Revenge Is Sweet, Right? - Complete
Title: Revenge is Sweet, Right?
Topic: Full Metal Alchemist
Pairings: Roy/Riza, Havoc/OC
Summary: Roy Mustang: Flame Alchemist, military man, girlfriend stealer. With a rap sheet like that, a person is bound to make some enemies. Enemies that want revenge.
Rating: K+
Genre: Humour, Friendship
Author's Note: Enjoyed writing this, wrote it a long time ago, but wanted to post it on here since it was on my FanFiction. Enjoy.
Roy Mustang sat at his desk, a steel glint in his eyes, and a look of extreme concentration on his face. He was in a staring contest, pitting his will against the opponent that sat on his desk. A small bead of sweat slid from his hairline down to his chin, where it dripped onto his desk. Roy didn't flinch. He didn't even look up as Riza Hawkeye entered the room, files in hand. He leaned back in his chair and locked his fingers behind his head, his eyes never breaking contact with his opponent. He finally broke contact, however, when Riza slammed another file on the ever-growing stack of papers that needed to be graced by his signature. Roy frowned, his hands slipping from his head. "What did you do that for? I was winning."
Riza just rolled her eyes and answered Mustang, a hint of humour in her voice. "If you were to stare at the papers any longer you would have gotten a paper-cut, sir."
Roy just grumbled and reluctantly picked up his pen. He grabbed the first paper off of the stack of 'need-to-sign' and searched for the small X that always marked the spot. He went to sign the paper when a small knock sounded from his door. Roy set his pen down and gave Riza a quick victory glance before facing his door. "Come in."
A young-looking man slowly opened the huge doors to Roy's office and slipped inside, letting them close firmly shut behind him. In his hands was a single sheet of paper, no doubt needing his signature like all the others.
"I have a memo from Lieutenant Colonel Rave, Fuhrer, sir. He says it's urgent." The boy reached Roy's desk and hesitantly handed him the memo, a little nervous about being in the presence of such a high ranking official. As soon as the paper left the young man's hands, he straightened up and gave a quick salute before retreating. Roy raised his eyebrow at the man's behavior and turned to Riza. "I don't think I'll ever get use to that."
"You'll manage, sir." Hawkeye retorted.
Roy gave a short laugh before turning his attention to the 'urgent' memo. He scanned the paper, and his eyebrows raised as he got to the end of the letter. "Huh. Hawkeye, where did I put the entrance forms of the people applying for this year's State Alchemist exam?"
Riza gave another sigh; it was going to be a long day. "They are the papers that you were previously having a staring contest with, sir. They have been sitting on your desk for the past week."
"Ah!" Roy exclaimed, grabbing the files that Riza had been talking about. He gave a bored sigh before opening the first file. This year a record number of Alchemists applied. Some thought that it was because the military had been going through a lot of changes and State Alchemists were no longer considered 'dogs of the military.' Roy thought that is was because so many State Alchemists were killed in the rebellion against Fuhrer Bradley that the military would be admitting more than one Alchemist. Whatever the reason, the outcome was the same.
More paperwork.
"Good morning sir." Riza Hawkeye said as she walked into the Fuhrer's office the next morning. She went over to the large couch on the east wall of his office and placed her coat on the armrest. She took the coffee in her hand over to Roy, who was sitting at his desk half asleep reading a report. She placed a cup of hot coffee that she had picked up for him on her way to work on his desk, and disposed of the half-full cold one that had been sitting on his desk before. Roy acknowledged none of her gestures;(8) he was deeply engrossed in the report he was reading, which was a very rare sight.
Sadly, the sight that Riza was taking in at the moment was not very rare. Roy's hair was messy, sticking out at all(9) angles, worse than usual. His face was very pale, and he had begun to develop dark circles under his eyes. Even though all the military uniforms were the same, Riza could tell that he was wearing the same one he was the day before. There were also faded markings on his face, as if he had slept with his head on his desk. His eyes scanned over the paper in front of him, an almost desperate look in his eyes. Riza opened her mouth to ask what was worrying him, but Roy beat her to the punch.
"Another rebellion on the southern border." He paused to take the time to look Riza in the eyes. "King Bradley's reach was further than we ever imagined."
So that was the problem. Ever since the rebellion managed to overturn Bradley, small rebellions had begun to break out all over the place. They started as protests turned violent, and escalated into full out battles. Roy kept doing everything that he could, deploying troops, sending State Alchemists, and spreading out military spies to try and stop the rebellions before they happened. Yet the body count continued to grow. Each time a report was sent to the Fuhrer's office, Riza watched as a little bit more of Roy went along with it. It was a tough job, running a nations military. It was even tougher to fix it.
"You'll see through it, just like you always do." Even though Riza didn't outwardly say "sir" the words were still there, silently spoken. Roy slowly nodded, and tossed the file into another pile on his desk.
Riza gave a worried smile when she was sure that Roy wasn't watching, before turning professional once more. There was work to be done. "Sir, you need to award the new State Alchemist a second name."
Roy sighed at this and nodded. "I know." He searched around his desk a few moments before looking sheepishly up at his secretary. "Where is that form, exactly?"
Riza sighed, and pulled the form for Roy. He once more read over the new State Alchemist's exam. "Interesting." He mumbled as he skimmed the paper. This particular applicant had a very unique alchemy style. They had two swords, which were inscribed with one transmutation circle, each having a different makeup. The one sword was made to be able to withstand enormous heat, while the other was built to withstand enormous cold. By activating the transmutation circles, this Alchemist could set one sword on fire, and coat the other in ice. Even more interesting, when asked about where the applicant would prefer to be placed if accepted, they responded "under the direct control of Fuhrer Mustang." Roy smirked as he read these words, his ego going up a slight notch. "Lieutenant, please arrange a meeting with this new State Alchemist. I shall give them the watch in person."
Riza was puzzled by this request, but subtly nodded. Whatever Roy was thinking, she would find out soon enough.
---
A knock sounded from the large, wooden doors of the Fuhrer's office. It was late in the day, and Riza was getting ready to go home. A bit perturbed that someone would come so late in the day, she went to answer the door herself. Roy was sitting at his desk, doing only God knows what. He had looked up for a slight second when the knock came, but had ducked his head back into whatever he was doing. Riza opened the door enough to slide through, then closed them shut behind her. She turned to greet the person in front of her, and hesitated a moment.
A woman wearing a military grade uniform stood outside of the Fuhrer's office, her hand poised to knock again. She had dull red hair that fell to her shoulder blades, and her tan skin was covered in light freckles. She was average height, only an inch or so shorter than Riza. She had two swords placed in holsters on her back, lying in a criss-cross format. Her sea green eyes burned fiercely as she stared at the Lieutenant. "Is the Fuhrer in?"
Riza adapted a slightly annoyed look on her face. "Do you have an appointment?"
"Yes." The woman nodded her head to agree with her statement. "I got a memo saying to see him as soon as possible."
Riza frowned, quickly rewinding through the day to see if she could remember Roy sending out an ASAP. He did send one to the new State Alchemist, but that had gone out over 10 hours ago. Riza started to understand why Roy wanted to talk to the Alchemist in person. "When did you get this letter?"
"This morning." The girl replied, as if it would be obvious.
Riza took a quick glance at the clock to confirm her thoughts. "It's almost eight in the evening."
"Yeah. I was busy." The woman said, placing both of her hands on her hips.
Riza's frowned deepened. She didn't like the way the woman was talking to a senior officer. She put up a finger, the universal sign for 'wait a minute,' and turned around and slipped back into the Fuhrer's office. "Sir, the State Alchemist is here for you."
"Let her in." Roy mumbled, running his hand through his hair and quickly rubbing his eyes. Riza rolled her eyes when he picked up some important looking document and skipped to the middle of the page to make it look as if he had been doing something. Riza opened the doors wider, and the woman walked past her. The red head walked up to the Fuhrer's desk, and gave him a solid salute before standing at attention.
Mustang looked up from where he was sitting and gave a small nod, allowing the woman to relax. That she did, spreading her feet slightly apart and letting her shoulder slump forward a little. Riza stayed in the room, standing stiffly by the door.
Roy put down the papers that he had been 'reading' and searched around on his desk until he found what he was looking for. He gave a victory grunt as he pulled a single piece of paper from one of his ever-growing stacks. Roy then cleared his throat before addressing the soldier in front of him. "Miss Ari Brandt. I, as Fuhrer, I hereby grant you the second name of the Crimson Blade Alchemist."
Roy handed the paper to Ari, who took it from his hands. He then opened the side drawer of his desk and pulled out the silver pocket watch, which he toyed around with for a few seconds before tossing it to the woman in the most unceremonial manner possible. The girl grinned and snatched the watch out of the air, staring at the insignia for a few moments before pocketing the watch. Roy watched her for a moment before continuing. "I noticed on your application you requested to be assigned to my elite squad."
Ari gave a curt nod, and in the back of the room, Riza fought against the urge to snort. Some 'elite' group. She wasn't sure exactly who Roy was talking about. He couldn't be referring to Breda, Falman, Fuery, and herself, could he? Then, Riza watched as her Fuhrer flashed one of his dazzling smiles, and she understood why Roy wanted to speak to the new Alchemist in person. He wanted to flirt with her. Riza, not wanting to be witness to Roy's groveling, turned and went home.
---
The next day came all too quickly, and Riza found herself back in the Fuhrer's office. However, a much different scene met her. Roy had actually changed his uniform, and the bags under his eyes were slightly lighter. His hair had evidence of being combed, and his eyes were back to their bright, focused selves. She was about to ask what happened to change his mood, but Roy beat her to it. "I'm leaving early today."
Riza gave a small, unnoticeable smirk. Seems like the little chat that the Fuhrer had with the new State Alchemist went better than he had expected. "Good for you, sir. You needed some time off."
Roy just nodded at Riza's words, and enthusiastically dived into a small pile of paperwork on his desk, intent on finding the folder that he was looking for. After making a mess of the previously well-organized stack, he triumphantly held a thick folder in his hands, and made for the door.
"I have a special meeting this morning," He announced to the Lieutenant, explaining the reason for his rushing. "We are voting on the new uniform policy. I think the mini-skirts will be approved this time."
If Riza was the kind of person to hit her forehead with her hand in public, she surely would have done so. Roy had been pushing for the mini-skirt policy since day one of his Fuhrer-dom. It was kind of his own fault that it hadn't been approved yet. One of the first things that he did as the new head of the military was to institute a board of directors that was made up of high ranking officials from all the different division of the military. This board would meet regarding things like new recruits, changes in policy, and whether or not to wage war. Of course, the final go/no go decision was up to Roy, but this board was a safeguard against someone like King Bradley ever coming to power again.
Roy opened the doors to his office, and paused in order to run his fingers through his hair one last time before shooting Riza a charming grin and stepping into the hallway, one step closer to mini-skirt heaven.
Roy had left work early, sneaking out of the building in order to avoid any military men who felt like they needed a personal chat with the Fuhrer. His mood had dampened slightly since the morning and he began to doubt his idea of installing a board of directors in the military. He had no idea how mini-skirts were considered racist. However, the fact that he had a date had helped him from sinking down too far. Roy remembered the good old days, back when he was Colonel and had the time to balance both the military and his women. Of course, back then there were also Homunculi running around free and the end of Amestris fastly approaching, not to mention having to deal with the Fullmetal pipsqueak. Ok, so he still had to deal with Fullmetal, but two out of three wasn't so bad.
The horrible truth of the matter was that the Fuhrer hadn't had enough time to go on a proper date in the past year. He had been too busy fixing the military, quieting rebellions, and dealing with politics to worry about women. Finally, he was getting back in the field, and the woman he was going to meet wasn't a bad place to start.
And so, that is how he found himself sitting on a bench, a boutique of flowers in his hand, waiting outside of a very high-class restaurant for his date to arrive. He was wearing a nice black suit with a white button up collared shirt underneath, along with newly polished shoes. The suit was new; he had gotten it a few weeks ago, but never managed to find an occasion to wear it. It was nice to have a Fuhrer's salary, along with all the little 'goodies' he got from politicians and other high class people that wanted to Fuhrer to list them as a close friend.
Roy sighed, and checked the watch located on the wall across the street from where he was sitting. They had agreed to meet over twenty minutes ago. Roy himself had shown up five minutes late, and had been surprised that Ari had not gotten there before him. He had been stood up several times before, but that was before he had gotten to be one of the most powerful men in all of Amestris. Roy returned to staring down the street in front of him, when suddenly a voice came from behind. He was startled, and jumped slightly. However, he recovered from it well, making the move to turn around to cover from his fright. Ari, dressed in a very flattering light blue top, and yes, a black mini-skirt, confronted him. "Sorry we're late."
Roy gave one of his signature grins and went to say something, when he stopped, his mouth hanging open, waiting for the words that would never come. Had she said 'we?' Confused as to why his date would make such a simple mistake in wording, he ripped his eyes off of her and her legs long enough to look around at the other scenes. What he saw made his jaw drop even further.
"Been a while, Colonel." Standing -or, more like sitting- next to Ari was none other than ex-military officer Jean Havoc. His face held that cocky grin that Roy hadn't seen in over a year, and the never-ending cigarette hung out of the side of his mouth. He was dressed in a pink dress shirt, with a black jacket suit overtop, unbuttoned. A white cloth covered his legs, but his feet peeked out, showing off his black polished shoes. His left hand was resting on the large left wheel of his wheelchair, and his other hand was placed firmly in the middle of Ari's back.
Roy quickly hide the flowers and stood up, trying desperately to figure out what exactly was going on. He closed his mouth, then opened it, but no words came out. His eyes shifted from Ari to Jean and back again, soaking in the sight of the two standing there, side by side, both wearing one of those evil grins that only Mustang had ever used after he had successfully stolen one of Jean's girlfriends. Realizing that a significant amount of time had passed without anyone saying a word, Roy quickly cleared his throat. "Uh, nice to see you, Havoc. What a surprise."
"Yeah, Ari here was telling me how you two were going out for a little welcome to the group celebration, and I thought I would hitch a ride." Havoc removed his right hand from Ari's waist and withdrew the cigarette from his mouth, blew out the smoke, and stuck it back in. Ari crossed her arms and remained silent. Jean's eyes danced with laughter, glad to finally get his old boss back after all this time. Roy was still trying to catch up.
"Sir?" If it couldn't have been bad enough. Roy recognized the voice over the crowd, and quickly swung around to come face to face with Riza Hawkeye. She was out of uniform, wearing a plain black shirt with blue jeans, carrying a bag of what looked like groceries. He heard Havoc and Ari snickering behind him, and desperately wished that he had brought his gloves with him. "Hello Lieutenant."
"Jean! What are you doing here?" Riza asked, taking the time to take in the scene in front of her. The Fuhrer looked a bit dazed, which was a very rare sight.
Havoc wheeled a few feet forward to be in hearing distance of Hawkeye without having to shout. "Oh, I'm just on a date."
Riza smiled; she knew that Havoc had been having a hard time finding a girlfriend after the accident with the homunculi. Riza knew this because she was the one that Jean called in the middle of the night when he felt like talking about his failed love life.
Roy, finally coming to his senses, frowned and crossed his arms. "Ok, will someone please tell me what is going on?"
It was then that Ari decided to step up to the plate. She had been silent until then, watching as everything unfolded. "I was getting tired of hearing Jean complain about the Colonel who stole all his girlfriends, so, when the opportunity presented itself, I just couldn't turn it down."
Roy couldn't believe it. He had been tricked. The flame Alchemist wasn't supposed to be able to be tricked. He felt himself start to get angry, but then he remembered that he was the Fuhrer in a public place, and knew that it would look bad if he murdered a State Alchemist and an ex-soldier in public.
Riza, standing there, taking everything in, let out a small giggle. Both Roy and Jean turned and looked at her in surprise. They hadn't heard Riza giggle. Ever. They stared at her, waiting for an explanation. "In all the years I have been protecting Roy, I have never met any one woman who would even think about doing something like this to him."
Roy's face fell blank. He didn't even try to argue, knowing that somewhere, in those bags of groceries, sat a very loaded, very dangerous gun.
The four just stood there for a few moments, unsure of what to do. Finally, Havoc got another one of those smirks on his face. The dangerous kind that meant that he had gotten an idea. "Hey, uh, Ari, babe, why don't we….um, go somewhere."
He started to make weird head movements that looked kind of like twitches. Ari's eyes moved from Roy to Riza, then to Havoc until she understood what he was trying to do. "Sure thing." She plastered a smile on her face, causing both Roy and Riza to raise an eyebrow. "Hey, Fuhrer Mustang, you shouldn't let your Lieutenant carry those bags all by herself, you know."
Another evil grin. Riza shot the two a look that had the ability to kill, and they turned tail, Ari taking hold of Havoc's wheelchair and the two disappeared into the restaurant in the background. With those two out of the picture, Roy turned to face Riza, and stared at the bags in her hands. He then glanced over at the flowers that were sitting all forgotten on the public bench. He leaned down to pick them up, then shot Riza one of his more sincere smiles. "Want to trade?"
Topic: Full Metal Alchemist
Pairings: Roy/Riza, Havoc/OC
Summary: Roy Mustang: Flame Alchemist, military man, girlfriend stealer. With a rap sheet like that, a person is bound to make some enemies. Enemies that want revenge.
Rating: K+
Genre: Humour, Friendship
Author's Note: Enjoyed writing this, wrote it a long time ago, but wanted to post it on here since it was on my FanFiction. Enjoy.
Roy Mustang sat at his desk, a steel glint in his eyes, and a look of extreme concentration on his face. He was in a staring contest, pitting his will against the opponent that sat on his desk. A small bead of sweat slid from his hairline down to his chin, where it dripped onto his desk. Roy didn't flinch. He didn't even look up as Riza Hawkeye entered the room, files in hand. He leaned back in his chair and locked his fingers behind his head, his eyes never breaking contact with his opponent. He finally broke contact, however, when Riza slammed another file on the ever-growing stack of papers that needed to be graced by his signature. Roy frowned, his hands slipping from his head. "What did you do that for? I was winning."
Riza just rolled her eyes and answered Mustang, a hint of humour in her voice. "If you were to stare at the papers any longer you would have gotten a paper-cut, sir."
Roy just grumbled and reluctantly picked up his pen. He grabbed the first paper off of the stack of 'need-to-sign' and searched for the small X that always marked the spot. He went to sign the paper when a small knock sounded from his door. Roy set his pen down and gave Riza a quick victory glance before facing his door. "Come in."
A young-looking man slowly opened the huge doors to Roy's office and slipped inside, letting them close firmly shut behind him. In his hands was a single sheet of paper, no doubt needing his signature like all the others.
"I have a memo from Lieutenant Colonel Rave, Fuhrer, sir. He says it's urgent." The boy reached Roy's desk and hesitantly handed him the memo, a little nervous about being in the presence of such a high ranking official. As soon as the paper left the young man's hands, he straightened up and gave a quick salute before retreating. Roy raised his eyebrow at the man's behavior and turned to Riza. "I don't think I'll ever get use to that."
"You'll manage, sir." Hawkeye retorted.
Roy gave a short laugh before turning his attention to the 'urgent' memo. He scanned the paper, and his eyebrows raised as he got to the end of the letter. "Huh. Hawkeye, where did I put the entrance forms of the people applying for this year's State Alchemist exam?"
Riza gave another sigh; it was going to be a long day. "They are the papers that you were previously having a staring contest with, sir. They have been sitting on your desk for the past week."
"Ah!" Roy exclaimed, grabbing the files that Riza had been talking about. He gave a bored sigh before opening the first file. This year a record number of Alchemists applied. Some thought that it was because the military had been going through a lot of changes and State Alchemists were no longer considered 'dogs of the military.' Roy thought that is was because so many State Alchemists were killed in the rebellion against Fuhrer Bradley that the military would be admitting more than one Alchemist. Whatever the reason, the outcome was the same.
More paperwork.
"Good morning sir." Riza Hawkeye said as she walked into the Fuhrer's office the next morning. She went over to the large couch on the east wall of his office and placed her coat on the armrest. She took the coffee in her hand over to Roy, who was sitting at his desk half asleep reading a report. She placed a cup of hot coffee that she had picked up for him on her way to work on his desk, and disposed of the half-full cold one that had been sitting on his desk before. Roy acknowledged none of her gestures;(8) he was deeply engrossed in the report he was reading, which was a very rare sight.
Sadly, the sight that Riza was taking in at the moment was not very rare. Roy's hair was messy, sticking out at all(9) angles, worse than usual. His face was very pale, and he had begun to develop dark circles under his eyes. Even though all the military uniforms were the same, Riza could tell that he was wearing the same one he was the day before. There were also faded markings on his face, as if he had slept with his head on his desk. His eyes scanned over the paper in front of him, an almost desperate look in his eyes. Riza opened her mouth to ask what was worrying him, but Roy beat her to the punch.
"Another rebellion on the southern border." He paused to take the time to look Riza in the eyes. "King Bradley's reach was further than we ever imagined."
So that was the problem. Ever since the rebellion managed to overturn Bradley, small rebellions had begun to break out all over the place. They started as protests turned violent, and escalated into full out battles. Roy kept doing everything that he could, deploying troops, sending State Alchemists, and spreading out military spies to try and stop the rebellions before they happened. Yet the body count continued to grow. Each time a report was sent to the Fuhrer's office, Riza watched as a little bit more of Roy went along with it. It was a tough job, running a nations military. It was even tougher to fix it.
"You'll see through it, just like you always do." Even though Riza didn't outwardly say "sir" the words were still there, silently spoken. Roy slowly nodded, and tossed the file into another pile on his desk.
Riza gave a worried smile when she was sure that Roy wasn't watching, before turning professional once more. There was work to be done. "Sir, you need to award the new State Alchemist a second name."
Roy sighed at this and nodded. "I know." He searched around his desk a few moments before looking sheepishly up at his secretary. "Where is that form, exactly?"
Riza sighed, and pulled the form for Roy. He once more read over the new State Alchemist's exam. "Interesting." He mumbled as he skimmed the paper. This particular applicant had a very unique alchemy style. They had two swords, which were inscribed with one transmutation circle, each having a different makeup. The one sword was made to be able to withstand enormous heat, while the other was built to withstand enormous cold. By activating the transmutation circles, this Alchemist could set one sword on fire, and coat the other in ice. Even more interesting, when asked about where the applicant would prefer to be placed if accepted, they responded "under the direct control of Fuhrer Mustang." Roy smirked as he read these words, his ego going up a slight notch. "Lieutenant, please arrange a meeting with this new State Alchemist. I shall give them the watch in person."
Riza was puzzled by this request, but subtly nodded. Whatever Roy was thinking, she would find out soon enough.
---
A knock sounded from the large, wooden doors of the Fuhrer's office. It was late in the day, and Riza was getting ready to go home. A bit perturbed that someone would come so late in the day, she went to answer the door herself. Roy was sitting at his desk, doing only God knows what. He had looked up for a slight second when the knock came, but had ducked his head back into whatever he was doing. Riza opened the door enough to slide through, then closed them shut behind her. She turned to greet the person in front of her, and hesitated a moment.
A woman wearing a military grade uniform stood outside of the Fuhrer's office, her hand poised to knock again. She had dull red hair that fell to her shoulder blades, and her tan skin was covered in light freckles. She was average height, only an inch or so shorter than Riza. She had two swords placed in holsters on her back, lying in a criss-cross format. Her sea green eyes burned fiercely as she stared at the Lieutenant. "Is the Fuhrer in?"
Riza adapted a slightly annoyed look on her face. "Do you have an appointment?"
"Yes." The woman nodded her head to agree with her statement. "I got a memo saying to see him as soon as possible."
Riza frowned, quickly rewinding through the day to see if she could remember Roy sending out an ASAP. He did send one to the new State Alchemist, but that had gone out over 10 hours ago. Riza started to understand why Roy wanted to talk to the Alchemist in person. "When did you get this letter?"
"This morning." The girl replied, as if it would be obvious.
Riza took a quick glance at the clock to confirm her thoughts. "It's almost eight in the evening."
"Yeah. I was busy." The woman said, placing both of her hands on her hips.
Riza's frowned deepened. She didn't like the way the woman was talking to a senior officer. She put up a finger, the universal sign for 'wait a minute,' and turned around and slipped back into the Fuhrer's office. "Sir, the State Alchemist is here for you."
"Let her in." Roy mumbled, running his hand through his hair and quickly rubbing his eyes. Riza rolled her eyes when he picked up some important looking document and skipped to the middle of the page to make it look as if he had been doing something. Riza opened the doors wider, and the woman walked past her. The red head walked up to the Fuhrer's desk, and gave him a solid salute before standing at attention.
Mustang looked up from where he was sitting and gave a small nod, allowing the woman to relax. That she did, spreading her feet slightly apart and letting her shoulder slump forward a little. Riza stayed in the room, standing stiffly by the door.
Roy put down the papers that he had been 'reading' and searched around on his desk until he found what he was looking for. He gave a victory grunt as he pulled a single piece of paper from one of his ever-growing stacks. Roy then cleared his throat before addressing the soldier in front of him. "Miss Ari Brandt. I, as Fuhrer, I hereby grant you the second name of the Crimson Blade Alchemist."
Roy handed the paper to Ari, who took it from his hands. He then opened the side drawer of his desk and pulled out the silver pocket watch, which he toyed around with for a few seconds before tossing it to the woman in the most unceremonial manner possible. The girl grinned and snatched the watch out of the air, staring at the insignia for a few moments before pocketing the watch. Roy watched her for a moment before continuing. "I noticed on your application you requested to be assigned to my elite squad."
Ari gave a curt nod, and in the back of the room, Riza fought against the urge to snort. Some 'elite' group. She wasn't sure exactly who Roy was talking about. He couldn't be referring to Breda, Falman, Fuery, and herself, could he? Then, Riza watched as her Fuhrer flashed one of his dazzling smiles, and she understood why Roy wanted to speak to the new Alchemist in person. He wanted to flirt with her. Riza, not wanting to be witness to Roy's groveling, turned and went home.
---
The next day came all too quickly, and Riza found herself back in the Fuhrer's office. However, a much different scene met her. Roy had actually changed his uniform, and the bags under his eyes were slightly lighter. His hair had evidence of being combed, and his eyes were back to their bright, focused selves. She was about to ask what happened to change his mood, but Roy beat her to it. "I'm leaving early today."
Riza gave a small, unnoticeable smirk. Seems like the little chat that the Fuhrer had with the new State Alchemist went better than he had expected. "Good for you, sir. You needed some time off."
Roy just nodded at Riza's words, and enthusiastically dived into a small pile of paperwork on his desk, intent on finding the folder that he was looking for. After making a mess of the previously well-organized stack, he triumphantly held a thick folder in his hands, and made for the door.
"I have a special meeting this morning," He announced to the Lieutenant, explaining the reason for his rushing. "We are voting on the new uniform policy. I think the mini-skirts will be approved this time."
If Riza was the kind of person to hit her forehead with her hand in public, she surely would have done so. Roy had been pushing for the mini-skirt policy since day one of his Fuhrer-dom. It was kind of his own fault that it hadn't been approved yet. One of the first things that he did as the new head of the military was to institute a board of directors that was made up of high ranking officials from all the different division of the military. This board would meet regarding things like new recruits, changes in policy, and whether or not to wage war. Of course, the final go/no go decision was up to Roy, but this board was a safeguard against someone like King Bradley ever coming to power again.
Roy opened the doors to his office, and paused in order to run his fingers through his hair one last time before shooting Riza a charming grin and stepping into the hallway, one step closer to mini-skirt heaven.
Roy had left work early, sneaking out of the building in order to avoid any military men who felt like they needed a personal chat with the Fuhrer. His mood had dampened slightly since the morning and he began to doubt his idea of installing a board of directors in the military. He had no idea how mini-skirts were considered racist. However, the fact that he had a date had helped him from sinking down too far. Roy remembered the good old days, back when he was Colonel and had the time to balance both the military and his women. Of course, back then there were also Homunculi running around free and the end of Amestris fastly approaching, not to mention having to deal with the Fullmetal pipsqueak. Ok, so he still had to deal with Fullmetal, but two out of three wasn't so bad.
The horrible truth of the matter was that the Fuhrer hadn't had enough time to go on a proper date in the past year. He had been too busy fixing the military, quieting rebellions, and dealing with politics to worry about women. Finally, he was getting back in the field, and the woman he was going to meet wasn't a bad place to start.
And so, that is how he found himself sitting on a bench, a boutique of flowers in his hand, waiting outside of a very high-class restaurant for his date to arrive. He was wearing a nice black suit with a white button up collared shirt underneath, along with newly polished shoes. The suit was new; he had gotten it a few weeks ago, but never managed to find an occasion to wear it. It was nice to have a Fuhrer's salary, along with all the little 'goodies' he got from politicians and other high class people that wanted to Fuhrer to list them as a close friend.
Roy sighed, and checked the watch located on the wall across the street from where he was sitting. They had agreed to meet over twenty minutes ago. Roy himself had shown up five minutes late, and had been surprised that Ari had not gotten there before him. He had been stood up several times before, but that was before he had gotten to be one of the most powerful men in all of Amestris. Roy returned to staring down the street in front of him, when suddenly a voice came from behind. He was startled, and jumped slightly. However, he recovered from it well, making the move to turn around to cover from his fright. Ari, dressed in a very flattering light blue top, and yes, a black mini-skirt, confronted him. "Sorry we're late."
Roy gave one of his signature grins and went to say something, when he stopped, his mouth hanging open, waiting for the words that would never come. Had she said 'we?' Confused as to why his date would make such a simple mistake in wording, he ripped his eyes off of her and her legs long enough to look around at the other scenes. What he saw made his jaw drop even further.
"Been a while, Colonel." Standing -or, more like sitting- next to Ari was none other than ex-military officer Jean Havoc. His face held that cocky grin that Roy hadn't seen in over a year, and the never-ending cigarette hung out of the side of his mouth. He was dressed in a pink dress shirt, with a black jacket suit overtop, unbuttoned. A white cloth covered his legs, but his feet peeked out, showing off his black polished shoes. His left hand was resting on the large left wheel of his wheelchair, and his other hand was placed firmly in the middle of Ari's back.
Roy quickly hide the flowers and stood up, trying desperately to figure out what exactly was going on. He closed his mouth, then opened it, but no words came out. His eyes shifted from Ari to Jean and back again, soaking in the sight of the two standing there, side by side, both wearing one of those evil grins that only Mustang had ever used after he had successfully stolen one of Jean's girlfriends. Realizing that a significant amount of time had passed without anyone saying a word, Roy quickly cleared his throat. "Uh, nice to see you, Havoc. What a surprise."
"Yeah, Ari here was telling me how you two were going out for a little welcome to the group celebration, and I thought I would hitch a ride." Havoc removed his right hand from Ari's waist and withdrew the cigarette from his mouth, blew out the smoke, and stuck it back in. Ari crossed her arms and remained silent. Jean's eyes danced with laughter, glad to finally get his old boss back after all this time. Roy was still trying to catch up.
"Sir?" If it couldn't have been bad enough. Roy recognized the voice over the crowd, and quickly swung around to come face to face with Riza Hawkeye. She was out of uniform, wearing a plain black shirt with blue jeans, carrying a bag of what looked like groceries. He heard Havoc and Ari snickering behind him, and desperately wished that he had brought his gloves with him. "Hello Lieutenant."
"Jean! What are you doing here?" Riza asked, taking the time to take in the scene in front of her. The Fuhrer looked a bit dazed, which was a very rare sight.
Havoc wheeled a few feet forward to be in hearing distance of Hawkeye without having to shout. "Oh, I'm just on a date."
Riza smiled; she knew that Havoc had been having a hard time finding a girlfriend after the accident with the homunculi. Riza knew this because she was the one that Jean called in the middle of the night when he felt like talking about his failed love life.
Roy, finally coming to his senses, frowned and crossed his arms. "Ok, will someone please tell me what is going on?"
It was then that Ari decided to step up to the plate. She had been silent until then, watching as everything unfolded. "I was getting tired of hearing Jean complain about the Colonel who stole all his girlfriends, so, when the opportunity presented itself, I just couldn't turn it down."
Roy couldn't believe it. He had been tricked. The flame Alchemist wasn't supposed to be able to be tricked. He felt himself start to get angry, but then he remembered that he was the Fuhrer in a public place, and knew that it would look bad if he murdered a State Alchemist and an ex-soldier in public.
Riza, standing there, taking everything in, let out a small giggle. Both Roy and Jean turned and looked at her in surprise. They hadn't heard Riza giggle. Ever. They stared at her, waiting for an explanation. "In all the years I have been protecting Roy, I have never met any one woman who would even think about doing something like this to him."
Roy's face fell blank. He didn't even try to argue, knowing that somewhere, in those bags of groceries, sat a very loaded, very dangerous gun.
The four just stood there for a few moments, unsure of what to do. Finally, Havoc got another one of those smirks on his face. The dangerous kind that meant that he had gotten an idea. "Hey, uh, Ari, babe, why don't we….um, go somewhere."
He started to make weird head movements that looked kind of like twitches. Ari's eyes moved from Roy to Riza, then to Havoc until she understood what he was trying to do. "Sure thing." She plastered a smile on her face, causing both Roy and Riza to raise an eyebrow. "Hey, Fuhrer Mustang, you shouldn't let your Lieutenant carry those bags all by herself, you know."
Another evil grin. Riza shot the two a look that had the ability to kill, and they turned tail, Ari taking hold of Havoc's wheelchair and the two disappeared into the restaurant in the background. With those two out of the picture, Roy turned to face Riza, and stared at the bags in her hands. He then glanced over at the flowers that were sitting all forgotten on the public bench. He leaned down to pick them up, then shot Riza one of his more sincere smiles. "Want to trade?"