A/N: Taisa (Colonel), Junshou (Brigadier General), Nani (what), Jiji (grandpa/old man); just thought I'd clear that up since I always forget to include the translations! Another 'filler' chapter; I hope you can forgive me! We will probably be going back to the main plot (Ishval restoration, Roy's missions, etc) after the next chapter. I just thought I needed to expand more on the Mustangs' domesticity first before I write the plot-heavy ones. Thanks for reading my little fic, y'all! x

A mélange of various spices from lands near and far wafted from the kitchen to the rest of the apartment. Roy grinned satisfactorily at his culinary work, stirring the Xingese curry as it cooked in the pot. It was one of the few dishes he tries to create every now and then from the cookbook his late mother left in the box that was sent with him when he came to Madame's place.

After a day full of paperwork, Roy found cooking dinner to be relaxing. It was almost like the scientific, alchemical experiments that he did back when he was under Berthold Hawkeye's tutelage. The processes were fairly similar: reagents were ingredients, cooking styles were experimental methods, food created were items transmuted.

The brigadier general took a whiff of his creation before he set the fire on low. He turned on his heel to start putting away the ingredients he had used. He was about to hum to himself when he heard several gunshots firing behind him, making him drop the bag of cumin on the kitchen tiles. Good thing it was already tightly knotted.

He picked up the spice and then turned to the occupant of the dinner table with a slightly stunned look on his face. His wife didn't seem to notice. Closing his mouth, Roy observed Riza as she casually set the gun down before her and grabbed her pencil. It seemed that her eyes didn't even leave the paperwork before her. The Junshou looked sideways to see the target board that hung on the wall, three pellets perfectly embedded on the centre target. He shook his head and smirked. So this is how she is when she's frustrated…

"Oi—"

"Nani?!"

Roy blinked a few times at her reaction. He knew she was having a rough week thus far and he could sympathise. Her team had been encountering several issues with their mission. With most of the Central soldiers still recuperating following Promised Day, the manpower available for Riza's disposal is below her estimation. It entailed that she had to postpone 90% of their plans until more troops become available.

Moreover, she was having difficulty recruiting civilian support since the general populace of Central was a little iffy regarding socializing with the Ishvalans. After all, they had conflicting perspectives. There were about a third of a hundred who volunteered support for the restoration, but she deemed that number still insufficient.

And if that wasn't enough, her monthly period decided to show up bright and early on a Monday morning just a few minutes before they headed out for work. Roy didn't even know of her hormonal tendencies before since she hid them very well. Now that they were living together, however, he finds himself at the receiving end of her mood swings and general crankiness. Of course, he was wise enough not to show any trace of complaints.

"Water? Tea? Anything?"

"Nothing," Riza replied to him, short and clipped. Nevertheless, he poured her a cup of raspberry tea, something he noticed the girls in Madame Christmas drink religiously whenever they were visited by their monthly cycle. Silently, he thinks living with all those females was beneficial in the long run.

Roy observed his wife in quiet as she angrily scribbled away on the papers she had on the oak table. The pencil she was using had gone from its original length to ¾ of its entirety as Riza wrote with such ferocity that she had broken the graphite several times already. The troublemaker in him wanted to humour her and make a snide remark about inanimate objects being the cause of her anger but her air gun was in front of her and was loaded with metal pellets. The brigadier general didn't wish to be a substitute for the target board she had by the window.

Still, it troubled him that he was at a loss on what to do. He wanted to comfort her, alleviate the stress she was feeling, but Roy was clueless how. It was his first time experiencing Riza this way on a more personal level. She was always stoic at work and afterwards, almost always schooling herself into that failsafe poker face. Then again, he knew he had to try and be a good husband especially now when everything seemed to put a strain on her. And it was only Wednesday.

It has been almost three days since he first saw her waist cape be speckled with blood, meaning almost three days' worth of deafening silence in their apartment save for the one-sided hormone-induced banter whenever Riza got annoyed at the smallest of things. Try as he might, Roy was reaching the end of his patience but he knew it was no use provoking the volatile volcano that was his lovely sniper of a wife. No, there had to be another way.

He pursed his lips and turn off the stove. Before he served them dinner, though, he angled a chair to face Riza and sat down on it. Roy could be deemed stupid for facing the storm head on but he was out of options. Carefully, he laid a hand on her shoulder and was thankful she didn't flinch or shove him away. Then he took the pencil from her hand and placed it far from her reach, pushing her air gun away in the process (to be on the safe side, of course).

Roy expected the deep scowl on her face. "What on Earth are you doing, Roy? I'm working."

He sighed softly and nodded. "I know, my love, but it's dinner time and you don't look like you're enjoying what you're doing at the moment."

Amber eyes rolled. "It doesn't matter if I'm enjoying it or not. I have a list to accomplish—"

"…which you can do tomorrow in the office with your subordinates so you don't have to carry the weight of everything alone," he reasoned gently.

"I need—"

"Riza." Even he was surprised at the seriousness and firmness of his voice. However, it seemed to pull her from the furious side of her mood's spectrum…and then dragged her to the other side, one that he hasn't ever had the pleasure (or was it displeasure?) of witnessing.

His eyes bugged out of their sockets as Riza's brows knotted, lips quivered, and nostrils expand and contract. Roy expected a physical affront like a slap or a punch but what he got was glassy eyes with liquids collecting at the corners before spilling over and running down her angelic face. His mouth slackened and the alchemist was at a loss on what to do.

"Oh, shit," he cussed under his breath, quickly recalling if he even made the mistake of saying anything offensive for her to have that kind of reaction. As far as he knew, he was being reasonable and he merely used her name to call her attention. As far as he knew, he didn't set out to upset her in any way at all.

Roy did what he thought was the best maneuver and gathered his weeping wife in his arms, a hand going to her hair to soothe her with gentle strokes. The clueless man had to wonder how she could go from a fire-breathing dragon to a sensitive glass case of emotions in under 10 seconds. Women's hormones were ridiculous, and he could only feel bad for his wife as he knew she hated being unwillingly vulnerable.

"It's okay," he started softly. "It's okay, my love. We'll figure it out, okay? We'll-we'll…sort it and get it done as soon as we can…"

She whimpered in response to his words and Roy grimaced slightly. If soothing strokes on her hair, hugging her, and encouraging words didn't help, what on hell's Earth would? Mustang wracked his brain for a few moments before he sighed and collected himself. Pulling them apart slightly, he sought her gaze. "I'm going to kiss your lips, okay?"

"Okay," she squeaked, in the tiniest voice he had ever heard her speak, breathlessly.

There was no sweet melody of violins that serenaded them. No fireworks in the background that lit up the sky. They weren't in the middle of a prairie with flowers blossoming and grass swaying along with the humble breeze. It wasn't like anything portrayed in books and movies but he had to admit that the moment their lips first touched, he didn't need the fanciful accompaniments to know that it was bliss that he was feeling.

Roy had rarely indulged himself in imagining what kissing Riza would feel like. It wasn't that he didn't wish for that to happen, rather, he somehow gave up all hope that it would. However, in the handful of times that he did, they were all incomparable to the reality of what was happening at the moment.

Their first contact was a little stiff and awkward that Roy suddenly became self-conscious so he pulled back from their twine and sought her face. He wanted to know if that was an all right thing to do, even if she did give her permission to do so earlier. To his surprise, the collars of his shirt were pulled and his lips met hers again.

This time, he let himself loosen up at the contact instead of thinking ways on how to make their first kiss perfect. As if on their own volition, an arm snaked around her form and he pulled Riza closer. His free hand went to cup her face. The alchemist twisted her head slightly to the side to deepen their kiss and he felt his wife reciprocating in kind.

The couple stayed entangled as long as they could before the need for breathing pushed their reflexes to part with each other. Panting slightly, Roy rested his forehead on Riza's. Her whole demeanour seemed to have calmed down finally, and he thought he did a spectacular job taming the beast within, if he could say so himself.

Their comfortable silence was cut short by her mellow voice. "I'm sorry…"

"What—?"

Riza poked his muscly stomach. "Don't think I don't know how I've behaved towards you since Monday."

Roy averted his eyes and chuckled sheepishly. "Ah…Does…does that happen often?" he asked gently.

"The monthly period?" she asked. "It happens—"

"Monthly, I know. Spent quite a time in my life living with females, remember?" he said. "I mean the, uh…mood swings?"

She took a deep breath and frowned, thinking of the state of their domestics since Monday. "First time to happen, honestly. I have been living alone for goodness know how long. I guess now that I have a living, breathing, cognitive outlet at home, you became an easy target."

Roy cocked his head to the side. "We've worked with each other for almost five years. How come we never experienced this at work?"

Shrugging, Riza fiddled with the fabric of his military blue trousers. "All of your testosterones were enough to drown out my effeminate hormones, I suppose? Besides, I rarely slip during work; you know that."

"Is there anything I can do to help you out when this happens next month?" he queried.

Riza beamed brightly, something he was relieved to see after being reigned by a hurricane over these last two days. She cupped his face and her thumbs traced the skin over his cheek. "Well, chocolates help. Red wine does, too, but I don't drink on nights before work. And I satisfy whatever food craving I have two weeks before and during my period."

The alchemist made mental notes of what she had said, but a phrase caught his attention. "Two weeks before? What does that have to do with your period?"

She grinned softly at his curious look, finding it endearing that he was asking all these questions instead of feeling repulsed by the idea of the normal processes going on in her body. "The cycle doesn't stop, Roy. The symptoms just fluctuate. Two weeks before my predicted date in a month, I would start getting these cravings."

"Oh. Okay, I suppose that makes…sense?" he reasoned, uncertain.

The blonde markswoman giggled and bopped his nose with a finger. "Doesn't have to make sense to you. I just need you to be extra patient with me when bloody hell starts. I may deal with all this better next month when we've properly adjusted."

"It's all right," he assured her.

"For what it's worth, I really am sorry for my hormone-induced stinginess. I didn't—this wasn't how I imagined our first proper week of living together would be."

The brigadier general shook his head. "No need to apologise. I'm pretty sure you've suffered more in five years under me than I did in two days with you on your period."

She was about to retort but his stomach grumbled loudly. Riza sighed, feigning dejection, and shook her head. The colonel stood up and collected the papers on their wooden table. "Must you always ruin a sweet moment, Roy-kun?"

Riza didn't need to look at her husband to know that there was a childish pout on his lips.

"Always? What do you mean by that, Riza?"

The blonde smirked at her husband before she plated the dinner he so lovingly cooked.

"Here," she heard Rebecca say as a carton of milk chocolate was placed on her tray as soon as she sat down on one of the benches in the mess hall. Riza looked up to her adjutant and best friend with a questioning look.

"Oh, come now, Taisa. I know how you are when it happens. Plus, Mustang looks incredibly miserable. Have you been giving him a hard time?" the brunette before her queried.

None of the people at work (save for the Führer, of course) knew that they have started living together, on top of the fact that they were married. She and Roy had a lengthy conversation about keeping appearances. While she was opposed to the idea of buying the apartment units below them, above them, and to both their sides, she had to admit that it was the easiest thing to do since they wanted to keep her space.

They could have lived in Roy's quarters three floors above Madame Christmas' bar but he reasoned that her place was cozier, and that his could get loud and boisterous during the night. True, Roy had to make use of the forgotten underground tunnels and alleyways to get to their home but it was a price they had to pay to keep things under control.

As far as appearances go, they were on top of their game.

"It seems that I have," Riza hummed sadly, punching a straw into the carton and sipping the brown liquid luxuriously. She set the carton down and took her fork, prodding her mash and steamed chicken. "Why are you asking?

Rebecca shrugged, crossing her legs and scooting closer to their shared table. "No reason in particular. He just looks like every attached man in the military whose girlfriend or wife has the visit. Never thought I'd see the day Mustang actually is one of them."

"Hm?" she hummed in question. Riza eyed her best friend cautiously as Rebecca certainly has that mischievous twinkle in her eyes. The colonel blinked twice at her best friend, not wanting to say anything or even open her mouth in fear of spilling anything that might allude to hers and Roy's agreements.

The snicker that escaped her best friend's lips sent a chill underneath her skin. Riza had never been totally immune to Rebecca's persuasions despite what others may think. "You guys are official, aren't you? Yeah? Yeah?"

Catalina's words were nothing more than a whisper but she checked the proximity of their table to see if anyone might be near enough to hear their conversation. The action turned Rebecca's teasing grin into a knowing smirk.

"Welcome to the club, Ri!" she exclaimed under her breath, nudging her commanding officer slightly.

She almost choked on her mash when Rebecca did so and Riza had to grab the glass of water to calm herself down. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes but she managed to pat them down. The colonel shot a glare towards her best friend but the other woman seemed too happy to even notice. "Not so loud, Becky. And what do you mean 'welcome to the club'?"

A wide grin and a soft blush appeared upon Rebecca's face, which surprised Riza as she had not seen her best friend blush in so long. "Jean Havoc."

"Havoc?!" she questioned in a whisper. Riza wanted to take back her flabbergast because after a few moments of considering it, Rebecca and Jean make sense…in their own unique Rebecca-and-Jean way.

Instead of being startled or affronted by her reaction, Rebecca nodded enthusiastically and Riza had to wonder how far deep were the two. "When your Jiji became the big boss, he couldn't finalise my transfer papers as quickly because we had several loose ends at the Eastern HQ so he had me back and forth here and there. I always, always needed a drink as soon as I arrive in Central, so I go to the Madame's. Most of the time Jean's always there and we got close."

"So how long have you been going out?" Riza asked, thoroughly curious.

Rebecca gestured wildly with her hands but Riza couldn't understand what it meant so the brunette swallowed her food and gulped a drink. "Three months. You know, you and Mustang should come with us. We can have one of those group date things. I mean I rarely stand the guy but I suppose I can be civil with him since he's now your boyfriend."

"I said not so loud," Riza said, elbowing Rebecca's side.

Rolling her dark eyes, Rebecca dismissed her with a wave of her hand. "Almost everyone's busy with the Xingese food truck outside and no one's near our table, Ri. Loosen up. Anyways, you wouldn't believe how many couples we encounter during date night that are from the military. I suppose that fraternization law does have its loopholes, no? The council doesn't seem extremely bothered by it as long as we get the results we need…"

"Oh? Then how come there were several attempts to court martial Junshou and I before? Clearly, they don't seem too un-bothered," the blonde articulated.

"Well, that I don't exactly have an answer to but didn't the attempts happen when Mustang and your team were becoming a little too involved with the homunculus thing?" she said in retrospect. "I highly think it's Bradley and his band of freaks and old geezers are the ones up to that. Besides, the fraternization law seems so outdated now, don't you think so? Maybe that's why the council now doesn't bother."

Pursing her lips, she considered Rebecca's argument. "Well, I am not exactly sure if it's outdated."

"Ri, what we do behind the doors of our homes should remain that way…behind closed doors. There's no point trying to restrict people if they deliver their jobs without compromising the efficiency and effectivity of the military," Rebecca said, reminding the colonel next to her why she was friends with her. Catalina was progressive in her way of thinking that it constantly challenges Riza to think outside of the box. "If only I had the talent for words, I'd be lobbying for a repeal to that law, honestly, and suggest an alternative that is in no way restricting to us soldiers but would still maximize the benefit of the military."

Riza shook her head. Rebecca does have a talent for it; she just doesn't recognize it. "We could do that."

"Ri, you're crazy."

Amber eyes widened and a stunned expression coloured the blonde's face. "…because?"

"It's just a silly idea that I have. It's so silly that it doesn't exactly warrant seeing the light of day," Rebecca shrugged.

Riza cocked her head to the side. "Not really. It has potential that we can explore."

Rebecca swept her plate free of the mash and drank the rest of her lemonade. "Ri, we have Ishval matters keeping us busy."

"I didn't say now."

"Soon?" the brunette queried.

"Soon. Definitely soon."

The memorandum circular was burnt into a crisp even before Riza had laid her eyes on it. Roy let the ashes of the paper fall to the floor but quickly realized that his wife might not like dark ash stains dirtying their carpet. The alchemist procured cleaning materials from under the sink and poised to sweep the residue when he noticed Black Hayate cleaning it up with his tongue eagerly.

"Dang it, boy," he gently admonished the puppy, ruffling his soft fur. "We're both going to get in trouble if you do things like that, y'know."

"Things like what?" a voice sounded from the door frame and Roy barely managed to hold back his grimace.

"Welcome home, love," the alchemist greeted as he strolled towards his wife and locked the door behind them. Roy took off her waist cape and her military jacket for her, taking the pins and stars off gingerly before discarding them to the pile of laundry by the entrance of their bathroom. "Didn't expect you'd arrive later than me, Taisa."

"Mm. Catalina and I needed some extra time to sort things out with the faction of the council overseeing our plans for Ishval," Riza said, untying her boots and setting them next to Roy's bigger ones. "Speaking of whom… Did you know she and Havoc are going out together?"

"How am I supposed to know if you did not?" he countered, laying his hands on her shoulders and gently squeezing them. "Is that the reason why you've been monopolized by Catalina every lunch break ever since she was placed under your command? To talk about these things?"

Riza sat back and sighed when she felt her head rest against his muscled abdomen. "No. We only talked about it today. We needed the extra hour to discuss hour plans. And she isn't monopolizing me."

"Oh, really now?" he asked, brows raised. "Then why does it seem to be that way ever since the transfers?"

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you're being jealous right now, Roy-kun."

The brigadier general harrumphed. "I would never be jealous of that harpy."

A chuckle escaped from Riza's lips and she looked up to her husband with a playful glint in her eye. "Come, now. She merely has me for nine hours of the day. The rest, I am yours. That's roughly fifteen hours, Sir."

"Tch. And eight of those hours, we're asleep, Riza," Roy pointed out glumly.

Riza stood from her chair and turned, kneeling on the furniture so that she could somehow reach his height. The blonde laid her hands on her husband's chest and let her fingers draw senseless patterns on the fabric of his white, collared shirt.

"What do you suggest we do, Junshou?" she asked, a smirk contorting her lips.

Roy tilted his head downwards with a sly look on his face, one that she has seen whenever the flame alchemist was on his dates (which were actually information digs). This time, however, it wasn't a scripted expression out for show. It was a genuine look that depicted the way his head turned its gears.

The alchemist brought his lips to her ear and answered her in a suggestive whisper. "We lessen the hours of our sleep, Taisa."

A/N: I really, really appreciate all your support! I'll see you in the next installation of TWiO!