A/N: Hey! I would never imagine that this fic is so young and so popular already! (prances around happily) Anyway, since there are quite a few nice reviews, here is chapter two!
Disclaimer: Right now the only thing I own is my twisted mind. Though it is real fun, I must say.
The Royai love story
They travelled till the dusk, and then they stayed at an old inn to eat some supper. As they were sitting in the crowded room, Riza glanced at Ed. He was barely eating anything, just pricking the food with his fork.
"Edward," she began tentatively. "Are you ok?"
He looked up at her, sadness in his beautiful, golden eyes. He sighed, letting out a little of the pain and sorrow he had been carrying for the whole day.
"I'm just wondering how Winry is doing," he answered, lowering his head again. "I'm worried about her…"
"Hey, I'm worried too," she tried to console him, though she experienced the same feeling actually. It proved to be really hard to convince the boy that everything was going to be ok if she wasn't sure about that herself. "But we will find her. No matter what. And then I'll go to father and talk to him as long as he doesn't agree for you to marry Winry."
He managed a faint smile at her attempt to cheer him up. "Thank you, miss Riza."
"You're welcome, Edward."
"Hey, don't you think that you're far too young for this beautiful lady here?" they heard a voince behind them. They turned around questioningly to see a bulky guy, who had his face only a few inches away from Riza's one. She pulled back immediately, partly because of the uncomfortable closeness, and partly due to the strong smell of whiskey from the man's mouth.
"What do you want?" Ed barked at him, his eyes narrowing.
"I want just one dance with this missy," he bowed to her almost servilly and staggered a little. He was apparently too drunk to stand on his own, since he quickly supported himself on the table.
"Forget it."
"What did you say?" the man raised his voice a little. "Is that the way to adress the older ones, you little…"
"Who's little?!" Ed stood up, rage evident on his face. Actually, his height was kind of a touchy topic. "Just repeat it and…"
But he underestimated the opponent. The man could've been drunk, but he was also a heavyset one. With one swing of his arm he swept Ed out of his way. The boy landed on another table with a stifled whimper as his back crushed against the edge of a wodden tabletop.
The man glanced at him quickly to make sure he was immobilized at the moment and then slowly started approaching Riza. She stood up and moved away as far as she managed to, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back closer. She squeaked and tried to free herself, but in vain. The people in the inn were just staring at the scene, afraid of provoking the guy.
And then they heard a voice from the front door.
"Let go of her, you fat pig!"
Everyone gazed at that direction and saw a man with his rapier raised before him. Riza's eyes widened as she recognized sir Mustang.
He quickly walked up to them and grabbed the man's arm, the one which was holding Riza.
"I said," he repeated through gritted teeth, "get your filthy hands off of her! Now!"
The man released Riza indeed, but then turned to fight Roy. He was prepared, though. With several swift movements of his rapier he managed to cut the man's suspenders. This actions caused the inevitable, namely the guy's pant's slid down, exposing his fat legs. The man quickly grabbed them and pulled them up, but it was too late. The whole inn was already rolling with laughter.
"You…" he took a step towards Roy, who was smirking to the public, applauding because of his performance. "I'll kill you…"
Roy gracefully put the tip of his rapier against the man's throat.
"Just try."
The man was too drunk to hear the threat in his voice, since he tried to come closer to Mustang. But then, due to his still sliding down pants, he lost his balance and fell down in front of Roy. Mustang hit the guy's head with the hold of his rapier and the man collapsed onto the ground, completely unconscious due to the blow and alcohol.
Roy bowed gallantly to the audience and walked up to Riza.
"Are you hurt, miss Riza?" he asked politely.
"I'm…I'm fine," she uttered, still amazed by what she had just witnessed. "Thank you for the rescue, sir Mustang."
"I am contended that I was able to come in time, miss Riza."
Then they heard a loud moan. Riza turned around and paced towards Ed.
"Everything ok, Edward?" she said worriedly as she looked at his grimace of pain.
"My back hurts…"
"Come," she threw his arm around her neck and pulled him up carefully. That didn't prove to be gentle enough for him not to whimper from pain again. Apparently straightening his spine must've hurt him as well. "Come, we're going to place you upstairs."
He contorted when he heard of walking up the stairs.
"Sir Mustang, can you help me?"
"Of course, miss Riza," he supported Ed from the other side and they led him out of the room.
"How is it?"
"Could be worse," he managed a faint smile at the woman who was sitting beside his bed. "I am grateful that you are taking care of me. Thank you, miss Riza."
"You're welcome, Edward," she tidied up the sheets of the bed he was lying in.
"Miss Riza…" he spoke in an undertone filled with guilt. She looked at him attentively. "I am sorry… I will slow our searching down… It will take some time for me to recover, at least till tommorow night I guess… Miss Winry…" his head dropped as the expression of hurt emerged onto his face, "she will have to wait longer…"
"It's ok, Edward," she assured him in a soft tone. "She knows that we will come for her. Don't worry about that. Just sleep now."
"How can I sleep when she is somewhere there, all alone and in danger?" he clenched his fists. "We need to find her quickly. I can't stand the thought that something could happen to her…"
Riza watched as he pursed his lips in determination.
"Edward," she asked quietly. "You really do love her, don't you?"
He looked up at her and his golden eyes held only pure sincerity.
"Yes, I do…and I'll do anything to protect her."
Riza left the room a dozen or so minutes later, when he finally fell asleep, tired from travelling for long hours. She closed the door behind her, careful not to wake him up again. She then turned around to go to her own room next door, but stopped abruptly when she was faced with a raven-haired man.
"Sir Mustang!" she said, trying to exclaim and whisper at the same time. An interesting effect indeed.
"How is he?"
"He'll be fine, he has just a few bruises…though quite painful ones," she added. "We'll be able to set off tommorow. More importantly, what are you doing here?"
"Aren't you happy that I came, miss Riza?" he cocked an eyebrow playfully.
She glanced at the door that she had just closed.
"I'm not going to argue with you here. Edwards needs to rest."
He followed her to her room. When they were left alone again, she crossed her arms on her chest.
"I told you that you're not going with me, sir Mustang."
"But you have no objections to Edward accompanying you. So why should you mind me, miss Riza? And now you know how useful I can be sometimes," he smirked. She didn't fall for that one.
"Edward is a different story, sir Mustang. How ever come that you found us here?"
"I've been chasing after you all day long. I told you to wait for me, but you wouldn't listen. What other choice did I have? I set off as soon as I could."
Riza sighed in defeat. "Guess I have no other option but to take you with us…"
"Guess you don't, miss Riza."
"But!" she pointed out, "you're going to obey everything I say, sir Mustang. I don't want you to cause any problems."
His shoulders dropped. "Yes, miss Riza. As you wish."
Edward really wouldn't get better untill the dusk. Even then he could barely stand or sit, or hold his spine in a straightened position at all, but he insisted on continuing the travel. Ling was a foreigner, if he truly was the one who had kidnapped Winry (which none of them doubted), he would take her to his castle abroad. They needed to hurry.
They set off at the dusk and decided to ride for the whole night. For a fine couple of hours they were trotting through the forests and across the fields. The night was fortunately a fine one, with countless stars ornamenting the dark sky. The moonlight was shining on the three riders, who were restlessly traversing the country to rescue Riza's younger sister.
However, after about four hours of riding, Ed's body eventually protested against treating it so lightly. He bend down in his saddle, trying to suppress the whimper that escaped his mouth nonetheless. Riza glanced over him and stopped her horse. The two men followed her suit.
"Edward, does it still hurt?" she quickly stood by his side.
"No, miss Riza, just a little," he lied, tentatively straightening himself. "Let's go further."
"Absolutely not," she objected, stopping him by grabbing the reins of his horse. "You still need to rest, Edward."
"But miss Riza, Winry is…"
"It wouldn't do if you appeared there with your back arched forth and unable to move," she pointed out. "If you don't deal with it once and for all, it will haunt you forever. Just take as much rest as you need and then we will continue the travel, since nothing would be stopping us then."
He dropped his gaze to the ground. "It sounds right, miss Riza, but most of all I need to know that Winry is safe. I can endure a little pain."
"That doesn't seem like 'a little pain', Edward," she said sternly. "Don't argue with me, we're taking a break."
"But miss Riza…"
"I will say no more."
"Yes, miss Riza…" he finally complied, though very unwillingly.
They tied the horses by the reins to the nearby trees and they lit a bonfire. Riza made sure that Ed was wrapped in warm blankets before she let him lie down. He didn't seem happy, but he dared not to disobey her. He somehow managed to suppress his anxiety and stay relatively calm, for that was the only wise thing to do in that situation. Soon he fell asleep again, more out of the overwhelming boredom than of anything else.
Riza, on the other hand, could not sleep at all. She was walking back and forth restlessly. Her footsteps were almost inaudible though, as if she was just gliding over the soft grass. Roy watched her with amazement. The moonlight exposed every perfect curve of her body. The low, square-shaped neck of her dress displayed even more than he could ever ask for. Or on the second thought, maybe not more than that. He was Roy Mustang, after all.
But he could not tear his eyes away from her. He had always had a soft spot for beautiful women, and truth to be said, vice versa. Actually, the only one who appeared to be immune to his charm was this particular one, currently walking in circles in front of him. His black orbs followed her, moving to the right and to the left, as if he was watching a swinging pendulum. The long, puffed skirt of her dress was swaying with her every step, playing with the slight wind that was swirling around them. And her hair, her long, golden hair shimmered in the moonlight, circling her head with a crown of pale light. She looked like an angel.
No, she was an angel.
Roy stood up from his spot near the fire and walked up to her.
"Maybe you should rest a bit too, miss Riza," he said quietly, not wanting to wake up the sleeping kid. "You've been through a lot recently."
"I'll be fine," she replied, shaking her head.
"At least sit near the fire, it will warm you up. The night is getting colder."
She smiled faintly. "You seem to be fond of fire, sir Mustang. You've been sitting there for a longer time."
"It calms me down," he conceded. "Maybe you should try it too."
"It's useless, sir Mustang," she hung her head down.
He gazed at her for a moment before he spoke: "You're worried about your sister, right?"
She didn't want to admit it; not in front of the man whom she perceived as a sheer womanizer and dumbass. But before she could hold her tongue back, she found herself confessing:
"No matter how I try to convince myself, I can't stop thinking about everything that could happen to Winry. I say all those things to Edward, but they are just lies. I don't think that she is safe. But what can I do? I can't tell him that, he loves her so much…"
She embraced herself with her arms. Was it really getting colder, or was it that pervasive feeling of uncertainty and anxiety?
And then she felt a pair of strong arms wrapping around her. She gasped quietly as Roy pulled her closer and hugged her tightly.
"You're worrying too much, miss Riza," he said silently. "Remember that Ling wanted to marry Winry. He must've had some sort of purpose in this. He would not harm her, he needs her alive. People don't kidnap others just to kill them afterwards. If that was the case, they would do it on the spot. I'm pretty sure that miss Winry is fine at the moment."
She closed her eyes, striving to believe his words. "Are you saying this just to console me?"
"No, miss Riza," his hand caressed her head gently. Something she would never expect of him. "I'm saying this because I know that it's true."
"Sir Mustang?"
"Yes, miss Riza?"
"You are a womanizer and you are proud beyond belief," she begun. His brows went up in surprise as she clung to his shirt tightly. "But for the time being I can forget about this. Because you've just helped me a lot. I'd never thought I'd say such a thing to you, but…thank you. Thank you so much, sir Mustang."
"You're welcome, miss Riza," he smiled softly. "You're welcome."
"But don't think that you've gotten me already," she threatened. "I'm simply grateful to you, and nothing more."
"I would not dare to expect anything more, miss Riza," his smile widened a bit.
"Good. Because I'm not one of those girls that fall for you so easily."
"Now that I think about it, you've always been a tough one, miss Riza. You've actually never given into my courtship."
"Your seduction, you mean."
"You're so tough on me…"
"If so, then I guess Winry could actually be right. She always says that I'm tough on people."
"Especially on me."
"She says that too. She could never understand how I can refuse you."
"To be honest, I do not understand it either. But if miss Winry was on my side, then I'll do anything to bring her back."
"You know that she is not going to respond to your advances. She's in love with someone else."
The both gazed at Edward, sleeping under the blankets. He shifted and muttered something like "Winry…marry…" and then went silent again.
"Sweet, isn't he?" Riza raised an eyebrow, smiling at the one who was so ready to risk and even lose his own life for the sake of her sister.
"Indeed, he is," conceded Roy. "Though I can't understand how she could fall in love with someone so short."
"She says love isn't whimsical. I say love is blind."
He glanced at her, astounded. "Miss Riza, that sounds as if you had never been in love!"
"I have," she rolled her eyes. "But it was long ago. I've changed a lot since that time."
"Is that so?"
"I assure you that now I am not so quick to fall in love, sir Mustang."
"So there is no man who has captured your heart?" he asked in a poetic manner. "No man who anxiously awaits your return, and the one whom you would miss? The man whom your mind dwells on during starry nights like this…"
"No, sir Mustang," she cut him out unceremoniously. "There is none. I'm sorry to disappoint you. But on the other hand you are quite similar. You flirt with many women, yet you don't love any. Isn't that right, sir Mustang?"
He gazed down at her, silent for a moment. His eyes slid over her big, amber eyes, over her beautiful face, and then over stray strands of her hair, falling loosely onto her shoulders. Then he spoke, somewhat tentatively though.
"Yes, miss Riza. You're right."
He was still staring her into the eyes. She looked up at him, her gaze meeting the onyx orbs. There was silence, only somewhere in the distance a nightingale started its song. The wind circled around them, enclosing them into their own private space. They were standing there, unable to tear their eyes from each other. Riza's heart, for an unknown reason, started beating somewhat faster…
This was driving at something wrong.
"Let go of me," she more whispered than actually said. He released her, and she took a step back. She tidied up her dress and added: "Maybe I'll go rest a bit after all."
"Yeah, sure," he agreed, watching her walk up to the bags and pull out a blanket. "Of course, miss Riza."
Winry was sitting on her feet, hands tightly tied behind her. Crap. How had she gotten herself into this mess?
The door opened to reveal sir Ling, who smirked self-confidently at the sight in front of him.
"I can hear that you had given up on screaming for help, miss Winry," he said, walking up to her and lowering his head so that his face would be on the same level as hers.
"I don't find it appropriate anymore, sir Ling," she answered cooly. "I came to the conclusion that at least I should show some manners, since you do not seem to have any."
His eyes narrowed, but he did not dare to slap her. "Be careful, miss Winry," he hissed instead. "You're in my power now. I highly recommend you behave yourself."
"Is that a threat, sir Ling?"
"You can say that, miss Winry."
"Now, sir Ling, we both know you need me here. You wouldn't have kidnapped me if that was not the case. You will not harm me until I am of no use to you anymore. If so, I would at least like to know what you are planning to do with me."
That was the question that kept popping up in her head from the very beginning. And the answer that she suspected to hear wasn't quite the one that could please her.
"Is it not obvious, miss Winry?" he replied, a nasty smirk crossing his features. "The plans have not altered at all. You are going to become my wife, as it had been set so."
Oh yeah. That was The Answer.
"You could've married me without kidnapping me, sir Ling," she said, but knew that it was simply a lie. Just as he knew it. "My father was very willing to give me to you as your wife."
"But you weren't so eager, now were you? Honestly, I don't think you would let me marry you. In my humble opinion, you would just run away with that peasant of yours…"
"How dare you call him a peasant?" her pretty face twisted with fierce anger. "He is an honest and noble man, unlike you! And what is more, he loves me, which cannot be said about you!"
"You're wrong, miss Winry," he whispered huskily, approaching her even more. His nose almost touched hers before she rapidly pulled back with disgust. "You are a pretty one…" he trailed his finger along her cheek. Unfortunately, she couldn't do much about it, for her hands were still tied up. "And as a proof…"
He abruptly captured her lips with his ones, kissing her passionately. However, he was forced to pull away after a short moment.
"You…" he begun, touching his lower lip which was starting to bleed. "How dare you…"
No more would he hold himself back. He smacked her across the cheek so hard that she lost her balance and almost fell to the floor.
"We will see who wins, miss Winry," he said, lifting himself up. "I am pretty sure that you will be my wife in at most two days. The priests are extremely easy to bribe this times, you know."
He smirked as he watched her blue eyes widen in horror.
"I am never going to say 'yes'," she said finally.
"Oh, we shall see about that, miss Winry," he said, waving his hand. "There are a lot of people whom I could use to convince you to do so…I think your sister would be the best one."
"Don't you dare touch Riza," she hissed.
"It's simple, miss Winry," he answered, pretending a polite tone. "If you marry me, then your sister will be perfectly safe, believe me. I am not asking for much, am I?"
With that he exited the room, leaving Winry anxiously biting her lower lip. Then her eyes started to water.
"Ed…" she whispered to the empty space. "Ed, where are you?"
A/N: Oh yeah. It's getting pretty interesting, for me at least. I've never planned it to come out this way. I mean, with Riza as a hostage. Oh well, I'll see what I can do with it. Oh yeah, I already have some idea…
Hm. Sounds scary.
As always, review!
