Snapshots from the Past

A/n: Thanks to ssadropout who reviewed the 5th and 6th snapshot and BlackBrightField2007 for the review of the previous snapshot! I'm glad dropout likes the Chris and Roy snapshot I made...

Disclaimer: If Fullmetal Alchemist belonged to me, would my name be StarCatcher?

7: Loneliness

Daddy became more and more absorbed in his alchemy researches after Mommy's death. He only came out to cook and prepare food and stayed in his study the rest of the day. Roy also stayed in the study from the time he finished eating breakfast until around sunset, so Riza felt lonely most of the day. Daddy now banned her from his study so she couldn't even listen to his and Mr. Mustang's lessons. Daddy had also stopped reading to her at night. Riza had little things to do because she couldn't read or write yet. Daddy had taught her a little bit, but she found it hard to do herself.

So Riza spent most of her spring days in the garden alone. It was much lonelier than before. There were no voices of children from inside the house and the birds had stopped singing since Mommy's death. And there was hardly a squirrel in the garden now. It was boring most of the time! Riza would usually sit under her favorite birch tree, picking on the grass and eventually drift off to sleep. She now had no interest in coloring – nobody wanted to see the pictures she colored, anyway.

Riza was most excited when the sun began to move west. It meant Mr. Mustang's lesson was nearly over! She would enter the almost dark manor and wait in front of Daddy's study. She would press an ear to the study door and wait until her father said "Dismissed" and Mr. Mustang thanked him. She would listen to Mr. Mustang's footfalls approaching the door. Once he came out, she would silently follow him to his room or the living room. He would ask what she did the whole day, attempting to make a conversation, and she would reply she did nothing. She would politely ask him back about his lessons, which he would explain, and out of discussion topic, they would sit together in silence. The silence was quite comfortable for Riza as the most important to her was the company, but for Roy, it was awkward. He wasn't used to quietness at all. In about half an hour, Daddy would emerge from his study and prepare dinner. Dinner was yet another quiet affair. Daddy always cooked simple food such as soup consisted of whatever vegetables and meat available in the house or sandwich. And Daddy's cooking would almost always be bland. The three of them would eat in silence. After dinner, Roy would play outside the manor with the village boys and Riza would follow him quietly, watching the games they played. The village boys ignored Riza most of the time, but sometimes they would offer her to shoot with a catapult or throw a ball or run a race with them. Riza had an amazing aim and she was quite a good runner even though her feet were still small (well, at least she could beat Mr. Mustang, which meant she came second-to-last in races. But the boys said she was quick for her age.). They would return to the house at about 9. Daddy would still be in his study when they came back, and they would creep into the bathroom silently to brush their teeth. They would creep into their own bedrooms and attempt to sleep after that. Sometimes Roy would creep into Riza's room instead, and read her a bedtime story before going to bed.

On Sundays, Daddy would spend the whole day in the study alone and Roy would play outside the whole day. Riza, as usual, would follow him around wherever he went like how Mary's lamb always followed Mary. Daddy never prepared lunch on Sundays, so Roy would make sandwiches and take some fruits and two bottles of milk and ask Riza and have a picnic in the garden.

Riza's days were always quiet, lonely and uneventful. She always felt lonely lately, but she would never complain to anyone and act as if everything were still the same. How she wished the old days would come back!


A/n: Yeah, another drabble-ish one. I just had to write this for... some reasons. I kind of like this, though, although it's short and rather... pointless XD So, erm... Review, please?