He was pretending to sleep as he glared at his brother. He had a sinking feeling that his automail had been intentionally sabotaged and he was mad as hell about it. Not that he minded going home. He did miss Den, but they really didn't have time. The colonel had not been too happy with him for taking this detour and he guessed that when the bills arrived for his current missions the crap would really hit the fan. It had been bad enough explaining away buying girls' jewelry and tobacco on account. He was beginning to wonder if withdrawing cash was really the way to go, though. Al had taken quite a bit and wandered around the little dump town while he waited on a bench for the train. He just knew that if he opened that armor he'd be buried in all of the junk his little brother had bought. When Al had boarded the train humming his suspicions had been confirmed and his only option had been to ignore it and try to sleep. He couldn't very well open Al up on the train and pick a fight without attracting too much attention and that would result in another chewing out.
His life sucked. Still, it could have been worse. He flexed his right wrist. At least he was able to fix things. He felt his face draw into a frown before he heard Al speak up.
"Brother, I know you are awake. Why don't you stop pretending?" He scowled as he sat up. "Fine. You caught me." He crossed his arms over his coat, carefully moving aside a little thing he picked up for Winry from the innkeeper while Al was out changing the tickets. He glared out the window, trying to flex his locked up ankle without letting Al see.
"Brother you should just let it be. Winry will fix it." Al ignored him as he turned his glare to the armor. Being ignored just made his bad mood worse. "Won't it be nice to go home and see Winry and Granny? I bought them a few gifts while in town. Winry is going to be sad you didn't get her anything, though." He scowled even more, pushing the bulk even farther down in his pocket.
"The last time we got Winry gifts she used them to mutilate her ears remember?"
He grinned in satisfaction as Al shuddered, then dropped back into a frown at Al's reply. "But we could have gotten her something besides earrings. Maybe a necklace."
"I had to explain to Mustang that the jewelry wasn't for me. I don't think he ever bought it. Bad enough that he thinks I'm wearing earrings on my missions without adding more girls' stuff to it." He kicked Al with his locked up ankle when the younger erupted into tiny giggles. "Stop laughing. I'm serious. That man has it in for me and Winry is just part of the problem. She is going to pound me for breaking my ankle as it is so why should I get her anything?"
"You want to make her happy, don't you?" His younger brother sounded serious now.
"Of course I want to make her happy and the best way to do that is to get you fixed." He breathed in deeply as silence fell between them. His irritation drained as guilt replaced it. He jerked when Al's hand fell on his knee, squeezing a little. He knew his face betrayed his surprise, but looked up anyways. He owed his little brother at least that much honesty after being so snippy.
"Ed, you should make her happy in the meantime, too. I bought some things from the summer harvest and tobacco for Granny, but I couldn't find anything for Winry. I'm sorry." He took another deep breath and gulped as Al lowered his head. He fidgeted a few moments, unsure of what to do before he reached into his pocket and pulled out the package he'd been so desperately trying to hide.
"Here" He watched as Al's eyes brightened when he caught the small parcel.
"What's this?"
"I saw it while you were taking care of the train tickets. I thought she might like it."
"Wow, it's really pretty."
"Yeah, it's soft, too. One of the softest things I've ever felt. It reminded me of her hair." He was unaware of his face heating up or his eyes taking on a far away glaze until Al punched him in the arm.
"Ed, you idiot! Why didn't you tell me you had something for Winry instead of making me run all over town!?" He winced as his brother's voice rose over the shrieking of the train whistle, continuing to chew him out. He looked over the familiar old gangplanks of the station and surveyed the clear blue sky. The rolling grass sparkled like the most rare of peridots and emeralds. He smiled at the flash of yellow on the horizon right before the train station blocked his view.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, Al. Give it a rest already." His stomach rumbled and he patted it before picking up his suitcase. "I hope Granny has something on the stove, I'm starving." He smiled in anticipation as his boots stomped unevenly across the gangplanks and Al greeted the stationmaster while they hobbled past. He ignored the concerned and surprised looks that followed him as he fell down the stairs. Yup, it was good to be home.