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[Well it had been a good two or so weeks since...'Ling' had come into her house. She was beginning to wonder if giving him that name had really been a good idea. In fact sometimes she wondered if it had been a good idea to create him to begin with, at least in his image, but there was little she could do about that now.

It was a rainy day, and she wasn't particularly feeling up to doing any tinkering today so she was divested of her usual lab coat and instead just in a white tank and shorts. The house seemed unusually quiet, something it hadn't been since Ling appeared, so she made her way over to his room and gave a knock]

Ling?

Comments

derp. for_xings paid went out so I'm using this journal

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

[Ling didn't hear her knock at first. He was sitting on his bed with his hands cupped out in front of him. In his hands was a small red-orange paper lantern.

He was confused. There were images, so many images and thoughts and unfamiliar things running through his head that- didn't really make any sense. He was so focused on these thoughts that he didn't respond to her, he thought to, but the images were just too much for him to ignore. So her knock went unanswered.]

s'all good xD

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[Winry paused to listen, but heard nothing. She frowned a bit, perhaps he wasn't in his room? She tested the door knob to see if it was unlocked, and began to open it]

Ling, I'm coming in. Are you insi--

[she stopped when she saw him on his bed. Or rather, she stopped when she saw what it was he held in his hands.

Something inside her twisted up, and she froze]

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

(http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n276/s-teh-geekpimp/?action=view&current=lingemperoricon.png)

[He hears her come in but he continues to stare at the lantern. Some of the thoughts and images coming to mind causes him to speak. Perhaps Winry has his answers.]

Shanghai. Flight 1224. 上海虹桥国际机场.

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[It's a good thing she was still holding onto the door, or she might have collapsed at that. There were so many emotions going through her right now she couldn't calm down enough to speak.

Shock that he had the lantern in his hand.

Anger that he had found it.

And of course anguish at all the memories that it brought back.

When he spoke again, that just about took all the air out of her lungs.

How did he know?

She opened and closed her mouth, trying to steady her breathing and walked shakily over to him, arm outstretched]

L-Ling. G-give that here, okay?

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

(http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n276/s-teh-geekpimp/?action=view&current=lingyicon8.png)

[He looked up at her reaction and- was very startled by the expression on her face and the way she moved towards him. What was-- did he do something wrong? Why was she speaking like that. He just wanted to know why he was seeing so many strange things.

Though ...he wasn't going to disobey her. He cautiously held out his hands to her so she could take the lantern.]

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[she inched the rest of the way towards him, almost as if she were afraid of him now, and took the lantern from him, cradling it to her chest. She didn't often pull it out of its special place, all alone in that cabinet. Still, knowing it was there was one of the things that had kept her going these past years.

She looked at it, cheeks becoming a little pink, and blinking rapidly before she raised her head to look at Ling]

How did...you know? About 1224?

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

[He looks up at her, a bit like the kid who's hand was caught in the cookie jar. Quietly he responds:] ...I don't know.

When I held the lantern ...I knew.

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...just how much do you know?

[Winry of course doesn't believe that memories can be transferred via an item, but she's also sure that Ling wouldn't lie to her, so she's not certain what to think]

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

(http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n276/s-teh-geekpimp/?action=view&current=ling7.png)

...A plane. To a place called Shanghai. There were large markets ...a shop. [He looks up at her.] Where that lantern was purchased.

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[for a moment her hands tightened around the lantern, but just as quickly loosened--it was a delicate thing. If she so much as bent it, she wouldn't forgive herself.

She nodded at him to continue, still standing stiff as a board, body angled away from him]

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

[He silently closed his eyes, recalling more of the images.]

[He speaks now in chinese, a language he's not even sure he knows. He pauses and then tries to repeat it in english.]

The lantern was special. I-- [Not him- it couldn't have been him.] The shop lady told- someone- that it was a gift to be ...given to someone special, because it was said to hold a part of your soul.

He averted his eyes now to look at the ground. He didn't have one of those, did he?]

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[Winry remembered the note that had been sent with the gift. She had thought it incredibly sweet, and it had made her so happy even if she thought it a little silly. It was the sentiment that counted after all, and it had been, even when he was still alive, her most precious possession

However that wasn't what was at the forefront of Winry's mind. No, what was, were these details Ling was bringing up. Knowing about the incident was one thing, but know about the lantern? What it meant? Even more so, she hadn't caught that slip up. Had he just spoken about Ling--the real Ling, as if he were himself?]

This was a gift given to me, years ago.

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

(http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n276/s-teh-geekpimp/?action=view&current=lingcrop5dg9.png)

[There was more but it wasn't as clear as what he'd just spoken of. Though now he knew that he'd somehow upset her, by these things that he'd said and by taking the lantern from the spot he'd found it.]

...I'm sorry.

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[With that she leans across, not really caring about science, or logic, or the impossibility of this all. She embraces him, arms wrapping around him tightly and holds on as if her life depends on it]

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

[He embraces back, carefully. He's not really sure if he should hug too tight with this body.]

I'm sorry ...for leaving you.

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[again she's rebuking herself for acting the way she is, but she can't help it. Those first few months after his death come rushing back, and the past few years have been so hard]

I've missed you so much.

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

(http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n276/s-teh-geekpimp/?action=view&current=lingcrop5dg9.png)

It's alright. I won't be leaving again.

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[she holds onto him a while longer before the slight tremor of her body abates, and she finally pulls back to look at him.]

...I still don't understand. Was it. Was it that lantern?

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

[Brushes some hair from her face.]

...[Nods.] I was lost and you called me back.

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[did she? really? was it possible that her desire to see him again had run so deep, that it too had assisted in bring Ling back? The idea made her blush a bit, but she couldn't deny she'd wished to see him again]

[But something still bothered her. She didn't know what the afterlife must be like. Had she torn him away from something better than this world?]

Lost?

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

....[Glances down.] After the crash. It was dark- lost, I couldn't find my way.

[Smiles a bit.] But then I heard you.

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[and she smiles a bit. It's tentative, and a little unsure, but it's there]

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

...[Looks down at his hands again.] I was afraid I'd never see you again.

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[...her hands go to rest over his, and she curls her finger around them, giving them a reassuring squeeze]

I don't know how, but we've been given this second chance. [and the smile gets a little bit bigger now] Let's not waste it. You remember everything?

[envoyoftheeast.livejournal.com]

....[nods.]

I think so. After the crash things are a little muddled. The passage of time is lost on me.

But I remember most after I entered this body- though my memories weren't completely intact at first. Thank you for taking care of me at the beginning.