Author's Notes: So I really enjoyed writing this one, if only because I got to write a character that I've never written before. There are so many parallels between Lan Fan and Riza that it wounds me, and I need like 500 more fics about these two incredible and protective women. Again, this one is connected to the "A".


B is for Bride


The gardens were quite possibly the most beautiful and enchanting part of the Royal Palace. Riza found that she naturally gravitated to the colorful and lush gardens during the few moments that she had some time to herself. If she was not standing in Roy's shadow or at his side while they met with some of the higher members of the court, princes and princess of other clans, and others that were highly esteemed, then she found herself wrapped up in the any sort of adventures that Alphonse or May could conjure for them.

Both the princess and younger Elric were ecstatic to have them around and gave them an enthusiastic and incredible view of the city, all the while somehow managing to give Roy and Riza much needed personal space and time together. How they managed to do that in such a large city was beyond her, but she was quite grateful for it nonetheless. She and Roy hadn't had many opportunities to do such things back in Amestris.

Still, Riza was someone that quite liked time to herself. It gave her a chance to recuperate and gather her thoughts. This trip had certainly put a lot of thoughts in her mind that she'd actively avoided thinking about. She didn't have the skill to sort through everything on her mind while in the presence of other people, not like Roy, and so she needed quiet times where she could recharge and think about everything.

A trip through the gardens gave her the perfect opportunity to do so. While Roy was having a meeting with the emperor and the highest members of the court, Riza was given a chance to have some alone time. Sure, it had disgruntled her at first, not being able to stand at his side and guard his back, but Roy had given her a reassuring look that everything would be fine, wiggling his gloved fingers at her. Besides, if Riza thought she had been put out by not being allowed into the room with Roy, it was nothing compared to the silent stormy look on Lan Fan's face. She was going to be married to the man in a day's time, but she still considered herself her bodyguard.

Poor girl, Riza mused with a smile on her face as she looked down at the koi fish in a small, man-made pond. It wasn't easy loving a man that you had promised to protect with your life.

As if her thoughts were able to bring reality to life, Riza rounded a deep green tree on the curvy path and nearly collided with the young Xingese woman. Lan Fan came to a sudden halt, blinking in surprise for a second before a scowl crossed her face. Riza could tell that Lan Fan was not angry with her, but with herself at having not noticed that she was alone in the garden. After all, couldn't Lan Fan detect another person's chi? She must have been lost in thought to not have noticed Riza's presence.

Riza smiled pleasantly. "Frustrated at not being able to attend the meeting?"

There was that hint of surprise again in Lan Fan's eyes, but then she clamped down on it, pressing her mouth into a thin line and then nodded her head. "I am not used to…not being with him," she admitted, a blush taking over her face.

Lan Fan was a beautiful young woman and remarkable too, from what Riza had seen. She'd cut off her own useless arm in order to protect the young man she'd sworn her life to, had an automail replacement, and fought in the last battle on the Promised Day less than a year later. She was the type of person that Riza could not be more amazed by and proud of as well. After all, Riza could understand that the devotion that Lan Fan carried within her towards Ling, not just her love. Was that not what had drawn her to serve under Roy all those years ago after the Ishval War, even after all that he had done?

"The General has a terrible habit of getting himself into trouble," Riza said thoughtfully, almost like she was talking to herself, her gaze sweeping through the garden. It caught Lan Fan's attention though, her eyes snapping to Riza's face. "He's brilliant and an incredibly powerful alchemist, but there are times when his heart overrules his mind, and he can do some fantastically stupid things."

"The Emperor is the same way," Lan Fan huffed. "When we first traveled to Amestris, he would disappear from my grandfather and me. He made so many rash decisions."

Such as allowing a homunculus to invade him and use his body as a vessel. It had given him a Philosopher's Stone, yes, but he'd been hijacked by another soul as well for a time until they had come to work together. A rash decision indeed.

Something else tickled Riza's curiosity. "You still refer to the Emperor by his titles?"

"It is only proper," Lan Fan insisted stubbornly. Oh, how that must frustrate the young emperor. The woman he was going to marry was still captured by everything she had been raised on and taught. Riza couldn't help but think of another person that was perturbed by someone's insistence to always be professional.

"He will be your husband as of tomorrow," Riza pointed out, "and you the Empress of Xing."

That seemed to take away Lan Fan's breath. She paled slightly, her dark eyes widening further, as if she was suddenly coming to the realization of what marrying Ling Yao would mean for her. No longer would she be a simple member of the Yao clan or the emperor's bodyguard, but a member of royalty in her homeland. There had been no true empress of Xing in many years, as the tradition had been for the emperor to merely take on concubines from the clans in order to produce heirs. Lan Fan would be the first and she would pave the path for all the empresses to come after her.

"I do not…" The young woman attempted to steel herself again and reign in her emotions, but she didn't have the usual mask of a bodyguard to hide behind anymore. Her gaze dropped to the ground. "I do not know what it means to be royalty. I am nothing more than a shadow. I told him that, time and time again, but he would not listen. He said that I am his sun, that I bring light to his world, but I…I do not…"

Riza could somehow tell exactly what Lan Fan was thinking. She honestly believed that she was beneath Ling and she was scared that she was little more than another one of his rash decisions. Lan Fan was a stronger woman than most and had probably been raised as such. Wearing a light purple traditional Xingese dress instead of the old bodyguard garb that she'd worn in Amestris, she tugged the long sleeves over her automail hand, like she was trying to hide it and who she was. How torn she must be, feeling both happy and scared about the future.

"He loves you," Riza said gently, "and you love him. You're a strong and brave woman. You will grow into this."

Lan Fan moved her arm across her chest to grip onto her automail arm. "You make it sound so easy, Captain Hawkeye, but I worry that I shame my family for loving him so. It was not my place, and yet I did." She finally raised her eyes up again to meet Riza's. They were as dark as Roy's. "How do you find peace with that?"

The question caught Riza off guard, causing her to quirk up an eyebrow. "Find peace with what?"

"You and General Mustang." Lan Fan looked truly confused. "How did you come to terms with loving the man that you swore your life to protect?"

This time, Riza was the one to blush, her cheeks heating up so much that she felt like her face might actually be on fire. Even worse, she could tell that Lan Fan was being earnest with her question and truly wanted to know the answer. Just how had Riza made peace with falling in love with the man whose back she was supposed to guard? How had she learned to accept loving a man who she might have to kill if he ever became too far gone? How was she handling loving someone that she could never truly be with or know that she loved?

"It's…different with us," Riza said.

"You serve under him, yes?" Lan Fan persisted. Riza nodded her head. "And he entrusted you to protect him." Riza nodded once more. "But you love him, even when you should not. You do not seem as troubled by it."

She made it seem so simple, but then again, she was a commoner about to marry an emperor. The strange urge to laugh bubbled up inside Riza. She had no idea where it came from and yet it rested in her chest. This girl brought up so many things that had sat in Riza's mind for quite some time, even if she hadn't acknowledged them herself. It was never that she didn't think herself good enough for Roy. On the contrary, Roy had more than once told her that he didn't think he was good enough for her. However, she had thought that it wasn't her place to love him. She was supposed to protect him, help him rise to the top, nothing more. And yet, she could not stop herself from loving him for her life. It was as involuntary as breathing and perhaps as necessary too.

"I am troubled by it," Riza finally admitted. "I'm concerned that my personal feelings towards my commanding officer might jeopardize his future and goals. I fear that I'm being selfish and that I do not deserve such things." Lan Fan's earnest expression fell. These were not the words that she wanted to hear, but they were the truth and Riza was not known for sugarcoating things or lying. Still, Riza smiled slightly. "But love is not a logical emotion and it's certainly not controllable. We've been together for many years. Every time we were separated, we always found each other again. I'm sure he would say something about fate bringing us together. I could not imagine loving someone else or wanting to, even if it would make things so much easier and less painful."

Lan Fan bit her lip. "When the Emperor…when Ling first told me that he loved me, I begged him to tell me that he was lying. And when he refused, I did not speak to him for two weeks. He never cornered me or questioned me or demanded that I speak with him. He waited and gave me the time I needed before I realized that I could not stand to be parted from him for one more second." She shook her head. "I ask myself daily: why do I love such a difficult man? My life would be so much easier if I had not."

Oh yes, Riza could understand that perfectly. It would have been so easy if Roy had not returned her feelings, if he had not been the one to cross the carefully drawn boundary lines and kiss her, if he had never murmured that he loved her while they laid in bed together and he traced the scars the marred her skin. She'd been so terrified then. She still was now, if she was being honest. Roy had always had a troublesome relationship with rules. He was told from the day they met to leave her alone and that he was not to form any sort of personal relationship with her, so of course he would go ahead and fall in love with her.

Much like Riza and Roy, Lan Fan and Ling had never stood a chance.

"Easier, yes, but better?" Riza looked up to the blue sky, watching as a few white birds flew overhead. "I would not trade what I feel for anything."

When Riza looked back at the young woman, Lan Fan gave her a hopeful look. "Maybe one day, you and the General…"

Riza smiled. "Maybe. Until that day, I've got a job to do."

"You are perhaps a better bodyguard than me," Lan Fan said, a light chuckle following her words.

"I will never stop protecting him," Riza said, "as I'm sure you won't either."

Just as she was nodding her head in agreement, Lan Fan froze and a blank expression returned to her face when she caught sight of something behind Riza. When she turned around, Riza found Roy standing some ways behind them in the gardens, standing attentively as he waited for her. He was back in his military uniform since he'd been in the meeting with the emperor. After murmuring a goodbye to Lan Fan, who thanked her quietly, Riza walked towards Roy.

"Are you hungry?" Roy asked when she reached him. "Alphonse said that he wanted to make lunch for us. He apparently took a lot of lessons from the royal chef and has become quite the cook."

"Lunch sounds great." Riza had found that the food in Xing was different from the Xingese food that she'd had during festivals or any of the little restaurants that had popped up. It was taking her a little longer to get used to all the spices used, unlike Roy who had taken to the food with particular fanaticism, but she liked it. She also liked the fact that Alphonse could eat the food that he cooked now that he had his body. Such a simple thing, but it made her smile even years later.

As they made their way through the palace, Roy gave her a curious sideways glance. "So what did you and the future Empress talk about?"

"The foolish men that we protect," Riza teased. When Roy gave her a rather affronted look, a small smile crossed her face, one that was almost too small to be seen. She knew that Roy caught it though. "And love."

Roy hummed contently and nodded his head, returning his gaze forward again. At their sides, their hands brushed against each other and he gripped her fingers to squeeze them for just a second before letting go and sliding his hand into his pocket. No, it wasn't easy and he was definitely the most difficult man she knew, but Riza loved him with her life and would protect him with it too. She'd accepted that a long time ago.