a/n: this chapter is very winry-centric, but the next will probably focus pretty heavily on ed, so it'll al round out!

a/n2: totally didn't proofread this all the way, so please excuse any huge mistakes!

enjoy!~

Winry wasn't bewildered in the slighted when she didn't receive her next letter two months later. Consistency was never Ed's strong suit, after all. She'd had plenty to keep her busy in the meantime, anyways.

She'd decided to return to hustle, bustle and heat of her beloved Rush Valley in order to complete her internship. After all, she had spent a solid two years away from the Holy Land of Automail. She was hesitant to leave Granny alone, at first, but the old woman had simply blown a puff of smoke in the young girl's face and shooed her off; insisting they didn't call her the Panteress of Resembool for nothing. She could certainly handle herself - as well as the small but loyal group of local customers Winry'd accumulated over the years.

With the brothers off exploring, there wasn't much of anything keeping Winry from reuniting with her eager group of friends and patrons in The Boomtown of the Broken-Down.

She'd missed the town and its residents dearly and they'd ached to see her again just as much. In fact, when her train pulled into the station, she was greeted by a small group of friends including Paninya, who'd practically yanked her off the platform and into a hug, and Garfiel, who proceeded to rip Winry out of the other girl's arms and into an emotional embrace of his own.

Winry just laughed into her eccentric mentor's shoulders and let the group cart her off to the studio, where an even larger party had been assembled to celebrate her arrival. It comforted Winry to know the town had noticed her absence and was just as thrilled as she was to have returned.

It didn't take her long to get back into the swing of things. Though she felt she'd missed a lot in the two year gap, Garfiel was quick to reassure and catch her up to speed; not that he felt she needed much assistance.

It was a tag bit overwhelming, at first, considering all of her former customers were practically lining up around the block to have her take a look at their automail. It was quite a bit of work, but she never turned anyone away and always made time for appointments; even on a deadline. She thrived like this, though; she loved being completely immersed in her work, and it was all worth while when she received thanks and praise from her customers.

Honestly, she'd been so consumed and busy since she'd returned, she wasn't completely bothered that Ed hadn't written her. Of course she missed him quite a bit, and working on automail twenty-four-seven only served as a reminder, but she reassured herself that he was in safe and capable hands. Besides, she wasn't even sure she'd be able to find time to be able to actually sit down and form a coherent reply with so much on her plate.

But even still, when Garfiel slid a certain thick envelope next to her breakfast plate - along with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle - she couldn't keep her fingers off of it, even if she had to work on Mr. Langfeld's leg. She frowned a little when she noticed the return address was not a foreign one; in fact, it was from her home in Resembool.

Her heart sank a little, but she opened it regardless only to find another envelope inside, with an attached note that fell into her lap. She recognized it instantly as her grandmother's chicken scrawl and read it anxiously.

Winry,

You forget to tell that pipsqueak boyfriend of yours that you moved. He sent this for you, and it's probably not going to be the last, so make sure you set him straight. Stamps are expensive.

Hope you're doing well. I'm sure you're making the Rockbell name even bigger and brighter.

-Granny

Winry smiled softly at her grandmother's unique way of showing affection, and made a mental note to call her sometime in the coming week.

But that could wait, for now.

She grabbed the unopened envelope excitedly, heart clenching a little as she read over his handwriting.

She tried not to dwell on it too much, but, god, when she let herself really think about it, she missed him. She missed his arrogant and dopey smirk, she missed his cocky attitude, she missed his arms tight around her waist and his incessant snoring into her hair.

She tried not to think about about how much longer it might be until she got to experience that again.

Winry let out a sigh, releasing the pressure growing in her chest. This would just have to do, for now. She found herself growing lighter at the prospect of actually hearing from him again and tore open the letter, even though she didn't really have the time.

Hey Win!

Sorry that it's, uh, been a few months but you aren't gonna believe what I've been up to!

So, get this, I'm sitting at Lou's bar hunched over some maps and shit when this guy just waltzes in. Well, that's phrasing it too lightly. He literally bursts in the door and he's a regular, and I recognize him as one of the port workers. They handle what comes in and out of town via the huge ass body of water, yeah? Well, it's usually just fish and produce and imports from Aerugo and whatever but this guy comes in here all excited saying some of the fisherman caught a shark.

A shark.

A motherfucking, huge-ass, great white shark. And, yeah, this place gets a crapton of fish, like it's all they fucking eat around here, but they almost never get sharks. But here was this giant beast of a thing and everyone was just freaking out.

Because, it's like, how often do you get to see a shark?!

So some of the guys and I literally sprinted out of there and raced our asses off to the port before they sold if off to the highest bidder. And holy shit, Winry, that thing was huge. like, at least twenty or thirty feet long and it had these sharp, jagged teeth that could probably eat you whole. It was sick as hell and we even got a picture with it! Side note: Pretty sure I've gotten taller, too. Heh.

Anyway, it's nice to hear that everything's good back home. And that I'm still the talk of the town, hell yeah. I hope you're all givin' 'em hell; for the both of us. I mean, of course they're giving you a shit ton of attention! Do you even know who you're engaged to?! The youngest State Alchemist in history, the Fullmetal Alchemist, the kid who saved the entire country! And you; pretty much the best mechanic in the whole damn world, who can make a mean apple pie and has the arm of a war veteran. I mean, you're amazing, Win. And together, we're like the dream team! Of course people are goin' nuts!

(We're probably the best looking couple they've ever seen, too! 'Specially you, Win.)

And, yeah, about the whole ring thing; let's just say I received a call from Al approximately three minutes after he finished talking with you and he chewed me out. Big time. But let's just say that, yeah, I know and I'm working on it, alright?! I don't wanna give you too much information 'cause I want it to be special and a surprise, ya know?

So, a spring wedding, huh? Doesn't sound half bad, honestly. It wouldn't be too damn hot or anything, and there'd be a lot of pretty flowers (and I'm not gonna be 'sneezing every 3 seconds', jeez, woman!) so yeah. Spring. Never really felt much preference toward any season in particular, but now I'm really likin' the thought of spring. Here's to hoping it gets here as soon as possible.

And to hoping that I can actually complete this freaking research with enough time left over to plan a wedding for spring. I mean, that stuff takes awhile, right? Eh, who cares, we'll figure it out. We always do.

The dream team, remember? We're unstoppable, you and me.

I miss you.

I know you'd kill me, but part of me actually wishes I'd screw up and bust my leg just so I'd have an excuse to come see you for a few days. But don't worry, I value my life too much.

But I really miss you. A lot.

Hope you're giving 'em all hell. Stay safe.

Love, Ed

Winry didn't even manage to read the entire thing in one sitting; work comes first, after all, and god knows she had plenty of it. It's when she's flopped down on her bed, combing out her hair and stretching out her sore muscles after a long day does she finally finish the thing.

She bite her lip at the corresponding photograph; sure enough, there he is standing next to a rather impressive shark. His sleeves were rolled up and his hair glimmered against the supposed burning sun and she tried so very hardly to shake the thought that he actually looked taller. She stifled a laugh; he's got that big, dorky smile on his face and it made her heart get a little tighter.

She exhaled deeply, throwing her body under the covers and turning off the lights. She knew thinking about how much she misses him would do nothing to diffuse to dull ache in her chest.

But even still, she couldn't help but note the absence of him curled up beside her. That thought kept her up a little later, making it slightly more difficult to find sleep.

But just as the drowsiness was about to take her, her lips turned upward and her mood lifted; at least he wasn't there to steal all the covers.

She slept a little easier that night.