Nothing new within the five minutes that have passes since I posted the last chapter!
:c)
Chapter Seventeen
A few weeks had passed since Winry had surgery on her left arm, and she was finally able to move it without feeling much pain. Colonel Mustang instructed both Second Lieutenant Havoc and Sergeant Fury to stay in Rizenbul with the girl, and report back when she was well enough to return to duty. The three had become good friends and would practice their fighting out on the large hill by the river that was close to the house.
"Ow! Why'dja have to hit me like that?" Havoc exclaimed as he rubbed the new bruise on his arm. Winry felt bad for punching him so hard and came up to see if she could help him. He surprised her by reaching and pulling her right arm behind her back into a lock and wrapping his arm around her neck to hold her still. "Hahahaha! Try to get out of that one!" The girl smirked at her stupidity for falling for his trick, and wrenched her right hand away. She then grabbed him with her left arm and flipped him over her, making him release her neck. Havoc twitched as he lay on the ground, not realizing the girl was going to fight back. A moment passed before he regained his senses and kicked his legs around to trip Winry. Her legs flew out from underneath her and she landed hard on the ground. Winry groaned as her body protested, but she quickly looked around to see Jean getting up and coming after her again. Kicking herself up, Winry quickly placed herself into a defensive position and waited for him to attack.
Winry was so focused on watching Havoc that she didn't notice the small shadow approaching from behind her until both of her hands were pulled behind her in another bind.
"Sorry, Winry," apologized Cain, "You were kind of open…"
Havoc saw his chance and began to run towards the duo. "Not for long!" the girl screamed out, as she jumped high, giving her enough room to land a nice kick onto Jean's stomach and sending him backwards again. As she jumped, she grabbed Fury's wrist with her automail and squeezed hard, causing him to yelp in pain and let go of her arms. She landed, still keeping her grip on him, pulled hard to fling the soldier around into his buddy as he attempted to stand again, causing both to crash to the ground.
Winry smiled as both men groaned to themselves, and dusted her hands off onto her pants. "Sorry guys, I didn't mean to go that hard on you, but I think my arm's completely healed now!" She went to take a step back, but didn't realize she was at the top of the hill. She stumbled slightly, but it was enough for her to lose her balance and begin to roll down the hill towards the river.
"Winry!" yelled both soldiers as they ran to the side of the hill. The girl had continued rolling down the hill until she stopped moving towards the bottom. Both men ran down to the bottom of the hill to help their comrade, and noticed her sitting up when they reached her.
"Ow, that hurt," she complained as she pulled grass from her hair. She patted herself to make sure there wasn't anything broken, but became frantic when she noticed her necklace was gone. "Oh, no! It must have come off while I was falling!" Winry began crawling on all fours looking for the shiny metal among the tall grass. Both Havoc and Fury, realizing she was okay except for a few minor cuts and bruises, helped her look for the necklace.
"I can't believe I was so stupid…I should have known better than to practice with it on…Oh god what have I done…" Winry mumbled to herself as she continued to search, but was relieved when Havoc yelled that he had found it. She got up and ran to him as he checked to see if the necklace was damaged. She sighed in relief, and held her hair back so the soldier could clasp it back together.
"Thanks, I don't know what I would have done it I lost it," Winry thanked, causing Jean to blush slightly.
"Are you okay? That was quite a fall you took," asked Fury, looking her over for any major injuries. "No, I'm fine, I just need to not be so cocky and watch where I'm going," the girl laughed to herself, causing both men to smile.
"Good, cause I know Mustang will have a fit if you get hurt while you practice with us," Jean replied, dusting his clothes off.
"What, you trying to say you go easy on me or something?" Winry mocked, shaking her left fist at the blond man.
"No, you keep us on our toes if anything," interjected Cain, "Do you want to go another round, or are you two ready to head back?"
Looking up to the sky, Winry could see that dusk would settle shortly, "Nah, let's go ahead and head back. Gram's probably making dinner as we speak."
The three comrades climbed back up the hill and began the short trek to the Rockbell house in relative silence. Winry could remember vividly each time Edward and Alphonse would spar with each other after Edward got a new limb and had to test it out. She smiled at the memory and wondered if they were doing okay. She called Mustang last week to tell him that she was almost healed, but had heard no news on how the brothers fared. She hoped they were okay.
The house came into sight within a few more minutes of walking, and sure enough, Winry could see her grandmother in the kitchen working on another meal. "C'mon guys, let's go get patched and cleaned up before we eat!" she shouted before taking off running towards the house. She could hear the surprised yelps from her two friends as they began to run behind her. She ran right up to the steps, and jumped over Den who was sleeping at the top, before running into the house.
"We're home! Oh, Grams, it smells so good in here!" Winry exclaimed as she stopped running, and walked into the kitchen.
"It looks like you took quite a beating during practice! How did your arm do?" Pinako smiled as she looked at the dirt-covered girl. She reached up and pulled some grass from the teenager's hair and put it in the trashcan.
"It was more like we were the ones getting the beating," spoke Fury from behind the younger girl, "Mrs. Rockbell, I'm going to miss your cooking when we have to go back to Central. That cafeteria food is nothing compared to what you can make!"
Pinako looked around Winry to see the two men and their bruises and smiled to herself. "Well, go and get yourselves cleaned up. Winry, you know where the antiseptic and bandages are at. You've probably got enough time to get a shower, if you'd like, before dinner is ready."
Winry nodded and led both men to bandage their wounds, "You heard Grams. Let's get you two cleaned up."
The warm water soothed her aching muscles. Her arm didn't hurt nearly as much as it did a few weeks ago, but since she had not practiced her fighting in such a long time, her muscles protested moving during the night. As she checked her left arm for any stray dirt or grass, she felt the rest of the dirt and grime wash away. Winry stood there for what seemed like forever and let the water trail down her under the showerhead, and didn't bother to move her hair that fell in front of her face.
Reluctantly, Winry reached down to turn the water off a few minutes later, and grabbed a towel to dry off. She wrapped one around her, and used the other one to wrap her hair in. Not worrying about anyone seeing her since the bathroom was connected to her room she walked into her room and sat on the bed. She could see the shadows from the setting sun coming through the drapes covering her windows. The wind blew gently through the window, as she usually left it open at nighttimes in the fall. After listening to the calmness for a moment, Winry stood up and walked over to her dresser and pulled out a long-sleeved shirt. It wasn't a heavy fabric, which she liked since she could wear it even during the summer and not roast. She slipped the clingy green shirt over her tiny frame, grabbed a pair of complementing jeans to go with it, and put on her boots. Instinctively she grabbed her alchemist watch from her nightstand and attached it to her belt loop, and stuffed it in her pocket.
Winry grabbed the towel and continued to pat her hair dry as she walked over to the window and opened the drapes. She grabbed a nearby brush and ran it through her damp hair as she noticed the scene before her. The setting sun seemed to be on fire as it lowered itself beneath the mountains in the distance, and she found it to calm her nerves. An idea popped into her head and she ran out of her room to yell over the railing, "Grams, how much longer until dinner?"
"At least another 15 to 20 minutes. Don't worry, it's not much longer!"
Winry smiled at the response and returned to her room. Moving the drapes out of her way, she sat on the windowsill with her legs dangling over the edge. Looking out, Winry saw the familiar, old tree that grew next to the house, and reached out to a big branch. Winry pulled herself off of the windowsill and dangled by her arms from the large limb. After a few swings of her legs, the teenager got the momentum to swing up and straddle the branch, laying flat to gain balance for the moment. Crawling over to the trunk of the tree, Winry crawled up a few more limbs until reaching a very large one that grew over the house. Hanging onto the branch with just her hands, she used them to move herself over until she was finally able to drop gently onto the rooftop. She walked over to the front of the house facing the sunset and sat down on the roof to enjoy the scenery.
"You just don't do anything the easy way, do you?" came a voice from below, causing the girl to jump slightly.
Scooting down to the edge, Winry looked down to see Second Lieutenant Havoc smoking a cigarette on the second story balcony. Smiling at his sarcasm, the girl shook her head, "Why should I? What would I gain from doing everything the easy and most convenient way?"
Nodding his head at her answer, Havoc took a drag from his cigarette, "That's very true. Sometimes I wonder how you're still a teenager…"
Winry blushed at the comment and swung her legs over the side, letting them move back and forth gently, "I guess I've had to grow up fast these last few years."
Neither person said anything for the next several minutes; each enjoying the scene before them.
"I'm so used to the city," Havoc finally said softly after more silence, "that it always fascinates me to see something like this." He looked up to see the sun shining through the girl's now dry hair, the wind letting pieces escape and flow in the small breezes. He smiled as he realized the girl was lost in her own thoughts; her hand reaching up to stroke the small pendant that hung around her neck.
"You're not the only one who has grown up fast, you know…" Jean said louder, bringing the girl from her thoughts. "When Edward joined as a State Alchemist, we all thought he was nothing more than a 12 year old brat who thought he knew everything," he said, taking another drag of his cigarette, "And now, at 16, he still is a brat who thinks he knows everything." The comment caused the teenager to smile slightly in acknowledgment.
"But, when you look at him, you can tell he's grown up too. He fights for what he believes in, and for the people he loves," Havoc continued, looking back out to the sunset.
"Yeah, he does…" replied the girl quietly.
Silence surrounded the area once again for a few moments, until it was interrupted by Pinako yelling throughout the house that dinner was finally ready. Winry placed her hands on the edge of the rooftop preparing to jump down, when she noticed Jean flick his cigarette away and reach his hands up to help her down. Blushing, she let him help her down and stood next to him for a moment.
"He will come back for you, you know," the older man said as he looked down to Winry.
"What do you mean? I don't know what you're talking about," the girl said as she turned away to open the balcony door.
"I saw it on your necklace today when I was checking it over for damage. If I know him like I think I do, I know he will come back for you."
Winry paused at the door and looked down at the knob, "Yeah, I know him too. I just hope we're right." The girl turned around and jumped into Havoc's arms to give him a big hug, "Thanks, Jean. It really helps to know someone else thinks the same thing." Hesitant at first, the soldier finally relaxed and hugged the girl back.
"You're welcome, Winry."
The two comrades released each other from their hug and exited the balcony to enjoy dinner with Fury and Pinako. Winry heard the phone ring as she walked down the stairs and heard her grandmother speaking to someone.
"Yes, of course, Lieutenant. I understand. I'll leave on the first train in the morning. You say Armstrong will be there waiting? Well, okay, fine. I'll see you in a day or so…"
Winry walked up to her grandmother, "What's wrong? What happened?"
Pinako slowly hung up the phone on its hook and looked at the worried girl. "It seems Edward and Alphonse are both injured from a fight in Central. Lieutenant Hawkeye didn't go into details at the moment, though I'm sure she will later, but says that Edward's arm isn't working, and he needs it to be fixed, so he can put Al back together." She heard Winry gasp and clasp her hand over her mouth. Looking up, Pinako could see as the girl's other hand instinctively went to the necklace, "It's not a severe as it sounds, but they are unable to travel here, so it is required of me to go there. I'll pack after we eat, and leave in the morning."
"Grams, I think I'm ready to go back to Central as well. My arm's better, so I believe I can start my missions again," voiced Winry after a moment of stunned silence from everyone. "I need to stock up on automail parts anyway, and I can show you where all the shops are at in case you'd like to look around."
The elder woman eyed the girl suspiciously, "I thought you didn't want to be anywhere around him for awhile, child?"
Winry lowered her head and tried to hide her face, "I'm not. I'm going to restock and head directly to Colonel Mustang for my next assignment. I made a promise to myself and I'm not going to break it," she finally said after being silent.
Pinako still stared at the girl for a few moments, before finally smiling and placing her hand on Winry's shoulder, causing her to lift her head, "Well, I guess we all better eat and get a good night's rest for tomorrow's trip then!"
Smiling at her grandmother, Winry nodded, then took her seat at the table and dished out food for everyone before digging into her own.
"Well, I guess I'll call the Colonel after we finish, to let him know that we'll be on our way tomorrow too. That should give him enough time to set you up with another assignment," Havoc said as he began to eat the piece of chicken in front of him. Winry nodded at this information, and turned to her grandmother, "I'm going to up in the workshop for a little while tonight, so don't stay up for me."
"Why dear? You don't have any more adjustments to make to your arm or leg…" Pinako responded.
"I know, I've just have something to take care of, that's all…"