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Chapter 15

"Still nothing, sir?" Havoc asked tiredly while chewing his cigarette with his front teeth, and he groaned when the Führer shook his head. "Gimme a break. It's been ten days!"

"As expected of Drachman spies," Falman commented.

Roy reached a hand up to ruffle his bangs and let them down, the dark locks shadowing his dark eyes. "I'll go take a quick shower, then I'll come back."

"Shall I ask someone to come to treat their hands?" The grey-haired Major asked.

Roy glanced at the interrogation room, where sounds of muffled, pained groans could be heard and said before turning on his heel. "No need. I'll be back soon."

"Yes, sir."

...

The raven-haired man exhaled a deep breath as he stepped into the shower stall and let the warm water hit his body. He closed his eyes, his mind replaying the events of nine days ago.

"William Dickson and Grayson Chance enrolled for the Amestrian military at 1912 and graduated at 1914, Harry Ansel enrolled and graduated at 1913 and 1915. All three of them were transferred to Briggs at 1916." Havoc reported, "But..."

Roy raised a brow. "What is it?"

"The late Drachman King has passed away around six months ago. The next in line is the sixteen-year-old prince, Yuri." Havoc stated. "So there's no chance that they were under the orders of the prince."

"What are their ranks in the Drachman military?"

"Petrov and Ivankov were Captains, and Vetochkin was a Major." Havoc said, then asked. "Their rankings are not low. Is there a chance that they were ordered by a General or something?"

The dark-haired man crossed his arms. "But the Drachman military only follows the orders of the royals, they don't have a say to anything."

"Now that I think about it..." Falman started.

"Falman?" Havoc raised an eyebrow at him and Roy looked up at him.

"There weren't any reports of attempts of invasion from Drachma since the late king passed away."

Roy closed his eyes and uttered. "Then what are they still doing here...?"

"Would it not be the quickest if you go there and ask directly?"

The three men turned to the source of the sound. "General Armstrong."

"Well, Mustang?"

"Sir..." The said man's two subordinates looked at him worriedly.

He heaved a deep breath and spoke. "...You're right."

"But...how, sir?" Havoc asked, feeling his head starting to ache. "Are you going to write a letter?"

In the end, he did write a letter, and he felt immensely glad that the messengers they sent came back safe and sound, and the letter was seemingly accepted.

He rested his head on the cool tiled wall, heaving a stressed sigh, then quickly washed up, washing the shampoo off his soft, raven hair.

He imagined his wife, her warm smile and soothing voice. The corner of his lips curled up from a frown to a tiny smile, and he turned the water off.

...

"Were you not going to send them to death sentence?"

"...General Armstrong." Roy said to the woman who stood in front of him and sighed. "You and I both know that it would be a foolish thing to do; Did you expect me to decapitate them and send their heads to the Drachman royal family? That would only mean declaring war."

The General didn't say a word, and Roy crossed his arms and leant against the wall. "General," His eyes darkened. "This is not a matter that can be handled in three days."

She studied him with her sharp azure eyes, then spoke. "You're too soft, Mustang."

He gritted his teeth, feeling his patience dissipate, "You—"

He was interrupted by the General's sudden laughter, and he merely watched her with widened eyes.

"Wha—" He was startled when she suddenly handed him a white envelope, and he took it in confusion. His onyx eyes scanned the cover of the envelope, and they widened when he recognised the mark on the seal. "The Drachman royal family! When did you receive it!?"

"Just now, when you were busy showering." She said.

He speed-walked towards the nearest office room, and hastily borrowed a paper knife. He roughly pulled the letter out of the envelope, his heart racing as he unfolded it.

He carefully read the passage, and Olivier felt irritated when she could no longer read his expression the more he read. "What is it, Mustang?"

"The prince offered a peace treaty in the letter." He uttered, his eyes as wide as saucers.

"What?" She snatched the letter and read it. When she looked back up at him, she groaned at the sight of his grin.

"Brilliant."

...

"Sir! You have a call from Breda— What's with that smirk?" Havoc blinked at the Führer.

Roy handed his adjutant the letter and picked up the phone up. "It's me. What is it, Breda?"

"Sir. The trial has just ended." The ginger Lt. Colonel said. "Charged of rape and drugging with a total of nine victims, therefore sentenced to thirty-five years' imprisonment."

"Right." The Führer said. "Thirty-five years, huh?"

"Yes, sir. How is it over there? Everything alright?"

"Yes. Very much." Roy grinned, then turned to the blonde Lt. Colonel. "Right, Havoc?"

The said person slowly looked up from the letter with a shocked expression, his mouth hanging wide open, and he nodded slowly.

"Empty-headed as usual." Roy uttered, and averted his attention to his other adjutant on the phone, who let out a confused 'huh?' "Never mind that. Everything is going fine and well here, I'll explain in a few days."

He hung up after bidding goodbye, and he took the letter back from his dumbfounded adjutant. "Now, back to interrogating."

"Good afternoon, Mrs Mustang."

"Good afternoon, Mrs Bradley." Riza smiled and greeted back at the former First Lady, who had a bright and warm smile on her lips when she greeted her.

"Thank you for coming, I'm sorry for having you to come all the way here." The older woman said, then gasped. "Oh no. Were you busy with your social project? Dear, I'm so sorry."

Riza shook her head. "Thank you for inviting me for afternoon tea. It's nice to take a break."

Mrs Bradley nodded in agreement, and studied the blonde woman's outfit, which consisted of a short-sleeved sunflower-yellow dress with a milky beige cardigan hanging on her shoulders; she wore a pair of white pumps and had a matching white leather satchel bag on her shoulder, and her semi-long hair was down. Her lips were a shade of light coral pink, and a light scent of rose and peony flowed into her nose. Though what surprised the formal First Lady the most were her honey hazel eyes that softened with a hint of tenderness.

She let out a chortle. "It's been awhile since I've last seen you, Mrs Mustang. Was it your husband's inauguration ceremony?"

"...Yes, I believe so."

The older woman hummed and chuckled. "I really like your outfit, dear, it's very nice. The last time I saw you, you were still wearing your military uniform. I would have never expected you to wear makeup... So there is a feminine side of yours!" She kidded.

Riza let out a light chuckle. "Thank you, Ma'am. I wouldn't have expected it too, back then." She raised the teacup to her painted lips and said after sipping her tea. "Actually, it's my assistant who picked all of my clothes in my wardrobe; She keeps saying that I have a very bland fashion sense. It's also her who teaches me about makeup."

"Oh! That sounds fun, having an assistant who can chat about fashion with. Mine was a no-nonsense person." She sighed, then returned back to the cheery tone. "Now, how are you? How's the planning of your social project?"

"I'm fine, thank you," Riza replied as she reached for her tote bag, and took the file from the bag and handed it to the older woman. "My topic is literacy... Do you mind reading it? I do need some advice."

"Of course not." She took the file, "Literacy. Interesting topic. Mine was mental health."

Riza nodded, watching the former First Lady reading her report nervously, and sucked in a breath when she seemingly finished reading. "Ma'am...?"

Mrs Bradley placed the file down and faced the younger woman with an impressed and gleeful expression. "It's wonderful, dear! Building public schools and offering compulsory free education... how exciting to see! Not meaning to brag, but without the military's funding, I would have never been able to pay for Selim's school fees."

Riza heaved a relieved sigh and smiled. "I'm glad, Ma'am."

"Ah, just a little tip. It'd never hurt to host a charity ball, especially if you are worried about the cost of the social project." She let out a light-hearted laugh, "When I was doing my social project, I hosted three charity balls! Even my husband was getting tired of it." Riza chuckled, and the brunette continued. "Speaking of hosting events, I was also one of the people who planned for the Aerugonian prince's visit! What a shame that it didn't go well."

"I see..." The blonde-haired woman felt guilt tug her heart as she murmured.

Mrs Bradley smiled warmly at her and softly spoke. "I know how stressful social projects can be. Take your time, Mrs Mustang. If you need any advice, don't hesitate to ask."

"...Thank you, Ma'am." Riza returned the smile.

"No problem, dear." She said and asked. "How is your husband doing? Has he gotten used to the Führer duties?"

"I suppose he has... He's at Briggs now."

"Oh. I certainly hope that everything is fine there."

"I hope so too... He has been there for ten days." Riza couldn't help but say worriedly.

"I'm sure he'll be fine." The older woman reassured, and let out a chortle. "You've changed quite a bit, Lieutenant Hawkeye."

Riza knitted her brows and frowned ever so slightly, "...I suppose it's not a bad thing?"

"Oh no, of course not." She laughed a light-hearted one and asked. "Do you miss being in the military, as your husband's adjutant?"

"...I do." She hesitated for a while before admitting. "It's less worrying since I was constantly by his side, and... even though it's very reassuring and heart-warming to know that we love each other, I still feel a certain distance between us as his wife."

The older woman frowned ever so slightly at her words, and she hummed. "...I hope I'm not being too nosy, but do you have any plans of having children?"

The blonde-haired woman nearly choked on her tea, and she hastily took her pale blue handkerchief out to wipe the corner of her lips as she mentally uttered, Why is everyone asking me this? "Umm... Y-yes, but not now, I suppose."

Mrs Bradley hummed, and took the teapot to pour more into Riza's cup, in which she quickly muttered a 'thank you'. "Children are lovely, Mrs Mustang. They can be what connect husband and wife. How old are you, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I will be turning thirty this September."

"Then it'd be better if you have children sooner; thirty isn't exactly young." The older woman said, and her eyes softened. "...Though I suppose it doesn't matter. Having an adopted child is just as wonderful; Having Selim as my son made me realise so."

"I see..." Riza smiled at her loving expression when she thought of her son.

Riza looked down at her lap, her fingers fidgeting. She imagined carrying a black-haired baby boy, or perhaps a golden-haired baby girl, or perhaps both— in her and her raven-haired husband's arms, and her heart melted just by imagining their little smiles and soft yet cheery laughter. Her own children. Her and Roy's.

"...Still not planning to say anything?"

The three Drachman men said nothing, and merely glared the dark-haired Führer cautiously whilst trying to clench their trembling, charred hands.

Roy sighed, and they flinched when he raised his gloved hand, his fingers poised. The raven-haired man's frown deepened, and he heaved another sigh before placing his hand down. "Your king has passed away six months ago, why are you still here?"

They gritted their teeth and glared harder, but still refused to say anything.

Seeing no reaction, the Führer said. "The new king, Yuri, sent me a letter today. He offered us a peace treaty."

"Yuri is no fucking king of mine!" Vetochkin roared. "That pathetic coward will never be king!"

"Coward? All he wants is peace for the country." Roy frowned, "And he just turned sixteen."

"King Sergei became king when he was thirteen!" Ivankov spat and scoffed. "Peace? That is exactly what a coward would wish for. He is nothing like his father who was brave and mighty."

It was Roy's turn to scoff. "Constantly trying to expand your land by foolishly starting conflicts and wars is brave and mighty?" Roy narrowed his dark eyes at them. "Do you have any ideas how many soldiers of your country died when your king tried to take over Amestris?"

"They fought for the country and died out of glory!" The other man, Petrov barked.

"And yet you lost." Roy's glare and cold tone silenced them, and heaved a deep breath and spoke. "...There's no point interrogating you anymore. King Yuri invited me to talk about the peace treaty, and I will be leaving tomorrow. I will leave you three to General Armstrong's care; what happens to you is up to her."

The three Drachman men didn't say a word, and Roy left the room.

Riza laughed a light-hearted one as she watched her white, pregnant dog gobble up her food hungrily. "Slow down, White Fubuki, no one's going to snatch it away from you."

She reached down to pet the dog's head, in which she adverted her attention from the empty bowl in front of her to the blonde woman, and whined.

"No more, for now, Fubuki." She said, and the white dog placed her paws on the woman's knees.

Riza smiled and stood up to stretch her legs, and turned around when she felt something wet touch the back of her leg, just to see her other dog looking up at her merrily with his tongue rolled out.

"Hello there." She bent down to scratch his head.

He jumped up, standing on his hind legs with his front paws on her thighs as he licked her hands, enticing a chuckle from her. She sat down on the floor, having Hayate place wet kisses on her face. The white dog walked over to the woman and settled comfortably on her lap.

Riza caressed the white dog's fur, and Hayate licked his mate's snout. Her eyes softened at the sight of the two dogs' nuzzling their heads against each other. "...Five more weeks, huh?"

The two dogs cocked their heads to a side, looking at her with a slightly confused expression.

"I wonder what it feels like. Are you excited? Nervous?" She asked, but felt as if she was talking to herself. She placed a hand over her stomach, imagining what it was like to have a child, a life, inside her.

She sighed.

The moment Riza stepped out of the shower, she heard the phone on her husband's bedside drawer ring, and her heart leapt.

Hastily squeezing the water out of her hair with her fluffy towel and wrapping it around her torso, she left the bathroom and speed-walked across the bedroom.

"—Hello?"

"Riza."

The calm, familiar voice rang in her ears, and she instantly smiled a soft one.

"Roy." She glanced at the clock which showed '9:30'. "You're a bit earlier than usual."

He chuckled. "I missed you, so I wanted to call you as early as I can; plus, work ended a lot earlier than the previous days. How was your day, my dear? Was I interrupting something?"

"No, not really. I just came out of the shower." She said, holding a strand of her wet, golden locks between her fingers.

"Oh?" She instantly regretted telling him as she could practically see the suggestive smirk on his lips. "So you're wearing nothing?"

"...Give me a few seconds, I'll go get changed."

She could imagine a pout, and she smiled a helpless one before getting her undergarment and sleepwear from the wardrobe and quickly put them on.

"Roy?"

"—Hmm? Ah, Riza."

"...You were saying?"

"What are you wearing?" The smirk was back, and she withheld a sigh.

"Right, you were asking me about my day." She said nonchalantly, and he whined. "I had afternoon tea with Mrs. Bradley."

"Oh? And?"

She sat further upwards, resting her back on the headset, then rolled the sleeves of her sleep shirt up. "We talked about my social project. She said if I was worried about the cost, then I should host charity balls to raise money; She hosted three, apparently."

He let out a chuckle. "Interesting. Well, you should host one too, then."

She smiled. "...She also told me she planned the events for the Aerugonian prince's visit."

"Is that so... What else did you talk about?" He asked.

Children are lovely, Mrs Mustang.

"T-That's about it." She mentally cursed herself when she stuttered, hoping he wouldn't notice.

He merely hummed, then abruptly spoke. "Wait, Riza, you said Mrs Bradley planned for the events for the prince's visit?"

"Well, yes. what about it?" She asked.

"I have good news, Riza." She could see the grin on his lips. "The Drachman king, Yuri, offered a peace treaty. I'm going to Drachma tomorrow to talk about it."

"Peace treaty with Drachma? That's wonderful!" She said with a bright smile. "And I was wondering why you sounded so happy."

He chortled. "Hence why I called you earlier."

She let out a soft laugh. "Right. You must be tired, Roy, take a rest now. I doubt that you slept and ate properly."

"Well, you can't blame me for not eating properly when the food here's shit."

"Roy..."

He sighed, "Yes, Ma'am."

She smiled and softly spoke. "Good night, Roy."

"Good night, my dear." He replied too with a soft tone.

Playing with the hem of the shirt she was wearing, she grinned and whispered teasingly into the phone. "To answer your previous question, Roy, I'm wearing the pale blue lingerie set."

"Wait, wha—"

She laughed lightly and hung up before he could finish his sentence.

Omake:

Riza placed the phone back down to its receiver as she ended the brief conversation with her and her husband, her hand lingering on the phone for a few seconds before turning her head to the door when she heard light, slow footsteps heading towards the bedroom, and she heaved a sigh when she saw her pregnant dog by the door.

"What's wrong, Fubuki?" She softly asked as she got off the bed and headed towards the dog, and leant down to pet her head. "Did you come all the way up here? You should be resting."

White Fubuki replied with a nuzzle and licked her palm.

"I still have work to do," Riza said to the dog, and walked out of the room, heading towards the study room. The dog quickly followed her, enticing her to slow down her footsteps, and she glanced back down at her. "You want to stay with me?"

Fubuki seemingly nodded.

"Wait here then." She said, and quickly walked back towards the bedroom to get a large, flat cushion and a soft, light blanket. She placed them down on the floor nearby the door at the study room, "Here you go."

The white dog settled on the cushion and pulled on the blanket with her teeth to cover herself. The blonde-haired woman smiled, before turning back to the desk.

She lifted her pen up, her honey hazel eyes scanning through the paperwork, though her mind was elsewhere. She thought of her conversation with her husband, and she sighed.

"Peace treaty with Drachma, huh?" She said to herself and glanced back at Fubuki who was comfortably curled up on the cushion, then back at her paperwork.

I suppose there's no time for children now.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed reading that chapter! Hope everything makes a bit more sense now.

For the ones who don't know, the 'prince' of Aerugo visited Amestris for the peace treaty between the two countries when Riza was Bradley's adjutant in the games 'Prince of Dawn' and 'Daughter of Dusk', and she was ordered to kill the prince. (There were more Royai moments in the game than in the anime/manga, excluding the hug)

Reviews are much appreciated ;)

P.S: I think I've misled some readers in thinking that Riza's pregnant, but I thought I should clear it up that she's not (yet, at least). Sorry! I really hope it didn't disappoint anyone.