(A/N: Here's chapter seventeen! Time for a little breather from all the action and drama. And Winry makes her debut! Yay! Anyway, enjoy!

Konohamaya Uzumaki: Thanks for the review! Yeah, I try to avoid rewriting the dialogue of the plot as much as possible. Like I'm following the Brotherhood plot line, but avoid re-scripting it, like you said. Though, it'll start to diverge from canon later on. Honestly, I did have problems with that when I first started writing fanfics. Practice makes perfect, right? Yeah, once Nina's powers develops, I imagine Edward being a little jealous. Not only do Bleach powers defy/ignore the laws of Alchemy, but he is also the youngest State Alchemist in history. So imagine Nina being younger and more powerful than him in his current age with just a little bit of training after her powers develop. That would frustrate him a bit. But do I believe that Ed won't bare a grudge for a long. Life's unfair and he should be used to it by now. And it's going to get worse with one awful truth after another that Orihime is too afraid to tell Edward and Alphonse in fear of ruining their semi normal lives. But that's for another time. And I'm also imagine Edward coming with some research theory about Nina's powers, and Orihime debunking his claims having first hand experience and everything. I've better stop. I've rambled long enough. So much for keeping responses short and simple.

actionliker: Thanks for reviewing. Yeah, it's hard to find decent Bleach crossovers with Orihime as the main character, seeing as she is the main heroine of Bleach. And before people start to rage, the definition of heroine is different in Japan than it is in the west. In the west, the main heroine could be described as the most prominent female character. But in Japan, it means the protagonist's love interest. Which is why Rukia is described as Ichigo's nakama [close friend/comrade], and Orihime is the heroine since she's Ichigo's love interest. But no Ichigo/Rukia and Ichigo/Orihime pairing fights please.

Inquisitor [guest]: Thanks for the review! I'm sorry I can't answer any of your questions now. It would be full of spoilers if I did. I just hope you keep reading and your questions would be answered eventually.

And one more thing before we get on with the story. Orihime has avoided telling Edward and Alphonse, seeing as she doesn't want to get them involved in Hollow business. But she'll have to confess soon, so don't worry. And Edward has attained Dr. Marcoh's clue because how else would the plot move forward, otherwise?

Okay... Now, enjoy the chapter!)

The Mechanic and the Airhead

"So, this is Resembool?" Orihime questioned, excitedly. Her gray eyes glowed in wonder and glee as they scanned through the open wide space. "The scenery is so beautiful!" she awed. "And the air is so clean! Look! Sheep! C'mon, Nina!"

"Okay!" Nina agreed happily, riding on top of Alexander.

The ginger haired girl ran off, squeeling in happiness in the direction of where she spotted the white fleeced animals with Nina and Alexander on her tail.

"Don't run off on your own, Orihime!" Edward shouted, a tick mark appearing on his forehead. He let out a frustrated sigh. "It's like babysitting a five year old, and we already have Nina for that. So that makes it two five year olds."

After a week on the train ride, they finally arrived at their destination… Resembool. The place Edward and Alphonse grew up. And also home to Ed's mechanic.

Eventually, the group of five made it to a yellow house with a sign on front that said 'Rockbell Automail'.

"Is this the place?" Orihime asked, staring brightly at the building.

There was loud barking as black dog trotted over. What immediately caught her attention was the robot leg it sported. It went over and almost tackled Edward on the ground, fortunately, the blond alchemist managed to stay upright as the dog littered him with kisses.

Afterwards, it seemed to take notice of the auburn haired girl. It tentatively crawled her way. It took whiff of her to make sure she wasn't an intruding. Once confirming that she was just a friend, it licked her hand in acceptance before greeting the other three travelers.

"Hey, granny," Edward greeted a four foot tall old woman standing on the front yard, smoking a pipe.

"It's been a long time," the old woman greeted him back. She seemed to take notice of his three companions. "Who are they?"

"Oh, this is Orihime," he answered, pointing at the ginger haired girl. "That's Major Armstrong and those two playing with Den are Nina and Alexander."

"Interesting companions you got there," she noted, eyeing the three of them and the large, white dog. She turned her attention back towards the blond alchemist. "I know I haven't seen you in awhile, Ed, but you've gone and grown smaller."

Edward let out an irritated growl, a tick mark forming on his head. "Granny, you've got it wrong. You're supposed to say 'how big you've grown lately, Ed'," he hissed out with controlled anger.

The old lady seemed to take great pleasure in getting the blond riled up. "And why would I say something so clearly untrue?" she questioned with a slight snicker in her voice.

Ed promptly exploded. "I'M STILL TALLER THAN YOU, YOU MINI HAG!" He let out a painful yelp when he was suddenly struck in the head by a wrench.

"Edward! I thought I told to call first before you come back for maintenance!"

Orihime spotted a girl about her age glaring at the blond alchemist through blue eyes from the balcony. She had long blonde hair, which were a lighter shade than Edward's, tied into a ponytail with side swept bangs. She wore a revealing black tube top and a green jumpsuit with the top half unzipped. A green bandana adorned her head and brown gloves covered her hands.

"Winry!" Edward yelled angrily at the girl, now identified as Winry. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

The blonde girl merely laughed. "Welcome back!" Her eyes then spotted Orihime. "Oh, hello. Who are you?"

Orihime perked up when she realized the girl's attention was now on her. "My name is Orihime Inoue," she introduced, bowing politely. "Sorry for the intrusion."

Winry smiled. "My name is Winry Rockbell, and that's my grandmother, Pinako Rockbell." She sent a devious glint towards Edward. "I have to wonder why someone as polite and pretty as you would travel with someone as rude and obnoxious as Edward."

Edward glared at Winry while Orihime blushed at the compliment.

"Now, now, let's all get inside," Pinako announced.

"Oh, no!" Winry shrieked, horrified. She stared, trembling in shock and dismay at the remains of Ed's automail, cradling them in her hand.

"Yeah, it's a little mashed up," Edward said, nonchalantly sipping a cup of coffee.

"A little mashed up?! A little?! Ed, do you see what you've done to my beautiful creation? I slaved over this!"

"It's basically the same. It's just in smaller pieces," Ed smirked. The smirked was immediately wiped off his face due to a fist to the face courtesy of the irate blonde girl.

She turned attention towards Alphonse. "Don't tell me… Are you a little mashed up, too?" It looked like Al was about to respond, but was stopped by a vicious kick. "You guys are idiots. All you ever do is worry me."

"Oh!" Orihime beamed. "If you are Edward's mechanic, do you mind looking at a few designs?" she asked, shyly.

"Sure!" Winry smiled at the girl. "Are you interested in automail?"

"Kind of." The ginger haired girl dug into her pink bag and pulled out a medium sized sketchpad. She handed it over to Winry.

Winry flipped through it until she spotted a drawing of Edward. The blond alchemist glanced at the picture over his mechanic's shoulder.

His expression twisted into one of disapproval. "What the hell is this?" he shouted, disgruntled.

He was seeing a picture of himself in some weird futuristic setting. The bottom half of his body were replaced metal claws that fired missiles from it. His right arm seemed to be a device that shoots out fire, and eyes sprouted some sort of destructive beams. The drawing was actually really good! It was the absurdity of it that was unsettling to him.

"Why am I a monster? And why does it look like I'm destroying the city? Am I a villain?! Is that how you see me, you whack job?!" Edward yelled, his voice became higher and higher with each question.

Orihime laughed, sheepishly. "Sorry, I kind of got carried away."

"This is great!" Winry beamed, enthusiastically. "I'd loved to make this! Wouldn't you like it, Ed?"

Ed glared at the giddy mechanic. "Make it for someone else!" he snapped. "Not me!"

After much discussion over repairing Edward's automail, it was finally decided that it'll be done after three days.

Orihime blushed in embarrassment when her growling stomach caught everyone's attention.

The ginger haired girl tried to cover it up by exclaiming she wasn't hungry, but the hostesses weren't having any of it. Pinako offered to make them lunch. Orihime, not wanting to be to intrude, volunteered her assistance.

After much argument, the elderly Rockbell concede at the young woman's stubbornness. Nina chimed in that she want to make lunch, too, as she followed the duo into the kitchen.

"So… How long have you known Orihime?" Winry asked, as she was taking Ed's measurements.

Edward sat in the mechanic's workshop. The room smelled of oil and metal. No surprise seeing as there was nothing but bolts, screws, screwdrivers and other tools, and unfinished automail projects.

"Only a couple of months," Edward replied, simply.

Winry smirked, mischievously. "You two dating?"

Ed almost collapsed on the ground, his face was tinted beet red. "What the hell makes you think I'm dating Orihime?!" he screamed out.

The blonde girl pondered that idea a bit then shivered. "Yeah, I wouldn't want that kind of fate for the poor girl."

Edward glared at her, heatedly. "What's that supposed to mean?" he growled.

"I'm actually surprised though," Winry pronounced, ignoring the blond alchemist's small outburst. "I've never thought you'd make another female friend, Edward."

"I have plenty of female friends!" Ed retorted.

"You're military friends don't count," Winry objected. Her face twisted into one of stern sadness. "Have you told her?"

Edward didn't need her to the elaborate to know what she was referring to. "No," he replied, lowly.

She let out a dejected sigh. "I'm not going to force you to tell her the reason why you need automail limbs and why Al's body is just a suit of armor." She straightened up to look him straight in the eye. "But Orihime's been with you for this long. She already knows by now that you guys got...problems. Don't you think it's time you tell her? I'm actually surprised she hasn't asked," she added as an afterthought.

Winry was right. Why haven't Orihime questioned the reason for Al's bodiless armor or that fact that his right arm and left leg were made of metal? In fact, she didn't freak out or act extremely surprised or astounded in discovering the fact that was his little brother was nothing but a soul bonded to a seven foot tall suit of armor.

To his genuine dumbfoundment though, the ginger haired girl didn't act any differently than how she acted before their secret was blown. She didn't look at them with pity or fear or amazement. He was honestly afraid of what she'll say once their secret was out after what happened in Liore. But now… He wasn't sure. Yeah, he was still scared, but a part of him was hoping she'll be understanding.

Hell, she hasn't even asked him why they were so hung up on finding the Philosopher's Stone in the first. She just went with it.

And they have been together this long. He and Al couldn't keep up the charade forever. They came this far, he might as well tell her.

Edward let out a sigh of defeat. "You're right, Winry. I'll tell Orihime. I'm genuinely surprised that she hasn't asked me by now. She hasn't even bother to question why Al and I are so desperate to find the Philosopher's Stone."

Winry smiled. "Well, you can tell her tonight." She sent down her measuring tape. "We better get going. Lunch should be done soon."

The Rockbells and there five guests sat around the dining table enjoying a huge feast of mashed potatoes, steak, and stemmed broccoli. Everyone got settled in, conversations and idle chatter immediately rang among the seven.

Orihime smiled. It was almost like a family reunion. She could see how close the Elrics were to the Rockbells. Honesty, Edward's and Winry's relationship almost reminded her of Ichigo's and Rukia's. The way they bicker to hide their deep affection for each other was all too similar.

She held down the green pit of jealousy that was forming in her heart. This was no time to be jealous! And besides, she should be happy that Ichigo found someone he loves, even if that person isn't her. No matter how much it hurts, she shouldn't be selfish and get in the way of his happiness.

"Orihime?"

Gray eyes glanced over at Winry still chewing on a piece of steak.

"How did you meet Ed and Al?" Winry asked.

Orihime swallowed the steak she was eating before replying. "It was only after a month since my stay in Greia that I met Edward and Alphonse. I kind of bumped into them in the street," she said, sheepishly. She perked up, excitedly. "You want to know the first thing I thought when I saw Edward?"

Edward turned his attention towards the animated girl, his interest piqued. The blonde mechanic leaned, lips curling into mischievous smile. Is she going to call him short or any other variation of the word?

"What was it? What was your first impression of Ed?" Winry egged on.

Orihime covered her hand with her mouth to stifle a laugh. Ed frowned at this. He didn't like where this was going. "Edward...reminded me…" She let out fits of giggles as Edward and Winry leaned in. "The way his shoulders tensed, the way his face was set into a permanent frown… It all reminded me of a puppy! He was like a puppy!"

Winry let out a boisterous laugh while Edward fell out of his seat, anime style.

He managed to pull himself up, his eyes narrowed at the girl. "I reminded you of a puppy?" he questioned, incredulously.

The ginger haired girl nodded, happily. "And when you scowled at me it was almost like a puppy growling. It was so funny! And when you go on one of your rants, it's similar to a puppy barking. It's hilarious!" she finished, letting out a joyous laugh.

Ed's face heated up in embarrassment and humiliation as sounds of laughter rang throughout the room at his expense.

"I never knew my brother was comparable to a puppy," Alphonse laughed from his corner in the room. "That's something I've got to keep in mind!"

"That's why Alexander likes big brother Ed so much. He's a dog just like him," Nina commented, innocently.

"All you stop laughing at me!" Edward snapped, angrily, face buried in his food.

"Okay, okay, everyone. Let's leave Edward alone before he blows a short fuse," Pinako said, trying to get everyone to settle down, but her insult towards Ed's height only caused the laughter to increase.

"Shut up! I'm not short!" Ed shouted, furiously.

"If I may ask, what were you doing in Greia, Orihime?" Major Armstrong asked Orihime.

"Oh, nothing really. They needed a healer, so stayed there for quite awhile," the ginger haired girl.

"So, you're an alchemist, like Ed and Al?" Pinako inquired.

"...Kind of," she answered after a short pause. There was a bit of uncertainty and hesitance in her voice that caused the elderly Rockbell to raise an eyebrow, but she didn't comment.

"Where did you learn alchemy?" Winry asked.

"Well…" Orihime paused, trying to wrack her brain for a plausible excuse. How could she tell them that Hollow attacked her and her friends, and in her desperation to protect them, her Shun Shun Rikka activated for the first time? There's no way they'd believe her. They have no idea about the existence of fallen souls turned soul eating monsters in the first place.

"I had a teacher," she answered, simply deciding to skipping the die or fly part of her superpower awakening circumstance.

Edward perked up at this, as did Alphonse. "You had a teacher?"

The auburn haired girl nodded. "Yep! He was also a scientist." The Elric brothers were now more attentive than ever about Orihime's tale.

"A scientistic, huh. Is it someone we knew? Like is he famous?" Alphonse asked, taking an interest in the conversation.

"Not in your world," Orihime mentally said, ruefully. "Not really."

The Elrics' interests seemed to deflate a bit.

"What was like?" Winry inquired.

The healer gave a sheepish smile. "Well, he's very...eccentric, I should say."

Ed raised an eyebrow. "Eccentric?"

Her facial expression turned into one of shy embarrassment. "Yeah… He likes playing jokes and pulling pranks and he teases us a lot, especially Ichigo. But he's really smart, strong, and always inventing these incredible inventions," she finished, animatedly waving her arms around. Afterwards, she went to take a bite of her mashed potatoes.

"How long did you study under him?" the Major asked.

"Only about two weeks," Orihime replied after swallowing.

"Two weeks?!" Edward yelled, flabbergasted. "He only trained you for two weeks?!"

"Well… Yeah," she admitted, confused by Ed's shocked expression of disbelief. "We really didn't have time to train any longer than two weeks. He mainly taught us the basics. The rest we learned through experience." She pondered this bit, lips pursed together, thoughtfully. "Actually… Now that I think about it… His popular form of training method is for us to learn what we need and develop through personal experience."

"Why didn't you have time for more training?"

"Huh?" Orihime tilted her head towards Al.

"You said that he only had time to teach you for a couple of weeks," he elaborated his question. "Why is that?"

"Oh, we were on a time limited mission. A rescue mission to be exact," she answered.

Orihime then proceeded to tell them about her, Ichigo's and the other's rescue mission to save Rukia from execution. Her experiences there, the battles that took place, the people she met, and the enemies she befriended. She explained the whole thing in such exuberant excitement and flamboyant and energetic gestures that it was hard not to get absorbed in her strange, mildly horrific tale.

She told them everything that happened in a less detailed fashion. She kept in mind to keep some key important facts out, such as the existence of Soul Reapers, all the supernatural aspects of the battle, and the fact that whole rescue took place in an entirely different world, but other than that everything remained the same in it's more oriented fashion that the occupants in the room would understand.

She settled back into her meal after her story was through.

"So, let me get this straight… You had a teacher who trained you for only a couple of weeks, throw you into a rescue mission in a country you have little knowledge about, all for some girl you barely know?" Edward inquired, his eyes narrowed, dubiously. When he received an enthusiastic nod as his answer, his expression became even more incredulous. "Am I the only one seeing something fucking wrong with that?"

"If that's the kind of teacher Orihime had, I'm glad we stuck with our teacher, brother," Alphonse added with a slight shiver.

Edward paled a little. "Yeah, I thought I never imagine anyone worse than Teacher."

Armstrong took his shirt off, yelling something about a 'beautiful and heartfelt sentiment to risk life and limb to save a friend in need'. After being weirded out for a second, everyone just decided to ignore the overly emotional man.

Winry shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe someone would send you to throw away your life like that. I mean, you could've been killed Orihime!"

Orihime stopped mid chew and her gray eyes darted towards the blonde girl. "He didn't force us to go. We volunteered."

Edward couldn't look even more doubtful than he did now. The more she talked or explained herself, the more outlandish and far fetched everything sounded. No sane person would jump into war for a person they barely met.

"We all had our own reasons for going, and besides…" Orihime beamed brightly. "...Ichigo said he'll win."

Winry smiled, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "You seem bring up this 'Ichigo' person a lot, Orihime. Who is Ichigo?"

Orihime grinned. "Oh? I do?" She let out merry laugh that sounded a bit embarrassed. "Ichigo… Ichigo is a really...fantastic guy!"

Edward watched as Orihime described this 'Ichigo' guy. From his appearance to all his heroic deeds. As she was talking about him, he could see the minor changes in her usual attitude. For one, she seemed more passionate and cheerful, her smile was different than its usual ones. Though, it was smaller, it appeared to be more genuine and happy. Like it was reserved just for Ichigo. And gray eyes were lit with admiration, warmth, and devotion.

Why can't Winry praise him the way Orihime praises Ichigo? All he gets is a wrench thrown at him for all his efforts.

"So? Ichigo is some sort of vigilante?" Edward questioned, rather snidely.

"No, no," Orihime denied, quickly, ignoring Ed's bitterness. "I mean, it's true that he's been called a delinquent by our peers, but he really is a wonderful person! Of course, he can be a bit stubborn and reckless. He's brash, ill tempered, and arrogant at times." Her face became more sheepish with each passing moment. "And he also enjoys fighting. Quite a lot actually. I mean, he never actively looks for fights, but he does enjoy himself greatly when he's in one. I guess, it's the fact that he could test his skills against stronger and stronger enemies that he enjoys. I'm not making him sound all that great, am I?"

She smiled slightly, relaxing her posture. "But if look past all the initial flaws, Ichigo really is an awesome person! He's sweet and kind. Brave and strong. And he's always willing protect someone, especially the innocent and weak. Can you show me how design and make automail, Winry?" she asked, quickly changing the subject, feeling embarrassed and flustered talking about Ichigo. Not to mention her heart was rapidly pounding against her chest and her face was heating up. If she talked about the orange haired substitute Soul Reaper any long, she might openly declare she's in love with him to these people. And that's a humiliation she'd like to avoid.

Winry smiled brightly, her eyes lit up with glee. "Sure! You get see how wonderful automail is from an expert."

Edward rolled his eyes and snorted. "Automail freak."

"You need me, alchemy nerd," she bit back.

After lunch was over, everyone went their separate ways.

Orihime followed Winry to her workshop. Her gray eyes twinkled with excitement and wonder with all the tools and metals laid before her. She listened intently as the blonde mechanic went on extensive, exhilarating detail about each piece of equipment and their significance.

The ginger haired girl was amazed by this girl. Not only was she an excellent mechanical engineer and she always seemed like she had a vast knowledge about the human body, if creating a functional automail requires connecting every single nerve to an attached metal limb for it to work properly is any indication.

It seemed like they've been talking about automail for hours. Winry sure gets geeky about automail. Orihime learned first hand that once a person gets her started, they are in for a very long lecture about the beauty of automail engineering. She's about as passionate about automail as Edward and Alphonse are about alchemy.

She didn't want to be rude, but she could barely remember half the things the blond mechanic was saying. She decided to keep her lack of concentration to herself though, and simply nodded along with everything the blonde girl was saying.

"I'm really amazed, Winry!" Orihime exclaimed. "I can see how much Edward relies on you."

Winry started working on creating a new automail for Ed. "Oh, I don't think so," she said, denying the notion, letting out a wistful. "First off, he never tell me what's going on. He always keep me locked out, and he never so much as sent a single letter."

Orihime giggled. "I think that's how boys are. They let their actions speak louder than their words. The fact that Edward keeps secrets from you is because he doesn't want to put your life in danger."

The blonde girl sighed. "I guess, you're right, Orihime. But I really wish he'd be more careful. He's always so reckless! It worries me a lot that one day I won't be able see him again." She suddenly sent the ginger haired girl an impish grin. "So, this 'Ichigo' guy… Are you dating him?"

Orihime's face turned a beet red as she blinked, owlishly. "Eh?" was her oh, so intelligent response.

Winry's grin grew wider. "The way you talked about him was almost like girl gushing about her new boyfriend."

The healer immediately covered her embarrassed face with her hands. "Is it really that obvious?"

"That you're in love with the guy?" the mechanic inquired. "Yes. Yes, it is. A person has to be either really dumb or oblivious not to see it."

The auburn haired girl sighed, defeatedly. "I do like Ichigo," she admitted, her cheeks stained a dark red color. "A lot actually. I'm… I'm in love with him."

Winry cooed at that. It was so nice talking about girly things with another girl. All she ever talked to were Ed and Al, and being boys, they are never interested in romance or shopping or stuff in that nature.

"What made you fall for him?" she asked, excitedly.

The healer let a small smile graced her lips. "Lots of things actually. But if I were to pick one, it'll be because Ichigo 'saved' me. I don't want to go into a lot of details, but without him I wouldn't be where I am today. He inspired to me to be a better person, and I wouldn't have developed my powers this much," she elaborated, leaving out her kidnapping and her subsequent rescue. "This might be a little presumptuous for me to say, but if I were to have five lives, Ichigo would be the only man I'd fall in love with in every single one of them."

Winry's blue eyes widened in amazement and awe at Orihime's confession. She never met another person who loved someone so unconditionally as this! "Wow… He must be a really amazing guy. Have you told him about your feelings for him?"

"Uh...no," she said, gray eyes downcast.

The blonde mechanic frowned in shock. "W-why not?"

The auburn haired girl clenched her fist at her sides, trying to keep the lump in her throat down. "Be-because… He's in love with someone else." She could feel the unshed tears forming in her gray eyes. She couldn't allow them to fall. They would mean giving into her selfishness, and she couldn't do that to Ichigo and Rukia. It wouldn't be right of her to tear away their happiness just because she's heartbroken.

"The girl he loves… She's really kind and smart, strong and beautiful. She's always there to cheer Ichigo up, something I can't do. I-I really like her. I adore her! But… But I can't help but to feel a little jealous," she divulged, tearfully. "I'm an awful person, aren't I?" The tears were starting fall down, and Orihime's eyes darted to the ground, shamefully, feeling horrible that she couldn't keep them at bay. "I have no right to be jealous. I feel disgusted with myself for feeling this way. I-I really am a horrible person."

Orihime was shocked when Winry suddenly pulled her into a warm hug to stop her self hatred ranting. She patted the girl's hair, soothingly as she was sniffing loudly. Once the soft crying stopped, the mechanic pulled her back slightly, so she could look the healer in the eye.

"Stop that, Orihime," Winry remarked, gently and firmly. "You're a good person and a wonderful girl. I know Ed and Al thinks so too, if what they said about you is any indication, and any friend of theirs is a friend of mine. You're jealous? So what? It's perfectly fine to be a little jealous. I mean, what girl wouldn't feel a little resentful of a girl who stole the heart of a guy she likes? Honestly, I think you're pretty amazing to be envious of this girl and yet still call her a close friend. Most people would either hate their love rivals guts or break off their friendship if they found out they stole the object of their affections. You really are strong, Orihime."

Orihime wiped the rest of the teardrops away, letting out a tearful, tender smile. "Thanks, Winry! To tell the truth, you're the second person to tell me that."

"Well, you should take that advice to heart, and have more faith in yourself," the blonde mechanic replied, willfully.

The ginger haired girl giggled at that. She'd think about that, but she wasn't ready to confess her feelings to Ichigo anytime yet. The fact that Ichigo almost died because of her because she was too weak and over reliant on him is another problem. She won't confess her love until she's worthy to stand by his side as an equal, and not chasing his shadow anymore.

That's why she wants to become stronger!

After dinner, Orihime proceeded to the guest room Pinako generously allowed her to stay in while they housed here until Edward's automail was repaired. She changed into a simple and modest, baby blue nightgown with an unshowy low neckline. She dug into her pink bag, pulling out her sewing kit and the midnight blue scarf she was working on.

She didn't know how long she's been sewing for, meaning an hour or two before she heard a loud knock on her door.

"Orihime, you awake?"

It was Edward's voice on the other side.

"Uh, yeah… Give me a second." She set her tools down on a nightstand next to her hair clips. She went to open the door to reveal the blond alchemist standing on the other side. He was dressed in a blue shirt and boxers, and his hair was undone from its usual braid, letting it fall about freely. She could actually see how long and soft looking his blond hair was. It reached just past his shoulders.

There was something about the way he looked that caught her attention. His shoulders were tensed yet relaxed, and his eyes burned with stern determination as if he finally come to terms to tell her something serious.

The auburn haired girl opened the door wider to let Edward in.

Ed silently sat on the foot of the bed and Orihime followed suit. An awkward silence followed as she patiently waited for him to speak first. He finally tilted his head to face her.

"It took me a long time to decide," Edward said, slowly. "But I think it's time you know learned the truth, Orihime." His golden eyes were filled with a firm resolve. He came this far, there was no turning back now. "As you learned now, I lost my arm and leg and Al is just a soul bonded to a suit of armor."

"Yeah, I know."

"Of course," he snorted, sheepishly. "It was obvious after you found us when Scar practically tore us apart."

"I've known before that."

"Yeah, well- Wait… What?" Edward eyes widened in absolute shock as he did a rapid double take. Did he hear her right? "You-you've known?! For how long?!"

"Since the minute we've met," she replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Ed's jaw dropped. "You've known for that long?!" He was completely appalled. He remembered the first time they met when she was staring at them. At first, he thought she was comparing their sizes, which is why his scowl turned angrier and angrier waiting for the dreaded 'short' insult. She was actually figuring out their bodies weren't normal instead? And just looking at them for a few seconds?

"Why didn't you say anything?" Ed asked, lowly, his voice full of different, undecipherable emotions.

Orihime looked down at her lap, shyly. "How can I? It'll be insensitive of me to ask something like that. If I did, it'll just be pouring salt on a wound. How can I ask you that without gouging out your pain all over again? There's no answer to that." She sent him a soft smile. "So, I've decided to just wait. Whenever you're ready, whenever you have the courage to tell me, I'll be there to listen. After all, they are called personal issues for a reason."

The blond alchemist was even more amazed by this girl. Everytime, she always manages to do or say something that completely leaves him speechless and dumbstruck. He could feel his face heating up.

Ed scratched the back of his neck, nervously. "Well, I feel stupid. All this time I've been worrying about what'd you think. All for this worry and anxiety for nothing." He let out a short, humorous laugh. "I guess, I should skip that part and just tell you how me and Al got that way."

The blond alchemist's face turned grim and serious. "There's a forbidden technique among alchemists called Human Transmutation." The ginger haired girl raised a questionable eyebrow. "It's when you use alchemy to try to bring the dead back to life," he explained. Orihime listened intently to his story. "Al and I tried to revived our mother and the result of that miserable failed attempt, well...you could see that for yourself. To us, our mother was everything. She was kind and beautiful. We got into alchemy because we wanted to hear her praise. After she died of illness, we were devastated. All we could think about was bringing her back, so we could see our mother's smile again. We've spent years and years training in alchemy and coming up with theories for a successful Human Transmutation. Finally, we were ready to try it. At least, I thought we were. The transmutation was a huge disaster. A miserable failure. I lost my left leg as a result and Alphonse lost his entire body. I sacrificed my arm to alchemically bond Al's soul to that suit of armor."

"And that's why you guys are looking for the Philosopher's Stone?" Orihime asked, tentatively. "To restore your bodies?"

"Yeah, and I won't stop until I get Al his body back!" Edward declared, his golden eyes burning with fiery determination.

"You really amazing," she announced, shyly. "You know that, Edward?"

A yellow eyebrow rose in amusement. "Amazing? I've never heard anyone call me or my failed attempt at Human Transmutation that. How am I amazing?"

Orihime fiddled with her fingers, timidly. "Well, you never gave up. You're strong and determined. The fact that you did everything you could to revive your mother, and now you're doing everything in your power to get your younger brother back to normal, despite all your faults and failures, is really admirable." A small genuine smile spread across her face. "In my eyes, you are a proud failure! And I like guys like you."

Edward's face couldn't turn any redder than it did right now. "You… You really know how to flatter a guy, don't you?"

"Eh?" Orihime was confused.

The blond alchemist smirked slightly and shook his head. "Nevermind." He stood up and stretched his single arm. "Well, better get to sleep. Goodnight, Orihime."

She smiled. "Goodnight, Edward."

He paused at the door, scratching the back of his head before turning around to face her. "You don't have to keep calling me 'Edward'. 'Ed' is just fine."

He raised an eyebrow as he watched in amusement as the ginger haired girl's face puffed up and her cheeks tinted a light pink color. She looked somewhat constipated.

She shook her head, vigorously. "I-I can't do that!" she sputtered, nervously. "It's too informal!"

He rolled his eyes in exasperation. "How is it informal?"

"I-it just is!"

"Well, I'm allowing you too," he said, nonchalantly.

"Oh, okay." Orihime took a deep breath. "Ed…" Her cheeks puffed up. "...ward," she finished, nervously. She threw her hands over her mouth, feeling flustered. "I'm sorry! I can't! It's too hard!"

Edward sighed. "You are only making it hard." He looked her, expectedly. "Now, try again."

The auburn haired girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, nervously, licking her dry lips. "Ed...die." She throw her head into her pulling, too flustered to look him in the eye

"Eddie?" He rose a skeptical eyebrow. Simply calling him 'Ed' was this difficult for the girl? How ridiculous. She always seems to make every little thing incredible hard.

He simply sighed, shaking his head in bemusement. "You know what? Just call me whatever you like."

Orihime lifted her head, smiling at him. "Okay, Eddie."

Ed furrowed his eyebrows and narrowed his eyes at her at the new nickname. He didn't know whether she was teasing him or being serious. That big, happy grin on her face and her pink cheeks told him the latter.

She was so weird! He smiled to himself. But in a good way.

"Goodnight, Orihime."

"Goodnight, Eddie."

When Edward closed the door behind, Orihime smiled at the pleasant, heartfelt conversation they just had. She was happy that Ed was trusted her enough to tell her his big secret. Does that mean he finally thinks of her as a trusted friend?

She giggled in glee.

She closed her eyes and let sleep overtake her.

(A/N: That's the end of chapter seventeen! Hoped you enjoyed! This chapter was mostly a bunch of different character interactions between various characters. Honestly, Winry's debut in Brotherhood wasn't really anything special. They simply introduced her as Ed's mechanic and his and Al's childhood friend and that's it. So… Not much to work with. Just another opportunity to get characters to bond. Especially, like the Orihime's and Winry's interactions as well as Edward's and Orihime's at the end. Those were my favorite parts to write. But giving all that… This chapter was longer than I thought. Like, seriously.

Yes, the story Orihime told them was the Soul Society arc of Bleach where she, Ichigo, and the others try to save Rukia from execution. Of course, she was mindful to keep out important facts. So as far as Ed and Al and the others know, she was simply invading another country to rescue a friend she knew for only a month.

Oh, yeah... The whole line of 'I'll wait for you to tell me your personal problems when you're ready', that's what Rukia said to Ichigo about the topic of his mother's death and what Ichigo said to his dad when he found out he was a Soul Reaper. I absolutely loved those conversations because personal issues aren't just something you can demand people to tell for your benefit/satisfaction. You have no right to command someone to tell them your problems just for your own gain. If they have a problem that deeply affects them, just wait. Just wait and they'll come to you. You can still watch over them and make sure they don't do anything stupid that'll ruin their life, but wait for them to tell you what's bothering them.

The next chapter would focus on Nina. At first, I was just going to skip the rest of their stay at the Rockbells and go straight to the part where Edward and Alphonse try to decipher Dr. Marcoh's notes, but then I thought 'Ed's automail won't be fixed for three days and this is only day one. There must be something I could do to add on, so why not turn the focus towards Nina for a bit'? It'll be a nice change, seeing as Nina is a supporting character in this story. Not a minor one. A major supporting character with her own character development and everything. So, Nina would have her day in the limelight next chapter.

Well, leave any comments, suggestions, or questions in a review! And thanks for reading!