A/N: This story's song: "Superheroes" by the Script. This song actually inspired and thus hugely influenced the writing.

Ed was a bit annoyed. He would rather have been travelling. He hadn't since Elena had been born. Not that he resented his children or his wife—no; his annoyance was still focused squarely on Roy.

"Stupid ceremony. Everyone already knows what happened. I can barely get around without at least one person expressing their profound gratitude. Or worse, their amazement," he grumbled.

Winry gently nudged Ed with her shoulder, as Max was sleeping propped up in her lap. "I know you're just jealous that Al wasn't given a mandatory summons."

Ed made a bit of a harrumph-ing noise. "Don't remind me." He adjusted Elena so that she wasn't drooling on his neck as she napped in his arms. "I know, I know, I asked for it."

Winry looked slyly to her left, but before she could say anything, familiar golden eyes caught Ed's, and he nearly dropped his sleeping infant daughter.

"I thought he said he wouldn't be here!"

Al clasped the shoulder Elena wasn't sleeping on. "Some things never change, brother, and surprising you is one of my favorites." He looked toward the stage. "Besides, I think I owe it to them."

Ed shrugged. "Suit yourself." He looked around. "Where's May?"

The subject of his query wriggled her way through the crowd just then. "Some guy stopped me. He had to know about alkahestry, he said." She shook her head. "You'd think someone would have written a book by now." Her pointed gaze was rather directly on the Elric brothers.

"Hey, I have kids and a wife, remember?" Ed protested, holding Elena out to May as if to prove that a tiny human being was attached to him at all times. What he'd never tell anyone except Winry (who didn't need to be told) was that he really didn't mind it at all.

"Hey, he's about to start!" Winry hissed at them.

Ed's attention went to the platform. Look at him, grinning like an idiot, as usual. I guess I still don't understand the politics of it all that well, but at least he's a man of his word… One of his hands drifted unconsciously to his jacket pocket, where a small pouch of coins was at the ready.

…And so am I.

Havoc leaned on his cane. Most days, he didn't need it—his mobility had gotten so much better over the past few years—but between the crowd and the long bouts of standing, even though he had a "seat of honor" at the front, were definitely taking their toll.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?"

"Nice to see you too, Breda."

The other man shrugged. "I see you're progressing nicely."

Havoc grinned. "You know me; I'm determined." He pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

Breda waved the smoke away. "Yeah, determined to drive yourself to an early grave, anyway."

"I took a couple stabs to the abdomen that also severed my spinal cord. If that didn't kill me, nothing will."

Breda rolled his eyes.

"Hey guys!" Fuery and Falman had made their way to the front, as well. Fuery had Hayate on a leash.

Breda stiffened and shuffled so that Havoc was between himself and the dog.

"Fraidy cat," Havoc goaded with a grin before greeting the other two men.

They all focused their attention on the platform.

"Still thick as thieves," Fuery murmured.

Havoc made a dismissive noise. "Hell couldn't keep them apart."

"Hell didn't keep them apart," Falman corrected.

"I just hope they're happy," Fuery half-sighed.

Havoc nodded, remembering that day in the hospital. He'd had to cough several times to keep Roy's frustrated hisses from behind the curtain hidden. Given the connection that Mustang and Hawkeye had, along with their ability to keep pretty much everything secret (except for the one thing that had always been so damn obvious that it had been physically painful at times), he honestly didn't know whether or not she had known at the time.

Hayate settling his head on Havoc's foot brought him out of his reverie. Some high-ranking official he didn't recognize was coming to the podium for the niceties.

Havoc grinned. If he was feeling like this had been far too long in coming, he could hardly imagine how Roy must feel. But given the look on his face as he had been speaking to Riza just a few minutes ago, Havoc was certain of one thing: "Happiness" didn't begin to touch it.

The only word Riza could put to Roy's demeanor was "glowing".

This wasn't a bad thing by any means—this was what he'd fought for all his life, and nobody knew that better than she did. She wasn't naïve enough to believe she had been the catalyst, or even the driving force behind all of this, though he'd told her more than once that he wanted a better world for her, too.

"What's that look for?" Roy murmured to her.

"You know me well enough," Riza teased. "Take a guess."

"Pride." Roy thought for a moment. "Relief. Happiness. Justice. Sadness." Grief briefly flashed in her eyes and she knew that Hughes should be standing here, too. "And maybe some disbelief?"

Riza shrugged. "A little," she admitted.

"Well, you'd best get used to this reality." Roy grabbed her hand and looked her squarely in the eye. "It wouldn't have happened without you." Riza bit her lip for a moment, then opened her mouth to speak, but Roy cut her off. "I know that it caused a lot of pain and suffering, and don't think for a minute that I don't wish I couldn't take all of that away, but… I can't. The best I can do is move forward and lead with peace."

Riza nodded. "I know…"

Roy squeezed the hand he still held. "I made you a promise, didn't I? I'm not about to stop now." He leaned in a bit closer, but Riza leaned back.

"Not in public, Sir."

Roy sighed, half-frustrated, half-wistful. "Later, then," he murmured back seductively.

Riza rolled her eyes. "We're about to begin."

Roy looked up. The faces in the crowd mostly blurred, but some were clear as day.

Falman, Fuery, Havoc, and Breda all looked as satisfied as he'd ever seen them.

Alex Armstrong was positively bawling into Maria Ross's shoulder. Maria and Denny looked eager.

Olivier looked about as frosty as she ever did, and Roy nearly grimaced. He'd had to do quite a bit of finagling to satisfy her, and he wasn't quite done yet. He caught her eye, and she nodded with what Roy would swear was a near-imperceptible hint of a smirk. Beside her, Miles and Scar looked imposing and stoic, but somehow at ease.

Roy scanned the crowd.

Riza leaned over just a bit and whispered, "Over there, Sir," tapping his hand to indicate the direction he should look.

Al was beaming contentedly next to May. Winry was smiling as she ran a hand across her son's hair. Ed seemed to have noticed that Roy was looking at him and tapped a hand to his coat pocket, trying his hardest and still failing to keep a smile completely from his face the entire time. Roy did his best not to chuckle.

His gaze swept skyward. He'd never given much thought to what he believed in, but he had to believe that Maes was watching somewhere.

Riza squeezed his hand, bringing him back down to the ground.

He turned to look at her, and he couldn't help the smile that rose up from the depths of his soul. Even the more horrifying, saddening, and shocking memories that raced through his mind couldn't dim it. They were here, together, and nothing was going to take that from them now.

Ed's money, Olivier's rank, Armstrong's lack of composure—none of that mattered right now.

He fought the urge to pull Riza into a crushing hug and just forget about the world that lay in front of them. There would be time for that later, anyway (another promise he'd made, if only to himself)—for now, he had to focus on the dream that was being realized at hand.

"They're waiting for you," Riza whispered.

Roy turned very briefly to look at her, and saw everything he felt reflected in how she was looking at him right then.

The only thing he could do in the face of all that was to take the next steps forward.

And so, he did.

A/N: Are you bawling? 'Cause I am. That may just be the cold I've had for the past few days, though.

This was originally going to be a progression through Roy and Riza's relationship, from apprenticeship to this point (where Roy is taking the reins of the country, only to pass them off to a non-militaristic government… hopefully in exchange for the pardon of those truly only acting under orders during Ishval?), but I realized that I'd already done this before in Kingly Ambitions, which fills in some of the holes the manga doesn't show us with my own headcanon. If you haven't read it, I'm going to toot my own horn and recommend it here.

What I haven't written about (at least, not nearly as much as fluffy apprenticeship shipping, which I love to write, if you haven't guessed) is what happened after everything was done.

I also promised to involve Ed and his family more, so there's a bit of that here, though I still intend to do yet more with them. However, since I'm working again, I'm back down to less time to write.

As always, please leave a review!