Guest #1: Thank you so very much!

Guest #2: This story was an idea that I have had for a long time and have debated about how I want to do it. I really wanted to delve into what their lives would be like if they lived through Ishval and all that and realized that it would have to be angsty. I'm happy you are enjoying it.

Guest #3: Don't worry about it only being three parts. I am hoping to make this a series of short stories and one shots that tell the larger story of this Ed and Winry;s lives.

OoO

Guest #4: Well may I now set you free from the suspense. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Miloradowicz: Hawkeye talked about how killing is worst for snipers because they see their target so close up. For Edward it would be so much worse because he would have to be killing scores of people at close range. With this concept, I decided not to shy away from the fact that Edward would have to be a perpetrator of genocide. It was strange considering how many heroes in the show commit genocide and yet we love them all the same. What sets them apart from Bradley and Kimblee is that they want to make things right and atone for their actions. That will definitely be a theme of Edward's character.

My Lucky Number Is 11510: Well may you wait no longer, the update is here. I hope you enjoy how this story ends.

OoO

OoO

South City:

"You actually blocked the bullet with your hand?" The older man laughed as he heard the end of the story.

"Yep." Colonel Elric responded. "Practically had myself wrapped around her trying to get my hand in the right place."

"I wish I could have been there" The general shook his head with a chuckle. "What I'd give to have seen the look on her face."

"It was pretty good." Elric chuckled. "How's the family been, Hakuro?"

"Call me Phil please." Hakuro said. He looked over at Maria Ross while pointing at Colonel Elric. "Do you know how long I've known this son of a bitch?

"No sir." Maria responded to the higher up.

"Fifteen years." Hakuro said as he leaned back in his chair. "First time we met he saved my life, and the lives of my family."

"He's over exaggerating." Elric waved his hand dismissively.

"No I'm serious." Hakuro said pointing back at Colonel Elric. "My train got hijacked by a small sect of terrorists and who do I see coming to my rescue? This short little blonde kid. I tell you, those fuckers were so surprised they barely even put up a fight."

Maria swore that the instant when the General said the word 'short' that a muscle in the colonel's face twitched. But she couldn't be sure. Either way, this was new information that she was finding out about her commanding officer. She looked back at Hakuro. The middle aged man was a plain, but pleasant looking man. On his desk she could see a picture of him with his family.

'Colonel Elric seems to like him.' She looked at the smile on her superior's face. Maria was a little unsure of what she thought of the General though. When she had walked into the room there had been this brief moment where the two of them had made eye contact. Something about the initial look in the man's eyes that startled her as he examined her. Whatever it was left quickly and the General was nothing but friendly after that.

"Yeah." Hakuro said, turning back to Elric. "Shame they had to send you over to Grumman. I fought hard to get you under my command here in South."

"I would have been honored, sir." Elric said. "But as I recall, Grumman just barely had you outranked. What he said went."

"Damn shame." Hakuro said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, but I like to think it's worked out." Elric responded. "Also my wife really wanted to stay in East so that factored into my decision."

Maria glanced at her watch then looked up at her commanding officer. "Sir, your train leaves in about twenty minutes."

"Thanks, Ross." Colonel Elric responded. He looked back at the General as he stood up. "Well Phil, thanks for your hospitality."

"As long as you write a good report my hospitality will always be open." Hakuro stood up and shook the Colonel's hand. "Oh and give my regards to your lovely wife."

"Will do, sir." Elric saluted. He then turned around and nodded towards Maria. "Let's go, Ross."

The two of them then made their way out of the office. Going down the hallways to the car waiting for them to go to the train.

"Are you and the General old friends?" She asked Colonel Elric.

"I wouldn't say friends, more like friendly acquaintances." Elric answered honestly. "He's always been a bastard though. And I'm not using that as a term of endearment."

"Oh." Maria said, a little taken off guard. Elric glanced over his shoulder.

"Different boat than Oliver." He said. "A worse one, actually."

"I've heard a few rumors about him in Ishval." Ross said quietly. "Some of his…methods were called into question, despite the nature of the conflict, right?"

"It's all true." Elric sighed, his face holding a serious expression. "And the worse of it isn't what you've heard. So yeah, he's a bastard on that account. And he's always hated a good friend of mine, doesn't like that he's been so successful."

"Then why act friendly to him?"

"Politics." Elric quipped before changing the subject. "So are you excited?"

"About going home?" Maria asked, her shoulders sagging a bit. "I'm more than ready."

"These last few days are the worst. Too much anticipation." Elric said. "But at this point we've got nothing but a train ride between us and home."

OoO

OoO

One Day Later:

Rockbell Mechanic's:

"Mrs. Pence, I swear that this is a safe environment for your son to be in." Winry explained into the phone as she rubbed her temple with her fingers. God, she was really beginning to hate this woman.

"Well I disagree." The woman on the other end of the line said. "By working in your shop, my son was put in danger!"

"A danger that will never happen again, I can promise you that." Winry answered back. "I'm going to be changing up the money policy and pull a string or two with the MP's. They owe me a favor."

"Ha." Mrs. Pence scoffed. "I can only imagine."

Winry narrowed her eyes, but kept her voice calm. This was not the first time this woman had made a statement like this to her. "Are you insinuating something Mrs. Pence?"

Pence ignored the question and kept on talking. "And furthermore, it isn't right for a boy to be exposed to...such scandalous apparel."

'Count to ten, count to ten.' Winry thought in her head. "Mrs. Pence I already explained the workplace necessity and convenience of a jumpsuit to your husband and you when Henry first joined me. I'm not changing my wardrobe, I don't know how else I can explain it. If it bothers you then I'm sorry, but this isn't fair to Henry. He has a clear passion-"

"The boy's father and I have already spoken, and we are final on our decision." Mrs. Pence said snootily.

"What about what Henry wants?" Winry almost shouted, anger bleeding into her voice for the first time. "You are denying him an opportunity for a great career."

"How dare you tell me how to take care of my son!" Mrs. Pence shot back, her voice rising a few octaves. "And whatever career you can offer is beneath him."

Winry was quiet for several seconds before speaking. "So you've made up your minds?"

"Yes we have. Were you not listening you daft woman?"

"And nothing I could say would change this decision?" Winry spun slowly in her chair.

"Yes!"

"You're absolutely certain?" Winry pressed further.

"Yes!"

"Positive? So this will probably be the last time I ever talk to you?" The blonde mechanic asked as a smirk slowly inched its way across her face.

"YES!" The other woman's voice was now shrill and ear splitting.

"Well then in that case, shove a hot poker up your dried out cunt and die. Bitch." Winry said calmly before placing the phone back against the receiver on the wall.

She leaned back in her chair with a sigh. Using her foot on the wall to spin herself, she spun around to face her two other employees. Since the landline was in the main room they had to listen to the whole conversation, though they had tried to look like weren't listening. The two young men did look up from their work when Winry's chair came to a stop, she was now facing them.

"Well, we're down a man." Winry said, standing up.

"What'll we do, boss?" Lucas asked.

"You guys keep doing what you're doing. I'll take Henry's workload and the new order that came in today." Winry began rolling up her sleeves.

"What about your current project?"

"I'll work on it later tonight at home." Winry said as she got to work.

OoO

OoO

Outside of East City:

"Here we are at last, Ross. The promised land." Elric said.

Maria let out a sigh of relief. It was finally over. "Yes sir, Colonel." She replied as their new train moved forward.

There had been malfunction with the original train that they were supposed to have taken which would have delayed them another two days. Thinking fast, Colonel Elric commandeered a cargo train that would get them to East City even earlier than the initial train would have. After about only a day, this new train was finally pulling into East train station, though it was very late at night. The end of their month long journey had finally come to an end. Currently Maria was sitting across from the Colonel in a booth originally used for storage. But the train's crew had kindly given them chairs.

There were several boxes in there as well. These contained the hundreds of reporting documents that the Colonel had written over the course of their journey. When they arrived at the station, the two of them were to see the boxes to Eastern Command for submission and then that would be it for them. They would be done.

"What are you going to do during your week off, Lieutenant?" She looked at the Colonel sitting across from her.

Colonel Elric had looked a little worn down when they had stopped at Briggs a few weeks ago. At this point he looked absolutely rugged. His skin was dry, his face unshaven. The veins in his eyes seemed to be even more visible. His movements were sluggish as well. Earlier in the trip she had been startled by how fast the Colonel could be. In the West, she had the opportunity to watch him spar with several other soldiers and she was almost speechless at the sight of him fighting. He moved with such precision and swiftness. None of the Colonel's opponents stood a chance against him. Even when there was four coming at him at once, they were all down in a matter of seconds. He was quite possibly the best fighter she has ever seen. But now, the Colonel's reflexes were off. His reaction time to things was slower and he sometimes lost his grip on things that he was trying to hold. His usual wit was slower too. He'd fumbled a good quip a few times in the last day.

His exhaustion was positively palpable.

Despite that, Colonel Elric still had a big, almost childish smile on his face. Actually this was the biggest smile that she had seen on his face in the last month.

'Guess we're both happy to be done with this.' She thought before answering her superior's question. "Honestly, I'm probably going to spend the entire time sleeping in my house and not leave."

"Same." The Colonel chuckled. "These trips always wear out my wanderlust."

Maria looked at her commanding officer. At the end of their long assignment, she felt that she was free to ask him a few questions.

"Colonel, I know it's a little late to ask this question, but why do you exactly have to do this assignment?"

"I'm a useless Colonel." Elric replied bluntly.

"Excuse me?"

"There are Colonel's assigned to each major city in this country. These individuals help run operations and maintain security in their respective regions. I live in East City but the East already has Colonel Mustang." He said. "So that makes me ask the question, what is my purpose in this military?"

Maria raised an eyebrow at this. "So you're a inspector?"

"I blame it on my younger years." Elric said flippantly as he shrugged his shoulders.

"You're not an old man Colonel." Maria deadpanned. There was only about a nine year age difference between the two of them.

"At this point, I feel like it." Elric chuckled. "Anyway, when I was younger, before I joined the academy and became a State Alchemist I traveled all over the country for my own research. It was on one of those travels that I stumbled onto the Hakuro situation. The Higher Ups must have been paying attention to that, thought I was good at long road trips, and made it part of my job."

"Why do you do it, Colonel?" Maria asked. "I've noticed that…"

"I look like absolute shit the whole time?" Elric responded. "Yeah, it's a rough time for us."

"Us?"

"My wife and I." Elric answered simply.

"Oh yeah, obvious." Maria said a little embarrassed. "Then why do it then if it's such a burden?"

"What do they call us State Alchemists?" Elric asked in response.

"Dogs...of the military." She said quietly.

"Dogs never have much choice, do they." Elric said with a grim smile. "They just do what they're told."

OoO

OoO

Eastern Headquarters:

Edward gave Ross a wave as she walked out of Eastern Headquarters. She was going home and he was happy for her.

'If she still wants to work after this week, she's a keeper.' Edward thought as he lit a cigarette. He took a huff and pulled the nicotine filled cylinder away from his mouth to breath a cloud of smoke in the air.

The shadow of the large military headquarters hung over him. The moon was out tonight and it was bright. Edward didn't look back at the tall walls. He could feel it behind him. Thankfully he wouldn't have to actually go inside it anytime soon.

"We're all set Colonel Elric."

Edward turned slightly to give a nod to the soldiers taking the boxes of reports into the building. The reports would be carefully read by secretaries of the General in the City, General Grumman. They would send a simplified summary to the General who would then send it to the higher ups in Central. If Edward was lucky maybe some of what he wrote would end up on Bradley's desk. But more than often it was left in a cabinet at some point along the road.

"Bureaucracy at its finest." He muttered to himself, waiting for a military cab to pick him up and take him home.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." A deep voice sounded behind him.

Edward let out another smokey breath, not turning around to face the familiar voice.

"Want to know the most amazing thing about this whole round-the-world circus?" He asked the man behind him.

"Tell me." The man's boots scrapped against the ground as he came to a stop next to Edward.

"It makes me actually miss you, imagine that?" Edward finally turned to face his friend. "Hey Roy."

Roy Mustang smirked, even as his eyes critically took in the other Colonel's appearance.

"Looking a bit ragged there." Roy quipped.

"Winry once said that rugged me looks sexy." Edward shot back, putting the cigarette back into his mouth.

"Sorry to say, but I think she's lying to you." The raven haired man responded.

"Oh don't gut me like that." Edward chuckled, dropping the cigarette to the ground and stepping on it. "Winry lying to me about my appearance is what gets me through the day."

"What a pathetic life you have."

"You're one to talk, bastard." Edward sighed. "Alone and miserable."

"Be that as it may, I don't depend upon someone's lies."

"Yeah all you need is a mirror to see that stupid bowl haircut of yours." Edward said. "So has this battle of insults concluded with happy results? Or are you going to throw a few more at me?"

"Figured me out?" Mustang raised an eyebrow.

"Saw you watching me for the last five minutes. Figured you were looking for something. What were your findings?"

"Just seeing how much your mind deteriorated from this whole experience."

There was a few seconds of silence. Roy watched his friend closely. He wasn't very worried at the moment though. If Edward had not fired back with those responses that would warrant some worry. But he seemed to be at least better than how he had been the previous year.

"How have you been holding up?" Roy asked honestly.

"You know what it's like." Edward responded quietly, his gaze going upwards to the sky. The bags under his eyes were accentuated by the night lights coming from the building behind them.

"It's not getting any better?"

"I don't think it's ever going to." Edward said honestly. "Sometimes I wonder why…...I don't know, never mind."

"You're not the only one." Roy sighed, turning his body to look more directly at Edward.

"You guys all deal with it better." Ed said, looking ahead to see the cab arriving. His shoulders slouched as he spoke. "Maes has his family, Riza has friends and a dog, and you have your damn ambitions to keep your mind occupied."

"Don't you have Winry?" Roy asked with furrowed eyebrows. "And vice versa?"

"I do. Hence this month of hell." Edward responded.

"Go home to your wife and get some rest, Edward. You're stretched thin enough as it is." Roy said putting a hand on Ed's shoulder.

"Rest? If I'm lucky, I won't be falling asleep for at least a couple of hours." Edward gave a crooked grin before walking off with a backwards wave.

OoO

OoO

Downtown East:

Edward watched the familiar lights of the houses pass by. There was something unique about the lights in East City that set them apart from the rest of the country. He couldn't place it but he knew there was something.

The driver wasn't being chatty and he was fine with that. The rock of the car on the road was doing its best to pull him into sleep but Ed resisted. It wasn't time yet for him to rest. So he focused on the lights and the few people that were still out at this very late hour.

'Wonder if Winry's awake?' Ed thought. She wouldn't be expecting him at this time. His original train was supposed to arrive tomorrow so she could very well be sleep when he arrived at the house.

Home.

He could almost feel the familiar smell of his house. The plants that Winry had in the kitchen window. The grease coming from her workroom. The old leather from his study. He'd spent a whole month around similar scents but like the lights of the city, the ones at home were unique.

It was the warmth that he was most looking forward to.

The warmth of being next to Winry.

'What did I ever do to deserve that?' He thought. He couldn't think of anything. Anything that would explain how he had earned such a loving and welcoming light in his life. But he needed it, he needed that light.

Who ever thought a monster would cherish the presence of a angel.

Eventually the car came to a stop.

"It's good to be home."

Ed sighed as he stepped out of the military taxi. After almost a month on the road, going around the country to fulfill his duties, he was finally home. It was a burden that they had to endure every year. At this point though, it wasn't as bad as the first few times. He was always allowed a full week off after this assignment. A single week as compensation for a month didn't seem like equivalent exchange. But it would be a week spent with the greatest thing in his life.

Winry.

Ed's boots scraped on the gravel as he made his way up the paved path towards their front door. In moments such as this, he wondered why he still stayed in the military. The weight of the watch in his pocket always got heavier when he pondered this question. Sure, the pay was great and it had mostly been a desk job the last few years.

But sometimes the burden of the past, and the uncertain future, seemed unsurpassable at most times. When he thought about Winry and the future he wanted to have with her, leaving the military seemed like a great idea. However, a promise he had once made with his two closest friends to build a better future kept him where he stood. Moving almost mechanically, he unlocked the door and entered his home.

Ed's flesh hand rubbed his jaw as the metal one grasped the key back into his pocket. It had been awhile since he'd last shaved. A slight scrubble was beginning to grow. Maybe he'd get rid of it before going to sleep or wait to see what it would grow into. Winry had always been curious of what a beard on him would look like.

Anyways, he was too tired to decide at the moment. Ed dropped his suitcase on the floor and flung his coat vaguely in the direction of the hanger. Now bereft of all of his luggage, Edward stopped to breath and let himself relax. The tension of the last four weeks lingered strongly, but it was soothing to be home. Looking around, Ed was happy to see that not much seemed to have changed while he was gone. The lights were off except for a slight glow coming from out of the room down the hallway.

'Of course.' Ed sighed again as he shuffled over towards the slightly opened door, but a small smile appeared on his face. It was well past midnight, but he knew better than to guess that his wife would be asleep. In the past she'd been known to sometimes pull an entire all nighter without realizing it. He was happy with this though. Having her awake right now only meant their reunion was mere seconds away instead of waiting till morning. Edward could feel his heart rate increase at the anticipation.

He was almost to the end of the hallway when there was a creek of wood and the door started opening the rest of the way.

Edward couldn't help the way that his breath hitched at the sight of his wife as she stepped through the doorway.

She was clearly dressed for bed, wearing thin pants that came down to her calves and a flimsy t-shirt that looked suspiciously like one of his. She was barefoot with unkempt hair, but she still looked stunning with the way that the soft glow of the light bounced off of her blonde hair and gentle features. She hadn't noticed him yet as she sleepily turned to close the door behind her. Shutting it firmly, Winry yawned and scratched her side before turning around to face him. He knew he should have said something to warn her about his presence, but he was too in awe at the sight of her to do anything. This one month away always made him appreciate how beautiful she truly was.

Winry must have found the sight of a tall man suddenly standing in front of her startling as she let out a yelp and jumped back against the door. Her eyes were wide and her hand went straight for a wrench she'd left on a small table next to the door.

"Shit!" She shouted. Hand firmly grabbing the wrench and holding it up defensively. She reached behind her for the knob to the work room before freezing as she recognized who was standing in front of her. The wrench was still in her hand.

Edward, who had stepped back and held up his hands in a surrendering fashion, let out a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of his head. Yeah, maybe that wasn't the best way for him to have made his entrance. But looking at her now, Winry seemed just as awestruck as he had been just moments ago.

For her part, Winry was taking in the rugged look of her husband. That was the best word to describe him right now. He hadn't shaved in a while, his hair and clothes were all wrinkled. There were noticeable bags under his eyes as well as a heaviness that seemed to slump his shoulders. But despite all of that she was mesmerized by his smile.

"Ed?" She asked quietly as the wrench hit the floor. Her eyes were wide and her breathing still heavy from the adrenalin that his sudden appearance had given her.

Ed smiled even wider at her. "Hey there, baby. Working late?"

Winry's face instantly lit up.

"Ed!"

She was over to him in a second and suddenly he was catching her. He grunted as Winry's legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck. Ed swayed unsteadily for a moment, exhaling sharply as the aches in his tired muscles groaned at the strain of having to lift her. She felt like she weighed three times as much as she should have, not that he'd say that out loud. He ignored the pains as he locked eyes with her. The sight of those blue orbs of her's made all the aches and pains disappear. Just in time for his wife to pull him down into a kiss. Ed eagerly responded; feeling all the stress that had been gnawing at him from the previous weeks suddenly melt away. The softness of her lips, her sweet taste, and the warm breaths on his face were by far the best welcome home present he could ever receive. Winry clung tightly onto the material of his blue jacket as she ran her lips over every part of his face that she could reach. Ed could feel wet drops going down her face and let out a breath as he worked to contain his own tears. These reunions were always emotional, for both of them. They paused in their frantic kissing to lean their foreheads against one another's. Reveling in the touch of their skin against the other's. Their eyes were closed as they basked in this long awaited moment.

"I missed you." Winry whispered.

"Me too, babe. Me too." Ed said before he went back to kissing her just as thoroughly. Winry grabbed a handful of his golden hair and held on tight, responding to his kissing by nipping him on the lips. Ed grinned at his wife's eagerness, enjoying the familiar weight of her in his arms.

"Someone's certainly…happy to…see me." Ed teased in between desperate kisses. He squeezed her thighs as he slowly began to turn them before making his way towards the stairs.

"Shut up." Winry mumbled as her lips ran along the edge of his jaw. "What are you doing here, I was going to pick you up tomorrow."

"Got lucky." Ed grinned.

"Alchemy freak." Winry said, before pausing with a frown. "Don't think I'm going to forget the automail. I can't believe you had Maria call me."

Ed looked sheepish again. "It wasn't actually me who was being shot at…"

"Consider yourself lucky that I'm too surprised to be angry right now." Winry admitted before kissing him again. They kissed until she realized that they were still moving.

"Why are you carrying me?" She asked

"Right now, my game plan is to take you upstairs and ravish the shit out of you." Ed grinned even wider. "Any objections?"

"Don't wait." Winry breathed, her legs tightened their grip around his waist. "Just take me right now!" She whined desperately. "On the couch or table. Anything!"

"Sorry, missed that bed too much."

"Fine just get us there already." Winry growled planting kisses on his neck. She ran her tongue over his pulse point before nipping the skin hard.

"Yes sir." Ed groaned as he finally reached his destination and kicked their bedroom door open.

Suddenly Winry was lying on her back in the bed. She let out a chuckle as she looked up to see her husband hovering over her, his larger frame shadowing her smaller one. A devious smirk on his lips.

"What are you thinking about?" Ed asked.

"About how this is my favorite time of the year." Winry answered staring up at him. "And how much I missed that big dick of yours." She giggled as she winked at him.

Ed resisted the urge to roll his eyes as her crass comment before laying even more on top of Winry, enveloping her body entirely. His mouth immediately sought hers out to which she greedily responded. Their tongues dueled as Ed ground his hardening arousal against her core. The delicious friction only caused more warmth to pool in between Winry's legs.

"That's good news because he's missed your tight pussy." Ed chuckled as he lowered his head to nip and kiss at her neck. Winry's body shivered at the sensation and she tilted her head to give his talented mouth more access

"What's with the slow treatment?" Winry chuckled between gasps as she tilted her head back all the way and closed her eyes as Ed continued to devour her skin gently..

"I'm reminding myself." Ed said lowly.

"Of what-"

Ed cut her off by claiming Winry's lips with his own. Winry moaned into the aggressive kiss and nipped playfully at his lips.

Ed eventually broke the kiss and pulled back to begin removing his clothes vehemently. He didn't care if the fabric ripped as he tore each article off and threw it into a pile, he'd just fix it in the morning. All that mattered to Ed was how desperate he was for his wife beneath him. Winry quickly did the same with her own clothes and lay back on the bed, body open and welcoming for her husband. Ed moved himself so that he was hovering over her. For a few moments he gazed down at her naked body.

To him, she was utter perfection.

"You're so damn beautiful." He murmured before pressing his lips to her softer ones in a gentle kiss. Winry melted into his embrace. Her legs came up to wrap around his waist; inviting Ed to slide home.

The blonde mechanic let out a low moan as Ed slowly entered her. Christ, he always felt so good inside of her. Edward let out a low grunt as his wife welcomed him back in the best way possible.

"Oh god." He muttered, his hands fisting the blanket tightly.

Winry's nails dug into his back as Ed paused to slowly kiss her on the lips before looking down at her. His sharp golden eyes met her soft blue ones. Time seemed to slow down as they stared at one another, their breaths slow and ragged at the long awaited feeling of being one.

"Don't hold back." She said blissfully as the sounds of their coupling began to fill the room.

Ed hissed as he felt her nails scraping down his back. In turn, Winry gasped as Edward bit her neck.

Edward drank in the heavenly sight in front of him. The pleasured look on her face, the sweat on her skin, the loud moans. It was like being fed food and water after a month of starvation, being given salvation by a kind and loving goddess. Edward familiarized himself with every familiar curve, every inch of soft skin.

His anchor. His salvation. His wife.

As Edward continued to move with Winry, eliciting more enticing gasps, he knew he would be worshiping her the entire night.

OoO

OoO

Much, much later; Ed panted as he rolled off of Winry. The couple laid there in the bed, both of them sprawled out as they caught their breath. Ed swallowed as he stared up at the familiar creases in the ceiling as he listened to the sweet sound of Winry's loud huffs. His wonderfully breathless wife currently had an arm draped over her sweaty forehead as she glanced over at him. Her other hand gently ran across the spot where his shoulder and automail port connected. For several minutes the couple lay in silence before Winry chuckled.

"God, I missed you." She smirked, stretching her arms above her head. "Did Maria take good care of you while you were on the road?" Winry asked, folding her arms behind her head like she was lounging. Faintly, she could hear the beat of his heart. She had missed that sound, and the feel of his strong arms around her.

"I don't think I would have made it halfway through the first week without her keeping everything in check." He admitted as he drew lines on the skin of Winry's thigh with his fingers.

"What is it with all of you military Colonels and having pretty young woman as assistants?" Winry asked with closed eyes, her hand continued to touch him as he touched her. "Seems kind of sketchy to me." She opened her eyes to look over at him inquisitively.

"While I can't vouch for whatever's going on between Roy and Riza, I'd like to remind you that it was you who choose Ross out of all the other candidates." Ed pointed out. "And that the rest of whom, that you rejected, were male."

"True….true." Winry said before there was silence between them again. It was comfortable and stretched on for several minutes.

Winry looked back at Ed with a smile, which quickly turned into a frown.

Ed was laying at his back, his mouth a thin line. He was staring up at the ceiling with a blank distant look on his face.

Normally, Winry would have smacked him with a pillow for having such an dismayed expression on his face after having just thoroughly fucked her brains out. But she paused to look at the heavy bags under her husband's eyes. His normally tanned skin was also much paler that it should have been. His golden eyes held a troubled look to them.

"Ed?" Winry pushed herself up on her elbow. Her hand reached out to turn his face towards her. His sharp eyes cut through the dark room as she looked at her. Her own eyes softened in understanding.

"Winry…" He said quietly.

"Hmmm?" She answered.

"What...what kind of….shit!" Edward cursed as he suddenly sat up in the bed.

Winry was quickly up too, staring at him carefully. After a moment, her hand was placed on his shoulder.

"Take your time." She whispered soothingly to him. "It's okay."

Edward stared at the room in front of him with that far off look that she had seen on him too many times.

"What kind of person am I?"

Winry blinked at the question but she understood. She didn't need to inquire as to what he meant when he asked her this. He had asked it many times before.

"You're a good person Edward." She said, rubbing his shoulders soothingly.

Edward shook his head, she could see that there were tears falling down his face. His eyes looked like the way they had all those years ago. The emptiness was always the most startling.

"How...how can I be?" He asked shakily, his face going pale. "Every night...everytime I close my eyes I see them. I see all of them."

"Come here." She whispered as she gently pulled him into a hug, her arms wrapping firmly around him. Ed let his head fall onto her shoulder.

Ed shifted until he was resting his head on her shoulder. His strong arms wrapped around her body, pulling her close. She responded by wrapping her arms around him in return.

"I see them too." Winry spoke after a moment. "You're not alone."

"I love you." He whispered, barely audible. The exhaustion of it all was finally getting to him. "You know I'll always love you, right?"

"Always." Winry kissed him on the head. "I love you too."

Ed closed his eyes and listened to the gentle beat of her heart. He gripped her as if for dear life.

"Dummy." She whispered into his hair as she ran her hand over his chest.

OoO

OoO

Morning came with the sun through the curtains.

Edward was awake and at the breakfast table. Though it was breakfast for him it was more of lunch or dinner for Winry. Ed had slept well into the afternoon and Winry had let him. He always needed a few days of good rest when he came back. Not all the fatigue had disappeared from his face. There was still a heaviness to his eyes but it was outshined by a look of contentment.

As Ed slowly ate the food in front of him, he couldn't help but look around him at the familiar kitchen.

'New clock.' Edward noted, glancing at the wall before turning his attention towards the floor. 'Same tiles.'

Ed looked from the room around him to his wife sitting next to him. As he took in her presence, the world around him disappeared, there was nothing else for him but this.

His hand reached out and moved a loose hair from her face. Winry looked up from an automail book that she had been reading and stared straight at him. Together they smiled.

There was nothing else for them but each other.

OoO

OoO

Thank you for following this story.

Okay so I have to talk about Kingdom. Once again I reaffirm that I am not discontinuing the story. There will be an ending. Life is just getting so busy that maintaining this long and complicated story is hard. I am also burnt out from it.

But despite all of that there will be an ending. Though I don't think I'll update again until I have finished the entire story. After that, I am going to release the chapters in quick succession. I know this is disappointing and that many of you are eagerly awaiting an update. But I'm asking you to please be patient. You may get a few updates in the 'Broken Things' verse along the way. Thank you for sticking with me to this point.

Thanks to all those that reviewed, followed, and favorited this story.

Mediafan