The sound of raindrops echoed through the small attic, hammering at the broken windowpanes in an effort to break through the splintered wood and cracked glass. Bowls half filled with water were strewn across the floor in an effort to catch each stray drip, creating sounds close to music that echoed through the room.
There were few upsides to rain in the Hawkeye household, but at least it stopped the people in town from glaring at Riza when she walked to school. He knew what they thought of Master Hawkeye's alchemy.
Witchcraft.
Feverish and exhausted, Roy could barely keep his thoughts straight as the scrawny blonde thirteen year old tried to force medicine down his throat. "No," he managed to mumble, shifting his weight on the thin mattress, making the old maple bedframe groan and complain.
"Come on, Mister Mustang. You'll feel better, I promise."
She sounded so earnest, even through his haze of half-sleep. Still, he waved her off, taking great care not to knock the thick glass bottle out of her hands.
He knew what she paid for that medicine. There was no way he was going to let her waste it on him – he'd recover soon enough anyway, with or without the help of a sticky, bitter purple syrup. Let Riza use what she bought on herself for once – even if it sat on the shelf for a few months before she fell ill. She was sick more often than not.
"I'll…I'll just let you sleep, then."
He was dead to the world before she had the chance to stand up and leave the room. Shyly, she stretched out her hand to brush a few stray hairs from the face of her father's pupil. Sighing quietly, Riza pulled back to cap the medicine and stood up to go make her father's afternoon tea.
She didn't return until long after Roy had woken up.
The nearest drip bowl to the bed was a few mere inches out of comfortable reach, but even that much effort was enough for Roy to try to ignore his pressing thirst.
"Are you awake now, Mister Mustang?"
Roy chose not to answer. He was sixteen – there was no way he needed a tiny little girl to take care of him.
"You know, Father's very disappointed that you're missing lessons today," she continued. Again, no answer. A weight settled on the end of the bed. "You must really be asleep."
He caught himself halfway to a smirk, letting it drop back down into relaxation before Riza looked too closely.
"The people in town are wondering about you, you know. They think you're some child of the devil, sent here to learn witchcraft from my father."
Riza reached up to tug on a braid that used to be there, grasping at air before snapping back to the present. "I forget sometimes that I cut my hair," she whispered, choosing instead to focus her hands on the tarnished silver bangle that danced around on her wrist.
"Do you know what they say about me, Mister Mustang?"
He knew.
~*Break*~
It was almost inevitable that she would fall for him. He had been her knight in shining armor, arriving at her door in a threadbare collared shirt dragging a tattered suitcase behind him.
She didn't speak with him for several weeks, and she was sure that during that time he forgot that Master Hawkeye even had a daughter. Meals appeared at the door of the study whenever the pair seemed to get hungry, and no matter what state Roy left his attic room in, when he came back late at night exhausted from a long day of training, his bed was always made.
Slowly but surely, he coaxed her out of the dark corners of the large house and became the very first person she had ever called a friend. Now, so many years later, he was the only person she could call her best friend.
"You weren't at work today. I'm surprised I didn't have to take you to the hospital, to be honest."
It wasn't as often as it used to be now. Her body had strengthened over the years, and there were even times Riza forgot how it felt to be sick. She certainly knew how it felt now, and losing her voice was only the added bonus.
"Here," he said gently, handing her the mug of tea and sitting down next to her, trying to decide how much honey he needed to drink his own. She nodded and spared him a small smile to show her thanks, waiting until he wasn't looking to tip it into the potted plant next to the couch.
He might have been her best friend, but he couldn't make tea to save his life.
"I brought you something that will make you feel better," Roy stated, reaching into the pocket of the great overcoat he wore. A spoon came out first, and Riza looked over at him with one eyebrow raised.
A thick glass bottle followed the spoon, the thick purple syrup swishing lazily from side to side. Her look of disbelief was even better than Roy had anticipated, and he doubled over in laughter from the shock on her face.
"I promise, Lieutenant, it will make you feel better," he managed eventually, snickering every few words.
Smiling, she took the bottle from his hands and broke the seal, popping the cork out and holding up the spoon level with his eyes. Her smile narrowing into a smirk, she tipped the bottle down and pushed the spoon forward into his open mouth.
Hoarse laughter filled the tiny apartment as the startled man's face twisted in disgust. Her head ached, her body was weak and chilled, but all of it was worth it for the look of disgust on his handsome features.
Suddenly, he leaned in for a kiss.
He pulled away and rested his head on her feverish brow, smirking once again. Blush rose in her cheeks.
"Gotcha."
For Werehorse89 on Deviantart, who won Royaifanclub's contest! Congrats The order was Royai – and I hope I delivered!