Pairings: HughesxGracia. Husband and wife, so it cannot be questioned.
Dedication: winglessfairy25 (or Erinn, whichever you prefer). For your reviews on Pocketwatch, and the previous two chapters of this without complaint of me not yet mentioning you. Thank you for your patience and kind words!
Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist.
Rook
Gracia sighed, looking at the clock that sat upon the top of her mantelpiece. The hands no longer moved, frozen in one place for over twenty years now. The soft tinkling music that had played every hour no longer came, instead leaving her in silence as time passed by. Before she had known it, her life had become fleeting. Days without him had dwindled into weeks, drifting into months, gliding softly to land in a year each time she swore she could hear the machinery inside it tick once more as the cogs began to move and Maes was there again.
Yes, he would be there. When she was around twenty years younger, no wrinkles creasing her careless face. Youthful love that had shown them through, even when Maes had first taken up a position at the military. She was worried, but had been assured it was only paperwork. Nothing could possibly happen to him. He was a lower rank than Mustang and his trusted subordinate Hawkeye, the latter of which had become good friends with Grazia. So there was nothing to worry about, nothing at all. She should be more worried for the Colonel and his First Lieutenant, if anyone had to be fussed about to begin with. After all, it was just a desk job.
So here she sat, old and ripe with age like the bottle of old mulled wine from so many years ago which they had shared on their wedding night. They had never finished it all, and it now sat in her cellar. Almost as aged as was, but still valued. Unlike the wine, she had a mantle to uphold. She could no longer follow tempting offers of her friends. Most of them had passed on. Most of them had moved on, and now she was left. Of course, what did she expect?
He was sitting with her right now, playing chess. Smile on his face as ever, asking her how Elysia was. She smiled back in contentment at her wrinkled husband, telling her she was fine. She was going to a foreign land in some amount of time, to further her studies. She would come here tonight to say goodbye to them both, did he not remember that she told him? He laughed in return, pushing one of his figures forward to stand as a defence for the King.
Just as she was about to go past and win once more with a grin as she said checkmate, the doorbell rang. Although her bones were now old, her hair grey and thin, she pulled herself out of her seat with aching joints from her arthritis and beamed as she managed to open the door with a soft creek. Her daughter of seventeen or so stood there, beaming back at her mother with such a great cheer that she could not help but feel her grin brighten even more.
"Mother, how are you?" She asked, stepping inside as Gracia ushered her in. She nodded to Maes, who smiled at his daughter. She was lucky that she still had such a great family. Lucky they had all their family still here. Still alive. Then she looked at the figure she had moved forward.
She finally feels herself coming back to the harsh reality.
Her eyelids fluttered open to reveal sightseeing orbs that scanned the beige bedroom, and although so much time had passed she felt herself reach out her arms so that she would be able to wrap them around the man who lay next to her. Only to find that he was not there. Such a nice dream, it had been. She felt herself frown, then pulled herself out of bed gently so as not to wake the husband and wife with their only son that lived below her.
Scraping her hair back into a now iron grey bun and putting on her dressing gown, Gracia exited her bedroom without a word. There was nobody to talk to anymore, so none neaded to be said. She found herself going through the lounge area in order to reach the kitchen, only to find herself staring at the clock from so many yesteryears ago. Even though she now was not dreaming, it still did not work. It had belonged to the grandfather of her husband anyway. Not that it mattered now.
Then she saw her reflection shine in the glass protecting the gold hands, although they no longer ticked. She frowned for the second time that morning. She did not look well. Looking down at the chess set beneath it on a small wooden table, she frowned a third time. Somebody had left the pieces out again. Probably Elysia, if she had been around. Not that she could remember.
But Elysia was not there. Elysia was not busy being educated like in her dream, however. Elysia was at work. Shifting paperwork just like her father had done. She was in the military, taking up his mantle. No matter how much her mother had protested. It had not changed anything.
Gracia felt her eyes drift to the Rook, looking at it distainfully. In each chess game it could move horizontally or vertically, forward or back, through any number of unoccupied squares. It also took part in a special move involving the King and itself as a pair known as castling. But only in certain conditions.
One of which was that the King was not able to pass through any squares under attack by enemy pieces. The King, Roy Mustang, would not be attacked by anybody though. The Rook would take the blows for it, just like Maes had done for Mustang. Just like Elysia was now doing as she took up the mantle of her father. After all, Gracia had found out what paperwork had consisted of first hand. So had Elysia. She should know better by now.
Gracia decided that she did not like it at all.
The Rook, that was.
Mhm, I do not actually like the way this one came out. But I wanted to include some HughesxGracia in this, no matter if he is dead or not. Hughes still needs love (although it would make Gracia a slight necrophiliac, when you think about it). So, reviews anyone?