"So where are you from?" Madeline asked her, chin resting in her palms, her elbows resting on the table as Riza sat across from her while Vanessa sat on the other side of the newest member of their "family". It was the day after Riza had arrived with Roy, and she was currently being interrogated by Roy's two closets sisters, a fact she was surprisingly not nervous about.
It was just Riza, Vanessa, Madeline, and Roy in the common area, while Madam Christmas and the other girls slept.
"Pemda. It's out West. It's really, really, really tiny. Last I heard the population was less then three hundred people." Riza told her.
"Three hundred? Amestris has nearly fifty million people, and there's a town that doesn't even have three hundred people?" Madeline gasped.
"Most of the population is either here in Central or out East. The Western area has the fewest people. Great place to live if you wish to be completely isolated." Roy informed her as he swept the kitchen. He may have been leaving from the Academy the next morning, but that didn't mean he was free from doing chores before his departure.
"He's right. Okay, next question." Riza smiled, turning to Vanessa.
"Is Riza short for anything, or is it just Riza?"
"It's short for Tereza. But lots of people think it's short for Elizabeth, but I think that's because that's what my Mother's name was. I mean, I'll respond to both on occasion, but I do prefer Riza." She said, taking a sip of her tea.
In truth, Roy was the only one in the world she allowed to call her Tereza, and even that was only on occasion.
"Do you mind if we asked what happened to your Mom?" Madeline asked quietly.
"She died giving birth to me. Though if you were to ever ask my Father, he would say that I murdered her. I'm not sure on all of the details, he never told me much. I just know that I was born at sunset and she was gone by sunrise." Riza shrugged.
"You're Dad sounds like a real jackass!" Vanessa scoffed.
"He was." Roy snarled. "Only girl I've ever met with a worst father was Chloe." He said.
"Who's Chloe?" Riza asked.
"A girl who used to work here, before she got herself a husband and moved to South City. She left before Roy went to study Alchemy." Madeline explained to her.
"Her Dad used to... make her do things, to other men his age." Vanessa mumbled.
"We're all genuinely surprised she wasn't completely disgusted by the idea of men as a whole." Roy told her.
"I'm... honestly glad my Father never did anything like that to me." Riza shrugged.
"What, all did he do to you? Roy's letters were never descriptive. Just that he was mean and you declined his offer to help." Madeline pondered.
"For the most part, he just ignored me. For days at a time. When he would speak to me, his words were cruel. Telling me that I was stupid and useless for being a daughter that couldn't understand alchemy instead of being a son that could excel at it, being disgusted with my Mother for dying on him before she could give him a male heir. He told me for my entire life that I would have no say in who I married, told me the most I'd ever amount to in life was being a baby maker- assuming I didn't die like my Mother did. If I did something wrong, like burn dinner, he'd get... physical." She said glumly, gripping the hem of her dress, her eyes staring down at her knees instead of looking either girl in the face.
Vanessa and Madeline both visibly gasped.
"Maybe y'all should change the subject." Roy said, frowning. The two older girls nodded in agreement.
"So how old are you?" Vanessa asked, hoping that question would get a happier response.
"Fifteen."
"Oh you're so young!" Madeline cooed, cupping Riza's cheeks in her hands as Vanessa had done the day before.
"She's older than we thought Maddie." Vanessa said smiling.
"Older?"
"It's your cheeks. You still have your baby fat on them. They make you look younger than what you are. You should lose it within a few years. All of the girls were have." Madeline informed her.
"Though if you're anything like Roy, you'll have them forever." Vanessa teased.
"Everyone here has bets on when Roy will lose his baby face. Most of us think he'll be in his thirties." Madeline cackled.
"Hey!" Roy whined. "I don't have a baby face!"
"Yes you do!" Riza informed him, cackling.
"Oh come on Riza, please don't encourage them." He groaned, emptying the dustpan into the trash.
xXxXxXx
"Do you need any help packing?" Riza asked, entering Roy's room.
He was standing in the middle of his room, a duffel bag on the center of his bed, a piece of paper in his hand.
"What's that?" She asked him.
"Huh- What?" Roy asked, startled. He hasn't realized she had entered his room.
"What is that?" Riza repeated.
"It's a list of things I'm allowed to bring to the academy. If it's not on this paper, I can't bring it. If I do bring something not allowed, it'll be confiscated, and depending on what it is, I could be shipped back home immediately." Roy explained.
"So no weapons, drugs, or booze." Riza shrugged, sitting at his desk chair.
"Do you need any help packing?" She asked, crossing one leg over the other.
"No thank you. I don't even own half the things on this list, won't take me long to pack. But company would be nice though."
The two soon found themselves in a comfortable silence, it hadn't been the first time they'd experienced one of these silent moments, and both doubted it would be their last.
"Are you nervous? O-Or scared?" Riza questioned.
"No more then I was when I went to learn alchemy from your Dad. I more worried about what happens after I'm done with the Academy." Roy said, scratching the back of his neck.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, things with Ishval have been getting tense. It wouldn't surprise me if I get shipped to the front lines not long after graduating." Roy sighed.
"Oh." Riza muttered quietly, earning a frown from Roy.
"Oh! I almost forgot!" He cried, going to his desk and opening one of the drawers. He rummaged through it for a moment before grabbing a small piece of paper and handing it to Riza.
"What... is this?" She asked, looking at him with an eyebrow raised.
"It's the mailing address for the Academy, so you can write letters to me if you want. Don't know how often I'll be able to reply though." He shrugged.
"Letters sound nice. You can complain about what the drill sergeants put you through, I can complain about what your sisters drag me though. Vanessa and Madeline have mentioned taking me shopping." Riza sighed, a small smile on her face.
"Those two love shopping more then you love reading. You being new here and having not brought many clothes with you gives them a reason to shop." He chuckled, bending down to kiss her on the cheek.
"But I don't have any money with me." Riza groaned.
"That's a fact I informed them when I heard them mention it earlier. They've offered to pay for everything." He told her.
"Just make sure that if you do take them up on their offer, that they don't try to buy you anything you don't want to wear." Roy said, kissing her again, this time on the lips.
They both knew what he was referring to. No tops or dresses that were too revealing. The last thing either of them wanted was for the wrong person to get a glimpse of her back.
The main thing about her tattoo that had enraged Roy so much wasn't the fact that she'd been a little girl when he forced it into her skin, but how dangerous it was for her. If the wrong person discovered its existence, she could be kidnapped and studied. Or worst.
"I know." Riza said, smiling as she kissed him again.
"You two better stay decent." Madam Christmas' gruff voice sounded out from the doorway.
Roy quickly pulled away, standing back up and taking a large step back away from Riza, both of their faces flushed red.
"Seriously Aunt Chris? How are you able to sneak up on people in high heels?" Roy whined.
"Like you were even listening for me. Nice of you two to confirm my suspicions on how close you are. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to inform the girls you're not available." Chris smirked, walking back down the hall.
Roy ran to his door, leaned half his body out, and yelled after her "I was never available to begin with! You said they'd get fired if they messed with me before I was eighteen, and I've been gone since I was fifteen!"
xXxXxXx
At seven am the next morning, Riza found herself at the Central City train station, this time saying goodbye to Roy along with his Aunt.
"You better not do anything stupid to get your butt sent home. Or I'll smack you." Chris warned him, pointing a finger at him as he wrapped his arms around Riza in a hug.
"I won't ma'am. I didn't went you sent me to learn alchemy, and that's the same threat you gave me before I left." Roy chuckled, kissing Riza's forehead.
"Promise you won't let the other girls give you problems." He asked her.
"I won't." Riza reassured him.
"Besides, they already love her. Each and every single one of them. They'll make sure she's happy and safe." Chris smiled, hoping her words eased her nephew's nervous about his new girlfriend.
"Alright. I gotta go now." Roy sighed, frowning. He pressed a quick kiss to Riza's lips, pulled Chris in for a hug, and was on the train leaving Central within minutes.
"So, how long have you and Roy-boy been together?" Christmas interrogated, as they walked back to her bar.
"Not... not long. Wasn't until after we got here that anything romantic happened." Riza told her.
"I see. Anything you wanna do before we go back to the bar?" She asked.
"I'm hungry, but I can eat there." Riza told her.
"Nonsense. Best place to get breakfast is a diner not far from the station. C'mon, let's get some meat on your bones." And with that, Riza found herself being dragged by her elbow to a small hole-in-the-wall diner nestled in a corner of Central, five blocks from the train station.
Christmas ushered her to an empty booth in the corner, far from the door. She sat one side and Riza sat on the other. They were seated for all of forty-five seconds before a short and plump waitress waddled over to them.
"Hello ladies, may I get you anything to drink?" She asked, in an accent that reminded Riza of the farmers daughters she'd gone to school with back in Pemda.
"Coffee." Chris said, gruffly.
"Milk." Riza replied, not looking the waitress in the eye.
She might've began to grow used to Roy's aunt and sisters, but she was still very nervous around other strangers.
"Alrighty then. I'll get you your drinks." She said, placing menus down in front of them before leaving to get them what they asked for.
"See anything you like?" Chris asked her, watching as Riza's eyes scanned the menu.
"What's... French toast?" Riza asked her curiously.
"You've never heard of French toast?" Chris asked, shocked at her question.
"Fanciest breakfast I've ever had was a cheese omelet with some bacon." Riza shrugged.
"Oh. It's some slices of bread, dipped in a batter and cooked on a skillet. It's really sweet. The batter was vanilla extract, nutmeg and cinnamon in it. Some people put maple syrup or powdered sugar on it, but you can also eat it plain." Chris explained.
As she described the breakfast, she could literally see Riza's mouth watering.
"That sounds really good." She said, more to herself then to her company.
"Glad you found something you like." The older woman smiled. "Now, on a more serious note. There are a few questions I do want to ask you." She said, her tone turning serious.
"Like...?"
"How old you were when it happened?"
Riza knew exactly what it was. Her tattoo. Madam Christmas wanted to know more about how she got it. The scared teenager couldn't help the gulp, or prevent the color from draining from her face at the elders question.
"Now, before you say anything, I want you to know, that unless you tell me otherwise, nothing we say at this table will ever get back to Roy or the other girls." Christmas said, her voice low and reassuring.
Before Riza could give any type of response, the waitress came back with their drinks and a notepad.
"Do y'all know what you want to eat?"
"I'll take the Eastern omelet." Chris told her.
"You want everything on it?"
"Yes please."
"Alrighty." She said, writing down Chris' order before turning to Riza. "And you sweetie?"
"French toast please."
"Ooh! Great choice. How many slices? Comes in an order of four or six."
"Four please."
"Do you want to add syrup, powdered sugar, or leave it plain?"
"Just powdered sugar please."
"You got it. I'll bring out your food when it's done." She have the two women a curt nod, before disappearing again.
Riza let out a sigh, looked up at the Madam, and asked her "What all do you wanna know?"
"Let's start simply. Do you have any living family besides your Dad?"
"None that I'm aware of. My dad's never said anything about other relatives, on either side of my family. He mentioned once that my mom cut off contact with her family before she got pregnant with me, but considering how he treated me growing up, it wouldn't surprise me if that was his doing. I don't even know what her maiden name was." Riza said, taking a sip of her milk while Christmas added sugar and cream to her coffee.
"I see. Whenever I take a girl in from an abusive home or relationship, I always see if they have family somewhere else. Gives them another option if they don't want to stay in Central."
"That makes sense."
"How old where you, when it happened?" She asked, repeating her earlier question to Riza.
"... Nine. I was nine when it happened. It was the one and only time I ever remember my dad cooking anything. He even sat down at the table and ate dinner with me. But he must've slipped something in my food or my drink, because the next thing I know, I'm strapped to a table and my back was exposed. He told me that I was going to help him with his research, gave me a rag to bite down, told me if I moved he'd make sure I would regret it later, and well... you know the rest..." she said, frowning, her eyes down at the table.
Riza looked up at Roy's aunt, and saw the woman was clearly trying to surpress her anger.
"That rat faced bastard." She spat. "How long did it take?"
Riza shrugged. "A couple hours, I think. Not entirely sure what time he started, but he was done by lunch the next day. Only positive thing about the entire situation is that he made me stay in bed and not do chores for a few days, but I still had to do them once I was healed. I couldn't even put a shirt on for over a week, it hurt that bad. Sometimes I wonder if it would've hurt less if he had done it over the course of a few days or even weeks, instead of all at once." Riza said.
"What a cold, heartless, son of a bitch." Christmas snarled. "I'd say I wish I never sent Roy to study under him, but that would mean you would still be there, alone with that jackass." She added, sipping on her coffee.
"Your Dad used your back as a god damn notebook, and told you all your life that he was essentially going to sell you to your future husband like a fucking used piece of furniture." Chris growled lowly.
"And do you wanna know the worst part?" Christmas added.
"What's that?"
"The fact that you aren't the worst story I've heard from a girl who's come into my care. You're not even in the top ten." She muttered, her statement making Riza gulp.
The two women sat in silence while the waitress brought their food, the conversation changing from discussing Riza's childhood to random likes and hobbies between the two of them.
xXxXxXx
"Come on Riza. Time to go shopping." Vanessa announced, throwing Riza's door open. Behind her was Madeline, and a red haired and green eyed girl named Sherri.
"But I've only been here for a week." Riza whined, laying on her stomach as she read a book.
"And you've spent every day since Roy left pouting that he's gone. You're either here in your room pouting, or you're pouting while you're doing your chores. Now grab your shoes and lets gooooo! Don't think I won't have Maddie and Sher help me drag you out to the street." Vanessa smirked.
"Alright, alright." Riza sighed, doing as Vanessa ordered.
She trailed behind the three of them, mouthing the words 'Help Me' to Madam Christmas as the four of them passed by her. The Madam smirked, shaking her head no.
"Have fun you girls!" She yelled over her shoulder as they walked out the door to the sidewalk outside.
"How many places are you guys forcing me to go to?" Riza asked.
Sherri turned to face her, linking arms with the youngster.
"Lots. Our goal is to drag you to every clothing store in this part of Central before work starts in eight hours." She cooed, a wide smile on her face.
"Joy." Riza groaned sarcastically.
"We immensely look forward to dressing you up." Vanessa beamed.
"Roy told me to make it clear to you guys to not let you force me to wear anything I don't want to." Riza told them sternly.
"Uh huh. He told all of us that too. And while we won't force you to wear what you don't want to, we can and will force you come along." Madeline smirked.
"Lord give me strength." Riza mumbled. "We better get lunch while we're gone!" She added.
Riza surprised Roy's sisters by clothes she picked out.
While her shirts were extremely conservative- high collars, sleeves of various lengths, the hem lines all going to her hip bones- her bottoms were more liberal. Her skirts were all mid thigh or below the knee, and the shorts she picked being even shorter then the shortest skirt. The few dresses she picked were a combination of her tops and skirts, conservative up top and flowy at the end, ending either at her knees or lower.
"I'm surprised by you Riza." Madeline said as they walked home.
"Yeah. We figured you wouldn't buy such a wide variety." Vanessa added.
"My Father always decides what clothes I would wear. While I prefer my tops to keep myself covered, it's nice to branch out more with bottoms." Riza explained.
"We'll we're glad we can help!" Sherri grinned.
"Once it starts to get colder in a few months, we'll take you shopping again for warmer clothes." The redhead added.
"That sounds nice. Can... can I ask you three a question?" Riza asked them.
"Sure."
"You can ask us anything."
"What do you want to know?"
"Are... are any of Madam Christmas girls related?" She asked. There were lots of questions she wanted to know. Why they ended up with Madam Christmas? How old they were when they arrived? How long had they been there? But she decided those questions weren't wise to be asked in public.
The looks the three gave her made it clear to Riza that wasn't the question they'd expected from her.
"Well, me and Vanessa are cousins by marriage, and we had a set of twins come and go while Roy was living with you back West, but other then that none of us are related." Madeline answered.
"At least as far as we know no one is related." Sherri shrugged.
"I see. Sometimes I wonder if my life would be different if I had family besides my Dad." Riza muttered.
"Well if you want family, you've got us and Christmas. Roy's girl or not, you're one of us." Vanessa cooed, wrapping her arm around Riza's shoulder.