Travelers

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We have the technology...we can rebuild him....
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Back at Winry’s house, Edward sat on the kitchen table after changing into a pair of shorts. Alfons was there too, leaning against the wall, curious.

Noa was out in the living room with Russel, Roy, Fletcher and the others. Ranen was sitting against the wall, exhausted from blood loss and nearly ready to fall asleep before Pinako slapped her face and wrapped her wrist. “Stay awake, stupid. Come back to the room with me, we’ll get your measurements.”

Ranen shoved herself up, leaning against the wall and followed the old woman to the back, swallowing. This’s gonna hurt.

Noa looked curiously at Russel. “What is automail?”

Winry slipped her hands up Edward’s busted leg. “Where did you get this automail?”

“My father built it for me.”

“You’ve been taking care of it yourself?”

“How’d you tell?”

She gave him a look. “I can tell. Clench your teeth.”

“It doesn’t hurt as much as it used to. I’ve gotten used to it.”

The look she gave him was soft, frowning faintly. He nodded to her.

She undid the manual straps anyway and felt him tense only slightly under her hands. She grabbed his new leg and moved in closer.

Her scent washed over him and he refocused on her, relaxing his muscles and wincing just slightly at her automail as it sparked and reconnected with his nerves.

“I’ll put on a new arm too. Take off your shirt.”

“That really is amazing technology,” Alfons murmured.

Winry smiled. She picked up the arm, watching Edward from the corner of her eye. “I’ll have to explain it to you sometime.”

“Good, because he didn’t seem to have any idea how it really worked.”

“Somehow I’m not surprised.” Winry laughed and stood up, examining the straps and pulls and manual gear. “Your father certainly did do a good job considering what he had to work with.”

“Yeah…”

She unhooked the straps, attempting not to examine the rest of him. It’s been so long… She wanted to reacquaint herself with everything about him. She shook herself to refocus, removing the arm and quickly attaching her own work, again, only feeling him wince just slightly.

“Is there an inn in town, Winry?” Roy Mustang had come into the room, leaning against the entrance frame.

Winry glanced at him, nodding.

He nodded in return. “Havoc, all of you get your packs together. We’ve overstayed our welcome.”

“Oh Roy, you don’t have to—“

Roy glanced at her. There was something about the look that quieted her. “I may come by again, but there’s no reason for us to hang around.”

Russel stood up from the couch. “Winry if you’d like—“

“No,” she interrupted. “You stay. There’s no way I’d be able to send you, Fletcher and especially Noa and Alfons away. Take your things into one of the upstairs bedrooms.”

Russel looked at her for a long moment.

She gave him a look, nodding him towards the staircase.

Noa stood up then, awkward. “Thank you…”

“You all deserve some rest.”

Al came in the door just as everyone seemed to be moving at once, Roy and his crew leaving and Russel and the rest heading upstairs, save Alfons, who shifted awkwardly and didn’t seem to know what to do. He seemed torn about something.

Al approached him. “Are you all right?”

Alfons looked down at him, slightly solemn. In a different world, leaving his only family behind with only his books and blueprints. He had dodged his inevitable death. This must have been how it was for Ed…

“I’m all right. Thank you, Alphonse.”

“Just Al is fine.” He looked at his other-world counterpart for a long moment. “Would you like to go outside? I’d like to see these books Edward told me about.”

For a moment, Alfons just looked at him. Then he smiled. So alike. It shouldn’t surprise me. He nodded. “All right.” He went into the living room, grabbing up his bag, stuffed full of blueprints and things and went outside with Al.


It shouldn’t have surprised him, either that Al was immediately drawn into this strange science of physics. He held the blueprints for one of his rockets, turning it upside down and back again, looking over the calculations and design. “Wow…and you have books about this…?”

Alfons smiled again. “Only the ones in my bag.” He pulled out one. He had seven, including the one he’d borrowed from the library.

Al took it into his hands almost reverently, opening it up, skimming the pages. “Wow. Did you want to know more about alchemy?” He was suddenly looking up, eager.

Alfons blinked. “I’m interested. Watching your friend…he pulled a tree from the ground. I’ve never seen anything like it…”

Al grinned cheerfully. “Then I can show you all my books about alchemy and you can teach me about physics!”

Alfons laughed a little at his enthusiasm. “A-all right.”

“You never know,” Al went on, looking even more excited. “Maybe here you’ll be able to do alchemy. I mean, I think you’re the other me if I’d aged normally. I couldn’t use alchemy in your world. Maybe you’ll be able to use it here!”

Alfons blinked. He hadn’t even considered that, unlikely as it was.

“And even if you didn’t—these blueprints and your knowledge—no one here has anything like this! You’d be set the rest of your life if you premiered these in Central! This is the sort of stuff we’ve never seen before. And for people who can’t use alchemy, they’d have a completely new subject to look at! The military would be interested too…but if that stuff fell directly to them…I mean, it would make it in eventually, but just handing everything over—it might be bad. But you might even be able to be a teacher. There are schools and things. You’d be the only physics and rocketry teacher in our world!”

Alfons just stared at him. I left it to John, Phillip and Vincent to leave the mark on our world…but I could make my mark on this world… He was nearly overwhelmed. None of that had occurred to him either…

Edward wasn’t able to show people his alchemy but he could make a difference here. His work did not require this…transmutation. It could be used by regular people….

But what if it disrupts the balance of their world? This world’s focus…their science is alchemy. Not physics or chemistry…at least not in the same sense. Could their alchemy and my world’s science…actually co-exist?

He smiled. A little wouldn’t hurt though…surely… “Well, I think Edward could teach as well but I doubt he’d want to. Not that I blame him. But I’d be happy to teach you, Al.”


Edward watched them from the window after changing back into his clothes. Who’d have thought…? Although I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me that much. He glanced at Winry, who was watching them both.

“If that’s what Alphonse is going to look like when he grows up, he’s going to be quite the lady-killer.”

Edward’s eyes shot open.

Winry laughed. “What?”

Edward shrugged awkwardly, looking to the side. “Nothing.”

He didn’t see Winry’s smile soften. She wrapped a hand just above his elbow. He looked down again, caught her smile and turned away abruptly, feeling some warmth rise in his face. He rubbed at his cheek with the back of his hand.

“Anyway. Um. You did a good job on the automail…”

“Well, naturally.” She tittered.

“How did you figure on how much I’d grow?”

She smiled. “I’ve known you too long, Edward…how couldn’t I?”

He stared down at her, moving a hand to her shoulder, leaning down to—

“Hey Winry—do you mind if I make up something to eat? I’m starving.”

Edward jerked away from her as Fletcher entered the room, Russel following. Winry turned away from Edward, a slight flush on her face, letting go of his arm. “Haha! Of course you can. I’m certainly not going to cook everyday for,” she paused for a moment to mentally count their numbers, “…nine people. Nine, right? Go right ahead.”

Fletcher grinned. “All right! Thanks!” He hopped off to the kitchen.

Russel paused a moment before following, smiling softly, first at her and then turned his gaze to Edward, who still had his back to them. He cocked an eyebrow and looked back at Winry. She looked away slightly and Russel’s face broke into a grin. She glanced up and couldn’t help but smile back, looking ungodly embarrassed.

Russel nodded and turned away, his smile growing more faint. He put his hands in his pockets and went into the kitchen.

Winry fidgeted for a moment. “Well…let’s get your things…your room is still up there, you know.”

Edward nodded, turning and following—he didn’t have anything to grab, but nevermind that. He’d left his books and suitcase in the apartment. He hadn’t thought to grab it. He followed Winry up the stairs to the room he’d stayed in, usually sharing it with Al. Indeed, there was Al’s battered suitcase and his red coat.

Edward took off his coat, throwing it on the other bed. When he turned around, Winry was looking at him. He swallowed hard.

“Ed…”

He moved to her and she moved at the same time so they met somewhere in the middle. Their mouths touched, moving together. Her hands grabbed into his shirt, his flesh hand went into her hair. Her heart seemed to leap up right into her throat, breathing hard through her nose. His pulse picked up, already thumping at a thousand miles an hour.

How many times had he dreamed of her? He had had no chance to seriously let it sink in that he was home until this very moment. Nevermind that the door was wide open and that Noa was still somewhere in the house and possibly upstairs. He grabbed onto her as if he might be pulled back through that horrible Gate any moment. She latched onto him just as desperately.

Indeed, out in the hallway, Noa passed the door and blinked. Her eyes went as wide as saucers and gently grabbed the door, closing it softly but not letting it click into place. She then hurried down the stairs to wherever the others were.

Alfons and Al were sitting out on the lawn together, tired old dog lying next to them, comparing books. Al sat up on his knees, grabbing a few sheets of paper and started drawing out simple Circles, explaining each of the diagrams in great detail and what each curve meant and how an alchemist might use them.

For his part, Alfons paid rapt attention.

Russel and Fletcher caught the stove on fire and both of them yelped, pulling a pan of pasta off and panicking until Pinako came in and smacked them both, putting the fire out herself. She gave them a look, biting down on her pipe and then turned away.

Ranen laid on a bed in the room where Winry and Pinako did their automail surgeries. Her eyes were closed, resting. Pinako returned to the room. “Keep your eyes open.”

She did so, watching the old woman as she adjusted her glasses and continued modifying a spare hand to equip her with.

Noa wondered down into the living room and into the kitchen and offered to help cook something. Fletcher gave her a toothy grin while Russel smiled and nodded.

Upstairs, Edward turned just as the door closed. He felt his face heat up. Someone was up here. Of course. He hurried over and shut the door. Winry followed him, pushing him up against it, pressing close and attacking his mouth feverishly. He grabbed onto her hands, pushing back, fumbling a hand back to lock the door and tripping forward on purpose to force her back. They stumbled to his bed, falling onto it awkwardly. He put a hand on her waist, kissing down her throat. Winry pulled his already mussed shirt out from his waistband and slipped her hands under it. He shuddered for a moment and then resumed his attentions to her throat, hearing her sigh softly.

And then the doorknob rattled.

“Brother? Are you in there?”

Edward lifted his head, silently cursing. Winry smiled, slipping her hands out. He rolled his eyes in frustration. “Yeah, Al. One second!”

He stood up, flattening out his mussed hair and took a short, sour breath. Winry sat up on the bed and straightened her clothes.

As soon as Edward opened the door, Al flew in, Alfons walking in behind him. “Sorry, Al, habit.”

But his brother seemed to be excited about something. “Ah! I’ve still got all my books! I’m going to show Alfons more stuff about alchemy! And he’s going to teach me about physics!”

Edward looks at Alfons but Alfons was looking at him with raised eyebrows. Edward glowered at him. That made Alfons nearly grin, raising a hand to cover his mouth. Winry looked down, blushing. Then his brother was hurrying back. “C’mon! These are some of my father’s books! They’ve got almost everything you need to know about alchemy!”

Alfons let Al go into the hallway. “We’ll try not to interrupt next time.”

Ed gave him a murderous glare.

“Hey! Food’s ready!” Russel’s voice drifted up from downstairs.

Edward closed his eyes, silently cursing again.

Winry got up, laughing quietly. “Well, I suppose we should all go get something to eat,” she said, as if nothing odd had happened at all.

Alfons smiled at her. “Yes.”

Ed drug his hand across his face. “Yep. I’m hungry.”

Alfons started to smile again.

“Don’t even!”

Alfons lifted his hands in a ‘what-did-I-do?’ gesture.


Downstairs, Edward, Winry, Al, Alfons, Noa, Russel, Fletcher, and Pinako sat down at the table.

Winry counted with hr fingers. “Only eight…oh, right, is Ranen still in the room?”

Pinako nodded. “I’ll take her something when we’re finished. I’ve almost got the hand to the correct measurements. Then we’ll start, although I may need your help Winry, to hold her down. Cutting off the ragged ends and wiring into the nerves will send her through the roof. She’s already a paranoid girl.”

Alfons looked curious but he thought it might be rude to ask about it.

“Do you have any leather straps?”

“Ah, yes. I suppose we could tie her to the table.”

Alfons blinked. “What kind of surgery is this?”

“We’re going to be connecting nerves directly into the automail,” Winry explained; she looked down. “I remember Edward’s. It was horrible…Ranen’s shouldn’t be nearly as bad. I’ll help you when you’ve got it ready.”

Alfons looked at Edward. Edward shook his head. “Maybe another time, Alfons.”

Al looked at his food.

The table was quiet for a moment.

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