“Thank goodness! I heard people in the neighborhood saying that a girl who looked like you was crying, so your brother and I split up to find you. You weren’t at the hotel, and I was so worried. What a relief!”
“Apparently Lettie got herself in trouble. And then she supposedly saved her,” Darish said brusquely as Karen firmly hugged the bawling Lettie.
“Well, thank you very much, Winry. I’m so sorry for the trouble,” Karen said and bowed her head to Winry.
“Not at all. That wasn’t trouble in the slightest,” Winry said and quickly waved both her hands. But then Karen once again looked apologetic.
“And I’m sorry about Darish too. You were right in the middle of talking about plans when he walked off and left it at that. I’m sure that must have put you on the spot because he’s refused to come by again, right? I feel terrible asking you for this after causing you trouble, but regarding the automail, is that still … ?”
After investing time consulting at so many shops only to have agreements fall through every time, Karen seemed worried that she would end up repeating the process with Winry.
“No, it’s fine. I need to procure the parts soon, so it would be very helpful to move the conversation along. You’re welcome to come back—I wouldn’t turn you away.”
“I see, what a relief,” Karen replied as a genuinely reassured smile formed on her face. “Then shall we make a visit to the shop right away? What do you think, Darish?”
Like any parent, Karen was worried about her son’s future. Despite Darish’s reservations, she likely wanted to get him automail as soon as possible, even if it was just a day sooner.
However, true to form, Darish fought her on it.
“I’m not going.”
He set himself up on his crutch again and turned around as though trying to shake himself free from his mother’s gaze.
“Darish!” Winry called to stop him, knowing that if she let him leave now it would just be a repeat of their previous encounter. She wanted to nudge the conversation forward, even if only fractionally. Darish suddenly lost his balance and started to tumble to the right.
“Hgh!”
His prosthetic leg had gotten caught on the stone pavement and his crutch had fallen from his hand.
“That was close!”
Winry and Karen had both instantly run to him and supported him together.
“Ouch!” Darish’s face twisted with pain while he was held up between their two sets of hands. The belt of his prosthesis had contorted and applied pressure to his thigh. His scars and bruises were exposed from where the belt had shifted.
When Lettie saw the painful scars, she stopped crying and wanted to help her brother too.
“Darish,” she called in a hesitant voice, but he didn’t even turn to look at her. All he did was click his tongue at her in annoyance.
“Karen, um, he needs his prosthesis reattached anyway and we can talk about the automail here, so would you leave us alone for a bit?” Winry cautiously proposed. Darish seemed annoyed just from Lettie’s presence. If they stayed in the same spot together, it was likely that he would say something awful to Lettie and hurt her feelings again. Talking to Darish alone seemed the more prudent course of action at the moment.
Karen hesitated for a bit, but she seemed to realize her son’s irritation. She signaled agreement with her eyes, then bowed and left the plaza with Lettie.
Once they were alone, Winry lent Darish her shoulder and sat him down on the fountain’s rim.
“Ouch.” Darish’s face contorted in pain. It seemed that the joint of his prosthesis might have scraped him.
Winry kneeled directly onto the ground and placed her hands on Darish’s right leg to carefully remove the prosthesis. The bruises from the prothesis had grown even larger than when she had previously seen them.
“It looks like this leg is a bad fit. I really think you should replace it soon,” she said, keeping her tone measured as she pushed the twisted belt back into place with the tips of her fingers and fixed the half-undone fastenings.
Darish kept silent for a while as he rubbed his leg, but he eventually ground his teeth, seeming bitter.
“Damn it. If that carriage just hadn’t toppled over, this wouldn’t be happening!” he said as he bit his trembling lip. Darish glared at the adjusted belt and metal fastenings for a moment, but then a weary look gradually overtook him.
“Two years ago, a carriage that happened to pass by me fell over. I’m not sure if a wheel came off or if the horse got spooked, but what I do remember clearly is the cart coming down on me.”
As he haltingly spoke, his eyes seemed to look beyond his right leg into the empty air, as though he were searching for his long-gone limb.
“I got this prosthesis right after I lost my leg. But it just wouldn’t fit right. My mom and dad told me it was their fault for not choosing a good shop and that they’d find me one that was actually good next time. They brought me to Rush Valley, but … Hey, did I tell you where we live?”
When he asked her that, Winry paused from her work and shook her head.
“No, where’s that?”
“It’s even farther north than West City.”
“That’s a long way from here.”
“Yeah.”
The country of Amestris was roughly circular. Rush Valley was in the south and the town Darish came from was in the distant north.
“My dad’s working from morning to night just to afford my automail fee and the living expenses. He told me to get the best engineer in Rush Valley to make one for me. My mom’s planning for a long stay and she said she wanted to go back home to get stuff, but …”
As Winry listened to Darish’s pained voice while he spoke about his family, she understood what he was trying to say—that he felt guilty for the money they were spending. Despite that, Darish had still delayed getting his automail. As she realized the reason for that, Winry said out loud, “You don’t trust mechanics?”
“Yeah,” Darish answered.
He was so sure that he hadn’t hesitated to answer. Winry doubted she could easily overcome that distrust. Regardless of that, she carefully chose her words as she looked up at Darish. “I think you must have been through terrible things with the prosthetic leg you have now, but you’ll be much more mobile with automail that’s been properly designed for you. You’d even be able to run and jump. The leg you have now is putting a strain on your body, but I’ll be sure to make one that fits you perfectly. I promise.”
Darish stared back at Winry, looking serious.
“What would a leg that fits me perfectly be like?”
“Huh?”
“Is automail really that great?”
When Darish questioned her, Winry assumed he was showing interest and gave him an enthusiastic nod. She could go on forever about the benefits of automail—especially if doing so would restore Darish’s trust in prostheses in the slightest. That thought filled her with self-confidence.
“Automail needs to be adjusted several times for the wearer as they grow, but you’ll have the flexibility to have any leg you want. Depending on the mix of metals, you’ll be able to change its weight and properties. I even know someone who has weapons hidden in hers. What kind of leg would you like, Darish?”
“I don’t need it to be able to do anything special …” he trailed off.