refuse, but he surprised me by replying, "Alright. You pay me the half you can afford, and if you agree to work here for me for the entirety of your stay, I'll call it even."

The younger boy turned to his brother. "Wait, Brother, we have to—"

"Deal."

"Brother! What about—"

"Don't worry," the older boy said, holding up a hand to silence his brother. "I'll do it. You do what we came here to do, okay?" The other eyed him for a moment, before nodding slowly. What are they talking about? I found myself wondering. Apparently they had come here for a reason… But why? No one ever came to a small town like ours for a reason.

"Good," my uncle replied as the younger boy handed him what money they had. He then fished a key out from the left drawer. "Winry," he said. I walked up to the desk and he handed me the key. "Show these boys to their room, will you?"

"Of course, Uncle Liam," I answered as the boys lifted their suitcases once more. I then led the way up the back staircase to the first floor (the number on the key was 116), not saying anything as I did so. When we reached the room, I unlocked the door and stepped aside, letting them in. "Here's your key," I said formally, holding it out to them. The younger brother took it and examined it in his hand. "Dinner will be at seven. You're not obligated to come, but seeing as it's included in the fee most guests usually show up. It's in the main dining room on the ground floor, just to the right of where you came in." I recited these instructions straight through like I always did, pausing only to draw breath. "Enjoy your stay," I finished pleasantly, before turning to go.

"Hold on a sec'," the older boy said, making me stop in the doorway and turn around. "Don't hurry off so fast. What are you, afraid of us or something?" He was only joking, but I didn't respond. The truth was, I was more confused by them than anything. They had seemed like two perfectly normal kids when I had seen them outside on my way home. But after their conversation with my uncle, I realized there was something strange about them. They seemed like they were hiding something. I knew it really wasn't any of my business, but I was still curious. How could I not be?

"So we were never properly introduced," the older boy continued when he noticed I had no intention of replying. "I'm Edward Elric, and this is my brother, Alphonse."

"Nice to meet you," Alphonse said, giving a slight bow. I smiled at the gesture. They really did seem so…normal. Maybe I was just over-thinking things.

"Winry Rockbell," I offered my name.

"Winry…" Alphonse said as Edward held out his right hand. "That's a nice name." I took his brother's hand, but as soon as I did I noticed something odd about it. It was unnaturally cold beneath his glove.

I must have flinched at the contact, because Edward gave me a puzzled look. "Something wrong?" he asked.

I shook my head, feeling a bit ashamed for overreacting. "No, your hand's just a bit cold is all. Probably from traveling. It's no big deal, I was just startled."

I let go of his hand and he smiled, pulling off his glove. Underneath it, however, was not normal skin, as I had expected, but a shiny, silver material. "Yeah, metal does that in this weather," he answered simply, looking at it with annoyance. "The other one's usually not as bad, though." I was expecting him to pull off his other glove, but instead he reached down toward the floor and pulled his left pant leg up a few inches, revealing the same metallic surface beneath it.

I know I shouldn't have stared like I was, but I couldn't help it. I was interested. I was at least able, however, to shake myself back to reality enough to look back into his eyes rather than at his hand or leg. "Where'd you get them? They must have been expensive…" As soon as I'd said it I wished I hadn't. I jumped slightly and put a hand over my mouth, berating myself for asking something like that. I had just made a direct jab at their monetary situation, though at least I felt bad about it, unlike my aunt and uncle. "I mean… Um…"

Edward shook his head. "Don't worry about it," he answered, waving off-handedly. "I used to work for the State Military. Got 'em through there."

My eyes widened. "The State Military?" I repeated, impressed and mildly surprised. What did he mean, used to? Wasn't he only around my age? I had only known this boy for about an hour, but I could already say with complete confidence that he was one of the most interesting people I'd ever met (although it wasn't much competition, given the dullness of general life in Risembool).

"Yeah," he answered, his voice sounding somewhat distant. Once again I found myself regretting the actions of my big mouth. Clearly this wasn't something he wanted to discuss.

"Well, I should probably get back to work," I said to break the silence that had taken over the room.

"'Kay," Edward replied, turning to start unpacking his suitcase. "Guess we'll see you tonight."

I paused, staring at him blankly. 'Tonight'? What does he mean 'tonight'…?

He must have guessed what I was thinking, thanks to the look on my face. "You said dinner was at seven, right…?" he said, a slight grin on his face.

"Oh, right, right," I said with a laugh, my face flushing with embarrassment. Wow, way to go, Winry… I told myself. Now he probably thinks you're a complete idiot… I looked up to see him grinning, which only made me feel more uncomfortable. I just smiled an awkward smile, before waving to them both and turning around, hurrying out of the room and closing the door behind me.

Dinner that night was one of the most awkward and uncomfortable experiences of my life. Edward had sat next to me, with Alphonse on his other side (which wasn't the awkward part; I had actually been excited about that, thinking maybe it meant they had forgotten about what had happened earlier), which of course had drawn my aunt and uncle's attention. So much to my dismay, they had spent the greater part of the evening 'politely' (and by politely, I mean in the most obviously condescending way) questioning the brothers about who they were, where they had come from, where they were headed, what business they had in Risembool, and a whole backbreaking pile of other unnecessary questions, all of which Edward and Alphonse had done their best to answer. It even amounted to Edward having to recount the same story he had told me earlier about his metal arm and leg, though just like before he wouldn't go into much detail, insisting that it was a long and boring story which they really wouldn't be interested in. The entire time, I had remained silent, sinking lower and lower into my chair and hoping that if I settled down far enough I could disappear and never have to face either my family or the two brothers after that night. Unfortunately, my plan was foiled when dinner had just about ended, and my aunt rose from the table, asking me to come and help her with the dishes.

"Oh, give the girl a break, Lydia," my grandmother piped up from the end of table. I smiled as my aunt looked from her, to me, back to her again, before raising her eyebrow at me and disappearing behind the door to the kitchen. My grandmother was the one person in my family whom I like to be compared with. She wasn't like my aunt and uncle, she was fun and seemed to understand me. I smiled at her, thanking her for the attempt, before rising from the table and following my mother, honestly glad to be free from the tense atmosphere around me.

--

The next day, I came downstairs around nine in the morning, my usual time, and found my uncle and grandmother in the main room, the former going through some documents by the front desk, the latter sitting in a lounge chair smoking a pipe.

"'Morning, Uncle Liam, 'morning Grandma," I greeted them pleasantly. "Anything you need me to do this morning?" There was always something, but I asked this way out of habit.

"No, you can have the morning off today," my uncle replied, not looking up from his paperwork.

I paused, not sure I had heard him right. "Really? Nothing?"

"He was gonna have you move some of that junk pile to the shed at the edge of the property," my grandmother said from the corner. "You know, the stuff that's been sitting out back since those renovations we had done a year ago?" I knew the 'junk pile' she meant. It was a giant mound of nothing but long, wooden planks and oversized cement blocks which had all been removed during the renovations the inn went through last year. My aunt had been complaining about it to my uncle for a while, telling him to move it, but he'd been putting it off since then. "Well, since that boy started working here yesterday, your uncle decided to have him do it instead. So you lucked out, eh?"

I was momentarily offended that my uncle had planned on making me move that junk at all, then relieved that it turned out I didn't have to, then interested in what my grandmother had said about who was doing it instead.

My grandmother sighed. "Sure is nice, though, to have a man around here who actually does the kind of work men are supposed to, instead of sitting around on his butt all day reading mail."

I hid a giggle as my uncle looked up irately. "Someone has to do this stuff, Mother. It's not exactly the most pleasant job in the world, either." My grandmother only shrugged innocently.

"Well, if there's nothing for me to do, I'm gonna go for a walk in town," I said, heading toward the door.

"Have fun," my grandmother said, not looking at me. I could have sworn there was a hint of sarcasm in her voice, and I looked over to see her smiling quietly. She always could see right through me… I thought, shaking my head and walking through the door.

Once outside, I headed straight for the back of the house, rather than the road. I wanted to talk to Edward about dinner the previous night, and about my aunt and uncle's actions.

When I reached the junk heap, he was still nowhere in sight, so I then jogged down the hill toward the shed where my grandmother had said he was moving everything. I reached it just as he stepped out the front door, dusting his hands off.

"Oh, hey, Winry," he said with a friendly smile. I would have greeted him in return, but found myself too distracted at the moment to do so. The first thing I'd noticed upon seeing him had been the fact that he was wearing a sleeveless shirt, finally giving me a full view of his mechanical right arm, which looked even more impressive farther up from his hand. He must have noticed my staring, because he laughed and swung his arm in a circle. "Like it?" he asked as I walked up to him with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry," I apologized half-heartedly. "It's just that… I've always been kind of into mechanics…" I admitted. It was something not many people knew about me, because my aunt and uncle didn't approve of it. "My aunt hates that about me, says it's a 'man's hobby,' something a 'young woman like me shouldn't waste my time with.' But I can't help it. My grandmother's the same way. I like to think I take after her." All the time I spoke, I continued to stare at his arm. He laughed again, holding it out towards me. I looked up at him excitedly. "Can I…?"

"Go ahead," he answered.

I squealed in reply, reaching my hands out and placing them on the cool metal of his hand. Wow… It's so strong and intricate… I guess this is the technology of the State Military. I took my time examining the material, slowly moving my hands upward toward his shoulder. "Can you feel that?" I asked, interested.

He shook his head. "Nope. Can't feel a thing in the whole arm. It's kind of tough to use at first, but once you get used to it, it makes a lot of things easier."

Apparently, most of his shoulder was included in the mechanical limb, I found out as I reached the tips of my fingers under his sleeve. A centimeter farther, however, I found where the metal ended and connected with his shoulder, and for a moment my fingers pressed firmly onto something warm, in surprising contrast to the cold of the metal. He flinched as they did so.

"Ow…kay, that's my skin."

"Sorry," I said somewhat sheepishly, removing my hands from his shoulder. "But wow… That's amazing."

He laughed, a refreshing sound, I found myself thinking. You don't hear many laughs like that around here. "Thanks. Not many people think so. Most people I see think it's weird or freakish." He started walking back uphill toward the junk heap, and I followed him. "That's why I generally keep it hidden. Sometimes makes it hard for me and Al to be taken seriously."

"Oh, yeah, where is your brother?" I asked, noticing that I hadn't seen Alphonse yet that morning.

"He's off exploring the town," Edward answered simply, picking up one of the cement blocks and resting it on his right shoulder, causing a resounding clang to reverberate through the air.

"I'll help you with this," I said suddenly, going to the pile and picking up one of the wooden beams.

He looked at me, surprised. "You don't have to do that."

I looked him in the eye, telling him he wasn't talking me out of it, just like I couldn't stop him from helping me the previous day. "I want to."

He shook his head, seeming to understand. "You're not like most girls," he said as we started heading down to the shed. "You're…different."

"Well," I began, "there really aren't any other girls my age in the village. Everyone's either adults or younger than ten. I'm pretty much the only teenager here, so I'm not really sure how a teenage girl's supposed to act, you know?" I looked away from him for a moment. "I bet you've met a lot of girls, since you're always traveling and all…"

"Yeah," he answered thoughtfully, throwing the cement block in the shed. "I have, and you're definitely the weirdest out of all of 'em." I looked down again as I dropped the beam in as well, somewhat embarrassed that I had told him those strange things about myself. Why did I do that? Now he thinks I'm a freak… I really need to learn when to just keep my mouth shut… But, surprising me, he went on to say, "But I like that."

I looked over to see him grinning at me, and couldn't help but smile back. Did he just say he…liked me?

We finished the work quickly between the two of us, and I actually enjoyed it. Edward was fun to talk to, and I was slowly becoming more and more comfortable around him. He was really honest and down-to-earth, so different from everyone I knew from the village, especially my aunt and uncle. He was also a free spirit, someone who didn't seem likely to stay in one place for a long period of time, which I admired about him. It wasn't as though I wasn't happy in Risembool, more that I was bored. But he had brought some excitement to the dull town, even if he hadn't planned to stay for long.

As we walked back toward the house together, finally finished, I remembered why I had gone looking for him in the first place that morning. "Oh, yeah," I began, and he turned to face me. "Earlier today, I actually came to apologize for last night, for my aunt and uncle. They shouldn't have grilled you and your brother like that. I love them, but I swear, I hate how rude they can be sometimes."

Edward shook his head, just as I had expected him to. "It's fine," he answered. "Al and I… We're just not the kind of people that like to talk about the past. It was kind of tough answering some of those questions, but overall there was no harm done. And besides," he turned to me, "you shouldn't have to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong." I smiled at him as we reached the front door. I opened it and led the way inside.

My aunt and uncle looked up as we entered. They were alone in the room, and seemed to have been discussing something before we had interrupted them.

"Hey, Uncle Liam, Aunt Lydia," I greeted them uneasily. My uncle stood and walked up to us, looking at Edward suspiciously.

"Work done?" he asked briefly.

"Yes, sir," Edward answered, saluting him. I giggled, but stopped abruptly when my aunt shot me a warning glance.

"Good," my uncle replied. "Then would you mind giving me a hand with something in the basement?" It wasn't a question. He turned and strode swiftly to the basement door. Edward shrugged and followed him, both of them disappearing behind the door.

"Winry," my aunt began as soon as they were gone. "Would you mind helping me set the table for dinner tonight?"

"Sure, of course," I answered, following her into the dining room. We set about placing the tablecloths, plates, and silverware at each of the two long tables in the room, neither of us speaking for a few minutes.

"I don't like those boys," my aunt said abruptly. I looked up at her, a frown on my face. "Especially the older one. In fact, I'd really rather you stay away from him from now on."

"What?" I replied, surprised and confused. "Why?"

"He seems like a troublemaker," she replied with distaste, "the way he's always traveling. He's probably on the run from the law."

I scoffed at how ridiculous that sounded. "I don't think he seems that bad. I bet if you just gave him a chance, you'd see—"

"You only met him yesterday!" she interrupted me. "How can you say you know him?"

Now I was getting angry. "So did you! You're judging him more than I am!"

"There's something they weren't telling us yesterday. Those boys have a dark past, your uncle and I could tell."

"Who cares about their past? It's none of our business anyway!" How can she say those things? She just loves butting into other people's lives, doesn't she?

My aunt was silent for a moment. "I still don't like them, and I'd really rather you stay away from that older one." I just shook my head, tired of the conversation. It was obvious neither of us was going to back down, so I decided it would be best to let it go. Usually, my aunt wouldn't give up an argument until she thought she had won. "Would you go get the candles from under the front desk, Winry?"

"Sure," I answered, glad for a change of subject and a chance to leave the room, if only for a second.

As I entered the front room, the door opened and Alphonse entered, looking somewhat excited.

"Where's my brother?" he asked as soon as he saw me. I told him he'd gone into the basement with my uncle, and he thanked me and walked over toward the basement door. He was about to open it when the doorknob turned and the door was pushed open from the other side, my uncle emerging from the staircase. "Sorry, Mr. Rockbell," Alphonse said politely, stepping out of the way. My uncle only looked at him, grunted a reply, and walked off. Unfazed, Alphonse turned back to the stairs. "Ed? You down there?"

"Yeah, I'm comin'," his brother answered, stepping into the room. My eyes widened when I saw him, and the thin, newly-formed line of blood just below his right eye.

Also seeing the cut, Alphonse leaned forward to look at it. "What happened?" he asked his brother, who waved him away.

"Nothing," he replied off-handedly. "I just tripped over a box of stuff and fell. No big deal." I noticed he and my uncle were deliberately avoiding each other's eyes, and it told me something had happened between them down there. Alphonse probably wouldn't have realized, because there was one other small detail he wasn't aware of, and that was the large, pointed diamond ring my uncle always wore on his right hand.

"Okay," Alphonse said, shrugging. "Let's go, I've got something to show you."

"You do?" Edward asked, his ears pricking up and his eyes widening.

"I think so," his brother answered. Edward grinned, and they both turned and disappeared up the staircase. Under normal circumstances, I may have been curious, but there were other things on my mind.

I walked over to the front desk to get the candles I had been send to retrieve. "What were you guys doing down there?" I asked my uncle innocently.

Without looking up, he answered, "We were just checking the radiator. I need to set it up soon for the coming winter." It wasn't a very convincing story, but it was obvious he wasn't going to say anything else. I decided I'd just have to get the story from Edward later.

--

I think I've walked too close to love

And now I'm fallin' in

Later that night, I decided to go to the Elric brothers' room myself to get them for dinner, hoping to maybe get a chance to talk to Edward. When I knocked, I heard some rapid shuffling from the other side, and the sound of a drawer open and close, before the door swung open to reveal Alphonse, wearing a friendly smile.

"Hey, Winry," he greeted.

"Hi," I replied. "I just came to tell you guys dinner's almost ready." I peered around him. "Is Edward here?"

Alphonse shook his head. "He went out earlier, I haven't seen him in a few hours."

I looked down, disappointed. "Alright. I'll go look for him, then."

Alphonse and I descended the stairs together, parting in the front room as he headed for the dining room and I for the front door.

I found Edward sitting on the hill out back, looking up at the rapidly darkening sky. He looked over as I came up.

"Dinner's about ready," I said quietly, not wanting to break the peaceful silence. "You coming?"

He shook his head. "I'm not really hungry, and it's a nice night. I think I'll just stay out here." He looked back up at the sky. "You should go, though. Your aunt and uncle are probably waiting for you."

I feel so many things this weary soul can't take

I lowered my gaze momentarily, a little hurt by his words, but I told myself it was probably my uncle talking, and I shouldn't let it get to me. "Did something happen with my uncle earlier?"

"Of course not," he answered with a false smile. "Why would you ask that? Go on, I'll be fine here alone."

"He told you to stay away from me, didn't he?" I demanded abruptly. He looked around at me in surprise. I continued to stare him down. I wasn't leaving until I got the truth.

After a moment, he sighed, shaking his head and smiling ruefully. "You're a lot smarter than you look, you know?"

"I'll take that as a compliment."

He let out a small laugh, as I moved to sit next to him, watching him expectantly. "He told me flat out he didn't like me," he explained, eyes on the grass in front of him. "He said that I'd stay away from you if I didn't want any trouble. He said he wouldn't throw me out, 'cause that'd raise questions he didn't wanna answer, or something like that. Then he basically told me I wasn't good enough for you, that you deserve someone who can at least afford to pay for a decent meal."

"He said all that?" I asked, growing angrier and angrier as he spoke. He nodded, still not looking at me. "And… that mark under your eye…?"

He shook his head again. "He was gonna just leave, but I let my problem with authority get the better of me, said some stuff I probably shouldn't've. Needless to say, he got kind of mad at that." He didn't have to say it, I knew what he meant. And I was outraged.

"I can't believe he'd do something like that…" I said, tearing a handful of grass from the ground. "You know, after you two left, my aunt had me help her get the dining room ready for dinner. She pretty much told me the same thing, that you and your brother were 'troublemakers,' that I shouldn't talk to either of you anymore, especially you." I continued to pull small handfuls of grass up from the dirt in an attempt to quell my anger at my aunt and uncle for being so snobbish. I couldn't believe how thick they were acting. It was like they couldn't see past the tips of their long, upturned noses. "I'm sorry… They're just so wrapped around their own world and they don't like anyone who's different or who they think doesn't belong."

"What are you apologizing for? It's not like you did anything."

"I know… I guess I just feel kind of responsible for them. That's why it makes me so mad! I just can't believe they won't even give you a chance…"

"Well, what about you?" he asked slowly, finally turning to face me.

I smiled, knowing what he meant. "I'm not like them." I found myself inching closer to him, until we were only a few centimeters apart.

He smiled back, still looking me in the eyes. "That's good." After a second, he turned away, backing up a little. His gaze lowered back to the grass, his golden hair falling to block his eyes from view. Disappointed, I leaned down to try and see his face again.

"There's something else, isn't there?" I said carefully, sensing that there was still something holding him back.

He took a breath, before saying slowly, "I can't… get too attached to anything, or anyone…"

I turned away somewhat sadly. So that's what it is… "Because you're always moving around?"

"Yeah."

Maybe you just caught me by surprise

The first time that I looked into your eyes

Suddenly a thought hit me. "That's funny…" I said, sitting back and smiling a bit.

He looked over at me, confusion on his face. "What?"

I leaned toward him, looking him playfully in the eye. "I thought you seemed like the type of guy who's not afraid to take a risk."

He raised his eyebrows very slightly, before looking down thoughtfully. He grinned, turning to face me once again. This time, instead of turning away, he moved in closer, and I smiled back at him, before closing the gap between us and joining his lips with mine.

In all my time living with my aunt and uncle, I couldn't remember a time when I had deliberately disobeyed a direct order they'd given me. After all, I never really had a reason to. But this time was different. I had stepped over the line simply by going to look for Edward that night, which meant that what I was doing now would be seen in their eyes as high treason. But it didn't matter. I was tired of their high-and-mighty attitudes, their I'm-better-than-you-are way of looking at people, especially people that didn't deserve it. They weren't being fair, and I wasn't going to go along with it this time. I couldn't. I wanted to see him, to talk to him, to be with him. As I wrapped my arms around Edward's neck, deepening the kiss, and he put a hand on my waist and pulled me closer, I vowed that I wouldn't let anything they said or did keep me away from him, at least for as long as I could.

--

Over the next few days, my uncle continued to keep Edward busy around the yard, having him do all kinds of little jobs that he didn't want to do himself. And to make matters worse, it had apparently become my aunt's job to do the same with me. I spent most of my time indoors, helping her with different odd jobs about the house, such as washing the dishes, dusting the desks, cleaning the unused rooms, and so on. But despite all the two of them were doing to keep us apart, I still always found time between jobs to sneak off and meet with Edward. It would never last long, as someone would always notice I was missing and immediately know where to look, but we hadn't been caught so far, so I was content for a while to let things continue the way they were.

And there's a life inside of me

That I can feel again

One such day, my aunt had sent me to get the mail from the mailbox at the end of the drive. It was a bit of a walk, so I figured she wouldn't really notice if I took a few minutes to do it. So instead of heading for the front drive, I sneaked around to the back of the house, where I knew Edward was repainting the outside back wall. When I rounded the corner, I saw a ladder leaning against the wall, as well as a bucket of water and a tray of white paint, but Edward was nowhere in sight.

"Ed?" I whispered, not wanting to be too loud for fear of being found by my aunt or uncle. "Where are you?"

Suddenly, someone grabbed both my arms from behind. I yelped and turned around, fearing the worst, only to be faced with the very person I'd been looking for, who was stifling laughter at my reaction.

I hit him in the arm (the left arm, of course, otherwise the only effect I'd get would be my own bruised fingers), glaring at him. "Be quiet! You know what they'll do if they catch us." I looked down at my upper arms where he'd grabbed me, seeing blotches of white paint on my skin. "Great, thanks, now I have to wash this off." He grinned, wiping his hands on his sides to dry them off a bit.

"You know, you're the one that should be quieter," he reasoned. "I heard you coming a mile away. Why do you think I had time to hide before you showed up?"

I raised my hand and smacked him on the arm again. "Shh!" I said, before leaning up and kissing him softly.

"That's one way to keep me quiet," he whispered with a grin when we parted. I smiled back. "You know, it really is kind of annoying to have to sneak around like this."

"Yeah, well, you know what would happen if we didn't," I answered. "Besides, I think it's kind of exciting."

He raised his eyebrows. "Maybe your aunt and uncle are right," he said. I frowned at him, not understanding. "I am a bad influence on you."

I giggled, still trying my best to keep as quiet as I could. Then suddenly, someone called my name from the front of the inn. "Uh-oh," I began, recognizing my aunt's voice. "I should go."

"Yeah, yeah," he teased as I started walking away. "You'll be back."

I glared at him, though not seriously. He was probably right, and he knew it. "Get back to work!" I whispered, before turning and running back toward the front door. When I'd made it halfway, I remembered that I was supposed to be getting the mail, so I made a beeline for the drive, running all the way to the end, grabbing the few letters from inside, and running back up and to the door. I stopped outside it to quickly catch my breath, so that it didn't look as though I had just sprinted a mile. With a pang of nervousness I noticed the white paint smears on my upper arms. My sleeves were just barely long short enough that they showed at the bottom, so I pulled them down as far as I could before going into the house.

"What took you so long?" my aunt asked when I entered.

Thinking quickly, I replied, "I stopped at the bottom of the drive to talk to the neighbors. They wanted to know how business was going."

They still seemed a bit suspicious, but it was a plausible story so I hoped they would at least accept it. As I handed my uncle the mail, however, my left sleeve slipped, and he noticed the paint on my arm.

"What's this?" he demanded, pointing to it.

"I accidentally brushed up against the wet paint on the house." I lied, doing my best to keep calm.

"On both of your arms?" my uncle asked skeptically, raising his eyebrows. I shrugged. "What were you doing near the back of the house in the first place?"

I put the gears in my brain on overdrive, trying desperately to come up with a believable story. "On my way back, there was a gust of wind and the letters flew away. I had to chase some of them back behind the house. I just brushed against the wall a few times trying to catch them, that's all." I waited for my uncle to reply.

It was silent for a few seconds, then he grabbed my arm and led me outside and around the back of the house, obviously unconvinced. I hoped Edward wouldn't be there, that maybe he would've finished and left between when I'd left him and now, but unfortunately when we rounded the corner, there he was atop the ladder, brushing white paint against the wall.

"Elric!" my uncle yelled as soon as he was within earshot. Edward turned and looked down at us. "Get down here." Edward shrugged, and rather than climbing down the ladder rung by rung, he jumped to the side and landed (with most weight on his left leg) on the ground beside it. My uncle only glared harder at him.

"What?" Edward said innocently, dropping his brush beside the tray of paint.

"Let me see your hands," my uncle ordered. Edward looked at him strangely, as if confused, before holding out his hands. Oh, no… I thought as my uncle stepped forward. This is it… He's gonna figure it out…

"Anything wrong?" Edward asked, looking up at my uncle, who continued to stare down at him.

After a moment, my uncle replied, "…No. Finish your work and you're done for today." Startled, I stepped forward to look around my uncle, seeing for myself that Edward's hands were now perfectly clean.

My uncle turned to go, ordering me to follow. I shot Edward a questioning look, and he grinned, rubbing his hands together and jerking his head toward the bucket of water at the foot of the ladder. I shook my head, giving him a warning look and a small smile before going after my uncle. That was way too close…

It's the only thing that takes me

Where I've never been

--

I don't know how or when it happened, but sometime over the next week I realized I had fallen in love. And the happiest moment of my life was when he told me he loved me too. However, the only problem was that it was becoming extremely difficult for us to keep our relationship secret from my aunt and uncle. Thanks to them, we were each finding ourselves with increasingly less free time. The only time of day when we weren't forced to work was night, after dinner, but at that time Edward and Alphonse would always retreat to their room and lock the door, discussing who-knows-what in private.

The only one who occasionally helped us was my grandmother. Many times came when she would help cover for me when I would sneak off, telling my aunt some story to keep her off my trail. It was funny, because I never actually told her anything about what I was doing, or asked for her help. But still, it seemed like she knew, and she was on our side. And that was comforting, to know that there was someone else out there who wasn't against the two of us being together (I'm sure Alphonse knew and was okay with it, but he spent most of his time in town, so I actually didn't see him often).

One night, after dinner, I was headed to the brothers' room to return Alphonse's jacket, which he had left in the dining room. I was about to knock, when I heard Alphonse speak from the other side of the door. Normally I wasn't the type of person to eavesdrop, but what he said caught my attention.

"We've already spent too much time here," he was saying, his voice urgent. "We need to leave. Our stay is up tomorrow anyway, right?" Leave…? They… He can't leave… Not now… "If we stay here much longer, they'll definitely pick up our trail and trace us back here. You know that. That's why we have to go." Wait… 'They'? Who's 'they'? I found myself wondering. So someone's looking for them? I vaguely remembered something my aunt said about their being 'on the run from the law', but I pushed that thought out of my mind. It was ridiculous, …wasn't it?

"I know, Al," Edward answered his brother, sounding troubled. "You're right. We're out of time." No, I silently pleaded with him. Don't say that… There was a pause on the other side of the door, before Edward continued. "That's why you have to leave first thing tomorrow."

"What are you talking about?" Alphonse demanded in a sharp tone, as if he didn't like where this was going. "What about you?"

"I'm staying," Edward replied quietly, so I had to lean closer to the door to hear him. He was staying…? He was silent for a moment again, then said, "I can't leave her." My eyes widened. He was willing to stay behind for me? Without his brother?

"But, Ed… you remember what we said at the beginning of all this!" Alphonse replied in a desperate voice, though still doing his best to speak in an undertone. "We said we wouldn't let ourselves get too attached to any one place!" That's right, I remembered. He'd said that too… "So we could always pick up and leave if we had to!"

"I know… But—"

"And not now, when we're so close! You can't do this!"

"I'm sorry, Al," his brother replied quietly. "I let this happen… I wanted it to happen. Now I can't do anything about it. But I won't let my actions affect you, okay? That's why you have to get out of here, as soon as possible."

There was silence between the two boys for a moment, and I sat there listening quietly, tears forming in my eyes.

Alphonse's voice was the first to come after the silence, and when it did, it was so quiet I had to hold my breath to make it out. "You really love her, don't you?"

"More than anything," came the reply, just as quietly as the question. I felt like I shouldn't be there, shouldn't be listening to their conversation, but as much as I felt it I couldn't bring myself to leave, only to stand there outside the door, silent tears falling from my face.

And I don't care if I lost everything that I have known

"I understand," Alphonse said finally. "Once I'm gone, I'll try and leave some false tracks, to throw them off your trail."

"Thanks, Al."

"Just promise me… you'll be careful, okay?" Alphonse asked his brother, his voice filled with sadness. It only made me cry harder.

"Of course," Edward responded, his tone equally sorrowful. "Same goes for you."

They were silent, and for a while I only stood there outside their door, feeling a mixture of sadness, confusion, apprehension, and even a little happiness. It was an odd combination of emotions, and I knew if I tried to say anything at the moment I probably wouldn't be able to get it out. So instead of knocking I set Alphonse's jacket down in front of the door and crept noiselessly away, back to my own room at the end of the hall, leaving the brothers alone.

--

The next day, I came downstairs a bit later than usual. My uncle was sitting in the main room, as usual, going through some papers (I still didn't know what exactly they were). He looked up when I entered the room.

"Where's Aunt Lydia?" I asked him.

"In the kitchen," he answered. As I turned to go find her, however, he spoke again. "You know that Elric boy is staying a bit longer," he said as though he were talking about the weather. I see, I thought. He's testing me to see how I'll respond.

"Really?" I replied with mild interest. "I thought they were only staying for two weeks."

"Well one of them left this morning, the younger one," he responded, flipping through his papers. "But the other came and said he still had some business to take care of in town. So I agreed to let him stay as long as he continues to help out."

"That was nice of you." I figured that was what he wanted to hear.

"Hmm…" was all he said. I wanted to ask where he was, but I knew that might raise suspicion, so I held my tongue. Instead I opened the door to the kitchen and went inside.

My grandmother was sitting at the table, smoking her same old pipe. My aunt, however, was nowhere in sight.

I looked at around, before resting my eyes on my grandmother. "Where's—"

"You should tell them the truth, you know," she interrupted, not looking at me. I didn't have to ask what she was talking about. So she knew after all. My grandmother had always been a sly one, not easy to fool. I was only grateful she hadn't told my aunt and uncle. But now she wanted me to?

"I can't," I replied, sitting down across from her. "You know what they'll say, what they'll do. They just can't get past their stupid false way of judging him. There's no way they'll understand."

"Aren't you judging them?" she asked, making me stop and think. "You assume they won't listen to you, but what if you're wrong, just like they might be? Don't you think everyone deserves a second chance?" I sighed. As much as I didn't want to believe it, I knew she had a point. Leave it to the crazy old woman to be the voice of wisdom…

"You're right," I agreed finally. "Tonight after dinner, I'll tell them the truth."

'Cause it don't matter where I lay my head tonight

Your arms feel like home

--

All during dinner that night I was feeling more and more nervous. I had only spoken with Edward once that day, and I hadn't brought up what I had planned to do. He wasn't at dinner either; he'd said he had something to do in his room. So it was up to me to do what I needed to do.

After all the other guests had left, and my aunt, uncle, and I were the only ones left in the room, I decided it was time. So, taking a deep breath, I set down the dishes I was carrying and turned to face them both, a sense of purpose showing on my face.

"Uncle Liam, Aunt Lydia, I have something to tell you."

My uncle looked up from the document he was reading at the table, and my aunt stopped on her way to the kitchen door with a small pile of dishes. They both looked at me expectantly.

"It's about Edward…" I began, a little of my confidence having ebbed at their serious looks.

"The Elric boy?" my aunt said distastefully. "What about him?"

Her tone had brought back some of my previous vigor, so I took a deep breath and continued. "The reason he stayed wasn't for business. It was for me."

"What do you mean?" my uncle asked, sounding unnaturally calm. It was a bit frightening, actually. "I thought we told you not to speak to him."

"I know," I went on, not allowing myself to be scared into submission by them. "And I don't care. I don't care what you say." They looked mildly surprised at hearing me say this. "Uncle Liam, Aunt Lydia, …I love him. And he loves me. Why can't you just be happy for me? What's so wrong about this?"

"Winry, you and that boy don't belong together!" my aunt said angrily, losing the calm demeanor she had had a moment ago. The way she said the word 'boy' bothered me, as though she was spitting out a particularly rotten piece of fruit. "You're from completely different worlds!"

"Last time I checked," I insisted, my own anger growing, "there was only one world, the one we all live in. He's a human being, just like me and just like you, and a good person. If you would only give him a chance to show it, maybe you'd see that for yourself!"

"Enough!" my uncle suddenly shouted. "I'll tell you this one more time, Winry. If you don't stop seeing that boy, I will find a way to stop it myself."

They feel like home

I didn't respond. I couldn't. I only glared at them both with all the strength I could muster, before turning and sprinting out of the dining room, tears in my eyes. I ran straight for the stairs as the tears began to fall. They didn't come after me, probably assuming I was going to my room, which was exactly why I wouldn't go there. Instead I stopped a few rooms down the hall, knocked twice on the door, and waited.

"Winry?" Edward said my name with concern when he opened the door and saw me there. "What's wrong?"

"I…" was all I could say, so I said it a few more times. "I… I…"

"Come on, come sit down," he offered, taking me by the hand and pulling me into the room, closing the door behind me. He led me over to his bed, where he sat down next to me and looked me in the eye. "Now what happened?"

Taking a deep breath, I said, "I told them."

I didn't have to say anything else, he knew what and whom I was referring to. His eyes widened in shock. "What did they say?"

"They… They told me to stop seeing you, or they'd find a way to keep me away." He didn't say anything, just put his arm around me and pulled me close. I laid my head on his shoulder and continued to sob uncontrollably. "It just… hurts that they can't be behind me in this… Be happy for me…"

"I know," he said quietly. "This is all my fault… I'm so sorry, Winry…"

"Don't do that," I told him firmly. He looked down at me. "This isn't your fault. And it isn't my fault either, I know that. I just… I wish it wouldn't have turned out this way…"

We sat like that for a while, him holding onto me as I silently cried, until my tears died down. Then I said suddenly, "We should leave here."

This life ain't the fairytale

We both though it would be

He looked at me in surprise. "What?"

"We can't stay here, not if we want to be together. My uncle intends to make sure of it." This thought had just sort of come to me. I wasn't entirely sure what I was saying, but somewhere inside me I knew that it was our only choice. "That's why we should leave, as soon as possible. …We can catch up with your brother." I added as an afterthought.

He looked thoughtful for a moment. "If you're sure…" I nodded. "Okay. We'll go tomorrow night. For now, you should get some sleep." I nodded again, feeling extremely tired all of a sudden. I realized it was late, and we had been sitting there for over an hour.

"Do you… mind if I stay here tonight?" I asked, yawning. "I just… don't wanna be alone…"

He smiled. "Of course not. I was just finishing looking over some stuff." He jerked his head toward the desk, there I could see a small collection of documents, some old and some new, on differently shaded and sized sheets of paper. Too tired to inquire as to what they were for, I moved to lie down on the bed as he got up and went back to the desk. I curled up in a ball and faced the window, my back to the rest of the room, and looked out at the moon high in the sky.

As I lay there, trying to fall asleep, I couldn't help but return my mind to my aunt and uncle and everything they'd said to me in the past two weeks. When I realized my relationship with the two of them would never be the same again after this, I started to cry again, my shoulders shaking with each sob. I was as quiet as possible, but Edward must have still noticed, because not a minute after my tears started to fall I heard him come up behind me and lie down, putting his arm over me and gripping my hands tightly.

"Don't worry," he whispered in my ear. "Everything's gonna be fine." I didn't respond, only squeezed his hand to let him know I'd heard. With him behind me, I began to feel better, more secure. Some hope returned to my body, and my tears stopped escaping. Soon, I fell asleep.

I had a dream, a nightmare soon after falling asleep. In my dream, my uncle had found out I had been planning to leave him, and had gotten angry. I'd tried to plead with him, beg him to understand, but he wouldn't listen. He'd said if I wanted to leave so badly, then I should just go, and he'd thrown me out, told me never to come back. Edward was nowhere to be found, nor even my aunt, it was only me and my uncle. He'd stared at me from the doorway as I lay on the muddy ground, rain pouring down, and told me he never wanted to see me there again. He'd begun to close the door… I'd screamed for him, wanted him to forgive me, but he'd turned away, and closed the door…

I woke with a start, having sworn I'd heard the sound of a door closing, and soft, retreating footsteps following it. I looked around, having forgotten I wasn't in my own room. I'd shifted in my sleep, and was now facing the door. What's more, the room was slowly moving back and forth… Back and forth… No, not the room, I was, my head. It was moving up and down, I was on my side… It took me a moment to figure out why this was, my being too tired still to lift my head and look around. But I realized Edward was still next me, lying on his back, and my head was resting on his chest, moving up and down as he breathed.

Why had I awoken…? I'd heard a sound, a door closing. And footsteps. But that had been in my dream, hadn't it? I wasn't sure… And I was still too tired to think clearly. Instead, I found my eyes drooping, sleep overtaking me again.

But I can see your smiling face

As it's starin' back at me

--

The next morning, I woke up slowly, rising and looking wearily around the now brightly-lit room. I didn't know what time it was, but it felt pretty late, much later than I usually slept. But I had also been up later the previous night. I looked out the window to try and discern the time of say, and noticed something else entirely.

"Ed!" I called, shaking him where he lay next to me, trying to wake him. "Ed! Wake up!"

"Huh…?" he muttered as he began to open his eyes. He sat up sluggishly, stretching his left arm. "What?"

"Look!" I said, now fully awake, pointing out the window. Rubbing his eyes, Edward looked to where I was pointing. Sitting in the drive were three mid-sized, gray vehicles, each with the symbol of the local police force emblazoned on both front doors.

"Police cars?" Edward said in wonder, also having been snapped awake by the sight. "What for?"

"I don't know," I answered uneasily. "But it can't be good. Let's get downstairs." We both jumped up out of bed, still having been fully dressed from the previous day, never having had time to change into nightclothes after what happened last night. I ran to the door and down the hall, Edward right behind me, and soon made it to the front room, which was crowded with people.

It seemed many residents had also been unnerved by the appearance of the police officers, because it looked like over half the inn was currently milling about in the front room, kitchen, and dining room (it wasn't a large number of people to begin with, so it wasn't like there wasn't room to move around, but it was still a sight). There were five officers, two watching the crowd, one standing guard by the door, and two talking to my aunt and uncle by the front desk. My uncle turned to look at us as soon as we stepped into the room.

"YOU!" my uncle roared, storming across the room and grabbing Edward by the front of the shirt. I jumped out of the way instinctively as my uncle shoved him against the wall, causing him to growl in pain and surprise. "I knew it! I knew you were bad news the minute I laid eyes on you! I never should've let you stay here!"

Edward tried to shove him off, but my uncle's grip on him was unrelenting. "What are you talking about?" he demanded.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about!" my uncle shouted back. The other residents were all backing away now, apparently frightened by the way my uncle was acting. To be honest, I was scared of him myself. "Last night, someone broke into the front desk and stole all of last week's profits! Now I don't know how you did it, but you'd better come clean and get my money back! Now!"

"What?! I didn't steal anything!" Edward asserted in reply. "You got proof it was me?"

"Uncle Liam, what's going on?" I demanded, afraid that he was acting this way. I had never seen him like this before. "Why are you doing this?"

He looked back at me. "Why don't you ask him? He's the one that did it."

"I didn't do anything!" Edward continued to insist. With a snarl, my uncle forcefully shoved him backward, letting him go, and went back to the two officers he'd been talking to before. I hurried over to Edward, grabbing his arm and helping him stand. The look in his eyes told me not to say anything. My uncle, meanwhile, pulled a master key out of his pocket and handed it to one of the officers.

"I want you to conduct a full search of the building. Find that money. I mark all our profits with a small, black dot in the bottom right corner of the back side. You wouldn't notice it unless you knew it was there. That'll help you know when you find it." The officers voiced their understanding, before heading up the stairwell and out of sight.

For a while everyone just waited in the front room for the search party to return. The residents continued to remain near the kitchen and dining room. Edward was leaning against the front desk, and I was standing in front of him. My aunt and uncle were waiting at the foot of the stairs, my uncle watching Edward suspiciously all the while. All the other guests seemed to keep shooting him angry, disapproving glances as well. It was obvious the vast majority of the adults really believed he was behind this. That's so unfair… I couldn't help but think. Most of those people don't even know him.

And I know we both see these changes now

It seemed like an eternity before the two officers finally descended the stairs. Everyone turned to watch, curious, as one of them went straight to my uncle. "Is this what you're looking for?" he asked, handing him a sizable stack of money. My uncle inspected it, making sure it was the right money and that it was all there, before turning his attention back to the police officer.

"Thank you, officer. Where did you find it?"

"Room 116," the officer answered.

Edward looked up suddenly, eyes wide. "WHAT?!?"

"Ah," my uncle began in that same unnaturally calm voice as last night, in immediate contrast to the way he acted that morning, "Mr. Elric's room."

The officer by my uncle nodded to two of the others by the crowd, who then walked up to Edward and each grabbed one of his arms.

"Hey—!" he yelled as they took hold of him. "Let me go! I didn't steal anything!"

But I know we both understand somehow

The head officer stepped forward, striding behind Edward and jabbing him in the back with the barrel of his rifle. He froze suddenly, unable to see the man but knowing what he was doing.

"Don't move," the officer said. He looked at the other two officers who were at the time unoccupied. "You can go. They're no longer suspects." They both saluted the head officer before turning and heading out the door.

I stood stock-still a few feet away, my eyes continually darting back and forth between Edward and my uncle, who was looking on with a gaze of smug satisfaction. What's… What's going on? I was confused, to say the least. I didn't know what to think. They had found the missing money in Edward's room, but I had been with him last night. There was no way he could've snuck downstairs and back without my knowing. But then again, he wasn't there during dinner… He'd said he had things to take care of in his room. Maybe then, he could've… But no! I knew him, and there was no way he'd ever do something like this. …Would he?

"Damn it, let go of me already!" Edward was still shouting and struggling against the men who held him captive. "I told you, I didn't do it! I don't know how that money got in my room, but I sure as hell didn't put it there!"

"Shut up!" the officer on his right ordered. He attempted to twist his arm to quiet him down, but found it more difficult than he had expected.

Edward snickered as the officer pulled up his sleeve to reveal the metal beneath. "Sorry, pal, but that's not gonna work."

"That's enough!" the head officer behind him shouted, clearly having had enough, and hit the back of his head hard with his rifle. Edward cried out and clenched his teeth, hunching forward and ceasing his struggling.

There's a life inside of me

That I can feel again

It was frightening, watching all this going on in front of me. I was afraid for Edward, afraid for myself, just afraid. I didn't know what to do, or even if there was anything I could do.

"You should never have let this boy fool you, Winry," my uncle said suddenly. I looked up at him and he smiled almost evilly. "This whole time, he was obviously only after our money. That must have been the 'business' he said he had here."

"No!" Edward shouted, lifting his head again, a sickened expression on his face. "That's not true!" He looked desperately at me, his golden eyes pleading with me, begging me to understand. "Winry, I would never steal from you—from anyone! You have to believe me!"

As I looked into his eyes, seeing the desperation in them, I realized that he wasn't lying. I trusted him, more than anything. "I do," I answered him. He looked immensely relieved at my words, a small smile appearing on his face. I turned to my uncle, who was looking at me in frustration. "Ed didn't steal anything," I told him, hoping against hope that he would listen to me. "I trust him. You should too."

It's the only thing that takes me

Where I've never been

My uncle's face contorted with rage, his eyes narrowing and his teeth clenching. I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared, but I held my ground and stared him down. After a moment, he relaxed, his expression changing, and he sighed. I thought maybe, just maybe, he had changed his mind…?

"Should we take him to the station?" the head police officer asked my uncle.

My uncle looked up at him. "That's won't be necessary," he said. My eyes widened in shock and I stared at him. I assumed Edward was wearing a similar expression. But our relief was short-lived, when he said instead, "This is a matter for the State Military."

"W-What?!?" Edward exclaimed, his eyes wide. "No, y-you can't! If they knew I was here, they'd—" He froze, instantly realizing he had said too much. "I-I mean…"

"I just need to make a phone call," my uncle said in a voice of false pleasantness, a satisfied look on his face. "Officer?" The head officer, along with my aunt, began to follow him.

"Keep him here," he said to his subordinates, who nodded in understanding, before the three disappeared into the kitchen.

I looked over at Edward, whose eyes were still wide in fear. It was strange, seeing him afraid. It was something I'd never seen before, and it made me feel even more uneasy. "E-Ed…" I began, but he wasn't listening.

I don't care if I lost everything that I have known

Then suddenly, he clenched his teeth together and set his jaw, a look of determination instantly setting in. Then, so quickly it looked as though he hadn't even thought about it, he swung his right arm, slamming the officer behind him in the face with the elbow of his mechanical arm. A sickening crack rang out and the man screamed and doubled over in pain, letting go of Edward's arm. He then swung his left leg to the side, kicking the other officer hard in the gut, also causing him to let go of his arm and slump forward, the wind knocked out of him. The police officer swung a fist at his attacker, who ducked and aimed his own punch at the man's chest, where it collided painfully, knocking him down.

I stared in awe at the brawl before me, not having known Edward was capable of fighting like that. I guess it should have made sense, considering he'd said he used to work for the State Military, but it was still a surprise to see.

Once the second man had fallen, Edward turned, grabbed my hand, shouted, "Come on!" and sprinted out the front door, with me in tow.

We didn't run far; it was getting dark, so we had the cover of shadows to aid us. We only ran a few yards down the hill in front of the inn, jumping behind a grassy ridge near the bottom, a nook in the ground which provided excellent cover, especially since the moon was on the other side of the hill, casting us in shadow. As soon as we were behind, both of us out of breath, Edward turned and peered over the ridge. Upon doing the same, I saw the two police officers run out the door, looking wildly around. I noticed one was holding a hand to his face, where he seemed to be bleeding a considerable amount. Apparently, his nose had been broken. They both swore loudly before running off in opposite directions, thankfully neither of which was toward where we were hidden. I turned back around, still trying to catch my breath.

It don't matter where I lay my head tonight

Your arms feel like home

I turned to Edward, giving him a pointed look. "Okay, explain. Now."

"It's…kind of complicated," he replied sitting down as well, and also breathing heavily.

I shook my head. "I heard you and Al talking the other night," I said shortly, "the night before he left." His eyes widened in worry and he looked at me. "He said something about how 'they'll' find you if you stay somewhere for too long. He kept mentioning 'them.'" I paused, looking him directly in the eye. "'They' is the State Military, isn't it?" He didn't answer, only looked away. "Look, like it or not, I'm involved now. You have to tell me what's going on!"

He shut his eyes, seemingly fighting with himself for a moment, before opening them again and looking over his shoulder. "Okay," he said, turning back to face me. "But it's gonna have to be quick.

"About a year ago, back when I still worked for the State Military, Al and I… We…uncovered something. Something big."

"What?"

He looked up over the ridge again, seeming almost paranoid the way he kept looking around. "A conspiracy," he said quickly. I gasped. "Corruption, within the Military itself."

"How…high in the Military?"

"All the way to the top," he said quietly. I stared at him, willing him to go on. "We were just doing some normal research, like always, in some old, unused State Library, Military use only. We found some stuff about a related conspiracy that happened a few years ago, with some of the men that still work pretty high up. After doing some digging, we found out about a whole case that got covered up, something that if the people knew, it would ruin their trust in the State Military. I don't have time to get into it now… Anyway, we planned to take it to the top and find out if they knew about it, but what we didn't know was that they were all in on it. And what's more, they were planning something else as a follow-up." Every few seconds he would turn and look up at the house, then down at the road. I only watched and listened, trying to comprehend what he was saying. "Our State Military was planning a joint invasion with the East of our own country. We didn't understand at first, but they were 'kind' enough to explain it to us. Essentially, they're planning to wipe out the entire country and rebuild a double empire with the East, with our Military at its head. It's just some crazed-up power trip the bastards in the Military are using to get ahead, regardless of what happens to the country they swore to protect."

My mouth was hanging open. I was horrified. There was no way this was true, no way. For the State Military to have sunk so low… It was unthinkable.

"So of course after they told us all this they couldn't afford to let us live. So they planned to have us killed in secret and put out some story of us having to go out of the country or something. But we were able to escape, and we've been on the run from them since."

"So you have been on the run from the law…" I muttered, shaking my head at the pure irony of the thought.

"What?" he said, not understanding.

I shook my head. "Nothing, never mind. But I don't understand, why not just tell the people what the Military's planning? They could form some kind of resistance and stop this."

"Don't you think we've tried that? No one'll believe is without proof. So we've been moving from town to town, evading the State Military and using our time in each place we stay at to look for any kind of proof we can find that'll help us convince people."

"So that's why Al was always in town, and that's the 'business' you guys were always saying you had…"

"Al actually found something here, believe it or not. An account from a few months ago about some bartender who'd heard some State Military goons talking about a run-in they'd had with some higher ups. There was mention of this plan, if only on the smallest scale. Normally, you wouldn't have thought anything of it, but Al caught it and knew what it meant. We're hoping to find more stories like it to corroborate together and use as hard evidence."

"Wow…" I breathed as Edward looked over the ridge again. "That's unbelievable…"

"Exactly, that's our problem," he said, a hint of irony in his voice. Suddenly, we heard the roaring of car engines coming from the road. His face turning pale, Edward turned around swiftly to see what was coming. There were two black cars pulling up the drive. There were no markings on them, nothing really that made them stand out. Except that I knew I'd never seen them before. "Oh, no… State Military Patrol Vehicles!" Edward said, his eyes widening even further.

We stayed hidden as three men emerged from the two cars. Edward seemed to recognize one of them, but he didn't say anything about it so I didn't ask. The three walked straight up to the door and knocked three times. Almost immediately the door was opened from inside to reveal my uncle. I couldn't see his face clearly from where I was hiding, but I was sure he was glad to see them. They all spoke for a moment, my uncle probably telling them that Edward wasn't there. Then to my utter horror, my uncle raised his arm and pointed straight at us. The three State Military officers turned and looked right toward us, where he had indicated, before thanking him and moving away from the door, headed straight for where we were hiding.

"H-How did he see us?" I asked rhetorically, looking at Edward, who looked frantic.

"Doesn't matter," he said, grabbing my arm. "Run!"

Hold on

You're home to me

He led the way again, this time down away from the road, around the bottom of the hill. Soon we came upon the shed we had stored the wood and cement in that day two weeks ago. Without hesitation he led me inside, closing the door behind us. Even though we had moved all that junk to this shed, there was still a vast amount of empty space. We had stored everything toward the sides of the shed, leaving the wide center strip and back and front walls untouched.

Immediately Edward moved to the left side of the shed, shoving aside a pile of the junk from before.

"What are you doing?" I asked him frantically.

He finished moving the things aside, to reveal a door which led to a small supply room. He opened the door and looked inside, before turning to me. "Get inside."

"What?" I demanded. "I'm not leaving you here."

Just hold on

You're home to me

"They didn't see where we went, we should have a little time. This is just for safety. Come on." He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me toward the door. I fought free before he could throw me in, however.

"No. I told you, I'm not leaving you out here alone."

"What, so if they come they find you too? Just trust me, okay? I'm gonna try and lead them off a bit, but I'll be back."

"No, you can't—"

"Winry," he cut me off, holding my upper arms and looking into my eyes. "Please," he said seriously. "Just do this. For me."

There's a life inside of me

That I can feel again

I hesitated for a moment, then leaned up and kissed him gently. He returned the kiss momentarily, before I pulled away and smiled at him. "Okay."

He nodded, a relieved smile spreading across his face. "Good."

I stepped into the store room and turned to face him before he closed the door. "I love you," I told him. I tried not to make it sound like a goodbye, but my voice broke unexpectedly while speaking, rendering that attempt null and void.

He smiled, his eyes boring into mine. "I love you, too." With that, he pushed the door closed. I heard him lock it from the other side, and I stepped to the door, placing my ear against it to see if I could hear anything. I heard his footsteps retreating from the door at a quickened pace, but only five or six of them sounded before there was a loud bang, the sound of the front door being flung open. Edward's footsteps ceased.

"Edward Elric," came an unknown voice from the direction of the front door. They had found us.

After a moment, Edward answered, in a tone of false friendliness, "Colonel Mustang."

"I've been looking forward to seeing you again," the Colonel said, adopting the same tone of voice Edward had used.

"Can't say the feeling's mutual," Edward replied. I still had my ear pressed against the door, listening hard to hear what they were saying, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Where's your brother?" Mustang inquired with mild interest.

There was a moment of silence, before Edward answered, "He's dead." He said it so convincingly, that if I hadn't known otherwise, I might have believed him myself. Mustang seemed to fall for it as well.

"That's too bad," he said, feigning regret. "I'd been looking forward to killing you both together. Oh, well. I suppose beggars can't be choosers." My eyes widened in worry. That's it, I resolved. There's no way I'm just gonna sit here and listen to this happen. I pulled a pin out of my hair and set to work attempting to pick the lock on the door. I had only ever done it once or twice, and not for a while, so I found myself hoping desperately that I remembered how to do it.

"Why are you doing this?" Edward demanded. "You know what he's planning! What's he offered you? Money? Fame? Women?"

"D, all of the above!" the Colonel answered. "I don't expect you to understand. You're just a kid, after all. But I've got news for you, Elric. This is reality. And in the real world, people will do anything to get ahead. And those who aren't willing to make sacrifices… get left behind."

I heard a shifting sound from near the front door, and began to work more quickly. Please hurry… I pleaded with myself.

"Well if that's your reality, then I don't want any part of it. What you're planning is murder, nothing more, nothing less. And I don't believe in murder for profit."

"So naïve," Mustang replied. "But I guess it doesn't really matter now, does it? He's ordered us to kill you on spot, so it looks like you won't have to see what happens when our plan is carried out."

Edward didn't respond, and I began to grow even more worried. Hurry… Hurry…

"So, Edward," the Colonel began with a sense of formality. "Any last words?"

"Just two," Edward replied, his voice so quiet I almost didn't hear him. "I'm sorry…"

And it's the only thing that takes me

Where I've never been

My fingers froze. I wanted to keep working, to get out of this room, but my hands wouldn't move. I realized those words had been meant for me, and the sadness and regret in his voice were overwhelming. Tears began to form in my eyes, as I continued to will my hands to move, and they continued to disobey me.

Misunderstanding Edward's intentions, Mustang said coldly, "Apology accepted."

Not a second later, two loud gunshots rang through the air, making me jump from shock, my body tensing up and my fingers twitching. Next came two footsteps, a scraping sound, and a soft thud.

I wanted to scream, to cry, to run, to do something, anything, but I couldn't speak, I couldn't move. My hands were shaking so badly I almost dropped the pin I'd been holding. The pin… And then, though I don't know how, I forced my arms to move. I stuck the pin in the lock, moved it around, as if knowing exactly what I was doing, and instantly heard the lock click. Without a second thought I threw open the door and rushed out into the room.

The first things I saw were the three State Military officers, one standing in the center, with short, black hair and dark eyes. He must have been Colonel Mustang. The other two stood on his sides, each raising a rifle and pointing it ahead. As the colonel lowered his arm, signaling them to lower their guns, all three turned to look at me in surprise, but I paid them no attention. Instead I turned to where their guns had been pointed, and gasped.

And I don't care if I lost everything that I have known

"EDWARD!!!" I screamed, running toward him. He can't be… Don't let him be… He looked up at me in shock.

"W…Winry?"

He was sitting slumped against the back wall of the shed, his head down, his arms hanging limply at his sides, blood pouring from two bullet wounds in his chest. I rushed up and knelt next to him, my back to the Military officers.

"Winry…" Edward tried to speak, his eyes wide. "Y-You can't… You shouldn't…"

"Now who's this?" Colonel Mustang said from near the door. Edward just glared at him. "You haven't told her anything, have you Ed?"

"No," he lied, shaking his head. "She doesn't know… anything… L… Leave her… out of this… Mustang…" It was becoming more and more difficult for him to breathe, I noticed with a pang of fear. I turned to look at the Colonel.

"I see… Well," he raised his arm, and his subordinates raised their rifles again. Edward's eyes widened and I turned back to him. "Just to be safe."

'Cause it don't matter where I lay my head tonight

Your arms feel like home

"NO!!!" Edward shouted, as I heard two more gunshots behind me. I was about to turn and look, but the instant the shots fired, I felt an incredible pain shoot through me. "WINRY!!!!" The edges of my vision blackened, and the rest flashed neon, making my brain go haywire. My back felt like it had been split open, which I guess technically it had, and my head was screaming to explode. Losing my balance, I stumbled forward, leaning against Edward's shoulder as he stared at me in shock and anger. He turned back to Mustang. "DAMN YOU!! YOU BASTARD!!!" His shout was cut a bit short, however, when his breath caught in his throat and he coughed violently, spitting blood on the dusty floor of the shed.

"What did I tell you Edward?" the Colonel said, sounding as though he were reprimanding a child. "Those who aren't willing to make sacrifices to get ahead… just get left behind." He then raised his right hand to his brow in a mock salute, which made Edward snarl. And with that, he turned on his heel, walked through the door, and was gone.

I pulled myself up as best I could, leaning sideways on the wall for support. Edward's head was down, and he was groaning through clenched teeth. "E-Edward…?" I fought to get his name out. It hurt to speak, to think, to breathe. I wanted to stop it all, but I wouldn't. Not yet.

They feel like home

"I'm sorry… Winry…" he said, not raising his head, his shoulders shuddering as he spoke. "I should've…left when I… had the chance… None of this would've happened…"

"No," I interrupted him. He lifted his head, though it looked like cost him a great effort. "Don't say that… You know… neither of us would've been… happy…" He shook his head, and opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off again, knowing what he was about to say. "And don't say you never should've… come here, either…" He closed his mouth and looked me in the eyes, the pain evident in their golden depths, a pain I was sure my eyes mirrored. "I'm…glad," I said simply. "Glad that things… happened the way they did… that I got to know and… love someone like you."

He smiled, a weak, pained smile, but a smile nonetheless. "You're right," he admitted, resting his head against the back wall and closing his eyes. "No regrets… That's how I always wanted… to look back on my life…" He turned to face me, leaning forward and touching his forehead to mine. "Thank you," he said.

"Any time," I answered, dragging myself toward him and laying my head on his shoulder. He lifted his right arm and hung it around my shoulders, taking my hand is his left.

They say that before you die, your entire life flashes before your eyes. But at that moment, for me, all I saw were the past two weeks, my life since meeting him. During that time, I had lost everything, my family, my home, everything I thought I had known all my life. But I gained something. I gained love, a love that would last the ages. We had been through so much in such a short amount of time, and we weren't about to let even death stop us now. So even when I had nothing, when everything I knew was gone from me, I was happy, because I had him. And to me, that was everything. As I lay there in his arms, dying together with the only one I had ever truly lived with, I knew that here, I was home.

They feel like home…

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Soooooo loooooong.... And sorry the ending was kind of cheesy. I'm never that great at ending stuff like this. Like I've said before, give me a good fight scene to write and I'll take that over an emotional one any day. But oh, well. And yeah, I just kind of made up the random aunt and uncle for Winry. I was gonna just use her parents at first, but honestly I felt kind of bad making tham act like total jerks, since it was like waaaaay too OOC and all... So I ended up just making up random other family. Worked fine, I think :D

Oh, and like I said, it took me fourteen hours straight to write this, during which I was up for an entire night, and I'm still sitting here now fourteen and a half hours after starting this, adding these before-and-after author's notes, so it would be reaaaalllllyyy nice if you'd hit that pretty little review button down there and drop me a line...? I so love to know when my stuff's appreciated, epsecially when I spent such an inhuman amount of time on it... Hahaha :P

As always, thanks for reading! And congratulations on making it down to the bottom of the longest one-shot ever!

-oMM

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