Everything's Not Lost

Chapter.4 – Wires to Flying Birds

'Wake up! Time to start the day!'

Riza opened an eye, immediately spotting the happy smiling face of Winry Rockbell. Riza turned over in her bed.

'Now that's not how we start our days at the Rockbell Automail shop!' shouted Winry enthusiastically. She grabbed at Riza's duvet, pulling it off of the bed. Riza felt the cold immediately

'Hey…' she said.

'No heys here! Get up, and get dressed, we've got a lot of work to do!'

Riza sighed, sitting up on her bed and rubbing her eyes. When she opened them again she found clothes being thrown in her face. Riza pulled the cloth away from her face and looked at it.

'Overalls?' she inquired.

'Just put them on…' Winry said, leaving the room, 'And be down here in 5 minutes!'

Riza smiled, looking at the overalls. They were blue and felt rough. Riza stood up, getting changed into her trousers and black t-shirt. She slid the overalls over herself, and stood in the mirror looking at herself. She shook her head at herself before walking out of her room. She walked downstairs, smelling the smell of cooked food. She smiled to herself again, walking into the main room. Winry was busying herself making breakfast.

'What's the time?' asked Riza.

'6:00! Bright and early!'

Riza stood there, almost stunned.

'6… o clock….'

'Yup! Now hurry, we have about 10 minutes to eat before we get ready for work!'

Riza wandered over to the table, sitting down. She had barely finished all of her breakfast when 10 minutes were up. Riza then found herself being pulled away from her eggs and bacon and forced down some stairs and into a basement. Metal limbs were hung all over the place, and boxes of metal scraps and wires surrounded the floors.

'What are we doing today then?' asked Riza

'Today, we make automail…' answered Winry 'to make automail, you need the necessary components…' Winry bent down, picking up a box, 'Take this upstairs to the work station, and don't drop anything!'

Riza took the box, taking it up the stairs. She placed the box down on the table and opened it, looking at its contents. Inside where strips of thick metals and an abundance of screws and bolts. Riza picked up a screw, looking at it. She groaned as she realised she had no idea what to do. She then heard a loud clattering sound as Winry made her way up the stairs. Riza watched as Winry entered the room, carrying 3 boxes stacked on top of each other. Winry swayed from one side of the room to the other, the boxes daring to fall off. Winry darted forward, landing the boxes on the table. Riza giggled for a moment. Winry stood up, maintaining her composure.

'Right! Today, you learn how to make automail!'

'Automail?' asked Riza

'Yes!' shouted Winry 'Making your automail is the first step to surviving alone as a woman!' She clutched a screwdriver close to her heart. Riza groaned.

'Right… what do I do first?' asked Riza. Winry grinned, holding out her hand. In it, she was holding a screwdriver.

'You make automail!' she said. 'I'll teach you like I was taught, the best way!'

Riza groaned picking up a spanner unenthusiastically. The next 5 hours crawled really slowly for Riza, and by the time it was up, she hadn't managed to build a joint yet.

'The key is to link each wire up without making the metal casing press on any. You've got to try loop them in…'

Riza tried to use Winry's advice, but it seemed hopeless. By the time another hour had passed, Riza was tired and irritable.

'Right, time to stop for lunch…' said Winry, 'You're getting there, but it's going to take a lot more work from you…'

'Can't we take a break Winry?' asked Riza, 'I'm just tired from building and want to rest…'

'We're going to have lunch, but at 1 it's back to work…'

Riza sighed, accepting it all. She looked out of the window, looking at the telephone cables. A bird was hovering over it, finding a place to perch. It landed in the middle of the cable, nestling itself. Riza smiled, taking a deep breath of air. She looked at the telephone wire, sighing at the knowledge that the telephone cables were out. Riza glanced at Winry, who was busying herself making the lunch. Riza turned her head back to the window, looking at the telephone wire again. The bird had flown away.