Fic: "April Showers"
Title: "April Showers"
Author: theothardus
Pairing: Ed/Winry
Rating: T, for language.
Summary: Edward was used to the looks men would give his mechanic. That doesn't mean he's okay with it.
Disclaimer: I'm borrowing Arakawa's farm animals; I promise to return them soon!
A/N: Happy Easter! ♥ (Yes, this story was holiday-inspired.)
~xxx~
“Damned… All I gotta… Fuckin’… Doesn’t know… I didn’t even…”
Curses and rambles echoed down the many pathways of Resembool. The roads were like a maze, turning and curving, one leading to a dead end, while the other went on for miles. Some even led into a huge circle, taking you back to the place you were before.
Ed was beyond pissed off; with his hands stuffed in his pockets, stomping down the unpaved road, his face scrunched in the kind of scowl that Pinako warned him not to make when he was younger.
“Keep frownin’ and your face will stay like that forever,” is what she used to say.
Cursed old woman. Stupid hag. She doesn’t know a thing. Always nagging and nagging…
But wait. Pinako wasn’t the one whom he was angry with, here.
It was that damned grease monkey. Twisting every word he said. Always getting too fucking emotional. Hypocrite. Letting that guy look at her like that. Like a piece of meat.
Sure, he was used to the ‘looks’. When they were kids, a handful of boys gawked and drooled at her all the time. Once she hit thirteen, however, it was a whole new world. A world of men who only wanted one thing. A world of men who thought with their little head, not their big head. Kimblee was proof. Damn, Winry should have seen the looks that sick bastard gave her. With his scaly, cold blue eyes and snake-like sneer. There he was, a man in his thirties, taking in the body of a fifteen-year-old girl! Ed was so close to introducing Kimblee’s jaw with his automail fist.
And then there was Central. Many men, varying from their teens to their forties, gave her a look or two that sent chills up his spine. This was why Ed did everything in his power to keep her away from Central Command… or any military command centers, for that matter. Soldiers are horn dogs, that’s for sure, and he wouldn’t give them the privilege of making eyes at her.
Rush Valley was the most horrid of them all. It was bound to happen; a gorgeous girl, freshly developed, covered in motor oil and clothing that exposed her midriff. He knew this, but denial was a whole lot easier to live in than reality.
There had even been an instance where some guy put his hand on her ass. Edward made sure to give him a nice punch to the gut. Winry never knew, as she was incredibly naïve when it came to men coming onto her.
‘This is why she needs me,’ he scoffed to himself. ‘Winry’s too fucking innocent, and I prevent those pigs from corrupting her.’
Maybe that’s just him being modest. Winry could obviously take care of herself, as she stated during their fight about an hour ago.
It all began with Ralph Vischlosch, a boy that Edward couldn’t stand since grade school. Ralph left before FullMetal joined the military, but recently moved back a few months ago. Little did he know, the guy had been suited with automail in his time away, after an explosion in coal mines.
His first visit was to Resembool’s only mechanics-Pinako and Winry Rockbell.
But, after a few hours of licking his lips whenever Winry bent down, lifting his head to try and catch a glimpse of her cleavage, and staring at her ass whenever she walked to the other room, Ed was ready to beat the shit out of his old nemesis.
“Y’know, Ed, you’ve really grown since I last saw you,” Ralph stated, a grin crawling over his maw. Ed only responded with a grunt. Afterward, the brunette added, “So has Winry… mmm, Winry has really grown up.”
That’s all it took. That’s all it took for him to jump out of his chair, lurch at him with a clenched fist, and pop him one in the face. The result? A broken nose.
By the time that Ralph was sent to the clinic, ohh, Winry let him have it. Steam came pouring out her ears, complexion beat red, and Edward instantly knew he was in trouble. She screeched and flailed her hands in the air, screaming about how much of an idiot he was, but not saying much else. She even threatened to break his nose, which Mr. Elric anticipated to be with a wrench. The argument escalated until he stormed out of the house, steam pouring from his own ears.
As the sun was inches from the horizon, he began to cool down. He transitioned to his logical state of mind. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so brash… Well, okay, he doesn’t regret breaking that fucker’s nose, but he does regret some of the things he said. While his feet moved forward on the crunching dirt, he reflected on their fight with a clearer point of view.
“Geez, Ed! Even if he did do that, you didn’t need to go overboard! I swear, you get so jealous, it’s unbelievable!”
“JEALOUS? I’m just protecting you! At least I’m not the one walking around without a care in the world, while every fuckin’ male in the fuckin’ universe is looking at you like you’re just an object!”
“That doesn’t even happen!”
“…God, you’re so stupid!”
“Stupid?! You’re the one with jealousy issues!”
“…” A pause. “…You know what? I guess it’s not their fault. After all, you’re practically asking for it…”
“…” Another pause. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“…Oh, nothing. It’s just that you go around with an outfit like that, bending over constantly, men are bound to get the impression that you’re a hussy…”
They both knew what he meant. Ed couldn’t believe such a thoughtless thing would come from his mouth. Neither could Winry.
The young man slipped one hand out of his pocket, running it over his face. Man, he really fucked up this time. He didn’t know if the girl would ever forgive him. With a sigh, he stopped in his tracks, looking up at the tree lying behind a stone wall. April in Resembool was always moist. Dew dropped from each leaf, dotting the grass. Today, it was a particularly nice day-sunny and warm. But during this time of the year, it was normal for rain to come at least once a week. It seemed as if the sky was bipolar; one moment, it was smiling, and the next moment, clouds were gathering in preparation to sob.
Up in the tree, hatchlings snuggled in their nest, trying to share the warmth of their mother’s feathers. One hatchling stood out from the rest, her webbed feet digging into the edge of the nest, chirping at the top of her lungs. A heavy raindrop plopped onto her head, causing her to pause, look around, beady eyes fluttering, and then shake her feathers to shed the wetness. She began to chirp again, this time much softer.
Something roared above the clouds, and whatever it was, it warned Ed to hurry back home before he got caught in nature’s weeping. He didn’t listen. He stood there until a few drops turned into a significant downpour.
Ed shut his eyes as he listened to the rain’s mellifluous tune, letting his bangs stick to the sides of his face like molten honey, the light cloth of his dress shirt turning translucent as it embraced every muscle. Though cities had large libraries, the country held miracles never seen in a lifetime.
His eyelids parted. The tips of his eyelashes were like the leaves on branches, dripping with dew dots.
He thought back to a time when he was thirteen-his automail broken, scared out of his wits to go see his mechanic. She’d beat him to a pulp, he knew it. When he finally mustered up the courage to visit her, he decided to give her earrings in compensation for the broken automail. The silver hoops and studs were a way of saying “I’m sorry” in the sweetest way possible. Much to his assurance… it worked! He tested this strategy for a second time, getting her another pair of earrings… a grin split his face in two when he was successful once again. He got himself out of a merciless beating, and made Winry happy.
The flashback faded. Edward squinted as he saw something from the corner of his eye… at first glance, it appeared to be a brown blob, but as he turned his head, it became a furry creature. He kneeled down to get a better look. A rabbit was curled inside of a hole beneath the tree, doing his best to find shelter. As Ed moved closer to test his luck, he came to the realization that this particular rabbit was not shy at all.
“…A gift, huh?”
~xxx~
The pitter-patter of rainfall. A knock on the door. Winry stubbornly refused to answer, knowing who waited outside.
“Win-ry!” a voice whined from behind the door, knocking for a second time. “I know you’re there! Open up!”
The blonde folded her arms across her chest, sticking her nose into the air as if he could see it. She couldn’t remember the last time she was this angry with Edward.
A silence filled both sides. Yet again he moaned, “Win-ryyy! C’mon! I’m drenched out here!”
Her knuckles turned white. She couldn’t make him sleep out in the rain… or could she?
Winry’s chest fell as she exhaled. If he came up with a cold, she would still feel guilty. With the highest impatience, she practically jerked the knob off and tore the door from its frame.
She said nothing. She didn’t need to. Her arms went back to their pretzel position, her orbs of crystal boring into the man. He gulped; yeah, he had a feeling that she was going to be like this, but it still scared the shit out of him.
“Winry, I…” his voice croaked against his will. His hands were stuffed beneath his shirt, which made the girl wonder. “I-I know sorry isn’t…”
Damn it, she didn’t want to sympathize for him, but… he looked so pitiful. There, in the rain, soaked from head to toe, a sorrowful expression stretching his features. Meanwhile, Edward hoped that his attempts to fix things would be successful like last time.
This time, however, he had done something way worse than breaking automail.
With one hard swallow, eyebrows casting a shadow over his eyes, head bowing to the ground, and a step forward, he brought his hands out of his shirt. Only inches from her face, a fluffy creature returned her gaze, tiny legs dangling as the young man held him with two outstretched arms.
“…A bunny?” Winry’s round eyes widened much to her disbelief.
Oh, but he was so adorable! With his perky ears-one of the tips flopping-his twitching pink nose, his doe eyes, his strawberry blonde mask, his white body fur, and his fluffy bush of a tail. Winry couldn’t push him away, or even Edward, for that matter.
“I… I found him shivering under a tree… thought I’d bring him home, y’know… for you…” he uttered, eyes flickering up to see her expression. He prepared himself for a concussion. There was no way she would forgive him, no matter how many bunnies he brought home. Not after what he said.
She took the animal from his hands, surprised at how unafraid the rabbit was. Usually, they were very skeptical of humans and ran away in a flash, but this one was different. He just stared up at her, nose twitching.
“He’s cute,” she remarked. No sign of anger touched her face, but then again, there was no sign of happiness either.
Edward slid his hands in his pockets for the third time that day, vision narrowed to his feet. All of a sudden, a body closed in on him, one arm scooping him in an embrace. His pupils shrunk in shock at the gesture. Winry buried her head into the nape of his neck, pressing the bunny between their bodies. The former alchemist opened his mouth to say something, but decided that silence was best. As she pulled away, she kissed his cheek, smiled ardently, and cradled the bunny to her plush chest. She knew that, no matter what he did, he did it with good intentions.
She also knew that every fight made them stronger. After all, April showers bring May flowers.
Fin.