It was a brisk day in Resembool. After the delicious breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes and milk (orange juice for Ed; Winry simply wrinkled her nose in disgust), Winry shooed Ed and Den out of the house so she could get some housecleaning done.

Ed had spent the entire afternoon chasing the dog, allowing her to playfully attack him to the ground, licking his face eagerly, giggling and smiling the entire time. They lay together in the tall grass, sun warming both their beings entirely. He thought about how much he loved Den. Always loyal, always friendly, always loving. He thought briefly about how much he loved Alexander, too, but that made him think of Nina and her sweet smile and loving eyes…

Den! Yes, Den. She happily greeted both boys when they returned home in their rightful bodies. She was a good dog, he decided, also deciding that he absolutely adored dogs, and would Winry want to get another one?

He strolled back toward the house, thoughts of a puppy on his mind, soaking in as much sunshine as possible. He entered the house to find it unusually quiet, save the soft singing coming from the kitchen. He tiptoed through the foyer and down the short hallway, peering into the kitchen.

"Whether near me or far, it's no matter where you are. I think of you night and day, day and night," she sang just above a whisper, softly humming. Edward's eyes grew huge at the sight in front of him, his jaw nearly hitting the floor, a blush creeping across his face.

Winry was on her knees, bent over a bucket, scrubbing furiously. She was wearing teeny, tiny black shorts, her cheeks barely covered by the thin, tight fabric. Her ass looked good. Damn good. He sucked in his lower lip, quietly moving towards her.

He gently rubbed her shoulders, smiling as she jumped a bit, tensed, quickly relaxed under his touch. He admired the strength of her shoulders and the softness they still held. Perfect shoulders to rest his head on. Perfect shoulders to kiss. Strong. Durable. Beautiful.

"Ed," she said brethlessly, interrupting his train of thought, sitting up to face him. "You scared me!" Her eyes traveled down to his feet, narrowing when she saw shoes still on them. "Can you please take off your shoes, I just cleaned over there!" He sighed, kicking his shoes off towards the door. "Did you have a nice walk?"

"Mhmm," he mumbled, kneading his fingers down her back, relishing the noise she made as trailed lower, pausing when he reached the elastic on her shorts, hooking his index finger underneath and snapping it.

"ED, NOT NOW I HAVE CLEANING TO DO," she screamed, turning to smack him with the sponge, glaring playfully at him. She returned to the task at hand, scrubbing as if her life depended on it. Ed thought maybe she was trying to wear a hole into the tile.

He crossed his arms and scowled. "Well hurry up and clean faster."

Maybe she just needs a little help…

He kneeled down next to her, grabbed her roughly by the shoulders, and kissed her hard on her mouth. Her eyes were wide with shock as she tensed up against him, one hand against his chest, pushing him away with earnest. He grabbed her wrist and pressed it against the counter, the sponge dropping from her hand as he hungrily trailed kisses down her neck. She gasped when he bit her, sweetly tonguing the newly formed love bite. He lingered there, sucking gently. She clenched her teeth together, desperately trying to stifle the moans threatening to slip out of her mouth, but she was melting into him…

She regained her composure and found the strength thrust her free hand into his face and push him away. "STOP PAWING ME AND LET ME FINISH CLEANING!" She giggled when he tickled her sides, gently kissing her neck and shoulders. He kissed her softly on the lips and leaned back to look at her.

"Fine," he sighed, exasperated. She smiled at him and dipped the sponge in the bucket of water beside her.

He was once again memorized by her butt in those shorts. No, he was not going to give up that easily. He stood, feigning an exit, reached down, and pinched her promptly on her left cheek. "EDWARD!" He then took off running down the hallway, ducking into the room used for his study.

His heart was pounding. He could still hear her shrieking, profanities flying left and right, explicit death threats flung down the hallway from the kitchen, why the fuck would he do that, when she got a hold of him, he was going to be very sorry!

He laughed to himself, knowing he was in for it, but maybe he could distract her long enough to get out of it and—

SMACK

Ed's eyes grew wide at the sound; he swallowed hard, his heart threatening to rip his chest apart. The silence following rang in his ears. "Winry?" There was no response. He willed his feet to move and made it down the hallway—"Winry?"—turning into the kitchen to see her lying unconscious on the floor.

He felt his stomach drop as his eyes took in the site before him. The bucket was knocked over, soapy water soaking her hair and back. There was no sign of blood, thank God, thank God…

He collapsed next to her, shaking hands extended to pull her into his lap.

"No, no, no, no, no, no." His hands gently caressed her face, willing his fingertips to bring the life back into her eyes. "Oh God, oh God, oh God." His voice was a choked sob as he tried, and failed, to hold back the tears that relentlessly spilled from his eyes.

He pulled her into a sitting position and held her tightly to his chest, rocking gently. "I'm sorry, Winry, I'm so sorry. This is my fault." He closed his eyes tightly, resting his head against the top of hers.

Somewhere in his mind he knew she was only unconscious and would be okay, but that didn't excuse his behavior. If he had been more patient, more understanding, she would be still be scrubbing the floor.

He didn't know how long he had been sitting there with her limp body in his arms, but it felt like an eternity. He jumped slightly when he felt her hand touch his arm weakly, and almost started crying again when she whispered his name.

She looked up at him, his face blotchy and tearstained, and smiled weakly. "I'm okay, I'm okay," she reassured, hand gently wiping away the tears from under his eyes. "I slipped; I'm fine." Her tone was comforting; she continued to whisper, noting on how clumsy she was, how it wasn't the best idea for her to run, or get up so quickly, when the floor was wet.

He pulled her tightly against him again, his lips gently kissing the top of her head. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," he whispered, barely audible between kisses, into the mess of her hair, the tears suddenly starting again. He helped her sit up, and eventually helped her into a kneeling position, not willing to lose contact with her skin as he did so.

He held her hands, looking down at them, squeezing gently. The sobs had subsided, but his breath was shaky, and a small tremor ran through his body.

"Ed." She rubbed her thumbs soothingly on the back of his hands. He refused to look up at her, embarrassed from crying and being weak. He was supposed to be strong; he was supposed to protect her. How could he have let something like this happen?

Her hands were cupping his face, gradually lifting it to hers. His eyes averted, suddenly finding the pattern in the tile extremely interesting. She ran her middle fingers under his eyes, scooting closer to him until their knees touched. "Ed," she repeated, firmer this time. He could feel her gaze boring into him, but he couldn't bring himself to look at her, not yet.

"I'm sorry," he apologized for the hundredth time. Winry let out an exasperated sigh.

"Edward Elric, you look at me right now." Her tone was so demanding and strong; he vaguely remembered his mother using the same tone of voice when he had gotten himself into trouble. He found himself wondering if all women were capable of that nature, his eyes reluctantly snapping to hers. "I don't want to hear anymore apologies from you. Do I make myself clear?" He swallowed visibly and worked his jaw. The intensity in her eyes was almost overwhelming. "You have nothing to be sorry for. I don't want you to think for a second that this is your fault. You have never wronged me, never hurt me, never disappointed me. I will do everything in my power to prevent this from eating away at you. I love you, Ed. So much."

She kissed him, his eyes fluttering shut, the guilt and shame slowly melting away with her touch. He loved her and she loved him. As the kiss progressively grew more passionate, he wondered if maybe she were right, if maybe this wasn't his fault. His arms wrapped around her back, hers around his neck, and decided he would try to forgive himself, just this once, for Winry.

A/N: WOW SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING IN A MILLION YEARS. My puppy chewed through my laptop charger and I had to order a new one. Then I had some problems with my mental stability and found it increasingly harder to write anything, so I'm sorry if this is God awful. I decided to change the setting last minute (Winry was originally cleaning the bathtub) because I realized a lot of my stories take place in the bathroom, and I felt weird about that. I am feeling slightly better, though, so I'll try my best to update more often! Thanks for reading!