Chapter 15

Edward frowned to himself as he packed his bags. What had he done wrong? She'd sounded okay. He thought he'd done a good job thinking of her first. He grinned to himself. At last, Al had a chance to see that it wasn't always Ed' fault. He was a little miffed to be cutting his research short, but was also looking forward to going home to his girl and finally being one step ahead of her.

He stopped by the jewelry shop on the way to the train station. "But sir, it's not finished. I haven't polished it or sized it or finished setting the stones."

"Not a problem. Just give me the materials. I have to leave early."

The jeweler's heavy mustache trembled with affront. "I won't have my artistry mocked. What would you do with the materials? You can't give a woman a heap of metal and rock!"

Edward gave his feral smile. "That's my problem, not yours. Let me see one that's the same size this should be."

Face turning a little red, the jeweler thrust another ring at him. Ed looked at it carefully, memorizing the dimensions. He chucked it back at the man.

"Got it. Just hand over the stuff. I'm not going to pay you any less."

The man took the money with incredible distaste and shoved a wooden box with loose stones and an unfinished piece inside. He shook his head watching the young man strut around the corner. It had been rather an odd request anyway. He hadn't even worked out how he would manage to set the stones in that material. Good riddance, he thought.

Ed hopped on the train feeling optimistic and clever. Finally, she would be the one caught off-guard. Of course, with Winry, he had to be careful. He had to come up with at least 3 alternate plans, and even then, she might surprise him. It was best to go with a basic idea with plenty of room for improvisation. He slept fitfully and was consumed with plotting all morning. One thing he could say for her - she was never boring.

Winry couldn't sleep again. Characteristically, Ed hadn't called again, but she couldn't decide what that might mean. She had bitten her nails to the quick and snapped at her customers and at poor Alphonse. What she hated the most was that she wanted nothing more than to snuggle into Ed's embrace, here in this bed, right now. She was embarrassed and angry at herself for getting so worked up. She should have known Ed couldn't be kept. Alphonse kept telling her she was being ridiculous, but she just couldn't believe it - not until she heard it from Ed, in person.

She went down to her workshop before dawn and ignored Alphonse when he asked about breakfast, pretending to be absorbed in her work. By late morning she was so tired that she was half-dreaming at her work bench. Winry trudged up the stairs, barking "nap" at Alphonse, who was parked nervously on the couch. His constant nerves were becoming unbearable. She was strongly considering kicking him out after dinner, but knew the guilt wouldn't let her. She wished Ed was around to pick a fight. Damn him.

She fell asleep as soon as her face hit the pillow, failing to so much as take off her boots. Alphonse heard Winry begin to snore almost immediately. He checked the clock. Thankfully. Ed would be kicking down the door fairly soon. Alphonse hoped the dragon would continue to slumber.

Edward alighted from the train and headed home with unusual trepidation. What would she do? Would she stop yelling at him long enough to let him say what he wanted? Would she believe him? He opened the door very nervous, expecting a wrench to come flying toward his head. Alphonse was standing in the hallway looking anxious.

"Welcome home, brother. She's sleeping. See you."

Ed chuckled as Al ran out the door. He tiptoed upstairs. Winry was face down on the bed, boots getting grease on the sheets. His heart flipped over. He pulled off her boots and wrangled her under the sheet. She frowned and snorted before rolling into a fetal position. His innards went all warm watching her sleep.

When Winry finally woke, the sun was emitting the burnt orange glow of late afternoon. She didn't remember removing her shoes, but somehow they were sitting neatly next to the bed and she was tucked under the covers. As she blinked away her dreams, she noticed a scrap of paper on the pillow right in front of her nose. She scrabbled upright, recognizing Ed's untidy scrawl.

"Didn't want to wake you. Meet me at the river. Love, Ed."

Her fingers tightened over the page, crumpling it as her eyes brushed over the endearment. He rarely said the word and hardly ever signed a note with more that a quixotic "-E." Suddenly her frenetic despair seemed misplaced. It hit her that he was home a full 3 days early. She noticed his rucksack in the corner.

Why not wake her? She'd been hoping to start out fighting so that it wouldn't hurt until later if he broke her heart. Why was he being so cursed considerate? She debated ignoring his note, but finally gave in to curiosity.

He was casually skipping stones and she had to clamp down hard on the impulse to run at him and bury her face in his shoulder. He was always very reluctant about exuberant greetings. She kicked a rock at him. Ed turned and smiled - a real, joyful smile that thawed her.

"Get your beauty rest?" he asked.

She glared. "Do I look beautiful?"

"Actually, you do. It must have worked," he answered casually, turning back to the water to skip another stone.

She felt off-kilter. She had been sarcastic. He was blushing a little, as he usually did when he paid her a compliment. They were as tense as they had been as teenagers; like strangers, both entering foreign territory. Ed cleared his throat.

"Do you remember when we were 7 and Al and I had a big fight about who was going to marry you when we grew up?" Ed was pushing dirt around with the toe of his boot.

She grinned at the memory. "Yep. Al won, but I said I would never marry a bully or a squirt. I was waiting for Prince Charming."

They both laughed. "I came here to pout and you found me at dinner time."

Winry smiled more broadly. "Al was so worried. He was crying about how you left forever, so I told him I would get you."

Ed inched closer to her. Her heart thudded. "You remember what happened?"

"You told me you would be a better husband than Alphonse because you were better at alchemy, so I should marry you even though he won."

"You stuck your little nose in the air and crossed your arms, the way you still do when you're feeling superior."

"I don't!" she said, chin raising up. She turned pink and fought the urge.

"You do," he replied softly, closing in like he was creeping up on a skittish woodland animal. His golden eyes were fixed on her now and she couldn't look away. "You said, 'You're supposed to ask me, dummy - on one knee - and then you're supposed to give me a diamond ring.'" he mimicked, using a squeaky voice that snatched a giggle from her.

"Ugh. I do remember this. You picked up some slimy old rock from the river and tried to tell me how, at the chemical level, it was all the same thing. I think I threw your stupid rock at you before I went home."

Ed chuckled, close enough now that he could touch her hand if he wanted. She ached for him to reach out to her. He fished around in his pocket and pulled out a small wooden box. "I hope you don't throw this one at me."

Fighting to swallow past the big lump in her throat, Winry opened the box. She could immediately see he had transmuted it. The circle itself had an odd sheen - clearly not gold or silver. It was embedded all over with tiny diamond chips that were sunk far enough into the metal so that the surface was smooth as glass. When she looked beyond the box to ask what it was made from, Ed was down on one knee in the mud.

"Did I get it right this time?" he asked, looking at her as earnestly as the little boy he had been.

She dropped to her knees in front of him and crushed her lips to his. Only after they were both breathing unevenly did she wrap her arms around him to whisper in his ear, "Yes."

His glorious smile was enough to leave her glowing for days. The cicadas were buzzing by the time they headed home. Winry admired her ring in the dying light.

"What did you make it out of?"

Ed inflated with a cocky look. "It's an alloy designed to be resistant to scratching and high temperatures. I think we can use it for the rockets. I wanted you to be able to wear it while you're working. Gold is nice, but it's pretty flimsy."

She beamed at him. "It's perfect."

"So, what was it you were waiting to tell me, Win?"

She squeaked, stopping short. He frowned at her in the gloaming light.

"Well . . . um,"

"What? You really are okay, right?"

"Yeah . . . how soon were you thinking we should get married?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't really think that far ahead. Why?"

"Would you be okay with it being pretty soon?"

He was starting to look anxious. "I guess so. Why?"

"I'm pregnant."

The cricket song was loud between them. His eyes widened. She tucked her ring behind her back, irrationally afraid he would take it back.

"Ed?"

"Woah."

"Are you mad?"

"What? No. It's just . . . Wow. That's amazing!"

He gathered her into a fierce hug, not letting her go until he felt the tension seep out of her. They continued toward the house, Edward thoughtful, Winry watching him. She started to feel antsy again. "Are you sure you're not mad?"

"No. I'm just thinking about something my dad said about equivalent exchange."

She groaned. "You're thinking about alchemy?"

Ed smiled. "Sort of. He said equivalent exchange didn't exist because of us."

"What do you mean?"

"He said nothing he had ever done was good enough to exchange for the gift of his children. At the time, I thought he was just trying to have some kind of profound last words before taking off again, but I get it now." He turned tenderly to her. "Thank you."