"Elicia! You scared me!" (A/N: BAM! Bet you all thought it was Ed….)

The small girl smiled and held out an apple pie.

"Mom made it for your birthday."

Winry looked up at Gracia gratefully.

"I know you've been going through a rough time these past few months, so we decided to throw you a party."

Winry opened her mouth to argue, but before she could speak, Gracia continued.

"No arguments. You're a part of our little family, so you get a party. Elicia agrees."

The little girl nodded vigorously.

"You're like my big sister."

Winry smiled.

"That's so sweet of you guys."

"You seem sad, Winry."

"No, i-it's nothing."

Elicia thought for a moment.

"You miss big brother Ed, don't you?"

"Very much,"


"Alright Al. Everything is perfect."

"But Brother, what about Equivalent Exchange? We can't just… and what about the Homunculus?"

"Well Al, obviously someone's looking out for us. This world's sloth is well…a sloth."

The brothers simultaneously touched the circle, light filling the small room.

"It's working, Al!"

The brothers grabbed hands and jumped into the gap they had opened.


"Well, it seems Winry moved to Central."

Edward groaned.

"We came clear out here to find out she's in Central?"

"We need to hurry Brother! We need to make it to her house before the end of the day!"

"Yeah, we'll make sure this birthday is unforgettable." Edward chuckled.

The men clapped Ed on the back, the women hugged him. Al, being the soft sweet guy he is, hugged everybody. With Winry still in the kitchen, the rest of the party sat back at the table, anxious to see the birthday girl's reaction. Alphonse sat in Winry's seat, Ed stood next to him, both wearing ear-to-ear grins.

"Hey guys, we're out of milk." Winry said, entering the dining room. "So all we have is wa…ter…" Winry dropped the pitcher she was holding and slowly approached the Elrics. When she reached them, then brought a hand to both of their faces, as if to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

"We're home."

Winry swung at both brothers with her trusty wrench.

"It's about damn time! I was worried sick about you guys! Al, you left without even telling me!"

"I-I'm sorry…" Alphonse murmured, feeling the new lump on his head.

"And you, Ed…. Why the hell didn't you take me with you?"

"I-I'm sorry, I just didn't want to drag you into the mess."

"Yeah. Please don't hit us again…" Al moaned.

Winry dropped her wrench and knelt next to the brothers.

"I'm just glad you guys are finally home."


Alrighty! One more chapter oughta do it for tis lil tale! Probably update Friday... then after that, nothing until mid-december!