The Silver Rose

By Demonica…. Eat Cheese!

Chapter 4… P.S. I'm super hyper over here and need to burn off ideas Muahahahahha!

"Mr. Elric! Ms. Rockbell!" A man in a uniform came over to them, panting as he wiped his fat brow on his sleeve. Ed stopped his round of combat with Al and put his shirt back on (Author walks through with mop, stop drooling!) as Winry stood and offered the man a water bottle. He drank for a few minutes before straightening and then bowing. "The colonel wishes to see all of you in his office at this moment" he then turned and walked away. Winry stared as Ed stretched and wiped the sweat from his own forehead.

"Curse you summer heat" Ed mumbled as the trio set off across the lawns. Winry was perfectly happy in the sunlight, especially in her long yellow sundress. Ed kept stealing glances at her as she walked in front of him beside Al, leading the way to the main offices. Watching her long tan legs as she walked, and the way her hair swished as she walked, then the glint of auto-mail caught his eye. Well that ruined it, Winry turned to look back at Ed who seemed to be studying something in front of him in the dirt rather carefully.

The office building was jinormous as they walked through different sectors before coming to a stop in front of a set of lacquered doors.

"Might as well get it over with" Ed muttered as he shoved one of the doors open and walked in. Winry followed cautiously as she saw the colonel sitting with his feet propped against his desk, Hawkeye giving him a disapproving look. Winry took a seat on one of the large green sofas as Hawkeye handed her a stack of papers. She glanced at them, there were train tickets, a map and a date outlined in highlighter.

"This is your next mission Ed, and Winry is going with you, god knows you could use your mechanic" Mustang wiggled his eyebrows as Ed's eyebrow twitched slightly.

"Thanks Mustang, we'll be going now" Winry said icily, finishing the conversation and dragging Ed out of the room by the scruff of his neck.

"This isn't finished Mustang!" Ed yelled after they had rounded the corner and were starting down the stairs.

"You can be a real embarrassment sometimes Ed" Al said keeping pace with Winry as Ed sulked. The trio stopped at the bottom of the stairs and leafed through the mound of papers Hawkeye had given them. "It seems that we have a rogue alchemist here, that's causing trouble in a city in the north." Ed said as he handed the paper to Al who scanned it quickly before handing it to Winry.

"So when do we leave?" Winry asked putting the paper back and tucking the report under her arm.

"Well the next train north leaves in an hour!" Ed shouted as they flew back to the room. Winry tossed her clothes into a duffle as she grabbed her repair kit from under the bed and slinging it over her shoulder. She met the guys in the hall as they al ran for the station. Which happened to be halfway across town; they made it just as the train pulled into the station issuing a whistle. Winry hauled herself onto the train as Al gave her a hand.

The inside of the train was packed, as they searched for an empty seat, people staring at them or whispering behind their hands. Winry found a booth near the back of the train as they settled into it. There wasn't much to talk about as the train sped along its tracks. It would be a solid four days of travel until they reached Neige town. That happened to be along the northern border which was always cold and snowy.

Sighing Winry closed her eyes and rested her cheek on the side of the window, she hated train trips. They were always so long and boring, especially since Ed and Al never talked and stared off into space for hours at a time.

(An hour later)

"Do you guys want to play cards?" Winry asked as both boys jumped.

"Um, sure Winry. Just let me find them." Al said searching around inside Ed's suitcase. They found a deck and folded down the collapsible table. "So what do you know how to play?" Al asked as Winry laughed.

"I taught you guys all of the cards games you guy know remember! We would spend hours at the kitchen table playing crazy eights and Texas poker" Winry and Al laughed as Ed seemed to finally come back down to earth.

"Brother, would you like to play?" AL asked as Ed shrugged and picked up eight cards.

"Crazy eights?" Winry asked as she picked up eight cards as well, Al copying. Ed nodded as he turned over the first card.

(Four hours later)

"Aw man that was my last dumpling!" Ed whined as Winry somehow managed to get a full house and he only had four of a kind. Winry laughed as she snatched his dumpling and ate it right off of its stick.

"Don't be such a sore loser Ed" Winry said as Al dealt the cards again. Ed pouted like a five year old as Winry picked up her set, glancing over at him she was reminded of their childhood and how Ed always sulked when he lost a game or fight. She handed over one of the dumplings she had been collecting off of him.

Ed looked up at her confused as she took a bite out of one.

"I can't possible eat all of these, here have some" She said pointing to the plate mounded with food. Ed dove in as Al gave Winry an appreciative nod. She just smiled and looked out the window. So much had changed in so little time, and here she was with her friends again travelling to some foreign destination.

"Hey Winry? Are you going to call?" Ed asked breaking her out of her daydream. She looked at the bids, Ed had four dumplings and Al had put in a few pieces of hard candy.

"Sure" she said and put her wrench down on the table. Ed and Al sucked in a breath.

"I fold" Al said as he flipped his cards. Two jacks an ace and two queens, a good hand. Winry raised her eyebrow at Ed who sighed and threw his cards in as well. He had two aces and a pair of twos and a three. Winry laughed as she flipped her cards over. All she had was a pair of twos a three, a four, and a queen.

Ed and Al's mouths dropped open as she swiped up the candy and the dumplings and her wrench.

"Winry!" they both yell as Ed tackles her to the seat and proceeded to tickle her. Laughing and gasping she begged Ed for mercy, but he refused planted firmly on her hips as he tickled her senselessly. After a few minutes Ed stopped and gave her chance to breath, her chest heaving as she panted. Al coughed as Ed and Winry realised their current position. Each untwining themselves from one another and sitting at opposite ends of the seat, fierce blushes covering both of their faces.

It was going to be a long, long trip.

(Six hours later)

Winry was sound asleep across Ed's lap. Her hair splayed out over the seat as she had her hands fisted in Ed's red coat that was draped over her small frame. Ed had his head reclined back against the window as Al had a book across his lap, reading.

"Brother? Why did you let Winry come with us?" Al asked, startling Ed out of his doze. He looked down at the sleeping girl; she seemed so fragile, so terribly innocent in the ways of the world. Ed sighed and glanced out the adjacent windows.

"Because if I didn't I would've hated myself more than I already do" Ed said in all honesty as he ran his human hand through Winry's golden hair. Al looked at his brother carefully; Ed had been through so much, he himself as well but there seemed to is something quiet seriously changed by their adventures in Ed than in Al himself.

"Hmm… Ed stops being an idiot and give Al his truck back." Winry muttered as she managed to turn her head so that it rested more on Ed's stomach than lap. Both brothers had a good laugh as the train whistled north.

&$#$#().

"That train trip took forever! And I'm freezing!" Winry whined as she rubbed her arms for warmth. "By the way, where are we exactly?" Winry asked as Ed handed her his spare red coat, even if the sleeves were a little too short and it came to her thighs instead of knees.

"Were in Itamikuk. Its so far north that even in summer it snows" Al said as he fished a book out of his armour. Ed snorted and kicked a snow bank, the fluffy stuff spraying up in all directions.

"Lets go find this rogue Alchemist and get this over with" Ed sighed as the brothers began to leave. Then Al stopped,

"Where's Winry?" Both brothers looked around too see her poking the snow bank gingerly and looking amazed at the fluffy white crystals of ice stuck to Ed's coat.

"This stuff is amazing!" she said as she rolled the snow around under her hands. A deep laugh came from behind the group as Ed turned to see a very heavyset man in a deep maroon coloured fur jacket and sunglasses.

"I take it you're all from the south?" he said with a heavy accent. As they all nodded. "Then come with Rago and I'll show yeh to the Inn." He said waddling away from the station in snowshoes.

The group followed, nearly blinded by the whiteness of the sun reflecting off of the snow. Before long a cheery village that looked like it belonged in a snow globe appeared from behind some drifts. The Inn was very comfy, with plush chairs by a massive fireplace and a bar and tables for diners as well as the upper storeys converted into separate rooms.

It turned out to be that Rago was the son of the owner of the Inn, A cheery big woman with arms like tree trunks but a pleasant face and a kind but firm attitude. She welcomed them with hot cider and a roaring fire. She didn't even mind if they were state alchemists. As long as they didn't cause a disturbance or interfere with the cooking or cleaning staff she was fine. She even leant them some information she had learned about the rogue alchemist.

"Yesh, he comes in here one dayz and just blows the arse end outta me Diner! Crazy sort he ish, wears a black tri cornered hat, green coat and them fancy leggings made of deer hide. Dangerous sort he ish, an' he blows up me Inn cuz' there was some alchemist here on vacay. That's all I got on 'im. Some of the trappers might know. They'll be by abou' supper." And with that she left back to the kitchen.

"So he blows up part of her Inn because of another state alchemist taking a vacation up here was within his reach. Looks like we have someone like scar on our hands" Winry said as Ed and Al shuddered.

They had all taken to lounging by the fire until the snowstorm they had arrived in blew itself down a bit so that they could see four feet in front of themselves.

"Well we can't do anything until this snowstorm dies down or the trappers get here. Either one" Ed said as he lay across his chair in a boneless teenager way. Winry and Al nodded, there wasn't much to do in the Inn as the storm raged outside. Winry either cleaned or made new auto-mail and the brothers read and read.

"Ok I need a break" Ed said jumping off of his chair and walking over to one of the windows, a huge blast went off just as Ed reached the window. Sending him flying backwards and landing on Winry.

"Ed are you okay!" Winry asked as he wiped blood from a cut on his forehead.

"That sneaky bastard!" Ed snapped as he jumped out of the hole the blast had made. Ed looked around, a few feet down the street was the rogue alchemist, in the clothes that the Inn keeper had even said he was sporting the day he blew up her Inn. "Hey you! Do you think you could get away after blowing up someone else's Inn?" he shouted. The rogue turned to look at him, sunglasses reflecting snow and yellow teeth gleaming.

"You must be Full Metal, I've heard a lot about the southern pipsqueak that is supposedly running with the military like an obedient puppy" HE taunted as Ed's ears poured steam.

"I'm not a pipsqueak, or a little person, so small that you need to have a magnifying glass to find me!" Ed shouted as he transformed his arm into a blade and dove at the rogue.

Winry and Al stood close by, watching as both men swirled around each other in a flurry of both snow and transformations.

"I have to admit you're pretty good for a puppy!" The rogue snapped as he dove at Ed, slicing his left shoulder open, crimson staining white snow.

"Ed!" Winry cried as Al pushed her out of the way as a ball of icicles was hurled at them. The icicles hit a supply shed, making it rain bits of shattered wood before Winry had hauled herself to her feet to see Ed taking a beating again.

"Why don't you jut roll over and die like a good puppy!" the Rogue snapped as his fist connected with Ed's jaw, sending the teen crashing through a barn door.

"ED!" Winry yelled as she slapped her hands together and dropped to the ground. Suddenly a cage of iron and ice formed around the rogue as Winry ignored him and ran towards the wreckage Ed hadn't arisen from yet.

Winry dug through the wreckage, she could hear the yelling from the rogue demanding she let him out before AL put him into a state of unconsciousness.

Don't be dead, don't be dead, please dear god don't be dead!

Winry pulled off more boards, nails puncturing her gloves or scraping across her metal hand with a terrible noise. Al moved over next to her and began pulling boards away with a frightening pace.

"Ed! Ed! Can you hear me?" she called over and over as they searched. Finally Winry pulled away a board to see Ed's mechanical hand sticking up through. "Al! I found him!" she called as AL lumbered over to attempt to pull him out of the rubble. A few villagers had come out of the Inn to see what the ruckus had been and were now helping to shift away the rubble and free the trapped animals from the barn.

The Rogue was cackling in his cage as Winry pulled a heavy board aside as the upper half of Ed's torso emerged. He blinked wearily up at her as she tried to climb over a board he held up a hand, his eyes going wide. Winry looked behind her as she saw the Rogue transmute the iron she had created into a large gun, which he was using ice covered iron for bullets.

"Winry!" both brothers yelled as the machine guns prattle of bullets ricocheting echoed in the air. Both of them watched in horror as Winry was struck by a ricochet and shot in the shoulder as she fell, covering Ed as best she could from the array.

A strangled yelp was heard before the air become silent. Winry rolled over and sat up, her shoulder was burning from where the bullet had nicked her and on her leg as well. Glancing at where the alchemist had been caged she saw Al with the man in a head lock as a few villagers put his hands in splints.

"Winry? Are you ok?" came Ed's tired voice as she whipped her head to look at him still beneath a pile of rubble. Shifting around he managed to pull another couple of boards off of him before she found why he wasn't moving. A support beam had fallen across him and the only thing keeping it from crushing his chest was his auto-mail leg and arm.

"I'm okay, I'll live but we need to move that beam before you're crushed." She said quietly as he nodded jerkily. "Can someone help me? Hello? Anyone! Hopefully someone that can move a beam!" She called as four hulking men climbed over the wreckage to see the predicament. All were amazed that Ed was still living as they hauled the beam up just high enough for Winry to loop her arms with Ed's and pull him to safety. As the beam landed with a boom Winry's legs gave out and she dropped to the ground. Ed's head banged against her chest as she landed hard on her backside.

"Winry?" Ed asked as he quickly got to his knees and grabbed her shoulders. Electing a hiss of pain from her as the wound, which had begun to clot, reopened and started to bleed profusely. "Winry, you're bleeding" Ed stated as he pulled his hand away from her left shoulder, her blood dripping off of his auto-mail hand and onto the white snow.

AL lumbered up beside the pair as Winry gave a dazed look around her, then to the patch of crimson that was rapidly growing over her baby-blue shit and the ivory snow.

"So I am" she said as she gave a weary smile. "I think my leg was hit too, I don't think I can walk" she said as Ed stood and lifted her onto his back with little effort. Al thanked the villagers and told them to keep an eye on the rogue as the trio headed for the Inn. Winry's larger form dangled over Ed's, her arms over his chest and feet almost by his knees as the plodded through the snow. Al kept a piece of cloth pressed over her shoulder wound as the skim on her leg was put into a crude bandage of Ed's black shirt.

"Thank you, Edward" Winry said as they entered the Inn. Ed didn't show any sign of recognition as the hostess immediately flew down the stair to assist them. Ed refused all attention. Even though his right leg was at a funny angle and he was bleeding pretty severely from the back of his head.

They took Winry into a separate room and began with calling the village doctor. A reedy little woman, shorter than Ed and twice as much patience, which bandaged her and cleaned the wounds. Then she had to cuff Ed over the head with her bag before she could get even close to him to take care of him. Al thanked the woman as Ed arose from the cuffing and began a litany of curses that made even the hostess' cringe and duck out of the room.

After a while things settled down, and Al went back to their original room to read again since Ed decided he needed sleep. Really, all Ed wanted to do was sneak next door and see if Winry was awake yet. Silently he slipped out of the bunk he had been placed on and crept out to the balcony that was conveniently the same as Winry's balcony, attaching both rooms together by the balcony. He crept up to the sliding door and listened. Silence. Sliding the door open he crept inside and closed the door behind him. His foot steps made odd squishing noises from the snow on the balcony as he grabbed a chair and plunked it next to Winry's bed.

She was out like a light thanks to all of the pain relievers the doctor had given her and was drooling slightly with her mouth open as she snored lightly, every now and then muttering about him or her wrenches. A smile came to his face as he remembered her words for the past few days.

We only have each other, Remember that; liquor can turn even the most sensible of men into barbarians not to mention the fact that it tastes like grass clippings; What are the core elements in her blood?; You're a..a, Bio-engineer!; How did everything go so wrong so fast?; I couldn't save her!; ed stop being an idiot and give Al his truck back; oops, my bad; I win again!; I think I'm stuck…

A small grin surfaced at some of the funnier memories as Winry rolled over and her face was right across from his, which was resting on the bed.

"Ah, Winry! You're so damn frustrating sometimes!" he sighed agitated. A small smile crossed her face as she reached out, groping for something. As soon as she touched Ed's auto-mail hand she fell quiet again. Her snoring returning; how could she be so damn cute? He thought back to the fights he and Al had had when they were kids about who would marry Winry.

Flashback

"No! She's gonna marry me! I'm older and smarter!" Ed snapped as Al glared at him.

"Nuhun! She's gonna marry me cuz I'm better looking than you and I'm taller!" Al stuck his tongue out at Ed.

"You're such a butt head!" Ed said coyly.

"Well you're a booger brain!" Al replied hotly as a fist fight ensued.

End flashback.

Those had been good times. He looked at the sleeping girl across from him. After this he would never forgive himself, he had let her get hurt, again. But she had put herself in this dangerous line of work for a reason, piped up a second voice which made Ed think about it. She had sacrificed her own apprenticeship so she could keep an eye on the brothers.

What an idiotic thing to do.

Yet at the same time relaxing to know someone cared. This was better than nothing he guessed. Sleep gnawed at the back of his eyelids as he gave her hand a squeeze before letting himself conch out onto the bunk over top of hers.

Winry cracked open her eyes as she hunted around on her night table for a glass of water. Her mouth felt like a desert as her hand bumped into a glass. Gratefully she chugged the water as she set the glass back onto the table and turned over, burying herself against the nice warm backboard of her bed…

Wait, since when did she have a backboard?

Winry cautiously looked behind her to see none other than Ed, sound asleep, a bandage around his head and a bandage across his nose and another on his cheek. He was deeply asleep, his breathing deep and level as he snored loudly.

No wonder she had woken up. Gently she rolled him onto his back as his snoring lessened and he groped for the warmth of her body as he spooned himself against her, sighed contentedly and went back to dreaming. Winry lay looking up at the bunk above her as she remembered what had happened over the past few hours.

Being an alchemist was slightly frightening, she concluded as she rubbed her stiff shoulder, thankfully the bullet hadn't gotten stuck and passed through with minimal damage, though it was going to leave a scar.

The click of the door lock caught her attention as she looked over at Al who tiptoed into the room, locking the door behind him. Winry and he stared at each other for a few seconds before Al's view shifted to Ed who was back to snoring, stomach hanging out.

"He really cares you know" Al said as Winry jumped, his voice was so loud compared to the silence in the room. She looked down at Ed, so peaceful instead of his I'm-tough-don't-push-me-around façade. She smoothed back a piece of his hair that he was trying to inhale.

"I know I just wish he wouldn't ignore me so much" she said smiling as Al looked at the floor. "What's wrong Al?" Winry asked as Al looked out of the window. Silence fell between them as Winry unconsciously continued to smooth back Ed's hair.

"Well, you have Ed and he has you. But, what about me? I mean when we finish with this quest for the philosophers stone? Where does it leave me? You and brother will have each other…" AL trailed off as Winry tottered out of her bed and plunked herself in Al's lap, hugging him as best she could while he was in the armour.

"You will always have both me and Ed, we won't ever forget you. But our main focus right now is to get you back to your original body." She smiled as she could've sworn she heard Al crying, giving him a bigger hug. "It'll be better soon, you'll see, you'll see" She crooned as Al stopped and hugged her back.

"Winry, its strange, when you hug me I can feel your warmth and your skin. I can't feel that with other people." He said quietly as she smiled and touched the helmet.

"We will figure out how to get your body back. Without the philosophers stone, if need be." Her words gave him confidence as she returned to her bed where Ed was snoring quietly.

"Thanks Winry, I have a few books that have references to body to soul transmutations but they say they were never successful." AL said with a hint of sadness.

"Well bring them to me and I'll read through them for good measure" She smiled as she lay down next to Ed, resuming running her fingers through his loose golden hair. "I will find a way Al I promise you that" She said and then he was gone.

Winry ran her fingers through the length of Ed's hair, pulling out the tangles and re-braiding it in a fancy triple braid. Slowly Ed began to wake up, stirring now and then, before settling down again as she returned to smoothing his hair.

The nurse entered twice, once to check on Winry and ask if she needed anymore pain killers, another to unwrap both of their bandages and check them before re-bandaging her shoulder and Ed's torso where a few ribs had been bruised.

Ed awoke around lunch time while Winry was lying next to him, reading since the nurse had prohibited her from moving at all for at least a day.

"How did I get down here?" he said as he blinked stupidly in the bright light. Winry marked her page and looked over at him, his golden eyes still foggy from sleep.

"I dunno, I woke up and there you were." She said cheerfully as he moaned and pulled the pillow over his head.

"How can you be so cheery in the morning!" he whined as she laughed and pulled the pillow away from him.

"Actually its lunch time, you slept the morning away" she reopened her book and continued reading. So far she had a thesis going about how to return Al's body to his soul without her having to give back her own body.

The law of equivalent exchange is flawed in three places. Reincarnation, death, and rebirth. There are the three places that are supposed to coincide with nature, but at the same time it was only talking about the body, not the soul which was supposed to die, be born or be reincarnated.

Therefore Al's body may be dead, but she could resurrect it with the right tools. Since the reason why Ed and Al's resurrection of their mother failed was because the soul was dead. So therefore she should be able to resurrect Al's body, the only problem was that for the body she would have to offer the gate keeper something.

"Hey Winry did you hear me? You just went off into a daze there" Ed's voice cut through as she looked at him. He didn't seem too concerned, just irritated at being ignored.

"Oh yeah! Before I forget, Al wanted to talk with you. I'm gonna keep reading since the nurse prohibited me from moving until further notice." She said as Ed laughed and climbed out of the bed, clothed in boxers and a loose black wife beater.

Winry returned to her plotting.

Something to give the gate keeper, since wrath was out in the world. The gate keeper should be slightly less picky on what it wanted. It would want a body if nothing else. But it didn't specify what type of body, just a body for a body. The clogs in her mind began to turn. A cow would be more than enough for the gate keeper to keep himself happy with in return.

As the day progressed Winry began to plan. The villagers had a ton of farm animals, no one would notice if a cow went missing. As for the circle to get to the gate it shouldn't be a problem, she had memorised the circle that she had been attacked on.

"Hey Winry! Supper time!" Al announced cheerily as he and Ed entered with two trays of food. Her smile returned as she accepted the food and tore hungrily into it. Ed and AL watched her closely as she debated on whether to tell Ed about her idea of helping Al. She decided against it. But after she asked Al to stay for a minute, she explained her idea to him. The only problem would be that Ed would be needed to transfer his soul out of the armour and into his body with a transmutation circle carved onto the body's chest. Al agreed that he would help and tell Ed of what they were planning and what they needed to do before he left.

The nurse allowed Winry up after Supper since her shoulder wasn't getting infected and was healing nicely. SO she slipped out of the Inn room and snuck to one of the nearest barns, stealing the oldest cow that was there and leading it back to the shed at the back of the Inn. Using some white paint she drew the transmutation circle that had led her to the gate.

"WINRY!" Ed's voice echoed through the Inn as she cringed. Leading the cow into the circle she heard the door bang open as she slapped her hands onto the circle. She felt Ed's hand grab her as she felt the familiar squeeze of the white bleakness before the gate. Suddenly it loomed in front of them, the cow mooed in fear as Ed let go of Winry's arm. She turned to look at him as he grabbed her chin and made her look at him.

"ARE YOU FUCKING OFF YOUR ROCKER!" he shouted making her ears ring as he let go and glared at her. She straightened and walked over to the gate. A little green imp sat on the third stair and glowered at them from under its dark brow.

"I am the new gate keeper what is it that you want?" He said as Winry cleared her voice.

"I wish to attain the body of 15 year old Alphonse Elric. I have brought this cow as payment for the body of the boy. I wish not for his soul for it is more than I can pay for. Is this acceptable?" she asked as the Imp eyed the cow hungrily.

"I will see" he said as an enormous volume as big as he was tall dropped in front of him. "Hmm." He said leafing through the pages. "It looks like that is acceptable. Flesh of another for flesh of another it states here." The Imp eyed the cow suspiciously.

"We would like to leave what is left of the cow to you free of charge. You may do as you please with is as long as we can have the body of 15 year old Alphonse Elric." Winry said as the Imp's greedy little eyes lit up.

"I shall fetch him for you right away" The Imp said disappearing into the gates, shutting tight behind him. Ed and Winry exchanged looks as the cow pranced nervously. A few minutes later the Imp returned, Al's shimmering body stepping out. At once the black hands whipped out, grabbing they cow and pulling ¾ of the body away and dragging it into the gate.

"Here is the body you wanted" The Imp said as Al's body was passed to the pair. As soon as Winry touched the body, all three of them were transmuted back to reality.

When they re-entered the world Al's body gave a gasp as it came back to life. Al was silent as Ed took a small knife and cut the circle into Al's chest. A horrible screech rose from the bodies lungs as Winry put a gag in his mouth and when Ed finished Winry grabbed Al and tugged him down knocking Al's helmet off.

"This is gonna hurt!" Ed warned as he clapped his hands together and slapped one on Al's armour and the other onto his body. An electric shock ran through both brothers as both let up a scream of agony. Winry watched in horror before she too clapped her hands together and placed hers over Ed's. The pain was excruciating, like someone had grabbed her insides and were trying to turn her inside out, and then nothing. A loud crash of armour falling deafened both Teens as Ed collapsed back onto Winry who also fell onto the ground. Ed had sweat rolling off of him as he gulped in huge amounts of air. Winry hugged him from behind as she hoped to god that her plan had worked out.

"Ed? Are you there?" Al's voice came out clear without the ringing of metal. Both of them looked at Al. He was lying completely naked, his chest bleeding from where the circle had been scribed.

"Al, oh my god Al" Ed whispered as he hugged his younger brother. For the first time Winry read Al's face as it lit up in pure joy. Both brothers hugged each other as Ed put his coat around Al. Winry smiled as tears ran over her cheeks and onto her skirt, both brothers looked at her as she smiled. Both of them hugged her as she broke down into sobs. Al lifted her chin to look at him.

"Thank you so much Winry. I will never forget this" he said as Winry dissolved into sobs as she clutched both brothers to her like they would disappear. They stayed there for an immeasurable moment.

"Oh guys" she said as they both hugged her back then let go. It had been so hard to get to this point, and she had achieved the impossible, she had gotten back Al's body with Ed's help. Now there was only one thing left, to regain Ed's and her normal limbs.

"Hey lets go inside I'm getting cold" Al said as he stood. Both brothers were about the same height with Al about four or so inches taller then Ed, both were just as she remembered them as kids. Save for Al now had a transmutation circle carved into his chest and Ed was no longer carrying a suit of amour around. Both brothers stopped at the suit of armour and picked up the pieces. Tucking them under their arms and carrying the bigger pieces they carried them back upstairs into their original rooms. Al kept checking himself out (that sounds really creepy), seeing how well his new body was and if it was in ok physical condition.

When they got to their rooms Ed and Al shoved the two twin beds together, creating a king sized bed as all three teens flopped onto the bed. Exhaustion overcoming them, so for the first time in 5 years Al slept peacefully. Ed stretched out next to Winry who lay between the two, she ran her fingers through Al's golden hair, it was coarser than Ed's but still amazingly soft. Ed leant against her back and looked over her at his brother, unconsciously wrapping his arm over her hip.

"Thank you Winry. You will never know how much this means to me" he said quietly. Winry smiled as she turned to look at him.

"I think I do" she said reaching over she gently brushing some hair back from his face. "I think I do" she said as she kissed him. It was a sweet and chaste kiss, before Ed could react from his moment of duh Winry had leant away and had settled down for the night. He breathing evening as he cleared his mind. Had that really happened? He wiped the back of his hand across his mouth, a faint trace of her vanilla lip gloss came off as he smiled to himself. It was real, he smiled and pulled her hair out of her face and gazed at both of them. Winry and Al, his family, and they would remain that way as long as he could keep it.

&()(!((().

There u go folks Im sorry this took Soooooooooooooooooooooo long but I have other obligations and plus the server out here in the booneys of Canada was down so I couldn't get onto the net.

Neway have a great long weekend (Canadians)

Until later

Ja!

Demonica.. crap! I have an essay due in 24 hours!