Author's Note: Although he's not my favorite bachelor in MoFo, I do have a soft spot for Cliff. When I did marry him, he was almost a perfect father. Also, I never had a problem with Manna, and most of the character's stories are told through her gossiping which makes her invaluable to me. That being said, please no flames. I hope you enjoy this one-shot!

--

All Together Now

"Oh Cliff, how sweet of you to invite us! Isn't he the sweetest husband you could ask for? I always told Duke that Cliff would make a fine husband, and of course he agrees with me. It's so good to see the both of you, Claire! I'm so very happy that you decided to come. After all, Aja's home, too, so now we can all be one big family! Isn't if wonderful? Oh, and let's not forget our little grand-"

"Manna, let the poor boy and his family come inside for land's sakes, woman."

"Duke, you just shut your mouth!" she snapped back harshly, her black eyes stern and narrow. Her husband simply shrugged and went back to sipping his wine in the early afternoon. He rarely drank on Saturdays as of late, but a little bit couldn't hurt, especially with the bubbly mood his wife was in. She was normally never like this unless she had wandered down to the square for some good gossip, yet when Cliff and his small family came to visit, she was beyond herself with excitement.

"It's good to see you, too, Manna," the young blonde farmer greeted her calmly while her husband and child followed her inside. She loved the older woman dearly although she had a bad habit of spreading wild rumors, but everyone understood for the most part. It had been a terrible shock for Manna to have her daughter disappear without so much of a word as to why. However, now that the raven-haired young woman had returned, there had been a decrease in the flurry of town gossip. It was getting harder to know what was happening around town...

"But Mama, you really shouldn't be so frantic," Aja scolded her mother gently while motioning to a little girl hiding behind her rough-looking father. "You're making Winry nervous."

"Oh dear..." the woman gasped before crouching and opening her arms for a hug. "I'm sorry, honey, Grandma's just so happy to see you."

The small child giggled shyly and held onto her grandmother tenderly. She was a tad frightened of her although she knew the woman was very kind. Winry simply didn't know what to do when her grandma started to talk so quickly. She couldn't understand a word of any of it which made her uncertain as to what to do or say. Still, she loved the hugs she would get whenever she'd come to visit with her parents.

"It's alright, Manna," the girl's father replied quietly. "She understands more than people give her credit for."

"Cliff, I told you you could always call me 'Mama,' too. You're like a son to me, you know."

The young man blushed and gave her a hint of a smile. The woman really was motherly towards him, but he just couldn't bring himself to give her such a title. Clare slipped her hand into his own to give it a reassuring squeeze. After finding him in the snow one cold winter's day, she had also happened upon the photo which he had kept with him after all this time. The photograph was a keepsake from his past, a family portrait which included his mother and sister. It was then he had explained they were both no longer with him, yet she hadn't asked him to. He was grateful for that kindness which was exactly why he told her. Claire could never judge him for it...

He glanced over to Duke while trying to make a quick study of Aja with his deep brown eyes. Although his employers had occasionally talked about her, he had never seen the young woman before. She was taller than he'd expected, being that her parents were of average height, but she was incredibly graceful and light on her feet. The only trait she shared with her mother was her raven locks, yet she wore it around her shoulders in delicate waves.

What caught everyone's attention the most were her striking violet eyes, however. They were spell-bindingly beautiful as was the rest of her. Just as Manna had described her.

"Oh, you haven't met Aja have you?" the older gentleman realized, standing up beside his daughter. He ran his hand through his graying hair casually, motioning for her to greet the young man.

"Ah, yes, I'm terribly sorry for being rude," she offered her hand to him, a kind smile gracing her features.

"Right... I'm Cliff," he introduced himself, taking her soft hand into his rough one. "I-I work for your parents at the winery. Um, this is my wife Claire-"

"It's a pleasure," the blonde farmer carefully interrupted.

"This is our daughter, of course," he finished calmly. "I suppose you've already heard about her since you know her name."

"Well of course," Aja replied with a tenderly smile as she smoothed the little girl's carmel hair. "I happened to meet her yesterday afternoon at the church. Pastor Carter introduced us, didn't he?"

"Uh-huh," Winry whispered, hiding behind the fur trim of her father's tunic. She was almost exactly like him except for her hair was slightly lighter in color. Her large brown eyes studied every face in the room with her, but she refused to move from his side although she still wanted a hug from her grandfather. The lady was nice enough, but the little girl still didn't truly know her.

"So are we heading out for that picnic or what?" Claire asked happily. Indeed, she'd brought an entire basket of a home-cooked meal enough for six which included corn on the cob from the last days of summer, baked sweet potatoes and greens from the first autumn harvest, grilled fish, and deserts of all sorts. Cliff held a separate basket for the place settings since his wife had a difficult enough time trying to pack all of the meal into her own. She loved good food, much like Aunt Ann at the Inn.

"Yes, let's get going," Grandpa Duke agreed, lifting a couple bottles of wine for the young man and himself to enjoy. Winry's mother only cared to have small sips from her husband's glass, and both Aja and Manna had sworn off the stuff long before anyone could remember. Luckily, everyone had made sure the small child didn't see more than she needed to. She acted as a means to keep the boys sobered, not that Cliff drank to excess to begin with...

--

Mother's Hill was easily Winry's favorite place to be along with her grandparent's house, the farm, and the church, and the scenery was even better in autumn. The field was littered with leaves of crimson and gold, and she gave an excited squeal while going into a dead run as soon as the group passed over the bridge. She dragged her father along with her until she jumped into a large pile of leaves. The colors cascaded around her as she giggled.

Cliff paused for a moment, not certain whether he should join in or not. He stood there in a daze until he felt someone shove him playfully into the pile with his daughter. Winry happily tackled him before he could find out who had sent him flying into the crunchy pool of color. However, an unfamiliar airy laugh revealed her identity as well as a woman's voice crying out.

"Aja, why'd you push the boy?" Manna gasped, scolding the young woman gently. "Winry could've gotten hurt!"

"Oh, Manna, she didn't do any harm," Claire laughed happily while Duke helped her spread out the picnic blanket in the warm fall sunshine. Blue mystic blossoms danced in the breeze as squirrels and chipmunks scurried across the forest floor tucked just out of reach. It certainly was the perfect day to be out and about. "Besides, she might've been waiting all day for her dad to decide whether he wanted to join her."

"Listen to you, you're talking about your husband," her mother-in-law chuckled, tapping her on the shoulder. "I guess he can be a bit... uncertain, though. He really can be so reluctant about such things. That's why Duke and I had to tell you about how he felt before we could ever hope for him to marry you. I thought I'd never see the day where I'd be a grandmother since he's so hesitant. Goddess knows I wouldn't expect him to-"

"Yes, he can be at times, but look at what a wonderful father he's turned out to be for her," the young farmer cut the talkative woman short before there was a chance of any further embarrassment on her husband's part. That first night together had been awkward enough for him...

--

"Where's Reverend Carter?" Aja asked as they began to pass their plates, filling them with all sorts of delicious foods fresh from the farm.

"He takes his responsibility with May and Stu very seriously, but we brought him some lunch before heading out to the winery," Claire explained, trying to balance the plates as she dished out the meal.

"We invite him over for dinner a lot, actually," Cliff added quietly, plucking a stray leaf out of his daughter's tangled mane of hair. He had woven her a flower crown earlier as they had waiting for the food to be served. She gazed up at him curiously, but he only gave her a shy smile and kissed her on the forehead tenderly. She was one of his greatest blessings. In her, he found that some of the greatest gifts are unanswered prayers, for when he was a lost man not so long ago, he asked for death to steal him away. After meeting her mother and having a child, he was grateful to know his plea had never been fulfilled.

"How kind..." Aja complimented them as she smoothed her dress. Due to her height, she had found it difficult enough to settle down on the ground with the family. She was sitting beside Winry with a blissful look in her violet eyes while she thought of how she had missed the untainted beauty of the countryside. It had been far too long since she had seen it last... The Harvest Goddess had been merciful to bring her back home when in the city she had merely lived for death to end the misery of a life without color.

"Pastor Carter has done so much for the both of us that I doubt Cliff and I would say we were doing anything of that nature. We're simply paying the good man back for all his kindnesses."

"Are we still going to services tonight?" Duke asked gruffly while pouring a bit of wine for the young man across from him.

"Yes, we are although I never seem to understand his sermons..." Manna admitted, blushing slightly at her ignorance. "I know there's some meaning behind them, but I have as of yet to understand his most recent tale. How is it that a story about a man being held in his chair by four hands and arms relates to religion in any way? I asked the girls at the square, and none of them have any clue!"

"Mama, you're frightening Winry again..." Aja scolded as the child snuggled closer to her father. "It's alright, sweetie."

"It's the story that scares her," Cliff clarified, trying to reassure the woman across from him. "Now, Winry... You really have to stop hiding behind me..."

"You used to be that bashful when I first happened to meet you," his wife reminded him, wagging her spoon at him. "Remember? Pastor Carter had to ask me to speak with you, so then you'd open up more to people."

Her husband blushed, looking away from Aja's purple gaze. She was right, of course, and he was obviously still trying to be less shy than he was. However, his wife soon held his hand which calmed him down a little. She had always been there to support him when Carter simply couldn't. All she needed to give him was a reassuring smile, and then the world's troubles fell clean off his shoulders.

Soon enough, his little angel began to cuddle closer to him, and he came to realize the autumn chill was beginning to get to her, even if only a tad. Winry rarely was cold as she spent a lot of time in the elements. She loved the outdoors every bit as much as both of her parents, and there was no way they could keep her in the house for long. Come to think of it, the same was for Claire and him. About the only place the family felt content inside was the church. Maybe it was the soft candlelight or the peaceful silence, but they all loved to linger in the chapel while the world hurried on without them. It was a safe sanctuary for their hearts to dwell.

--

"Harris! Oh it's so good to see you!" Aja cried on while embracing the blushing officer on the family's way to church. She had knocked the air clear out of the man's chest when she threw her arms around him. He tried to chuckle, but he could only stammer for her to let go of him. After all, he was still on the beat.

"We're going to be late, Grandma," Winry whispered, tugging on Manna's sleeve. Her large brown eyes were filled with concern as she spoke. "Dad doesn't like to miss the sermon..."

"You guys go on ahead," the raven-haired woman urged. "I'll come with you another time."

"It's alright, Aja. We can talk later if-" he offered, trying to readjust his hat which had nearly been knocked clear off.

"Oh no, Harris!" her mother insisted while Duke tried not to laugh at his wife's eagerness. "You and my daughter have a nice, long chat. You must have so much to catch up on after all these years. Has she told you-"

"Come on, Grandma!" the little girl pleaded, watching her parents move along ahead of them. She gave a hard tug on her grandmother's sleeve.

"Yes, come on now, dear," the grandfather agreed, helping his granddaughter pull his wife away from the childhood friends as they begin to talk about their lives. It was good for his daughter to be home, but he's learned to cherish the members of his new family just as dearly. Cliff, Clare, and Winry meant more to him than his former vice. Still, there was the concern of who to leave the winery to now that Aja was home, yet he'd leave it for another time because right then, all he wanted to do was go to the quiet church for a moment of silence free of any gossip or hear-say.

He'd heard enough of that without his own daughter becoming a part of it any time soon because of the policeman.

--

At last the large family had made its way into the church though Pastor Carter had purposely held up the sermon, knowing that they may arrive late as they had for the past couple of weeks. He didn't mind, seeing as how they were one of the few families that attended church regularly. It warmed his heart to see them all sit in the first pew together, and he couldn't help but adore little Winry when she perched herself between her father and mother.

The pastor had noticed that while May and Stu would play with Popuri from time to time, Winry preferred to stay behind with him in the church. She would even clean the sanctuary if nothing else could entertain her. She had told him once, very shyly as her father had, that she loved the hallowed place because it was so quiet. She would sit for hours there in prayer until Cliff would come to take her home to the farm, and even then, she'd have her father pray one last time with her.

While Reverend Carter started the sermon, the small child began to drift off to sleep. The outside air had worn her out terribly, and she was feeling rather exhausted. She wanted to listen so very badly, but during prayer she had no choice but to close her eyes. Winry snuggled closer to her father until he opened just one eye to look down upon her.

Her breathing was soft and even, and her precious little head was nodded slowly. He smiled gently as he placed his arm around her, careful not to disturb her slumber. She was his angel, a gift from the Goddess herself, which he knew he didn't truly deserve. His wife rested her head on his shoulder as she, too, began to dream. Cliff's heart warmed all the more while in her sleep, his daughter mumbled, "Goddess, thank you... We're all together now..."

He lifted his head towards the painting ceiling, a single grateful tear rolling down his cheek as he spoke. "Amen."

--

Author's Note: Sorry if there seemed to be a lot of Aja content in this, but I do have a reason for it (or an excuse...). You see, when I happened to marry Ann in FoMT once before, I would talk to Cliff at the Inn from time to time. He would always make the comment that Manna was "insisting" that he meet Aja. I'm guessing she thought he should marry her since he couldn't have Ann! XD