1. Military Personnel
During the memorial service that took place that night, they called her a patriot and a martyr. They described her as a woman who proudly supported and defended her country and its way of life, and who made the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of the advancement of the military.
…Major Elizabeth Hawkeye…
The ceremony was remarkably similar to Hughes'- the same sentiments expressed, the same bleak sermon. It was, I realised with a pang, a soldier's funeral. Criterion and austere. It was a farewell to a member of the military- indiscriminate of their gender, age, rank, individuality, strengths and weaknesses. The same as every other before it.
I could imagine Riza turning in her grave as the service progressed. She would hate to be buried like this, I thought. A faceless corpse in a uniform grave- the exact same as all of the others…
She wasn't just a soldier, dammit!! She was more than just military personnel!!
Only I knew that she was not how she appeared to those conceited and pretentious higher-up bastards. Not one of them knew a thing about Riza Hawkeye as an individual. She was the living documentation of her skills and accomplishments and a killing machine that could be manipulated at will… That's all she was to them.
My hands were shaking so badly I feared that I might cause a spark as I clasped them together…
Not one of the men who spoke at her funeral mentioned just how beautiful she was, nor how kind, nor how sweet and unpresumptuous. None of them mentioned how very much like a mother she was to the Elrics, nor the unique manner of discipline with which she kept her dear Black Hayate in line… All of these wonderful things that made her the woman she was were set aside in favour of this image of a perfect soldier- however inaccurate it may have been.
She didn't fight for the sake of the military's advancement, she didn't pull the trigger for a cause she didn't believe wholly in, and, when it came to the end, she didn't even die for the sake of her country as they so plainly said.
She fought for the future of Amestris, she pulled the trigger for our noble cause, and she died… She died solely for me- for nothing more glorious than ensuring the survival of a broken man and his impossible dream.
Riza Hawkeye did not die for the sake of the military. She'd died for love.
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Dear Faithful Readers,
I apologize for how depressing my first theme turned out- they won't all be like this, I swear! Also, I'd like to disclaim the song 'Its only a paper moon'
-Riss