lyrics this time from "Dancing in the Dark" by Springsteen. dont have an intro for this one really, apart from somehow the lyrics stuck me as appropriate for our dear Mustang -fireun

"I get up in the evening
and I ain't got nothing to say
I come home in the morning
I go to bed feeling the same way
I ain't nothing but tired
Man I'm just tired and bored with myself
Hey there baby, I could use just a little help"

There were days when cleaning the place just didn't seem worth it.

Roy glanced around the small apartment, taking in the familiar clutter- the books laying open where he had left them, a scattered maelstrom's remain of notes, and a seemingly endless parade of coffee mugs, some still retaining a bit of the bitter liquid. If only he could find the blue mug…that one should still have some slightly alcoholic coffee in it left over from last night. Maybe after ingesting that he would manage to get the mug to the sink, to be washed. And once he started cleaning…perhaps motivation would kick in…

Or maybe not. He made it over to the couch, a scant four feet or so away from the small table the blue mug rested on, before he decided sitting and looking through some notes would be a better way to spend his time. After sweeping aside a messy stack of papers covered in his concise handwriting he settled down to read.

Really, what else was there to do? There were no missions, it was not a day he had to be in the office, and if he cleaned it would really just get dirty again.

"Message keeps getting clearer
radio's on and I'm moving 'round the place
I check my look in the mirror
I wanna change my clothes, my hair, my face
Man I ain't getting nowhere
I'm just living in a dump like this
There's something happening somewhere
baby I just know that there is"

"Damn, Roy. Ever thought about paying someone to deal with this hazardous waste?" Maes' voice called from the doorway, followed by the irreverent thud of boots hitting the floor after being discarded. It was a hint to Roy's state of distraction that he had not heard his friend enter.

"Hmmm? It isn't that bad. Its not as if the apartment is dirty."

"No, it just looks like the top drawer of my desk. Only spread over much more territory." Maes hopped around a pile of books that had spilled over onto its side and carefully maneuvered across the living room. He glanced down once and barked a laugh. "Roy…why is there a list of names with lines through them? Women's names?"

"Now you are just baiting me." Roy grumped, closing his book and crossing his arms. "They are women I dated. The ones that are crossed off didn't work out."

"They are all crossed out." Maes tried, very very hard, not to break into the huge, belly shaking laughter he could feel bubbling just below the surface of his politely amused exterior.

"Then obviously, they didn't work out, did they?" Roy snapped

Which, of course, triggered Maes' laughter. It was just too much, seeing Roy raise his hackles like that in self-defense. Sitting on the couch as he was, almost half buried in books and papers, he was about as intimidating as a wet cat trying desperately to poof and hiss. Laughing, Maes held his hands out in surrender as Roy turned a scathing look in his direction. "Whoa, settle down, old man. I'm sorry. It's just….you kept a list."

"To keep track." Roy grumbled, returning his attention to the book in an attempt to retain some sort of dignity.

"You sit around getting older
there's a joke here somewhere and it's on me
I'll shake this world off my shoulders
come on baby this laugh's on me"

"C'mon Roy. You look like you never see sunlight anymore. Lets go out. Do something. Anything." Maes perched on the edge of the couch, obviously antsy.

"I am reading."

"Brilliant. Now, tell me how reading is going to get you moving closer to your goal." Maes' voice grew quiet.

Roy shot a glance at his friend. "Not fair, Maes."

"I was under the impression you didn't expect life to be fair. I said I would support you, said I would help you get to the top." He stood, pulling a resisting Roy with him.

Roy's book thudded off of his big toe as he fumbled it in his attempt to break free of Maes' iron grip. "What the hell do you think you are doing?" he snarled.

"What I promised." Maes calmly replied, maneuvering Roy towards the door. "You can either put your boots on like a good boy, or I will put them on for you."

There was definitely a threat hidden beneath the placid declaration, and Roy opted for what was most likely the easier way out- dressing himself. Under Maes' watchful eye he tugged on his boots and then straightened, eyes blazing with affronted anger.

"You cannot get to the top by being a shadow, Mustang. Get out there. Meet the men- get to know them and let them know you. Give them something to fight for, be something worth fighting for." Maes opened the door, gesturing with his free hand for Roy to precede him. As the younger man stormed past, Maes settled that free hand on his shoulder for a moment. "You will get there, Roy. It will just take some doing."

"I know." Roy sighed.

"Well, then, that being understood, I know this great bar where a bunch of the guys hang out off hours. Shall we?"

"You can't start a fire worrying about your little world falling apart
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark"