DISCLAIMER: -has fired spokesperson- Okay, Okay...I guess I'm back. You know the routine. I don't own FMA or any of the related titles and names. I give full credit to Hiromu Arakawa.
A/N: Hey there. Okay, so this is the next chapter. (And yes, prolly the one most of you have been waiting for.) It's like totally Royai, so if you don't like mushy lovey-dovey stuff...don't read it. Lol...it's not too bad, but it's definitely romantic-y. So, yeah, I completely blew off my AP Lit assignment today (I only have another week to finish 15 more essays) so I could write this chapter...so...if I fail my first English assignment...let it be on all of your consciences! (lol hehehe I'm kidding.) Anyways, enjoy!
Chapter 12: A Moment Like This... G.
"He still won't come out?" Roy asked as Hughes entered his office.
"No," he replied. "He and Al have been in there all day now..."
Roy frowned. The boys had been spending all the time that they could locked up in the Library. He didn't know what the two of them were looking for. They hadn't learned about the doctor reports, so didn't have any real leads.
"Have they found anything?" Roy asked curiously.
"If they have, they didn't tell me," Hughes said. "I assume that they didn't. I'm sure there would have been an outburst if they had..."
Roy nodded. If Ed had found something, he would have run into the office and rubbed it in Roy's face. Then he would take off in the other direction, throwing himself into battle without really thinking the situation through. Roy knew he would. It had happened before. (Well, not the rubbing it in his face part, but the other stuff.)
"Have you found anything?" Roy said, focusing on Hughes.
Hughes shook his head. "Not exactly. I found a record of an old tribe that did rituals similar to Alchemy involving blood, but that's about it." He looked at Roy carefully. "Do you suppose, whoever is behind this will attempt a massive taboo?"
Roy fell silent. He stared at the edge of his desk. Hughes looked down, starting to regret asking the question.
"Yes..." Roy answered quietly.
Hughes didn't speak. He knew he shouldn't bring up such a touchy subject with Roy, but he wanted to see if they'd both been thinking the same thing. Hughes made to leave, but stopped.
"Maybe you should get some rest tonight Roy..." he suggested. "It'll do you some good."
Roy shook his head. "I'm fine," he insisted. "I've just been thinking a lot lately."
"Scary..." Hughes said jokingly.
Roy didn't smile. Hughes turned back to him and stopped in front of his desk, staring down at his friend. He had noticed it too. Roy had become unnaturally quiet lately. It always seemed like something was bothering him and Hughes was quite positive it had nothing to do with a Taboo.
"Is something wrong, Roy?" he asked.
"I don't know..." Roy said, not blinking. "I don't feel like myself anymore, Maes. Something's happening and...I just don't understand it..."
Hughes sat back down. "Remember what I said a while ago?" he said softly. "How you were changing, and you'd probably be the last to notice it?"
Roy stared at him. "Yes..." he said hesitantly.
"Well..." Hughes said, nodding his head slightly. "This is it. You're not the only one who's changing Roy. I've noticed it in someone else as well." He took a deep breath. "And, now, don't take this as me being a pain in the ass okay? I'm just trying to point something out to you..."
Roy dreaded what he was about to hear. Hughes had the nasty habit of being incredibly accurate when it came to noticing things.
"Hawkeye's overall mood has changed," he said. "I've noticed her smiling more. I mean, she's still hard as nails, but they way she looks at you..." he shook his head slowly. "I've never seen her look like that before. And trust me, I know that look..."
"What look?" Roy asked, a bit confused. He had no idea what Hughes was talking about.
"It's the same look Gracia gives me..." he explained. "You know, when things get quiet and I catch her staring at me and she's not even aware of it. It's an amazing look, Roy..."
Roy looked down at his desk, a bit embarrassed. Why hadn't he seen this so called 'look'? Was she doing it when he wasn't looking? Or had he simply been too stubborn to notice it before?
"She's not the only one doing it, though..." Hughes said quietly. "I've caught you doing the same thing a couple times." he stood, this time actually planning on leaving. He chuckled lightly. "Next thing you know, you'll be carrying around pictures of your kids and showing them off to everyone..."
As Hughes headed toward the door, Roy spoke up.
"I can't get her out of my head, Maes..." he confessed. "It's driving me absolutely crazy..."
Hughes looked at him over his shoulder and smiled. "That's not always a bad thing..." he said.
Roy wasn't sure. If he didn't start to focus on his work, he was going to fall even further behind and he'd never be able to complete his goal.
And yet...
For some reason, that didn't seem important to him at the moment. He had the rest of his life to become Führer, but how long would he still have Hawkeye with him?
"You've grown up, Roy Mustang..." Hughes said, noticing the look on Roy's face. "I'm proud of you..."
The door closed behind him and Roy was left to his thoughts. Sighing deeply, he made his decision. He was going to have to do it. He would have to swallow his pride and tell her how he felt.
He only hoped Hughes wasn't wrong about this. He only hoped she truly felt the same way.
XXXXX
Walking around headquarters, he couldn't seem to find Hawkeye anywhere. He wasn't complaining. It gave him time to rehearse what he was going to say. He felt like a complete idiot when he walked past the Elrics' door and heard it open behind him.
"Colonel?" he heard Ed's voice. "Who are you talking to?"
Roy froze and turned around. "No one. Why?"
Al was standing behind Ed and the two of them were staring at him curiously.
"We thought we heard you talking to someone, sir..." Al explained.
"I wasn't," Roy said quickly. "I thought you two were in the Library."
"We were..." Ed started uneasily.
"But we decided to turn in for the night," Al concluded. "Perhaps you should get some sleep too, sir. You look tired."
Roy nodded. "I will. Thank you."
"Colonel!" Lieutenant Ross came running down the hall. "I had only left for a minute, sir, I swear. I didn't-"
"Lieutenant Ross," Roy said calmly. "I don't care. The boys are fine."
She looked at him, stunned. Usually she would get in trouble for leaving her post, but there was something different about the look in the Colonel's eye.
"Have you seen Lieutenant Hawkeye?" he asked, trying to sound calm.
"Yes, sir..." she answered. "She left not too long ago. She said something about not feeling well."
Roy's face fell. "Oh. Thank you, Lieutenant." He turned and started off in the other direction. As he passed the Hospital Wing, several of the nurses waved at him out the window. They all whined as he took no notice of them and continued walking.
"Hmmm..." Ed thought, as the Colonel disappeared. "That's interesting..."
"What is?" Lieutenant Ross asked, looking at Ed.
"Before you showed up," Al said. "We thought we heard the Colonel talking to someone in the hallway. It almost sounded like he was confessing something..."
"And then he asked for Lieutenant Hawkeye..." Ed butt in. "Rumor has it, they've been seeing a lot of each other lately..."
"I heard about that," Ross said, nodding. "Do you suppose he-?"
The boys looked at her and she shook her head.
"Never mind," she said. "It's none of our business. You'd best stay out of it. Now back inside, the both of you."
They sighed and went back into the room. Lieutenant Ross stood outside the door, smiling to herself. She had been rooting for the pair to get together since she'd first met them.
"Do you suppose the Colonel's really in love?" Al asked.
"Who knows?" Ed replied casually, flopping down on the couch. "I'm gonna take a nap..."
"I always wondered if there was something going on between them," Al continued. "I mean, they're awfully close, even if they do work together..."
"She's dedicated her life to protecting the guy," Ed said, closing his eyes. "Stupid idea on her part in my opinion."
"But why do you think she did that?" Al asked. "Why would anyone do that?"
"I don't know, Al..." Ed replied, annoyed. He was trying to fall asleep, but Al was making it incredibly difficult.
"Do you think she loves him?" he said, laying down as well and staring at the ceiling.
Ed groaned. He did want to know, but frankly he didn't care at that moment. He was tired. He wanted to go to sleep. Why didn't Al ever want to go to sleep? It was getting annoying.
"I think they'd be lovely together," Al said almost dreamily. "Don't you think so, brother?"
"Hmm...sure..." Ed said, drifting off.
Al sat in silence for a while, thinking over everything. He had always wondered about them. Some of the things they would do around each other made things very curious. Al turned his head to look at his brother, whose shirt was halfway up his stomach.
"Ed," he said slowly, starting to feel sleepy himself. "Don't sleep with your stomach out. How many times do I have to..."
Al drifted off to sleep. Ed hadn't heard a word that he'd said, for he had fallen asleep a few minutes before. He snored lightly as the room grew dark.
XXXXX
The next day, the Colonel felt even worse. Despite how many people had been telling him to get some sleep, he found that he couldn't sleep at all. When Hawkeye entered his office first thing in the morning, she showed no signs of being sick at all. He had wondered if he should tell her then, but she left before he could find the perfect opportunity.
Ed and Al were in the library again. Roy had stood outside the door for a while, contemplating whether or not he should go in and help them. Changing his mind, he went back to his office to work on some papers.
He was in the middle of a report when the door opened again. It was getting rather late and he had been wondering when he'd ever get the opportunity. When Hawkeye entered, Roy felt his heart skip a beat. It was now or never.
"Where have you been?" he asked conversationally.
Riza turned to look at him. "I've been trying to find some more information about blood alchemists."
"Oh..." Roy said, nodding slowly.
She looked at him expectantly, but frowned when he didn't say anything and walked across the room toward the book shelf. She returned a few books that were in her hands.
"Hawkeye," he said nervously. "Can I talk to you?"
Her hand paused in mid-air. Her hands were sweating and she was certain that she was going to drop the book if she wasn't careful.
"Of course," she answered, not looking at him.
"Maybe it would be better if you sat down," he said, trying to stall as much as possible.
Riza stayed where she was and Roy knew he wasn't going to get her to move. He breathed deeply and was finding it hard to let out the first word.
"Riza, I-" he started.
Riza breathed slowly as he fished around for something to say.
"Riza," he said. "I have to tell you something. Lately, I haven't been myself. I don't seem to find any women attractive. Any date I go on, I find myself thinking of someone else. I can't sleep at night. I can't-"
"Roy-" she cut in, turning to him slightly.
"No, please, let me finish..." Roy said, walking toward her. "I can't eat. I can't focus on my work. I thought something was wrong with me at first, but I know what it is now."
Riza moved toward him slowly, stopping before him. Her brown eyes bore into his. Suddenly, things seemed to be so much easier. His hand traced the side of her face, wandering back to her hairclip. He released it and her hair tumbled about her face. He smiled weakly.
Riza took his left hand in hers and slowly slid the glove off it. She pressed her hand up against his and stared at them lovingly.
"I think I'm in love with you, Riza..." he said quietly.
Riza glanced back at him. They had come so close so many times, there was no way she was going to let it happen again.
Their fingers became entwined as she brought her lips to his. He responded by kissing her back lightly. His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to him. As her arms locked around his neck, the kiss became more passionate.
Roy's hands fumbled with the buttons of her jacket. It fell to the ground and his hands roamed the contours of her back. Through the thin material of the undershirt she was wearing, he could feel the raised skin just below her left shoulder. A hot surge of guilt washed over him.
Holding her tightly once again, she felt him lift her off the ground and sit her on his desk, sending several papers onto the floor. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she brought herself as close to him as possible.
His lips left hers and traveled down her neck. Riza ran her fingers through his dark hair. Her eyes were closed and her heart was pounding. If they weren't careful, they were going to go too far.
"Oh, Roy..." she gasped.
He brought his lips back to her mouth and she kissed him greedily. Her mouth opened wider to deepen the kiss. Roy felt like he was on top of the world.
As if it were impossible for them to get a moment alone, the phone rang, interrupting them once again. Roy sighed, annoyed and pulled his mouth from hers. With Riza still clinging to him, he answered it.
"Hello?" he said, trying his best not to sound too breathy.
Riza unbuttoned the front of Roy's jacket and began to kiss his neck. He tried to ignore her, but it was starting to tickle.
"Yes, sir..." Roy said into the phone. "Cut it out, that tickles..." he whispered to her.
Riza stopped and stared at him. She wondered if the person on the other end had any idea what was going on.
"No, sir, I wasn't talking to you..." Roy looked serious. "He what? Yes, sir-"
Riza pulled the phone from Roy's hands. "I'm very sorry, sir, the Colonel's very busy right now. He'll have to call you back."
Without another word, she hung up and kissed him. Roy tried to talk to her between kisses.
"Riza, that...the Führer..." he tried to say.
"I know..." Riza told him, running her hands up his chest.
"H-He said that something..." he continued. "Something's wrong..."
Riza pulled away, this time looking concerned. Roy fixed his breathing and continued telling her what the Führer had had time to tell him.
"He said something about Ed..." Roy said. "I-I think he might be in trouble."
Riza, her eyes as large as hubcaps, let go of him and slipped off of the desk quickly. She grabbed her jacket and headed for the door.
"Call the Führer back," she ordered. "Find out what's going on."
Before he could say anything, she had disappeared out the door and was heading down the hall toward the Library. Throwing the doors open, she called out the boys' names.
"EDWARD?" she yelled. "ALPHONSE?"
There was no reply. Tossing her jacket back on, she raced up and down the aisles of books looking for some sign of the boys. They were nowhere to be found.
"Dammit, Edward..." she cursed, leaving the Library and heading for their room. "You'd better be there..."
Lieutenant Ross was gone again. Riza opened the door and looked around the room. It was completely empty, but the window was open. Panicking, she took off in other direction.
Roy had called the Führer back, but hadn't gotten through to him. He hurried from the room to try and find Riza. Instead, he bumped into Hughes along the way.
"Maes!" he exclaimed. "Have you seen Ed?"
"He's gone missing, Roy," Hughes told him. "I was on my way to tell you. We've already alerted the Führer!"
"Do you have any idea where he went?" Roy asked.
Hughes nodded. "We have an idea. There was a map in his room with a warehouse circled on it. We're to report there immediately."
Roy ordered Hughes to follow him and he continued his search for Riza, who seemed to have disappeared as well. They were running out of time and couldn't run around much longer. They had to find Ed.
He didn't want to fight without Riza. He rarely had to do so, and no matter what, she was always nearby to cover him. He had a feeling this time was going to be different.
The two men raced toward the garage and Roy forced the door open. He came to a sudden stop when he noticed that the car that Riza usually drove was absent from it's spot. Hughes nearly ran into him.
"Damn, Riza..." he swore, searching around for another vehicle.
"What's the matter?" Hughes asked.
Roy continued to stare at the empty spot. "She's gone after him..."
A/N: Cliffie? I dunno. I'm no good at pointing out if things are cliffhangers or not. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please REVIEW! My day usually depends on how many reviews I get. The more I get, the happier I am...and the more motivation I have to write. The next update...I dunno...it'll be whenever I have the next chapter finished. I'm not sure how long it's going to be and how I'm going to break up the ending into chapters yet, so it may take me a while to decide that. Please keep reading though! (T'would be a pity to stop now wouldn't it?)
