Chapter 5
Anniversary
When Winry was finished, she didn't dare look Wendy in the eye. She heard her 'sister' heave a huge sigh, and bit her lip.
"Well, I'd say it's lucky you found us, then."
Winry's eyes shot to hers. "Y-you believe me?"
"I'm not saying it doesn't sound fantastic, or ridiculous...but...this sounds crazy, but it explains a lot. I always wondered why you looked so much like me, why you never acted like any of the people here..."
Wendy's words were cut off as she coughed again.
"I told you that if you wandered out in the rain, you'd catch something," Winry scolded. "Get some sleep!"
"Yes, ma'am," Wendy chuckled, giving a mock-salute.
oooooooo
But Wendy's illness didn't leave. She was still coughing two months on, when they celebrated Eddie's fourth birthday. They picnicked in the park, and watched Eddie coax the squirrels to eat nuts from his hand. And even bundled up in three layers of pure warmth, Wendy still coughed.
It fluctuated – she'd cough severely for several days, it would calm down for several days, then return with a vengeance. They managed to pay for a visit to the doctor, but there was little he could do.
Winry was desperately worried. In her time here she had learnt that the medical treatments in this world left something to be desired. Here, people died from the flu, and any infection could be fatal.
She just hoped Wendy would get better soon.
oooooooo
"Looking for a good time, sweetheart?"
Winry fought the urge to wrinkle her nose in disgust, concentrating on keeping her face expressionless as she walked to The Songbird. It was raining, she'd forgotten her coat, Wendy had been coughing too much to even get out of bed, and the last thing she needed was some jerk to make her day worse. But the drag of less-than-sober feet behind her told her the man wasn't easily discouraged.
"Come on, pretty little thing like you...not safe to be walking alone..."
'Chauvinistic pig!' Winry seethed silently. 'Assuming I'd need your protection...'
"Hey, sweetheart, I'm talking to you!"
A hand snatched at her shoulder and Winry whipped around, dislodging the grip and coming face to face with a large, heavy-set man who reeked of beer.
'Charming.'
"Stop following me!" Winry barked. "And if you touch me again, I'll break your wrist, do you understand?"
"I like 'em feisty..."
Winry rolled her eyes, and turned to go.
He grabbed her shoulder again, wrinkling the fabric of her dress. "Hey, we're not done here!"
Winry whirled, one hand coming up to close over his wrist. In one smooth movement, she yanked his arm downwards, adding an upward twist of her hand, forcing his arm and hand in opposing directions...
The bones beneath her hand cracked.
The man howled, stumbling back, his other hand cradling his wrist against his chest. "You broke my wrist!"
Winry shrugged, already walking away. "Can't say I didn't warn you."
Strange...she actually felt a little better.
'In the vast world of anger management, nothing works so well as a bit of violence.'
oooooooo
"The lovely lady has arrived!"
Winry smiled. Roy Chenang had been hired on shortly after her, as a second card dealer. With one look, Winry had known that this was obviously this world's answer to Roy Mustang. The same appearance, same manner, same basic personality...even his 'distraction' was a false eye patch.
"How's it going, Roy?"
"Much better now you're here," he purred suggestively.
Winry couldn't help but giggle. Though both knew they would never act on anything, Roy's playful flirting always managed to lift her spirits.
"Oh? And how could my presence mysteriously brighten your day?"
"To be fair, I am looking at the most beautiful woman in this house..." he gave an over-dramatic sigh. "And the only one who holds my heart..."
Winry couldn't resist teasing him a little. So she focused her gaze over his shoulder, and waved.
"Hi, Liza."
Roy spun around, and Winry laughed as his eyes scanned the room for Elizabeth Falcon, the alternate version of Riza Hawkeye. When he realised the attractive blonde in charge of the bar wasn't in the room, he turned back to Winry, who was struggling to contain her laughter.
"The only one in your heart, huh?"
Roy frowned. "That was mean."
"It was," Winry conceded. "But somehow, I'm not in the least repentant."
The day James had hired Elizabeth – or 'Liza' – to oversee the bar, Winry had practically been able to smell the crackle of attraction between her and Roy. Liza's job was to pour the drinks and send the serving girls on the rounds. She also had to keep the drunks in line, which for her, wasn't too difficult, once they'd learned the kind of power she could put into a slap and how accurate her aim was. Anyone being too rowdy could find themselves on the receiving end of a thick tin cup hurled like a bullet from a gun.
Winry was jerked out of her thoughts when the door to the supply room banged open. Liza strode in, already lining up the various bottles of alcohol.
"Hello, Winry," she smiled, "Ready for work?"
"As always," Winry muttered.
She fiddled with her dress, releasing the hidden clasp that secured the front of it. The neckline dropped, plunging sharply towards her navel, both sides meeting just under her breasts, the white, V-shaped scar of her namesake easily displayed. Roy pulled on his false eye patch, and they split up, heading towards their respective tables, while Liza began to clean some of the cups at the bar.
oooooooo
"Feeling lucky, sir?" Winry winked as the man in front of her placed a hefty wad of cash on the table.
Once, she couldn't have pictured herself like this – using her 'feminine wiles' to lure in customers. But she had swiftly learned that this was the way to earn her paycheck. And now, she could achieve a sense of detachment from her actions – the way she imagined an actor in a play would.
Taking a brief break from the tables, she deliberately brushed past Roy on her way to the bar.
"Eyes on the table, Roy, not boring holes in some poor drunk's back," Winry murmured under her breath as she passed him.
She'd noticed the scorching looks Roy had been throwing towards the bar, concentrated on the inebriated man obviously attempting to flirt with Liza. If the look on her face was anything to go by, she was less than impressed.
Winry slid onto her stool, smiling at the older woman's clear exasperation. "Could you give me some water, Liza?"
"Sure thing, Winry."
Winry sipped the cool liquid, moistening her parched throat. "You know, Liza," she began, a note of cunning in her voice. "Roy's been staring at you all day."
"Huh?" Liza's eyes flicked towards Roy's table.
As though sensing he was caught, the dark-haired man snapped his head back towards his cards.
Liza blinked in surprise. "What does he want?"
"Well, he saw that guy flirting with you...I think he was jealous."
Winry saw Liza's eyes light up for a split second, before she looked away from the female dealer. "Why? God knows, he has enough women hanging off his arm...why would he be jealous of me?"
Winry drank her water and hid her smile.
oooooooo
Winry stretched out on the bed, yawning. She was tired, and with another yawn, she prepared to flip over and fall asleep...
Her hand fumbled on the nightstand, and knocked something onto the floor.
Sitting up, Winry retrieved Ed's journal from the floor, idly flicking through it. She'd read through it, of course...for all the good that had done her. It had to be written in some kind of code – that was the only explanation she could come up with for the apparently random collection of names and words sprinkled across each page.
Some she recognised, some she didn't. It seemed that Ed's code was comprised of the names of places, of objects...and of people.
Winry had been surprised to see her own name appearing in the book. She'd tried to puzzle it out – what had Ed used her name to represent? Eventually, she'd come to the conclusion that her name must be some sort of code for his automail – there was nothing else that made sense.
So Ed had used her name to refer to his automail...but what about the others?
With a soft sigh, Winry ran her fingers across the ink-stained pages one last time. Then she shut the book, placing it reverently on the bedside table before dousing the lamp, pulling the blankets over herself, and closing her eyes.
oooooooo
When Winry woke up, she knew something was important about today, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Flipping through her mental calendar, she still came up blank. Eddie's birthday was past. Wendy's birthday was past – as was her own. Liza and Roy's engagement party was next week...
At that thought, Winry allowed herself a slight smile.
It had been four months since she'd caught Roy acting jealous, however slightly, over Liza. She couldn't pinpoint exactly what had been the catalyst for their relationship, but supposed it didn't really matter. They were engaged now. Winry had learnt that in this world, engagements happened very early in the relationship, but felt no real concerns. They just seemed so...right.
Finally, when she plodded into the kitchen and checked the real calendar, it hit her. This was her anniversary.
She'd been in this world for one year.
oooooooo
"You okay?" Liza asked as Winry stared at her glass of water, her eyes distant.
"Fine...just thinking..."
"You sure there's nothing wrong?"
"Why would you think something's wrong?"
"Maybe because James came in the back door, and has been trying to wave you over to him for the last five minutes?"
Winry's head snapped up. Sure enough, the owner of The Songbird was gesturing frantically at her. She slid off her stool and went to him.
"What's the matter? You could have just walked up to me..." Winry's voice when she saw the look in James's eyes.
"I wanted to speak to you privately..." James bit his lip, and Winry sucked in a breath when she realised he looked on the verge of crying.
"What's wrong?"
"Winry...Wendy's dead."
