Flame and Fullmetal
Chapter 20 – Horizon of War

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Fullmetal was actually waiting outside for them, sprawled on a bench and staring at a bird's nest in the branches above him. He almost missed them too, but his red jacket was conspicuous enough to flag them down.

Not that he was looking, even vaguely, in their direction, until they were standing in his peripheral vision.

'Umm… sir?' Riza hedged. Fullmetal's unorthodox behaviour still threw her for a bit of a loop. It was the same for Roy, but Roy's upbringing had been a tad unusual in itself so he was better equipped to deal with it. It was, admittedly, amusing to watch Riza flounder every time Fullmetal broke the mould of a proper commander.

'Oh, you're back.' He sat up. 'Let's go for a drink.'

'Aren't you underage?'

Roy had actually forgotten that tidbit. Though Riza might know better, seeing as her grandfather was pretty familiar with him. Familiar enough to entrust him with a special branch - though it still seemed odd that a team dedicated to researching and dealing with alchemic incidents had, in its original incarnation, only one alchemist on it.

'They'll have kid drinks,' Fullmetal shrugged. 'Know a place officers don't often visit?'

Riza and Roy looked at each other. They did, but it was… Roy shrugged. Why not? 'We do,' he said. 'The bartender is a little unusual though.'

'No problem.' He sat up. 'Are they trustworthy?'

'They're my aunt,' Roy said, bemused.

'Are they trustworthy?' Fullmetal repeated, his expression suddenly stiff.

'Aren't family trustworthy?' The idea bewildered the both of them, but Fullmetal's hard expression didn't change. Roy stared at him, wondering. He'd never heard about his parents. Just his brother. 'Yeah, she's trustworthy. She's good friends with General Grumman too.'

His face scrunched in thought. 'Oh, I think I know who you're talking about.' He relaxed and stood. 'Let's go.'

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'Don't think I'm giving you any alcohol, laddie, even if you flash that fancy pocket watch at me,' yelled Madame Christmas from behind the bar as they settled into a booth.

To the others surprise, Fullmetal laughed. 'Sounds just like Granny,' he said, almost to himself, before calling back: 'Wouldn't dream of asking!'

'Good kid!' she hollered back, then came over to them. 'And Roy, where'd you find the kid anyway?'

Surely she already knows, thought Roy, staring at her. He'd mentioned it. General Grumman must have mentioned it too. Then he saw the teasing glint in her eyes. She just wanted him to say it again. 'He's my commanding officer,' Roy sighed.

She laughed. She always laughed when he said it, because it was so amusing for her little Roy to be bossed around by a sixteen year old. Roy found it amusing sometimes too...and sometimes it was just plain embarrassing. Less so, funnily enough, when he was on his buttocks on the training ground because Fullmetal could prove, quite decisively, his experience and prowess with alchemy. Actually, that happened in some of the more complicated cases as well, when he started talking about theories Roy was still ignorant to. And he'd picked up quite a few in the year he'd been with the military, too.

'So,' Madame Christmas asked, after a brief laugh. 'What'll it be for the three of you? Assuming you can keep your drinks to yourselves, that is.'

Surprisingly, Fullmetal didn't rise to the jibing. He seemed to be thinking about something. Or remembering something, because there was a fond little smile on his face.

Roy and Riza both ordered a light drink. They still didn't know why they'd come here, and until they did, it would be unwise to get something more intoxicating.

'Fullmetal?' Roy asked, when the boy didn't add his own order.

His head snapped up. 'Uhh...juice?'

'Not milk for a growing boy like you?' But she scribbled down his request.

'No way!' he exclaimed, surprisingly loudly and making one of the passing girls jump a little. 'I won't drink anything that comes from a cows t - ' He seemed to suddenly remember his company, and coughed. 'I don't like milk,' he finished, somewhat lamely.

Madame Christmas simply chuckled again. 'Juice coming up,' she said, drifting off to prepare the drinks.

They sat in silence. 'So…' Roy hedged. 'You don't like milk?'

'I don't like a lot of things,' Fullmetal replied. 'I do like milk in Granny's stew though, but that's it.'

'Your parents…'

'My mother's dead,' he replied shortly, half-glaring at Roy, who wisely shut his mouth. 'And my father walked out on us when I was four. That bastard.'

'I'm sorry.' And he really was. His father walked out on them explained why he didn't go with the general consensus of family being trustworthy.

Fullmetal shrugged. 'You didn't drag him out.'

Madame Christmas came back with the drinks and found them suddenly sombre. 'What happened here?' she asked. 'Did I interrupt a secret conversation?'

'Not really,' Fullmetal sighed, accepting the juice with a thanks.

'Hmm…' She hummed, as Roy and Riza took their drinks too. 'By the way, what sort of name is Fullmetal?'

Roy suddenly couldn't remember if he'd ever mentioned Fullmetal's real name to her.

'It's Ed.' He smiled suddenly. 'The Fuhrer gave me the name Fullmetal because I was so stubborn. He had a good laugh about it too.' His expression suddenly soured, before he straightened it again.

'Stubborn, huh,' she mused. 'That's a good trait.' She waved and left them alone again.

'Interesting aunt,' Fullmetal commented. 'Reminds me of Granny.'

'She raised me,' Roy shrugged. 'Though she is somewhat...unusual.'

'Just like Granny,' he repeated. 'And on that topic...what do you know about the Rockbells?'

They blinked. Roy knew nothing. He'd never even heard of the name. Riza, however, had. 'They were doctors in the Ishbal Civil War,' she said. 'I remember my grandfather talking about them. He said they were model doctors. Treated everyone: civilian or soldier, Amestrian or Ishbalan.'

'Yes.' His eyes were shining. 'They didn't discriminate between people. Anyone who came to them was a patient, and was treated equally. But the Military didn't like that.'

'I heard they died at the hands of an Ishbalan patient,' said Riza, somewhat confused.

'That's the official story,' Fullmetal replied. 'I assume the old man told you that because he'd rather you didn't know the truth - but you're on my team now, and you two need to know this.'

She stared at him a moment, knowing she wasn't going to like what he was about to say, and then nodded. 'My grandfather won't try to lie if I know the truth,' she said. 'I can check the story with him later.'

'Feel free,' Fullmetal agreed. 'Anyway, the Rockbells… They weren't killed by an Ishbalan patient at all. They were executed by the Military.'

Riza stiffened. Roy gaped at him. 'You're joking,' he exclaimed. When neither Fullmetal nor Riza responded, he prompted: 'Right?'

'The Rockbells raised me when my mother died,' Fullmetal said flatly. 'i wouldn't dishonour their memories by lying about how they died. Not even to Winry.'

They didn't ask who Winry was. In any case, the admission told them how serious Fullmetal was.

'As far as most of the military is concerned,' Fullmetal continued, 'the Rockbells are my automail mechanics and my old neighbours and that's it. We lived with our teacher when our parents died. My brother still lives there.'

There was something muddling about that statement, even though it was clear enough. Roy shook his head a little. That muddling feeling was still there, and he didn't know why.

'So...the military executed the Rockbell doctors because they were treating Ishbalans as well?' he asked.

'More or less. The military document says something about consorting with them, but i don't believe that.' He suddenly downed half his juice. 'The reason I'm telling you two this is because the person who killed them was a rookie.'

'Rookie?' Riza repeated, faintly.

'I mentioned the border war, didn't I?' Fullmetal asked.

They nodded. He'd mentioned it on the phone when they'd been in Aquroya. 'And that we'll be dispatched as soon as we get back to headquarters,' Roy added. He was suddenly less keen on the idea...and he'd had mixed feelings before.

'You haven't reached headquarters,' Fullmetal pointed out.

Which was true. They'd found him in the park in between Eastern Command and the train station.

'Ishbal…' Fullmetal closed his eyes. 'Was one of the worst wars. Seemed to bring out the worst in everyone. Alchemists weren't weapons before that - or, maybe, we were always meant to be weapons. But we signed up to be dogs of the Military and this is what happens, you know?'

They knew. And they wondered if this was Fullmetal's attempt to check on them and cheer them up...or something. Or warn and prepare them.

'We'll be leaving on the last train today,' Fullmetal continued. 'The area's a bit dry and the winds harsh, so don't worry about bringing winter clothes. You won't be needing them. Bring goggles if you own any.'

Riza took out a pad and began scribbling. Roy make a mental note to double check with her afterwards.

'Bring unspoilable foods too,' he said. 'Depending on how sympathetic you are towards the refugees, you'll be needing more than your rations. Personally, I prefer the Rockbell method.'

'Help anyone that needs help?' Roy checked.

He nodded. 'Naive, I know. In a war, I can't ask you to follow me like this. No.' Roy hadn't even realised he'd opened his mouth. 'This is the exception to the rule. On the field of war, you're as likely to be shot by your own comrades as by your enemies.' Like the Rockbells. 'Or you'll be rewarded for saving innocent lives like I was.' His lips twisted into what might be a bitter smile, but it simply didn't match with his face. 'You remember Kimblee?' How could Roy forget? 'He killed his team in Ishbal because they wanted him to tone down the death toll a tad.'

'Not everyone is like that,' muttered Riza.

'No,' he agreed. 'Soldiers like Grumman only did what they had to to protect their men and their country. Soldiers like Armstrong decided it wasn't a war but a massacre and left the front lines, risking the firing squad. Soldiers like Marcoh decided the Military had become too powerful and disappeared with secrets they really want back, but…' He shrugged. 'He wants to take them to grave and, honestly, I respect that. Point is, there are people of all kinds on the battlefield. People who find strength others thing is cowardice, or bloodlust, or naive idealism. But if you can't fight for what you believe in, then what the hell are you doing on a battlefield?'

He was barely talking to them anymore, just talking in their direction. Roy and Riza let those words sink in. What would they be fighting for, when they entered that battlefield? For the Military? For their commander? For their family - a Riza-specific case, perhaps. For the innocents that would undeniably get caught in the crossfire? For what the ideal world should look like?

A year ago, he could have answered that question easily - and he'd probably have been wrong. He hadn't experienced the Military then, or much of Amestris as a whole. Now he knew a bit more. People driven so far to desperation that they lose the value of human lives, including their own. People so kind that they'd give a whole loaf of bread to a passerby, even if they only had that loaf to feed themselves. And then people like Psiren who was letting her town go out with a bang by drawing attention as a thief. Right and wrong weren't black and white, if they'd ever been black and white.

Fullmetal might have given them a free reign, but he'd invested quite a bit in steering them in a certain direction, risky as it was.

He finished his drink. It might be a test of his character on the battlefield and nothing more - and he'd never be ready for that. No-one, unless they were crazy like Kimblee, would ever be ready for that.

Fullmetal stood up, suddenly. Roy looked at Riza and realized she'd finished her drink as well. 'You better file your report quickly,' he said, 'otherwise it'll get lost with packing.'

'I'm not that disorganised.' Except he kind of was.

Fullmetal just rolled his eyes.

Madame Christmas looked over at them. 'My, isn't this a sight,' she called to them. 'The commanding officer is the shortest of the lot.'

'I'm not short!' Fullmetal yelled, and this time even Roy jumped.

How had he forgotten his commanding officer having a height complex? He really ought to have seen that reaction coming. And the red-faced Fullmetal who stormed out, while Roy hung back just long enough to say this was a normal reaction for him, before hurrying to catch up.

For a short kid, Fullmetal could walk fast when he wanted to.