Lost Friend
An FMA drabble by Setzuka
T-rated drabble gift for Shai. Slight AU. Vague spoilers for episode 25. Roy reflects.
It was quiet in the apartment. Roy Mustang sat on the floor, clutching a piece of chalk in one trembling hand. He was sitting with crossed legs, head down, angered by his inaction. Before him, a large transmutation circle had been scratched on the hardwood slats. He wished that he could summon up the courage.
One week had passed since Hughes had died. One week of no phone calls about how Alicia had grown, or learned something new. One week of no late-night conversations. One week and many years of wondering how things could have been. Roy had lost his most precious thing. What else could he do but this?
What if it wasn't enough? Roy no longer had a fear of death. Death comes for everyone. He was aware of how much he deserved the visit. But what if this went wrong? Sure, he'd taken a good deal of red stone as an accelerant, but what if Hughes came back as something other than himself? Would he be able to bear it if he still lived afterwards?
Roy placed his bare hands onto the complex chalk circle before him. Shouldn't he try? Didn't Hughes deserve that much, a friend who'd died because of him and his ignorance of the situation? Roy paused, breathing heavily as he thought. If Hughes did come back changed, wouldn't that make him Roy's alone?
At that thought, Roy almost gathered the power. Almost. He reflected on something he was told once about how the dead should stay at peace. Hughes was at peace now, but what about him?
As he sat before the human transmutation circle, Roy Mustang wept.
END