Chapter 22

January 2nd – March 4th

January 2nd – Hidden Cellar, Central

Winry's eyes were screwed shut, and she was trying desperately to force her senses out even farther. While she had been able to locate Hohenheim and Father easily, she couldn't sense Mangeli. When she closed her eyes and concentrated, all she saw was darkness.

A headache began to hammer at her temples, but Winry ruthlessly pushed the pain away, trying to push herself even farther...

She nearly jumped a mile when someone touched her shoulder. "Winry?"

Winry relaxed. It was Jade. "Yeah?"

"Are you okay? Your fists were clenched and you were gritting your teeth."

"I was trying to find Mangeli," Winry sighed. "No luck. I just can't sense him. I started getting a headache."

Jade's eyes were worried. "Well, take a break, okay? If your head starts hurting, it usually means you're pushing yourself too hard."

"Right," Winry sighed again, but tried to do as her friend suggested.

She wandered to her makeshift bed and fell into it, closing her eyes as she tried to drift off to sleep.

'A little nap,' she told herself. 'Just a little nap, and then I'll try again.'

oooooooo

January 3rd – Military Headquarters, Central

"Better this time?" Ed smirked, pulling the sheets over their bodies.

"Definitely," Winry grinned, stretching languorously.

She hid a smile in his shoulder when she realised that Ed was unconsciously caressing her back and wings.

"Any luck with Mangeli?" she heard him ask.

Winry sighed. "Not so much. I'm not getting anything, not matter how hard I try."

"You'll get it," Ed assured her. "You'll find him."

Winry giggled suddenly. "Doesn't it strike you as funny that our pillowtalk is discussing whether I've found a psychotic alchemist?"

Ed seemed to think on it. "No."

Winry hid her face in his shoulder again, but he saw her head shaking.

"Are you laughing?" he accused.

"Maybe." Stifled mirth rang in every syllable of Winry's voice.

"Why? What's so funny?"

"Nothing." Winry's head finally rose from his skin. "Just promise me we'll never be normal, okay?"

"Uh...okay," Ed promised, blinking down at her, obviously completely clueless.

Winry grinned, and hugged him tightly.

oooooooo

January 12th – Military Headquarters, Central

Roy still couldn't believe it.

He was in his new office, sitting at his new desk, and he still couldn't believe it.

Sure, Winry had mentioned he would be a prime candidate, from a public standpoint, but he'd never actually expected to get that kind of promotion!

Colonel Roy Mustang was now Fuhrer Roy Mustang.

He still couldn't believe it.

For one, the rise in the ranks alone was phenomenal. He couldn't ever remember anyone who had been made Fuhrer before their mid-forties, at least. He knew such a rise had probably garnered his a lot of jealous and spiteful enemies, but he figured those could be dealt with later.

Another factor was that they'd actually elected him. His record wasn't exactly stellar – he was fairly certain there were several write-ups for insubordination in there somewhere.

And they wanted him to be Fuhrer?

Roy still couldn't believe it.

When Riza stepped into his office and dumped a stack of papers on his desk, he was almost grateful for the assurance that some things would never change.

oooooooo

January 21st – Military Headquarters, Central

Riza smiled at the laughter emanating from the Fuhrer's office. It hadn't taken long for Mustang to call back Breda, Falman and Fuery to his command. The success of which was now being celebrated with a good drink or seven.

Riza opened the door...and came the closest to having a heart attack she'd ever been since the Ishbal campaign.

Jean Havoc was standing – standing! - in the center of the room, grinning like a fool as everyone gathered around and plied him with drinks.

"Hey, Lieutenant," he grinned. "Notice anything different?"

Riza was rather pleased her jaw hadn't dropped. Might have ruined her image.

"You can walk," she stated. It might not have been one of her stellar moments of ingenuity, but it was all her stalled brain would provide.

"I can walk." Havoc's grin came dangerously close to cracking his face.

"Now spill!" Breda ordered, thumping his hand down on his friend's shoulder. "You promised to tell us what happened when Hawkeye got back!"

"I don't know what happened," Havoc admitted sheepishly. "This woman came into my hospital room, and I thought she was a nurse. But then...this sounds so weird...but I was lying on my side, and she just ran her hand up my back, and I felt...it was like I felt something click into place. I started to ask her what she did, but she was gone...just like that."

'Winry?' was Riza's first thought. 'But how could she...?'

oooooooo

January 21st – Hidden Cellar, Central

Winry moaned, replacing the cool compress on her head. She had a headache that felt like an entire tap-dancing chorus were jumping around in nail-boots and riding jackhammers through her skull. Not to mention, she felt as drained as if she'd just swam fifty miles through thick syrup and run a marathon up a mountain.

And it had seemed like such a good idea at the time.

After all, she had seen Truth, she had been imbued with a part of the Gate...so shouldn't that mean she could use alchemy? And probably without regards to that Equivalent Exchange thing Ed was always harping about.

She'd wandered into the hospital, and seized a medical book from the shelf in the waiting room. She'd brushed up on her knowledge about the human spine and nervous system and how everything aligned, before making her way to Jean Havoc's room.

Winry thought she should probably be worried about how easy it was to sneak into his hospital room.

After that, it had been easy. A simple touch. A brush of her fingers over the area, and...

She'd healed him, yes, but Winry had been totally unprepared for the way it would drain her. Totally unprepared for the pounding headache and the throbbing in every muscle.

Oh yes, she definitely should have started small.

Well, this fiasco had proved one thing – that she drew her power from somewhere from a different source than most alchemists. While they drew their energy from the world around them, in the principle of Equivalent Exchange, she – like Father, Hohenheim and Mangeli – could ignore that principle.

But it seemed that the energy for the transmutation came from her own body.

'Note to self,' she thought, 'Never perform alchemy again.'

oooooooo

January 31st – Military Headquarters, Central

"Any luck?" Ed asked as Winry's eyes opened.

"Nothing," she practically growled. "Not. A. Thing. I've been searching for Mangeli for over a month and I still haven't found anything!"

Ed winced a little at Winry's strident volume. She had been getting increasingly frustrated over her inability to find Mangeli. She seemed almost desperate to find him.

Ed, on the other hand, was more than willing to breathe a little easier now that Father and the homunculi were gone. Mustang might be a bastard, but as the Fuhrer he would make sure nothing like that ever happened again. Not to mention that Mustang's little gang was now back – including Havoc, who had apparently had a near-miraculous recovery which he blamed on a woman who's face he never really saw. That bothered Ed a little – if she could heal Havoc, he had some questions regarding getting his brother's body back.

It didn't escape Ed how strange it was for Winry to be the driven one, and he the one who was actually willing to relax.

"So how do feel about coming to another of Mustang's parties tonight?"

"Another one?" Winry raised her eyebrows, a look of disbelief plastered across her face. "How many times does he need to celebrate?"

Ed shrugged. Frankly, he didn't care. It was free food, and wine, if they could sneak some. And time spent with Winry was always time well-spent.

oooooooo

January 31st – Military Headquarters, Central

Under the cover of the raucous party, Winry managed to drag Al away to talk to him.

"Al, I haven't really had a chance to ask you this, but...are you...okay? With the way Ed and I are now?"

"Of course, Winry!" Winry could tell from his tone that if armour smiled, Al would be be beaming.

"Really?"

"Yeah! You've always been like a sister to me, and now...it's like you're even more of a sister."

Winry grinned, wrapping her arms around Al in a brief hug he couldn't feel. "By the way, do you know what Ed wants for his birthday?"

oooooooo

February 3rd – Military Headquarters, Central

"Why are you blushing?" Al asked, the picture of innocence.

Ed glared at Winry over her 'gift' of assorted hair ties. Winry was nearly doubled over with laughter, wiping tears of mirth from her cheeks.

"Very funny, Winry," Ed gritted out, his voice drowning in sarcasm. "Hilarious."

"Don't worry," she managed to gasp out. "I'll give you your real present later."

Al got the distinct feeling he was missing a private joke.

"What about my present?" Al suddenly chimed in. "You said it was going to be late, but it's been over a month!"

"About that..." Winry said, "There's been a...delay. It'll take a while yet. Same for Ed's."

"Who is making them?" Ed couldn't help asking.

"No one special," Winry hedged.

'Just an omnipotent being with whom I struck a bargain.'

oooooooo

February 24th – Military Headquarters, Central

"Still nothing?" Earnest asked, looking sympathetic.

Winry groaned in response.

Last night, she'd pushed herself to her limit, stretching her senses as far she could. Winry had persevered through the headache, the muscle cramps, and the nausea. Until Jade had shouted in her ear, yanking her out of her trance.

Apparently, she'd been biting her lip hard enough to draw blood, and Jade had noticed the trickle of crimson on her chin.

And still, she had nothing.

"Do you think flying might help?" Earnest commented, passing Winry a glass of water.

Winry's eyes cracked open. "That's actually not a bad idea, Earnest."

"You'll try it?"

"Why not?"

oooooooo

March 3rd – Hidden Cellar, Central

Winry perched on the rafters, using the cavern-like roof as a natural amplifier.

"I'm still searching for Mangeli," Winry announced to the horde of faces. "But I've yet to sense him at all. I don't know if he's found a way to block my ability, or how he would have known about it in the first place if that's the case, but I do know I'm not giving up. Tomorrow, I'm going to fly above Central, and see if I can sense him beyond the borders of Amestris."

There were scattered shouts of encouragement.

"I hope that most of you realise this fight is going to much worse than the one we faced with Father?"

Most of the crowd nodded.

"Father concentrated on the alchemical abilities his Daemon gave him, but Mangeli will have concentrated on the strength and power it gifted. There is a chance that we won't survive."

She'd do everything she could to protect them, of course, but there was only so much she could do in the heat of battle.

To Winry's surprise, the crowd nodded.

"And you're all okay with this?" Winry asked in disbelief.

Nods and murmurs of assent were her only reply.

Winry felt herself getting emotional. "Thank you," she said quietly.

"But we are left with a pressing problem," Winry continued. "What are all of you going to do when this is over?"

Some murmurs, most sounding unsure and wary.

"I bring it up now because this is something that needs to be thought about-" Winry cut herself off as Jade stepped from the throng.

"I think I speak for everyone here," Jade began, "When I say we'll return to the surface, and make our way from there. Every one of us here has an extremely marketable skill, and we'll have no trouble finding a job."

Somewhat reassured, Winry breathed a sigh of relief. But it was momentary, as her mind reminded her of Earnest. What would he do?

So as the mingled crowd began to disperse, Winry glided to him. "Earnest?"

He turned to her, his eyes curious. "Yeah?"

"What are you going to do?" Winry asked in a low voice.

Earnest grinned, revealing teeth almost as white as his skin. "Don't worry – Jade says she'll look after me."

This time, the tension in Winry's shoulders truly eased. Every one of her little group knew what they were going to do when this was over. They would be alright.

oooooooo

March 4th – Military Headquarters, Central

"I'll be fine Ed, really," Winry said, trying to convince Ed her little sojourn above the clouds wasn't going to end up with her in a crumpled heap on the ground.

"You're sure?" Ed asked, trying to resist the urge to tell her to be back by dinner.

Fortunately, Al spoke for him. "When are you going to be back?"

"By evening, at the very latest. I won't spend days flying around, if that's what you mean – it'd be way too tiring."

With a final wave, Winry shot into the sky like a bullet, soaring into the clouds.

Ed watched her until she was out of sight, trying to quell the uneasiness in his gut.

oooooooo

March 4th – In Flight Above Central

Winry hovered just below the clouds, sending out her senses, trying to reach that single spark...

She almost fell from the sky when she realised that she could sense the spark. And it was coming from in front of her...at the same level!

Was Mangeli on a mountain of some kind?

Winry didn't waste time, angling her body and beginning to fly in the direction of the spark.

oooooooo

March 4th – In Flight Above White Mountain

The steady, powerful beats of Winry's wings ate up the distance like fire. The low clouds stuck to her skin and clothes in tiny beads of water. It wasn't long before she was forced to surround her body in her white fire just to keep dry.

So when the clouds suddenly disappeared from around her, it was quite a shock.

She practically exploded from their grey, damp masses and into a small opening within them. And within the opening was...

Winry's jaw dropped, and it was only sheer instinct that kept her wings beating.

A building was right in front of her – made of grey stone with small, slit-like windows. But its appearance wasn't what shocked Winry. The entire building seemed to be suspended on a writhing, twisting column of pure black shadow.

Mangeli's laboratory was suspended fifty feet above the very tip of White Mountain.

Suddenly, the realisation that anyone could look out the windows and see her sent Winry spinning around and rocketing back the way she had come.

'Gee, Mangeli,' she thought. 'Conspicuous, much?'

But on the other hand, his new laboratory's support rested on the very top of White Mountain, where almost no one ever went.

And anyone who had ever managed to get close enough to see it was probably killed by his creatures.

On the plus side, it meant he hadn't found something to block her powers, Winry had just been thinking in the wrong direction. Whenever she had tried to sense, she had always sent her senses out, instead of up.

Still, it did nothing to her mood to think on how much power Mangeli had to have to be able to do something like that.