Warnings and Disclaimers: Any and all characters from the anime or manga Fullmetal Alchemist do not belong to me. I only torture them for some stories. There may be some teenage content in the story but it is very limited. This story is set after the movie which means there are some spoilers and if you have no idea what any of this may be about, then don't come crying to me please. It's not my fault, I warned you -:sheepish grin:-.

Seasons

Autumn: Seasons

Chapter 20

By: RomanceFanFicLover

"Winry, come with me." Ed held a hand out to her, beckoning her to follow him.

She did everything she could think of to stop herself from shouting out or giggling madly in excitement. This was it, it was now or never! This must be the time that he was going to tell her!

They finally stopped in the clearing they had been in the night of the Lake Party. Winry held her breath unconsciously; she partially expected the entire scene to rip apart if she made too much noise, even by breathing.

Fireflies were in the clearing again, but there were more this time and they seemed to glow brighter in the late autumn night.

"It's beautiful." Winry breathed in awe of the sight, and of the memory that invaded her mind.

"Hey Win; I have to tell you something really important." Ed put his hands into his pockets and took a deep breath.

Winry smiled in anticipation and crossed her fingers behind her back. What if Nelly was right? What if Ed really was going to propose!

"Win…I…"

'Say it! Say it!' Winry encouraged him in her head, hoping against all hope that he would quit the suspenseful act and just tell her!

"I'm leaving."

What? Leaving? That was not the "L" word that Winry was expecting. The beautiful picture that the scene before her presented previously was now shattered in its frame.

"What?"

"I got in touch with Roy the other day and he said that I wouldn't need to retake the state alchemist exam. H-He said that I could come out of retirement and be funded to do more research." Ed scuffed the ground with his boot nervously. Winry certainly didn't look pleased. In fact, she looked like she had just seen death itself.

"Why?" she tried not to sound too needy. Really, she did! But it was just so hard when the love of your life decided that you weren't worth it and they'd rather skip around the country with the military.

"All the people I saw who misused alchemy, who used it to hurt people, I don't want that to happen anymore. I thought about it, and I asked Al. He didn't want me to go and refused to go with me, told me he was going to stay and marry Nelly." Ed chuckled lightly and bowed his head, letting his bangs cover his eyes. "Anyways, I want to go and see if we can use alchemy for the 'science' people talked about in the other world. It could be useful, even help with your automail mechanics."

Confidence and bravery were restored in Winry. He wasn't abandoning her! He was doing this to right his wrongs, to repent his sins. But he didn't make any! He's done more than enough! Why couldn't he just stay with her?

"I won't let you go." Winry's eyes widened; she hadn't realized she had said it.

"Winry, I-"

"I love you, Ed!" Although it was a declaration it sounded more like a threat. "Don't leave me."

The whispered plead almost broke down Ed's defenses. But no, he must stay strong no matter what she does.

They stood in silence for a few moments before Winry flung herself into his arms, crying her heart out. "Please don't…Please, Ed…!"

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Ed held her tight against him. Burying his nose into her hair, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

Winry sobbed harder into his chest, grabbing at the material of his shirt while her pleas floated into the night air.

This wasn't the same as the first time they came here. The first time, they had embraced with love, with hope. But now…Now there was no love. There was no nope. There was no Ed and therefore there was no reason.

The only thing Winry had now was the memories of the seasons they had spent together.

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A/N: The End folks!

Xoxoxoxo!