Title: Pictures of the Past
Chapter One: Arrival
Pairings/Characters: Royai
DISCLAMER: I own nothing other than the fanfiction itself
A/N: This is going to me a multi-chapter story focusing on Roy and Riza's childhood. I am not sure how long this will end up being, but I am looking forward to writing this.
Chapter One: Arrival
As the train came screeching to a halt, Roy Mustang could not help but think that there had been some sort of terrible mistake. He had boarded the train in Central after saying goodbye to his aunt and 'sisters' with nothing but his suitcase in his hand, but he never expected that the locomotive would take him into what was surely any city boy's living nightmare. Looking out the window, he could see only snow-covered ground and trees – there wasn't a building in sight other than the train station itself. Yet it was unmistakable; the name on the white-blanketed sign was correct. Wondering what it was he had gotten himself into, he pulled his suitcase from the overhead compartment and wrapped himself in his long, black coat. He took a deep breath and stepped off the train, his boots crunching in the snow. A gust of icy wind buffeted him in the face, and he lifted the collar of his coat before walking off towards the station building. He entered through the door and approached the man sitting behind the counter, asking, "Excuse me, but do you know where Berthold Hawkeye lives?"
The man looked up at him, nothing less than confusion painted across his features. This look unnerved Roy, who shifted his weight from one foot to another. The man set down his pen before saying "He lives just outside town, about a half-mile north. But I don't know why you'd want to go there – that man doesn't like visitors."
Roy frowned, but nodded. "How do I get into town?" He asked, ignoring the man's warning about the alchemist.
"You just take the road outside here and head straight. You'll get there in no time."
"Thank you." Roy turned, walking out of the station.
"Good luck, kid!" The man called after him, and Roy could have sworn he heard him laugh.
It seemed like forever that Roy trudged through the snow. His cheeks were tinged pink from the cold and he could see his own breath, but the determined fifteen-year-old pushed on despite the difficulty. Finally he could see the lights of the town, and he inwardly scorned the famed alchemist for not just living in Hicktown, Amestris, but also for living outside the godforsaken boondocks. In reality, the town was well-kept and quaint, just like the paintings he had seen depicting villages in the wintertime that Central shop owners often hung during the colder seasons. However, due to the fact that he was currently half-frozen and missing the comfort of his hometown, Roy could think of no worse place on Earth.
He swore through clenched, chattering teeth as he trudged through the snow, trying in vain to keep the icy white flakes from littering his raven hair and freezing his scalp. The glowing windows of the buildings he passed beckoned him in, but Roy trudged on. He shivered in the cold, but just when he was about to give up he saw a house along the road he was following. With his goal in sight, Roy picked up his pace, determined to reach the home. It was Hawkeye's house, he was sure of it – if it wasn't, then he would be forced to find an inn for the night, and Roy was too stubborn to admit that as even a possibility.
He stopped short in front of the house, hesitating. The snow barely covered the squalor the home existed in – shutters hung off their hinges and the metal gate was covered in rust, and that was just a few of many other things that made the house appear unkempt. This couldn't possibly be Berthold Hawkeye's home; an alchemist of his caliber wouldn't live in a place such as this. Even so, maybe the people who lived here could tell him where to find his new sensei. With no small amount of trouble he managed to jostle open the rusted gate and made his way to the door. He raised his hand and rapped his frozen knuckles upon the wood, praying to whatever gods there may be that someone would answer the door. After several moments he knocked on the door again, certain that someone was home due to movement he saw inside. A few seconds passed before the door cracked open, and Roy breathed a sigh of relief.
"Can I help you?"
Roy looked down to see a young girl peeking out at him from the crack in the door. She looked up at him with suspicion in her hazel eyes, her lips pulled into a slight frown. She was pretty but at least three years younger than he was, and she seemed to be hiding behind the blonde locks that spilled over her small shoulders.
"Um, yes, my name is Roy Mustang. I am looking for Berthold Hawkeye." Roy said, slightly unnerved as he stood beneath her evaluating gaze.
The girl blinked once before opening the door further. "Come inside, but take off your coat and boots by the door – you're covered in snow."
Confused but not about to refuse an invitation to get warm, Roy followed her inside. He pulled off his coat and removed his boots, flexing his fingers as feeling started to come back to his body; it was that warm, almost pleasant pain that comes with the return of blood-flow. He noticed the young girl had left him, and he started down the hallway to look for her. It didn't take long for him to spy her in the kitchen, and he watched for a moment as she bustled about, almost ignoring his presence altogether. He found it slightly rude that she had yet to answer his question, so he posed it again. "Can you tell me where I can find Berthold Hawkeye? I'm his new apprentice and I'm supposed to be at his home by nightfall."
"He is in his study. He doesn't like to be interrupted, so you can take a seat there if you want." The girl said, nodding at the kitchen table.
"Wait, so this is his house, then?" Roy asked, looking around him. This man was an alchemist – shouldn't he have better living conditions? "And who are you, if you don't mind my asking?"
"Yes, this is his house. And I am his daughter: Riza."
"He never mentioned having a daughter."
"He never mentioned getting a new apprentice, either."
Roy blinked once, looking at the girl. She had a sharp tongue, and he couldn't decide if she was being rude or simply honest. He took a seat at the table, turning his chair so he could face her. "So how old are you?"
"Twelve, almost thirteen."
"I'm fifteen." Roy said, even though he was not prompted to say so. He glanced at the pot resting on the stove. "What are you making?"
"Stew. It's nice to have something warm on a day like this."
"But why are you the one making it?"
"No one else is going to do it."
Roy wasn't sure if he had imagined the slight bitterness in her voice. "Why do you say that?"
"You ask a lot of questions."
"I want to be an alchemist – I have to be curious." Roy smirked.
"For your sake, I hope you're good enough. My father doesn't take on many apprentices, and the ones he does take on never make it past the trail period. They're all older than you, too. The youngest before you was seventeen." Riza glanced at Roy over her shoulder, as if she could guess his alchemical prowess just by his physical appearance.
"Why did they leave?" Roy asked, curious.
"They didn't – not of their own will, at least. My father didn't think they were good enough, so he expelled them." Riza said with a shrug, for the fates of these prior students didn't affect her in the slightest. She walked over to one of the wooden cabinets and withdrew a mug. "Do you want some tea? Maybe coffee?"
"Coffee would be nice."
"I prefer tea." Riza said matter-of-factly. Nonetheless, she walked over to the coffee pot and began to brew his drink.
Roy wasn't sure what her opinion of him was – unlike the girls in Central, she was exceedingly difficult for him to read. However, she intrigued him. She was a challenge, and he was going to enjoy deciphering her over the next several months. That is, if he lasted that long.
A/N: Up next – Chapter Two : Meeting Berthold
Roy meets his new sensei and Riza warms up to him a little
The next chapter should be up in about a month.
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