Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ Impossible! ❯ Decisions ( Chapter 2 )

Pairing: EdxWin, implied RoyxRiza
Rating: K (plus) / PG
Base: Mostly Manga (books), though I’ll probably got some minor stuff mixed up.
Timeline: The first time Roy came to Rizenbool. Edward 11. Win 10. Al 10.
Summary: Pre-Series! Recovering from an Automail Surgery was not a small thing. With frustrated Edward as the patient and fuming Winry as the therapist, disaster shook the Rockbell household as all fights between them starts. EdxWin!
Note: I want to update before I’m going on a ten days class trip to Bali, so here it is! ;D
Warnings: I could turn this into a drama format. -.-‘ Spoiler for part of Chapter 24 in Manga. In Winry’s POV.
---

Rizenbool - June 30th, 1910

He said his name was Roy, Roy Mustang.


He had barged out of the blue into their house, asking for Ed and Al. When he found them, he roughly lifted Ed up by the collar of his shirt, demanding explanation of what he had done.


Winry didn’t think she had been that scared and confused all her life.


They were from the military, she knew. She had seen those uniforms before. Four years ago, to be exact, the same year her parents decided to go to Ishibar. So she wasn’t that surprised when he told them that he was a lieutenant colonel and a State Alchemist.


Winry continued standing in the hallway, peeking through the living room door. Inside, the Lieutenant Colonel was talking to both the Elric brothers and her grandmother.


"If you become a State Alchemist," said that Mustang, "You might be able to get information that no ordinary people can get…. You might found something that can help you return you normal bodies back."


"But... I thought alchemists were supposed to help people live a better life," asked Al.


"That is correct," he replied. "That’s why we are called the Dogs of the Military."


"Are you sure that these children are qualified enough to pass the National Exam?" that Grandma Pinako who asked the question.


"If what I assumed from what I saw in the Elric’s house was right… that they have preformed a human transmutation… and the ability to transmute a soul. Then, there’s no doubt."


Winry’s eyes widened. Her mind reeled with questions, ‘Human transmutation…. Was that what happened? Was that what they had been planning all this time? Since before they went to Dublith?’


She heard Grandma Pinako raised her voice. Her tone hard and demanding, "That thing… That thing wasn’t human at all!"


Winry could feel her heart began thundering in her chest. ‘Creating human… was that what they had been doing? All those deep discussion in math classes…’


"An ability to created such monstrous thing… is that what alchemy is!"


Winry took steps back, away from the door. ‘Why… why would they want to create a human? Who would they…’

…


No.


No, they wouldn’t!


Winry left the hallway in a run and back inside the kitchen. She ran away from the shouting… away from those military people… away from her so-called best friends.


She quickly stepped up a wooden stool, and turn on the taps. Water flowed freely down the metal pipe. She splashed some of the cold liquid onto her face, and then gripped the sink until her knuckles turned white.


It took a while to calm her nerves, but her ragged breathing eventually slowed down, her heart ceased thundering in her chest. She let out a big sigh when her world no longer felt like it was turning upside down.


Slowly, without actually thinking, she rummaged through the lower cupboards, taking two porcelain cups. Then, she boiled some water, and took some tea bags from the box on the kitchen counter. She was going to make some tea.


Edward and Alphonse were in the living room, having a conversation that would change their lives forever, and she was in the kitchen making tea.


What a great friendship, she wanted to snicker.


Winry shook her head. She told herself not to be angry. The brothers had their reasons; she should have known it better than anyone else. If she did not have faith in them, then she was the one who was unworthy of their friendship.


Believe. That’s what she had to do. Believe in them.


She poured the freshly boiled water into a teapot, and put the tea bags in. She waited for the tea to be brewed.


‘What would they do now, when the possibility of regaining their bodies back was right in front of them?’


Winry knew the answer of her questions already.


Somehow, the military had once again managed to take two of the most important persons in her life. She didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry at the irony.


Winry filled the two cups with the brownish liquid, then put the cups down a tray and took them away.


The shouting had ceased, and the hallway was now quiet. Only once in a while she could hear murmured conversation from inside the living room. The door was now closed, and the woman from the military sat on the sofa just next to it.


Winry approached her, "Here you go." She lifted the tray so the woman would know that the tea was for her.


The woman turned to her, and gave a surprise look, "Oh, thank you…"


Winry gave her a small smile before sitting down beside her.


They stayed silent, the woman occasionally sipping her tea.


Winry didn’t like the silence. When she was in a really bad mood, silence usually made negative thoughts appear in her mind. She didn’t want negative thoughts about her best friends! She preferred a conversation with someone from the military, her sworn enemy, than to thinking badly of her friends.


"Miss Second Lieutenant…" her voice sounded desperate, even to her own ears.


The woman turned to her and gave a polite smile, "Ah, just call me Riza, Riza Hawkeye." She lifted her hand to Winry, "Nice to meet you."


Winry could not bring herself to return the friendly gesture, "Ms. Riza" she gulped,


What to say?


"Have you ever shot a person?" she blurted out without actually thinking.


Riza looked rather surprised. She took back her outstretched hand; a sad smile appeared on her face. "Yes, I have," she replied, "I’ve shot many of them, actually."


From her voice, Winry could tell that she had just asked about a painful subject. She bowed her head in shame. Ms. Riza must have been ordered to do it. Every person in the military was vowed to do exactly what they were ordered to do. And so would Edward, if he really did join the military.


"I don’t like the military." There, she finally said it. "They took my mom and dad to the battlefield and they were killed there," her voice quivered, "And now… that Mustang is trying to take Ed and Al away…"


She was shaking. She didn’t want to, but she was. "I don’t want them to become part of the military."


‘I don’t want them to leave and never come back."


Winry gulped again, "Please… please don’t take them away."


Riza looked at her with understanding in her eyes.


Winry lowered her head, hiding her eyes behind her bangs.


"…The military isn’t going to take them away," Riza spoke after a while, "It will be their own decision whether they come or not."


Winry kept silent. Actually, she had known that the military would not take the boys by force. They had never force her parents to go to the battlefield; it had been their own decision to go to Ishibar and helped the wounded. But… she could not help but think that if the military hadn’t come in the first place, they would not have been killed.


Riza sipped on her tea again, "To tell you the truth, I am not fond of the military either… they sometimes order me to take lives."


Winry turned her eyes to the older woman, "Then why did you join?"


Riza put her cup down on the plate; a determined look crossed her eyes. "Because there is someone I need to protect."


Riza studied the palm of her hands, "I am never forced to do anything. I pulled the trigger by my own decision…. I do it for the person I want to protect." She clenched her knuckles, "And until the day that person reaches his goal, I will continue to pull the trigger without doubts."


Winry stared at her. Never forced… until the day that person reaches his goal… without doubt….


Riza gave her a pained smile, "... because that’s the only thing I can do for him, you know. I want to help him with all I have, and this is all I can do."


Her words struck home. Winry snapped her gaze to meet Riza’s.


Until that person reaches his goal… we have to help him with all our might.


Understanding overwhelmed her.


Riza seemed to know what had been going on inside her head, and gave her a nod. "If those boys have strong wills, they would decide for themselves whether to go down that road or not."


Winry closed her eyes and sighed. They would. They were the strongest minded person she had ever met.


"Then, they will continue to walk forward even if the path is muddy and slippery."


Winry nodded in understanding… or in agreement, she didn’t really think about it.


Suddenly it didn’t matter anymore whether Ed and Al would decide to join the military or not. She had made her decision - whatever the boys need to do to reach their goal, she would be supporting them with all her might.


She lifted her face, and gave Riza a genuine smile, "I understand. Thank you, Ms. Riza."


Riza sighed then returned her smile, "You’re welcome."


They continued to sit there in silence, sipping their tea, waiting for decisions to be made in the living room.


A while later, the door finally opened. Both Winry and Riza stood up.


Lt. Colonel Mustang stepped out of the room. He gave Riza a nod, "Let’s go."


"Yes, sir!" Riza answered. She turned to Winry, "Ah, good bye, miss…."


Winry lifted her hand, "I’m Winry."


The older woman looked pleasantly surprised, "Ah, Winry." She took her offered hand, "I hope we’ll meet again someday."


Winry watched Riza and the Lieutenant Colonel left her house, thinking about the power that the military seemed to have in changing various aspects of her life.


She snuck a look over her shoulder to see Edward that was still sitting in his wheelchair. His head was up, his face no longer full of guilt, his eyes no longer a dull of gold.


Winry let out a small smile. Maybe had changed not just her life.


Suddenly Edward did something that surprised everyone in the living room; he spoke, "Grandma Pinako,"


Recovering form her surprise, Winry felt like jumping up and down in joy. He spoke! He spoke!


"What is it, runt?"


"There’s some money left by mother in the house," he said in determined tone, "Please give me automail."


Winry turned on her heels and stared at the blonde boy in shock. After all that emotion stress, she though nothing could surprise her again for the rest of the day. She couldn’t have been more wrong.


Grandma Pinako frowned, "Edward, do you realize what you’ve just asked me?"


"Yes, I’ve decided," Ed answered.


"Then you’re prepared to take the pain?"


"I don’t care about the pain."


"Edward, this is a serious matter. I think you should have given yourself more time to think this through."


"Grandma," his firm tone was back, "I’m going, and to do that, I need a full set of arms and legs."


"Edward…" Pinako seemed like she still had something to say, but in the end she yielded, "I understand. Give me one week to prepare the surgery."


"Thank you," he replied.


Pinako nodded and left the living room, passing her granddaughter with only a slight glance.


Winry felt nauseous. The world was spinning too fast for her liking.


Automail surgery - a pain that even a full-grown adult would rather not bare to take. Edward was going to have an automail surgery.


Winry shook her head as if it would chase away her fears. She willed her heart to be strong. ‘Be supportive,’ she reminded herself.


If automail would help Edward reach his goal, then she would be the best automail mechanic in the world. That decided, Winry gave her self a nod.


But before that... First things first,


She entered the living room and approached the boys. She saw Edward’s eyes move and focus on her. Her heart warmed incredibly.


She let a smile grew on her face, "Ed?"


His eyes met hers for the first time in a week. "Yeah?" he replied.


"I think you owe me an explanation."


Oooo TBC oooO

A/N: Yay! I’ve been dying to write that ending part for a while:3
Anyway, my beta Lady Riona told me that the Elrics call Pinako with ‘Aunty’. But I think I’ll stick to ‘Grandma’, since that was what they call her in the Indonesian translated Manga I have. ;p
I won’t be able to update for a while. I’m going on a trip to Bali tomorrow, I’ll be there for about ten days or so. But look at the bright side, at least this chapter is long! ;p

Oooo REPLIES oooO
Kiki14: Hehehe. Thanks for reviewing! I was beginning to get worried since no one reviewed, but then again, I wasn’t really hoping much. Sorry for not updating… since I didn’t get a good response in MM I was lazy … but you changed my mind! I’m glad there was somebody actually reading my story. Here’s chapter 3… hope you like it!
PLZ REVIEW! I love comments:)