Mom's Made Fullmetal Day 4: Fireplace/Family Dinner
Word Count: 1716
Author: aquietwritingcorner/realitybreakgirl
Rating: G/K
Characters: Rebecca Catalina, Riza Hawkeye, Mom Catalina
Warning: N/A
Summary: When Rebecca brings a friend home from the Academy for the holidays, her mother, Laurel, decides to keep a close eye on this friend.
Notes: N/A


Fireplace/Family Dinner

When Laurel Catalina received a call from her youngest daughter asking if she could bring a friend home from the academy from the holidays, she, of course, said yes. With seven kids, plus spouses, grandchildren, the cousins, aunts, uncles and other grandparents dropping by, adding on a friend or two was no big deal. There was always enough cooked to feed a small army, and they always managed to find places for everyone to sleep. Besides, Rebecca hardly ever asked for anything like this and there was something in her daughter's voice that made Laurel think that this was really important.

So of course, she had said yes.

She sent Joshua to go pick up Rebecca and her friend the day their train came in. She knew that it would take a while, as the train stations were always busy this time of year. So, she really wasn't expecting them to arrive as early as they did. Joshua and Rebecca were already bickering, but trailing along behind them was a thin, serious looking, blonde girl who seemed a bit unsure of what to do.

Well, Laurel would just have to take care of that.

"Cut it out, you two!" she said as she came further into the room. "You know better than to bicker in front of a guest!"

"Yeah, Josh, you know better!" Rebecca said. She reached back behind her and pulled the blonde girl up. She, for her credit, didn't even flinch at this, which told Laurel that Rebecca had submitted this girl to these sorts of antics before. Not that Laurel was the least bit surprised. She knew her daughter well, after all. "Mom, this is Riza Hawkeye! Riza, this is my mom, Laurel! Riza's my roommate at the academy mom."

Riza looked at Laurel and nodded her head. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Catalina. Thank you for having me over. I'm sorry for any inconvenience that I've caused you."

Laurel waved off her excuses and reached over, putting her hand on Riza's back and drawing her further into the house. "It's not an inconvenience at all! The more the merrier! And you can just call me Laurel. Welcome to our home, Riza! There's always a lot going on here, but please, make yourself at home!"

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you," Riza replied.

Rebecca latched onto her arm about then. "Don't mind her, Mom! Riza's quiet, but she's good! I'm gonna take her on up and get her settled in, in my room!"

Laurel didn't object, knowing that Rebecca knew best when it came to her friend. She watched as Rebecca escorted Riza up the stairs and towards her room, talking a mile a minute to her friend. Laurel watched, her instincts telling her to keep an eye on this girl.

The next few days were rapid fire prep days. There was decorating to be done, cooking to do, and food to prep. Family was coming in rapidly and people were constantly arriving. Laurel, as per her instincts, kept and eye on Riza and discovered that Riza was a very hard, very efficient, and very competent worker. She knew how to do food prep and was quick and efficient about it. She was good at helping to hang the decorations, as long as she had direction. She adapted quickly to all of the visitors coming in and out. She was good at helping with outside work. She even knew how to dress a kill, which the family quickly found when Uncle Vinny arrived with some unprepared fresh deer, much to everyone else's chagrin.

She was a very helpful girl, although she was quiet and generally serious. She seemed to have a good heart about her, although she careful in how much of it she revealed. Still, there were things that caught Laurel's eye, like how Riza always seemed to hold herself somewhat aloof, never seemed completely sure of herself in social situations, and often tried to stick to the background. She also couldn't help but notice other things, such as the limited supply of clothes she seemed to have, how many of them had been patched and repaired many times, and how her shoes were more than a bit scuffed up.

Laurel, of course, asked Rebecca about it, but Rebecca said very little. Just that Riza had no family to go to, and that she was pretty sure Riza's childhood had been difficult and pretty solitary. It wasn't much help, as Laurel had figured that out for herself, but it was something, at least. Rebecca did confess that it was the reason that she had asked if Riza could come over. She didn't want her to be alone on the holidays.

Laurel was beginning to understand why.

When the day of the main holiday finally rolled around it was a hit-the-ground-running, all-hands-on-deck type of morning. Food was pulled out, prepared, popped into the ovens, put on the stove, stuck in the warmer, and slid into the fridge. More and more people arrived with more and more gifts and food. Everyone was, as usual, loud and boisterous, and it wasn't long before the teasing began. Songs were sung, insults were thrown, and there was noise everywhere.

It was the kind of noise that Laurel enjoyed. It was the noise of life, of the people that cared about you and wanted to be near you. The was the noise of family, of fun and love and jokes. It was the kind of noise that was alive. Her family thrived on it, and Laurel herself did as well.

It was about three in the afternoon when Laurel realized that in all of the hustle and bustle, that she hadn't seen Riza in quite some time. The girl had become Rebecca's shadow as more and more family had arrived, but now she wasn't anywhere at all. Laurel look through the house, peeking in on various family members. There were lots of people in the house, but none of them were Riza.

For a moment, Laurel was stumped. Where could Riza have gone? That was when Laurel remembered one of the words that her daughter had used to describe what little she knew of Riza's upbringing. Solitary. Could it be that this full house and loud family was too much for the solemn girl? Laurel thought it was likely.

She poured some cider into a cup and went outside, looking for the blonde girl. She finally found her out near the fence line, not too far from the house, but far enough away to give her some space. She was, of course, aware of Laurel approaching her. Laurel had already figured out that little escaped Riza's notice.

"Are you alright?" Laurel asked her as she got closer.

Riza regarded her for a moment, then gave her a small, polite smile. "Yes, ma'am," she said. "I just needed a break. I'm… not used to that many people."

Laurel nodded. "I understand. My husband, he had no idea what he had gotten himself into when he married into my family. We're all big families, and loud. It was overwhelming for him."

Riza looked curious, and Laurel took that opportunity to hand her the cider. "Did he get used to it?" she asked, taking the glass from Laurel.

Laurel nodded. "He did. He came from a small family, so holiday gatherings were never like this." She paused, and then decided to take a risk. "What were the holidays like in your family?"

Riza looked down at her cup of cider, falling silent. Laurel waited, hoping she hadn't overstepped her bounds.

"They were… quiet." Riza finally said after a moment. "To be honest, we didn't really celebrate them. I have a few memories of them from when I was very young, but nothing much. After mother died, it was just father and me and he… didn't care to celebrate."

Laurel blinked. Solitary indeed! No wonder all of this had to be overwhelming to the poor girl. "I understand," she said. "Well listen. I know that my family can be over the top—you know Rebecca, now you see why she's the way she is. You just come and go as you feel you need to, alright? Just remember that dinner is at seven."

Riza nodded, and Laurel went back inside, leaving the girl to gather her thoughts. She was more than pleased to see her slipping back inside about an hour later, and then more than happy to see her sitting beside Rebecca as the two ate and giggled over something that they were talking about. It was only later that night, as everyone was asleep and Laurel was stoking the fireplace before bed, that she had the chance to talk to Riza again. Only this time, it was Riza who initiated the conversation.

"…Ms. Laurel?" her voice was uncertain, and Laurel could hear it. Still, she turned around.

"You can call me just Laurel, sweetheart," she said to Riza as she turned around. "Do you need something?"

Riza looked incredibly shy at this moment, and for a moment, Laurel almost regretted saying anything, as she was afraid that the girl would bolt. Instead, Laurel just smiled at the young woman.

"I…" Riza began, and then trailed off, as if she still had to look for the words to what she was saying. "I…Thank you very much!" she said, the words coming out in a bit of a rush. "For inviting me. I—I've never quite had anything like this experience, and I just wanted to say thank you for that."

Laurel smiled at her, and reached out, drawing Riza into a hug. "Oh honey," she said. "Anytime. You're welcome anytime, holiday or not, alright?" She pulled back at little to look at Riza. "You'll always have a place here."

Riza's cheeks glowed red at that, and she nodded her head again. "Still. I'm incredible thankful. So, thank you." With that, she pulled herself free of Laurel's grip and headed up the stairs to the room she was sharing with Rebecca.

Laurel watched her go, her thoughts churning. She would keep an eye on her, even if was just through her daughter's letters. After all, that what's mothers did, and, as far as she was concerned, she had just adopted another daughter.