a/n: Short chapter, I know. The 5th one's a bit longer, and there was just no nicer way to cut them. But on the bright side, Roy Mustang is starting to become involved in the plot. (Or maybe for some people that's a bad thing?)

The new character Ellice was created by by MorganR08 over on GaiaOnline. I'm writing a separate fanfic on commission for her, and I had some cool ideas for how the two stories could merge. So, while the plots may seem separate for a bit, I promise they do come together, and that Ellice and Mika are the only OC's in the story.

Thanks for reading!

Chapter 4:

Roy Mustang hated losing face. It was something he went out of his way to avoid. So on a routine evening investigation, when he proudly stepped forward to give his enemy a taste of his namesake flame alchemy, only to have Riza point out that his attack was worthless in the rain, it felt, he hated to admit, outright humiliating.

And with our newest state alchemist standing there watching too, he thought to himself. How much more embarrassed can I make myself?

The bar was quiet tonight, no brawls, no knife fights, no people using public property to show off their amateurish alchemy skills. Roy tried to view that as a positive, but his glumness overwhelmed him. He was supposed to be fighter for position of fuhrer. When had King Bradley needed to call on his subordinates to clean up his mistakes? Never.

"Hey, there, sir. Got a lot on your mind?"

Roy looked up to see state alchemist Ellice leaning against a bar stool, her crimson hair dark with rainwater. Their newest state alchemist showed no lack of fashion. A black sleeveless dress hugged her petite figure, accented by a sharp red belt with a matching cut-off jacket that stopped short at her waist. He had a fleeting thought of what Riza Hawkeye might look like wearing the same outfit and pushed the image away for another time.

Ellice, meanwhile, brushed her bangs aside as they dripped streaks of water down her face.

"If I've observed anything about you in these first few days, Colonel Mustang," she said, "It's that you only come to bars like this when you're seriously worked up."

Mustang tightened his grip on the glass in front of him. He was trying to avoid everyone he knew at the moment; Ellice walking in on his self-pity party wasn't helping.

"I'm fine," he said. "A little frustrated with my own performance, is all." Roy turned away from Ellice's gaze and picked up the glass, sloshing the liquid around. Ellice said nothing. She didn't even move. Mustang shifted uneasily on the bar stool. What was she thinking right now, anyway?

"Are you sitting down, major," he asked. "Or did you just come here to watch me drown my sorrows?" He glanced at her, just for a second, quick enough that he hoped she wouldn't notice. She did notice. She was staring right at him.

"That's actually something I prefer not to watch if I can help it," she said. She leaned over further, her hair almost touching his face. "If you don't mind my saying so, I think there are better ways to get rid of sorrow than your current tactic."

Mustang laughed and plunked the glass down in front of him. "Is that so? Well, then, major, what is your suggestion?"

She smiled and straightened up, the lights from the bar flickering off the surface of her jacket. "Come on," she said. "I'll show you."

#

"So…" said Greed slowly as he walked alongside Martel, who was determined to find Mika something to eat. They'd been walking through the woods for a while, hoping that the next town would have a place they could lay low for a while. Or at least, that it wouldn't have a population that'd been wiped out from disease.

While Greed talked, Martel strode from one bush to another, fingering the branches for any edible fruit.

"What happened to the Full Metal kid?" Greed finally asked. She almost looked insulted that he had brought up the subject.

"He kept following me around until I ditched him," she muttered back. "Seemed determined that you'd killed some helpless old lady or something… these are okay." Here she took out her knife and cut a branch of berries from a nearby bush. She handed them to Mika, who began to nibble happily. A little fruit wasn't going to hold long in the child's stomach, though, and she continued to move forward, looking for something more substantial.

"Helpless old woman, my foot," mumbled Greed. "That witch nearly killed me."

"Who was she, boss?" Martel asked quietly, pausing from her work. Greed glanced back at Mika for a moment before answering.

"Someone from a long time ago…" he finally said.

"The one who sealed you?" At first, Greed was surprised. He'd never said anything about his past to her. Then again, Martel wasn't stupid. Just that fact that he remained silent after her question was enough of an affirmation for her.