Disclaimer: All recognizable material belongs to Hiromu Arakawa.


Pairing: Edward and Winry

Prompt: Dancing

Rated: K+ (for mild language)


Ed tossed the small piece of paper in his hand onto the table with the rest of the mail, running a hand through his bangs. He let out a pointed sigh.

"What's the matter, Ed?" Winry asked dully, unamused.

He stood up to grab a glass out of the cabinet, moving to stand by her as he filled it with water at the sink. "They sent me an invitation to a ball that's coming up in a few weeks. I'm not even a State Alchemist anymore, why did they invite me?" he muttered before taking a gulp of his water, the last part being more to himself than her. He wasn't bitter about losing his title as State Alchemist, not in the slightest. In the end, it had been a small price to pay for rescuing his little brother from the Gate.

"Probably because everyone in Amestris owes you their lives for what you did on the Promised Day," she reminded him. "It's the least they could do throw you a ball."

He chuckled and set down his cup on the counter. "They're not throwing me a ball, Winry, they're just inviting me to one." He let out a breath as he carefully pressed forward to the point he'd been more concerned with since he'd read the damn thing. "You know, they're suggesting that all the guests bring a-"

"I'm home!" They heard Alphonse shout from the front door. He'd been gone a few hours, running errands. "Winry, I bought stuff for you to make apple pie," he announced happily. Ever since he'd gotten his body back, he couldn't seem to get enough of Winry's cooking. Her apple pie was one of his favorite foods, and despite the sugar factor, Ed and Winry were both too soft to tell him not to rot his teeth.

She smiled brightly at him and took the grocery bags from his arms, tossing a thanks over her shoulder as she moved them to the kitchen. "Sorry, Ed, what were you saying?" she asked distractedly as she began to wash the apples off.

Edward groaned. "Never mind, it wasn't important."


Alphonse went to bed early that night, like every night. As much as he wouldn't admit it - he wanted to focus on the gratitude he felt for having his human body back - he still tired easily, and slept longer than normal for most people. Edward didn't worry, though. He was building up his strength again.

As his brother traipsed up the stairs to the room he was staying in, Edward turned to Winry, who was cleaning the kitchen with a rather determined look on her face.

He laid a hand over hers. "Why don't you leave it till morning? There's something I need your help with."

Winry rolled her eyes. "What, you're not man enough to do it yourself?" she asked sarcastically as she yanked her hand from his, picking up where she'd left off with the dishes.

"It's not possible to do it by myself!" he retorted, his face flushing.

"What do you want, Ed?" she asked, exasperated.

He was quiet for a long minute. When she turned to face him, his face was bright red. She raised an eyebrow at him, prompting him to blurt, "Winrywillyouhelpmelearnhowto dance?"

Winry stared at him. "What?"

"Are you really going to make me say it again?" he groaned.

She shook her head. "What makes you think I know how? And why would you even ask that?" she demanded.

"Because I don't want to look like an idiot in front of Colonel Bastard at the military ball!" he shouted indignantly.

They stared each other down, Ed's face still hot and Winry's looking like she was torn between yelling at him and breaking down laughing. In the end, the latter won out.

"Stop laughing at me!" Ed half-yelled, only getting more flustered.

Winry shook her head at him. "No," she said defiantly, still laughing. She set down the plate in her hand and grabbed his elbow, towing him towards the living room. Letting go, she moved to turn on the radio, fiddling with the dial until a clear station came through. The tune wasn't exactly what they were going for, but it would work.

She wasn't laughing at him anymore, which was nice, but a large smile was still spread across her face. Edward couldn't help but blush a little as Winry took his wrist and moved it to her waist, resting her own on his shoulder and linking their free hands. "I'm not really an expert, but I think this is how it's done," she said, beginning to lead him in small circles around the room.

Ed frowned. "No, that's not right. Shouldn't I be leading? I'm the man, after all," he muttered.

"Why'd you ask for my help if you were just going to tell me I'm wrong?" she accused, beginning to pull her hand away from his.

He gripped her hand tighter, refusing to let her go. "Sorry," he sighed. "I'll be quiet."

Seemingly satisfied, Winry reentered her pace, and whether it was intentional or not he didn't know, but she seemed to be a little closer to him this time. Actually, a lot closer. He tried his hardest not to blush as her chest brushed his, avoiding her eyes.

"So… Winry?" he asked nervously.

"What?"

"Uh…" he bit his tongue. He was doing this all wrong, and he knew it. The problem was, he didn't have any idea what the right way was. He was going to make an idiot of himself. "Well, you remember I was trying to ask you something earlier? Right before Al came home?"

"Yeah, you said to forget it," she reminded him.

He ducked his head a little. "Yeah, I know I did. I just didn't want to ask around Al," he admitted. "I… I wanted to ask-"

Winry interrupted him, getting frustrated. She had an idea where he was going with this, and was feeling impatient. "Just spit it out, Ed!"

"Will you come as my date to the ball?"

To his relief, she didn't pull a wrench out of nowhere and give him a concussion. Instead she smiled. "You're not worried about Mustang teasing you about it?" she asked.

Edward rolled his eyes. "At least he can't call me short anymore. I've grown since the last time I saw him," he muttered, grinning at that. "So… was that a yes?" he asked tentatively.

Winry blushed before leaning up to kiss his cheek. "Yes, dummy, I'll go to your ball with you."