Let's get something straight. I suck at romance. I don't even care to read it. So, I apologize in advance for any cheesy moments in the following chapter.

To guest, Not so human, I'll reply to you here, since I can't via PM. Thanks for the review! Yeah, Ed will get involved, whether he wants to or not. (Trust me, he's going to hate being forcefully involved.)

"Aerugo Herald. December 12th, 1916." The train ride was long and uneventful. Winry was currently using Ed's shoulder as a pillow, and he tried his best to hold the newspaper without disturbing her slumber. "Four days ago, the Amestrian military moved thousands of soldiers to the Cretan border. It was discovered Drachman personnel were already in position and they clashed with the Amestrians. The fighting has reached West City, and it is slowly starting to shift south. Unfortunately, there have been reports of many casualties, both military and civilian. As of now, our government has made no move to assist our allies." Ed re-read the short article and folded the paper up. Aerugo was supposed to help Amestris if it was attacked, so why were they doing nothing? From the way it sounded, they only planned on attacking if the threat made it farther south.

The train horn blared and the brakes groaned when they approached the station. The noise and the jerky movement from the train was enough to wake Winry up. She was the one who made the hotel reservations, so she grabbed Ed by the hand and pulled him across the bustling streets.

"How do you know where you're going?" To his knowledge, Winry had never been out of the country.

"I got simple directions. The hotel isn't far from the station." All they had to do was walk down the main street until a large, ornate hotel overtook the surroundings.

"That's our hotel?" Ed was dumbfounded. "We're staying here for more than a few days, you know. I don't think we can afford this." He expected they would stay in a run-down cheap motel until it was safe to return home. This hotel looked like it would cost a fortune for only one night.

"Oh, someone is paying for all of our expenses."

"Who?!" Why would anyone want to pay for all of their expenses, especially since this trip was going to cost a lot of money.

"Colonel Mustang." There had to be an ulterior motive for the bastard's decision to pay for the hotel. "He told me he would call if anything important happened when he was on the phone."

"I don't know why he's so eager to get me out of the country." Ed grumbled, then spoke in a Mustang mock voice, "Fullmetal, we can't have you messing things up. Fullmetal, stay low, but that shouldn't be a challenge for you."

"Ed," Winry stifled off a laugh. Ever since Ed had grown taller, he wasn't as sensitive about his height anymore, but there was a rare occasional moment where he freaked out about the subject. "be nice. He's probably just concerned about us with this new war."

"Or he thinks I'm going to mess it up, somehow."

"That's because you would."

"Hey!" Ed protested.

"Come on, let's check in." Ed grunted in agreement and they walked into the extravagant main lobby. There were decorations and paintings everywhere, which Ed thought was pointless and rather stupid.

"Here you go, room 417." The clerk gave Ed two skeleton keys after she checked his papers. She then gave him a sly wink. "Congratulations."

"Uh, thanks?" He turned around and carried both his and Winry's luggage to the elevator. Once they reached their floor, they quickly found room 417 and unlocked the door.

It was a very large suite, complete with a small kitchenette and an enormous bathroom area. It wasn't a visually appealing suite; there were murals of flowers and hearts everywhere, which made Ed snort with disgust.

Winry was in the shower, so Ed had plenty of time to kill. The only thing that sounded nice was sleep. At least the king-sized feather bed felt comfortable when he sat down on it. On a small table, there was a small wicker basket. Curiously, Ed peered into the basket to see what goodies were inside.

It contained several bottles of bath salts, brightly colored lotions, and strangely scented perfumes. A small card stuck to one of the bottles, which read, 'Congratulations!' Strange, that was what the lady at the front desk said, too. Then something clicked in his head.

"I'm going to kill that man!" The room paid for by Mustang was a honeymoon suite.

First, the jerk had the nerve to talk to Winry on the phone, without asking to speak with him. Second, it turned out Mustang was in Central, which Ed only found out the previous day. So, when he was talking to Winry, she must've let it slip that it was just going to be her and Ed going to Aerugo, since Al was in Xing. And now, third, he had the nerve to pay for the honeymoon suite.

Since it was late, and the trip south was tiring, Ed decided to nestle into the covers to get some sleep. Winry finished her shower and decided to join him, only she tried to steal the covers. Ed responded by ripping the blanket back to his side of the bed.

"Share! I'm freezing." Winry demanded while she had a death grip on the blanket. Ed lost the battle, and he was left to sleep with no covers.

"Aerugo Herald. December 15th, 1916. President Thompson has made no move to send aid to Amestris, despite our agreement to assist them in their time of need. New reports of horrendous casualties are given everyday, and the death toll has not fallen since the fighting started. Rumors are circulating that our esteemed president may bear anti-alchemy sentiments, though said rumors are most unlikely true. We must remain vigilant and strong. All we can do now is pray for our sister country in these dire times of battle." It was already past supper when Ed managed to read the paper. The so-called vacation was going well, but it was both boring and humiliating to be hiding in a hotel.

From the sound of it, the problem between Creta and Amestris grew into war. There was no way he and Winry were going to return home anytime soon. What was real unsettling was Ed had not received a phone call from Mustang yet. Ed figured the big reason the colonel paid for the suite was so they could be in contact with each other.

"Oh, Honey!" Winry called out to Ed sarcastically. She had made sure to tease him at every given moment when she found out they were staying in a honeymoon suite. "I'm going to bed." Her sing-songy voice was enough to make Ed shudder. He flipped off the lights and prepared for another battle over who would get the blankets. So far, he was losing the war.

He slumped on the bed and prepared to snatch the comforter, but to his surprise, Winry had scooted over to his side. Since they were close, the blanket covered both of them, so there was no need to rage war against each other. Ed frowned; she was definitely plotting something.

"Aerugo Herald. December 28th, 1916. Cretan and Drachman forces have gained absolute control over the West City region. Their army is advancing towards the south, but progress is slow. Thompson has still made no indication to send help, and has refused to speak with any reporters. A cease fire was issued early this morning so war prisoners could be exchanged. The enemy agreed, but returned none of the alchemists they captured. The imprisoned alchemist's statuses are unknown." Ed returned the paper to the cart and jogged to catch up with Winry, who was gawking at something in a display window. It had been twenty days since they left Amestris, but it felt much longer than that.

Ed and Winry both knew they would go crazy if they stayed in the hotel 24/7, so they agreed to walk through the town. Of course, Winry was drooling over a southern model of automail.

"Edward! How would you like a leg like this?" She nearly squealed when Ed took a glance at the metal leg. It didn't seem special, so he didn't understand why she was freaking out.

"Why? I don't see anything neat about it." She smacked him on the side of the head and glared harshly at him.

"The bolts are model T-16! And look at this!" Ed watched as Winry's lips moved, but all he heard was, "Blah! Blah blah blabbity metal something blah!"

"That's nice." He responded dryly.

"You're not even listening! No wonder you're always messing up your leg!"

"Ah." He turned his head away from the display case and watched cars drive by.

"Is everything okay?" She gently held Ed's arm, and he gave her a small smile of reassurance.

"I wish we could go home, and I really miss Al.

"I know. I promise, we'll see him soon and be back home before you know it." The street lights were starting to flicker on, and the cool winter breeze started to pick up. "It's getting late, let's go back to our room." Ed nodded his head and they walked back while holding hands.

Once they returned, Ed decided to put the unused bath salts to use. He took a hot bath, though he had to awkwardly stick his automail leg out of the tub so the salty water didn't corrode or damage the metal.

His previously calloused skin became smooth, and Ed felt completely rejuvenated. He dried off and was shocked to see a bottle of wine and a pot of steaming stew on the dining table when he left the bathroom.

"What's this for?" Winry embraced him from behind and gave him a light peck on the cheek.

"For you, dummy! It is a special day, after all." He shrugged his shoulders and joined Winry at the table. The beef stew was fantastic, and the dark wine seemed to complement the meal.

Ed didn't think this day was special by any means. He knew what today was, but news about Amestris was on the top of his priorities. After they finished their tasty meal, they rested on the bed.

"Happy birthday." Winry said quietly. Ed drew her into his warm arms and returned the kiss from earlier.

"Thanks."

"Aerugo Herald. January 18th, 1917. The enemy are extremely close to invading Central. South City has been taken over, and both the southern and western regions of Amestris have been annexed into Creta. The conflict is estimated to hit our border in approximately three days. Thompson plans on addressing the nation tomorrow, at 7:00 pm."

"Hun! Have a look at this." Ed stopped eating his blueberry pancakes and sat on the bed next to Winry to see what the matter was; today, she had beat him to reading the paper. "Do you think Aerugo is going to get involved finally?"

"It would be about damn time! These bastards had an agreement with Amestris they would assist us as soon as we were attacked."

"So we can go home soon? That's great!"

"Yeah, I think we can leave once the army is sent to help. I think we've outlived our stay here anyway."

"Why do you say that?"

"I heard some of the housekeepers talking. They think it's suspicious that we've been on a honeymoon for over a month. I also heard them complain about the big mess we made."

"That wasn't my fault, and you know it! How do you forget a boiling pot of noodles is hot?!"

"I was hungry! Those poor noodles went flying everywhere…I didn't get to eat any of them." Winry slapped Ed on the back of the head for his stupidity. "Thanks." He grumbled while rubbing his head. Ed really hoped they would return home soon; Winry seemed like she was getting overly cranky and clingy, which was most likely a result of homesickness. Ed was starting to feel it, too.

"Aerugo Herald. January 23rd, 1917. We were all wrong. None of us should have ever doubted our brilliant president, but we have seen a new light. How could any of us have forgotten about the dreaded war of 1835, where countless were killed and the survivors were forced to become Amestrians. It's despicable. The entire southern region of that dreaded country once belonged to us, but it was forcefully taken away. The culprit of all of these atrocities are the alchemists. They are evil people, and they are the direct cause for all of the wars in the past hundreds of years. We know now what we must do. Alchemists, no matter what country they came from, must be severely punished." Ed read the article again and gulped. A few seconds later, the phone rang for the first time since being stuck in the hotel.

"Hello?"

"Aerugo lied. Get out of there."

"Mustang? Is that you? What's going on?" Ed listened for a response, but the line went dead and beeped. "Winry." Ed gently shook her so she would wake up. All she did was mumble and clutch Ed's arm tightly. "We need to go."

"Idonfeelgud." She groaned quickly.

"What?"

"I don't feel good." She repeated, and Ed let out an audible moan. Of all the terrible times for her to be sick, she just had to choose today.

"Too bad." Ed tore apart the room to make sure they had all their things. He tried his best to pack everything into one bag and he didn't bother to grab the second now empty suitcase. Ed left the keys on the table, and he carried Winry on his back while holding the bag with one hand.

"Where are we goin'?" There was only one place they were safe now.

"Xing, to find my brother."

Sorry for such a short chapter, but as you can see, it wasn't action packed. The next one will be longer. Thanks for reading!