Welcome to my first 2003 FMA story! This will be set post Conquerors of Shamaballa. I have been rewatching the 2003 version recently and I felt the desire to write a story about it. I was inspired by the prompt 'Moving Forward' during 503 week and by a song called By Way of Sorrow by Cry Cry Cry. If you listen to it, the first verse seems like Edward and the second verse is Winry.
'It was a miracle,' Edward thought even though he didn't really believe in them. Winry was found unconscious in the street in London, and happened to be brought into the hospital on the day Alphonse was working in the emergency department. Alphonse was in medical school and was currently doing his clinicals at the hospital. Edward dropped the phone when Alphonse had called him to tell him that Winry was there.
It had been 6 years since he had last seen her, and that was only for a brief moment before he found himself going back to this world. It was much too short of time for a reunion but it was all they had.
Now there would be a chance for another reunion. Edward hoped it would be longer than their last one. He was on the bus to the hospital holding a box of chocolates. Alphonse asked him to buy something to cheer her up. She had woken up distraught but had eventually calmed down enough for him to confirm that it was their Winry, not the one that might be in this world.
As the hospital came into view, Edward felt anxious. His arm started to itch, and he tried to scratch through the thick coat. He shivered due to the cold outside. He found the women's quarters in the hospital and was escorted into a large room with multiple beds with patients in them. But he saw her. She looked so pale and thin. The large white hospital gown made her look so much smaller and frail. He was introduced by the nurse and left to visit her.
"Ed?" she asked as if she couldn't believe he was standing there.
"Hey, it's really you," Edward said and then he stepped forward and gave her the box. "These are for you."
"Yeah, I don't even know where here is," Winry replied. She opened the box. "These are nice."
Edward sat on the chair next to the bed. "Good. Is it okay if I ask a few questions?" Winry nodded.
"Where are you from?" he whispered. He wanted to confirm for himself.
"Risembool."
"What was your dog's name?"
"Den."
"What was your profession?"
"Automail mechanic. Are you done verifying that it's me?" Winry asked.
"Hey, just checking to be sure. But it really is you," Edward said. "It's so hard to believe." He put his hand behind his head. He was flabbergasted.
Winry held her arms out to him hoping for an embrace. "It's good to see you."
Edward leaned over and embraced her. "Good to see you, too. Welcome to London."
He smelled her but she smelled different. Almost sickly. Not like the floral shampoo and grease that he had always associated with her.
Then he felt her legs on the bed. She had two legs. He looked her over. Both eyes. Both arms. What was the exchange to go through the door?
"Winry, how did you get here?"
"That's the thing, I don't remember. I just woke up in this hospital."
Edward was thinking. Alphonse had lost his memories too as an exchange and time. So he asked "Winry, how old are you?"
"Well I'm 23, the same age as you silly."
Edward sat back "Winry, I'm 24 now. You may have lost memories like Alphonse did."
"What?" Winry was stunned. How did she lose time?
"It's okay. It was just a year. I think Alphonse lost 5 years."
"A whole year of memories! Gone! Just like that!" Winry held her box of chocolates in one hand and she wiped the tears with her other hand. Edward felt guilty. He didn't want to upset her but this was a significant event. She deserved to cry it out. He sat on the bed and put his hand on her leg.
"Alphonse and I are going to help you. So don't worry. We're right here for you every step of the way. I promise."
Winry nodded and asked "You're not leaving me again, right?"
"Hell no," Edward said and she sniffled.
After a few days in the hospital, the doctors found no reason to medically keep her there. Due to her amnesia, it was suggested that she be in familiar surroundings. But the best they could do was let her be with people that she knew, which were the Elric brothers. They had been told that she could be discharged the next day. The nurse brought in her belongings, which was a nightgown that was covered in mud from her laying in the street.
"She'll probably need some fresh clothes brought in," the nurse suggested to Edward and Alphonse in the hallway.
"We'll take care of it," Edward said.
When the nurse walked away, Alphonse turned to Edward. "Ed, I have to report to my shift in just a little bit. How are you going to manage shopping for her?"
"It can't be that hard," Edward replied.
An hour later, Edward was standing in a boutique, and felt overwhelmed. This was harder than he thought it was going to be but he would never admit that to his brother. His arm started itching again and he suppressed the need to scratch it. Edward looked around. "What would she like?"
"Are you shopping for a gift someone?" a saleswoman asked. Edward jumped up startled.
He took a few breaths. "Sort of. Well, you see,… my friend is visiting from out of town and needs some clothes. The.. um, train lost her luggage."
"Oh dear. Let's see what we can find. What's her size?"
"Well, she's a little taller than you and a little thinner," Edward stammered. He had no idea what numerical size she was. Not only that, but the numerical sizes were also different here than Amestris.
The woman brought him to a section, and he bought the first suggestion she came up with. A dark green dress, a white hat with a matching green ribbon, and a white coat due to the cold weather outside. She also brought some stockings for her legs. She had one more item.
"She's probably going to need these, is that okay?" the saleswoman whispered at the counter. She showed him some panties.
Edward blushed a little. "Yep, just put them in the bag." He paid hastily and took the bag and hatbox at once to his house.
The next morning, Edward met Winry at the hospital. She was sitting in her bed still in her hospital gown. He handed her the bag and hat box. She took the clothes out of the bag. "Edward, this is really pretty." She admired the dark green dress and white coat.
"There's other stuff in there, too," Edward said meaning the undergarments.
"Oh, these will work," Winry blushed when she noticed the panties. Though she was grateful because she did need them.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through so much trouble," Winry said.
Edward was surprised. She normally wasn't this downcast when he spent money on her. Normally she wouldn't care how much he spent on her. He missed her spunk. 'Where did her spark go?' he wondered.
Winry opened the box and saw the hat. "Oh wow. It's so cute." She smiled happily.
"I'll step out and let you change. Just hurry up. I have a cab coming in 15 minutes," Edward warned her.
"It won't take me that long," she huffed.
Edward waited outside by the door of the ward until she opened it. Edward evaluated her. She looked like she belonged in London.
"It's a little loose," Winry told him.
"Well, you're a little thin. So, you just need to eat some more," Edward said
She slapped him on the shoulder.
"Well, it's true!" Edward shouted. He was annoyed at first but realized she was acting more like herself. The slap was somewhat comforting.
"You don't speak about a woman's weight. It's rude," Winry retorted.
"I know. I've heard that before," Edward whined. "Come on, the cab should be here any minute now. Let's get your coat on. It's freezing outside." He helped her put her new coat on. She admired it as it flowed down to her legs. And last but not least, she put on the lovely hat.
The nurse came in and brought a wheelchair. Winry protested "I can walk."
"It's policy, Ms. Rockbell. We'll take you to your cab." The nurse said. He walked next to the wheelchair. He helped her in the cab and gave the driver his address once they settled in the back seat.
Winry is watching along the street as the cab whisks them across London. It was a frigid cold outside. She watched the city go by. "The city is so big."
"Yes, and this isn't even half of it. London is huge. We'll give you a better tour one day."
Winry was feeling a sense of wonderment. She was excited to explore a new city. She saw the people walking all bundled up along the street.
The cab turned down a street and stopped in front of an apartment building. "Well this is it." Edward paid the fare and helped her out of the cab. They walked up the steps to the front door and went inside. He put his hand behind her back and urged her to walk quickly to the stairs.
"We're on the second floor," Edward said as he walked briskly.
"Why are you walking so fast?" Winry asked.
"No reason, just ready to get you inside the apartment," he said quickly. Winry had a sneaking suspicion that there was a better reason but for some reason he was hiding it. She looked at him with narrow eyes trying to see his reasoning.
Edward took his key out and opened the door. He let Winry in first and closed the door quickly behind him. Winry was getting aggravated.
Edward took her coat off and hung their coats on a rack just inside the door. "Come on, I'll show you around."
Then he noticed her frustration. "What's wrong?" he asked her.
"Nothing, it's just…." Winry started but stopped. He was helping her and she should be grateful. But she didn't like that he was hiding something already.
"Never mind, Ed. Go ahead and show me around," she smiled to encourage him.
The kitchen, living area, and dining area were all in one room. And there were two bedrooms at that were next to each other. Winry noticed they had the bare minimum in furniture. There wasn't much homeliness to it. But she also realized that 2 bachelors lived here. She noticed it was a little dusty. There were two bedrooms. Edward showed her Al's room, which had a twin sized bed, and her room, which had a queen-sized mattress. But she noticed that this was Edward's room. His books were on the shelf. "Ed, where am I sleeping?"
"Well, you're taking my room for now. I'll sleep on the couch."
"Ed, I can't do that. I can't just take your bed," she said as she put her hand on hip.
"Winry, it's just temporary. I'll get a new bed once we get a place with another bedroom."
Winry sighed. "Fine. But maybe we can alternate nights or weeks. You need some decent sleep every now and then."
Edward groaned but gave in. "Okay, we can come up with a schedule or something." Winry agreed.
The front door opened, and Alphonse came in carrying two large paper sacks. "A little help here."
Edward quickly went downstairs and grabbed a bag. Winry met him downstairs. Alphonse saw her. "Welcome home. I went out and got some groceries. I even got some fresh bread."
Edward and Alphonse put away the groceries. Winry tried to help but they insisted that she sit and rest. Then she noticed something.
"Wait, you two stand next to each other," Winry said.
The brothers looked inquisitively as they did as they were told.
"Alphonse, you've grown so much. You're an adult now. You're even taller than Ed," Winry remarked. Alphonse started laughing. Edward was aggravated.
Edward shouted "Everyone laugh it up! So what if my younger brother is taller than me!"
Alphonse and Winry stopped laughing. Alphonse noticed "He actually admitted it."
Then Alphonse and Winry snickered a little more. Edward crossed his arms and sat on the couch. "Fine you two. I'm not helping with lunch then."
"I've got it taken care of brother," Alphonse said as he started cutting up carrots. Alphonse made the chicken noodle soup while Winry and Edward sat on the couch.
Edward asked "Tell me what was your last memory in Amestris." He was trying to find any answer for how she got here.
Winry looked into her lap. "It was a few months after Grandma's funeral, and I just couldn't stay in that house anymore."
"Granny died? I'm sorry," Edward said. He looked down to his lap for a minute but returned his gaze to her when she continued.
"I just needed a change of scenery. I went to Central and stayed with the Hughes family. Elysia has gotten so big."
Edward smiled at the memory of that little girl. "How are Gracia and Elysia doing?"
"Great. Elysia has a puppy now. It's so cute. She absolutely adores it. And Gracia is doing well. She's working in a flower shop now that Elysia's in school."
Winry continued "While staying in Central, I saw a job advertisement. It was for an engineer to help build a new revolutionary machine. Well I ended up taking it. I still saw my patients but it was in Central. I just couldn't stay in Risembool anymore."
"What was the machine for?" Edward's curiosity peaked.
"I'm trying to remember but I can't," Winry rubbed her chin trying to will her mind to remember. She got frustrated. Her head was beginning to ache. She closed her eyes in pain.
"Are you okay?" Edward asked.
"My head's starting to hurt," Winry answered.
"Don't worry about trying to remember. Just rest for today," Edward told her. Winry agreed.
"Soup's ready!" Alphonse called from the kitchen.
Edward and Winry joined him in the dining room. They gathered around the small table and four chairs. Alphonse brought the pot in and they ate the soup with the fresh bread. While Winry was eating, she heard something meow.
Winry looked to the ground and saw a small white cat. Alphonse spoke up. "This is my cat, Daisy. I'm surprised she came out this quickly to meet you. She's usually pretty shy."
Winry put her hand down and the cat rubbed her head against her hand. "She's so cute, Al. It doesn't surprise me that you got a cat at all. I always figured you would get one."
Winry continued petting the cat and it purred. Then it went to Al, who fed it a piece of chicken.
Edward snorted "That's the real reason that she came out. You feed her from the table."
Alphonse scoffed "So what? She likes it. Huh, Daisy?"
Edward rolled his eyes. Winry smiled in contentment. She had missed moments with the boys that were like this. It felt like home again but it also didn't at the same time.
After lunch, Winry looked around the house in detail while Alphonse went upstairs to shower before his shift at the hospital. Winry noticed a small evergreen tree in the house with some garland on it. There were also a few other decorations on it.
"Ed, what's this for?"
Edward rolled his eyes. "Al insisted on it. It's part of a religious holiday called Christmas. Most people around here celebrate it. It's about the birth of their god or something like that. Anyways, I think Al likes it because on Christmas day, everyone exchanges presents. Speaking of which, I still need to get him something. Christmas is in a few days. I was planning on us going shopping tomorrow to get you a few other things as well."
Winry looked away from the tree and up at Ed. "So, Al is in medical school. Tell me what do you do?"
"Well I work for a university. I'm doing research on aerodynamics right now but I also teach chemistry."
"Aerodynamics?"
"Yeah, I've been making rockets. There are small machines that shoot up into the sky. They're incredible!" Edward explained with passion.
Winry smiled. "Well you'll have to show me one day. I'd like to see this 'rocket' for myself."
"Definitely. We'll do a display in the spring. Right now it's winter break. All the students have gone home to their families, which means I'm on a break right now too. But I have to go back in two weeks. A few days after New Years. It's a good thing too. I have time to show you around London and give you a crash course in this world."
Winry nodded with enthusiasm. "Right! So where do we start with this crash course?"
"You want to start now? I was going to wait until tomorrow."
"Might as well start now."
"Sure. I like the enthusiasm. Let's see. How about I show you a world map?"
Edward brought the map out from being tucked into a bookshelf. He showed her London and pointed out other countries they had been to. Winry asked "So which was your favorite country?"
"Italy. The best food ever!"
"Of course, food had to determine your favorite county," Winry chuckled at him.
"Not only that. The architecture and the art were also admirable. And the wine was delicious," Edward reminisced.
"Again, with the food," Winry laughed this time.
"Wine is a beverage. Not a food," Edward corrected her. Winry rolled her eyes at him. Edward went to explain other countries and what food they were known for. He also explained the sights that he found exciting along with some history to them, like the coliseum in Rome. He talked until he noticed Winry rubbing her eyes and yawning.
"Am I boring you?"
"Not at all. Just tired," she answered.
"It is exhausting learning about a whole new world. Why don't you take a nap? I'll wake you up for dinner."
"That sounds like a good idea. But don't let me sleep that long," Winry warned him.
Edward reminded her "Winry, you need your rest."
"Still, I don't want to waste a whole day sleeping. There's so much to learn," Winry responded.
"Fine, I'll wake you up in two hours." Edward offered. Winry agreed.
Winry went to Ed's room and wanted to change out of her only outfit she had right now. She didn't want it to wrinkle. She was about to take it off but it was too cold to sleep in panties alone.
Winry yelled down the stairs. "Hey Ed, did you per chance buy me some sleep clothes?" She heard him sigh.
"No, I didn't think about it. Hold on." He ran up the stairs and looked through his drawers. He pulled out a pair of pajamas. "Here. You can wear mine."
"Sorry," Winry said looking downcast. It felt like it had been a while since she had to rely on someone's kindness so much. She was used to being the one that was giving.
"It's not a big deal. Get some rest," Edward told her as he stepped out. She slipped the pajamas on. They were actually close to her size but maybe a little big around the waist. She laid in bed and found the bed to be quite comfortable. And it smelled like him. Winry inhaled his masculine scent and found it to be calming. She closed her eyes and went to sleep quickly.
Alphonse was dressed and ready to go to the hospital. He found Edward in the kitchen near the sink examining something. It was Winry's nightgown. The one she had arrived in at the hospital. It was caked with mud and cut up into a few pieces when they had removed it from her.
Alphonse asked "Any clues?"
"Not a one."
Alphonse pondered "Somehow she got through it. I'm worried about what she did to get through. So she still can't remember how she got here?"
Edward shook his head. "No. It hurts her head to even try toremember. I think we'll just have to wait and see if she gets them back."
Alphonse said with a sad tone. "If she gets them back. That could have been her toll."
Edward threw the gown in the trash. "Well it doesn't matter. She's here now. And we need to help her get accustomed to this world."
Alphonse agreed. "Yes. A slow approach is best."
"Right. I think I did it right by you," Edward said.
Alphonse countered "Bullshit. You threw me right into it. I had to learn German, and you laughed whenever I ordered two drinks using my index and middle finger, I would get confused when they brought me three. And you let this happen multiple times whenever we ordered drinks or food!"
Edward chuckled "Come on! It was funny! And it didn't take long for you to figure out that you use the thumb and index finger to indicate two drinks."
"Well, I hope you're nicer to Winry about it. Have you even talked about automail yet?"
Edward winced. "Not yet. That'll happen tomorrow."
"And we need to tell her about how women are treated differently here," Alphonse reminded him.
Edward gulped. "That's the discussion that I'm worried about. She's going to have a hard time adjusting to that."
Alphonse realized the time and headed to work. Meanwhile, Edward thought about Winry's mysterious arrival, and how to let her down easy about the difficult differences between their world and the one they currently reside in.
Edward let Winry sleep the rest of the afternoon going past the two hours. She was mad when she woke up and realized it was almost dinner time. But he didn't care. She needed sleep. Learning could wait until tomorrow. They ate dinner and spoke of comfortable topics.
Wow! This first chapter was very long but there was a lot to pack in. I almost wanted to include more but you'll have to wait. I didn't want this chapter to be this long and this was a good stopping point. There will be more mysteries to solve, and I'll bring those up soon. Edward also has some issues of his own to sort out. And Winry has some issues though she can't remember all of them. There will be romance …..eventually. Think of this as a medium rare burn instead of a slow burn. Please comment if you like it. It does help motivate someone to keep writing.