Roy handed Riza off to the paramedics in the parking lot at the front of the building. He climbed into the front seat of the car as they drew her into the back. A paramedic came to the driver's seat and the trip to the hospital began in silence except for the hushed voices of the other paramedics in the back of the car. When they arrived at the hospital Riza was whisked away and Roy was left in the lobby. He waited impatiently, trying to figure out what had happened, why Riza had been set upon in her friend's apartment, but was ultimately unable to think of a good explanation. He was still trying to figure it out when a nurse came into the lobby about ten minutes after he'd arrived.
"Hello, are you related to one of the women that just came in, sir?" Asked the woman adoringly.
"No, not really. Lieutenant Elizabeth Hawkeye is one of my officers. May I see her? I need her to tell me what happened." The colonel responded, for once oblivious to a woman's admiration.
"Oh." The nurse blinked, taken aback by his brisk response. "I believe the doctor is almost finished bandaging up her knees. I'm sure it's fine if you go in. The other woman is in surgery, but Lieutenant Hawkeye is in Room 107." Roy nodded his thanks and then hurried through the door the nurse had come through. When he arrived at Hawkeye's room, he carefully opened the door. Riza looked up with a small grimace as the door opened and the doctor finished wiping a cut on her forearm with an antibacterial solution. She looked ready to stand and salute, but the doctor prevented it.
"Don't even think about it, Lieutenant. Let me wipe off these last few cuts and then you'll be able to move around. Whoever it is will live if you don't salute once." Roy almost had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing at the exasperated look Riza shot at the doctor. Instead he opted for conversation.
"Lieutenant, how are- oh forget it." He thought better of asking Hawkeye about her condition almost immediately. "Doctor, how is she?" The doctor finished wiping off one more small cut at Riza's shoulder with a flourish before turning to face the officer that had entered.
"Well sir, her knees are pretty torn up and she's got some cuts and scrapes, but nothing too serious. I'm done, so I'll leave you to talk, just stick around. Someone at the Lieutenant General's office called to say that he'll be here momentarily to talk to you two, three if Second Lieutenant Blunt is able." Roy pulled a chair over to the side of the hospital bed as the doctor gave Riza some parting instructions and left. As soon as he had left Riza started in.
" Colonel, what were you doing there? You could have been shot and then where would we be? When are you going to learn not to rush into things like that?" She hissed.
"How else am I supposed to protect those below me, Lieutenant? You're worrying too much. I'm just glad that we both got out of there and got your friend to the hospital." It was an old argument, but they would keep at it until he no longer had to put himself in danger trying to protect other people. Riza gingerly shifted so her legs could dangle over the edge of the hospital bed.
"Have you seen her, sir?"
"No, Hawkeye. I'm sorry, she was still in surgery when I came to see you. Perhaps the Lieutenant General will know more when he comes." Roy avoided looking at her for a moment. "How do you know her?"
"Ishbal. She's a sniper." Riza answered simply. No more explanation was needed. "I've been trying to find out if she'd help us when the time comes." Roy nodded at this.
"Would you mind telling me what happened? I assume the fact that you both fought in Ishbal is significant." He queried, already sensing pieces falling into place with the information about how the two women met. Riza swallowed almost imperceptibly before beginning to explain.
"We were in her apartment talking. I'd arrived about fifteen minutes before. We were sitting on a couch in front of the west window. The first shot came through-" Riza stopped abruptly as the door to the room opened yet again. Roy rose quickly to salute the Lieutenant General and Riza followed suit, albeit a bit more slowly because of her injured knees. Lieutenant General Grumman waited for one of the soldiers that had accompanied him to close the door behind him before speaking.
"Colonel, what is the extent of the injuries?" he asked, watching Riza carefully.
"Lieutenant Hawkeye sustained minor cuts from a shattered window and her knees were hurt by glass on the floor. Second Lieutenant Blunt was still in surgery last time I spoke with hospital staff involved. She was shot in the side."
"I have instructed the doctors to alert me of any developments in Second Lieutenant Blunt's surgery. Lieutenant Hawkeye, how do you feel?" Grumman asked, concern evident in his tone.
"I have felt much worse, sir. I will be fine as soon as my knees heal." Riza assured him.
"Good. Now we need to determine a sequence of events so we can file a report and find the criminals that did this. Lieutenant Hawkeye, would you begin please?" Riza explained all that she knew about what had happened. Roy interjected every once in a while to help explain what he had been doing. By the time they had finished they all had a pretty clear idea of what had happened. The urge to truly discuss the events of the evening weighed heavily on the three officers, but they knew that they couldn't at this time, in this place. It was the eldest member of the party that spoke first after the events had been relayed to him.
"Well, this group obviously has significant numbers and has threatened the snipers active during the war. They also mentioned taking revenge on the Colonel. I will pass this information on to the Fuhrer back in Central, who will undoubtedly send it out to commanding officers of the parties concerned. I am not sure what precautions they will take to protect those in their command that have been threatened, but I do know what I intend to do." The older man rose and walked out of the room. He returned a moment later. "I just finished speaking with the Second Lieutenant's surgeon. The surgery did not go quite as well as they had hoped." He explained carefully, watching his granddaughter's eyes widen slightly in alarm. "She did make it through the surgery, but she is unconscious at the moment. The doctor insists that she stay in the hospital for follow up care for at least two weeks. I will have to post a guard at her door to assure her safety." He stopped speaking for a long moment before the Colonel spoke up.
"Sir, what was it that you planned to do to assure the Lieutenant's safety and my own? You mentioned a plan." He prompted respectfully.
"Some of your subordinates are in the lobby, waiting to visit their Lieutenant. You are each to send one back to your respective apartments to pack a few bags with essentials. They are to deliver the bags to my residence this evening. The security there has recently been increased. You will both be my guests as long as this threat remains." Riza opened her mouth to protest, but her grandfather was determined. He gave her a look reminiscent of the ones she was known to give the Colonel before he saluted and left the room. Roy spoke up as they looked at the closed door.
"That seems a bit-" He searched for the right word for a moment. "- drastic."
"I'm sorry sir, it's probably in large part because I'm his only grandchild." Replied Hawkeye. She eased herself off the side of her hospital bed and moved her legs experimentally. Roy made a small affirmative noise as he crossed the room.
"Sir, you're not supposed to know about that." Hawkeye reminded him gently, wincing as she bent her knee too far. He looked up quickly; a small grin crossed his features as he picked Riza's guns up out of the corner where the nurses had put them.
"Oops. Sorry Lieutenant, that's what happens when your best friend is in Intelligence." Riza shook her head at him as he handed her the two weapons. She stood aside to put them on and allow the Colonel to go to the door before she followed him. They had almost reached the door when it banged open. Havoc, Furey, Falman, Breda, and Maes crowded into the small room. After an initial clamor during which the men all ascertained that neither of the officers was seriously injured, the din quieted. Maes piped up, clearly the self appointed spokesman.
"The Lieutenant General told us that you two need bags for your stay in his home. I have Roy's key, so Havoc and I can go pack some bags for you. Lieutenant, I called Gracia at the hotel we're staying in and she said that she could pack your bags. Furey tells me that he has your key to walk Black Hayate, so he'll let Gracia in and bring the bags and the pup over to you."
"Thank you" replied the pair in unrehearsed unison. Everyone laughed at the coincidence before bidding the officers farewell. Had Roy and Riza not been so busy saying goodbye to their subordinates they might have noticed the mischievous gleam in a certain bespectacled friend's eyes.
Author's Note!
Huzzah! Another chapter up and Royai fluff ahoy! Sorry if Grumman seemed OOC, I have rationalized it and it will become more clear in the next chapter. HINT: More reviews More fluff. More fluff More time to perfect action. More fluff + More time to perfect action Better fic! Therefore: More reviews Better fic! hint hint
