A/N: this is the first part of a birthday themed fic that I originally planned to post as a whole, but couldn’t finish the second part today, so… here we go. The first part is the sadder of the two, but the fluffier one will be up within the next few days. 

Characters: Ed, Trisha, Winry (tiny!EdWin)

Words: 1185

Genre: hurt&comfort, fluff (eventually)

Also, I just really want to hug Ed.

---

Ed could
still remember his fifth birthday. His mother, despite not feeling well the
previous day, had baked a large cake with lots of delicious cream on it, and visited
the market, carrying a mysterious package in her arms when she returned.

“Edward, if
you are a nice boy today, I promise you’ll get a very nice present tomorrow.”

Trisha
poked Ed’s nose lightly, but Ed didn’t seem all happy about her mother’s
promise.

“Will dad
come?”

Ed’s mother
was tired of lying to her sons, so she simply said: “I’m afraid he’s still too
busy, but I’m sure he’s thinking about you every moment.”

“If he
really cared, he would come back!”

Ed could
barely contain the tears that tried to spill over. When Trisha tried to pull
him into a hug, he ran away and hid behind his books for the rest of the day, not
even talking to Al.

The next
day Trisha brought Ed some breakfast and a present that was wrapped into a nice
red paper onto his bed table. Ed ate the food gratefully, but when Trisha tried
to urge him to open the present, he hesitated for a long while. That wasn’t like
Ed; when Hohenheim had still been at home, he had been excited about all the
gifts he had been given. Trisha even remembered a time when Ed had been jealous
to Al when the younger brother had had his birthday and he hadn’t gotten anything. She had needed to explain Ed that
everyone deserved their own birthday presents, and Ed had gotten his own on his
birthday.

Trisha was
pulled back from her thoughts when Ed finally asked quietly:

“Did dad
send me something?”

“I’m sorry
sweetie, I’m afraid he didn’t.” Trisha shook her head sadly and patted Ed’s
head. “I’m sure he simply forgot because he’s very busy, but when he comes
back, he’s gonna bring you the greatest presents!”

“How can
you be so sure he’s gonna come back? He hasn’t even called us!” Ed suddenly
burst out, and his mother halted. She hated to admit that the boy wasn’t wrong.
She didn’t know how long it would take… to finish whatever he had to finish. Even
she didn’t know the full details of his journey, even though Hohenheim had explained
the basics.

“You are
right.” Trisha finally sighed in defeat. “I can’t. But Ed, no matter what, I
know he loves you, and he wishes so much that he could be here right now.”

“But he isn’t here.”

“And that’s
why we have to stay strong. I’m sure he would hate it if he knew his son is crying
on his birthday,” Trisha said softly, and this time managed to embrace Ed.

“I’m not
crying! I’m a big boy,” he said far from convincingly. It was pointless to lie
when his mother was currently wiping some tears off his cheeks.

“Of course
you are. Now, how about you open that present, Alphonse is already waiting for
his breakfast in the kitchen.”

Ed did as
he was ordered, and his mouth made a huge ‘o’ as he stared at the unwrapped present.
It was a book about alchemy, one that Ed had stared longingly in front of a
book store for a while now. But that wasn’t the only gift: there also was a framed
picture in the package. The same picture an official photographer had taken of
the Elric family when Hohenheim had still been at home.

“Why is…
dad… crying in this pic?” Ed asked suddenly as he examined the photograph.

“Because… I
think he already knew then that he would have to leave you boys for a time
being, and he hated the thought just as much as you do.”

“What if he
just hated being with us?” Ed asked the question that had been in his mind ever
since Hohenheim left. Trisha looked at her son worriedly. Ed had always been prone
to temper tantrums, but this time she felt there was something more in his gaze;
the hatred was already deep rooted. Hohenheim would have a lot of convincing to
do with Ed when he’d finally return…

“No,
believe me, he didn’t.” Trisha said for what felt like the umpteenth time. “He
didn’t… always know how to show his emotions, but Ed, he really did love you.
Still does.”

Ed didn’t
say anything to that. He turned his attention to the alchemy book and started
immediately reading the complicated sentences. Trisha was still so amazed that
someone so young could understand something so advanced, but she also felt
there was something slightly wrong with him being so interested in alchemy.
Boys of Ed’s age… usually just played. Trisha was glad she had invited Winry
from the neighborhood to visit them that day, so Ed would have to close the
book for a moment.

She knew
she couldn’t fix this issue by just snapping her fingers, but she tried one
more time:

“You know
what, Ed? I’m so proud of you. And so would he be.”

Before Ed
could protest, the doorbell rang. Trisha went downstairs to open the door and
found Winry already standing behind the Elrics’ front door.

“Good morning,
Winry, you are up early today!”

“Morning,
Ms. Elric! Of course I am, I wanted to… um, give Ed a present!” The girl smiled
shyly.

“Why, that’s
so nice of you! Ed’s still upstairs, I’m gonna go and get him!”

“Great!”

Soon Ed
arrived in the hall, and even though he was still acting grumpy, Trisha thought
she could see the change in Ed’s demeanor when he saw Winry. Was that a… tiny
smile he had on his lips for a little while?

After Winry
gave Ed her present (a little toy toolbox, so she’d have someone to play with.
Ed wasn’t super excited about the thought of tinkering with his hands instead
of transmuting things, but he accepted the gift gracefully), the two ran
outside while Trisha went to bath Al. After a brief running competition (that Winry
won), the two kids fell on the ground and stared at the clouds quietly.

“Winry?” Ed
finally broke the silence.

“Yeah?”
Winry turned to look at him.

“Your
parents are away a lot, right?”

“Yeah. They
always want to help the people in need…”

“Do you…
ever feel lonely? With only your grandma around?”

“Sometimes,”
Winry admitted, “but then I remember that I have you… and Al… as my friends,
and I don’t feel lonely anymore!”

Winry’s
words made Ed realize that even though his father was away, he still had a lot
of people around him that cared about him, and his day became notably better.
He smiled and laughed with Winry, and before she went home, he even did something
brave: he gave her a quick cheek kiss and thanked her for the day.

The picture
Ed got as a present remained untouched in the bottom drawer until Pinako found
it a bit before the boys burned the house. She took it with her, to wait for
the time when Ed would finally forgive his father.