Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist… though that would be really awesome…. It belongs to our lovable Sensei –bows- thank you. This fic plotline, however, is mine.

Writer's note at the bottom

Chapter 3:

-Flashback-

Riza bit her lower lip as she gazed through the scope of her gun. Her finger hugged the trigger lightly as she searched for her target. Her body shifted slightly, hurting from staying in the same position for so long.

Finally, there was movement, the sound of voices; three men scurried through the street into her view. They were sturdy men at first glance; through her scope she could see their deep red eyes and their bronzed skin. The men were armed with rifles, clenching them as if they were life itself. They were… afraid.

She bit her lip until she could taste blood, aiming at the forehead of one of the men. She tightened her hug on the trigger, feeling the gun jump in her hands, watching the man fall to the ground, hearing the other two scream in horror. Riza quickly aimed again, shooting the second man between the eyes, again the gun jumped and the third man began to run for cover. With skilled hands she loaded the gun with another bullet and caught the man in the back of the head just before he could find safety behind a building.

Riza shut her eyes, taking her hand from the trigger to wipe away the blood that had been running down her chin. Damn… She stared at the blood on her sleeve for a moment then proceeded to suck the cut on her lip. After she released a sigh, her eyes returned to the scope. There was no one, only three dead men lying in the street. Riza quickly pulled her gun from the ground, feeling her legs threaten to give out as she stood and dashed to a new location.

From this point, her day continued as usual. Riza covered the east side of the city, sniping every armed man, woman, and child, as were her orders.

She finally started back to camp on the outskirts of Ishvar as the sun began to set and stain the sky crimson. Crimson… the color of blood. She looked down at her sleeve again, thinking of the three men. At this, she found herself biting her lip once more, wincing as she opened the cut. Warm blood flooded her mouth as she sucked at the cut yet again. Riza slung her rifle over her shoulder, walking toward the falling sun.

Upon reaching camp, she was greeted by a Private, another young soldier with chestnut hair and grey eyes. He saluted Riza.

"Hello, Sergeant-Major Hawkeye."

Riza nodded her head him and continued walking. He followed her as she moved through camp.

"Are you alright?" He asked, noticing her blood stained sleeve.

"I'm fine." Riza spoke coolly as she sat down by the fire and began to clean her gun. "I just bit a little hard."

He nodded, "I have news that might interest you."

She glanced up at him. "What?"

"New Troops." He said catching her full attention. "State Alchemists."

Riza looked back down at her rifle. "I've heard about the Fuhrer's Alchemists. They're powerful, but they lack experience."

The private nodded his head at her again. "And they are given the level of Major…"

"Do you know when they are arriving?"

"There are rumors that they'll be here by tomorrow morning, but…"

"I know" Riza sighed the words as she finished shining the barrel of her rifle. "It's War, after all." She stood up, gripping her gun tightly.

"Rough day?"

"No more then usual." And with that she left the Private behind, walking to the provisions tent and picking up some warm soup before heading to her own tent. She sighed, staring at the sun as it fell behind the hills, finally leaving the sky in darkness. When the sun sets, it's almost as if the sky is dying… She noted before slipping into her tent. She placed the rifle on a gray cotton cloth and sat down on blankets that made up her cot. She pulled off her boots and hid her feet in the blankets, drinking her soup.

This was the way life had been for her since the beginning of the war. The nights were cold and terrifying and the days were no better. Yet it was not their enemies that the Amestris soldiers feared. It was something within themselves. The war had taken every last bit of innocence they had and left them in the cold and darkness. Every night, she could feel a pain inside her chest, a wall of ice building around her heart. Each day, at least five souls would fall victim to her aim, men… women… children. The burden wore heavy on her soul; no matter how much time past, the pain never subsided.

She placed the empty bowl beside her, staring at the cloth walls of the tent. State Alchemists… The thought of the Fuhrer's new 'dogs' suddenly came to mind. Maybe with them…. She shut her eyes then, there was no hope for her any longer. Even if their power could finish the war quickly, the damage had already been done; permanent nightmares had already been dug into her mind.

Riza pulled the covers up over her head as the camp outside her tent fell silent. She stared into the darkness, thinking back to any happy memory she could recall. She found no happiness in them though, and finally shut her eyes. Thus the night began, one of cold sweats and sleepless tossing.

When the sun finally rose over the city of Ishvar, Riza still lay awake, staring at the wooden support for her tiny tent. Outside there was marching from the distance and the sound of tires over sand. The noise finally stopped and everything was silent until a trumpet bleared, calling the soldiers from their tents. Riza pulled her boots on and ran her hands through her short hair before grabbing her rifle and exiting into the outside world.

She moved to the center of camp, joining her fellow soldiers, all standing dressed and covered. She stood in the front row, staring forward into a group of men of major rank, the State Alchemists. One of them stepped away from the rest. He introduced himself as Colonel Basque Gran, the Iron Blood Alchemist. Riza as well as the soldiers around her saluted, studying the other Alchemists as they were called.

One of them was quite tall and muscular, standing proud and expressionless before the crowd. From this Riza could guess he was like her, the military was in his blood and he was only carrying out his parent's wishes. He was announced as the 'Strong Arm' Alchemist.

Another stared back at them with a smug grin. His golden eyes revealed a thirst for blood. She noticed transmutation circles on his hands. From what she could tell of him he was simply 'a man who loved killing'. His grin widened as he was announced as the 'Crimson' Alchemist.

The final man that caught Riza's eyes was more average then the other two. He was handsome though, this she noticed. His eyes were as dark as his hair and filled with pride and … hope? She frowned softly, how refreshing it was to see such emotions, and yet she knew that the war would break them away. Many soldiers had come to Ishvar with similar eyes, but now that light had faded for all of them. She studied his eyes a little longer with interest; he seemed different from the others. The man himself cut her examination short, however. He met her eyes, staring back at her; she held his gaze for a few moments before looking at the ground as his title was read 'The Flame Alchemist'.

When everyone was dismissed, Riza moved back into the crowd, avoiding the Alchemists on her way to the ammunition tent. She picked up the day's rounds and started for the city. A cold breeze rushed past her, chilling her to the bone; she shivered. She was unsure if the wind actually existed or if she had imagined it. The breeze came again, carrying pieces of her hair and her tattered jacket into the air. She sighed softly, squinting into the sun as she approached the edge of the city. Riza hadn't known it then, but this day would mark the beginning of the most bloody and terrible stage of the war.

The day pasted quickly, in a flash of noise and light. It was so different from any other day; her schedule had been completely upstaged. She found herself running constantly, making her way to the hills outside of the city. There was wind, lighting, explosions, fire; buildings fell, people screamed, Ishvar was utter chaos. She found herself screaming at times, sprinting through the streets to safety. State Alchemists appeared in her scope constantly, more than any enemy. Their raw power was incredible, yet she'd began to hate them for just that. She breathed deeply, coughing the smoke from her lungs as she watched over the city. She'd hoped that they would bring the end of the war, yet now, watching them, she realized it was not what she wanted, at least not this way.

Finally, when darkness fell over the city and the only light came from the burning out flames of alchemy, she made her way back to camp. She had reached the far side of the city that day and had a long walk ahead of her. Riza followed the edge of Ishvar, not daring to set foot inside it's borders. She pulled her coat closed around her, slinging the sniper over her shoulders. She walked for about a half mile in silence before stiffening in the darkness. She heard footsteps, breathing. Riza swiftly pulled a magnum from it's holster, hidden in her coat.

"Show Yourself!" Her eyes and ears searched without success for the source of the sounds. There was silence, only the soft breathing of the other being and her heart beat rang through her ears. Then there was a loud snapping sound and a source of light, Riza aimed quickly, pulling the trigger as she dropped to the ground. The other yelped, snapping again and stumbling backward. Riza pushed hard off one of her feet, dodging the second wave of flames that came at her. Only a few seconds later did she realize that the blasts were that of alchemy. She lit a match, holding it out in the direction of the flame's source. A young dark haired man dressed in blue sat in the dirt, clenching his arm.

Riza bit her lip, moving toward him. A State Alchemist. She pushed the magnum back into its holster, hitting the safety switch.

"I apologize." She said, taking his arm, attempting to see the damage in the darkness. Again, he snapped his fingers, this time creating a light source – burning a spot of dried grass. She didn't bother to glance up at him, though he did watch her as she studied the wound.

"It's just a graze. It'll heal in no time." She spoke as she proceeded to rip a piece of cloth from her already tattered coat and wrap it around his arm. Only after she finished, did she look up to meet his eyes, only inches from his face. Her mahogany eyes locked with his. They were the same charcoal eyes that she'd met with that morning. The Flame Alchemist.

After sometime she managed to whisper, "…. I'm sorry." She pulled from his gaze -those wonderfully vivid eyes- as the last of his flames burned out and returned them to the darkness. After, She stood up, offering him her hand. He accepted and she pulled him to his feet. They began to continue moving toward camp. Riza's mind raced over many thoughts, sorting the emotions that had been in his eyes. She was yanked from her thoughts, however, by his voice. It was soft, soothing, nothing like the voices of the other soldiers around camp. It sent a shiver up she spine.

"You have good aim… even in the dark. You're a sniper, aren't you?"

"Yes. My aim comes from years of training…you're the Flame Alchemist?"

"Yes, however I do have a name, a real name."

"Yes?"

"It's Roy. Roy Mustang."

Riza sighed softly, Glancing in the direction his voice had come from, he walked next to her on the left.

"I'm Riza Hawkeye…. Sergeant-Major Riza Hawkeye."

There was another long pause, filled only by the sound of her racing heart.

"… Thank you." He finally muttered.

"For what?" She asked, feeling foolish after.

"... For dressing my wound."

"But-"

"It was my fault in the first place."

They finally reached the outskirts of camp. There was silence throughout the tents; the only sign of life came from the fire, still crackling at its center. Riza moving toward her tent without a word, lost in her thoughts. A hand seized her arm, stopping her. She turned to face him.

"Good night... Riza." He whispered, releasing her arm.

"…Good night, Roy." Riza returned his goodbye, watching him walk in another direction in the dim light of the fire. She stood there as his disappeared from sight; her chest rising and collapsing slowly, her heart pounding in her chest. She couldn't quite grasp what had just happened; her hand fell over her heart and she walked back to her tent.

-End Flashback-

Riza smiled and shifted slightly in Roy's arms.

"Good night… Riza."

"Good night, Roy."

And they drifted off to sleep.

((Heh, I actually have a funny comment for how I started this chapter. I had my friend read the first 2 chapters and she told me "It was awesome but… a bit to mushy for my taste." And so I started this chapter with Riza killing three guys XD haha. Not mushy. Actually, this one is airing on the angsty side. At least the beginning is. Ok, for those who do not know, the term: dressed and covered is a military term for the lines and solders being strait all the way back so that you cannot see the soldiers behind the first one. Heh. Military slang is fun

Anyway, I'm sorry, I know I'm a bit late on posting this chapter. Last week was VERY busy for me ;;; but I do think the chapter came out really good. It's some of my best work (if I do say so myself) I really hope you like it, since I made you guys wait a little longer than usual. And to the reviewers of last chapter: thank you! You guys are so kind! -.-))