You know how this works. I don't own Roy (don't I wish), I don't own his staff, and I don't own Central. Pretty much the only things I do own are the plot, my character (General Ree), and the academy (yeah, that was me). Oh, and anyone mentioned in the flashback is also my creation. Quick background, I brought Hughes back (yeah, saw that coming, didn't you?) because he's too awesome to die. The grave can't stop him! Well, that's enough of that, let's get this party started.
As
they ate their dinner, they talked. They talked about old times, and
they talked about all the things Arika had missed. They told stories
about work and school and Maes talked endlessly about his daughter.
He had two years of stories to tell, and he told them with vigor.
Once, when Maes stopped for air, Roy turned the conversation around.
"So, Arika, where are you staying tonight?"
"Yes. You just
got here today, you must not have found anywhere yet," Gracia
added.
"I was going find an apartment today, but I ended up
staying with Roy at-"
"That's a great idea!" Maes
interrupted.
"…what?" Arika didn't follow.
"Stay with
Roy. He's all alone in that huge apartment of his, and he has a
fold-out couch." He looked over at Roy.
Roy, with the feeling of
being trapped, said "I do have extra space…"
"Then it's
settled," Maes declared, pounding the table.
"Thanks, Roy. I
hate motels," Arika said shyly.
"It's no trouble," he
said, suddenly valiant.
They talked and ate for another half hour
before they were finished. By that time, Elicia had fallen asleep in
her chair. Maes went on for a few minutes about how cute she was when
she was asleep. Finally, Gracia, after sitting silently for most of
the dinner, said, "Dear, I'm going to take Elicia home. You and
your friends have a nice time tonight, and I will see you at home."
She got up and lifted her daughter from the chair. They said their
goodnights and the two were out the door.
"Well, I've been
written a blank check for the night. What do you guys want to do?"
Maes asked.
After the boys didn't speak up, Arika said, "I'd
kinda like to visit the old school. I haven't seen it in years."
"I
haven't been there since we graduated," Roy volunteered.
"Me
neither. Somehow, it didn't seem right to go there without you,"
Maes said shyly.
Five minutes later, they had paid the bill, left
the restaurant, and were on the road to the school. "I think we
just passed the turn," Arika said.
Roy looked at her
reproachfully. "Don't go trying to get us lost again."
"Oh,
we both know you got us lost. I just made it worse."
"It
wasn't me, I was the one who said we should try going just a little
farther when we were on the right street to begin with."
"You
were the one who—"
"Children, children," Maes shouted,
steeping in between them. In a lower voice, he added, "We're
here."
Sure enough, there was the old school. "As I recall,
they never locked the doors at night," Arika said, walking up to
the door and pushing it open. As she walked in she called back, "Care
to join me, boys?"
The school was just as she remembered. She
walked over to a locker, spun the lock, and opened it. "The
combinations are even the same," she told them. She ran up the
stairs and into the gymnasium. The safety mats were out and they
brought back so many memories. The boys were still downstairs, and in
the silence, the gym seemed to echo with long forgotten shouts of
aspiring officers. One in particular stood out in her mind. She
walked over to the bleachers and sat down. Closing her eyes, she
recalled the last time she had been here. She could see it in her
mind, so long ago…
several years earlier
A young Arika Ree
sat with her friends, Maes and Roy. She was depressed and upset. She
knew what she was doing was probably the wrong thing, but it was her
only way out. "Guys, I have some news," she said slowly. "I got
my first post. I know you guys got yours weeks ago, and I'm happy
that you're both staying Central. I'm going to be an Ensign under
Colonel Rister."
"Colonel Rister?" Roy asked angrily.
"Doesn't he work out West?"
"Yeah," Arika said
shyly.
"Is there anything you can do to stay?" Maes asked.
She
shook her head. "I asked to leave."
"What?" Roy yelled. He
was always so angry, sometimes it scared her. He used his anger as a
shield, so she knew when he was hiding behind it and when it was
real. This time it was a little bit of both.
"This is something
I need to do, Roy, I'm sorry," she said, running out of the
gym.
present
"This is something I need to do, Roy, I'm
sorry," she found herself whispering. When she opened her eyes, she
found Roy sitting in front of her. They sat in silence for a
minute.
"Why did you leave?" he asked reluctantly.
"Why
didn't you ask me to stay?"
When he couldn't answer her, she
left the gym, Roy, and all the old memories in search of Maes.
