"5cm difference"
(The next part is almost directly from FMA manga chapter 81, except the fact that Emily is with Ed.)
Neither Emily nor Ed talked during the walk to the doctors, but the silence wasn't uncomfortable, they just didn't feel like talking.
'Well, weren't they fast', Ed growled as he saw a soldier standing in front of the door.
"Follow me, but don't say a word."
Ed walked casually towards the soldier and stopped in front of him, Emily following suit.
"Huh? What're you soldiers doing here?"
'You're good at acting.'
'Shut up.'
"We're a search party. Have you seen anyone suspicious come in or out of here lately?"
"Suspicious…?" Ed kept his voice laid-back, "What do they look like?"
"Let's see", the soldier took a piece of paper out of his pocket, "he wears a red coat… blond hair in a ponytail… Short." Uh-oh. I didn't even get a change to tell Ed to keep his cool before he totally snapped and punched the living daylights out of the guy.
'I hope you didn't break his jaw.'
'Who cares?!'
He was still fuming when a guy came to check out his partner and Ed knocked him out cold as well. He strode inside and raised his brows at Heinkel, who was holding his hands in the air. The lion chimera shrugged and gestured towards the wall, and Ed punched right trough it with his automail arm like it was made of cardboard. He grabbed a hold of the soldier's neck through the wall and held him still till he passed out. Emily was right on his heels all the time but she kept her distance, because she had soon realized that Ed was indeed a human weapon.
"Geez, you took 'em all down alone", Darius said as he came behind the curtain and took the soldier's gun out off the guy's reach, "chill out a little, you're not at 100 yet."
"DON'T TREAT ME LIKE I'M STILL LAID UP!" He growled and clenched his fist. "I'm all fired up and ready to go!"
'Oooh, bad-ass. Done with showing off?' Ed just growled again, spitted the stick out of his mouth and replaced it with bread.
"So, who's the girl?" Heinkel asked and pointed at Emily.
"Oh? She's Emily and she will come with us."
Ed tone told Heinkel and Darius that he wouldn't listen to complaining and the chimeras shrugged.
'Ed, wasn't Lior in the middle of desert?'
'Yeah.'
'And northern automail's weak spot was heat?'
"Shit", he cursed out loud.
"What?" Darius asked as he packed their food supplies to a shaggy bag.
"We need to travel during nights, or I'm going to get fried."
"Oh yeah, the automail…" Darius muttered and threw the bag on his shoulder.
"What are you still doing in here? Get going!" The doctors led them to the door with a help of a broom, "Hurry, hurry!"
"Thanks a million, doc", Darius said while Heinkel searched the soldiers for guns and money.
"Yeah, thanks", Ed said through the bread and waved.
"Save it, just get outta here!"
Ed took the paper out of the soldier's hand that he had punched unconscious earlier and read it. "So they're looking for a guy in a red coat with a ponytail, huh…" he muttered as he munched his bread, "guess I'll stick with these clothes for awhile."
Behind the corner appeared a new pair of soldiers, who clicked off the safety from their guns and shouted:"FREEZE!"
"Tsk… not again", Heinkel muttered, while Ed kept chewing his bread like there were nothing to worry about. Emily was hiding behind their backs, probably wondering if it really had been a good choice to follow Ed.
"Drop your weapons and hands above your heads! NOW!"
Heinkel and Darius exchanged glances while Ed ate the rest of his bread.
"YOU freeze!" Heinkel shouted as Darius grabbed a hold of Ed's neck and pointed a gun to his head. "Yeah, don't make me put a bullet in this kid's brain!" Ed just stared ahead like nothing was happening.
'You could act like a hostage', I said, but Ed didn't care.
"You scum, how can you involve such a small child in this?!" They shouted in disbelief.
'There we go with the small-word again', I sighed and Ed gritted his teeth furiously. If Darius hadn't had a hold of him, he would have definitely done the same to them as the other soldiers.
"Hahaha! We couldn't let such a great hostage get away!" Heinkel laughed evilly and Darius added:"Now YOU drop YOUR guns!" With that they took off running and Emily followed suit, leaving the stunned soldiers behind.
"STOP!" "AFTER THEM!" "AROUND BACK!" The soldiers shouted orders to each other and were going to pursue the "kidnappers", but the doctors jumped on a soldier and kept him still.
"Oh mister soldier, thank goodness! We were so scared!"
"There was nothing we could do, they were so horrible to us!"
"Let go, damn it!"
"Don't leave us!"
"We were really, really scared!"
"Those two sure catch on quick…" Darius said while running and opened a door with his back. Two more soldiers were waiting outside, but they had to take cover from Heinkel's fire.
"Get us some wheels", Heinkel said while keeping the soldiers away with gunfire.
"On it." A while after Ed/I and Emily were sitting on the backseats of newly hijacked car and Ed pulled his hair to a ponytail to keep it out of the way.
"Shit, they're on our tail! You drive like an old woman, Donkey Kong!" Ed shouted and watched as the soldiers drew nearer.
"Don't call me that!" Darius shouted, "They're used to driving in snow, of course they're driving better!"
Then Ed had an idea, and told Darius to turn right.
"Do a u-turn the second we're past the corner!" he ordered and clapped his hands together.
"Man, I have NO idea what you're thinking, but okay!" Darius said as he turned the wheel and the car turned strongly, scraping a street lamp. Ed and Emily both swung to the right and Ed hit his hands to the car. The whole vehicle flashed blue and in an instant it had turned to a weird-looking berserker-car, if you could call it that. Emily was on top of us, and groaned in pain. "Ow, I think I bumped my head", she whined and realized that she was literally in Ed's lap. "Sorry!" she squealed and went to the furthest corner of the car.
The soldiers came behind the corner and drove past us.
"… That was close", Ed said as he watched how the cars disappeared behind another corner.
"All right, transmute this car into something more practical", Heinkel said in a distressed voice.
"Why, this look is totally badass!"
'It's horrible, Ed.'
"Just do it. PLEASE."
"What the hell? You two have a problem with my design?"
"Yeah… Too many to list."
In 10 minutes Ed had fallen asleep, and I got automatically control. I was surprised how tired the body was, and I had to fight against the urge to sleep.
"I thought you just fell asleep", Emily questioned and her brows knitted together.
'So she noticed.'
"Oh, yeah. I was close to it, but Darius decided to drive to a bump", I said and eyed Darius angrily.
'I wonder which one of us will wake up and be in control, if I'm the last one to fall asleep?' I hoped it would be me.
"Wake me up in the morning", and with that I let the fatigue overcome me.
We had reached the desert in the morning, and Heinkel switched positions with exhausted Darius.
"We'll drive till this car becomes a boiler. Then you can make us a shelter, Fullmetal", Heinkel said and started the car. After a kilometer we were stuck to the sand, and Ed had to transmute the sand to rock so we could move again.
"DAMN IT!" Ed cursed after we had got stuck ten times during the same hour.
"Let's just stop here and continue in the evening", Heinkel said and stepped outside the car. All four had stripped off from their winter jackets a long time ago, and Heinkel and Darius had rolled up their sleeves. Ed was wearing only his tank top, but Emily insisted keeping her blouse on to cover her bruised arms.
"You'll die to a heatstroke", Ed grunted and made a shelter where they could stay the hottest hours of the day.
We reached Lior in four days. The city rose aruptly from the sea of sand, the heat making it look like it waved and twisted constantly. I was the first one to wake up, but when I felt the burning heat of the automail I was more than pleased when Ed woke up and took the control.
'Damn. We need to find Winry and fast', he grunted and walked in every possible shadow. He had his right arm covered with a jacket so it wouldn't take all the heat from the sun, but the burning was horrible even then. They had parked the car further away, the city was too narrow and crowded to drive.
'Oh… Ed, why don't you use the stone to chance the automail to titanium and steel or something?' I asked, and Ed cursed.
'You say that now. Whoa, that wouldn't be cool wouldn't? Titanium is so expensive that Winry could never do one for me, but now…' I concentrated not to be on Ed's way when he clapped his hands and touched his automail leg and arm.
"What did you do?" Darius asked and stared at Ed when he moved his automail hand and leg.
"I should have done this earlier. I changed my arm and leg to titanium and steel", he said and walked forward, looking at the buildings under construction.
"It's good to see that they're finally doing things on their own."
"Hey! You there! Are you- HEY PEOPLE! THE FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST IS HERE! EDWARD ELRIC IS HERE!" The approaching man shouted to others and the word spread like a plague.
"Ah. Shit", Ed groaned but smiled when two more men jogged towards us.
"It's great to see you again! Your brother and father are here too! Come, you and your companions must be thirsty!" They patted Ed on the back and lead us to the centre. Ed smiled warmly to the people and laughed with them, but when he felt a weird tugging in his gut and turned his head towards it, his smile died and his glare became icy cold.
"Hohenheim", he growled and his muscles tensed.
"Edward", the old man said and his brows knitted together as he stood up.
"It seems that you've turned yourself to a monster as well", he said and Ed took a threatening step forward.
"Like father, like son…" he sighed, and Ed sprinted forward, his right hand pulled back ready to strike.
"You are not my father!" He yelled and threw a punch towards Hohenheim's face, but the man stepped aside and Ed jumped to midair, took support from the ground with his right hand and swung his right leg towards Hohenheim, his left leg coming right after. The kick reached old man's ribs and threw him across the avenue.
"We might be linked with blood, but I will NEVER accept you as my father!" Ed growled and approached again with monstrous speed. The closer he got, the powerful the tugging become.
'The two Philosopher's stones are reacting to each other's presence', I realized and Ed grinned.
'It's almost appealing… I never thought the power could feel so good.'
Ed jumped in midair again and came with his left leg first towards Hohenheim, ready to crush him, but was blocked by a wall created with alchemy.
"You left mother and us, and she died because of the hardship you made her go through! And you never even begged for forgiveness in front of her grave!"
"Ed decomposed the wall without even clapping his hands and caught Hohenheim by his throat with his automail arm.
"Gotcha." Out of blue Ed focused on Hohenheim's stone and a red light surrounded them for a second. It glowed for a moment around Ed and disappeared.
'I would have never expected that from you', I said in disbelief as Ed released his grip and took a step backwards.
'Have to say, I didn't plan it out, I just… did it.' The tugging from before was gone almost completely, and Hohenheim seemed pale.
'You totally drained him dry, didn't you?'
'Nah, I left more than enough souls in him. He's not used to it, I guess', he shrugged and shot a nasty glare at Hohenheim before turning his back to him.
"Brother! They told the truth when they said that you were here! I… oh", Alphonse jogged happily towards Ed but stopped in his tracks when he saw Hohenheim on the ground, "brother, did you really have to do that? Father, are you okay?" Alphonse scolded and jogged past Ed to help Hohenheim get up. "Father, are you okay? You seem pale", Al asked in a worried tone as the old man wobbled and Hohenheim smiled weakly.
"I'm okay, Alphonse. I'm just a bit weak after losing so many souls at once", he said in a hushed tone so the people surrounding them wouldn't hear.
"What? What did brother do? He didn't try to kill you, did he?"
"No no. He drew them to himself."
"WHAT? Do you mean that brother…" When Hohenheim nodded, Alphonse let go of his father and strode towards Edward, who was standing in the middle off the square next to the long dried fountain.
"Al, let me explain-", he started, but Alphonse didn't stop until he had thrown a punch towards his brother.
"Al, -Whoah!" Ed jumped and did a somersault in midair, landing behind Al.
"Listen to me, Al! I HAVE AN EXPLANATION!" he roared when Al turned around.
"Ed!" Two voices, both belonging to a woman, yelled in unison and Ed heard how someone approached him from behind.
"Ed, I was so worried…" Ed knew whose that voice was.
"Don't bother me now, woman." Normally Winry would have hit Ed for not paying attention to her and she probably would have done it now too, if Ed didn't turn around when he heard the still approaching footsteps. The sight frightened her and she stopped right on her tracks, not daring to move. Ed was maybe over 5 centimeters (1.96 inches) taller than her, and he was looking her like he was going to strike her down to ground if she moved.
Ed hated how she reacted when he glared at her and he turned his head again towards Al so he wouldn't need to see her eyes.
"I was fighting Kimbley and I had just kicked one Philosopher's stone from his hand, when he drew out another and brought the whole building down with one huge explosion. I got pierced with a bar and I had to close the wound with alchemy. Darius found the stone I had kicked out of Kimbley's hand and he and Heinkel carried me to a doctor. Without the stone I would still be in bed and my organs would have suffered a great amount. I've been too soft, and to change that I had to do it. If I would have finished Kimbley when I had the change, none of this would have happened." Everyone was silent, and Al stared at Ed in disbelief.
"That… that still doesn't explain what you did to father!" he said and clenched his fists.
"I did it on impulse, Al. I have no other explanation for that. But he deserved it", Ed said, but he didn't look away before Al had let his shoulders drop. When Al wasn't in the mood for fighting anymore, Ed turned around and looked at Winry with guilt shining in his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you like that … I've been worrying too", Ed said softly and placed his hand on her shoulder. Winry raised her hand like she was going to hug him, but then she pulled away and tried to slap him.
'CATCH HER HAND!' I screamed and Ed caught it without even realizing it. He held her hand up, but the grip was light.
'Don't look angry, just question it.'
Winry bowed her head when Ed raised his eyebrow at her and slid her hand out of his hold.
'She's going to cry!'
'No, wait.'
And then, Winry wrapped her arms around his torso and buried her head in his chest.
'I knew it! C'mon, hug her back and hurry up or she thinks you're rejecting her!' Ed slid his hands to her back protectively and rested her chin on her head. I didn't say a word and let them enjoy the moment, but I couldn't help the sad and jealous feeling that was gnawing my stomach. By every minute, by every second, I felt even worse and in the end I couldn't stand it.
'Pull away. You can't stay like that for all eternity. If you go further or keep hugging her for too long, you're just using her grief on your own behalf. If she whines, soothe her with words, but don't hug her or she will just get mad to herself after this for showing her weak side to you.' Ed sighed and pulled away, even though Winry whimpered and gripped his shirt. "Shh." Ed hushed and looked over Winry's shoulder to see Rose standing a few meters away. He smiled and waved at her.
'How did you know she would hug me?'
'I'm a girl myself.' I stated the obvious and Ed rolled his eyes.
'I envy Rose for her good looks.'
'Well, she's quite beautiful, isn't she?' Ed admitted and started walking towards her.
'Indeed she is. No wonder she has had a boyfriend already. I wonder if there are other young suitable men for her in Lior.'
'I bet there is.'
'Really? After going through so much I think not any guy could do. There are many jerks in this world. Someone like you would be the best for her.'
'I beg your pardon? You aren't implying anything, are you?'
'No, of course not. I just used you as an example. I'm still wondering why every single girl in Amestris isn't swooning over you. I would', I said playfully.
'Haha. Shut up', he growled and opened his mouth to say something to Rose, but a shout from behind stopped him.
"YOU! You're Kimbley's goons!" Someone pulled out their guns and clicked off the safety.
"SAME TO YOU!"
"STOP IT, Heinkel and Darius are with me!" Ed shouted and the tension loosened a little.
"Who's the girl?" Zanpano asked and pointed at Emily, who had insisted on staying with them till they reached Lior.
"She's Emily. I wanted to talk about her with you, Rose. She was treated really badly in where I picked her up and I kind of hoped if she could stay here. I bet she can help with the laundry and stuff", Ed explained and scratched his head.
"Oh, of course! A helping hand is always welcome. Come here Emily, you're probably starving, right? I bet you all are. Come on!" Rose said and gestured everyone to follow her with a happy smile dancing on her lips.
After Rose had served everyone with a bowl of soup, she sat next to Ed and looked as he ate.
"So, have you got any closer to the thing you are looking for?" She asked and Ed raised his head to look at her.
"Yeah. I couldn't be closer to it", he said with a wide grin and Rose stared at him.
"So you found it? Then why..?"
"For various reasons."
"Oh…"
"It seems that you're recovering well from everything. It's good to see how everyone is trusting in teamwork and themselves", Ed said, chancing the subject.
"Yeah. It's all thanks to you. You opened our eyes", Rose said, pride evident in her voice. Slowly she slid her hand along the table towards Ed's hand and placed it on top of his.
"Thank you for everything, Ed", she said softly and smiled a warm smile that reminded Ed of his mother's gentle smile.
"Sure. It's good to hear that I didn't just cause more commotion. Believe me; I'm pretty good at it." Rose laughed and Ed joined her.
'Isn't it mysterious how you get every girls attention after you've grown 5 centimeters?' I teased and he growled at me.
"I can't believe it's been only a year: you seem so much older and mature", Rose said and Ed blushed.
"You think so? Well, I'm not allowed to stay as a kid forever, otherwise I'll be dead. To return the compliment, you're beautiful as ever." If you wonder why Ed was saying things like that, I can reveal the fact that I was pulling some strings. But it didn't mean that they weren't enjoying themselves.
'A little flirt here and there feels refreshing. You can't argue on that.' Ed grunted, because he was too stubborn to show his agreement.
"Oh yeah, you're still a state alchemist, aren't you? Every now and then we get to hear about you, and it always sounds so dangerous. You're pretty famous already", Rose kept her voice cheery and interested, and I could see that she was enjoying and that she understood what they were doing.
"Yeah, I can't deny that."
"Thanks to his rank as a major and the fact that his superior officer is in Central, he's probably the riches teenager in Amestris", Darius said with a mischievous grin and elbowed Ed playfully on the ribs.
"Darius", Ed growled and Rose giggled.
"Is that so?" She asked and Ed shrugged with a smile as he took a spoonful of soup.
'It's cooled down', he thought and touched the bowl with his hand. An electric blue light flashed and the soup was steaming again.
"Whoa, you can even warm a soup even though it so complex?" Rose asked as Edward took a bite of his bread.
"I could do that, but it's easier to just warm the water because the warmth will spread. It's like when someone warms your heart; you feel it all way to your toes and fingertips." Another thing I made Ed to say and Rose giggled in delight.
"I never thought you had a romantic side in you."
"Just what could have given you that idea?" Ed asked as he leant slightly forward and switched his hand's position so it was on top of Rose's.
"Ed."
"Hmm?" Ed turned his head towards the voice and saw Winry standing in front of them.
"What is it, Winry?"
"I need to check your automail", she stated and Ed sighed.
"Can I go to the shower first?" Winry thought about it for a second and nodded, probably preferring a shower fresh Ed to a sweaty pig. Even though it was already evening, the temperature was still far over comfortably warm and I could only wonder how these people could live in here.
"But remember to dry the automail after it, I hate working on wet wires."
"Oh. Could I come to see? Automail is truly fascinating, and I'd like to see how it works. But only if it's really okay?" Rose asked innocently and I giggled.
'Aren't she eager.'
Normally Winry would be delighted to tell about her automail, but this time her gaze said it all: 'hell yeah, you just want to see Ed in his boxers.'
"Uh, um… well, I think it's okay with me. Winry?" Ed felt a bit uneasy, because the last time people had wanted to see his automail he had stood in his boxers in the middle of a bustling street.
"If you have to."
"Okay, I'm off to shower now. Thanks for the food Rose, it was delicious!" With that Ed jogged off to the direction Rose had told him to go.
'It wasn't that good.'
'Better than in Briggs.'
Ed reached the bathroom after a little searching and he locked the door and took a clean towel from the shelf. When he started undressing, I was absolutely silent and I kept wondered when he would realize or if he would realize at all. He was already pulling his boxers down, when he stopped.
'What's wrong?'
'You're a girl.'
'Thanks for stating the obvious. So?'
'YOU KNOW WHAT.'
'It's not like you can do anything about it. Don't be stubborn.' Ed growled while blushing scarlet.
'C'mon, Winry and Rose are waiting. I would say that I will not look if I had eyes of my own. Unfortunately I watch everything through your eyes.' He still did nothing.
'Ed…'
'What?'
'Stop acting like a child. I can't believe Rose said that you were mature.'
'I have a right for privacy.'
'I'm sorry, but in a situation like this we can do nothing about it. Do you know what is a good thing?'
'Well?'
'I don't feel anything as you're in control. Just accept it and get going, Winry and Rose a still waiting.'
Ed cursed from the bottom of his heart when he slid out of his boxers and walked to the shower. We were good for a couple of minutes, but then fuzzy images started popping in front of my 'eyes'.
'Getting exited, are we?'
'Shut. Up.'
'I don't get why you're feeling embarrassed.' Ed's feelings were so strong that I was able to feel the butterflies flying inside his stomach.
'I told you to Shut. The. Fuck. Up.' Sorry Ed, but I just couldn't.
'I think I get it now. But really, I'm sure that over 70 of my world's teenager boys do it too.'
'I've got no idea of what you're talking about.' He was growing very angry, I could feel it.
'If you say so…' We both knew that I had won. Ed closed his eyes, and I knew what he was doing. He was pretty good at hiding the images though. To me they were so blurry and flashed so quickly away that it was almost impossible to see what the picture was about.
After he was done and was drying his hair, I dared to speak again.
"I'm sorry Ed. Neither of us hoped for this.'
'I know. I know…' He dried the rest of his hair and automail with alchemy, before dressing up again.
'Now I need to find Winry and Rose, huh?' Finding them was not hard. Ed had to ask only one person before he found to the place Winry had accepted as her temporary work room. Winry and Rose were both sitting on an old sofa when he entered, chit-chatting about something.
"Yo", Ed greeted and looked around. There were scrap metal lying all around and in the middle of a room was a bed with a table next to it.
"Hi, Ed", they said in unison and stared at each other before laughing, though Winry's laugh sounded a bit forced and unnatural. Winry motioned him to get ready while she pulled work gloves to cover her hands.
"I probably need to ask you to transmute some parts for me, because I don't have my own tool kit with me." Ed nodded and pulled his shirt off, revealing his slightly tanned, muscular upper body. Next to go were his boots and pants while Rose literally ate him with her gaze. Ed laid down to the bed feeling a bit nervous and I understood why he had done what he had done and I sympathized with him.
"Ed, what have you done to my automail?" Winry asked as she inspected it.
"Oh. I chanced the elements to titanium and steel so I wouldn't get fried."
"Really? Well that makes things easier. You aren't going to North for a long time, are you?" Winry was surprised, it was written all over her face.
"No. I'll head towards West probably."
"Okay. There are some wires I need to replace, but that's all." Winry said with a smile and Rose stared at the arm in disbelief.
"It looks so complex."
"Don't worry, even I don't fully get how it works", Ed said while grinning and Rose raised her eyebrows at him.
"Really?" her hands travelled to his right shoulder, following the outline of the automail where metal met skin.
"Basically the automail is connected directly to the nerves, and when I continue the lost nerves with wires, which transfer the information to the machine muscles, it gives the user a limb that functions like a normal arm or leg, except the fact that it cannot feel. Ed, I'm connecting the nerves now."
"Is it going to hurt?" Rose asked worriedly.
"It is extremely painful, but far from the actual operation where these are placed", Winry tapped at the port in Ed's shoulder, "but Ed is one of my few clients that doesn't cry out during the connection, so you're lucky to not hearing it." Rose had a concerned expression on her face and her hand travelled to Ed's chest when Winry put everything into place.
'Brace yourself, you might feel it too', Ed warned and I shivered.
"One, two, three!" Ed gritted his teeth and shut his eyes, pushing his head hard against the pillow when the electricity struck his body and burned the nerves. I felt it, but it was far from what Ed was going through, because he made sure that he was in control. When I didn't feel the pain anymore, Ed started panting with loud huffs and groaned in pain. Rose's hand never left Ed's chest, and she looked like she was hurting too from just seeing it.
'She shouldn't have come.'
"Does it hurt when you remove the automail?", Rose asked when Winry moved to Ed's leg.
"No, it just numbs the body for a second." Winry said as she pulled the leg off.
"Oh. So, is this port similar to the one on Ed's shoulder?" Rose asked as she tapped the port with her hand.
"Yes, but it doesn't have so many nerves connected to it, because leg has less muscles and Ed still has his thigh." Winry told without even raising her gaze from the automail.
"Oh, really?" Rose asked innocently and slid her fingers to Ed's tight, gripping it lightly.
'Damn her', I cursed and Ed turned his head away so he wouldn't need to concentrate on her hand. He really wanted to avoid embarrassing moments, but Rose didn't leave him alone. Slowly she slid her fingers along his inner thigh, stroking the skin. She didn't move them by much, but the fact that Ed didn't watch, only felt, made her hand seem to be way too close.
Winry noticed how Ed tensed and looked up to see Rose's hand on her thigh. The first thing Pinako had told about male clients was the fact that if you gripped from the wrong place for too long, things would start going downhill. Or actually up. Ed was just too stubborn to reveal that and for that reason he didn't say anything.
"Rose, could you let go of Ed's thigh?" Winry said in a serious tone and Rose took off her hand like she hadn't even realized what she was doing. Even though Ed tried to silence it, Winry could hear the quiet sigh that escaped his lips when he was able to relax again.
"I'm impressed Ed, there is only a loose screw and an abrasion in the ankle. I have to change a wire, but it would have lasted a while longer just fine."
"Why are so many wires damaged?" Rose wondered and Winry looked up from her work.
"You know that every material widen when heated up and become smaller when cooled off? Ed came from Briggs, and when he jumped into -30°C blizzard from a warm basement, the wires couldn't take it and loosened."
"From Briggs? Is the any place you haven't been to, Ed?" Ed shrugged.
"There is always some other town or village I have yet see, but maybe I have travelled a lot more than other teenagers."
"Okay Ed, I'm done. Connecting the nerves… One, two, three!" The pain struck again, but this time it didn't hurt so badly and it was over sooner. But that didn't make it any comfortable.
"Fuck I hate when the nerves connect", Ed whined and didn't even try to move, because his nerves were still aching too much for that.
"Watch your language, Ed", Winry said, a wrench in hand, and Ed gulped loudly. He tried to sink through the bed to escape the wrath of wrench, but the task turned out to be impossible.
"I think he got the hint, Winry", Rose said vigorously and stepped between them. Winry frowned, but put the wrench to the tool kit and walked out.
"Rose." Ed called when Winry had shut the door behind him with more power than necessary.
"What is it?" Rose asked as she turned around to stare Ed's golden eyes and waited for him to continue. But Ed didn't; he only stared at her, one brow raised. His expression said it all: 'You know damn well what.'
"Oh I'm sorry Ed, I didn't mean to offend you, I just…" Rose bowed her head in guilt, and Ed sighed and stood up to face her.
"You didn't offend me, but in front of Winry..!" Ed growled and his brows knitted together, "I'm leaving." He grunted, pulled his clothes on and strode out of the room.
Next morning
Ed and I are total opposites when it comes to sleeping. This I realized very, very soon. I usually went to bed late and woke up early in the morning, when Ed could sleep around the clock without any problems. And because of this I was the one who was in control in the morning when Ed's soul was still in slumber.
I simply laid on the bed and took in my surrounding. It was still early because house was silent, but I could already hear the men working on the buildings. It was wonderful to feel again; the soft pillow under my head and the sun warming my face…
'I wonder how much time I have.' I rose up and stretched while yawning loudly. The nights were freezing in the middle of desert, but the morning sun was already warming the house and I pulled off Ed's tank top so I wouldn't start sweating. And if I could find a mirror somewhere, I would stare at him.
'He's going to kill me when he wakes up', I chuckled and tossed the top to the bed. You don't even know how much I wanted to take off the boxers as well.
"Ed, are you awake?" I heard Winry ask form the other side of the door and grimaced when she knocked. She had definitely heard me yawn and chuckle.
"No", I grunted and scratched my head. Fuck if she comes in and Ed wakes up, then I'm so screwed.
"I'm surprised, normally you're up after 12. Can I come in?"
"No", I tried to keep my voice as blasé as possible, because Ed would have probably done that too. Or so I supposed.
"Edward Elric! That is not a proper way to address a lady!" I flinched at her words and before I even realized, she had stormed in and slammed the door shut behind her. Good thing that she did, because if you remember, I was wearing only boxers.
'Ed will kill me.'
"Ah." Winry stared at me, and I placed Ed's hands on his hips and raised an eyebrow. She was already dressed up; an orange top with a low neckline, black minishorts and brown slippers. Everything probably belonged to Rose, because Winry didn't bring any summer clothing with her to Briggs.
I had read a long time ago from somewhere that men had more powerful urges than women, but I never expected them to be THIS strong. I can assure you that I am not a lesbian or bi, but the one acting was Ed's body and the damn testosterone!
I gripped Ed's hips harder and tried to keep up the act.
"Well, good morning to you", I rolled my eyes in irritation and turned Ed's back to her so I could ignore her completely. I actually thought of waking Ed up for a second! He'd know what to do. I didn't hear anyone turn the doorknob, which meant that Winry was still inside.
"Is there something you want to say?" I asked as I started searching for a hairbrush from the shelves.
"Well, uh… About you and Rose…" I turned around and narrowed my eyes. This was something I needed to handle, Ed would only ruin everything.
"Only harmless flirting, Winry. Or that was what I tried to keep it, but it seems that I screwed up in something as the check-up proved", I said with a blank face and arched Ed back forward, keeping the eyes narrowed to scare her so she wouldn't start arguing. I didn't stand it when she lashed out on people; she really needed to know her place as an automail engineer and nothing more.
'Always thinking that she is so powerful and can meddle into things… She lacks both brains and strength. She'll become one hell of a housewife. Geez, what does Ed see in her anyway?'
"Why do you ask?" Winry bowed her head and fingered her top nervously.
"Jealous, right?" I grinned slyly and straightened Ed's back while taking a few steps forward. I knew that the testosterone was kicking in and affected my behavior but I did nothing to stop myself, because the power felt so good.
"Huh? No..!" Winry raised her head and stared at me like she had never seen Ed before. When I approached, she walked backwards till her back hit the wall.
"You're… You're not Edward."
-HORISONTAL RULER DOESN'T WORK-
Oo, she's being mean, she's being mean...
I just want to thank everyone who has posted a review or favorited/alerted my story! THANK YOU!