A/N: .This story spans the 13 years from when Roy and Riza first meet until the aftermath of the Promised Day. Our intention when starting this was to comply with the series and fill in the gaps, but we did take a few artistic liberties with the timeline. We hope you enjoy them! We have most of this story written already. As we edit and proofread, we will update! Stay tuned! -J&C
August, 1902
It was a small town. Roy Mustang was sure that if you blinked at the right moment, you'd miss it as the train flew by. As it happened, however, the train slowed to a stop at the station and he disembarked from the car, the only passenger to do so at this stop.
At age 17, this was the first time he had ventured so far from his home in Central City and into the countryside. He wasn't sure how his aunt and foster mother, Chris Mustang, had found out about the skilled alchemist Berthold Hawkeye who lived here or what strings she had pulled to get him an apprenticeship with a man who typically didn't take on apprentices, but here he was, standing on the platform with most of his belongings crammed into one suitcase as the train pulled away behind him.
No one was there to meet him, but he hadn't expected there to be. His soon-to-be teacher had sent the address and date to present himself in one brief letter several weeks beforehand. Roy Mustang carried that short letter in his hand now to reference the address as he approached the only station employee in sight, an older woman sitting behind a ticket counter.
She looked surprised when he told her where he needed to go, but gave him directions all the same. He got the feeling there weren't many visitors to this small town. The house in question was on the outskirts of the village, a few miles' walk from the station, so he set out on foot in the direction she indicated.
It was late afternoon before he found the house he was looking for, sitting alone at the end of a very long dirt driveway. It was a large house, but it gave the impression of being run down. The bushes were overgrown and the outside showed definite signs of wear. Roy supposed that a house this large was hard to keep up with when you lived alone as Berthold Hawkeye did.
Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Roy Mustang walked the last few feet to the front porch and knocked on the front door.
The day was as bright as 16-year-old Riza Hawkeye's mood. The sun was out with just enough clouds to make the sky slightly dark. She wasn't sure if it was going to rain or not. Either way, she didn't care much. Rain brought life but also made the air thick. Much like how fire brought destruction and death while at the same time giving warmth and light.
She had a quiet respect for everything and everyone, so long as it was well-deserved. But the person she respected the most was her father. He was a talented alchemist who knew all the secrets to flame alchemy. He believed in alchemy for the good of science, not just using it as a weapon by which to serve others. Because of his strong beliefs, he absolutely loathed the military branch of state alchemists.
She couldn't quite bring herself to hate anything. To her, there wasn't much of a point. They existed and nothing could be done to change that fact.
She looked up at the sky from her bedroom window. There was someone coming today, a boy who wanted to learn alchemy. Usually her father wouldn't take on an apprentice, but somehow he'd been convinced. Perhaps he hoped for another with the same beliefs as his own to be able to pass on his work to?
This boy must be annoying and very persistent, she mused. She glanced at the clock. He would be here soon. Perhaps he could break the monotony that was her life-even for just a little while. She was told he was only a year older than she. Hopefully they would have something in common.
That was when she heard the knock on the front door. Her bedroom was relatively close to the entrance of the house. She jumped from her window seat and rushed out her door. She continued down the large staircase, noticing how dusty it was, until she reached the floor below. The house hadn't been cleaned very well since her mother passed. She did what she could, but it was such a large house that by the time she cleaned a few rooms and made it to the other side of the home, the rooms she originally cleaned would be dusty and dirt-filled all over again. She took a deep breath, trying to maintain her poker face. After exhaling, she reached for the doorknob and pulled the door open.
Roy blinked in confusion when a young girl around his age answered the door, having been expecting an older man. As far as he knew, Berthold Hawkeye lived alone. He took a step back to look at the address above the door in case he had somehow mistaken the house number.
"Oh. Um, hello. I was looking for the Hawkeye residence, but it appears I must have gotten lost. Perhaps you could point me in the right direction?" He gave her what he hoped was a charming smile.
Riza's eyes fell upon the tall, dark-featured boy on her doorstep. "No, you're at the right house. We've been expecting you."
She opened the door to let him in. "I'm his daughter, Riza Hawkeye. Please, come in."
His smile was charming. He seemed polite and friendly. She tried to contain her excitement. She could see herself sitting with him and having conversations about things other than alchemy-something fun that entertained their age group. She offered a shy smile in return.
"A pleasure to meet you, Miss Hawkeye. I wasn't aware that Master Hawkeye had a daughter." Roy stepped through the door and into the entryway. "I'm Roy Mustang, but you probably already know that."
Berthold Hawkeye, meanwhile, was in his study with his research notes spread around him when he began to hear voices drifting down the hallway, an unusual occurrence in the usually quiet house. He rose from his desk and went to investigate, assuming it must be the arrival of his new student.
He knew the boy was around his daughter's age and hoped having someone her age around may be a nice change for her. He knew he hadn't been the most attentive father since his wife's death many years ago and it had taken a toll on her. Guilt had driven this decision, but also hope.
He followed the voices to the entryway where he found the two standing. His first impression of Roy Mustang was that he looked a lot like his father, whom Berthold had known when he lived in Central City as a young man. He had been surprised to learn from Chris Mustang, the sister of his old friend, that he and his wife had passed, leaving their son in her care and that the son in question was already showing signs of being a gifted alchemist.
"Ah, you must be Roy Mustang." he said as he approached. "We've been expecting you. I hope your journey wasn't too bad."
"Not at all, sir." Roy said, turning to face him. "I'm happy to be here."
"All the same, I'm sure it's been a long day for you, so we'll forego having any lessons this evening and start in the morning. It's my understanding that you're already accomplished in basic alchemical transmutations."
"That's correct, sir."
"Good! Then tomorrow morning you can show me what you already know so I know where we need to start. For tonight, just go ahead and get settled in. My daughter can show you to your room and around the house."
"It would be my pleasure, father." Riza said to him before turning back to look at Roy. "Just follow me. I'll show you to your room."
She looked over at the stairs. His room was just down the hall from hers. She was almost startled at first when her father had made the arrangement, but he knew she could be trusted. Her eyes made their way back to Roy.
The important question was this: could this boy be trusted?
She smiled again, hoping to avoid him noticing her suspicious expression. "So, I'd love to know about your hometown. I'm sure you noticed we don't have much around here."
Roy proceeded to follow her to the stairs. "Well, I'm from Central City. It's very different from here. The military's central command center is there and that's where the Fuhrer is. Everything is close together. Shops, restaurants, and stuff like that. My aunt owns a bar there and we live in the apartment above it," he explained as they ascended the stairs. "What about you? Is it just you and your father here?"
A brief look of pain crossed her face. Very brief, though. She never let anyone see her cry about her mother. Not even her father. Not that he'd see, anyway, from being so absorbed in his work. She didn't blame him, though. His work helped him cope and it was important research.
She looked at him when they reached the top of the stairs and smiled. "Yes, it's just the two of us. My mother passed away a long time ago. The only places around here I go to are the market for food and supplies, and maybe a couple of independently owned shops. They're far apart, though. There is a downtown-like area that has a cluster of things like shops and restaurants, but it's still not much. We have festivals in it every once in awhile, typically holidays. The people here are kind and the festivals were fun when I used to go."
They reach a door and she opened it before entering a few stepped. "This is your room. Mine is the next door down. I will leave you alone to settle in. I'll be preparing dinner in about an hour. I can come fetch you when it's ready, if you like."
"Dinner sounds nice." Roy set his suitcase on the end of his bed and turned to face her. "I'm sorry about your mother. My parents are gone, too. That's why I live with my aunt." he explained. "And I have my 'sisters'. They're the girls who work for my aunt. They're not really my sisters, of course, but they may as well be."
"Well, I'm sure it is still really nice to have sibling figures in your life. I've been thinking I'd like to get a dog someday. That's probably the closest I'll ever get." She chuckled a little. "So, I was going to make chicken fricassee for dinner. It's a fancy way of saying breaded chicken with pasta and sauce. It's a little spicy, but I don't have to cook it that way if you don't like spicy food?"
"I love spicy! It sounds great. I'm looking forward to it, Miss Hawkeye."
Riza smiled. "Just Riza, please."
The Next Day
Riza stood outside of Roy's door. It was about six in the morning. Her father had asked her to fetch him so he could prep in his study for the first lesson. They both were early risers. Riza always loved to be up right before the sun. She watched it rise with a hot cup of coffee and the most remarkable view of the land.
She knocked on the door loudly but not abrasively. "Mr. Mustang? My father is ready for you in his study. I can take you there when you're ready."
Roy was already awake as well, sitting at a desk in the room where he was writing a letter home to let his aunt know he made it safely. He hoped to have time to go into town later to send it. He stood and stretched when she knocked, then crossed to the door to open it.
"Thanks, Miss-Riza." he corrected himself. He had been raised calling everyone Mr. and Miss as a sign of respect, so it's a bit of an adjustment. "And you can call me Roy, if you want. It's weird being called Mr. Mustang. I can't be that much older than you. I'm only 17." His aunt and 'sisters' raised him to know better than to ask a lady for her age.
She smiled. "You never know. And technically you are older than me. I'm 16."
She noticed the letter on his desk now that the door was open. "Writing to your aunt?" she asked. She then realized she may sound nosy and recoiled slightly. "I mean-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so intrusive."
"Hey, no big deal. I call it curious, not intrusive. And how will you ever learn anything if you're not curious?" He laughed and ran a hand through his hair. "But, yeah, it's for my aunt. Just wanted to let her know I made it ok and that your dad didn't take one look at me and kick me out or anything. I'm hoping to take it into town later today to mail it off if I have time."
"Oh, well why don't I take it for you? I don't have anything else to do until later," she offered. The only plans she had were going to the farthest area of their property to shoot her shells at cans on a fence post. She found herself to be a decent shot already.
The only reason she started doing it was because she felt a woman needed to know how to shoot in a desperate situation. Maybe she could be a police officer or something normal like that in the military since she isn't interested in alchemy.
"Oh, I couldn't ask you to do that. I'll take it myself later. Although," he hesitated, not wanting to be an inconvenience. "I wouldn't mind the company if you wanted to come with me. I don't know my way around yet and I wouldn't want to get lost. Only if you're not busy, though."
She chuckled. "Well, you didn't ask. But I don't mind coming with you. I'm sure my father wouldn't be pleased if you did get lost. You look like you would." She teased. "Speaking of him, I'll show you to his study before you're too late. I'll bring you both breakfast soon." She beckoned him to follow her.
Roy laughed. "Worried I'll get lost on the way to the study, too? I wouldn't put it past me. This place is huge!" He followed her out of the room and down the stairs.
"You just have that look about you. But maybe I presume to know too much," she teased. As they continued down the hall, she sighed. It was rather strange to have someone around to talk to like this, but not exactly in a bad way. "Are eggs and biscuits all right with you? Unless you're not hungry. I bring father his meals throughout the day. Now that you're here, I'll bring food for you, too. Please tell me what kind of things you like."
"I like anything. I'm not picky. Just make whatever you usually make for your father, there's no need to go out of your way on my account. I'm sure whatever you make will be delicious. Dinner last night definitely was."
They arrived at the door to her father's study and he turned to face her. "So, I'll come find you after we're done with my lessons for the day, if that's alright?"
She felt like her face was a little warmer all of a sudden. She nodded and smiled. "That sounds good. Breakfast will be ready soon." She started to leave then turned to look at him again. "Don't kiss up to him. He hates that. Don't be afraid to disagree. My father loves a challenge."
Roy grinned. "Thanks for the tip."
A few hours later, Roy walked out of the study looking a bit tired, but pleased with himself. Master Hawkeye had tested his skills by having him perform a series of transmutations and reviewing basic alchemical principles. Hawkeye seemed impressed with Roy's progress, especially so since he had been self-taught up to that point.
It had been a while since Roy had done quite so much alchemy in one day and he was feeling the effects. He took a moment to stretch before setting off in search of Riza.
He found her dusting the stairs in her cleaning clothes that consisted of an over-sized t-shirt, shorts, and knee socks. Her long blonde hair was pulled up in a clip and the expression on her face was one of complete focus. She was practically glaring at the stair rail. "Why don't you stay shiny? I use lemon oil and everything!" she quietly grumbled as she scrubbed. How did her mother ever manage to do this successfully?
Roy watched her for a moment, laughing silently to himself. "Well, did the stair rail give you a satisfactory explanation for its behavior?"
Riza jumped in surprise at the sound of his voice. She blushed a bit and stood up straight. "Unfortunately, any conversation I've had with inanimate objects never really ended well. Done with your first lesson already, are you? How was it?" She brushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
"It went really well. He mostly just wanted to see where I'm at with my alchemy today." he explained as he climbed the stairs to the landing she was on. "Do you really clean this whole place all by yourself?"
"Yes. Well, I try. It never stays clean. Not sure why I bother." She sighed. "I'm glad you had a good first day. Did you want to head into town still?"
Roy frowned. It hardly seemed fair that she should be responsible for all the cleaning and cooking in this house.
"Hm. Well, it's still early, so the post office won't close for a while. Why don't I help you finish your chores, then you can help me mail the letter?" he offered. "Equivalent exchange. Basic alchemical principle."
She gave him a curious look. Then she smirked. "Have you ever even cleaned a house before?"
"Never." he admitted. "First time for everything, though, right? I mean, it's the least I can do. I'm going to be living here making even more of a mess for you over the next year."
She chuckled. "Yes, I suppose you're right." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Perhaps you can dust a couple rooms for me?" She motioned for him to follow her to a new room. She then gave him a feather duster.
He looked at the duster in his hand. "I think I can handle that." he said, and set about dusting the new room she had led him to. It appeared to be a library of some sort. There were dozens of texts about alchemy on the shelves lining the walls as well as several novels.
Riza watched him a moment and noticed his technique was mostly stirring up the dust rather than getting rid of it. She left for a moment and returned with a wet rag that had some lemon oil on it. She laughed and held it out. "Roy, you're not really doing much dusting so much as playing with dust. Use this instead. It has lemon oil on it so it smells good, too. Makes the wooden shelves really shiny." She grinned. "Hand over the feather duster."
Roy grinned sheepishly and held the feather duster out to her in exchange for the rag. "Yes, ma'am!" He gave her a mock salute.
She took it and shook her head. "I can't believe you've never cleaned before. But you've obviously done some reading with the way you're looking at our book collection. We have tons on alchemy and theories and philosophies. I've browsed through them a couple of times."
"Oh, are you interested in alchemy, too, then?" he asked her as he began to wipe down the shelves. "I used to spend a lot of time in the library back in Central until my aunt gave me some alchemy books of my own for Christmas a few years back. That's how I taught myself, but when it came time for me learn the more advanced stuff, she thought it would be better if I could be an apprentice to an alchemist to make sure I'm doing everything properly."
"No, not really. I don't like the thought of having a power that could spin me out of control. I don't hate it or anything. I do believe that alchemy can be used to help people. But I feel more comfortable using more natural ways of doing that." She gazed at him. "But I wanted to know about it, so I read all these books. My father encouraged me, of course. But he respected my reasons for not trying the practice."
Roy's smile faltered slightly, but he nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I can understand that. There have been some pretty terrible people who let the power to create and destroy go to their heads. That's part of why I want to do this, though. I want to be able to help others and protect them from people like that."
"I understand. Just make sure you always remember that you said that. I'd hate to see you changed from the way you are right now." She placed her hands together. "Well, I'll be in the next room over. Come find me if you need help with anything."
Roy watched her leave, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He was starting to get the idea that Riza Hawkeye was much different than any girl he had ever met in Central. They were all more concerned with their appearance and finding a husband than discussing the moral responsibilities of using alchemy.
Well, other than his sisters, anyway. But they were usually busy using their looks to charm top secret information out of elected officials. They were quite good at pretending to be ignorant of politics.
As Riza cleaned in the next room, her thoughts were on Roy. He appeared to have a good heart and soul. Something about the way he had said he wanted to help people with his alchemy had touched her. She never really had any real friends. She had no one to identify with. She hoped that had finally changed.
She also hoped the room he was cleaning wasn't worse than it was before he touched it. She sighed and smiled.
Unfortunately, Roy wasn't the best cleaner. He did very well cleaning the surfaces he could see, but didn't think to lift items off their shelves and clean under them. He even got distracted a few times by an interesting alchemy book. Or two...or three.
Riza finished the room she was in after a while and wiped the beads of sweat off her forehead. It was spotless. She hadn't heard from Roy once while she was working, so she decided to go check in on him. She found him on the floor surrounded by open alchemy books. She let him keep reading and she moved to lift a book off the shelf. There were thick layers of dust on the book as well as under it. "Um...did you think to maybe check underneath the books or maybe see if their pages had a bit of dust on them?"
He looked up at her from his spot on the floor. "Oh, I guess I should have done that, shouldn't I? Oops." He stood up and dusted off his pants with his hands. "Sorry about that." He picked the rag back up and moved back to dusting, looking guilty.
She smiled and shook her head. "How will you ever become a great alchemist and save the world if you couldn't even dust properly?" She teased. She walked up to the neighboring shelf and started helping him.
"Guess I'll just always have to hope there's someone like you around to help me," he joked.
"Pray that you're so lucky," she teased. She finished up a row and started on the next one. "You know you don't have to do this if you'd rather read or study or something. I can do it alone."
"No, I said I would help and I always keep my promises," he told her as he lifted some books to dust under them. "Besides, you'll get done a lot quicker this way and we can head into town."
"This can always wait until we get back from that. I rarely ever finish cleaning the whole house in one day. I'd hate for you to get there and it be closed already."
Roy was more than happy to comply. He tossed the rag into the bucket of cleaning supplies. "I'll get the letter from my room and meet you by the front door, then?"
Riza chuckled. This boy was amusing. "All right. I'm just gonna change really quick into something less dirty and I'll meet you there."
