[ed, winry; pg] Siblings at Heart Title: Siblings at Heart Author:emilie_burns Theme: 13: Heartless (21_Hearts) Fandom:Fullmetal Alchemist Pairing: Edward Elric / Riza Hawkeye Rating: PG Wordcount: 1106 Warnings: Background Winry/Sheska. Disclaimer: Fullmetal Alchemist (Hagane no Renkinjutsushi) is copyrighted by Hiromu Arakawa/Square Enix. This is a work of fanfiction for personal entertainment only. Unless outright stated otherwise, assume AU-ishness for all Ed/Riza fics by me, with Ed 17+ in age. Notes: Titles will be the death of me. I'm fond of this story though. There needs to be more in character gen Winry and Ed interaction fics. Teaser:"You and the Lieutenant. I never would have thought you'd go for someone in the military," Winry said. Original LJ Post Date: July 03, 2006 @ Chaotic_Library
Siblings at Heart
"I have to admit, I'm a little surprised, Ed."
"What about?" Strain made his voice short as he tried to focus on the conversation instead of the alternating sharp twinges and dull aches in his automail port as Winry cleaned it.
"You and the Lieutenant. I never would have thought you'd go for someone in the military," she said.
Intensely private in matters of his relationships, Ed tried to change the topic. "What about you and Sheska?"
"That's not the same thing," she retorted. "Sheska just works for the military, she's not actually in it, she's not a soldier. Not like the Lieutenant."
Ed merely shrugged his other shoulder in lieu of a response. Maybe not participating in the conversation would deter her.
He really should have known better. "I mean, I've heard you say the dogs of the military are heartless." Winry paused a little and looked at him. "So she's just that good in bed?"
"That has absolute nothi- AH! Ow!" he shouted, gripping the edge of the table with his hand.
"Hold still, you big dummy," Winry scolded as she pulled away from the exposed port to inspect it for any accidental damage just then. "It won't hurt as much if you stop moving around."
He glared at her, ignoring the reprimand. "That has nothing to do with anything." There was a pause while she resumed her work. "What does it matter anyhow?"
"I'm just curious." Winry tilted her head to look at him. "She makes you happy?"
"Yeah, she does." Ed tried to convince himself that his cheeks weren't feeling several degrees warmer. The wall was extremely interesting to look at.
Winry smiled. "Good." Silence for a few more moments. "As long as you're happy, Ed."
"I am." The pain of the port maintenance was making him grit his teeth. "Are you almost done?"
"Almost. Really, Ed, you've had automail for how long now? You should be better at taking care of it than this."
"Eh."
Winry paused to grab a wrench and with a light thunk, hit him on the head. "Don't 'eh' me, you dummy."
He shot her a glare and tried to ignore the poking and prodding going on far too close to where nerves connected to metal. Something Winry had said offered a distraction, and while he wasn't normally inclined toward introspective chatter, anything to make the rest of the procedure go faster was welcome.
"I used to think she was just... the Lieutenant, you know? I never actually met her, come to think of it. She was just there, a second shadow to Mustang. Yeah, I wrote her off as being just another dog of the military, as professional as they come." He considered that for a moment. "She still is. Professional, I mean."
"Mmm." Winry reached to the metal tray and grabbed a fresh swab dipped in a solution. "What changed?"
"Al. There were other things that I noticed long after the fact, when I looked back, but mostly, it was Al. That I always noticed, right off."
"What do you mean?"
"She talked to him like he was a kid. Like his age. She treated him just like he was human, without a thought about the armor." They exchanged a glance. You know how much that meant to him. Ed looked away. "She's never been anything but good to him. I guess that made me pay a little more attention. She might be professional, but nobody could do that and be heartless. So I started talking to her, and..." He trailed off and shrugged his other shoulder, uncertain as to where he'd been going with that thought.
"And the rest is history?" Winry asked, smiling at him as she sat back.
"I guess," Ed replied, feeling distinctly uncomfortable at having said as much as he had, and changed the topic as he watched her screw lids back on bottles. "You done?"
"Yep! Well, aside from reattaching your arm."
He sighed wearily. "Yeah, I hadn't forgotten that part."
"Don't be such a big baby, you should be used to it after all these years," Winry said as she carried the supply tray over to the countertop near the sink.
He merely grumbled at her and propped his chin on his fist, looking out the window while he waited for her to get his arm.
"You know, I've heard the fastest way to a man's heart is through his stomach," she said as she picked the arm up to give it a final inspection. "Of course, I've also heard the fastest way to a man's heart is through his ribcage. You, though?" She grinned over her shoulder at him. "It's Al."
"You're such a sappy girl, Winry," Ed told her, and tried to evade another wrench to the head.
It was true though, and he knew it. If not for how Riza treated his little brother, Ed knew he likely would never have looked at her beyond the stoic dog of the military, the deadly second shadow to an annoying jackass. It didn't matter too much how anyone treated him, it always came back to Al.
"Ready, Ed?"
He glanced at the port and then the arm. "Get it over with. Al and I need to get home to her."
"Jeez, and you call me sappy," Winry retorted, and a split-second later, every nerve in his shoulder screamed blue murder as the arm reattached, and any witty comeback he might have had fled in the face of greater priorities, like just being able to breathe.
Oh, the things he put up with his from his family. As the red haze faded from his vision, he glanced at Winry before testing the hand. A family he was damn lucky to have, and most days didn't feel he quite deserved.
"Why don't you come back with us for a bit?" he asked, inspecting the arm as he stood. "You can visit Sheska."
"I'll have to talk with Grandma to see if I have the time right now," Winry replied as she put things away, and she smiled over her shoulder at him. "I'd like that though."
He nodded and walked to the doorway. "I'm gonna find Al and spar a bit before supper."
"Be careful, Ed, he's not in armor anymore."
He stopped and shot her a tired glare. "Winry? I know that. Besides, we trained under Izumi. Remember?"
"Point," she agreed. "Well, in that case, I'll see you after you get your butt kicked."
"Hey!" Indignant, he childishly stuck his tongue out at her before joining Al on the front porch.