Chapter 11: Close Call

Winry made her way into the darkness, her body raced through the night. There was no room for mistakes; if she was caught it would only be a matter of time before they found out everything. They would see Anderson's betrayal and her warning message would be lost. Darting quickly through the forest Winry pulled her black hood farther down. Fear gripped at her heart, if her blond hair got out it would reflect the moonlight making her a dead giveaway.

It had been a huge relief that she had even made it out of the base without being noticed. The guards on duty with a little persuasion from Anderson had overindulged themselves drinking just enough alcohol to lull them into a dreamlike state. They were slouched against a couple of trees their guns lay forgotten. Moving at the right moment Winry had been able to find shelter amongst the trees. Now the true problem was how to navigate in the dark. Winry had never considered herself good with directions, but she had to make it to Rush Valley. A pain struck her heart as she thought of them again. Times had changed so much. Back in the day she was always worrying on the sidelines, there was never any real pressure on her to do something great. Yet here she was running through a dark forest, the lives of all who lived in Rush Valley in here hands.

With a snap she felt her foot catch a tree root sending her body slamming to the ground below. Winry's mouth gaped open as the impact knocked the wind out of her. Her lungs screamed for air as she gasped for breath. With a deep gasp she felt relief flood her body as her lungs finally opened. Her body started to tremble as she noticed the deep cut that made its way all the way across her leg. Feeling a little faint at the sight of her own blood she just stared at it.

The sound of low voices brought her crashing back to reality as she realized someone was following her. Scrambling up Winry ripped off part of the jacket sleeve and wrapped it around the wounded area of her leg and set off again. Holding her hood tightly over her head she tried to run faster, but every step sent shooting pain through her nerves.

It felt as if she had been running for hours, yet she knew they were gaining on her. 'Why aren't they giving up?' Her heart raced faster and faster as the voices grew louder and louder. The thumping of their footsteps through the leaves echoed through her head, serving as a reminder of what she was running from. Her body began to shake as not only the pain of her injury but her fear settled in. Looking ahead she was able to make out a clearing which posed a very serious problem. Once she was out into the open she would be closer to her destination, however it would expose her to the enemy that was vigilantly following her every move. Risking a glance behind her Winry's worst fears were confirmed as her eyes caught the gleam of the guns on each of them. Her conscious asked the question her heart had been trying to block out, 'How much closer do they need to be before they shoot?'

A wolf whistle made her stomach turn with revulsion.

"Come on pretty lady, we know you're hurt. Just stop running, we wont hurt you." The mans voice held an evil luster that carried its way through the air.

With one last burst of speed she made her way into the clearing. She could hear their curses follow her. Frantically examining the area she noticed a pretty steep drop-off about 8 meters away, if she could only make it that far then she might be able to lose them. Almost reading her mind she heard the first warning shots ring through the air. A whimper escaped her throat; a weaker person would have given up by now. Giving up however was not a word that she knew, too many were counting on her. A few more shots whizzed by her, one catching part of her hood shredding it to pieces. There was no turning back, she started to plead with her body to go faster, 'Come on…please…just a little bit more.' The suspense lurked all around her as she knew her luck was running out, 'Please…please…I can't fail, not now.' Her body ached as she strained to make it through the remaining area.

Just as she threw herself over the drop-off a searing pain caught her shoulder causing her to tumble recklessly down the embankment. With her remaining strength she gripped her shoulder and forced her body to crawl into hiding. The adrenaline pumping through her veins she let out a cry of relief as she noticed the street lights of Rush Valley burning in the distance.

'Shit', this girl was proving to be more of a nuisance then he had originally thought. Finally one of their shots managed to snag her hood. With a triumphant grin he watched as the girl finally fell out of sight, he had hit her. Slowing to a walk they set out to find her, their orders were to bring back a body.

Al looked out the window at the deserted streets, it was eerily quiet. The sound of snoring nearby made him shake his head with an exasperated laugh. Ed lay in his bed the covers astray with his mouth hanging wide open. Al didn't blame him for passing out early; he knew his brother had been up all night thinking about her. Mustang had arrived the day before revealing that Winry had been taken captive. He had tried to assure them that because of her medical abilities that the odds of them hurting her were little to none, but that did little to ease their minds. Feeling his eyelids start to droop he made his way over to the bed when suddenly his body froze. 'Gunshots?'

Al strained to see where it was coming from. A feeling of uneasiness crept over him as he heard it again. Grabbing his jacket he pulled it on and turned to the door. It wasn't until he heard a rustle behind him that he realized the snoring had stopped; turning around Al found himself face to face with his brother. Cringing slightly he looked away from Ed; he knew that his brother wouldn't let him go. Ever since he had been returned to his body Ed had been very protective. Al had a feeling that he still blamed himself for all of their pain and sorrow thus he always sacrificed himself. It was Ed who had refused to let Al join the military.

Going with his gut feeling he finally blurted it out, "I'm going Ed."

Ed nodded, "I know Al, I wasn't going to stop you… I was going to join you." With a mutual understanding the two brothers set off in the direction of the gunshots.

Getting closer to where they last heard the sound of gunfire Ed saw three enemy soldiers scouting the area. Preparing to sprint after them Ed gasped as he heard the sound of a quiet whimper. Looking down Ed felt a rush of emotions hit him all at once, there laying half hidden in some brush was Winry her eyes closed. His body shaking with relief Ed pulled her into his arms. Feeling a warm liquid on his hands he stifled a gasp as he realized it was her blood. Rage filled his body as he looked at her closed eyes and found fresh tears still on her face.

Ed stood out of sight with his eyes glued to the three men. Signaling to Al to take on the man to his right he jerked his head to the two on his left to confirm his path. Nodding slowly Al gulped and focused his eyes to the man to his right. Ed counted on his fingers to three before they jumped out of hiding and took aim at the men. Two shots were fired, then three, and four. Ed watched as the two men he had targeted fell to ground. He had only fired twice, Al should have only fired once. Panic started to rise up in him as he turned to look for his brother. Eds heart raced as he lost all inhibitions as to his situation, "AL! Al, where are you!" There was no response. "Dammit...AL!"

Suddenly he noticed a man walking in his direction. Pointing his gun point blank with a feeling of dred at who it was he pulled the trigger. Al's stunned face suddenly came into the light. Ed stood in shock, "Al?? Oh god Al what have I done??"

Al moved his hand to his chest and looked back up at his brother. Something was definitly wrong. Al's face flooded with relief, "Brother your all out of ammo."

Ed nearly fainted as he realized that he didn't shoot his brother. His face hidden by a shadow he cursed himself as the tears rolled down his cheeks. "I almost...I almost..." Al pulled him into a hug.

"Brother its OK I got that soldier, we're OK now."

Still in shock Ed just stood there until finally he snapped out of his daze, "Oh no Winry!"

Granny who always had a tough exterior stood shocked at the sight that was presented before her. There was Ed standing in the doorway, Winrys body clutched in his arms. Her mind flashed back to the day when a suit of armor with Al's voice had carried Ed in just like that. Al looked desperately at her, "Call doctor Marcoh!"

Pinako smiled as she went to walk into Winrys room only to find Ed already there holding her hand. She had guessed that something had finally happened between them once Ed had returned from the war. It had always been there, but this time it seemed to radiate from him. Not feeling guilty about spying she tried to listen to what he was saying to her.

"Win…I heard about everything that you did." Ed smiled as he looked into her face. "You're a lot stronger than I am, while on the front line I gave up. Yet here you are, you escaped an entire army." He stooped slowly over her letting his lips kiss her forehead.

Opening her eyes Winry smiled as she felt a familiar hand resting in hers, she let herself day dream a little about Ed before she realized it wasn't a dream. The full meaning of it all came crashing down as the words came tumbling out of her mouth, "Ed, they're going to bomb Rush Valley!"

Phew there you have it ch. 11

now just for laughs i have a joke

Its kind of dirty so if u don't want to read it

don't read past this point

What has 90 balls and screws little old ladies?

Bingo

hahaha

Amy