A Day Off

The next morning, Roy awoke at first. He got up without waking the blond females and took the phone. His plan was risky and slightly suicidal – because he wanted to inform headquarters of the sudden illness that had took First Lieutenant Hawkeye down. The danger wasn't even the call. The danger was blonde and sick right now. Roy hadn't the faintest hint of an idea how Riza would react upon hearing that he had decided that she wouldn't go to work but he feared that it wouldn't be pretty. He counted on the exact contrary.

"It's Colonel Mustang," he said as he was connected with Bradley. "Hawkeye is sick."

The Fuhrer huffed. 'And why doesn't she call herself?' he asked. 'Or is she too ill for that?'

Roy bit his lip. "No, she could call but I decided that it would be the best to let her sleep in," he said. "And I gave her some pills to make her sleep through the night. And I also wanted to inform you that I will take my day off today to take care of her," he added. "And tomorrow I will work at home. She has fever and I don't trust her health to let her without care."

'Well, she looked pale when she left yesterday, so I guess that it's the truth,' Bradley said. 'She can have a week off. Honestly, does that woman ever sleep?'

"She sleeps right now," he said and ended the call. He started the coffee before he stopped to check his pocket watch. What the hell was Bradley doing in his office at seven in the morning?

Laila was the next one to wake up. She shyly smiled as she sat down to eat and he felt a little bit better than usual when he ate alone in this room. She was still tired, so she didn't say much but she mentioned that she had to get to school and he offered to walk her over.

She was in the little bathroom down the hallway for seven minutes before she came out, neatly dressed but with her hair in a mess. She tried to brush it but it was a lost cause. Roy took the brush and the rubber bands from her and brushed her long, golden hair before he braided it. It had been years since he had done it for Jade but he was still pretty good at it since his cousin had never stopped to annoy him until her hair braid had been perfect. "There you go," Roy said.

Laila beamed at him and took her school bag. "It looks really nice," she said as she looked at her reflection. "I never saw such a braid before … where did you learn it?" she asked.

He sighed. "There was once a little girl with silken hair who said that her hair looked stupid in an usual braid, so she showed me that one and made me practice it until I could do it in my sleep," he said. "The little girl became a bigger girl and whenever I was around, I had to make her hair because she said that I was the best to make her hair look pretty." He patted her hair. "And now, the little girl is a young lady and tries really hard to make me forget that I ever made her hair."

"That's really sad," Laila said as they walked down the street. "Why did she do that?"

"The little girl grew up on me. She didn't need someone to make her hair when she was older and when she needed help, she asked one of her friends." He shrugged. "I kinda miss it, to be honest."

She took his hand and squeezed it. "If you want to, you can do my hair," she said.

He smiled. She was really like Riza; she always tried to make sure that everyone around her was fine. Maybe that was the reason why it was so easy to forget how young she was. She was a little bit shy when it came to people she didn't know at all but she was strong and would always stand up for herself when she felt attacked – like she had felt when he had ran into her, months ago. At this point, Roy knew that Laila was shy but since most people met just Elizabeth who was calmer and even stronger, it was fine. He preferred Laila over Elizabeth when he was honest. He had had a plan after the war and she hadn't been part of that plan but … fate had a funny way to make things work. She hadn't been someone he had expected but now, it was difficult to imagine a life without her. Maybe Riza would have married years ago if it hadn't been for the girl she felt so responsible for … Roy shuddered. The idea was terrible for him.

"I wanted to thank you for everything you do for me and mommy," Laila said as they were close to the school. "I mean … I wouldn't have known who to call if I hadn't had your number…"

He smiled as he patted her head. "You worry way too much, Laila," he said. "It's no big deal for me to look out for you and your mommy. She will probably be very mad at me afterwards because she hates the idea that she would disturb or bother me but I will live."

She smiled at him. "It's really nice to know someone like you," she said and he was touched by the honesty in her voice. She had maybe Kay's temper but everything else was like Riza because the woman who had raised Laila had left traces. That was maybe the reason why Roy liked her that much. She was had made Riza whole again after the war that had broken the young woman. And he was really happy that he could see a hint of life and cheerfulness in Riza's eyes when she was not at work. He had been worried that she could harm herself but it seemed to be quite the contrary. Riza seemed to feel better than most of the Ishbal-war-veterans did because she had something she could concentrate on. She had her daughter and that meant that she had a future. Under other circumstances, Roy would have maybe hated the person who had taken away Riza's affection from him but he couldn't hate someone who made Riza happy. And she was happy; he could see it in her eyes when she was around the girl. Sometimes, he wondered what would have happened if he hadn't been such a fool and broken the engagement. Maybe both of them would be happy now. Maybe Kay would have left and maybe she would have made both of them guardian to her daughter, even though it was strange for Roy to think of Laila as of Kay's daughter because the girl was so much like Riza. Maybe, in that other life, Laila could have some siblings. He had always imagined his life with some kids because he liked children.

One of his first memories was the memory of sitting in his favourite aunt's living room and how she had put the little pink bundle called Jadelina Mustang into his arms. Her younger sister, Izumi, had been present too and she had said that it was the last evidence she had needed to prove the insanity of Abigail Mustang-Tempest, Jade's and Phil's mother. But Roy had looked at the strange little person in his arms and the little baby had smiled and she had wrapped her little hand around his finger. She had even smiled a little bit and her eyes had been open. She had had her green eyes since her birth but they had been paler back then. Roy had decided that she was his best friend now and when Izumi had tried to take her away, he hadn't give Jade back to her. Phil had been his best friend too but they had never shared such a deep friendship like Jade and Roy. Between Roy and Phil, there had always been some kind of rivalry and jealousy even though they had been friends. The problem had been that grandmother Mustang had considered her both firstborn grandchildren, Roy and Jade, as the prince and the princess of the family while Phil, Alec and Londres who had been born some years later had never gotten the same attention from her. Phil had dealt with it while Alec and Londres had been angry and tried to hurt Jade.

"Earth to Roy …" Laila said as she tugged at his sleeve. "You were far away, I guess."

He nodded. "Don't worry," he said. "I was just thinking of something what happened long time ago but it was something good," he added.

Riza awoke and sat up. She felt a little bit better than before but she knew that she was far from being healthy once again. She sighed. Life was way too complicated for her liking. She got up and walked through Roy's house before she sat down in the kitchen where food was on the table. She poured in a cup of coffee before she read the note.

I am walking Laila to school. Don't worry; I have my gloves and a gun with me. And I already called headquarters to inform Bradley that you are ill. See you later, love, Roy.

She was painfully aware of the fact that she was probably grinning like an idiot as she read the note but who could blame her? It was Roy Mustang who had written that note, so it was nothing unexpected that Riza Hawkeye was grinning. She drank her coffee and ate a slice of bread before she returned to her book. It wasn't often that she could relax but she was under order to relax a little bit, so she hadn't much of a choice.

There was a reason that she had fallen for him, all those years ago. He had been charming and nice, of course, but he had been something special. He hadn't had a crush on Kay like most other boys had had before they had accepted that Kay belonged to Charles. No, Roy had liked Kay like a sister. And Kay had liked him too because he had been able to make Riza laugh. She and Maes had set them up on a date before the unholy trio (Charles, Kay and Maes) had left the town to join the army. Riza had fallen for Roy because he had seen her and not the mask she had worn even back then. She loved him because she knew that he was worth her trust and her dedication to his goal.

Izumi looked at the pictures of her family with a little smile on her usually hard face. She didn't agree with the choice for her niece and her nephews to join the military but she knew how stubborn and idealistic they were. For them, it had been a good idea even though Izumi considered it a waste of talent. She blamed it on her older sister, Abigail, who hadn't stopped her children after the war. Izumi herself would never have allowed her children to join the army. On the other hand, she could understand why Jade and Phil had chosen the path: they were loyal to Roy to a fault. They didn't see Roy as a perfect person but they felt responsible for him. And if Roy should lose it, they could stop him because fire didn't work that well if there was carbon dioxide around his fire. And Phil and Jade were both able to extinguish fire. They worked with gases and they were known for their double-attack when they combined their skills. No one had ever survived this attack and no one knew the details.

Izumi had always adored her sister's twins and she had been shocked when Abigail had told her that even the princess of the family and her brother had joined the army. Jade and Phil had been two children, Izumi had loved when they had been younger. She had babysat them without any complains because it had been no big deal for her to look after her sister's kids. And she had loved to be Aunty Iz. But now? She couldn't be Aunty Iz to a bunch of dogs of the military.