Sorry that it took me so long to update this time. I've been having computer complications lately. The disk that I keep this particular story on decided that it didn't want to work anymore, so it took me awhile to get this chapter uploaded. I hope that you enjoy it though.

Please, please, please review! I need to know if anyone is still interested in this story. I realize that this one isn't as popular as my other stories, so I need to know that there's an interest in how this story turns out in order to continue it. Enjoy the story.

Winry didn't know what to do. She wanted to get through the Gate, to get to Al, but how was she supposed to go about doing such a thing? It was nearly impossible. She sat down by the river to think to herself. Naturally, she wasn't going to quit, but what was she going to do?

"Is there any way I can help?"

Winry snapped into alertness when she heard the voice beside her. She turned her head and saw somebody sitting next to her on the bank of the river. Apparently, she'd been thinking so hard that she hadn't even noticed this woman sit next to her. The woman had long, dark, wavy hair. Winry had never seen her before.

"Who are you?" asked Winry.

"I believe that I might be able to help you with your problem," said the woman.

Winry chuckled slightly to herself, "Yeah, right," she muttered under her breath.

The woman leaned closer to Winry. "I've felt your heart crying out for help, so I came to your aid, Winry," she said.

Winry jumped. "How do you know my name?"

The woman's mysterious, dark eyes made direct contact with Winry's while she said, "It is difficult to go beyond the Gate, but I may be able to help you make contact with those you love."

"How did you..." Winry started to say. But no, she wasn't going to ask that question. The woman wouldn't answer her directly anyway. She might as well rephrase her question. "How can you make contact with them?"

The woman turned and gazed out over the river, staring straight into the sunset. She remained silent for a few moments. Finally, she said, "Do you know what's beyond?"

"Beyond the Gate?" asked Winry, "Actually, I have no idea."

The woman said, "Beyond the Gate is a world very similar to our own. Each of us has, or had, a person that looks almost identical to us."

"Interesting, but what does that have to do with anything?" said Winry.

"Time and space are an illusion," said the woman, "Spirit transcends all."

This was indeed a strange woman, thought Winry, but she might as well hear her out. "Okay, but what does this have to do with the Gate?" asked Winry.

"Spirit can communicate with spirit over a great distance or stretch of time," said the woman.

Winry was almost totally lost. What was this lady even getting at?

"We are each psychically connected to our twin on the other side of the Gate. I can help you communicate with your twin. Perhaps she'll be able to help you find out what has happened to your loved ones," said the woman.

Okay, that's starting to make a little sense, thought Winry, if her double could indeed be of any use. What if she didn't know the whereabouts of either Ed or Al? What then?

"The elder brother is beginning to develop a psychic connection between you and also his younger brother. Having been taken out of his environment, he is starting to see the illusion for what it is," said the woman.

"So...Does that mean that I'll be able to communicate with Ed soon?" asked Winry.

"You already have, though you cannot yet control your communications, nor he his. Until he learns to control his communications, he will experience psychic pain every time he receives. He will learn soon," said the woman.

"Then I should communicate with my double until I get some practice, and give Ed a chance to practice before I communicate with him?" asked Winry.

The woman once again looked into Winry's eyes with those dark, mysterious eyes of hers. She didn't say another word. She just got up and left. Winry guessed that she must've figured out what that woman had come to tell her.

Winry sat up in bed with a start. She'd had a strange dream. It was about her...and two boys. The two boys were Ed, yet not Ed, and Al, but not Al. How did that figure out? Ed had been dead for some time, she missed him so badly, but why was he in her dream? Why also did he have such long hair? She would never have caught him dead with long hair. A tear rolled down her face. She sure missed him. She had had a crush on him, but had never gotten the chance to tell him.

In the dream, Ed and Al were portrayed as brothers. That didn't make any sense. Those two had never even met each other, let alone were they brothers. Strange, very strange. She decided that she would go and see that man that had been taking care of Ed before his untimely death, Hohenheim, she thought it was.

She quickly threw on some clothes and put on her outdoor shoes. Was it too early to go see him? It was still dark, yet she couldn't sleep. Maybe he'd be understanding toward her. Especially since he hadn't seen her for months. She hadn't wanted to show her face after Ed's death. It was now or never.

Winry knocked on the door. Please don't be upset, she thought. The door opened. "Why, Winry, what a pleasant surprise!" said Hohenheim, "Come in, come in!" He gestured toward the inside of the house. She graciously accepted his offer and stepped inside the house.

"Now, what brings you here at this hour?" asked Hohenheim.

"I'm so sorry about my coming here so early," said Winry, "But please, Hohenheim of Light, I had a strange dream. I was wondering if you could help me understand it."

Hohenheim put his hand on Winry's shoulder. "Perhaps," he said, "Care to sit down and tell me about it?"

They both sat down. As Winry was about to speak, however, Al came into the room, rubbing one of his eyes. "What's going o...Winry!" he said.

"Al!" she said, "What are you doing here?"

"What are YOU doing here?" said Al, "How did you get through the Gate?"

"The Gate? What are you talking about?" said Winry. She stood up and went over to Al, to get a good look at him.

"Wait a minute, you're not Al!" she said.

"Yes, I am," said Al.

"No, you're not," she said, "At least, not the Al I know. You're the Al from my dream! How is this possible?" She turned to face the other person in the room. "Hohenheim?"

"This Al was in your dream, Winry?" asked Hohenheim.

"Yes," said Winry, "What does this mean?"

"Was there another boy in the dream? One that looked a lot like the boy I was taking care of here?" said Hohenheim.

"You mean, the boy who looked like Edward? The one with the long hair?" asked Winry.

"That's him," said Hohenheim, "That was no ordinary dream. Sit down, and I'll explain it to you."

Both she and Al sat down. They both wanted an explanation of this strange event.

"There is a world much like this one that exists beyond what some call 'The Gate'. Everyone here has or at least, had a double over there. Someone that looks almost like us. Whether we ever develop the ability or not, we are each psychically connected to our doubles. This Al here is from that other world. In that world, he and Edward are brothers. Edward came through the Gate a while back, and hasn't been able to find a way back, so Al came to look for him, but we have no idea where Edward has gone. Chances are, your double, the other Winry from their side of the Gate, got worried about these boys, and contacted you to get you to find out what had happened to them," said Hohenheim.

Winry chuckled to herself, "Yeah, well if that's so, then why would she contact me so early in the morning?"

"Time runs differently between the two worlds," said Hohenheim, "So she has no idea what time it's going to be here for you when she calls you. Even if she were to call you at the same time every day from her world, it might come to you at a different time each day in yours. Time is merely an illusion," said Hohenheim.

"So, since she's called me for help, what can I do?" asked Winry.

"Just contact her the same way she did you," said Hohenheim, "Tell her the truth, since she's so badly wanting it. Tell her that Al is fine, that he's right here with me. The last I saw of Ed was earlier today, so he's probably alright, but we have no idea where he is. We also don't know how to get back to that world once our bodies have crossed the Gate. Tell her all of that," said Hohenheim, "And tell her, that even though Edward doesn't have the courage to admit it, I can tell that he loves her very much." Winry could catch the twinkle in his eye as he said that. She smiled. Unfortunately, her Edward was no longer around to have love her, but she'd like to see the other Edward and Winry come together. She closed her eyes, and sent the message.

Winry of Rizenbul opened her eyes. She wasn't sure how long she had been meditating here, but it had paid off. She really had been able to connect with her twin. She now knew that Al was fine, but she had no idea what had happened to Ed. No one seemed to want to clarify that for her. Oh well, that strange lady had implied that he was okay for now, so she wouldn't worry too much. She wanted to try and contact Ed, but she remembered what that lady had said about psychic pain. No, she wouldn't contact him right now. Not until she had more control of her psychic abilities.

Winry picked up a flat, round stone and toyed with it in her hands. "If time and space are merely illusions, then is there a way to get beyond the Gate myself?" She sighed, "Well, if there is a way, I'll be sure to find it." She stood up, skipped her stone across the river, then turned to go home. Finally, she had hope.