Hello!
This story lives in my mind since October, and because I wanted to post in French and in English at the same time when the writting would be pratically over, it took me a long time. But here we are!
Thanks to fullmetalscully and dragonifyoudare for being my beta-readers!
In this fic, there is alchemy, a baby, an investigation, an old story, a military parade and a ball, and feelings being told, in six chapters that I hope you'll like.
Disclaimer: FMA is not mine, but Hiromu Arakawa's work.
Enjoy!
"Colonel, I think we've got a lead!"
Master Sergeant Fuery and Second Lieutenant Breda ran into colonel Mustang's office, out of breath but with smiles on their faces. Fuery held a stack of papers that he put on the vast briefing table. The other members of the team approached.
"The witnesses were really helpful, sir." Breda announced. "It's the Transformer, we're sure of it. Of course, there are some differences from the other composite pictures, but I think it's because of how they saw the burglar. They share lots of similarities."
He spread Fuery's papers on the table, allowing everyone to see the pictures. The face of a woman in her forties looked back at her. Piercing eyes, sharp cheekbones, flat forehead, and short, messy hair were the main characteristics of the burglar they're looking for. For three months she had been attacking jewellers and watchmakers, her lower face masked, so nobody would know who it was. Each theft was worth more than a million cenzs. The more burglaries happened, the more the people of East City protested the military's inaction. By order of Lieutenant General Grumman, Mustang unit had replaced the MPs, who had struggled with the investigation. Grumman had given them one month to find the culprit and close the case.
As they discovered new information, Mustang and his men renamed their suspect the Transformer. Thanks to clever disguises, she always acted with a different appearance. That hadn't helped the MPs.
"This time she's in her prime", Havoc said. "Last week she wasn't more than twenty-five, and the week before she was practically a senior citizen! She's really talented with her costumes."
"I wonder how the MP didn't see it was the same person each time. The modus operandi was the same", Fuery said.
"They didn't think about all the possibilities", Breda replied.
While the men spoke, Riza was thinking intensely, her eyes on their target's. One thing was certain, the burglar was the same woman each time. Her physical strength didn't change regardless of her appearance. This invalidated the theory of multiple perpetrators from the same family. She robbed the less protected shops first and outside peak hours. So far, there hadn't been any casualties, despite the fact she'd handled a gun to threaten shop keepers and patrons. She cut all means of communication before her attacks to prevent the employees from calling for help.
Riza looked at the sharp eyes of the Transformer and wondered what was driving this woman to steal from jewellers and other luxury stores in East City? Was it greed? Debts? Something else?
A flash of intuition struck her, and she left the group around the table. She took a map of East City fom a cabinet and spread it out next to the drawings. The team looked at her, expecting her to speak.
"Warrant Officer Falman, can you tell me where and when the thefts occurred?"
While Falman listed the names and locations of the stores thanks to his impressive memory, she circled them and wrote the date of each crime next to the location. Gradually, a pattern appeared. Jewellers and watchmakers' shops alternated clearly, but the locations didn't follow any plan, nor did the size of the store. Riza spotted the pattern at the same time as Roy, who beat her to the punch.
"The next hold-up will be a jeweller's store!" he said.
"Yes, but where? That's the real question, here." Riza added.
Roy ordered Fuery to make a list from all the untouched jewellers in the city, and asked Havoc and Breda to check the security in the premises of the stores. They would get in touch with those they judged were most likely to be targeted because of a lack of security to warn them about the military surveillance that would be set as part of the investigation.
Less than half an hour later, they left the office with a complete list in hand. Falman informed Mustang and Hawkeye that he would be in the archive room to check the files of previous hold-ups in East City. Riza nodded and resumed her gathering of the composite pictures and and organizing them by date and by the suspect's apparent age. The map stayed on the table, the stores that could be targeted next marked in red.
"Lieutenant, thank you for taking this initiative." Roy said. "You've been very helpful."
Riza turned to face him. He wore a sincere smile, his pen hovering above the paperwork he was filling out.
"You're welcome, sir. I had a hunch, and it appears it was a good one."
"Since you've been under my command, I've learnt to follow your hunches. I wonder how we could have managed without you these last years."
Riza stood still, but her cheeks were warm from his praise.
"I am certain you would have coped eventually."
"Not as well as with you, I'm sure of that."
"I know you often get your way thanks to flattery, but it won't work with me, sir. Get back to your work, please. You were making actual progress earlier."
"It wasn't flattery, Lieutenant. It was the truth." Roy laughed to himself and resumed his work. The paperwork was less thrilling than the ongoing investigation.
Trying to hide the red of her cheeks, Riza kept her back to him. One thing was sure, Roy Mustang hadn't changed since his years of apprenticeship. He still loved to tease her. With him, it meant he cared about her, even if it was purely an expression of his friendship to her.
Someone knocked at the door, distracting her. She stood and opened it, revealing a young private. He held two envelopes out to her, his expression slightly nervous. "This is urgent dispatch from Central Command for Colonel Mustang and Lieutenant Hawkeye, sir."
Riza thanked him and took the envelopes. She put hers on her desk. Roy opened it as soon as she told him it was urgent, as if the big red URGENT stamped upon it was not helpful enough.
As Roy read, Riza saw a frown appear on his face. She opened her own envelope, apprehensive. Reading the letter, she immediately understood her Commanding Officer's weary sigh.
Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye,
We have the honour to invite you to the celebration of the fifth anniversary of our victory in the Ishvallan War. As a war veteran who proved her skills and valour on the battlefield, we consider that your attendance is essential to the military parade on the 16th of May 1914 and to the gala dinner that will be held at 8pm in the residence of his Excellency the Führer King Bradley.
It is of paramount importance to show to our country and our military forces the support of the remarkable soldiers and citizens who are part of it and are the pride of the Amestrian Nation.
Please let us know on the RSVP card if you intend to come alone or with a companion.
Riza skipped the usual formulas of courtesy, written by an unknown functionary. She kept her expression neutral, trying to digest the words of the letter.
"So, they really want us to come…" She whispered for herself.
Roy heard her.
"They won't take 'no' for an answer, especially from us. We're a symbol of victory," He said. That they were the symbol of an army that didn't have second thoughts about sending its soldiers to kill the citizens of its own nation went unspoken. "We managed to avoid this so far, but for the fifth anniversary, it seems it won't be possible. They want to mark the occasion, show us as the best examples of soldiers for this generation."
The bitterness in Roy's voice reminded Riza of still too clear memories. A metallic taste lingered on her tongue as she looked at him. From their offices, high-ranking officers only saw results, not the harsh reality of the battlefield, the trauma, the guilt, and the aftermath of wounds. They wanted her to make a show of herself, proud of having killed so many innocents, when her objective was to atone for her faults to the people she had hurt.
Roy smiled at her, but she could see the pain in his dark eyes. "As difficult as it will be, we have to go, Lieutenant. If… if you want to, maybe we could…"
Falman's sudden return interrupted him. He was waving a folder excitedly. Roy's question stayed in the air, and Riza briefly wondered what he'd wanted to ask her. What if he was…? No, it was a foolish idea, and she dismissed it, before turning to the Warrant Officer.
"It seems like several jewellery stores had been attacked a few years ago. All the owners have set up better security because of it. I don't think they'll be targeted by the Transformer. I've already informed the rest of the team. Still, they'll go and check if anything has changed since."
Roy thanked him, and the three of them went back to their own files and reports.
A few days later, nothing had come of the constant surveillance of the untouched jewellery stores by the MPs. The squad began to wonder if the Transformer had seen the undercover cops, despite the precautions they'd taken.
When the phone finally rang around mid-morning, Roy answered eagerly. "Colonel Mustang speaking. Good. Stay where you are, we're coming right now."
At the end of the call, Roy rose picked up his gloves off his desk. "We're going. The "One Ring" jewellery store just has been robbed, and one of the MPs followed the culprit to her hideout. The others are still dealing with the aftermath of the hold-up."
His subordinates followed him. Ten minutes later they and several other soldiers piled into two cars and a van, heading to the hideout of the Transformer. It was a suburban house, with a neglected garden and several cracked windows. It looked like a good place for squatters.
Knowing their arrival wasn't exactly discrete, they encircled the house to prevent anyone from fleeing. The officer who'd been watching approached and informed them that nobody had entered the house after the suspect. Mustang, with Havoc and Hawkeye, approached the front door.
"Come out and surrender! You are surrounded! You are under arrest for the robbery of ten jewelleries and watchmakers' shops! Get out, hands on your head!"
The Colonel's order remained unanswered, so he turned toward Havoc. The Second Lieutenant produced a lockpick from his pocket. Less than a minute later he'd expertly unlocked and opened the door. The three of them entered, service weapons drawn in case the suspect would be armed. There were three doors leading off to the left, two to the right and one straight ahead that looked like it led to the back garden. There was also a flight of stairs on their left.
"Hawkeye, check here. Havoc, stay back to support while I look up the stairs." Roy whispered.
He began to climb slowly, and Riza advanced through the corridor, step by step. She found the bathroom behind the first door, and an office behind the second. There was no one to be seen, but papers and books were scattered everywhere across the room. Some familiar titles drew the Lieutenant's attention before she moved on. She'd often seen these alchemy books in the hands of her father or his apprentice. The first door on the right led to an empty living room and a dining room which contained nothing of note. The last door on the left was slightly ajar, and she cautiously opened it. It was the kitchen. There was no one here, either.
She was about to leave when something caught her attention. Behind the table, at first hidden from her, a trapdoor was lying wide-open in the middle the floor. The Transformer was likely in the basement. Riza informed Havoc and climbed down the ladder. She found her in a cramped space, with a tiled floor, which was lit with a lone, flickering bulb. There was another door, this time made of metal, on the wall opposing the ladder. Riza pushed it open, gun in hand.
She immediately stiffened. A woman was bent over a wooden crate and rummaging in it, her back to Riza.
"Stand up and raise your hands. Turn toward me, slowly." Riza commanded with a firm voice.
The woman froze but then obeyed. Riza realised that she was smaller than they'd been told by the witnesses. Was it the suspect they were looking for? However, her doubts disappeared when she saw the features of the teenager standing in front of her. The eyes, the cheekbones, the forehead, the hair, all belonged to their target. She must have used padding to imitate the figure of an older woman, given how slim she was. And that had been effective.
"How did you find me?" Her question laced with surprise.
"So, you're the one who attacked the jeweller's store today." Riza took a few steps to the middle of the room. "Keep your hands up and move away from the crate." She turned to shout to her colleagues, briefly leaving her eyes from her target. "Havoc! Colonel! I've found her!"
She realised too late she'd made a mistake. The teen's sudden movement caught her unprepared. Instead of lunging for Riza, the girl slammed her hands on the floor. A green light rose around Riza. How could she have not considered the eventuality of the suspect being an alchemist? Before she could curse herself more, a sudden ache pierced her head and unconsciousness claimed her.
Roy had explored a bathroom and two empty bedrooms when Havoc called him. Their suspect was likely to be in the basement. He ran down the stairs, throwing caution to the wind, to help his subordinates. Havoc waved at him from the kitchen door. At Riza's shout, he climbed down the ladder first and Roy quickly followed behind. He entered through the metallic door to see Havoc restraining a teenager on the ground and green lightnings fade in a transmutation circle. In the middle a pile of clothes was lying down. Riza was nowhere to be seen. His instinct told him that the clothes were his Lieutenant's uniform and his blood boiled. He ran to Havoc and took out a pair of handcuffs and restrained the girl. Havoc could take care of her. His thoughts were focused on Riza. What had happened? Where was she? He approached the uniform. It moved slightly, or something underneath did. Roy cautiously pulled the blue jacket aside, and his eyes opened wide.
How was it possible?
A baby with amber eyes and short blond hair was staring at him, looking as surprised as he was.
"Hawkeye?" He said, flabbergasted.
The baby began to cry.