Chapter Three: Uh... Will You Marry Me?

I watched Winry insanely work on my auto-mail and smiled contently. It was nice to see she was so passionate about something… something that was mainly related to me. And sometimes I hoped it had kept her going… kept her moving forward and living. I couldn't deny that I secretly wished I was part of her reason. Because part of the reason I lived was for her, and also now bringing my brother back. I returned my face to neutral with a huge sigh, realising I had a job to get done. I wasn't here on a vacation; I was here in this quiet country town to research human transmutation.

I walked straight past Winry who was too engrossed in her auto-mail manufacturing to even notice and shut my bedroom door quietly behind me, for this I was grateful. The last thing I needed was to stir her attention and have her come in crying again.

I felt the heat rise to my cheeks as I remembered the intimate incident between us last night. "Geez Winry, can't you even keep your emotions to yourself?" I said with embarrassment clutching the place on my neck she had kissed more than innocently last night, I could still feel her lingering kisses tingle my neck. Actually when I came to think about it, it was one of the most horrifying moments in my whole life. Not that I found Winry horrifying or anything. Horrifying because no-one had ever done anything like that to me and I hadn't even thought about what I wanted to happen. I had never thought that some-one was thinking about me in that way. That's why I always kept to myself, it was a bad thing to let your emotions take over. But then again Winry was upset last night so I really had no idea how she was feeling.

The current book I was reading grabbed my attention and I dug straight back into it. Something's missing in human transmutation right? "I already know this so why can't I find it?" I said with frustrated matter. "I'm just going to go round in circles if I read these books." I chucked it against the wall and sighed closing my eyes. "Al…" A shining red book suddenly caught my eye and I picked it up. It was titled the Philosophers Stone, was it truly the only thing capable of bringing Al back? Did I really have to sacrifice so many lives just for one person? It didn't seem like equivalent trade at all. So I need human lives... many to create the stone, then I can bring Al back. But I have already decided I can't do that. Is another human life what is missing in human transmutation? No it isn't! So then what is it? Why can't I find it!

"WHY WON'T YOU DO WHAT I WANT YOU DO TO!"

I lifted my head from my thoughts and stared at my door in confusion, my ears pricking to the man's voice I had just heard out in the living room. I walked towards the door and opened it when I heard more yelling.

"It's not that, it's just I'm the only one here and I'm busy on someone else's Auto-mail. You have to make an appointment if you want an auto-mail! Come back in a week and we will discuss everything then." I peered through the door as I watched Winry try to talk in a civilised manner with the man. So this is why she was loosing business? You can't treat clients like that. Equivalent trade, they are giving you their money so you must give them your time. Aunty Pinako would have known that.

"I don't have time for that! I heard you were the beautiful young auto-mail engineer." He said coming dangerously close to her, I furrowed my eyebrows and watched suspiciously.

"Well that's true, but I can't do anything for you now." Winry beamed flicking her hair over her shoulder.

"CAN'T ACCEPT THAT!" The man instantly pulled a knife out of his pocket and walked towards Winry. Before the man even had time to strike I was in front of Winry bringing my hands together. I then (without thinking) transmuted the knife into a diamond ring (the first thing that came into my mind) Since there was one large diamond on the front. The man just stared in shock at his new item and dropped his jaw.

"Who are you?" He said with dismay letting the ring drop into my hand.

"Some-one making sure you don't touch Winry! Thankyou, this ring should come in handy." I said holding it up to the light. I could maybe sell it or give it to Winry so I could avoid her wrench for a day or two. It was all about equivalent trade.

"You two are?" He asked again backing away slightly.

"I'm her body guard and you better not touch her-"

"He's my boyfriend!" Winry stated wrapping her arm around mine. I stared at her in confusion and glanced down at the ring. "And my body guard, right Ed?" Winry winked at me nervously hoping I would get the idea. "This is the man I am making an auto-mail for.

The man glanced between us in confusion. "But, he is clearly much younger than you…" He said blinking in bafflement.

"HEY GRANDPA DON'T ASSUME THINGS JUST ON HEIGHT!" I yelled jumping up and down in-front of his face. I was about to punch him one when Winry pulled me back.

"Right where the same age, and that's the ring you're going to propose to me with right Edward?" Winry laughed placing the wrench to my back as a warning to play along. I didn't get where she was going with this so I decided I would go along with it, anything to avoid another hit to the head, someone help me. I held the ring tightly in my hand as I glanced at the man and nodded somewhat reluctantly.

"Oh miss I am so sorry! You have to attend to your fiancée first I totally understand. I have always wanted to witness a proposal today is my lucky day." He beamed with love hearts practically oozing from his eyes. Winry and I looked towards one another in panic. "What are you waiting for, knock her off her feet." He said moving to get a betterview of us.

I sighed and got down on one knee bracing myself with mad thoughts running around through my head like "I DON'T WANT TO PROPOSE TO WINRY!" I had no idea how things like this were supposed to go, but I'd try my best, for my sake anyway. "Winry will you marry me?" I said much to fast, without any tone what so-ever, while looking anywhere but into her eyes. I shoved the ring in her face and glanced at her without any expression quickly looking away again. Man can she hurry up already. She looked like she was about to bash the living hell out of me but restrained herself.

"Yes ED I WILL!" She said much too happily. She waited till I raised and flung herself at me. Her arms wrapped around my neck and I caught her in my arms un-expectantly almost falling backward in the process.

"Kiss! It's a beautiful moment."

We both froze at his comment and I restrained what I would call deep annoyance and hatred for both Winry and the stupid old man. I grabbed Winry's hand and pulled her away with force. "Ha-ha we prefer to do those things in private, so if you would excuse us." I said inching away slowly to the closest room while I pulled Winry along with me. She also laughed nervously and backed cautiously towards the door giving me a dangerous side-glance in the process..

"Of course, I'll just wait here!" He said in an admirable tone. "My babies have grown up so fast." I shot the man a completely disgusted look and pulled Winry into the room with me so fast I almost ripped her arm out of her socket slamming the door behind me. We stood there for quite some time in silence while I tensed my fists. "WINRY!" I shouted looking up.

"Ed I know if we said that we were together he would soften up." Winry said looking away.

"BUT I COULD HAVE FINISHED HIM OFF WITH ALCHEMY!" I fumed. Who wanted to take the gentle approach where you had to pretend to be married when you could just chase the guy out the door?

"EDWARD! You're so violent! And what was with that proposal! I hope when you do propose some day it isn't anything like that! And it's not like you had to even bend down because you're so short!" Winry yelled back defensivly.

"Of course it won't be like that because I will actually want to marry the person I propose too!" I yelled back kicking the near-by chair out of my way. Winry's eyes grew wide when I said that and she instantly looked away, maybe tears were welling.

"I see." She replied softly.

"Winry I didn't mean it like that." I said with frustration. "I mean, just married? What if he is one those marriage freaks and insists we get married while he is here or something? Did you think about this stuff?" I said with annoyance sitting down on the seat to get my head together and think about this situation.

"I'm not an alchemist I don't analyse every situation! Besides you're taking this way to seriously can't you relax and just have fun seriously Ed I'm not going to listen to you whine anymore." Winry said crossing her arms over her chest.

"Whine?" I asked in reply.

"Hai Hai whine!" Winry laughed coming over to pat me on the head. "You're not a child anymore Ed, remember that." She walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. And I sat with a huge number of things on my mind. Number one I finally had a good reply to the short joke and I hadn't even got to say it!

I couldn't believe she had done this. I tensed my fists. She called me a child, and a whiny child at that! No she called me a whiny child so small he doesn't even have to bend down for a marriage proposal! For this I would get pay back. I stood up steam practically coming out of my ears and flung the door open. "WINRYYYYYYY!" I shouted interrupting their friendly conversation.

"What's the relationship like?" The man said with stars in his eyes, leaning closer to Winry. She held a cup of tea in her hand and grinned flipping her hair over her shoulders. "Look at him! He misses you already!" The man pointed towards me to see me standing there with the steam now coming out of my nose as I death glared Winry.

"WINRYYYYY!" I shouted again walking towards her while stomping my feet. She let out a nervous laugh and waved her hand in front of the man as if she was telling him to pay no mind to me. They had better pay mind!

"Ed is so great! He just loves me so much! I feel like his Queen when I am with him." Winry smiled and I could practically see her ego it was so high!

"Queen?" I asked pointing to her then back to me in confusion. My anger slowly fading away as confusion suddenly took over.

"Hai, hai, Queen!" Winry side-glanced me with her arms over her chest. I double checked to see if her wrench was on her and bowed my head.

"Queen huh?" I replied with a sigh. "I guess so." She let out a satisfied smile and turned her head back to the man.

"You two are just so adorable! How did your love blossom?" The man looked between the two of us with admiration, his eyes turning to those of a puppy.

"Oh it was a beautiful sunny morning and Ed told me he loved me more than anything! I was so happy! And with his Auto-mail how could I resist?" She squealed grabbing hold of my arm and running her head up and down it. I watched in disgust as her cheek rubbed up and down the cold metal and looked away with annoyance. "Ahhh the smell of oil, the creaking of artificial muscles, ahhhh Auto-mails are wonderful!" She yelled on some sort of high. And it's only a spare part...

"Winry… aren't you supposed to be working on my Auto-mail?" I said dangerously low, choosing to ignore her annoying behaviour even if she was making me sound like some love-sick idiot. She was the one what was love-sick for those God-damn Auto-mails. She had better hurry up and finish it so we could get this god-damn man out of here.

"Ahhhh." She sighed rubbing her head up and down my Auto-mail once again.

"Machine freak." I said softly so the man wouldn't hear me. She instantly stopped and pursed her lips together.

"Got a problem with that you alchemy freak!" She said a little louder than my intent. But to my surprise the man just looked between us with happiness.

"You two love each other so much, fighting is the first sign of a good relationship! And you don't fight if you don't know one another well or even care about each other." The man started holding his finger up mater of factly. This idiot was really pushing it! Maybe we fought because she was the biggest pain in the ass 99 percent of the time. I controlled myself and warned Winry once again about getting onto my Auto-mail, I didn't want to walk around with this spare part for much longer, even if Winry was still in love with it. "That's right you can't neglect your fiancée's Auto-mail!"

I realised this man would be staying with us till my Auto-mail was complete, that was all the more reason for Winry to hop on the case. Winry suddenly caught on to my train of thought and before I could blink she was working on my auto-mail intensely. Licking the top of her mouth like she always did when she was concentrating hard. Why did I notice facts like that?

"Please Full Metal tell me when you got together, all the hopeful ladies have been waiting for you to grow taller." The man said instantly infuriating me.

"WELL I DON'T WANT THEM IF THEY DON'T TAKE ME AS I AM!" I screamed only to see Winry turn around with an annoyed expression on her face. Keep it down, when she was working on the Auto-mail, right I'll remember that next time I want to shout. Instead of shouting again I turned to the man and grinned.

"Of course you wouldn't take them because you already have a loving woman who loves you even if your … cough lets just say less than average." At this comment my eyes almost popped out of my head and I kicked the chair out of the way to get closer to the man.

"DID YOU JUST SAY I WAS A GRAIN OF RICE SO SMALL WOMEN HAVE TO BEND DOWN TO SEE ME?" I yelled rolling the sleeves up on my coat. "ARGGGGGH!" I launched myself at the man kicking and screaming in a violent rage, and before I could get a grip of the situation I was lying on the floor in a dazed matter. I waited for a few seconds wondering how the hell I got there and suddenly saw the famous wrench lying next to me. When I realised I had a splitting pain in the back of my head, I put two and two together.

"EDO!" Winry shouted leaning over me as I lay on the floor still dazed. "DON'T MAKE SO MUCH NOISE! I HAVE TOLD YOU THAT!" She said picking up her wrench. "And you shouldn't get angry at the truth! I do have to bend down to see you!" She patted me on the head as if I was some kind of animal and turned back to her work.

"Winry! What are you talking about we're the same height! ARE YOU PURPOSLEY BEING A JERK!" I sulked crossing my arms over my chest with my cheeks flushing. I decided it was better not to cause a scene and act like a child anymore.

"Will you join me for a drink and tell me how you two fell in love?" The man asked me holding beer up to my face with sheer delight in his eyes. I backed away slowly with a nervous laugh and waved my hands in front of my face to signal I wasn't interested.

"Ahaha, no I don't drink and there really is something I must bring my attention to so if you don't mind." I stepped back slowly as if the man was going to pounce on me and demand every love scene between me and Winry. Which of course I would then have to make up off the top of my head, and I wasn't exactly one for those types of things, I hadn't even thought about them, and I certainly didn't want to think off a life-times worth of romance with Winry in a few seconds. I finally reached my room and closed the door locking it frantically. When I looked around to see my room with my books scattered everywhere I sighed with relief.

Saturn Stars