Unspoken
Winry was lying in bed. That same dream, again, of that memory from about ten years ago. She sighed and sat up. She'd had that dream nearly every night since Ed and Al had arrived. She blinked and looked at her clock. Ten thirty. She stood up and stretched. A lot had happened in the past five and a half months since Ed had returned.
Firstly, Granny had gone on her holiday. She'd gone the afternoon after she had fitted Ed's replacement base unit. Winry looked at the letter still on her desk. From the police. Granny had been on the train to the South. However, before she'd managed to get there, a mad bomber who'd been inspired by the 'Legacy of Kimbley' had destroyed the train. Pinako's remains had been returned to Winry, who, living in rural country, was old enough to be given the house. It had been Fuhrer Mustang himself who had delivered the news. Winry could remember it like it was yesterday.
Winry had been washing up, after Al had cleanly eaten most of the fridge. His body had returned, and his appetite with it. Ed was upstairs, lying in bed, gritting his teeth from the renewed and familiar pain. She felt sorry for him, the poor and luckless boy.
She was disturbed from her reverie by a knock at the door. She opened it, surprised – nobody from the village was coming up today, they were all out working. She stared up into the silently weeping face of Mrs. Winston.
"Hello, Winry." She said, her voice betraying her. It was a whisper, and shook.
"Hello, Mrs…" But before she could finish, Mrs. Winston had stepped aside, so the man stood behind her could be seen climbing from his car.
He was dark haired, and the last time Winry had seen him he'd been cheerful, and kind. Now, he looked much older, grey hairs appearing here and there in the mass of black. His eyes were darker, his skin paler and his frame more sparse. This contrasted greatly with his uniform, which was clean and decorated with the mark of Amestris. She immediately realized he had become Fuhrer.
"Winry…" He hesitated. "Sorry. Miss Rockbell. I have some terrible news."
He had explained what had happened. Al had appeared from nowhere, and after he had finished, Mustang had stepped back.
There was a moment of silence.
"Alphonse. I heard you had your body back." Mustang said, formally, before turning and leaving. "Tell your brother I wished him well."
The door slammed shut. Winry stood, rocking on her feet for a minute, before her hands dropped to her sides.
"Granny." She said, feeling dumbstruck.
She walked to the table and sat down, shaking. Then she folded her arms on the tabletop, laid her head on her arms and cried. Al had stood there, awkwardly, before finally coming around and putting an arm on her shoulders. She shrugged him off, stood up, and smiled through the tears.
"I'm going for a walk," She said. "I need one."
Granny…
She'd left Winry everything. The house, her money, her tools…
everything.
Winry looked at the letter. It was the official report of what had happened and Granny's will.
She sighed. It looked like things were going on. She no longer felt sad about Granny's death, just… empty. She felt like, whenever she looked around, Granny'd walk around the corner... But she never did.
Winry wandered downstairs, past Ed's room and Al's room – Winry having taken Granny's, as it was largest, had given her old one to him – and went downstairs. There, she pulled a chair up and began on breakfast.
Eating in silence, Winry wandered what to do. Nobody of late needed adjustments or even just a checkup, so she decided to go out for a while. Picking up a pen, she left a note for Ed and Al before quickly slipping upstairs and taking a shower. Once she had finished, she pulled her clothes back on and grabbed a jacket.
Slowly, she wandered through the thick, brambly forest. There were enormous trees all around, but the lowest branches were still high overhead. She wandered through the deep woods, following a path only she seemed to be aware of.
Finally, she came out into a clearing and sunlight burst onto her face. Staring skywards, she walked into the centre of the clearing. High, variously coloured flowers brushed the legs of her jeans, but she continued to gaze into the clouds far above. She spread her arms and began to circle, dancing to a song that was playing in her head. Her eyes were half-closed, and she was listening to a lullaby Granny had used when she was a child to send her to sleep.
Her arms dropped. Her eyes opened. She stared at the sky.
A tear splashed onto one of the petals of a golden-yellow flower by her knee.
Then, she realized something. It was exactly twenty-five years to the day that Amestris had gone to war – and twenty three years since Amestris had ended the war – with their neighboring country. On the very cusp of hearing, she could just make out in the stony silence, the sound of a military song playing. It must have been playing at the church.
She remembered the priest once telling her about it. It was the day when the Amestrians had returned… most of them in boxes. Amestris had "won the battle, my young girl… But we lost the war". The priest had then started crying, and explained that his brother had been one of the first to go.
War… over fifty thousand had died, in that one. Slowly, the music began to quiet, fading into the church bell beats. One… two… three. Winry hadn't realized how long it had taken her to get here, when she felt a movement behind her and froze. She alone knew where here was, so they must have followed her.
She whipped around and opened her mouth to scream. However, when she saw the young man stood opposite her, she stopped.
It was Ed.
Stood on a new Automail leg, his right arm still in a sling – arms always took longer to fully regain their usage.
"Ed?" She said. "How did you get here?"
Ed shrugged. "I followed you. I just followed your footprints."
He was staring at her with an intensity she couldn't comprehend. However, her eyes were fixed upon Ed's.
"I read the note you left." Ed glared. "How stupid do I have to be, to believe you're just going to the shops? We've got everything we need in the house."
Winry finally tore her eyes away. She could hear him walking towards her. He raised a hand and she flinched-
"You're not to worry." She opened her eyes. Ed was holding her, tightly, she was wrapped in his arms. Slowly, they lowered, Ed kneeling and Winry burying her face in his lap, tears cascading down her face. "I know Granny dying affected you. Don't hold it in. Me and Al are here for you." Winry opened her eyes and rolled over to look up at Ed's face.
"Idiot."
Ed
looked confused. "What?"
"You promised. You always keep your promises… I'm crying… But it's not with sadness." She paused. An unspoken thought passed between them. "Granny was old. She's gone. I'm here." Winry paused. "But… That's not ever going to be good enough. I think I understand now," Winry said, her green eyes meeting Ed's golden ones, "Just a little more about you."
Ed smiled, but his eyes were sad. "I know. And I'm really sorry. But we both know…"
"You can't stay." Winry finished.
Ed grinned. "The day will come when I can. I promise. But for now…" He looked away, playing with her hair.
"I'll wait." Winry whispered.
Ed looked into her eyes. They were big and fearful, but there was a hint of defiance and determination in there that marked Winry's bloodline. 'The Rockbells are powerful women,' someone had once said to him. "I'll come back." He said.
In that moment, something passed between them. Ed leaned down, slowly drawing his face closer to hers. Their lips touched, briefly, then again. A fire was burning inside Ed now, and tears were streaming down Winry's face as she pulled him on top of her and kissed him again, and again, and again.
