UNDERCOVER

It feels like I haven't written this in forever. You all have probably either given up on this story or are extremely annoyed at me. So I suppose in this situation I'm supposed to say something like; "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, just please don't kill me!" or something. But I really am sorry.

madwriterontheloose

Insert Standard Disclaimer Here

Chapter 4: Just Another Normal Day

"GOOD MORNING!" The shout vibrated through the walls, as Roy pulled the covers tighter around himself. Moaning slightly, and contemplating whether to get up, or to go back to sleep, he lay within his warm covers. Soon, his mind became foggy, and just as he was about to drift back off to sleep, his door was rudely kicked open. "Rise and shine!"

Roy groaned and groggily looked up. "Please…no more paperwork," he begged of the silhouette standing in his doorway. It cocked its head.

"What are you talking about, Roy?" Roy blinked a few times, and the person finally came into focus.

"Who are you?" he inquired, still in a daze.

"It's Mouse, Roy," Hawkeye answered, sticking her head into the doorway, "Mouse, remember?" Not surprisingly, it looked like she had already been up for hours. Roy gave a noncommittal response and flopped back onto his bed, promptly falling asleep.

"He really isn't a morning person," Mouse commented as she and Hawkeye left Roy in search of breakfast. Hawkeye nodded smiling slightly. Mouse smiled back.

"Well, whatever! I can just hang out with you!" She dragged Hawkeye behind her as she walked through the hideout located under the city of Reole. This place is a lot bigger than I thought, Hawkeye noted, it's kind of like a city. That is, if cities were damp and dark and secretly filled with some sort of makeshift Mafia. In fact, there were places that appeared to be shops, and a few that even seemed to be restaurants. Furthermore, it was filled with all sorts of people.

"Why is Reole so deserted, and this place is crawling with people?" Hawkeye probed, still surveying their surroundings.

"That's because as soon as the revolt started, all of these military people showed up. That's why a lot of us moved underground. They were willing to do anything to stop the 'public unrest,' even if it meant using force." Mouse's voice became unexpectedly somber. "Most of us just wanted to improve our lives, even if by just a little bit. We live in the East, near Ishbal, after all. During the Ishbal extermination campaign, we had all sorts of people coming through here. It was so scary, all the time wondering if the fighting would ever reach this far. Plenty of people died, and we were resentful of the military." Hawkeye gave her companion a sidelong glance. She didn't quite know what to say, and they lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. Finally, after what seemed like an immeasurable amount of time, Mouse spoke up again.

"I'm sorry, Riza. I shouldn't have said anything." She sounded truly apologetic, although Hawkeye felt she had no reason to be. "I mean, a lot of the people here have those kinds of resentments and grudges. You wouldn't be able to believe how sad some of their stories are." They stopped at a shabby looking shop, and Mouse guided them to a table. The shop was filled with a rowdy group of people, and Hawkeye was on alert. They all looked dangerous. Her hand went instinctively towards the familiar gun on her hip, as Mouse ordered their food.

"Thank you," Hawkeye said respectfully. Mouse nodded as she slurped up what appeared to be eggs.

"There's no need to be so formal. We're friends, right? You know, you're always so serious, Riza," Mouse commented after she had finished. "I know I haven't known you for a long time, but you should really lighten up. They do say that laughter is the best medicine. You should smile more."

"Eh?" Hawkeye was momentarily taken aback. Mouse seemed inspired.

"Yeah! I'd love to hear you laugh! I bet it would sound really pretty," she coaxed.

"What are you talking about?" Hawkeye gave an impression of stoicism, but if you looked closely enough, you could tell she was actually really flustered.

"Maybe if I told jokes, you'd laugh?" Mouse was enthusiastic, "But you probably wouldn't get them." Mouse spent the next few minutes telling jokes so crummy that I won't even bother writing them down. After the fifth one, Hawkeye just tuned her out.

Do I really seem so antisocial? Hawkeye wondered. Well, I guess I might. But I do laugh! Occasionally… And I guess if I started grinning all the time at work, everyone would think there was something wrong with me. Somehow, the thought made her a bit sad. Maybe I should loosen up a little.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me!?" Mouse yelled, frustrated at the lack of success she was having.

"Hmm?" Hawkeye blinked, slowly coming back into focus. Mouse ground her teeth, hands clenched.

"That's it!" she declared. "If you're not going to laugh the normal way, then I'll just tickle you!" She lunged out of her seat, arms out stretched, heading toward Hawkeye…

Only to land flat on her face in the pavement. There were a few moments of silence, with Hawkeye staring down at her, face frozen in a strange looking expression.

Hawkeye really had no idea what was happening. One moment, the girl was saying disturbing things about tickling her and in the next she was lying face down on the ground. Really, this whole morning had been nothing short of absurd. And while looking down at Mouse, who had gazed up with a dirty face, the last unusual thing finally happened. She felt an uncontrollable urge come over her, which rose up and came out of her mouth as soft sounding giggles and grew to become a full sized laugh. After a few moments, Mouse joined in, and somehow, it didn't really matter anymore to Hawkeye that all of the dangerous looking people in there were staring at them.

Mouse found herself glancing continuously at Hawkeye, feeling satisfied. She had no idea how it started, but she was glad she had at last gotten the stoic woman to laugh. She looked a lot happier this way. They had left the shop with a companionable silence between them, and headed back towards their quarters, since everyone would probably be awake by now. She vaguely wondered where Ralf had gone off to, and she couldn't really believe it was already 11.

Hawkeye was preoccupied with her own thoughts. She liked how Mouse had seemed really determined to get her to lighten up. No one has ever really paid that much attention to me before, she realized. I kind of enjoyed it. And it because they were both so keen on thinking, no one noticed the girl standing in front of them until they were right on top of her.

"Sorry," Hawkeye apologized to the girl, "I didn't see you."

"I noticed," she replied, dusting herself off. "Hi, Mouse."

"Hi, Hikaru!" Mouse greeted her. "Where do you come from?" At these words, Hawkeye gave the girl another glance. So this was the famous girl their guard, Keath, couldn't shut up about. She seemed ordinary enough, with long black hair and piercing gray eyes, so Hawkeye couldn't understand what all the fuss was about. Then again, she never understood the Colonel's taste in women either. The last one looked like a gorilla in a dress.

"This is Riza," Mouse introduced. Hawkeye gave her a curt nod, and she nodded back. They resumed walking, and Mouse chattered nonstop to their new companion about things Hawkeye didn't really care about. When they reached their rooms, they were rewarded with the amusing expression Keath made as he dropped his spear onto his foot.

"Ah, Hikaru…hi," he stuttered breathlessly, a nervous smile plastered on his face. "What brings you here?" The poor boy looked like a fool.

"Just escorting Mouse," Hikaru replied. "I'll be going now."

"Ah, wait! D-do you want to get something to eat?"

"I just ate," she said. "And besides, I have work to do later." Then she really did leave, leaving Keath to gawk after her.

"There's always next time," Mouse consoled him, rubbing his back comfortingly. He didn't seem to hear her. Mouse sighed, and walked to Roy's room.

"Should we just leave him there?" Hawkeye asked, hurrying to catch up.

"Just leave him. This always happens." Hawkeye blinked. Always? "First, he'll act all depressed, then for the rest of the day he'll be annoyed at everyone." She knocked on the door, then walked in without waiting for a response.

"I'M HUNGRY!" Roy wailed. "WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME TO STARVE ALL ALONE!?" Armstrong poked his head out from the other room.

"Hrrm? What's all that racket for?" He asked. It looked like he had been in the middle of grooming his mustache. Just then, Ralf appeared from thin air and started exclaiming.

"The King wants to meet you! You've got to hurry!" He shouted, as Roy continued to complain loudly, and Armstrong looked confused. Hawkeye sighed. Maybe it would have been better if I just stayed at that shop all day.

Chapter Four-End

Whew! Well, that's finished. I don't have anything to say this time, except: Please review!

Next Chapter

Roy's having a bad day.