After telling Winry everything, Manami and the Elric brothers got another car to take them back to the hotel. It was a booth car like last time, so Manami sat with Winry on one side, while Ed and Al sat on the other.
It was silent the entire way back. Winry stared out the window in a trance, while everyone else either looked at their laps or out their window as well.
Nobody knew what to say.
Winry's words rung in Manami's head, over and over again.
"I just wish… they got to come back home alive."
The car stopped at the hotel and they went to get out and walk inside.
"Ah, Miss Rockbell, perfect timing. You have a phone call."
"Huh? For me?" Winry walked over to take the phone from the man at the front desk and put it to her ear.
"Hello? Mr. Garfiel.." Her eyes widened a little. "Huh? Oh, hi there…"
There was a pause, and Manami could barely see a small smile form on Winry's lips.
"I'm sorry… I'll come back right away… thank you everyone…"
She went to hang the phone up, turning to look back at Ed, Al, and Manami.
"They need me back in Rush Valley…" She smiled a little. "So, I think I should leave now."
"Oh, okay." Ed nodded. That was probably for the best.
"Here's the schedule for today's trains." The desk man handed her a pamphlet.
"Thank you. Manami, could you help me pack up?" Winry turned to look to the brunette, who blinked.
The way she asked that sounded like she wanted to talk to her privately.
"Uh, yeah." Manami nodded, then went to walk with Winry upstairs. Manami glanced back to Ed and Al, meeting Ed's glance for a moment, but then he turned his head.
She could tell that he still felt bad.
The two girls went into their room and shut the door behind them. Winry immediately started by pulling out her bag and reaching for anything she knew was hers.
"..." Manami found a few things of hers as well, and went to gather them up.
"Manami?" She looked up to see Winry looking up at her.
"What is it?"
"I just want to say thanks… for coming back, and for helping Ed and Al on their journey." Winry said, making Manami blink a few times in surprise.
"I mean… if you wanna call what I do helpful…" She chuckled weakly.
"I do." Winry frowned at her. "... that man… he looked like was going to kill Ed when he got in front of me to protect me. But… you showed up and got him away from us before he could."
"..." Manami went to hand what she gathered of Winry's things to her. "I'm just glad I got there in time…"
Winry hummed in response, offering a small smile. She went to pack a few more things before she paused.
"I have a question," Winry said. "Have you noticed anything different… about Ed... or Al?"
Manami tilted her head, not quite understanding.
"Uhh… no? I don't think so." She shook her head. "Why? Do you?"
"N-No!" Winry huffed, her cheeks turning pink now. "I-I mean… I don't know, maybe? Ed's just seemed a little different to me lately..."
"Is that why you stopped in the middle of the hallway the other day?" Manami asked. "To check him out?"
"Don't say it like that…" Winry shook her head.
Manami was quiet for a moment, but then she smirked.
"Oh… I see."
"See what?!" Winry squeaked, her whole face turning pink now.
"Nothing… but you're awfully flustered, Win." Manami sneered.
"Because you're freaking me out!"
Manami laughed. "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me."
"Well how about your secret?" Winry retorted. "I recall that I had to lie the other day about why I turned both Ed and Al down when we were kids."
"Ah—" Manami's smirk immediately disappeared, the color fading from her face.
"Th-that was several years ago!"
"So you mean to say that you liked Al all those years ago, right?"
"This is about you, not me…" Manami averted her eyes.
"And now I'm asking you." Winry wasn't letting the topic go.
"Don't you have a train to go catch?" Manami snapped.
"I'm serious! Do you still have feelings for him?"
"..." Manami said nothing, feeling her jaw tick as she kept her eyes glued to the floor.
"I knew it!" Winry sneered.
"... so what?" Manami spat, her tone suddenly cold, taking Winry by surprise. "It's not like it'll go any further than that."
Winry stared at her in shock, not knowing what to say.
"Things have changed..." Manami turned her back to her. "He's got more important things to worry about than dealing with something like that… even if, I have no right to even fantasize that he would."
She gritted her teeth. "That ship sailed when I left Resembool… it was a childhood fantasy, and that's that."
Winry's eyes saddened. "... I-I'm sorry, Manami… I didn't think it…" She trailed off, feeling overwhelmed with guilt.
It started as a joke for the most part, but now... she could tell that this had really upset Manami.
Manami resisted the urge to sigh. She knew that Winry didn't mean any harm...
"... it's okay…" She turned to look back at childhood friend, forcing a believable smile.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to get so snappy, there…"
"No, I understand…" Winry swallowed. "I just… I don't think you should give up so easily, that's all."
"There's nothing easy about it. Feelings are stupid and complicated." Manami went to hand her one more thing that she noticed at that moment. "But I'll get over it. Right now, we all need to focus on helping Ed and Al get their bodies back... nothing else matters."
Before Winry could respond, Manami spoke again. "More importantly, we should get you to the train station if you're wanting to get to Rush Valley tonight."
The walk to the train station was quiet. Everyone had a lot on their minds. As they approached Winry's train, Ed finally spoke up.
"You sure you'll be alright by yourself?" He asked quietly.
"Yeah," Winry answered. "Garfiel said he would meet me at the station when I arrive there."
They made it to Winry's train, where they watched her board and then met her where she poked her head out of a window.
"Hey, guys…" She started. "Thanks… for stopping me back there. If I had done it… I wouldn't have been able to face the people who needed me."
"Of course…" Al said softly.
"I expect you to take good care of your automail, Ed." Winry looked to Ed.
"You got it." Ed gave her a thumbs up.
"And Al, when I get to Rush Valley, I'll send some good polishing oil for you."
"Great, thanks!"
"And Manami..." Winry's blue eyes met Manami's chocolate ones. "About what we talked about earlier... I still don't think you should give up."
Manami's eyes widened a little, but she quickly put on a dismissive expression and waved her hand.
"We'll see."
"..." Ed looked between the girls for a moment, before he sighed softly through his nose.
"Listen, Winry… next time I..." He continued to speak, but the train whistle blew and his words were lost in the loud ring.
Even Manami and Al couldn't hear him.
"Huh?" Winry tried yelling over it, putting a hand to her ear. "I couldn't hear you!"
Ed's face curled into a frown and he whipped around to walk away.
"Wait, Ed!" Winry called, but he didn't stop.
"Bye, Winry! Wait, brother!" Al went to run after Ed, Manami following.
"See ya, Win." She waved.
"Wait! What did you say Ed?!"
Her words reached him, because he stopped, pausing for a moment before whipping back around to yell back at her.
"The next time I make you cry, you'll be crying tears of joy!" He pointed at her. "We'll get our bodies back and you'll be crying from sheer happiness! Don't you forget it!"
"..." Winry couldn't help but smile and laugh as she waved back to him.
"Bye guys!"
The train started to take off, and the trio gave one last wave before turning to walk away.
"What was that all about?" Al asked, going to nudge his brother with his elbow.
"It just felt like the right thing to say..!" Ed shoved back. "I just didn't want to repeat it!" Ed turned his head, looking back at Manami who didn't seem like she was paying attention.
"Hey, Manami."
"Hmm?"
"What did Winry mean, that you shouldn't give up?" Ed asked as they made their way out of the train station and began walking along the street.
"Mm…" Manami shrugged, closing her eyes. "Girl stuff."
"Huh?" Ed blinked. "Why are you being so vague?"
"Why are you being so nosy?" Manami replied, without skipping a beat. "We talked about something personal, and I don't think neither of us would be happy if we just blabbed about it to whoever. That's all…"
"Girls are weird." Ed huffed.
"You can say that again." Al concurred.
"Oh shut up," Manami rolled her eyes. "More importantly… we have somewhere to be soon." She went to pull the note from her breast pocket and opened it up.
They were coordinates. She assumed that they would lead to the spot to where the Homunculus was being held. Before anything more could be said, a car pulled up next to them on the road. The driver looked over to them, revealing to be Roy Mustang.
"Get in the car."
"..." Manami's eyes narrowed. The last time she saw Roy was at Maes's grave, after she found out that he had lied to him about his death. She didn't know if she was still mad at him or not, but she definitely knew she had left things on an awkward note.
She looked over to see Ed reaching for the door behind the driver's seat, which meant that Al would probably squeeze in next to him in the back… leaving her to sit in the passenger seat with Roy. She resisted the urge to sigh as she walked around the front of the car, reaching for the passenger's door and opening it so that she could climb in. She clicked her seat belt, keeping her eyes forward and not saying a word.
Roy shared the same sentiment as she did… so he said nothing as he also kept his eyes forward and drove.
On the way, Roy stopped at someone else's house to pick them up. All he said about him was that his name was "Knox," and that he was a doctor.
Manami squeezed in the back with Ed and Al so that this Knox guy could have the passenger seat with Roy. The tight squeeze was a lot more bearable than the awkward tension with Roy up front.
They made it to their location as the sun began to set. It appeared to be an abandoned house, with the exterior wood rotting and no lights on.
Everyone went to walk inside, where they saw a single lantern's light flickering. Riza came out from a room and approached them.
"She's in here," She gestured to the room she came from, leading everyone to it. They then saw Ling sitting at the bedside of Lan Fan, who seemed to be unconscious. Her shoulder was messily wrapped in what looked like his shirt.
And there was no arm under it.
"!" Ed and Manami's eyes widened in surprise, Al audibly gasping behind them.
"Alright, let's get started. Anyone who's squeamish, get out." Knox sighed, putting his bag on the end of the bed and opening it up to reveal a bunch of tools.
He was about to perform surgery.
"..." Ling stood up and went to leave the room quietly, brushing past Ed, Al, and Manami without a word.
Manami turned to watch him leave the room. It was odd seeing him this quiet, but it was even more unnerving to see him this serious. She went to exit the room and follow him, sitting a few feet away from the door, his back against the wall.
"Ling… are you okay..?" She asked him.
"…" Ling said nothing, but he nodded.
Ed and Al soon joined them out in the hall. They saw Ling flinch when he heard Lan Fan start screaming, through what sounded like some kind of cloth in her mouth to muffle her voice. After some time, Ling looked up to the Manami and the Elric brothers with a weary expression.
"You don't have to look at me like that…" He said. "With such apologetic faces."
"But, we…"
"I suggested doing this." Ling cut Ed off. "We both had something to gain out of it. I accepted that in order to gain immortality, I would have to make some kind of sacrifice…"
Lan Fan continued screaming. Manami saw Ling's fists clench.
"But I… I wasn't ready for this. I was naive… but Lan Fan, she made the choice that I was too weak to make."
"Don't be too hard on yourself." Manami spoke up. "She will get through this, and so will you."
"Wind." Manami behind her to see Roy approaching them. "A minute?"
He gestured his head towards the back door, meaning that he wanted to talk with her in private. She blinked in surprise, then slowly nodded. Ed and Al turned to watch as they walked together out the back door to stand outside. They were quiet for a few moments, before Roy finally spoke up.
"Alright…" Roy turned to face her. "I just want to address the elephant in the room."
Manami held back a sigh and crossed her arms, avoiding his eyes as she listened to him continue.
"I'm not asking for your forgiveness, but I still owe you and apology for lying about… Hughes's death."
"... it's behind us now." Manami shook her head. "But, since we're already on the topic, I will ask… why did you think it was a good idea to lie to us in the first place?"
"..." Roy's eyes narrowed and he turned his head. "At the time, I thought I was sparing you."
"But we were bound to find out." Manami said. "That's what I don't understand."
Roy sighed. "I know… I've thought a lot about it since we last saw each other. At the time, I thought I was easing the blow… but really, it was because I didn't know how to tell you while trying to accept it myself. So I lied."
Manami was quiet for a moment.
"Colonel…" She met his eyes as he looked back at her. "As long as I've known you, you've always told me that you're our commanding officer, not our dad. It's your job to give this kind of stuff to us straight, and not sugarcoat anything."
Roy chuckled weakly. "Hearing you even say the word 'dad' makes my skin crawl."
"But I'm right," Manami offered a small smile. "Just because we're kids, doesn't mean we need to be babied."
"You're right…" Roy sighed.
"..." Manami went to rub the back of her neck. "I spent that whole time being mad at you… to where I didn't ask how you felt about it."
Roy looked back at her for a moment before turning his head to look at Central City in the distance, the lights from Central HQ pointing high in the sky.
"Death is never easy for anyone… but, this really opened my eyes as to why you kids broke the taboo."
"..." Manami felt a shiver run down her spine. "You weren't thinking of actually…"
"Of course not. But that feeling of hopelessness... desperation... wanting to do anything I could to bring him back…" Roy looked back at her with a hardened expression. "I finally felt that."
"..." Manami looked down to her feet.
"I won't break the taboo, but I will find the monster who killed them." Roy said. "That much is certain."
"Al mentioned that you're wanting to avenge him…" Manami said quietly, stuffing her hands in her pockets now.
"Don't you?" Roy asked her. His tone was cold, to where it made the hair stand on the back of her neck.
"..." Manami stayed quiet, thinking back to when she last talked to Al. His words rung in her head.
"The look on the Colonel's face... I don't ever want to see that same look on your face..!"
"If never getting my body back would mean preventing any more people dying and keeping you from becoming a murderer... then that's something I would be willing to sacrifice..!"
"So… if and when you find whoever killed him… do you plan to kill them?" She finally looked back up to him.
"..." Roy turned his head. He opened his mouth to say something, but the door behind them suddenly flew open.
"?!"
"It's done." Knox stepped out, his voice gruff.
"Thank you, Doctor." Roy turned to face him and bowed his head.
"Was I interrupting somethin'?" Knox asked, eyeing the two of them.
"No, we were only chatting. Just finished up actually." Roy answered, and he went to walk with Knox inside.
Manami stayed behind to watch them walk inside, before sighing to herself.
"I got a bad feeling…" She mumbled to herself, before going to follow them.