Heir to the Flame
Chapter 7: Something's Wrong with Our Baby
"Are you alright, Riza?" Roy wrapped his arms around her shoulders and she sighed, fingering her stomach. "I'm afraid to go back to work, Roy..." He nodded slowly and stroked her hair. "I know... why don't you file for a maternity leave?" She shrugged uncomfortably.
"What will I do? There are six months left to go and without a paycheck... I feel guilty having Maes and Gracia support me like this, I'm just another mouth to feed..." he was quiet. "What about me? I can pay."
"What will they say when they find out that your spending money on things other than wine and flowers, hmm?" Roy reddened. "I haven't bought wine and flowers for three months anyway! Well... I bought flowers," he admitted. "But I stopped buying wine after you got pregnant, so if they don't realize something's up with me by now, then they've really got their noses in the dirt.
"I want to support you, Riza! I... I want to be a proper husband is all I'm saying. And a father." She smiled at him, and started to giggle. "What?" he demanded. She shook her head and kept laughing, trying to hide it by holding her hand over her mouth. "What?"
"I-It's nothing," she gasped, "It's just that... I never thought I'd hear you say the word husband!" He looked at her, bemused. "Oh, so that's how it is, eh? Well get out of work then, that's all there is to it! You're a mommy now, they can't deny that!" He said, tickling her unprotected sides. She laughed hard as his fingers pressed into her sides and fell over onto her back. Maes opened the door quickly, a worried look on his face that turned almost immediately into one of amusement. "Huh. I thought somebody was dying in here! I'll leave you two alone then," he said closing the door.
"Maes! Wait!" Maes opened the door again. "What?"Roy held up his hand. "We're coming down, hold ona sec. It takes a while to heave Riza out of bed!" He hauled her out of bed and lowered her to her feet, then sped down the stairs with Maes. She heard them whispering excitedly downstairs and a fit of chuckles made themselves heard to her ears. She padded slowly down the steps and looked around the corner cautiously before actually stepping all the way out.
"Surprise!" Roy yelled. "Roy here went a little overboard on baby shopping... so..." Maes gestured at the pile of baby items. "He's crazy I swear." Riza gaped at the pile and rummaged through it. "Ohhh... these are so cute..." she murmured, pulling out various baby clothes in shades of blue and pink. "We don't even know what the baby is yet..." She looked at Roy and giggled again. "These are cute, but I think you'll like the one I got better." She went to her suitcase and pulled out a package, handing it to Roy. He looked at her quizzically and tore open the package, gasped, and held up the clothes.
"Niiiiiice... 'Fear the Flame'!" They were one black and one white pair of baby clothes witha large flame stitched in the middle with the bold fire red words 'FEAR THE FLAME' above it. He grinned. "I love it! Where'd you get it?"
"I made them," she said simply. "I didn't know you could do that! That's awesome!" She brushed some dust off his shirt and handed him another larger package. "It's getting cold outside, so I made you this." He opened it and his eyebrows rose.
" 'CROSS ME AND BURN'... catchy!" Riza had made Roy a warm winter black jacket that had the words 'CROSS ME AND BURN' stamped across the back in yellow letter against a large version of his flame transmutation circle. "I'll wear it outside always, promise, even if it's not cold!"
"Now you finally have something other than your uniform to wear outside, hm?"
"Yep, sure do." He grinned at her again and retreated to the mound of baby items. "I got you something too... it's in here somewhere... aha!" he pulled out a small box and opened it slowly, getting down on oneknee in front of her."I know we can't get married... but if the Fraternization rule ever gets fixed... will you marry me?" Riza stared at him, not quite able to figure out what he was doing. "A-are you...?"
"Proposing, yes."
"Oh my God... Yes, yes I will!" he slipped the ring on her finger and picked her up in one movement, carrying her around in circles.
"When I become Fuhrer, that rule is the first that's going to change!"
"What about the miniskirt rule?"
"I was just playing around with that one... unless you want to!"
She shook her head. "Only when we're alone..."
"Then it's settled! Want to go somewhere for dinner?" She nodded and he held out his arm. She took it and they left Maes's house and drove away. "Couple of lovebirds, aren't they Gracie?" said Maes, amused.
"Roy... I'm really scared about work... did you find anyone to help us?"
"I did. It turns out that my own mother was stationed here for nineteen years, and I didn't even know!"
"Your mother... she was taken away when you were ten, wasn't she?"
"Yes... but she's agreed to help us, she'll keep Haruko away from you. In return..."
"' In return' ?"
"In return she wants to see her grandchild once it's born. Not a bad deal I think."
Riza nodded and looked out the car window, stroking her stomach."I wish I didn't have to wait nine months, Roy... I want the baby sooner..." he laughed his hands on the steering wheel. "I know... I wish you'd hurry and have it too, but this is something you can't rush. If you rush it, well, our baby might turn out dead..." She nodded again. "But I want my baby to be here so badly... I don't think I can wait another six months."
"Don't worry about it, you'll be fine. Now come on, do you want dinner or not?"
After sitting down in the resteraunt and ordering, they had some unpleasant company.
"Aha! I knew there was something going on between you two!" Ed hissed, popping up in between them. Roy groaned and Riza held her stomach again, a pained expression on her face. "You're the father, aren't you Mustang?" Ed demanded, and Roy grunted obstinately in response. "So what if I am? What then, Fullmetal?"
"I can give you away to the whole military," Ed crowed, and Roy seized his good arm and jerked it roughly. "Don't you even dare Fullmetal. Don't even dare." Ed looked at him. "What'll you do, huh? You can't do anything once they dismiss you from the army!" Riza bit her lip in frustration and held her stomach tighter. "If you... just... Fullmetal... please don't say anything!" Roy burst out, and Ed looked at him incredulously. Roy Mustang, begging him not to say a word? It was too good to be true! "Why not?" asked Ed.
"I'm finally going to have a family, Fullmetal, don't ruin this for me... Ican't take it if my family is ruined for a second time!" Alphonse, who had had trouble getting through the front door, finally caught up to Ed and glared at him reproachfully, or as reproachfully as he could. "Ed! Don't be so insensitive!"
"But he is!" Ed howled.
"He's... Ed, don't you understand? He wants a family now, and you're butting in trying to deny him of that, so just leave the Colonel alone!" he looked at Riza. "A-are you alright, First Lieutenant?" She moaned. "Roy... t-there's... something's wrong... our b-baby..." Roy leaped up from the table and picked her up bridal style. "Fullmetal, you explain things to the resteraunt manager, Al, you come with me!" Ed sighed as the two of them bolted out with Riza in tow and glanced at the infuriated resteraunt manager. "Uhm, mister, it was like this..."
They put Riza in the backseat and Al sat in the back with her while Roy drove like a madman to the hospital. "Hang on, Riza, we're almost there..." he muttered. "What's wrong, First Lieutenant?" Al asked. She groaned and held her stomach again. "I-it hurts... It doesn't feel natural..." she screamed and curled around her stomach again, which incited Roy to drive even faster than he had before and slam the brakes in the hospital parking lot.
They burst into the lobby. "Somebody, help her! Her baby..." he had no idea what was wrong, but the word 'baby' got most of the faculty calling up doctors, and she was quickly whisked into a room for examination. Roy sat down on a chair in the lobby once he was denied access from the room and stared at the wall. Then he asked for a phone and dialed a number. There were two rings and someone picked up.
"Hello, General Durandal speaking."
"Mom... there's something wrong with our baby."