It took much less time for Roy to get used to seeing again than it had to learn to function without sight. His balance and focus had returned in only a few hours. The oddest thing was the sensation he sometimes had of "seeing" things twice - once with his eyes and once with this ears.

It had an effect on his team as well.

Catalina and Sopwith weren't affected much. They'd spent hardly any time with him before he'd gone to Creta.

Fuery was fine. Just as he had automatically known to report his position when Roy had gone blind, he automatically stopped now that Roy could see. And Breda hadn't done much differently anyway. His method of letting Roy know where he was had just been to stomp a little louder. Falman found himself having to stop a tendency to report his position.

But it was tough on Havoc. None of them, not even Hawkeye, had been better at making sure that the Brigadier heard what he needed to see. And now, he was still catching himself doing it. The funny thing was, Roy himself still expected it. Sometimes, when someone came to the staff room door and Havoc didn't say anything, Roy would find himself looking at the person entering, then at Havoc, as if to say "Aren't you going to announce this person?" Then Havoc would grin at him, and Roy would shake his head at his own inanity.

The hardest thing, though, was Hawkeye. He caught himself looking at her all the time. It was embarrassing and it was unprofessional and it was unfair to her as an officer. It would help though, if she would frown when he did it, or make some sarcastic remark. But she didn't. She was perfectly calm, as if being stared at by her superior officer was the most natural thing in the world.

None of the members of his team seemed to pay it any notice, either. Except for Lieutenant Colonel Miles, who had a tendency to get flustered and look away. Although he seemed to do that a lot anyway, no matter where Roy was looking. The Briggs man had spent a lot of time with the Brigadier, but never when he could see.


They were meeting in the second floor room again: Little Brother, the Headman, the High Cleric, Mistress Shan, and Miles. The tattoos were gone from Little Brother's arms.

"Young Benjamin," said Mistress Shan, "it is time for you to step down as Headman."

"Damn right," glared Miles. Of all of them, he sometimes seemed the most upset about the Headman's method of "inviting" the Mustang team to the transmutation room. Of course, it didn't help that he'd had to work overtime to prevent the Headman from being arrested, when he would rather have killed the man.

At least they were getting no objection from the Headman. He had seen what he had thought was certain death aimed at him.

"Yes, Mistress," he said, meekly.

"You're lucky to be alive, you know," said Little Brother, icily.

"No, he isn't!" said Miles. Ye gods, when would these people stop expecting the Brigadier to kill everyone in sight?

"I wasn't talking about Mustang," said Little Brother, giving the Headman a look that made him shiver. "Do you think I would have just freed him if I was afraid he'd kill anyone? I worked with the man for two months in Creta, you know."

The Ishvalan officer and the Ishvalan priest looked at each other and there was a rare moment of total understanding. They both smiled and then laughed. Which seemed to make the Headman even more nervous.

"If he's not Headman anymore, can I arrest him?" asked Miles.

"I'd rather you didn't," said the High Cleric, sensing the connection between the two, but not sure yet whether he should be pleased or frightened.

Little Brother turned to Mistress Shan, who had also sensed it and knew exactly how she felt. "No, young priest. Young Benjamin's punishment will be handled here."

The Headman's look indicated he wasn't sure whether Ishvalan justice would be any better than Amestrian.

Mistress Shan continued. "Young priest, are you willing to take up a name again and become the next Headman?"

Miles grimaced and shook his head at Little Brother, but it wasn't necessary.

"I don't think that would be advisable, Mistress. It's one thing for Mustang to deal with me, but another to expect Amestris to."

"I just wished to ask," Mistress Shan said, nodding. "We have another candidate."

They called in a middle-aged Ishvalan man with familiar tattoos on both arms, indicating he had completed a course in Alchemy at the school. "Is young Hirom acceptable?" she asked.


First Lieutenant Catalina had brought in the mail, and Roy was going through the stack she had handed to him. He paused over a sheet that ought to have made him very happy, but for some reason, didn't.

"Well, well," he announced to the group. "Apparently, now that I can see I'm worth something again. I've been promoted."

The room erupted in congratulations from the East HQ team. Breda, Havoc and Miles were in Gunja, so they'd hear later.

"I'll get your insignia updated to Major General," said Hawkeye, smiling.

"No, Major," he said. "I haven't been promoted to Major General. Three stars. Full general."


Author's Notes:

I've noticed no pattern in the naming of Ishvalans in the manga at all, in the rare cases where they even had names.

I finally chose Benjamin for the Headman, because of the Old Testament connection and the connotation of favorite son.

I chose Hirom for the Headman candidate, after Arakawa Hiromu sensei. I've read that she took the masculine form of her first name for her pen-name (feminine would be Hiromi, apparently). And if I understand correctly, the Japanese transliteration of "Hirom" would be "Hiromu".