Series: Fullmetal Alchemist
Theme no.: 36. Within and without with white
Pairing: Ed, Winry, Al
Rating: K+
Summary: Ed reflects upon the Rockbell home. (Pre-Ishbal)
Notes: I guess this one is technically anime-verse (references an anime-only incident) and features Ed, Winry, and Al as children.
36. Within and without with white
The sky outside was dark with ugly grey clouds, and rain thrummed with disappointing regularity upon the roof above them, but that was okay because inside three children were managing to entertain themselves anyway.
The trio had been outside when the skies had opened up on them, and they had quickly made a mad dash for the Rockbell house, which was closer than the two brothers'. Ed had been glad to reach the front porch, and as Winry fumbled with the doorknob and shooed the brothers inside the dark foyer, he couldn't help but be grateful that they had been allowed, welcomed back into Winry's life after that scene last week when he and Al had tried to make her that doll. He was still embarrassed about how badly they'd scared her, even though Winry had reassured him and Al that the doll was tucked neatly in her made bed with her other stuffed animals.
He loved the Rockbell home. Even now, darkened with the storm, there was something about it that was bright and open and clean – a house filled with laughter and family and light.
It was mostly an internal feeling, stepping into the Rockbell house and feeling like he was stepping into a radiant, untainted place. As much as he loved his home, it sometimes felt like the only light in the place came from his mother or brother. There were no darkened, locked, rooms in the Rockbell home. Years later, when Ed's mind converted completely to science, he would make a connection between the comforting atmosphere of the house and the fact that Winry's family was not yet broken like his and that Pinako kept only the brightest lights installed to keep a keen eye on detail work in her automail, but as a child Ed could only bask in the warmth that the house provided.
Winry pulled out some crayons and several big paper pads, and it wasn't until quiet fell over the three of them as they drew that Ed heard it.
At first he thought it was the wind howling outside, and he tried his best to ignore it until Al, shifting uncomfortably, broke the silence to ask in a slightly quivering voice, "Winry? Is your house haunted?"
She blinked at him in confusion for a moment, unsure why he was asking, and then understanding dawned on her face. "Oh! That noise? Gran's doing a surgery."
"That's a guy?" Ed couldn't help blurting out in horror. It sounded almost inhuman.
Winry just nodded, unsure where the boy's consternation lay. "Well yeah. Automail hurts, dummy." And as if that were the end of it, she went right back to her picture, snagging the blue crayon out of Ed's suddenly limp hand and scribbling furiously to color in the sky.
The brothers exchanged nervous glances before looking back down at their colorings. Al half-heartedly picked up another crayon, but Ed could only frown at his paper, stomach roiling as he tried to block out the noises.
After several tense minutes, Ed started to pick words out of the shrieking. Al looked near tears, and Ed decided he'd had enough.
"I think we should go home now," he said reluctantly, standing up and reaching for Al. "I think Mom would worry about us being outside."
Winry frowned at him, eyebrows drawing together in a childish pout, but decided not to argue. "If you say so…"
She saw them to the door, head tilted in confusion, and watched the brothers as they raced back to their house without looking back.
It was the first time the lights dimmed in the Rockbell house.