Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ Descent ❯ Expression of Love ( Chapter 30 )

 

Descent

 

Chapter Thirty

 

Expression of Love

 

“You don't like it?”

 

Al looked up at Winry's worried face and said, “Huh?”

 

She glanced down at his plate where he had been idly pushing his food around. “Your breakfast; you're not eating. I just thought that maybe you didn't like it...”

 

He stared at her face for a moment, and thought that perhaps she seemed a little sad that he might not like what she had cooked. “No! It's not that!” he exclaimed and stuffed a forkful of eggs in his mouth.

 

The truth was that he was so nervous... Food was the furthest thing from his mind right now, but he didn't want her to think that he didn't like her cooking. She really had improved a lot since he'd been there. Not that her food had been bad before, but she had been taking a lot of time to learn more recipes and had been cooking a lot more than usual lately.

 

“Then what is it?” she asked as he took a big bite of his toast.

 

He stopped chewing and looked at her with one of his cheeks bulging with food. He made a “mmmm” noise, then held up a finger to signal he'd need a moment to clear his mouth out. He chewed a couple more times and tried to swallow, but it got caught in his throat and he had to take a drink before he could speak.

 

“I was just thinking; that's all. Really, the food is very good.” He grinned then cleared his throat. “The best.”

 

At the compliment, she beamed and took a bite of her own breakfast before looking at Pinako and saying, “We're out of flour and the butter is running low too...”

 

Al ignored the chitchat between the two women and concentrated on eating as fast as he could.

 

;-;-;-;-;-;-;

 

“Okay! I'm done!”

 

Winry glanced at Al who was licking the milk off his upper lip and standing up. “That was fast...” she said.

 

“Yeah, I, um...I've got something to do. Breakfast was great!” he said with a big grin.

 

She returned the grin with one of her own and watched him as he picked up his dishes and took them to the sink. Winry loved how he did that. It wasn't as if Al was a neat freak, but he liked to keep things neat and in order.

 

The blonde girl smiled a sad smile. That was another way Al and Ed were so different. Ed had never been an extremely clean person, not that he'd been a slob, but he was the type that would leave his dishes on the table to worry about later, if he could. The only reason Ed and Al had been so organized when they'd traveled was because Alphonse had kept up on it and nagged at Ed when he'd been too lazy.

 

Winry let her gaze fall to her plate and she took a slow bite of her food. Would Ed ever contact them? If not, then when would Al leave to go find him? Al had said that he had some things to take care of before he left, but what were they? And how quickly would they be taken care of?

 

He wasn't even gone yet and she already missed him... Winry sighed and dragged her fork across her plate. She was being stupid. Even if Al left, he would come back... She shouldn't worry about it...

 

Frowning down at her food, Winry no longer felt hungry. She glanced up and saw that Pinako was watching her with a concerned look on her face. Instantly, Winry sat up straight and smiled broadly. No need to worry her grandmother...

 

“I'm finished. I think I'm going to change into my work clothes and get started on that order we got in yesterday!”

 

The old woman raised an eyebrow at Winry's sudden display of energy, but only nodded. The young mechanic picked up her dishes, scraped the leftover food in the garbage and rinsed off her plate before leaving the room and heading upstairs.

 

She was fine.

 

Really.

 

When he left to find Ed, Al would come back to her if he felt anything for her at all. She just needed to keep her spirits up. The blonde teen slipped into her room and closed the door quietly behind her before leaning back against the door. She let her eyes wander over her room and she cringed involuntarily. Tools lay scattered here and there and her bed hadn't been made in weeks...

 

Winry sighed and sagged against the door.

 

She was just as messy as Ed.

 

Even more so, really...

 

Winry trudged over to the `clean clothes' basket and pulled out her faded purple overalls. She thought that maybe she should start being cleaner. Perhaps Alphonse saw how horrible she was at keeping her personal space organized and maybe he thought... Winry shook her head, trying to clear it. That was just dumb. Al was just shy. It wasn't as if he didn't care for her...

 

At least, she thought he cared for her...

 

Winry pulled the overalls up, then sat down on her bed. Maybe he just cared for her like a sister... But if that was so, then why would he have kissed her...? She looked up to where the small mirror hung above her dresser before getting up and staring into it. Turning her head this way and that, Winry frowned and though that perhaps she should dress up like the other girls did when they wanted to attract someone.

 

At that thought, Winry scowled. She'd always believed in the past that dressing up to attract a guy was just pure foolishness. A man should love you for who you are and not for what you pretend to be. Of course, she'd never felt the need to impress someone before, but now...

 

Winry grabbed her faded red bandana and tied it on top of her head.

 

Now, she was just being stupid...

 

Just... stupid...

 

Feeling confused and more than a little depressed, Winry left her room and made her way downstairs. She would just bury her problems in her work. Yep, that's what she'd do. Working on automail always helped her feel better; helped her forget her problems, at least for a short time.

 

Opening the door to the work area, Winry let herself into the room and started toward the work bench and stopped when her eyes fell on a sheet of paper laying on the nut and bolt strewn table.

 

Eyebrows knitting in confusion, Winry slowly walked forward, then picked the paper up. Before she concentrated on the words, her brain had already recognized the handwriting as Alphonse's.

 

A bolt and a wrench, a small piece of chalk

The beginnings of magic, right here in your shop

You build and create, and I do that too

We can change people's lives with the things that we do

 

In alchemy we say, to receive we must give

`All is one, and one is all,' that's how we must live

 

There is nothing equivalent about the exchange I propose

 

I...

I am lower than the dirt

I am nothing

I am only rough components in a transmutation never preformed

 

You...

You are a beautiful angel

You are everything

You are the finished product, a well oiled machine

 

It is impossible to exchange nothing for everything

 

At least, that's what they say

But I've never been known

To leave well enough alone

So I will try anyway

 

My life for your life

Un-equivalent exchange

To build and create

Take charge of our fate

 

To love and to cherish

To have and to hold

To be together always, until we are old

 

Let me tell you I love you - because you're my life

Please say that you love me - because I want you for my wife

 

- Alphonse

 

A smile formed on her face and tears gathered in her eyes as she read, and reread, the note.

 

He loved her...

 

He wanted to marry her...

 

Winry pressed the note to her chest and looked up at the ceiling. When she blinked, the tears that had formed in her eyes now trickled slowly down her cheeks. All that worrying had been for nothing!

 

She sniffled and when she looked back down, she noticed that a transmutation circle had been drawn on the wood and a thin ring sat in the center. Winry reached over and gingerly picked it up. It was smooth and gleamed dully where the light from the window touched its surface. It was the color of... She peered at it more closely, then glanced over to the table where some bolts lay. Curious, Winry picked one of the bolts up and compared the color to the ring.

 

It was the same.

 

The metal was the same too.

 

With a smile, Winry set the bolt down and slipped the ring onto her finger. He had created it from the automail bolts. She thought she'd die from happiness. Winry read the paper again, then turned quickly and rushed out of the work room.

 

“Al!” she yelled, running up to his room. Winry threw open the door, and quickly looked around.

 

No one was there.

 

“Al?” she called again and ran down the stairs.

 

Winry dashed out the door and ran around the house calling his name, but there was no answer. Where could he have gone? she wondered as she walked into the house.

 

;-;-;-;-;-;-;

 

Pinako walked into the house and saw Winry sitting at a table, looking around in frustration.

 

“I thought you were going to work on that project?” she asked the girl.

 

Winry sighed and asked, “Granny, have you seen Al?”

 

“Yes, I have,” she said around her pipe.

 

“You have?” she cried, standing quickly in her excitement. “Where is he?”

 

The old woman raised an eyebrow at this sudden exuberance and said, “I sent him into town to pick up some things from the grocer.”

 

At that, Winry froze and stared at her with a look of utter disbelief. “You... sent him... to town...?”

 

Pinako nodded. “You said that we needed more flour and butter, and he was pacing around like the world was about to end so I gave him something to do.”

 

The teen plopped back down with a whined, “Graaaaany!”

 

“What,” the old woman asked flatly. She had a feeling she was missing something here.

 

“How long ago did you send him?” Winry asked with a small pout.

 

“About a half hour ago,” she answered, then added, “He should be back in another hour or so.” At this, Winry sighed and stared at the front door for a moment, before getting up. “Where are you going?” Pinako asked.

 

“I'm going to town,” Winry answered in determination.

 

“To find Alphonse?” The blonde girl nodded and Pinako shook her head. “Better just to wait here. You might miss him while you're looking for him.”

 

Winry seemed to think about this for a moment, then sighed heavily. “You're right...” she murmured, though she didn't sound very happy about it.

 

;-;-;-;-;-;-;

 

Alphonse sighed and glanced down at the list Pinako had given him. He'd gotten everything that was on the list, but he'd been in such a hurry that he worried that perhaps he'd forgotten something.

 

He wanted to get back to the house and yet he didn't want to go back...

 

What if she said `no'?

 

What if she got mad because he used some of her bolts to make her ring?

 

What if she laughed at him or at what he'd written?

 

Not for the first time, Al thought that maybe he should have waited. Perhaps he could have made it better...

 

He sighed.

 

Well, it was too late for that now. He'd already done it and now here he was... not there...

 

Al walked toward the sales clerk with a heavy feeling in his chest. He was dying to know what she'd say, but he was also scared to death.

 

What if she said `no'...?

 

What if she sad `yes'?

 

That thought almost terrified him even more than a `no' answer. He couldn't imagine himself being married; couldn't imagine that she would really want him. But then, he couldn't imagine himself without her either. Al dreamt about her all the time, and he was embarrassed to admit that some of his dreams were down right... He blushed at the thought; blushed that he might really be able to do... with her...

 

“Alphonse?”

 

He blinked and looked at the old woman who ran Rizembool's small grocery store. He hadn't realized he was next... The woman grinned and said, “You look like you're thinking about something pleasant.” His blush deepened and she said, “Or someone pleasant perhaps...?”

 

He smiled sheepishly and ducked his head. “Yeah... kinda...”

 

The woman, Marie Redharring, chuckled and began adding up his purchases. “Couldn't be Winry Rockbell, could it?” she asked with a knowing look.

 

Alphonse dug out the money Pinako had given him and gave Mrs. Redharring enough to cover what he was buying. “Maybe...” he muttered.

 

“Uh huh... You know... that girl is way too old to be single.” She peered at him meaningfully. “How old are you now?”

 

Al shook his head. She might as well come out and say that he needed to get married too. Winry was older than him by only six months. “Sixteen,” he said and watched her put the items in a bag for him.

 

“Sixteen huh? Well, you know, for a man, that's not a bad age to find a girl to settle down with...” she glanced at him for a moment and he nodded. Al had no desire to tell her that he'd already proposed since he still didn't know what her answer would be.

 

Probably it would be `no'...

 

“Well, here you go,” the woman said, handing him the sack and his change. “Just keep in mind what I said.”

 

Taking the money from her and stuffing it in his pocket, Al nodded and lifted the bag off the counter before making his way out of the store with a mixed feeling of relief, nervousness, and excitement. As he stepped out onto the road that would lead him out of Rizembool's town proper, a figure, who had been leaning against the wall, stepped out in front of him.

 

“Well, what do we have here?”

 

“Kimblee...” Al muttered and tried to step around the man, but the other merely stepped to the side, blocking Al's way.

 

“I thought you were a house pet that was only let out when your mistress went with you,” the dark-haired man said with a small mocking smile.

 

Al tapped his fingers against the brown paper sack, then said irritably, “She isn't my mistress; now get out of my way.” After what had happened with the soldiers tearing apart the house, and Archer threatening Winry indirectly, Al had no desire to interact with anyone from the military, least of all Kimblee.

 

Instead of moving aside, Kimblee glanced at the sack and said, “It seems your mistress has trained you well. What other errands do you do for her?” When Al didn't answer, the man stepped forward and said in a low voice, “How do you keep her satisfied? Has she trained you well in that area too?”

 

The tall teen's eyebrows knit together in confusion. Trained him?

 

Kimblee smirked when he saw Al's reaction. “I guess not. Well, perhaps I'll have to do that for her...” the other man said, lifting his hand and gently running his finger along Al's cheek.

 

Feeling a little disgusted with the close proximity of Kimblee and the contact, Al stepped back and glared. “I don't know what you're talking about, and I have a feeling I don't want to know either.” He paused, simply looking at the man, then said, “I do know if you... any of you... touch Winry, you'll regret it.”

 

At that, Kimblee laughed and said, “I think you're talking to the wrong person about that.”

 

Al began walking past the man at a distance and said, “Just so you know...”

 

Kimblee shrugged and began walking the other way. “We'll meet again, Alphonse Elric, and when we do...” Al turned around and quickly walked down the road. He didn't want to think about what had just happened. The man was dangerous and he didn't want anything to do with him.

 

;-;-;-;-;-;-;

 

Winry scanned the road, eagerly waiting for Al to return. It had been almost two and a half hours and still no sign of him.

 

Suddenly she saw someone in the distance and she shaded her eyes with her hand to see better.

 

Was it him?

 

Could it be...?

 

Her heart beat with excitement as she waited. Whoever it was, they were too far to make out. The figure stopped and raised a hand, waving at her. Her breath caught in her throat and she grinned widely before raising her own hand, then she raced down the steps and began running.

 

;-;-;-;-;-;-;

 

Al walked down the road, trying to push Kimblee out of his mind. He felt frustrated and angry that the military was there at all, but to send scum like Archer and Kimblee, well...

 

Abruptly, he realized that he was almost home. He'd been so caught up with his dark thoughts that he hadn't thought about what was waiting for him. He looked up at the large, yellow house and smiled when he saw a figure standing on the porch.

 

It was obviously Winry and he lifted his hand to wave at her. Instantly, her hand shot up and it waved wildly above her head, then suddenly she began running toward him. His first instinct was to look to make sure there wasn't a wrench in her hand since he'd killed off some of her bolts to make the ring, but when he saw her hands were empty he let out a sigh of relief.

 

“Alphonse!” he heard her yelling and he set down the bag and began walking toward her. “Yes!” she yelled, and he felt an overwhelming sense of relief.

 

Yes.

 

She'd said `yes'!

 

He started jogging toward her and he thought that he'd never seen anyone as beautiful as she was with her long blond hair fluttering out behind her. As she neared him, Winry yelled, “YES, ALPHONSE, YES!” and crashed into him, wrapping her arms around his chest. “Yes, yes, yes, yes!”

 

Al wrapped his arms tightly around her and breathed her scent in. She felt so good in his arms, so right. Winry pulled away slightly and looked up into his face. Her eyes shone with excitement and happiness. “Yes,” she whispered.

 

He gazed deeply into her eyes, those large pools of dark blue, then leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips.

 

“I'm glad...” he whispered unsteadily, then pulled her close and buried his face in her hair. “I'm so glad...”

 

--

 

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