A/N: So I was gone all through Royai Week so this is me making up for the whole week in one night yay. This is for day one: firsts.

The First Time Berthold Hit Her

It was dark in the manor. Roy was laying in his bed, trying to take his mind from the beautiful blonde only a flight of stairs above him. He'd told her earlier that day that he was leaving that night. He tried his best not to run upstairs and carry her off with him. As he rose from the sheets and packed his bags, he felt heavy. The floors were too loud under him and his breath was just a little too hot.

Something was wrong.

There were eyes on him and he turned. Her fingers gently against the grain of the doorway sent a jolt down his back. They looked to thin. She was so tired under those giant brown eyes.

He kissed her forehead and left her there.

A large hand swept across her face in the morning. She fell to her knees and she cried. it was her fault that he left. It was all her fault. Her father had always told her that, but he'd never touched her in this way before. She didn't fight him.

And he hit her almost every day afterwards.

The First Time They Kissed

When she told him what Berthold had done all those years ago he asked if he could touch her. She nodded with wet eyes, saying that she trusted him. He pressed her lightly to the wall and closed his lips over hers. The heavy breathing turned to rushed and shallow intakes and his hands wandered to her waist and her hair. The moment his fingers touched her back, though, she winced and drew away. She looked solemn and angry. She nodded him away, told him to meet with her father, and rushed from the room.

The First Time She Fired A Gun

He made fun of her the day he took her to the range. She wanted self defense and this was the best he could do. She closed one eye and pointed. He laughed. When the bullet exited the chamber he stopped. Perfect shot. She gained a round of applause and a kiss on the nose. He told her she had a calling. She just shook her head and handed the weapon to him. It was beginners luck, she said.

The First Time He Saw Her Back

Her hands grasped the fabric tightly. She shivered as she tugged it downwards. Her blouse fell to the floor and there was an audible gasp from him. His hands formed fists by his side and he didn't dare touch her- not again. He didn't deserve to. Not after seeing what she'd been through. There was silence. He watched the reflection of tears in the window in front of her. Her arms covered her chest and her eyes were squeezed closed. He told her that she was still as beautiful as she'd ever been. She commanded him to decode it. Roy Mustang began to cry. He told her that she'd have to wait another day. He left her there, again.

The First Time He Used Flame Alchemy

There was a spark and a cry of excitement. He turned to her for approval but all he could see in her eyes was shame. She nodded with a weak smile at the flame below them. For the first time in a long time he reached over to her and embraced her. She was stiff and quiet but he only hugged her tighter.

The First Time He Apologized

It was there in the embrace that he said he was sorry. He took the blame for all of the bad things that had become of her. He harbored guilt for all of it. She pried his arms from her and touched her fingers to his jaw, looking up into his eyes with a stern anger. She pulled him down in a quick movement, tilting her head to place a sideways kiss on his lips. When she pulled away he placed his face into her shoulder and said it over and over again. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Again she kissed him and she shook her head. And then she said the words, and left him with the fire.

The First Time She Confessed

It was a long time in between the first notions of love and the last reassurance. It was the Promised Day when she sat him in the tent, her hands on his shoulders and his on her wrists. She pressed her forehead to his, her heart heavy from seeing him so weak. She told him that they'd done it. They'd one. He shook with a smile. He asked her how she could stick with him for this long and still be strong enough to keep him up even when he couldn't see. Before the medics arrived she told him that never abandoned the ones she loved. He gaped and cried out when they pulled her from him, and he sat by himself to realize that he loved her too.

The First Time They Knew

A week after his eyesight had returned he asked her into his hospital room. When she walked in he asked her to stand still. She rose an eyebrow but complied. He stood on wobbly feet and made his way over to her. He looked her up and down, ending with her eyes and lips. He spoke quietly so that the guards couldn't hear.

"I love you."

"I know, sir."

He laughed and took her hands.

"Anything else to say, Lieutenant?"

"I love you, too."

"I know."
They smiled.

"That better not be the last time I hear that." she said with authority. He chuckled in return.

"I plan on being around so long, you'll be sick of hearing it."

"And I plan on being around long enough for you to keep that promise."

He reached forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder and hugging her tightly. She hugged him back with equal force, and he could feel their hearts beating in time with each other. He smiled and thanked her. She told him that if they could do it over again, she'd make all the same choices. That was the first time Roy Mustang was absolutely certain that he'd found the woman he'd spend his life trying to please, and the funny thing is that Riza had known all along.