Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, only the idea itself in my wording. R&R if you like it. ^^ In Winry's POV except for the designated section. Just a little bit of a fluff OneShot to get me back into the fanfic world. ~~~~~~~~~
'I'll always come home. I promise.'
An all-too-familiar chill ran down my spine as I stared down at the dented wrench in my hand, that voice ringing in my ear.
"That dummy." I sighed, pushing away from the pile of half-finished projects and tucked the tool in my backpocket.
Making my way upstairs, I noticed Granny feeding Den.
"Oh, so you're still here after all? You spend all your time down there, I was beginning to think you had disappeared." Her raspy voice taunted.
Disappeared...The word hung in the air as I stretched and forced a laugh.
"It's not my fault we've had a lot of orders lately, Granny."
I leaned down to give Den a quick pet before heading for the stairs to my room, but her voice stopped me.
"Winry Rockbell. When are you going to deal with this? You can't keep going on like this. You can't just lock yourself away in the basement to ignore the world around you."
A thin ring of smoke snarled my way as she awaited a reply. Deciding to ignore her words rather than risk another fight about this, I simply made my way upstairs and shut the door. Crossing the room to the closet, I swiftly changed out of the stained work clothes and into an oversized button-down shirt. I curled up in my covers, breathing deeply into the collar of the top.
'It still smells like him', I noticed with a shaky chuckle.
So she wants me to deal with it. How the hell am I supposed to do that? If I do, it'll mean defeat; it'll mean that I give up. And I'm not going to do that. He said he would come back...he always promised he would come back. No matter what. That as soon as he finished with whatever business he had to take care of, he and Al would come home. But this time, only Al came home.
~~~~~~~~~
"Al, you're home!"
My head jerked up at hearing Granny's exclamation. Quickly, I raced outside with a grin and hugged the youngest Elric.
"Welcome home, Al!" I pulled back from him, suddenly noticing that Ed wasn't with him.
I looked around quickly, even glancing down the road.
"Hey, where's Ed? He isn't with you?"
Al's face dropped immediately as he bent to scratch Den's stomach, staying silent. I looked to Granny and was met with a shrug.
"Alphonse. Where's your brother? Where's Ed?" I questioned again, my hands clenching into fists.
"Winry, I...I don't know." That still child-like voice that had been masked by that suit of armor all these years sounded so different now that he had his body back.
"What do you mean you don't know? Did he go on another assignment without you until you get fully healed? Did the Colonel send him somewhere he couldn't tell you?" My words tripped over themselves as I tried to rationalise.
Al was standing now. He was just barely taller than me after all this time and I had to look up into his yellow-brown eyes to notice that they were full of despair.
I shook my head. "I don't understand."
"He never came back from the Gate. I think something went wrong. He gave up his alchemy in exchange for getting me out of there and now he's trapped up there or somewhere with no alchemy. With nothing and no one around. Winry, I don't think he's-"
"SHUT UP."
The pressure of my nails gripping the skin of my palms caused small streams of warm blood to drip down my fists. I think I was shaking. I looked Alphonse harshly in the eyes. He looked startled.
When I spoke again, my voice was but a whisper. "He'll come back."
I looked down and felt water hit my hand. "He promised. So he'll find a way. I know he will. So don't give up on him!"
With that, I ran inside and began the months of intensive engineering to keep the thoughts and feelings out, just as I shut everyone else out.
~~~~~~~~~
That was seven months and three days ago now. I clenched my eyes shut as I balled chunks of his shirt up in my hands.
"Come back. Jerk, you promised. You had better keep fighting." I spoke to the ceiling as if he could hear me.
He has to be out there somewhere. I refuse to 'deal' with anything. I refuse to give up. He wouldn't.
A few hours later I heard voices speaking in hushed tones and sat up. I hadn't slept even though I was exhausted. After determining that I should probably apologise to Granny for the way I behaved later, I sighed and got up, slipping on some shorts but keeping on Ed's shirt.
I drowsily walked downstairs, yawning and rubbing my eyes.
"Listen, Granny. I'm sorry I ignored..you.."
~~~~~~~~~
[Edward POV Section]
"Edward Elric."
There it was again. That annoying voice that sounded like a rotten child.
"What do you want? What more could you possibly want?" My voice remained calm as I sat before the locked Gate.
"The time has come for you to take on the Final Quest. If you wish to leave, you must successfully complete this quest as you have the others, and you will be granted permission to return to your world."
I opened my eyes and stood up. I wasn't sure how long I had been locked up here in this inbetween world since returning Alphonse to our world. This voice had been "punishing" me, it said. I committed a great transgression in coming back for Al, thought I thought giving up my alchemy would have been enough. For Al, however, I was willing to sacrifice whatever it took.
So here I've been, completing tasks and quests for whatever this thing saw fit, hoping for the day when I too could go home. I had a promise to keep, after all. Her face flashed in my mind as I stood for the "Final Quest".
"Tell me what to do."
It laughed, but I was determined to stay calm. It didn't like my temper. Go figure.
"Very well, Edward Elric. You just have to answer one question."
I waited as it paused. Damn, whatever this thing was was pushing its luck.
"What's the question?" I asked inpatiently.
"Do you wish to regain your alchemy?"
My eyes widened. What was this thing trying to do? Trick me into thinking it would give me my alchemy back? Hah. I knew better by now.
"No." My voice was unwavering.
"Are you certain? You only have this one chance to answer the question."
"I'm positive. I don't want it back."
The orb appeared before me, it's Cheshire grin causing my stomach to churn. "Congratulations."
Behind it, the Gate was opening. A grin broke out on my face.
"Thank you." I bowed respectfully as I slowly walked out, trying to keep balance on my now thinner limbs.
I could hear the laughing as I exited and then everything went black and I woke up outside of Granny's house where Al, Granny and Den waited for me. I smiled as I sat up. I was home.
~~~~~~~~~
"Hey, my shirt looks better on you than it did on me." His cocky grin spread across his lips.
My eyes glanced over him cautiously. I had imagined him many times and it had never been the real thing. His blonde locks stood up in ridiculous directions and his golden eyes softened as they met mine.
"E-Ed...Is it really you?" I finally managed to whisper, noticing Al and Granny exchange a look and leave the room.
His smile never left his lips as he crossed the room to me unsteadily. It was then that I noticed how thin he had gotten. It wasn't the deadly thin that Al had been when he returned, but it still had me worried.
I stopped him, grasping his forearms to make him still. "Hey, you should be resting. You look like you're going to collapse."
A hand moved to rest on the side of my waist while the other was suddenly running through my hair. He took hold of a few strands and brought it to his face, closing his eyes with a smile.
"Calm down, Win."
My face flushed. Ed wasn't one for showing affection, especially towards me. It had happened so seldom over the years that this shocked me into silence again.
After a moment, his eyes opened and met mine as his hand dropped to my cheek, brushing his thumb over the reddened skin. That grin was back.
"Cat got your tongue? What's the matter?" He chuckled, taking another step toward me.
"Idiot." I replied in a harsh tone.
He blinked and cautiously took a step back. "What'd I do? Sheesh. Sorry for thinking you'd be happy to see me! I missed the hell outta you and I just thought-"
I stared up at him, tears streaming down my face. The tears I'd been holding back all these months. My whole body shook.
"Idiot. You made me wait for you to come home again."
A laugh escaped his lips as he sighed in what seemed like relief. He pulled me towards him by the waist, a hand meeting my cheek again to wipe tears from my face.
"I'm sorry. I'm home now."
His body leaned over mine and my eyes widened as his lips brushed over mine. I squeezed my eyes shut and held onto him tightly, pressing my lips back against his. As he pulled away moments later, he leaned his forehead against mine, grinning. I laughed and smiled at him, hitting his arm before wrapping my arms around his neck.
"I love you."
The words left my lips before I had a chance to think. My face heated again and I tried to stutter something else, anything else. But all he did was break into laughter at my pathetic attempts. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist, lifting me slightly into a comfortable hug.
"You have no..no idea. How long I've wanted to tell you that I love you." He whispered into my ear. "I didn't think I'd ever get the chance to tell you. I'm sorry it took me so long. I'm sorry I made you wait again, for me."
I buried my face into his shoulder. "I thought I lost you. I was so scared...I missed you, Edward. Don't you dare ever do anything like that to me again."
"I promise. I'm not going anywhere that isn't with you ever again."
I tapped the back of his head with my wrench and he opened his eyes, blinking. I beamed at him. Under any other circumstances, there's no way either of us would have said any of this. So maybe something good did come from it. And after all, he was home.
Laughter filled the room as he started to fall over from being so weak, causing both of us to topple over onto the floor, refusing to let go. Alphonse, Granny and Den ran into the room at the noise. They joined in our laughter and Al helped us up. Ed kept his arm around my waist even as Al teased him for becoming a softie. Granny and I exchanged looks and smiles.
"Looks like the family's all here." Granny piped up over the brotherly spat.
I looked around the room and nodded. "Everyone's home."