Chapter 14

At The End Of All Things

The war now over, the Resistance disbanded slowly over a period of several months. Winry worked hard to make sure no one would be left in the cold – sending people to their old hometowns, helping them search for any remaining family lost in the war, ensuring they could provide for themselves.

Watching as her followers slowly bled away, some part of Winry was relieved – her decisions no longer determined the fate of thousands of lives – but another part was bereft; the emptiness a shepherd felt when he let his flock wander into the highlands for the summer, the emptiness only another leader would understand.

In Central, the Dissidents were trying to rebuild the economy, but on the shoulders of a democratic government this time, with Roy Mustang as the driving force behind the movement. Breda's most recent letter had confessed such a government had been the Major General's ultimate goal for some time, but Roy always expected to be executed for war crimes after it was enstated.

Winry couldn't help thinking that after what Roy had done for the democracy and for Amestris, no one would dare execute him.

"Vharla?"

Winry turned, folding Breda's latest letter in her hand. "Something wrong, Scar?"

Scar looked at her, a small bundle resting in his arms, seeming strangely ill at ease. Winry could count on one hand the number of times she'd actually seen Scar like this, and it usually precluded some catastrophic disaster.

"What's wrong?" she repeated.

Scar shifted the bundle in his grasp, and with a start, Winry realised that the Ishbalan was carrying what few belongings he actually owned. In an abrupt flash, she understood.

"You're leaving," she said simply.

Scar nodded. "I need to."

"Why?"

Scar didn't answer for a long time, and Winry knew he was thinking it over, trying to give her as honest an answer as possible. "I was following a false ideal for a long time, Vharla. I then pledged myself to your ideal when mine failed, and now I need to find my own."

"Although," he added. "If you need me to stay..."

"I don't need you to stay," Winry assured him. "I just wanted to make sure you were leaving for the right reasons."

Scar seemed to be thinking deeply, treading carefully over his words as he struggled to express himself.

"It's intriguing," he said at last. "I thought I had reached an understanding of this world and my place in it, but then you stole into my life...and everything changed."

Winry grinned. "We're a long way from where we started, aren't we? A scared, vengeful girl with a gun she barely knew how to use, facing down a self-proclaimed killer of alchemists."

Scar's eyes were sombre. "To know you as that girl, and see the woman you are now...I would not recognise you."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Perhaps both." Scar's smile was bittersweet.

Winry smiled, and then in the most intimate contact she'd ever initiated with Scar or ever seen the Ishbalan engaged in, she embraced him. Any contact with Scar always seemed to reinforce how big he was – her arms couldn't encircle his chest, while just one of his hands could cradle the back of her head with ease.

"I do not know what my future holds, let alone yours...but I wish you happiness," Scar murmured. "Farewell...Winry."

It was the first time he ever used her real name. Taking her cue, Winry released him, allowing him to draw back. She watched as he turned and walked away, heading into the distance, into whatever awaited him.

"You better write, you hear me?" she called after him. "I don't care if you're in the middle of nowhere, I expect a letter at least once a month. Even if you're away for twenty years – there better be two hundred and forty letters stuffed in my desk, you hear?"

Scar half-turned, and though he was too far away for her to see his features clearly, Winry could imagine the little flicker at the side of his mouth that said he was amused. He raised his hand – a gesture of both farewell and acknowledgment. Winry imitated him.

"Bye, Scar," she whispered, even though she knew he wouldn't hear her.

Scar remained motionless for a moment, then turned away once more and walked into the horizon.

He didn't look back.

oooooooo

"So..he left?" Paninya asked, incredulous. "Just like that?"

"Just like that," Winry nodded. "Probably didn't want to deal with everyone being sentimental. I think the only reason he said goodbye to me was because he felt like he owed it to me to at least tell me that he was going."

Ed couldn't help thinking there was a probably a deeper, far more complex reason that Winry had been the only person Scar had said goodbye to. But he didn't feel like thinking it over and untangling the inscrutable man's motivations, so he let it be.

"I don't think I could do that," Paninya mused. "Just go off wandering. Rush Valley's my home – I don't want to leave, not ever."

Winry smiled fondly at her friend. "I think I'd like to leave one day. Not for a while, though – I mean, where would I go, anyway?"

Ed and Al didn't say anything. They wanted to stay here, to stay with Winry, but they knew they were only putting off the inevitable return to Central. Winry was still a leader here, of sorts, organising the rebuilding of buildings, bridges and other structures damaged by the war. She had told them they never really had a chance to reconstruct before, not with the constant attacks from the H-Faction.

Unfortunately, Ed knew it was only a matter of time before he and Al were called to help with the reconstruction in Central. But he'd wait for the official summons, and until that day came...

He was just going to enjoy being with Winry.

"What about you, Envy?" Winry asked.

The green-haired man had been uncharacteristically silent ever since Winry had informed them of Scar's departure, appearing to be deep in thought. At Winry's question, he blinked sharply as though to drag himself out of a trance.

"I think...I think I'd like to wander a little, too," Envy confessed. "I mean, old Scarface went out to find himself, so who says the same thing wouldn't work for me?"

He looked at Winry, his eyes anxious. "What do you think, boss?"

"Only you can decide," Winry said sagely.

Personally, she though it was a good idea. It would help Envy break from the pack mentality imposed on him by Father – to wander around, unattached, working only to please himself...it could only do him good. But she wanted the decision to be his and his alone. If she made it for him, she was just perpetuating that cycle of dependence.

oooooooo

Ed woke with a start. He lay still for a moment, trying to determine what had jerked him from sleep. Then he heard it – a soft sound from the hall, as though someone were moving around.

Ed slipped cautiously from his bed, listening intently.

The light in the corridor snapped on and someone yelled. Ed fought the instinctive urge to barrel recklessly into a confrontation, and instead pressed his eye against a small crack between the door and the jamb, trying to see what was happening...

For a moment, surprise made his brain blank. Winry had twisted Envy's arm up behind his back and was currently pressing the man's face into the wall. A small suitcase at their feet told Ed that Winry had caught Envy sneaking out.

"You weren't trying to leave without saying goodbye, were you?" Winry asked, her tone deceptively casual.

"Uh...no?" Envy tried.

"Smart boy."

Winry released him and Envy stepped away from the wall, rubbing his arm. "Damn, you can really be violent sometimes, boss."

"Only to friends who try to sneak out in the dead of night."

"I don't like goodbyes," Envy muttered petulantly.

Winry sighed. "Goodbyes aren't for the sake of those who are leaving...they're for the sake of the people left behind."

Ed winced, remembering how many times in the past he had been guilty of not saying goodbye.

He made an effort not to get lost in his memories in favour of listening in on the conversation. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop...but he couldn't help his curiosity. He'd never quite understood how or why Envy ended up on their side, and he supposed this lack of understanding made him greedy for any knowledge about the man he could possibly glean.

"...you'll find plenty of pretty girls that your flirtations will actually work on," Winry was telling him. "And I expect you to write frequently, at least once a month."

"I'll write," Envy nodded, than added with a lewd grin, "I expect you and Fullmetal to have a whole pack of kids when I next come to visit."

Winry cuffed him lightly around the ears. Though the gesture was light-hearted, the mood somehow sobered, as each was reminded that this easy banter was no longer going to be a part of their daily lives. Winry leaned forward swiftly, catching Envy in a brief but powerful hug.

"I hope you find whatever you're looking for," Winry said a low voice.

"Yeah," Envy murmured. "I hope...I hope you're happy, Pidgeon."

Hearing the hesitation in his voice – as though wrestling with unfamiliar words – Ed couldn't help but think that was the first time Envy had honestly wished for another being's happiness.

The moment was broken when Envy purred, "Mind you, I could make you very happy."

There was no questioning his meaning. Winry dealt another light blow to his head.

"What was that for?" he wailed, trying to sound much-abused.

"If I do it hard enough, maybe I'll smack those perverted thoughts out of your head!"

"I thought you said some girl would like my flirting!"

"I'm not 'some girl', now shoo!"

They both laughed softly.

"Goodbye, Pidgeon," Envy said quietly.

"Goodbye, Envy."

Envy bent down and shouldered the small suitcase of his belongings, then walked out the door and into the night.

Winry sighed, ran a hand through her hair, then called, "You can stop eavesdropping, Ed."

Ed jumped – Winry and her carefully-honed senses were bad for his health. He considered jumping back into his bed and pleading ignorance, but common sense won out. He opened the door and stepped into the hallway.

He could sense Winry's disquiet, a soft air of worry hanging around her shoulders.

"You think Envy's going to be okay?" he asked, more for Winry's sake than any concern over the man.

"He'll be okay," Winry said, staring out the open door at the night sky. "He's starting to break out of the wolf pack mentality, but he really needs to be on his own to do that. He left for the same reason Scar did – they both need to figure out who they are."

She sighed softly, shaking her head. "Everyone is finding out who they are...and I'll have to learn to do the same."

Ed couldn't help but be concerned, remembering their conversation, so long ago, about leading normal lives.

"I'll leave Rush Valley eventually," Winry mused. "I think I'll have to go somewhere else to have any chance of moving on. There are too many memories here, you know?"

Ed couldn't find an answer, but it seemed Winry didn't need one. With another sigh, she breezed back into the darkened room behind them, bidding him a quick goodnight before pulling the blanket across her shoulders.

Lying in his bed that night, Ed couldn't help wondering if maybe, just maybe, he could help Winry lead a normal life.

Maybe they could help each other.

oooooooo

Ed had known this was coming. He had known it was only a matter of time before he and Al were called back to Central.

He just hadn't expected it to be so soon.

Barely a day after Envy had left, Breda had arrived with the official summons and orders to escort Ed and Al back to Central, where their alchemy was required in reconstruction projects.

"Isn't there..." Al bit his lip, apparently thinking things over before he tried again. "Isn't there any way we could just stay here? We've been helping the people in Rush Valley with reconstruction, doesn't that count?"

Breda shook his head. "Sorry, kid. The powers that be are adamant."

"That sucks," Paninya said bluntly.

Ed frowned. He didn't like being separated from Winry so soon after the war ended. In truth, he didn't like being separated from Winry at all. But he supposed they had little choice.

"By the way," Breda continued, "I've been told to ask Winry to accompany us."

Winry blinked. "Me?"

"You," Breda affirmed, grinning. "After the war, with the injuries and all...Central needs a skilled automail surgeon, and the Major General was insistent you get first look-in."

Winry paused, mulling it over. She didn't want to leave Paninya alone in Rush Valley, and she didn't want to abandon the reconstruction projects. But on the other hand, Kyle, Christa, Travis and little Winry would still be in Rush Valley, so the dark-haired girl would not be without company. And there were plenty of competent people in the city, so it wasn't like the reconstruction projects would collapse without her...

Not to mention a small part of her that she was studiously trying to ignore, that told her she just wanted to stay with Ed and Al. Especially Ed.

"Sounds like a good job," Winry smiled. "I'll take it."

Paninya's eyes crinkled at the corners, sorrow at her friend's departure in her dark gaze. But she understood Winry better than anyone – she knew that her friend had been far more affected by the war than she had, and knew she would have to leave Rush Valley to start putting it behind her.

Still, it didn't stop the parting hurting any less. Paninya could tell by the glittering in Winry's eyes as her friend looked at her that she wasn't the only one who was finding this difficult.

"You're coming to Central with us?" Al gaped, sounding as excited as a child in a candy store, having completely missed the silent exchange between the two women.

Winry reluctantly broke eyes contact with Paninya to flash a grin at both brothers. "Guess so. So, Ed, want to be measured for a new arm and leg? You can be the first to try out Winry Rockbell's newly-revived automail!"