Author's Note: I own very little. Arakawa owns the characters. This little thing was inspired by theroyaistory's (on tumblr) headcanon that Roy gave Riza her first gun and "they gave each other the weapons that they turned into."

1913

Riza pulled open the drawer in her nightstand to put her hairclip away and paused when her hand brushed the cold handle of the gun lying inside. Her eyes lingered on the engraved hawk's head for a moment before she closed the drawer and sat on her bed, readying herself for sleep.

1901

"Where are you going?" She jumped when she heard the boy's voice. No one else was usually awake at this time of day. Turning, she saw him leaning back in his chair so that it balanced on the two back legs. He had a few books in front of him, one of them open to a list of alchemic symbols, and a piece of paper on which he'd been copying them.

"For a walk." She turned back around and started forward again.

"Can I come?" She sighed. Things were so much simpler before he came. Not that she minded that her father left his room more often, but he had left her alone.

"Aren't you studying?" She faced him, getting impatient.

Roy looked back at the books and pursed his lips to the side. "Not really. I drew an angle off by five degrees yesterday, so Master is making me draw all of them again. It's really boring." He looked at her with big eyes and knitted his eyebrows together. "Please?"

Riza rolled her eyes. "Fine. You can come." Roy's face lit up and he closed the book with a thud. He jumped up to follow her and tailed her like a puppy as they left the house. Speaking of puppies, she gestured for her old dog, Kumo, who fell in line next to her, wagging his tail. He knew the drill.

As they started down the path leading to the creek, she glanced over at her human companion. He had a goofy smile on his face, shifting his head slightly to look around as they walked. He caught her eye and she looked away.

"What?" he asked

She shrugged. "Why did you want to come with me?"

"I told you; I was bored."

"Yeah, but you could have gone for a walk by yourself." Their voices sounded muted in the early morning air, the sky above almost silver it was so light.

He laughed a little. "My aunt's house is always full of people. I'm just not used to being by myself, I guess."

Riza tried to imagine what a full house would be like - all the bedrooms full, people chatting wherever more than one chair was placed, bumping into each other in the kitchen. She frowned. It seemed like too much of a hassle.

"So," Roy said, his voice brighter than the sky, "where are we going?"

She sighed, hoping he would turn back before they got to their destination. "Just to the creek and back." Truthfully, she was going a bit further than that, hoping to go to her makeshift practice range, but if he was with her, she wouldn't get the chance. Kumo stopped along the edge of the road to take care of his business and the two stopped to wait for him.

"Do you do this every morning?" He didn't seem to notice or care that Riza was giving him the cold shoulder.

"Usually." Kumo trotted up to them and they turned to keep going.

"Can I join you?"

Riza stopped. Every day? She looked at him, wondering at how clueless he was. Did he not see that she didn't want him hanging around? His smile was gone, replaced with innocent confusion. "Why?"

He shrugged and looked down at the road. He brought up his hand to scratch the back of his head. "I just thought it might be nice if we were friends, since I'm kind of living here for a few months." He glanced up at her, obviously hurt that she didn't want him around.

She let out a loud sigh. "I'm not really going for a walk. I just said that because I didn't think you were coming."

He lowered his hand, looking at her in surprise. "Then what are you doing?"

No one else knew about this, and she liked it that way, but it didn't seem like he was the type to let it go. If she brushed him off, he'd probably not ask again, but she hated the way his eyes looked when he was sad. "Shooting practice."

His surprise turned to shock. "With a gun?" She nodded. His eyebrows lifted as he frowned, impressed. "I never would have guessed. You always seem so quiet."

"And quiet people can't use guns?" She felt a little defensive. He was making too big a deal out of it. He could have just accepted it and gone back.

"No, that's not it. It's just … I don't know." His smile came back. "Can I watch you practice?"

She measured him up, trying to determine if he was serious. Well, of course he was serious; he even seemed excited. Kumo paced around, anxious to keep going. Finally, Riza sighed and let her shoulders drop. "Sure."

When they reached the creek, she turned left and continued down a little ways until she found the hiding spot for her mother's hunting rifle. She carried it further down until they reached the edge of a field that belonged to one of her neighbors. She wasn't sure which one; she'd never seen them out here and there wasn't a house nearby. She picked up four of the bricks lying around for practice and lined them up on the fence posts, the wire having fallen away. Roy followed her, happy enough to be included that he had remained silent for the rest of the walk.

Riza walked back about 20 feet and put in her earplugs before pulling a cartridge out of her coat pocket. She loaded the rifle and then raised it to her shoulder. Roy stood back along the edge of the woods lining the field next to Kumo, putting in the earplugs Riza had given him. Riza took a breath to steady herself and couldn't concentrate. She glanced irritatedly over toward the spectator before closing her eyes and taking another deep breath. Opening her eyes again, she stared at the first brick down the barrel and felt herself adjust to the perfect position. She pulled the trigger and the brick toppled over backwards as the rifle bit back into her shoulder.

"Whoa." Roy's voice was low and impressed. Riza smiled slightly. If he thought that was good, he'd obviously not seen someone shoot before. Maybe if she showed him what she was really capable of, he'd be too scared to talk to her again.

She moved back another 20 feet and positioned herself in front of the third brick. Honestly, she'd only ever done this successfully twice, but her focus had come back. Now she had a goal in mind, something that always helped calm her down. She raised the rifle again, carefully lining up her shot, and then just before she pulled the trigger, shifted so that she faced the second brick and pulled the trigger three times in succession, aiming down the line. The first two landed squarely in the center of the brick as they fell backwards. The last brick did fall backwards, but she had been off by an inch, chipping the side.

Lowering the rifle, she sighed. She had been so close. She stepped forward to pick up the bricks when Roy shouted, "That was amazing! Seriously! Holy crap!" He was laughing in astonishment, the sudden outburst shocking Riza. She stared at him and his laugh slowly died off, leaving a huge grin on his face. "You're really great at this." The unabashed enthusiasm in his eyes made her blush.

After that, he'd come watch her practice every day, sitting with Kumo to the side. She gradually got used to his presence and even let herself smile with him a few times. She started making snarky comments about his study habits, making him laugh loudly enough to startle her. Maybe it was nice to have a friend like this.

As his training got more intense, he had to stop going with her every day, spending three mornings a week scrambling to work on whatever her father had assigned him the night before. The first time he didn't come with her, Riza's aim was a little off. She'd gotten used to him standing near her, and she'd apparently started using him as support. She adjusted and tried again, this time hitting all of the targets, but she felt a little shaken that she had let him so far in.

Years passed like this, until one morning, he seemed more cheerful than usual, but he hardly looked at Riza as they walked and his smile didn't seem sincere. On the way back to the house, Riza asked, "What's wrong?"

He looked at her surprised. "What? Nothing's wrong." She cocked an eyebrow at him and he smiled. "I met someone last weekend."

Riza's stomach suddenly felt uneasy even as she teased with a smile. "A girl?"

Roy huffed. "No, a State Alchemist. His name is Tim Marcoh and he came to my aunt's bar. I asked him a couple questions about the state certification."

"Oh." Riza looked down, remembering what her father had said about State Alchemists.

"I'm thinking about enlisting. I do want to get my certification, but it's … more than that."

Riza didn't answer and Roy didn't continue. They got back to the house and went about the rest of their day. The next morning, Roy was waiting at the bottom of the stairs for her.

"Is it okay if I come with you today?" he asked, his eyes still heavy, but his smile genuine.

Riza smiled at him. "Of course."

A month later, he told Riza he'd been accepted into the military academy. He hadn't been sure about it, even after being accepted, but Riza encouraged him to enroll. She knew he'd do well there, that he could really do some good. But she warned him against telling her father too soon. He'd probably throw Roy out after hearing about it.

The morning before he told her father, he held a box in his hands, wrapped immaculately with a bow on top as he waited for her.

"What is this?"

"I wanted to give you something before I left, to thank you for helping me out while I lived here." His smile was soft and kind as he held it out for her to take.

She took the box and was surprised at its weight. "It's heavy." She stepped into the kitchen and laid it down on the table. Inside was a beautiful .45 caliber shiny new pistol with two boxes of ammo and a holster with a clip on the back so it could fit on the top of her pants. Picking up the pistol, she marveled at the grip, perfectly suited to her hand. It caught the light and she saw something scratched into the side. A silhouette of a hawk's head was carved into the side.

"Do you like it?" Roy's voice sounded nervous. "I don't know if you've ever used a handgun before, but I thought-" Riza turned around and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tight, still holding the gun in her right hand.

"It's perfect. Thank you." Roy's arms pressed around her and he rested his cheek against the top of her head. She could have hugged him forever but she had to let go.

He was blushing. "Do you want to try it out?"

She nodded enthusiastically and his smile grew wider. She pocketed the cartridges and clipped the holster on to the back of her pants. She checked herself out in the mirror in the hallway as they left, smiling at the engraving which was still visible over the top of the holster. As the walked, Roy slipped his hand into Riza's and interlaced their fingers. She smiled at him, feeling lighter than she had in a long time.

At the field, she loaded the pistol and cocked it. She raised it up but it just felt awkward. "No, not like that." Roy moved closer, adjusting her hands so that her left hand cupped both the grip and her right hand. "Bend your left elbow just a little bit." His hands brushed against her arm as he gave her instructions.

"How did you get to be so knowledgeable?" she teased.

He blushed. "When I bought the gun for you, the store manager gave me some tips. And my sisters carry smaller revolvers with them, in case things go south at work. They helped me out."

After a few more adjustments, Roy stepped away. "Okay, I think that's good." Riza nodded, focusing on the bricks. She pulled the trigger, revelling in the smoothness. The recoil was nothing compared to her mother's old rifle. The brick fell, cracked in the exact center. Her eyes lit up and she looked at Roy, who was beaming back at her.

They stayed out there longer than usual, and Riza was almost late getting to school, but it was worth it. Sure enough, when Roy told his teacher that he was joining the military, Master Hawkeye got angry and asked him to leave immediately. Riza got home to find Roy packing his bags.

"So you're leaving?" she asked.

"Yeah. Master didn't seem to approve of my enlisting." He looked up at her and smiled. "I'll come back and visit, if that's okay with you."

She nodded, knowing that his visits would be few and far between. "Send us a card so we have your address."

"I will." He closed his bag and zipped it shut. He smiled at her. "Riza, I want to thank you again, for letting me be your friend." She moved next to him and smiled.

"No, thank you." She drew him into another hug. "And good luck." She felt his lips press against the top of her head and her smile deepened.

"I'll miss you." His voice was deeper.

"I'll miss you, too." She thought about how lonely her walks to the range would be now. But he'd always be with her now, with her new pistol. She'd practice and be perfect with it to show him when he came to visit.

He left about an hour later, walking toward town carrying his bags. He'd grown about six inches since he started studying with her father, and she couldn't help but notice how much fuller his frame seemed. He'd be a great man, she knew it. She just wished she could be there to see it.