A/N: Hello, welcome! :)

Some time ago someone suggested me to make a love triangle between Ed, Winry and Rose within the universe of 03. The idea caught my attention and I couldn't help the ideas that came to my mind for that story, ideas that ended up becoming an 11k words file that finally today sees the light of day through this story. So Lady Tairichira this is your fault, thank you xD

Before I leave you with the story, there are some notes about this story that I want to share with you but before that I want to give a huge thank you to my sister Flame for being my beta. Thank you so much!

Important notes about the context and temporality of this story:

-I've never been quite sure how many years passed between the end of 03 and CoS, but for the purposes of this story I'm considering that between 03 and CoS 4 years passed and then 3 years passed before the beginning of this story, so here Ed and Winry are 23 years old, Rose 25-26 and Al is 17.

-After the events of CoS, Ed returned alone to Earth, leaving Al and Winry on Amestris.

-There will be a couple of small changes from what was seen in CoS that will be seen within the story itself.

I hope you will join me in this story and enjoy it. If you get a chance, it would make me very happy to read you in the comments.

Thanks for reading!

Golden.

Disclaimer: Fullmetal Alchemist is property of Hiromu Arakawa

The raindrops fell unceasingly and were accompanied by occasional lightning in the darkened sky that foreshadowed that a storm would soon begin. The pre-storm wind was shaking the branches of the trees causing some leaves to fall from them and some signs and abandoned objects in the streets were being made noticeable by the noise they made as they were shaken by the air.

"Ugh..." Let out a young man who was lying on the ground of one of the streets. His body felt so heavy, exhausted and sore that he simply wanted to return to the darkness of unconsciousness that the beginnings of the storm were taking care to keep far enough out of reach.

The raindrops kept falling down his face but the man was reluctant to open his eyes. What was the point? He was completely exhausted and the last hope he had clung to in recent years was surely a thing of the past. With everything that had happened in the last few hours (Or maybe days? Hell... he didn't even know how long it had been) all his effort, all his research and even all his resources were gone forever. The trip had been for nothing because he couldn't do it... he failed to activate the circle in time. He knew beforehand that the chances of forcing the use of alchemy as the Thule Society had done years before were low but all his research had restored his faith in believing that certain precise calculations in combination with meticulous positioning and use of certain factors both internal and external would open the portal that would allow him to return home... to his true home.

Now he would have to live the rest of his life wondering if everything he had prepared would have paid off if that damn homunculus had not crossed his path. That fucker was a variable he had not contemplated and whose omission had cost him dearly.

What if perhaps...? After an extremely deep inhalation that ended up causing a few painful twinges from the subtle movement that rattled his broken ribs, the young man squeezed his eyes shut for a few seconds to finally receive the raindrops directly into his golden orbs. The water in his eyes was a nuisance but it was a caress compared to the set of wounds and injuries his body now bore.

Letting out a few groans of pain, Edward used his left arm to raise his body a few inches above the ground to allow himself to scan his surroundings with his gaze. He could see that because of the rain there didn't seem to be any people around when surely, had he made it through the gate, the place he would have been in would be overflowing with people since it would be in the central part of a park.

The park with the bench just below a large stone clock... Without minding the pain, Ed dropped with a thud letting out another groan, however a brief wry smile appeared on his lips. "There goes my attempt at being optimistic." He said to himself as he realized he was in the park he had passed on his way to the spot where he ended up having his confrontation with Gluttony. With the distance and construction on that stretch it was no surprise that he had ended up with a few broken ribs after the homunculus slammed him into the wall repeatedly. With how fast everything had happened, Ed thought he hadn't gotten out of the spot he was in but now he was realizing that with how foggy his mind had become at certain points, he hadn't realized that the homunculus had made him leave the spot in an unfriendly manner. He was too exhausted to attempt a tally of the damage Gluttony had caused to the surrounding properties but at least he could take some small comfort in knowing that the homunculus had met its end for that was the last thing he remembered before he had lost consciousness.

Ed closed his eyes again concentrating on the sliding of the water as it hit his face. Then he plucked up his courage and lifted his head enough to inspect his automail arm... or rather what was left of it.

After a few seconds of grim observation, he spoke again in a low voice. "Damn it." He dropped his head, not caring about the thud against the floor. My only reminder... the last thing that connected me to Amestris... to my brother... to you... Winry. He clenched his jaw tightly. All gone... There was no need for him to inspect his automail leg, though a bit fuzzy, his memory was vividly etched with the memory of how his automail leg had been damaged. Unlike his arm, it still retained about 60% of the metal that made it up. With dedication and an enormous amount of patience he could try to repair it but what was the point? It would never be the same and, with the resources he had in this world, he could not be sure of recovering the mobility it had originally had and in the process he would end up losing the essence of its place of origin and of what that metal limb represented to him.

Perhaps it is better this way. I tried and failed... I would have regretted more not having tried but now... What is left for me? What is my goal? My selfishness led me to believe that the weight of my sins had lessened to allow me to regain what I let go but in the end that was pure and utter arrogance of mine. My destiny... no, rather my punishment is to spend the rest of my life in this place.

A subtle reddish flash caused Edward to turn his face to his right. Just a few steps away from him was a red stone. After a few seconds of thought, Ed slowly moved his remaining hand towards the object until his middle finger reached out to brush against it. That simple touch caused the stone to shatter, turning into a fine powder that mixed with the water losing intensity until it was completely lost in the flow of water caused by the rain.

"At least there's no doubt left that that monster is gone." Ed said quietly with a relief he didn't really feel as Gluttony had thwarted his last means of trying to get home.

Ed closed his eyes again, concentrating on the water droplets hitting his face. After a few minutes, he muttered. "I'm tired." Soon after he let the tiredness take its toll on him, falling into a deep sleep from which he really didn't care to wake up again.

The unexpected rain the night before had left a cool breeze in the morning so Rose decided to put on a jacket before leaving the house. It was unusual to have to wear that garment in the middle of summer but luckily she hadn't had the time to store the winter clothes in the attic.

After making sure her little boy was still sound asleep, Rose gave him a kiss on the forehead and left the house in search of some bread, milk and other groceries for breakfast and lunch for the day. She usually did her shopping shortly before dusk since she had become accustomed to doing it at that time as that was when she usually had time after her work at school and having eaten together with her son after helping him with his homework. However, the sudden rain prevented her from sticking to the routine she followed even during her vacation time.

After the horrors he experienced during the military occupation in Lior, life had gradually smiled on her and now she could say that she was happy. It was hard to trust the military again but with the help of the now Captain Hawkeye and the retired Mr. Armstrong she had managed to get a position at Central's most prestigious elementary school. At first it was hard to accept the idea of leaving the rebuilt town of Lior behind (for despite bad memories she had gained valuable friendships in recent years) to live in the hectic city of Central but the benefits she was receiving were helping her in her life as a single mother. Within a few months of joining the school's workforce, she had been financially able to rent a modest but comfortable home for herself and her son, plus for about a year now her son had been admitted to the school with all expenses covered which brought Rose the joy and satisfaction of knowing that her son would receive a good education.

Despite her initial fears of living in the big city, Rose had met some very nice people and even her neighbors were some of the nicest people she had ever met so she could leave her home with the peace of mind knowing that her son would be fine or she could leave him in their care when needed. However, due to the early hour of her visit to the store, she didn't want to disturb them so she was walking quickly to get home before her son woke up. For that reason she decided to cross the park near her home instead of going around it as she usually did.

Because of the early hour and the rain that had fallen the night before, the place was deserted... or so she thought until she reached the central part of it. Representing the geography of Amestris there was a decorative engraving in the center of the park based on the map of the country but with ornaments and some symbols that were strange to Rose but which together formed a beautiful engraving.

Being a few feet away from it, Rose could make out a sort of lump in the center of it but had not found shape to it until she advanced a few more steps. Upon discovering it, she froze for a couple of seconds. The "lump" was a person, his clothes were ragged and with obvious blood stains. The most frightening thing was that Rose was almost certain he was missing an arm and from the state he was in she couldn't be sure if it was an old injury or she was at the scene of a crime.

Despite her involvement as a nursing volunteer after the invasion a few years ago, Rose hadn't quite gotten used to the sight of blood and even death so almost immediately she could feel her stomach twist at what her eyes were witnessing.

Inhaling deeply a couple of times to control the sensations in her stomach, Rose began to approach the person with slow steps. Her instincts told her that she had better stay away but her curiosity and desire to help spurred her to move towards her target cautiously.

"Hello?" She asked hesitantly when she was a few steps away from the unknown person, who did not react in any way to her voice. This caused Rose to feel more uneasy at the possibility of being near a corpse but, even if that was the case, she didn't feel able to leave this person behind by pretending she hadn't seen anything.

Looking both ways before moving forward to make sure that it wasn't some kind of trap of some crook, Rose walked the short distance that separated her from the person. As she moved forward she could see that the person was also completely soaked, leading her to assume that they had spent the night in that location. Before she could delve into her thoughts regarding how and why the stranger was in that place and in that state, Rose's legs froze and her breath caught in her throat. Unable to believe her eyes, she dropped the small basket she was carrying and put both hands to her mouth.

"Oh my God!" After a few seconds of stunned shock at the image before her, Rose reacted and quickly moved to the person's side, letting herself fall to her knees on the floor. "Ed! Edward!" Although startled, Rose carefully lifted his upper body to place him on her lap to subsequently run a hand over his cheek trying to get him to react. "Edward! Oh my God, what's going on here?" Getting no response, she placed one of her ears on the young man's chest, staying in that position for a minute until she was convinced that, though weak, Ed's heart was still beating. "Thank heavens." She murmured as a few tears of relief escaped her.

Not caring how wet the skirt of her dress had become and the cool breeze blowing that morning, Rose took off her jacket and carefully placed it over Ed. Unable to contain herself, she reached over and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I'll be back in a minute. I'll go get help." As she stood up, she added. "It's going to be alright, Ed." Not knowing if she was trying to convince him or herself, Rose took one last look at him before quickly walking away from the scene in search of someone who could help her get Edward home.

1 week later...

Rose took the cloth resting on Ed's forehead and soaked it in the small basin of cold water, the contents of which she had had to replace several times during the day. Gently, she arranged the strands of Ed's hair and then placed the cool cloth on his forehead, not being able to avoid a slight grimace of concern as she felt that his skin was still quite warm.

With a sigh she rose from the chair that rested beside the bed, placed the basin on the nightstand and made her way to the bedroom door. She was about to leave when she regretted it and chose to lean against the door, staring at Ed.

She still had etched in her mind the state Ed was in the morning she found him: his thin, pale body was covered in blood with several cuts and the beginnings of some bruising, the beginning of his automail arm was broken with a jagged edge revealing that it had been brutally ripped off and his automail leg was still in place albeit with a slight angle of twisting and an obvious lack of parts.

Now, even though the blood and visible wounds had been cleaned and treated and his ribs had recovered greatly from the lack of movement, Rose wasn't sure she could say that Ed looked any better. She had noticed how thin he had been that day she found him but now he looked very frail and small in the guest bed at home. His complexion was still pale (except for his flushed cheeks that betrayed the intense fever that was attacking him) and he was covered with a noticeable layer of sweat that seemed to want to lodge permanently on his skin. His breathing was labored and with the spasms in it it was evident that the pneumonia was still causing discomfort in his exhausted lungs.

The doctor who had checked on him every morning and evening since Rose had come for his help, remained neutral in his approach to the young man's state of recovery. He said that Edward's body was very weakened and that he was sure that, regardless of whatever had happened to him recently, the young man had not exactly been careful with his body over a minimum period of months. It was that neglect that was working against him, and adding to that the night he had spent in the rain, his immune system was so weakened that the pneumonia was gladly wreaking its havoc on his system. The doctor believed that there was a chance that Ed would recover but he didn't want to make any assurances that he wasn't completely sure of.

The prescribed drugs and antibiotics only seemed to take effect for a few minutes but the doctor didn't seem the least bit discouraged by it, claiming that, for the state Edward was in, that was already a victory. Rose had her doubts but he was the best doctor available around plus she didn't want to risk taking Ed to the hospital since the hospitals were recently recovering from an influenza epidemic. While hospital occupancy had decreased, neither Rose nor the doctor were willing to risk Edward's health by taking him to a place where he would be quite susceptible to catching it considering how weakened his immune system was. Not to mention that such a simple visit might attract unwanted attention to the young man since just because his current doctor hadn't recognized him that didn't mean no one else would.

Rose crossed her arms and brought one of her hands up to her mouth to bite down a little on her thumbnail. Edward had been home for a week now and she hadn't dared contact either Al or Winry. His brother would no doubt be thrilled just to know that his brother was back and she believed Winry would be the same as she knew they were very good friends and even by the look on Winry's face when she talked about him... Rose shook her head to push the thought away. Winry had never told her that anything beyond friendship had ever happened between Ed and her so she had no reason to dwell on that.

Glancing at Ed, Rose returned to her internal debate. She knew that her being the only one to know of Edward's return had been due to chance alone but the responsibility of whether or not to spread that information weighed on her shoulders. Despite trying to maintain her optimism, within herself there was still the fear that Ed wouldn't make it and if that happened... how could she get Al and Winry to make it all the way to Central City to end up heartbroken? Even though in the back of their minds was the possibility of never seeing Ed again she knew they still held out hope for his return so wouldn't it be better to keep their illusion in case the worst happened?

The wet slide of a few tears down her cheeks brought Rose out of her trance causing her to pat her cheeks. "Don't give up hope. Ed is strong and he's not going to give up now that he's finally back." She said to herself to encourage herself before returning to the young man's side to lean over and deposit a kiss on one of his cheeks. "Come on Ed, we're waiting for you." She said in a soft voice hoping that somehow Ed could hear her. When there was no reaction besides the continued light panting Ed had spent the last few days with, she sighed and began to run her fingers down his cheek.

Rose stayed in that position for a few minutes until a voice caught her attention. "Mom! Mom!"

Her son's sweet voice made Rose react and she hurried out of the room. It had been hard to keep her son away from the room so it was best not to give him reason to go looking for her in the room.

2 weeks later...

Lately Ed had been feeling relatively comfortable in the sort of trance he was in. At times he dreamed and at others he remembered the good times he had lived in Resembool when his mom was alive and even the trips he had shared with his younger brother before the homunculi and Dante had entered the equation. After several years of continuous restless nights frequently haunted by nightmares, the place he found himself in these moments was a peace he had long longed for so he didn't want to escape from it. Perhaps he was already dead and hadn't realized it but as long as he could feel that tranquility he didn't care.

However, fate had other plans.

Gradually he could feel occasional twinges in his side. They were not extremely painful but they reminded him of the existence of his body, which had been forgotten by allowing himself to linger so long in his dreams. Coupled with this he began to feel a dizziness in his back and legs, inciting a desire to move even though there was still a part of himself that refused to make his body work. That stubbornness lasted for an indefinite time until the sunlight in his eyes forced him to welcome the outside world he had been blissfully ignoring.

Feeling a huge heaviness in his eyelids, Ed opened his eyes, having to blink several times to get used to his surroundings. He was lying on a soft bed in an unfamiliar room. He tried to recall but had no idea where the hell he was or how he had gotten there.

At the insistence of the sun's rays to remain in his field of vision, Ed tried to move to his right, cursing in the process at the twinge of pain that made itself present in his abdomen. "Damn sun." The words came out in a low volume and in a raspy manner so the young man began to clear his throat as he realized at that moment that it felt terribly dry.

When he was finally able to position himself on his right side he almost ended up lying on his stomach as he discovered his automail was gone. "But what-?" Leaning back on his back again, he brought his left hand (realizing in the process that a needle connected to a thin tube was inserted into his arm) to his right shoulder discovering that the port for his automail was missing. Before he could curse any further, memories of his confrontation with Gluttony came flooding back, leaving him breathless as his sight was lost somewhere on the ceiling.

So lost was Ed in his thoughts that he didn't notice the noise the bedroom door made as it opened.

Rose entered the room carrying a new IV bag of medication on a tray to replace the one currently attached to Ed. As she fixed her gaze on the young man she noticed his eyes were open which caused her to drop the tray she was carrying causing Ed to turn to look at her.

"Ed." Rose said in a soft voice as a smile crept across her face.

Ed blinked a couple of times before breaking into a slight wry smile. "And one way or another I end up back in your care, Noah." He said in a voice still hoarse from all the time he'd gone without speaking.

Rose looked at him with a confused expression but opted to slowly approach towards him. "How are you? How are you feeling?"

Ed sighed and returned his gaze to the ceiling. "Wonderful." He said with an expression that denoted the big lie he was telling.

"Ed." Rose said in a slightly reprimanding tone. "You've been very delicate so it's important that you tell me how you're feeling. The doctor is coming again tonight so the more information we can give him the better."

"I don't want to bother you any more with my presence. Besides, you should well know that I'm not here for the fun of it." He told her with a tone full of bitterness. "Just tell me where my clothes are and I'll leave." He said as he tried to get up from the bed but Rose stopped him immediately, only allowing him to sit up with his back leaning against the headboard. "Noah, I'm fine. This is nothing. Let me get the hell out of here." At the young woman's frown, he paused, sighed and added. "How did you know I was here? You were supposed to be in Austria."

"Austria?" She repeated in confusion, before bringing her hand to the blond's forehead. "Maybe the fever is making you delirious." Noticing that the young man's temperature was lower than it had ever been since his return, she lowered her hand and smiled kindly at him. "It must be exhaustion. Rest while I go fix you something to eat. You must be starving after spending all these weeks solely on the nutrients the doctor prescribed."

Weeks? Ed frowned slightly. "I told you I can't stay here, Noah. Please understand." Before Rose could answer, he went on. "I know my arm was destroyed but would you mind telling me what happened to my port?"

Rose pulled the chair closer to the bed and sat down on it before answering. "With how damaged it was, the doctor had to remove it. The risk of infection was so high that your nerves could have been ruined forever."

Ed sighed heavily. "Fantastic. Just fantastic." He said sarcastically. "Now where will I get another one?"

Rose looked at him somewhat confused. "It's just a matter of calling Winry."

"That's not funny, Noah." He said with a tone full of seriousness and annoyance.

Ed's strange behavior ended up wearing on Rose's patience. "Would you stop acting like that, Ed? I just want to help you."

A slight expression of regret crossed Ed's face before he averted his face to the side. "You had promised me not to mention Winry."

"I never promised you that." Rose said in a confused tone causing Ed to return his gaze to her. "I don't quite understand what's going on with you Ed but if you don't wish to see Winry I won't force you. We can find you a new mechanic who can come up here or I can accompany you directly to Rush Valley as soon as the doctor deems you healthy enough to travel."

Ed's face filled with confusion. "But, Noah..."

"Ed, I'm feeling a little uncomfortable, could you stop calling me that or at least tell me why you're doing it?"

"That's your name." Ed muttered uncertainly.

Rose shook her head slowly. Gosh, he really is still sick. Or maybe... did he forget about me? With a slightly sad smile, she replied. "I'm Rose, Ed. Do you remember? The girl you met in Lior? The one you saved from Dante?"

Ed's eyes widened immeasurably as they shone brightly. "But... Rose had her front locks dyed pink."

Rose's smile turned downright gleeful. He remembers me. After letting out a short laugh, she replied. "It's been a few months since I decided to stop doing that and leave my hair in its natural color." She tapped her chin. "Although maybe I should have done it earlier because I think that's what got my son's attention so much and that's why he was pulling my hair when he was still an infant." She concluded while maintaining her smile.

Ed clenched his hand into a fist and brought it to his mouth as he closed his eyes tightly.

"Ed? Are you feeling sick?" She asked worriedly.

"Yeah, it's just..." He sighed deeply as he opened his eyes and focused his gaze on the young woman. "Rose... it's you... We're in Amestris."

While she had never fully understood where Ed had gone after the strange invasion a few years ago (the government had taken it upon themselves to keep information regarding that event under strict care to avoid releasing it to the public), what was clear to her was that Ed had spent the last 7 years away from Amestris. Away from everything and everyone.

With a huge smile and bright eyes at the tears of joy that wanted to escape her, Rose took Ed's hand in hers and then replied. "Yes, we're in Amestris and we've all missed you like you have no idea." Tightening her grip slightly, she continued. "Welcome home, Ed."

Ed reciprocated the squeeze as he ducked his head slightly so that his locks covered his eyes as he was beginning to feel a burning in them. Smiling in relief, he replied in a raspy voice (both from the dryness of his throat and the emotions that were engulfing him at the moment). "I'm back."