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Back at military headquarters, Roy tried not to reveal his agitation. He was not in the healthiest state of mind. When Roy and his entourage had returned to Central, Roy threatened them, on pain of death, to conceal the whereabouts of Hawkeye. He knew from all his time working the massive bureaucracy that the ransom demands were ludicrous and that the military would never send a team after someone of such a low rank. She was not privy to state secrets. Besides, they would never risk losing Roy. But Riza meant countless things to him. He was determined to leave headquarters as soon as his schedule would allow (to maintain the illusion of normalcy) to negotiate with Envy.
He was overly aware of his desperate situation when Havoc rushed into his office in a flurry of aftershave and cigarette smoke. "I want to come with you Colonel!" Havoc barked. "I honestly don't know what you are talking about," Roy coolly declared. Havoc, for the first time Roy could ever remember, looked him straight in the eye with a defiant stare. "Don't insult my intelligence Mustang! You aren't the only person who cares about her!" Havoc yelled. Roy glowered and was not put off by this brave show of resolve from his subordinate. "Just because you had sex with her in a military stockroom more than ten years ago," Roy sneered, "does not mean you can concern yourself with her welfare!"
Havoc was incensed by this callous remark and lunged at Mustang. Mustang did not pull out his pyrotex gloves like he would have if he were faced with a true threat. Havoc was misguided at best and certainly Roy could put him in his place. After a flurry of punches and kicks had hit their respective targets over the course of five minutes, Armstrong had effectively ended the fight with his sparkle-induced strength. Mustang shook off the dust that had settled on his perpetually clean uniform. The crowd of spectators had finally cleared from his office, and he was relieved to have a moment to himself before putting his life in jeopardy.
The creature stopped its twitching at the sound of the word. It began moving its head erratically up and down, repeating, "Yes, Edward is my name," over and over again. Riza was shocked to find that her guess was indeed right. The grimy alchemist's hair had turned a grotesque brown, a testament to all the dirt in it. The bright honey colored eyes had turned darker and infinitely more dangerous. He was wearing filth-encrusted rags that scarcely covered his malnourished body. But Hawkeye had no doubt that this was Edward Elric. Edward shakily stood and Riza, for the first time realizing she was completely naked, wrapped the hunter green bedsheet around herself like a toga.
Edward stumbled over to where she was seated on the bed and touched her face. He stared and felt the lines on her face before starting to cry. 'You're not mother," Edward whimpered, "Where did she run off to? Al said she was pushing up daisies. I like daisies. I can't wait to see what daisies she is putting in the vase!" Edward began to giggle, and Riza realized what eight months in a place like this could do to someone's mind. She had survived less than a day without completely losing her reason. Riza stared down incredulously at the short boy and asked, "What has happened to you Edward? What did he do to you?" Edward stopped his rambling mid-sentence and replied, "Th…th…the palm tree man…he…he…he hurt me and…he made me…" Edward trailed off suddenly and began to violently cough and writhe with agony as if induced by someone Riza could not see. Riza strongly suspected that Edward's mind had become twisted and torn. He was a lost cause.
She petted the grease of his hair affectionately and it calmed him. He was quietly muttering something about rose petals and blood. Riza's motherly instincts kicked into high gear and she began to sing him a lullaby. It was a very simplistic song, but Riza had a lovely soft and clear singing voice. Edward drifted off to sleep on the bed and Riza felt herself grow drowsy and eventually fell asleep next to him.
Roy tapped his military-issued boot harshly against the red painted curb of the phone booth. He was anxious and very alert. No amount of caffeine could have stimulated him to this extent. He was nervously straightening his gloves when he felt a hand gently caress the back of his hair. He turned to see an almost exact replica of Maria Ross. The intentional giveaway was that the mole under her right eye was nowhere to be found. The fake Ross winked and motioned for him to let her into the phone booth. Roy hesitantly allowed this intrusion on his personal space. Envy slid into the booth and closed the door. Roy's neck and back ached from the tension of him being alert for an extended period of time. Ross stared up at him with interest. Roy realized how cramped the phone booth was with the door closed and shuddered a little bit. "So, does this mean that you've agreed to my conditions Mustang?" Ross smirked shamelessly.
"I am willing to negotiate to ensure the safe return of Lieutenant Hawkeye." Roy willed himself not to flinch at the obvious unease in his own voice. "I do not negotiate. You will either do exactly as I say or your lovely subordinate might just find herself in tiny little bite sized pieces," Envy snarled. She looked up at Roy for a response. Roy nodded unhappily. "As long as I get to see her and take her back alive and unharmed." "But there is one other condition for this agreement. I can take you to see her and guarantee her safety only if you kiss me." Roy's jaw dropped suddenly. The disgust was evident on his face. Ross chuckled a little bit and the smile never left her face. "It's do or die Mustang. If this really bothers you that much I can take a more appealing form." Envy shifted his amorphous body into the likeness of Riza.
Roy wavered for only a second before dipping Envy into a low and passionate kiss. Roy would do whatever it took to safe Riza. It was his fault that she was taken hostage. He would degrade himself in any way possible if it would right the wrong and save her. Fake Riza pried open Roy's mouth with her tongue. Roy played along, thinking that satisfying that sick bastard would help things along. But he was positively shocked when he felt a pill sliding down into his throat. Envy must have hidden it under his tongue and forced it there through the open mouth kiss. He tried in vain to cough the pill out, but Envy stroked his throat with her hand. Before Roy could use his extensive military training to force his stomach to pump, he fell to his knees, shakily. Envy smiled as Roy began convulsing. When he silently stopped twitching on the floor of the phone booth, he could make out a final sentence, "I never said she was unharmed," before he fell unconscious.