Maybe it was the way the sun seemed to shine brighter or the fact that they were alive and well that made the Elric brothers' eyes shine their truest gold. Smiles decorated their young faces and their hearts were at ease as they walked to the train station; they were going home.

The day seemed different to Alphonse especially, being given the blessing to have his body returned to him. He could touch the smooth skin of an apple, smell the fresh bread being made as they passed a local bakery and after many years, everything finally seemed real again. He was no longer a soul in a tin can denied of such sensory perceptions and old memories. Al's appreciation for life in general had amplified in the past years as he watched his only older brother fight for his life and the sake of returning Al's body to its natural form.

He looked over at his brother with appreciation for all the sacrifices he'd made and all the hardships he had suffered to keep them together. He then turned back and stared toward the station, ready to go home and lead a normal life again. Children's laughs and birds' chirping from above blended in with the bustling crowd of people carrying on with their everyday lives. The air was warm and the sun shone high in a cloudless crystal blue sky above them; everything was as perfect as perfect could be in the world of men.

Edward sighed that of a young man who no longer had a troubled life full of mysteries, lies and death. He looked around with boyish glee and traded hands with his beige suitcase, haphazardly slinging it over his right shoulder. He placed the other hand in his pocket and let his eyes scan carefully for free place to use the telephone. Spotting a possible spot, he stopped, pausing Al from walking onward with his free hand.

"Hey, take my stuff and I'll meet you on the train. I'm going to tall Winry and tell her we're coming," Al took the suitcase and nodded as if to say it was alright, "I want to give her some time before we get there so she doesn't throw a wrench at my head for showing up without notice or leaving her 'worried'."

Both laughed in vague remembrance of the last time they had returned home, battered and literally broken. But Ed no longer had artificial limbs and Al's body was back again, which also meant the wrenches would hurt more. To Al, it'd be like learning pain all over after so long, but Ed knew very well that it would not be Al who she'd be aiming for, and it was the head she was best at nailing. Ed instinctively put his hand to his head as if to feel the impact just thinking about it. Yes, calling her was a good idea.

Huddling in the nearest phone booth Ed dialed the familiar numbers slowly, planning on what to say depending on who it was that would answer. He studied the dirty glass of the small stall and noted the grimy smell of overuse and not enough cleaning as he waited for the phone to connect. The pages of the phone book they had inside had been battered and was most likely outdated, as its ripped and crinkled pages begged for recycling. There was not much to be expected from any type of public facility. He became slightly distracted by some fowl words etched off to his left when someone finally picked up.

"Rockbell Auto-mail," came the voice of Aunt Pinako Rockbell, "how may I help you?"

"Hey Auntie, it's Ed," Ed said cheerfully as he absent-mindedly scratched at the etching with his nail, "I uh, figured you wouldn't get much news there, and I thought you'd want to hear from us, so -"

"We have gotten news," Pinako said, almost sounding dangerous, but she could not conceal the relief of knowing they were all right, "that Mr. Mustang called us. Quite the strange man if I should say. I'm not sure if I like his attitude."

At this, Ed could not hold back a laugh, "Yes, the Colonel has a bitter sense of humor and a careless air about him but I guess he does have feelings."

"Yes, well I suppose you called to fill us in and tell us you don't need auto-mail anymore," Ed heard her take a deep breath from her pipe and running water began.

"No, actually…I called to tell you that Al and I are…we're on our way home. We're going to stay, if that's not a problem with you…" Ed removed his fidgety fingers from the vandalized glass, "I feel our work is done for some time."

--

Stepping onto the train there was an instant temperature difference. The air was stiflingly warm and sticky; and to his amazement, the windows were even closed. Ed looked around for Al, figuring this was probably the first run of the day for this particular train. Spotting his brother towards the back, he shuffled through people organizing their things and choosing seats. Throwing his brother a grin, Ed slid his red overcoat off, revealing a black sleeveless button-up shirt, and tossed it on the seat before falling back into the hard surface himself. He then turned to the window and pushed it open, fresh air replaced the unbearable air of the train, "Jeez, Al, couldn't open a window while you waited?"

Loud hollow whistling sounded, warning any other passengers who planned on leaving with it that if they weren't on in the next minute that they weren't going to be on at all. Al pulled up a wooden table tray from below the window paneling, "Want to play some cards?"

"Sounds good," Ed grinned, winking, "it's a shame I already took my jacket off; now I have no way of cheating."

Al narrowed his eyes at his brother, "Good, now I can prove just how much you suck,"

"I could beat you any day, brother," Ed crossed his arms behind his head and leaned back, almost smugly.

"We'll see about that." Al gave a pleasant smile.

--

Ed groaned and looked out the open train window at the orange glow of the sunset. His hair lapped in the wind and he sighed, trying to block out his brothers' snickers from across him. He propped his chin up in his hands and smelled the cool country air.

"Shall I deal again or is your butt too sore from my kicking it?" Al teased, wrapping a rubber band around the deck of cards and tossing it into his messenger bag.

Ed grunted stubbornly as if it would help his bruised pride and continued to gaze out into the passing blur of color.

"What do you think it will be like?" Al asked suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Ed was too lazy to move from his comfortable position propped up on the window.

"You know, living home, being able to do what you want, relaxing…doesn't it feel weird doing alchemy by clapping and not feeling a metal palm meet the other one?" Al chuckled, clapping his hands together lazily and staring off in thought, "you'll have to teach me that little trick when we get home."

Ed smiled against the warm skin of his arm, "Yeah, actually, it does. And it's also a plus that I'm not going to grow out of my other leg…not that I'm going to grow anymore anyway."

Al hearing his brother take his height so nonchalantly was something rare and he smiled at his brothers' back, "What do you think they'll say…. you know, when they see me?"

"I think, - no, I know, they will be very glad and excited for you. They will be proud." Ed said, as if he could see it all play out in his mind.

Al joined in his brothers' imaginary scene of events and sighed happily, "What time is it?"

Ed yawned and turned back from the window. He pulled his silver pocket watch, the symbol of a 'dog of the military' and depressed on the button with his thumb. With a click it swung open for him to check the time. It was almost 6:30, dinnertime at Aunt Pinako's house. He allowed Al to see as well before shoving it back into his pocket; they were both thinking the same thing. She's going to kill us if we're late.

Al tapped his fingers on the wooden tray for a few minutes, thinking about how long they had been on the train. They had left at about noon, with two short stops since, which meant they should be arriving at the train station within the next few moments. That, and with the walk from there, through the main township to their home, they'd be there by 7:00 at the latest. With that thought in mind he folded the leg of the table with a snap and let it drop into place. The sound of the wood table coming into contact with the metal of the train startled Ed out of his thoughts and he looked at Al in confusion.

"We should be there quite soon," Al said, as if to answer his brothers bewildered stare, "you look really tired."

Ed rubbed his eyes with his palms and then slid them through his hair which fell right back into place, "Yeah, I suppose I am."

The train screeched to a slow halt and hissed, releasing steam and smoke into the blue orange star-speckled sky. Al pulled the window shut as Ed pulled his coat on, taking their time, as they would be the last ones off. They waited patiently; Al's hands fidgeted in the pouch of the navy blue hooded sweatshirt he wore over khaki pants; he couldn't wait to see Winry and Aunt Pinako's faces again. He could finally touch them, feel them, and hug them. He felt as if it were the best day of his new life, a new life granted by the heavens and his brothers' courage.

The walked in silence, saying hello to the people from their past, some they hadn't even seen in years. Once out of the town they admired the starry sky, something else they had been missing out on through the years. Their feet scuffed the dirt road, making crunching noises against loose gravel and the rising moon threw their shadows long across the road and into the weeds.

The wind slid through the tall grass of the fields around them, creating a sweet serenade with the crickets and other noise-making bugs of the night. The air was warm with a refreshing breeze; it was so clean and nice that they took deep breaths of it through their noses, cleansing their lungs of the city smog. Their surroundings and the beautiful sights made it seem as if their mother was staring down on them, placing a warm blanket around their worn out hearts. This was to be a fresh start for the Elric brothers, and they welcomed it with open arms – thankfully real ones.

The wooden steps of the front porch creaked under their clunking shoes and the scent of the roses Pinako planted the last time they were home wafted all around them.

"You should go first," Ed said, edging his brother towards the door. Al was 16, yet he was taller than his year-older brother by at least 3 inches now, "hopefully Winry will be so happy to see you that she'll forget to clop me for not talking to her before we left the train station…or for any other reason she may have come up with."

"Uh…um, okay," Al raised a fist to knock on the door when it swung open.

"My boy, how handsome you have grown," Pinako stood in the doorway, her short, and stout body towered over by a wide-eyed Winry. After a moment Pinako wiped her hands on her apron, her gray pulled back hair shined a shade of caramel in the kitchen glow. She beckoned the boy to lean down and touched his face; Winry's long, straight blonde hair cascaded over her Grandmother's as she poked and prodded as well. Al laughed nervously and moved his arms up and down, as if to say, "Look, they really are real!"

Ed stood against the railing out on the porch, waiting to hear the clink of metal or an insult coming from the doors direction. Yawning again, he crossed his arms and closed his eyes. It was early, yet it had been a long week and he was ready for some major sleep. A few moments after he closed his eyes, he was started awake by what felt like a blow to the chest, practically knocking the wind out of him.

"ED!" Winry's voice yelled over his ringing ears and he realized she was hugging him once his eyes came into focus again, "I'm so glad you're both okay."

"I'm not so sure about the 'okay' part anymore," Ed gasped, gulping down fresh air. Her body heat warmed him and she pulled back a little, her incredible blue eyes watery.

"Wh-what'd I do? You jumped on me!" Ed never knew what to do when a girl cried.

"No, I'm happy that you're home, where you belong, and safe. Both of you." She buried her face into his shoulder and hugged him again, but this time when she pulled away her wet face turned threatening, "but if you even think, for a second that you're going to just up and leave again -"

"Oh no," Al laughed nervously, trying to avert Winry's oncoming wrath as Pinako watched amusedly from the doorway, "You won't have to worry about that. We're off-duty now."

Winry gave Al a believing look and gave Ed a warning stare before releasing her lock around his shoulders.

"Well come now, get inside before the bugs eat us alive. Dinner is getting cold so be quick, because we eat as a family in this house." Pinako and Winry shared the same warning glares that made the other two straighten up and get moving. They didn't even bring their things upstairs before going into the kitchen and washing their hands.

The ate slowly, talking of their trip home and things they had done in the time leading up to their return. Winry wondered of what exactly had happened the day they restored their bodies, but had been warned ahead of time by the ever-irritated man known as Roy Mustang not to do so. He said that they would need time to recover mentally and emotionally, but she feared they'd never tell her anyways as to save her from their horrors. And just how long does it take to recover from such a traumatic experience? She had thought about this long and hard as she worked that day but could not find an answer. She had to settle with leaving it up to them.

They went to bed soon after, the boys tired from being up early; they only got as far as putting on pajamas and throwing their clothes on before falling into their beds. Moonlight shone through the curtains between their beds and the wooden nightstand below the window had two glasses of cold water on it. Al was asleep in moments, but Ed stared at his water glass, golden eyes growing more tired with each moment he kept himself up to think. Finally he closed them, turned over onto his back, and smiled.