HEIR TO THE FLAME
CHAPTER 30: Friendly Fire
Jean Havoc was sent to the infirmary for constant bedrest and a continual flow of sedatives until he could actively control his grief. Roy did not interfere with the order, seeing that he would only be unhelpful to a man grieving over the death of his wife of three years, mother of two children. Jean spent a lot of the time staring up at the ceiling, blank faced and bleak, his daughter, Luna, resting her chin on the edge of his infirmary bed on his left side and J.J held against his chest tightly. Neither Luna nor J.J really understood what had happened; Luna had not been there, was too young to understand death, and J.J, who had been there could not relay what had happened. J.J just snuggled against Jean's chest, thumb in his mouth, wailing pitifully for his mother every now and then. When it became apparent that she wouldn't come, he stopped and wailed very little, usually when he wanted attention from Jean, who would give it sparingly.
Roy was unable to console his friend and was downright moody in the office, still mulling over Keira's tragic and untimely death. Who would want to kill the wife of a soldier, a soldier as harmless as Jean Havoc? Well, Havoc wasn't exactly harmless, but he wasn't overly harmful. He couldn't possibly hurt anyone like he could...
That had to be it! He slammed his palms down on the desk, causing Riza to jump in her own desk, papers falling onto the floor. She bent down to pick them up and Roy paced to and fro behind his desk, spinning to look outside anxiously, then at Riza.
"First Lieutenant, send a notice around the office to double security on their families. That goes for my home as well, and Major General Durandal." Riza saluted, her hand wavering, wanting to ask what was wrong, why they needed advanced security, but Roy said nothing. He did, however, swipe the keys off of his desk, peck her cheek quickly, and fairly run out of the room to the car. He gave no reason for leaving work so early and got in his car, starting it up and driving like a madman to the outskirts of East City.
Junior opened the door to the porch and stepped out cautiously, his cat Belcini padding out after him followed by the pup Buraha. There was a book tucked under his little arm that his father had told him to read, and Junior had taken it dutifully and made it sworn duty to find a comfy spot on the estate to sit himself down and read it. Now that he thought about it, the book was awfully heavy. He found a swinging seat that gave a good view of East City. Daddy worked in East City. He liked East City.
He hauled himself up onto the swinging chair and patted the cushion next to him. Buraha yipped and jumped up next to him, licking his face. Junior giggled and petted Buraha, let Belcini off his neck, and opened the book to the first page. It was a strange book... you could put more pages into it.
Page one... Royteran Mustang... sounded like Daddy. The first of the Mustang line, known to have walked the land even before the country of Amestris was founded... chief of the prestigious Flame Clan... oooh... may have possibly been the strongest Mustang to date. Cool.
Page two... page three... page four...
Page one hundred and seventy-three. Roy Mustang the Third, aka Roy Glenn Mustang, last member of the Flame Clan before it was wiped out, bachelor... this was smudged out roughly and replaced with 'married'. Flame Alchemist for the military, the one hundred and seventy first generation of the Mustang family to be enrolled in the military. Orphaned at ten, adopted, then orphaned again at nineteen, came of age at twenty-five and inherited the Mustang Estate and family fortune.
Wooooooow. Cooooool. But now he was tired, and he stretched, petting Buraha and scratching Belcini's stomach. He got up from the swingie chair and went back inside, book still under his arm. He pushed a wooden chair across the tile floors, wood scraping against the tiles, and clambered on top of it, opening the cupboard by stretching out and standing on his tiptoes. His little hands found a box and he pulled it out, then made a face. Crackers, he didn't want crackers. He tossed the box to the floor and Buraha yipped in alarm, catching the box in his mouth and placing it on the ground safely. Belcini caught the next jar thrown down in his kitty paws and rolled it onto the floor gingerly, and Junior found what he was looking for.
Cookies!
He took two and put the box back where he could more easily reach it, then picked up the boxes and jars he had thrown down, replacing them as best as he could. He looked outside again and saw clouds gathering. Funny, he hadn't noticed them while he was reading... looked like a thunderstorm.
There was a banging on the door and Junior froze. What was that? Nobody wanted Daddy in the middle of the morning; everybody knew he was at work. Belcini mewed, fur standing on end, and Black Hayate growled, hackles rising. He ran to the stairs and was halfway up the first flight when the door was knocked in, crashing to the floor. A transmutation circle lit up on the floor momentarily, illuminating the doorway fully, then faded away.
Roy bit his lip at the steering wheel, cursing as the light turned red and screeched to a halt. He hissed in breath again as he felt a sharp pain in his wrist and he pulled his glove off of his hand, examining it, then cursing loudly again, panicked. He couldn't afford to wait any longer. He put his foot down on the gas and the car roared to life, dodging incoming traffic and avoiding near collisions. The side of his car grated along the side of another; the paint had to be sacrificed, oh well. He wasn't going to mourn over it right now.
Junior gave a frightened gasp in his throat as the man in the doorway looked up at him and lightning arced towards him. Junior gave a frightened cry and bolted up the stairs as fast as he could, Belcini and Black Hayate behind him, the book still under his arm. He was up the sixth floor stairs, he heard the man behind him, maybe one floor down, pounding up the stairs. Frightened tears started to form in Junior's eyes and he sniffed, starting up the seventh floor stairs.
Roy's car was totaled in a ditch, with Roy running as fast as he could down the remaining stretch of driveway to the estate, his feet passing over the busted door. The transmutation circle glowed brightly again and all the doors in the house closed, locking and bolting, and the stairs sank into themselves, becoming slick and impossible to climb. As Roy's shoes touched the stairs they became steps and he ascended quickly, feet pounding on the steps, taking them two and three at a time.
On the eighth floor, Junior was backed up against the wall, Belcini and Black Hayate standing their ground in front of him, hissing, spitting, and growling as the figure came closer and closer, electricity dancing in his hands. Junior hiccuped, terrified, tears still in his eyes, and the man raised his hand, electricity forming a ball in his hand.
Roy heard the barking and mewing and kicked in the door and snapped, flames shooting from his hands and at the intruder, exploding and catapulting him away from Junior. He burned a circle into the floor and constructed a cage around the intruder and left him there. He wouldn't wake up for a while anyway. Then he bent down by Junior and hugged him tightly against his chest, letting Junior sniffle and cry into his chest. Belcini mewed and climbed up onto Roy's shoulder, and Black Hayate pawed at Junior's pant leg, whining.
"Sssh... it's okay, I'm here now... it's okay..." Junior looked up at him and sniffed again. "Is he dead?" he asked, pointing at the man in the cage. Roy shook his head and picked up Junior, but did not pause to examine the man in the cage. He'd come back. He walked down the steps to the ground floor and found his phone, dialing the number for East HQ. A woman picked up.
"Hello, Eastern Command Headquarters, how mayI help you?"
"This is Colonel Mustang, I need Warrant Officer Falman and First Lieutenant Hawkeye over here as quickly as possible. I have a man here who needs to be held for interrogation. Send word to Lieutenant Colonel Hughes of a possible arrest at the Mustang Estate, if you will. He can bring whoever he sees fit."
"Yes Sir, I'll send the First Lieutenant and the Warrant Officer over now."
Roy put down thephone and left the door where it had been smashed in; it would be evidence later, he supposed. He held Junior on his hip and stroked his hair gently, still murmuring soothing words into his ear. Junior calmed after a little while, and half an hour later Falman and Riza had arrived in a military vehicle driven by a thoroughly depressed looking Havoc. Roy thought it best not to comment at the moment, but made a personal note to check up on his friend that night. Junior checked that no one else was around, and when he was satisfied he leaped out of Roy's arms and into Riza's, sobbing into her neck. Falman patted Junior's back briefly and turned to Roy.
"What on earth happened here, Sir? It looks like a classic case of King Kong breaking and entering. I mean..." he fingered the splintered door and the ripped hinges. "These were torn apart! And I don't think the door would have been made out of cheap wood..."
"Pure marble, the hinges were made of the strongest steel you can find nowadays."
"Damn, a marble door... there's a lot of power used here to rip it so forcefully from the house itself... what are we dealing with here, Colonel?"
"I dunno, but he's locked up on the eighth floor; he tried to murder my son. I think he might also have a hand in Keira Havoc's death." Jean's stare burned into him from the car, as if his eyes were aflame, and he bounded out of the car and up the stairs without invitation. Roy cursed and ran after him, Riza and Falman close behind. "Hurry!" he said. "If Havoc gets up there... he might be angry enough to..."
"I'm way ahead of you," Riza murmured, cocking the stun gun at her waist. If Havoc was going to be difficult, then he would have to opt for the difficult way to go to sleep.
Junior on the other hand, was left standing on the porch, and he was quite lonely. He peeked over into the car and his face broke into a smile. "Hiya, Luna!" Luna crawled over to the car window and said hi.
"Roy, how come my daddy's been acting funny?"
"I dunno... where's your mommy?"
"I don't know, when I got home she wasn't there anymore, and Daddy was crying in his room." She paused for a minute. "It was scary... I've never seen Daddy cry before, not even he got shot on accident. But it wasn't a real gun... not a big one. See, he was holding his gun cause he had to go on some mission for your daddy, and J.J goes and crawls to him and Daddy picks him up and he bites Daddy on his shoulder. It must've hurt because I heard him say 'ow', and there was a big bang and Mommy screamed, and then Daddy was on the ground holding his foot. It was pretty funny at first, but then this red stuff starting coming out and it wasn't funny anymore, because Mommy started to cry, and then J.J started to cry, but Daddy didn't cry. He just got up on one foot and hopped into his room and Mommy followed him, and they took the bullet out and bandaged up Daddy's foot. Look, I have the bullet still." She held up a bullet threaded in a necklace.
"That's the bullet that was in your daddy's foot?"
"Yup! You know what? J.J's sad too, but I don't know why because he won't tell me. Or maybe he does, but I just can't understand him. He just learned how to say Mommy, but he keeps crying and saying it over and over again, and I don't get it, and Daddy gets sad again and picks him up and hugs him and I still don't get it!" Luna huffed, crossing her arms and slumping in the backseat of the car.
"Nobody tells me anything." She looked up at Junior with her big blue eyes. "Roy, do you think Mommy will come back?"
Junior nodded confidantly. "Of course she will! Mommies and Daddies always come back, don't they? Even though they say they'll be gone, they always come back." Luna nodded and hugged J.J, who had gone to sleep with his thumb in his mouth.She pulled it out of his mouth and J.J muttered something before snuggling on her.
Havoc pulled out his gun and aimed at the man in the cage, unable to think properly, the only words registering in his head being 'Revenge for Keira' over and over again. Roy burst through the door yet again and tackled Havoc, sending him head over heels onto the floor and struggling against his friend, trying to wrestle the gun away from him. Riza cursed, her gun wavering; she couldn't shoot, she might hit Roy.
"Jean, Jean stop it! What are you doing?" Roy hissed, trying to pin Jean's wrists to the floor. Jean's head was thrust forward quickly, smashing into Roy's forehead and sending him sprawling backwards onto the floor. It took a few seconds to regain his senses, but once he did, he jumped on Jean again, hand going for his gun wrist again, forcing it down to his side. They were on the floor again, Roy struggling with Jean's gun hand and Jean in a fire-eyed fury, unwilling to give up his revenge.
"He's going to pay, pay for Keira's death!" Roy didn't have any kind of advantage over Jean Havoc; He couldn't use his alchemy on a friend, and especially not in such close proximities, Jean was possibly a whole half a foot or more taller than him, heavier than him by another twenty pounds at the least, and in a maddening state of grief, and grief gave him the strength to kill.
"Think of your children, Jean! You'll be a murderer, think of them!" Jean seemed to pause for a split-second, his eyes seemed to clear for an instant, and Roy took this second to roll over and send Jean into the floor, pinning his arms behind his back. Jean shook once and broke one arm free, backhanding Roy roughly, and Roy punched him back.
In the scuffling, Riza raised her gun and a bang echoed in the room. The blood drained from her face and from Falman's as well, and he clutched her forearm tightly, mouth working silently. Riza stared at her gun, at the gun in her hands, and at the bloody mess that was Roy on the floor. He was laying on his side, blood forming a large puddle around him as it spread slowly onto the floor, his face obscured by his hair. But it wasn't her gun that was smoking. Jean's eyes were wide and the color gone from his face as well, and he hurled the gun away from himself, smashing it on the wall. He crawled over to Roy, lifting his upper body, and he looked at Riza and Vato. "Roy... Roy... hurry! HELP HIM!" His hand was pressed against Roy's chest, stemming the blood loss, and hopeless tears of frustration welled up in his eyes. "Dammit Roy... I-I didn't mean to... I didn't... hang on... don't die on me!Don't you die on me, Roy!"
Junior and Luna looked up as Jean bolted out of the house with Roy in his arms, bloodstained and disheveled. "Luna, take J.J and get into the front seat, quickly!"
"Daddy?"
"Go!"
Luna picked up J.J and scrambled to the passenger seat, and Jean lay Roy down on the back seat, hand still pressed against his chest. Using the other hand, he ripped a large strip of his work shirt and balled it up as best as he could, pressing it against Roy's chest too.
He looked at Riza, who's face was still bloodless and white as a sheet, and he couldn't meet her eyes. "When will Central be here?" he asked, looking at the ground by her feet. She didn't answer, only sank to her knees and gave a despairing wail, arms crossed over her stomach. Junior ran to his mother and threw his arms around her neck, and she pressed him tightly against her chest.
"They're coming now," Vato said, pointing up the road. Cars from Central were zooming down the road, the first presumably Maes who was concerned for his best friend's well being. Maes slammed the brakes and jumped out of the car, his arms waving around. He wasn't in uniform; today must have been his day off. Elysia confirmed that as she rubbed her eyes and looked around, wondering why they were at Uncle Roy's house.
"Where's Roy?" he asked. He didn't like the way Riza was sitting on the ground and weeping, or the way that Falman was standing as if he didn't know what to do. Falman lifted a finger and pointed to the car, and Maes ran over to stand beside Jean, trying to peek in.
"Dear God... what happened? Who did this?"
Jean shuddered. "I did it." Maes looked at him incredulously.
"Right, nice one, Jean, but really... oh my God... you're serious..." Jean nodded silently. "...Why, Jean? Why'd you shoot him?"
"I didn't... I didn't mean to! I didn't, I didn't... please believe me, Maes!" he cried, but Maes's head was bowed and he shook momentarily before raising his fist and punching Jean in the face. Jean shook from the impact, but didn't flinch. He had been expecting it.
"Dammit, Jean, what on earth could have made you pull the trigger on your own friend!"
"Daddy didn't mean to! He said he didn't mean to, it was an accident!" Luna cried from the front seat, and Maes's face softened. "There are no such things as accidents... why were you pointing it at him?"
"We were fighting... he jumped me from behind and we started scuffling, and then... then he was holding my wrist and the gun was pointed at his chest, and he kind of kneed me in my stomach and my finger twitched on the trigger and... it went off..."
"God... how am I going to explain this one..." Maes muttered. "A Second Lieutenant firing on his Colonel... you could be executed for this, Jean!"
"I know," Jean said miserably.
"Unless Roy testifies that it wasn't your fault, if he's even alive, Military Command will put you to death!"