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The stew bubbled on the stove, and Ed crept into the kitchen, pulling open the utensil drawer and taking out a spoon. He sneaked the lid off the pot, looking around before dipping the spoon into the stew. Blowing on the steaming spoon, Ed sucked the stew between his lips, smacking them afterward. “Hmm. Still needs something.” He reached for the salt shaker.
Winry snapped, “I told you to stay out of the stew, Ed!”
“Gah!”
The salt shaker slipped out of his fingers as if it had been greased. Ed tried to catch it, as it spun in the air. A fingertip made contact with the shaker, throwing its trajectory more off-course. “No!” he screeched as the top of the shaker somehow freed itself, salt tumbling through the kitchen.
Ed watched in horror as the shaker vanished into the stew pot with a ‘blurp!’ “No!” he squeaked, hands opening and closing above the pot. “Winry! You – it’s – you made me! It’s your fault! You – you - !” He realized he’d moved toward her when he was glaring down into her eyes, and the corner of her mouth was turning down and her hands were on his chest and shoving him backward, hard enough to make him stumble.
“Oh, get out of the way, Ed.” She pushed past him, using the ladle to scoop out the shaker. “I need a couple of potatoes.” Winry set the shaker in the sink, and rinsed her hands. “Ed? Now.”
He got into the potato bin, pulling out two of them, handing them to Winry, and tried to keep from peering over her shoulder as she peeled the potatoes, rinsed them well, and dropped both of them into the stew.
“Wait, what’s that going to do?” Ed would’ve understood if she added more water, or tomato juice, anything to dilute the salt, but Winry just gave him a look.
“You’ll see.” Making a shooing motion, she chased him out of the kitchen.
X X X
After dinner, Ed cornered Winry in the kitchen. “All right,” he said, pointing at the stewpot, “how did you do that?”
“Do what?”
“The stew!” He waved a hand. “It was good!”
Winry folded her arms. “You expected something different?” Her twitching eyebrow let him know he ought to tread carefully.
“Well…the salt!”
“Why do you think I added the potatoes?”
Ed blinked a couple of times, understanding suddenly coming on. “You transmuted the stew!”
“Oh, Ed, I did not!” Winry flapped a hand at him. “Don’t be ridiculous. It’s not alchemy! Jeeze!”
“They always say alchemy started in the kitchen. This is proof!”
“It’s not alchemy, Ed!” Winry pointed. “You need to wash the dishes. It’s your turn.” When he opened his mouth, she shook her head. “Wash!”
Ed shouted after her as she left him in the kitchen, “It’s definitely alchemy. I’d know!”