Sorry this took so long, kids. I'm a loser. I ended up being upset with myself for these chapters. I'm crying inside. Have fun, enjoy, and the next update should be up sooner because I'm actually going wild on this one right now.

--

I didn't want to touch it, but Winry eased it into my arms.

"This is Victoria. I named her after Victor because he was just so excited."

I cringed at the little thing… she did look like that big-cheeked ass. "She's pretty," I grumbled.

"Thank you!" Winry sat across from me, taking out some sowing.

I started to wish that Al was in the room so I could ditch the kid with him. But no. Even after he spent hours talking me into staying, he just goes and leaves me for Victor for the day. Idiot.

"You know… you do remind me of someone."

"Huh?" I looked at Winry, her eyes fixed on her sowing.

"When I was little, I grew up with a boy who looked," she giggled, "and acted a lot like you."

"What happened to him?"

"He died… a zeppelin exploded and…" she dropped her sowing into her lap.

My face went white. It was the other me… the other me that I got killed.

"And it's funny… when we were kids, we'd joke that we would get married when we were older… but it wasn't until after he died that I realized it wasn't joking."

"Then why marry Victor?" I could hear the anger rising in my voice and it surprised me.

"It's foolish to stop living your own life just because someone leaves you."

"But you loved him!"

"And because he loved me, I know he would have wanted me to move on."

"No, he wouldn't," I hissed, my anger now boiling.

"I never should have said anything." She brought her sewing back into her hands, stabbing at it viciously.

I tried to calm myself down. This wasn't the real Winry. What she chose to do with her life was her business. I could almost laugh at myself. As if the real Winry's life was my business? "Can I… tell you a story?"

She finally looked up at me, her face unsure. "What is it about?"

"Another world."

--

We spent years there. After I had told Winry the story about our world… she insisted we stay until we could figure out how to get the hell back. I wasn't too keen on it, but again, Al gave me a talking to until I finally agreed. It wasn't until Winry had her third child that I finally found a hope… a horrible hope.

"He's sick," she whispered to me, clutching the baby to her. "Victor said… said he won't survive." I could hear the sobs she was hiding behind her voice.

"What?" I stood up from a pile of books, my eyes wide with fear.

"My baby," she looked down to the bundle in her arms. "Didn't you say… that you could open the gate with a child?"

"What are you saying?"

"He'll die any day now… maybe today, even. I couldn't even bring myself to give him a name." She walked over to me and forced him into my arms. I'd gotten used to the idea of holding children at this point, but when I looked down I could see the abnormal look of the boy; his pale white skin tinged with grey, the blue and black circles around his eyes, his labored breathing.

"Winry, don't."

She touched the baby's forehead, a small squeak of a cry coming from the baby's mouth. "She… she would do anything for you… she would do this for you, give up anything so that you could do what you needed to do." She moved her hand from the baby to the side of my face. "I don't want his short life to be a waste. I want him to do something great."

"Winry, you can't know for sure that he's going to die! I might even be able to help him, I don't know." I was stammering, looking at the tiny fragile body in my arms. "You shouldn't sacrifice your child for me!"

She turned her back to me, walking for the door. "If I couldn't save the Edward I loved… I want to save the Edward she loves." Winry stood there, her hand on the door, as if she couldn't will herself to open it.

I closed my eyes, but the picture of the child was still there, trapped on my eyelids. "Alright." I gritted my teeth in attempts to keep the tears back. "Just tell Al to come up here."

"I will." She opened the door and started to walk through slowly.

"Winry." She froze. Could I do this? Can I kill this child to get back to her? Is that equivalent exchange? "Goodbye."

--

I didn't think Al was ever going to forgive me and the silence as we walked through town after town made me almost positive of that. He only spoke to me when we entered Resembool. "Edward."

"Yeah, Al?"

"Is this worth it?"

"Don't, Al." I placed a hand on his shoulder. "I did it."

"I let you."

"Al, I said don't." He turned to look at me. "Winry… she told me…"

"I told you what?" I heard that sweet chirp behind me and my heart leapt into my throat. I turned around to see her standing there, her grocery bag tucked under her arm, her eyes glistening with tears.

"Winry…"

She smiled weakly, and I could see her body trembling slightly. "When did you two get back?"

I mentally pushed my heart back into place, forcing a goofy smile on my face. "Don't pretend like you're not happy to see us."

"Edward…" Winry rushed into my arms, her grocery bag banging me in the side. I blamed the breathlessness on the smack from her sack.

"You may want to give Al a hug, too. He may get jealous." Winry detached from me and clutched Al to her.

"Who are these guys?" I turned around sharply, about to give whatever jackass said that a piece of my mind, but the blood froze in my veins.

"Victor, these are my two childhood friends, Alphonse and Edward Elric." Winry walked over to Victor, wrapping an arm around his waist.

"Heard so much about you." He held out a hand but I didn't extend mine, my muscles refusing to move. It's the same. I… failed.

Winry's face grew uncomfortable as Victor's hand just hung there, waiting. "Um… Victor, I'll see you tomorrow. I better just take these two home." She stood on the tip of her toes and they kissed, my whole body feeling as if it were turning into a puddle.

Winry took one of my hands and one of Al's and started leading us down the street.

"How long have you two been…?" I couldn't bring myself to finish the sentence.

"We've only been dating for a couple months," she answered quietly.

"That's great, Winry! Victor's a great guy!" I shot a glare at Alphonse.

"Well, thanks, Al." Winry gave him a strange smile and pulled us along at a faster pace. "Come on, Pinako is going to want to see you!"

--

I sat at the window, staring at Winry and that jackass sitting on the swing.

"What are you looking at?"

I turned my head slightly and saw Al. "Nothing." I opened a book in front of me and pretended to read, hoping that Al would just drop it.

"What are you going to do?"

"Nothing."

"But, Ed-"

"I'm not doing anything about them. It's Winry's life."

"Ed, you love her!"

I laughed softly and bowed my head. "Can't keep anything from you, can I?"

"You were sick to see the other Winry and Victor together… but you can do something about this one."

"Al, it's none of my business."

"Idiot."

"Alphonse!" I turned around, probably about to pummel him, but saw Pinako behind him. "Pinako… when did you come in?"

"I've been here long enough to hear how much of an idiot you are."

Al struggled not to laugh.

"It's none of my business." I stood up and started to walk for the door. "And how I feel about her is none of your business."

Pinako hit me, and hit me hard. I found myself on the ground, seeing stars. "She better be your business. She's cried over you idiots a million times. She deserves a little happiness."

"And she'll get that with Victor." I pulled myself up and continued for the door, opening it. Winry was standing there, her hand outreached for the door. "Hey."

"Hi, Ed."

I looked at her face for a moment. She seemed… sad. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she whispered, not very convincing.

"Good." I walked past her and started down the path from the house.

"Edward!"

I turned and she was still standing there. "Don't worry; I'll be back for dinner."

--

Everything was black. I couldn't sleep, so instead was sitting in the kitchen, staring at the darkness, for once unable to think.

The door clicked open, but I could not bring myself to look, especially when the light was turned on and I was blinded. "Waiting up for me?"

"I couldn't sleep."

Winry came to the table where I was sitting and sat across from me. "Well, I'm glad you worry."

I shrugged. "Where you out with him?"

"No, out with some friends. I would have invited you…"

"But you knew I wouldn't go."

"Right." She leaned back in the chair. "Do you like Victor?"

I felt like I'd been hit. I can't answer that. "Shouldn't I be asking you that question?"

"I wouldn't be with him if I didn't. But I was asking you what you thought of him."

"He's fine, if you like a big cheeked jackass," I grumbled.

"Edward…"

"I don't really know him, so I have nothing to say." I stood up and began to walk for the stairs, stopping as the phone began to ring.

"I'll get it. Just go up and try to get some sleep." I watched as Winry stood and picked up the phone, spewing one of her sweet greetings.

I turned from the stairs and walked for the living room instead, sure that I was never going to get to sleep tonight. My ears perked as I could hear her yelling, but I tried to lie down and drown it out with my arms over my ears. Suddenly, her stomping feet started ringing through the house, finally ending in the living room. She stood in front of me, her hands on her hips. "What did you say to him?"

"To who?" I moved my arms from my head, closing my eyes to avoid her stare.

"Victor. What did you say to him?"

"I never talked to him."

"When you left yesterday, when you walked out, you went to see him, didn't you?"

"No."

"Don't lie to me, Edward!"

"I said I didn't."

"You're impossible!" She leaned down, her face close to mine. "Look me in the eyes and tell me you didn't talk to him."

I opened my eyes slowly, focusing on her face. "I didn't say a word to him."

"You're such a liar!" I felt the sting of her hand hitting my cheek.

I sat up, my face burning. "He broke up with you, didn't he?"

"You did talk to him!"

"No, I'm just damn good at figuring out why you're out of your mind!" I rubbed my hands over my face. "Did you ever think that he could have done that on his own?"

"He didn't! He wouldn't!" The tears were raining from her eyes. "You had to have talked to him."

"Fine." I threw my hands up in the air. "If that's what you want to believe, then do it, Winry. Because all I want to do is make you miserable."