Sergeant Kain Fuery rapped on the door of his commander's office. "Colonel Mustang, sir?" there was no answer. Timidly, Fuery opened the door and ducked his head inside. The room was dim, the dusk light struggling through wildly askew blinds at the back of the room, behind the Colonel's desk. The desk itself looked as if it were nearly sagging under uneven stacks of paper and manila envelopes. A chessboard sat unfolded on a small tea-table to the left of the desk; the pieces scattered across the board seemingly at random.
Pushing the door open a little more, Sergeant Fuery stepped inside and said again "Colonel?" Something stirred the mountain of paper slightly. Fuery closed the door behind him and tread softly across the room, peering over the desk. Colonel Mustang was asleep, a stack of files and his bell cap serving as a pillow. Strands of black hair fell over his eyes. "Uh, sorry, sir." Fuery said to the sleeping officer, saluting nervously. "Just came to pick up one of my radios before I leave for my new assignment." He turned around, scanning the room, which seemed more disorganized than usual, for his radio.
Behind him, the colonel muttered something. Fuery turned around quickly, straightening his shoulders and asking "Sir?" before he saw that Mustang was still asleep. His shoulders relaxed. Suddenly he caught sight of his radio leaning against the desk, half-hidden by the wild shadows that the sun flung through the window. Breathing a sigh of relief, he bent to pick it up. As he straightened, his shoulder clipped the edge of the tea-table, rattling the chessboard a little. A few pieces wobbled and a pawn fell on its side and rolled off the edge. Fuery caught it before it could hit the floor and set upright again. Swallowing hard, he scanned the board to make sure everything else was where it should be—not that there had been much rhyme or reason to the positioning in the first place. The white queen seemed to be missing, however. Squinting and adjusting his spectacles, Fuery peered at the floor, trying to see if it had rolled into a dusty corner. Mustang murmured again, more clearly this time."Lieutenant..." Fuery's head jerked towards the colonel automatically. He blinked. Lieutenant? Then something caught his eye and he leaned forward for a closer look. Mustang's hand rested on the desk, fingers curled tightly around something small and white. The queen. "Oh." Fuery said out loud. Tucking the radio under one arm, he saluted again and said "Thank you sir." before quickly and quietly slipping from the room.
As he exited the building, lost in thought, a voice at his elbow said "Sergeant!" He stopped, pushing his spectacles up on his nose, then saluting quickly when he saw who had hailed him. "Leaving for your reassignment?" she asked. He nodded, eyeing her. Her thick blond hair was twisted up at the back of her neck as usual. Everything about her appearance was impeccable. Bright, serious brown eyes looked back at him with sympathy. "I wish you luck, Sergeant Fuery. It has been an honor serving with you."
"Thank you...Lieutenant Hawkeye." They nodded farewell, and Fuery gave her one last curious look as he started down the street. As he passed under Colonel Mustang's office, he glanced up and suddenly broke into a grin.