Author's note: Timeline is gonna be out of whack from canon just to warn you.
As Hawkeye had explained yesterday, today's meeting with Mustang was more of a formality and to establish her cover story for being here.
"As you know, Maes Hughes was murdered. The night before yesterday, Second Lieutenant Maria Ross was apprehended in relation to the murder."
"Is she suspected of the crime?"
"There is apparently a witness and they found a bullet which matches her gun." Cassie nodded. In reality, Maria Ross had probably fired that bullet in a previous incident. Hawkeye had explained that as well as the fact that a source provided invaluable evidence to Mustang that Ross did not kill Hughes. Tonight, Mustang's plan would be put into action, but for now, they all played their part.
"So, now that it looks like you have the killer, what am I needed for?"
"Well, your original mission has been completed without your help. Though, I suppose that's no different from when you are actually present."
"Did you bring me here just to insult me?" Cassie was glaring at the Colonel.
"No that's just an added bonus. Lieutenant Falman is out sick and Lieutenant Hawkeye will be taking leave tomorrow, I could use an extra pair of hands around here. You already were given the okay to be away from Briggs, so there's no harm in keeping you here for a bit. I actually already have a task you can work on."
"Oh, what is it?" Cassie asked. Mustang reached into the lower desk drawer and pulled out a stack of paper. He had a huge grin on his face.
"You could finish this paperwork for me!"
"Don't call me lazy if you won't even do your own paperwork!" Cassie slammed her hand down on the table as Hawkeye sighed. "This is going to take me all day."
"Just think of it as making up for all that slacking you did before your transfer up North!" The Colonel had a huge grin on his face. He hated being Cassie's commanding officer years ago, but knowing she would only be here temporarily, he was making the most out of tormenting her.
"How am I supposed to know how to fill this out? I don't work here."
"It's standard military paperwork. Don't you do that for Briggs?" Cassie thought about his question for a moment.
"No, not really. General Armstrong has everything running perfectly up there. I just show up once in a while and help out with whatever needs to be done."
"WHY ARE YOU GETTING PAID BY THE GOVERNMENT THEN?" The Colonel snapped.
"I mean most of my work is done in the towns south of Briggs and if Drachma ever tries to invade, I'll be on the frontlines." There was pride in Cassie's voice and a smile on her face.
"You're going to take the Drachman army on by yourself?" The Colonel was both skeptical and annoyed.
"Oh not at all. Briggs has quite the defenses and tanks and highly trained soldiers. But Drachma could have some alchemists so we should be prepared."
"If you're what's standing between Drachma and us, we're doomed."
"Would you rather I ask for a transfer to Central? I can make this move permanent."
"Absolutely not." Colonel Mustang replied immediately.
Cassie had a few choice words she would like to say the the Colonel, but she knew she needed to choose her battles with this one. She began to gather the papers and stood to leave his office.
"Oh, Lieutenant Keynes, one last thing." She turned to look at the Colonel. He had a very serious look on his face as he stared at her.
"What, Colonel?"
"Why are you wearing that stupid coat?" Without a response, Cassie exited the office making sure to slam the door shut.
"So," Havoc said as he leaned against the wall across from Cassie. "He's already stuck you with paperwork." Cassie batted her eyelashes at him.
"Lieutenant Havoc, would you really let a poor girl do all this on her own?"
"Sorry, but I've got a gorgeous girl waiting on me. Solaris is so wonderful and beautiful and amazing, I wouldn't dream of standing her up." Cassie immediately regretted asking him. She knew he was lying about meeting up with this girl because of tonight's plan, but she accidentally opened the door for him to talk about her. Now he was acting like a twelve year old girl.
"Solaris is a stupid name." Havoc's lovey-dovey attitude suddenly switched too overbearingly sad.
"Don't say that! One day you're going to have to meet her and get along. What am I going to do if the two women in my life don't get along? Think of how awkward the wedding would be!"
"I would love to stay and daydream about your marriage to a girl you barely know, but suddenly I have an urge to start this paperwork." Cassie started walking away and left a lovelorn Jean behind. Cassie had not had a chance to ask Jean where she should go to do this paperwork so she started walking to the only location she remembered: the cafeteria. It was still early for lunch, but she could get a cup of tea and work her way through this awful assignment.
She had been walking around Central for about five minutes when she realized that she did not actually remember where anything was located in Central. She turned a corner and found herself walking right into a man.
"Oh, sorry!" Cassie said as she regained her balance. She looked up and her jaw dropped open. The man standing before her was none other than Fuhrer King Bradley. She quickly stood straight and saluted him. He looked down at her and a smile broke on his face.
"Why if it isn't the Snow Alchemist! I didn't realize you were in Central." Cassie's nerves settled immediately. There was something calming about the Fuhrer's face. She supposed it was the kind smile and funny moustache.
"Hello Fuhrer," she said still in salute. "I just arrived yesterday. Colonel Mustang requested my assistance."
"Really?" The Fuhrer chuckled. "Well, this is a strange world we live in if you and Mustang are getting along."
"I wouldn't say we're getting along, just working for the same cause."
"Glad to see two individuals overcome their differences by a shared love for their country. Well, I need to be off for a meeting. It was nice to see you, Snow Alchemist."
"Nice to see you too, sir." Cassie watched as he walked away. Given that she only ever works with the soldiers at Briggs, it was so strange seeing the Fuhrer walking around. Remembering the paperwork in her hand, Cassie continued her journey to find the cafeteria.
By time she arrived at her destination, it was actually close enough to lunch time for her to grab a bite to eat before sitting down. People slowly started trickling in and grabbing seats at other tables while Cassie stared at the paperwork in her hand. She flipped through it and immediately noticed that most of the questions were extremely specific to the Colonel and there were many spots that required his signature. She was infuriated. The bastard was probably in his office laughing about the fact that he sent her with an impossible task. She was so caught up in her anger that she did not notice Lieutenant Hawkeye sit down across from her.
"How's your first day back at Central going?" There was a hint of amusement in the blonde woman's voice.
"There's no way I can do any of this paperwork! The man's a monster!" Cassie threw her pen down and turned her attention back to her sandwich. "I get he hates me," she said with a full mouth, "but this is just cruel."
"I know for a fact that the Colonel has not glanced at this paperwork once, so I doubt he even knew what needed to be filled in." Hawkeye reached for the papers. "I'll take these back to him and make sure he understands that by time I return from leave, these should be completed."
"You're a saint, Lieutenant Hawkeye." Cassie was beaming as she passed all the papers to the other woman. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Hawkeye passed a slip of paper to Cassie during the exchange.
"So, you must have a lot to do to get settled in here. Who knows how long you'll be staying. There's probably a lot of shopping you need to get done." Hawkeye put aside the paperwork and began eating her lunch.
"Yeah, I might slip out for a bit and get some errands done. Of course, it would be appreciated if the Colonel didn't hear about this."
"Of course," Hawkeye replied.
"I owe you one," Cassie said as she gathered the remnants of her trash. "If I don't see you later, enjoy your time off!" Hawkeye nodded in response as Cassie tossed her trash and left the cafeteria. Luck was on her side this time, and she found her way out of Central Command easily without running into anyone. Once outside, Cassie opened the note Hawkeye had slipped her. She opened it discovered a shopping list of peculiar items. On the back were coordinates and, today's date, and the time 2100. She immediately recognized the handwriting as the Colonel. Yesterday, Hawkeye explained that they intended to fake Maria Ross' death but that the Colonel was still working on an exact plan. As Cassie analyzed the list, she realized that the Colonel intended to create a fake body. She had no idea what else his plan involved, and a part of her wondered if they could pull this off. Nevertheless, she went about town purchasing the items from his list as well as a few other things she needed in order to keep people from wondering what she was up to.
It took longer than expected to gather the necessary ingredients and bring them back to Havoc's apartment. Cassie decided there was no need for her to go back to Central and plopped down on the couch instead. She folded the various receipts and tucked them away in her bag. She fully intended to ask the Colonel to reimburse her when this was all over. A huge yawn escaped Cassie's mouth and she was very tempted to take a nap, but she knew she had to stay awake so she would be ready to meet the Colonel.
"It's going to be a long night," she sighed.