Hello!
This is not chapter 3 of "back in time", but I hope you'll like this new OS!
It's set the night after Hughes' funeral. I initially wanted to write full angst, but my soft heart refused, and it's a bit lighter at the end.
Like some others here, this story had been written to fit 2 themes: "Whisky", and "Ignited". I found they fitted Roy, and when I thought about the moments he could drink, Hughes' funeral was one of the "best" I could think of.
Enjoy!
Drinking in good company
Roy closed the door of his hotel room. He sighed, tired because of the long day he had lived. It had been full of emotions and he didn't know if he would be able to sleep. He hadn't rested neither his body nor his mind for the past few days. He was restless and haunted by the thought his best friend was gone. Each time he closed his eyes, he only saw Maes' smile, his enthusiasm, the loving way he spoke about his wife and daughter on the phone. But he also heard the deafening silence at the other end of the line that deadly night.
Who could he share his thoughts with? Who could he trust to support him while he climbed the ranks of the military?
How ironic, though. Maes Hughes was supposed to help him from Central, and now he was a rank above him. His death was one of the worst things that could happen. Roy was sure he had discovered something important, leading to his death. Thinking that higher ranked officers could be involved revolted him.
Roy sat on his bed and didn't move, lost in his thoughts. If needed, he would move heaven and earth to find his assassin. He would bring justice to Hughes; he would bring justice to Gracia and Elicia. They didn't deserve such a loss. Hughes was too young, many people loved him.
During the burial, Roy had wished for rain. The Lieutenant was the only one he could show the depths of his heart now that Hughes wasn't anymore. Hawkeye understood him by an exchange of glances, and that mattered.
Right now, he wanted to forget. Forget about the army and its plots, forget about the grief, forget about the loss of his best friend.
He changed into civilian clothes and went to the hostel bar, still open despite the late hour. By a sign of his hand, he ordered a glass of whisky, and the bartender poured it quickly. Roy swallowed it in one go, and the burn of alcohol was a relief for his throat. He was alive, he intended to stay alive for a long time. He had many things to accomplish, for god's sake. He had to discover the culprit of Hughes' murder, climb the ranks, and repair the country, mend his error in Ishval.
A second drink followed the same way than the first. It wasn't enough. He asked for a refill, and the bartender obeyed, looking a bit worried. Perhaps he was wondering how far this depressed man could go with drinking.
"Colonel." At the sound of this familiar voice, Roy raised his eyes from his glass and turned on his seat.
Hawkeye was here, in civilian clothes and her hair down.
"Hawkeye? I thought you went to bed."
"I wanted to see if everything was good," she hesitated. "You weren't in your room, so I thought you would be here."
"Call me an alcoholic, while you're at it…"
She frowned.
"I know it's a way to drown your sorrow, and even if you can understand the Elric's pain, you won't try to bring Hughes back. At least, I hope you won't," she added with a sad smile.
"I'm sorry," Roy mumbled. "I've worried you."
Riza didn't reply and sat next to him. While Roy was sipping his drink, she murmured a few words to the bartender, who left them. When he came back, he gave her a bottle and another glass. She took them.
"Come on, sir, let's go to your room."
Roy raised his head. What did she intend to do?
"I can't leave you alone right now. I promised you I would watch your back, and that's what I'll do."
"By drinking with me?"
She gave him a mysterious smile and stayed silent as they climbed the stairs, and Roy wondered about her reasons. Once they were in his room, they sat on the armchairs standing in front of the decorative chimney, separated by a side table. Riza filled the glasses and gave one to Roy.
"Before you drink, I want you to tell me a good memory of Hughes. One of the best you have."
He looked at her, taken aback.
"I don't want this night to be a bad memory," she said. "Maes was a good man, and I'm sure he wouldn't want you to drink to forget him."
Roy didn't move, so she began to speak.
"I met Maes in Ishval, a few days before I found you again. He'd heard about my "accomplishments" and wanted to see the Hawk's eye, like lots of others. I didn't expect the way he reacted. Instead of being surprised to see a girl on the battlefield, he told me to hold on protecting my comrades. I liked his words and won't forget them. In spite of all I did in Ishval I want to continue to protect others, and you're the first one.
She hid a melancholic smile by taking a sip of her drink and winced because of the strong alcohol.
"When we had graduated from Military Academy, Maes, I and another friend went out to drink in a bar. He met Gracia there for the first time, but he was too drunk to remember it. I realised it only when I saw her running to him when we were back from Ishval. I was truly happy he'd found someone to protect.
Roy and Riza exchanged a glance, and where he could see relief, he knew she was seeing gloom. Somehow, speaking was good, he realised as he took a sip of his whisky.
"He cares for others," Riza said. "He likes to tease his loved ones. And he kidnapped Winry when she came to Central."
"Winry?" Roy frowned, trying to remember who she was.
"Winry Rockbell, Edward's automail mechanic."
Roy stayed silent. One day the Elric brothers would have to learn Hughes' death, but he didn't feel ready to tell them.
Riza saw his muteness and gave him a knowing glance before emptying her drink in one go and wincing once more. Roy's lips stretched. He was happy to have her by his side, for the support she was giving him, for her discreet but efficient presence, and simply for her.
"I can't recall all the times Hughes told me to have allies!"
"They were numerous and always ended the same way: him telling you to marry."
"Between him and Grumman, I've got enough people to tell me," Roy said, looking suddenly tired.
He swallowed his drink and was about to fill his glass again when he saw the questioning look on Riza's face.
"What's the matter?"
"General Grumman advised you to marry?"
Roy nodded. He was feeling a bit better, and he knew that the discussion was helping him, as well as alcohol.
"With his granddaughter, nonetheless," he affirmed. "He wants me to marry her so she can become First Lady. But I don't even know who she is."
Riza frowned. Then, her features relaxed.
"I think she would be happy with that."
"Hawkeye, I think you should stop drinking, you're saying nonsense. Even if she knew me, she would have heard about my reputation of womanizing…"
"That's just a guise to collect information, as she already knows."
"You're speaking about her as if you knew her."
"Of course I know her, it's me."
Roy choked on his whisky. He managed to regain countenance after he coughed his lungs out and stopped his crying eyes.
"You're not serious, are you?"
She was staring at him, sinking in her chair, flushing and her eyes shining. She had drunk too much and was talking rubbish, one side of Roy's mind said. Alcohol loosens tongues and makes even the most secret people open up, the other side replied. The Colonel was confused. Was she really serious?
"I've never told you, but my mother's maiden name was Grumman. I'm the General's granddaughter."
Roy was astonished. With that, he could have the support of a high-ranked officer, and that was a great thing. But he felt something bothering him. He felt manipulative. It was the total opposite of what he thought was gathering allies. It wasn't him. He glanced at Riza, who'd taken another drink. If she did want him, he knew he would be happy. He didn't see her only as a subordinate for a long time now. Even before seeing her again in Ishval, he hoped to reunite with her.
"Didn't you say that she would be happy?"
She nodded, a thin smile spreading on her face. Roy finished his drink and put his glass on the table between them. He breathed, gathering his courage.
"Will you stay by my side?" He asked. "Forever?"
"As I said earlier today, you don't need to ask me. I'll follow you into hell if you ask me."
"And once I would become the Fuhrer? Will you want to become First Lady?"
"To make my grandfather happy?"
She seemed to be delighted as she teased him, and Roy saw in her the Riza he'd known during his apprenticeship, the one he hadn't seen in Ishval.
"To make YOU happy."
"Then it's in your interest to climb the ranks quickly, and I'll make sure of it."
"I hope so, so you'll follow me to the end."
A happy smile bloomed on Riza's lips, and Roy tried to give her smile back. But his heart squeezed suddenly, and guilt overwhelmed him.
"Why am I this happy when my best friend has just died?"
Riza rose and placed a warming hand on his shoulder.
"Because you just realised one of his greatest wishes. To find someone who will support you unconditionally and will be by your side for all your life. You're right to be happy and sad. His death affected us all, and one way or another, we'll bring justice to him. However, we can live with the memory of a good and cheerful man who wanted people around him to be happy."
Overwhelmed by emotion, Roy threw his arms around Riza's waist and pulled her to him. He nestled his head on her stomach. She gently struck his shoulders and his back, calming him down.
"When we're alone together, can you call me Roy?" He whispered against her.
"Then, call me Riza."
A few minutes later, they parted reluctantly.
"I think it's time to sleep, Roy. The journey will be long tomorrow, and work won't be easy when we'll get back to East City."
"You never lose your sense of priorities," he tried to joke.
"Be assured that my only priority is you, Roy Mustang."
Was it possible to fall in love with the same person ever again? Roy couldn't believe he felt something this strong each time he saw her.
Riza took the bottle and both glasses. Then, she bent over him and kissed his forehead.
"Goodnight. I'll bring back what's left of the whisky to the bar before going to bed."
She smiled at him one last time and left.
Roy went to bed with a new determination ignited in his heart. An ardent flame burned in him, and he felt strong enough to move mountains. He would avenge Hughes, discover the plot of the brass, climb to the top to protect those he loved and all the others. And above all, he would spend his life, however long it would be, beside Riza.
Did you spot the Star War reference?
