The Same Coin

Scar

"Ms. Rockbell."

So formal for a man who had kissed her and asked her to reconsider leaving Amestris for him, she mused. Captain Buccaneer rose to his feet, smoothing his palms over his cobalt slacks, and inclining his head in her direction. The length of his braided Mohawk hung over one shoulder, not a hair out of place. His mustache had grown a little longer since she'd last seen him — then was struck by the realization of how that had been only a couple months ago. So much had happened in so little time...In a matter of weeks, if she were to be blunt about it. Then it came to her, the question that by all means should have happened first:

"Why are you here?"

"You wear these Eastern fashions well," he evaded instead, his eyes traversing over her clothes.

She flushed; she was still dressed in her clothes from Glam Gas Land. It was the same brown bustier and chest harness, but today they were over a white collared shirt that she had left open at the neck. Her blonde hair was braided flat to her scalp on one side of her head, then fell loosely around her shoulders. A pair of brown goggles held her bangs away from her face. It was a far cry from his crisp, clean military uniform.

"Just blending in," she answered, dropping her bag on the floor.

"Is that so?"

He didn't hide his skepticism. Winry paused, mentally leaping through the hoops of how dangerous it would be to tell him where she had been.

"I was on vacation in Saherta. It's a more eccentric place than here," Winry said. Then she added, with a tug at the collar of her own shirt, "You can make yourself more comfortable."

"Dr. Hirano said you had left for work."

His eyes were sharp as he watched her push her bag into a corner with her foot. He didn't take her up on the offer to take off his uniform top, which didn't bode well either. Then an unnerving possibility came to mind—

Scar.

Perhaps he didn't know the details, but he — the military — might have suspicions. Scar had vanished the same time she left Amestris with Illumi, who had certainly stood out in a place like Central. The history between her family and Scar was also thinly veiled at best.

She kept her mask in place, controlling her breathing.

"Some confusion on the good doctor's part then," Winry said, giving the smallest hint of a smile. "It was for pleasure, not work."

"I wish I could say I was here for pleasure, Ms. Rockbell."

With careful control over her facial expression, she furrowed her brows and let the corners of her lips turn downward so slightly. He was still addressing her formally, keeping his uniform top on, looking for the flaws in her story. So then this was about Scar. Perhaps she didn't give the soldiers of Amestris enough credit.

"Why are you here then?" she asked, then raised a hand to her lips. "Did something happen to Ed and Al?"

Buccaneer advanced a pace closer, and put the heels of his boots together, squaring his shoulders. Her suspicions about Scar were suddenly a fleeting memory, and Winry felt her lower lip tremble in earnest. He reached into the breast pocket of his uniform and drew out a kerchief, then held it out in offering. The folded kerchief glared at her from his open palms, one gleaming automail. She abstractly noticed the diamond tips as she reached out to take the bundle.

Its weight caught her off-guard.

She drew back the corner to look at the pipe wrapped inside, and felt her throat close.