DISCLAIMER: Still working on the owning thing, but as of right now, I unfortunately do not own FMA, or any of it's characters.

A/N: Okay, here's chapter 2. Again, it's still moving slow...it'll really pick up around Chapter Four. That's where you finally get your first glimpse of our villians. Well, same as before: RHRiza POV, RMRoy POV, G3rd Person.

Chapter 2: A Murder, A Wife, and A Clue. G.

The next morning, the officers were gathered in their usual room. Havoc puffed on his cigarette, while Fuery hid behind a book. Breda and Falman looked bored, but kept an eye on Roy as he paced back and forth in front of them.

"Why don't you sit down, chief?" Havoc suggested.

Roy shook his head and continued to pace. Breda and Falman glanced at each other and shook their heads. The door opened suddenly and Riza entered looking as if she had run there.

"I'm sorry I'm late, sir..." she said hastily.

Roy turned to look at her, frowning. "It's all right, Hawkeye. Lucky for you, business has been pretty slow this morning. I'm just waiting for the kid to arrive. Looks like you weren't the only one to have a slow start this morning."

Riza glanced at her watch and back at Roy. "But, sir, it's only seven thirty in the morning. The boys don't usually arrive until eight."

Roy looked down at his own watch. "Hm. I guess you're right."

He moved back over to the window and Riza watched him curiously. She looked at Havoc, inquisitively, but he shrugged and turned his gaze back to the Colonel.

The silence that followed was only broken by the arrival of Hughes. He entered the room, smiling widely and looking more awake than any one else in the room.

"You'll never guess what happened this morning," he said cheerfully. "Elysia-"

Riza shot Hughes a quick glance and nodded toward Roy, which shut him up quickly. He eyed the gun still attached to Riza's hip and moved quickly toward his best friend.

"What's going on?" he asked quietly, so that they wouldn't be overheard.

Roy didn't answer him. Instead he continued to look out the window. He seemed to be doing that increasing more over the past couple weeks. Hughes repeated his question a little more urgently. Finally, Roy turned, but he didn't focus on Hughes.

"Hawkeye, I'd like to see you in my office," he said shortly, heading for the door. "Maes, would you please join us?"

Riza avoided Hughes' gaze as they followed him back to his office. When they arrived, Roy ordered for Riza to close the door. Hughes sat down in his usual chair, while Riza stood next to him. They stared at Roy, waiting for him to explain.

"Yesterday, I received news from the Führer , as you both are aware. He told me that there are rumors of another alchemist wandering the streets, murdering innocent people." he said slowly.

"Sounds like Scar," Hughes interrupted.

Roy nodded, "Yes. But they're convinced that it's not him. The victims don't end up like Scar's."

"You mean, all bloody and torn apart with body parts lying everywhere?" Hughes said again, adding in his comments wherever he could.

"Thank you for that lovely description, Lieutenant," Riza said stiffly, not looking at him.

Before he could reply, Roy continued with his story. "No. They're quite the opposite actually. Hard to tell that they're dead, except for the lack of a pulse. Many say that they merely look like homeless people who have fallen asleep on the side of the street."

"And the Führer 's convinced it's done with Alchemy, sir?" Riza spoke up.

"He's sure of it," Roy turned to them. "He seems a little too sure of it. I wonder if he knows more than he's letting on."

Riza knew the door was closed, but still feared to be overheard. "Please sir, if anyone were to hear you-"

"Hawkeye," Roy cut in. "We're fine. What I was saying was, we need to figure out who's behind this. I would immediately blame the Homunculi, but I have reason to believe it isn't them."

"How do you know?" Hughes asked.

"They wouldn't leave the scene that clean," Roy said. "And they usually have reason to murder their victims. None of these people seem to have anything in common."

"Do you have a list of the victims, sir?" Riza asked, eyeing the papers sitting on his desk.

Roy shook his head. "I don't. I will be receiving one in moments, but until then, we need to keep this under wraps. I would have invited Havoc along with us, but I don't want to cause a stir so quickly. Especially when we don't really know what's going on."

"Are you going to tell the boys?" Hughes asked.

Roy paused and stared at his desk, resting his hand on top of it. He had obvious not thought that through. Finally, he looked up at Hughes. "I'm not sure yet. They have enough to worry about at the moment, and since this probably has nothing to do with the Philosopher's Stone, I won't worry them with it."

"They'll want to help..." Hughes continued. "You know how Ed is."

"Ed will need to stay focused. He has his own work to do and I have mine." Roy said firmly.

"What do you want us to do?" Hughes asked, unsure of what Roy was planning.

Roy focused on Hughes. "I want you to do as much research as possible. Have Sheska help you, but don't tell her what it's for. If she asks, just tell her it's top secret. See if you can find any information on other alchemists in the area, not employed by the military. Or if you can, see if you can find records of murders similar to this. We might be working with someone experienced in this field."

Hughes stood and saluted. "Yes, sir."

He seemed too eager to leave the room, making Riza a bit annoyed. She continued to stare at Roy, who was leaning on his desk, now with both hands, and staring down at a piece of paper.

"What would you like me to do, sir?" she asked.

He looked up. "You're coming with me."

As he moved to grab his jacket, Riza followed him. "Where are we going?"

He headed for the door, but didn't explain. He had grabbed a folder off his desk, before leaving and was now hurrying down the hall toward the garage. Riza did her best to keep up with him, but he was moving unnaturally fast. Wherever they were going, he wanted to get there as soon as possible.

When they reached the car, Roy hopped into the passenger seat and rushed Riza into the driver's. As she turned the key, she looked at Roy, confused.

"Where are we going, sir?" she repeated.

"Shh," he said quickly. "I'll tell you in a bit. Just go straight."

Riza kept her cool. Roy didn't always tell her what was going on, but she usually had a good idea of what he was planning. Recently, she had been finding it harder to read him.

"Sir, it's only eight in the morning. I hope we're not visiting someone." Riza said, worriedly.

"They're expecting us." he said shortly. "Take a left."

Riza put her blinker on and followed his directions. Occasionally, she noticed him staring at her in the rearview mirror. She would catch his eye and then look back to the road, quickly. A weird feeling set in her stomach.

A half an hour later, he instructed for her to pull into a long driveway. The house was massive in size and the beat up car in front of the garage seemed completely out of place. Roy opened his door as Riza turned the car off. She didn't get out.

"Are you coming?" he asked, staring at her.

"I wasn't sure-" she started, then changing her mind. "Yes, sir."

She hurried out of the car and followed him as he approached the front door. He knocked several times and they waited for someone to answer.

"I need you to cover me, Hawkeye." Roy said. "You know that."

Riza placed her hand on the butt of her gun and nodded. From the way it had sounded before, she was certain they were visiting someone with answers, not someone who could be potentially dangerous.

An older woman answered the door, wearing an apron. "Can I help you?" she asked frailly.

"We're here to speak with Mrs. Hawthorne," Roy said professionally. "Is she in?"

The old woman looked concerned. "I don't believe Mrs. Hawthorne would like to meet with any guests at this time. She's not at all feeling well..."

"Please, Ma'am..." Roy insisted. "My name is Colonel Roy Mustang and it is very important that I speak with her."

"Who is it, Emmy?" Another woman appeared at her side. She was considerably younger, but the lines on her face, no doubt from lack of sleep, made her look many years older. When she spotted Roy she froze. "Emmy, I think something's burning in the kitchen."

Emmy looked from the woman to Roy and back. Without another word, she disappeared into another room. The woman continued to stare at Roy.

"Are you Mrs. Angela Hawthorne?" he asked.

She nodded slowly. "Yes. I am..."

Roy breathed in deeply. "I am-"

"I know who you are," she said abruptly. "Come in, Colonel."

Slightly stunned, Roy stepped inside. Riza followed slowly, ignoring the strange look she had received from Mrs. Hawthorne. She had released her gun, but kept her arm bent slightly to make sure she'd be able to reach it quickly if need be.

Mrs. Hawthorne led them to another room where they could all sit down. Along the way, she ordered another maid to bring them a pot of tea.

"I thought you said she was expecting us," she muttered under her breath.

"She was..." he replied quietly. "How else do you think she knew my name?"

When they reached the parlour, Mrs. Hawthorne gestured for Roy to sit down on the couch. Mrs. Hawthorne herself sat in the chair opposite him. Riza chose to remain standing.

"I have been expecting you," Mrs. Hawthorne said softly. She was frowning, which made Riza a bit uncomfortable. "Ever since Bradley alerted me last night."

Roy turned slightly to Riza, giving her a smug look. He turned back to Mrs. Hawthorne, losing the smile. "Then you know why we're here?"

She nodded grimly. "My husband was killed by some...thing. I saw it with my own eyes. It was...was...indescribable, the feeling that went through me when I-I saw..."

"You are the only witness to one of these murders, Ma'am," Roy told her. "Because you saw the attacker, you're going to be a great help to us."

"Yes..." she said, her voice shaking a little. Moments before, she had seemed to have herself completely together, but asking her to relive her husband's death was already taking it's toll on her.

Roy's voice dropped. "Do you remember how your husband was killed? Was there some kind of weapon the attacker used?"

Mrs. Hawthorne shook her head. "No weapons. Only hands. There was a flash of light. I remember that. It was like some kind of power coming out of their hands."

Roy and Riza exchanged glances. "Ma'am, you've heard of Alchemy haven't you?"

Her eyes widened and she nodded. "Yes, I have. I don't know much about it, but I certainly know what it is."

"Would you consider what happened a work of Alchemy?" he asked.

She paused for a minute, staring at the intricate patterns of the carpet. When she looked up, she wore an odd expression. "Why yes. It would make perfect sense. I-I don't know why I didn't think of that before. It had to be alchemy."

"Alchemy without a transmutation circle, though?" Riza spoke up.

"It's possible," Roy said, not looking back at her. "Look at what Ed can do."

Riza nodded and didn't reply. Alchemists who could perform Alchemy without transmutation circles were especially dangerous, for they could perform it at will.

Roy sighed and continued. "I know it's going to be hard, but if there is anything you can remember about the man who attacked your husband, I would like to know what it is."

Mrs. Hawthorne stared back at him, blinking slowly. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Did he have any scars or special marks on him? What was his hair color? Do you remember any of this?" Roy asked.

She continued to stare at him, confused. "Colonel, I think you have your facts confused. The person who killed my husband was a woman."

Roy and Riza looked at each other quickly. They had not come across many female alchemists in their time, which would narrow suspects down. Mrs. Hawthorne glanced up at Riza.

"Why don't you sit down dear?" she offered. "You look dead on your feet."

Back in the car, Roy and Riza sat silent for a while, staring blankly ahead. Finally, Roy spoke up.

"You know who Hawthorne's husband was, don't you?" he asked.

Riza shook her head. "I don't sir."

"He was an alchemist from the West. He lived a secret life. Even his wife didn't know he was into Alchemy. Rumor has it, they even had kids. He hid it from them too." he explained. "He was a good man. I met him on a couple occasions."

"If she didn't know about her husband's work," Riza said. "How did she contact the Führer ?"

"She didn't." Roy answered simply. "He contacted her. When he'd learned of Lieutenant Hawthorne's death and that his wife had witnessed it, he immediately got her on the phone and told her that he would be able to help find who killed her husband, if she helped us in return."

"That's stupid," Riza said, not thinking. "How can he promise something like that, especially before we learn all the facts. What if the murderer has fled and we never find her? What if she stops and leaves no more clues behind? She'll have built her hopes up for nothing. What a stupid thing to tell her."

Roy glanced at her and smiled. "Careful, Lieutenant, someone might hear you..." he said mockingly.

She threw him a serious look and pulled out of the driveway. When they arrived back at headquarters, they were met by Havoc, who had just come out of an adjoining room. He stared at them for a moment.

"Where the hell have you two been?" he asked. "We've been looking all over for you."

"Business, Havoc," Roy answered, pushing his way past him.

Havoc followed next to Riza. "It's not just us who've been looking for you, chief. The Führer wanted you in his office as soon as we found you."

Roy stopped abruptly and turned his head slightly. "Is that so?"

"Yes, sir."

"Hawkeye, return to my office," he ordered. "Havoc, alert Hughes and tell him I want to see him in my office as soon as possible. If I'm not there when he gets there, tell him to wait for me."

"Yes, sir!" Havoc turned and headed in the direction of Hughes' office.

Riza sighed and headed for Roy's office, still trailing behind him for most of the way. She wanted to tell him that she wanted to go along with him, but didn't want to try his temper. He had been in a strange mood all morning.

As she reached for the door, she heard someone say her name.

"Lieutenant Hawkeye!"

She turned to see Ed running toward her. She faced him as he came to a stop, trying to catch his breath.

"Yes, Edward?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Where's the Colonel?" he asked, breathlessly.

"He's meeting with someone right now," she told him. "He'll be back soon, but he's dealing with something important, so I'm sure he won't want be to be bothered."

"Well, he's going to have to deal with it about this..." Ed continued. "It's about the murders!"

Riza stared at him. "How did you-"

"I think I have some information that he'll find very interesting..." he said matter-of-factly, grinning mischievously.

A/N: The chapters will get longer and more in depth and action-y very soon! So, keep reading! Oh and don't forget to review! (Oh and yes, I made up Lieutenant Hawthorne...he was nowhere in the manga or show...lol.)