Chapter 9: Catch me if you can

Disclaimer: I do not own FMA or any of the characters of said anime/manga.

Roy had barely turned his back when his subordinate ran off to give chase the suspected homunculus whom he thought was on the same floor as he was, but apparently it had got passed him somehow. Looking out the window, he saw where Captain Vashov Ranoche was heading, but the glass was sound proof and he wouldn't be able to tell Riza in time. Without a moment's hesitation, Roy rushed down the stairs and ran past Havoc while he shouted for Breda to take care of him. As soon as he was outside he saw that Riza had disappeared under the shroud of the sewer system and he prepared himself to fight. He felt glad that Riza kept another clip with her since wet bullets misfired and if she was down there with Captain Vashov, she would need a working gun to take on the champion sharpshooter. In truth, Roy knew very little about the man personally, just that he was a master of ricochet shots and had the skills that would make a gun show freak envy, but he had never appeared heartless at all. Roy rather liked the captain and enjoyed the times when he was just a private and had to come under the guise of discussing military matters with Riza and him. Those were the only times he could drink and joke with the man, but he knew that if Vashov hadn't sacrificed his career to expose a traitor, he would have been a colonel or brigadier general by now.

Damn it, why did it have to be Vashov and not that asshole, thought Roy as he slid down the lader, careful to make a safe landing instead of just jumping in and getting his gloves all wet. He could still use them when wet, but they weren't as strong and it would be a pain in the ass to take on a homunculus in such a state. I guess it would do nothing to complain about anything, the only thing that matters now is getting Riza out of here safely.

Never in her life had she ever thought she would be going down the sewer with only one clip on her while on the trail of a sharpshooting homunculus, especially when that homunculus turned out to be Captain Vashov. She had personally liked him, especially when he came in at the latter part of the war and saved her from a group of Ishvallan rebels. It was odd that now she would have to turn her gun on the man who many had called her little brother, a bit of a joke considering he was a year older than her and was taller. This was the downside of going after a traitor, the upside being that since she had fought beside him, she knew what he would do in this situation, but then again, he knew what she would do as well so really the advantage came into the person with the best knowledge of the layout.

Little brother, I'm sorry that you saved me and now I'm here to bring you back dead or alive, thought Riza, giving the apology that she could never speak because talking to him would be awkward, all she could do was hope that he could read her thoughts. I still remember that day.

FLASHBACK BEGINS

Riza was mentally kicking herself for not checking her six and allowing her captures to sneak up on her like that al because she was so focused on keeping some dark haired state alchemist from dying. She looked at the red eyes of her captures, at the joy they felt for catching the woman who had killed their captain and so many other comrades. Her name had been known as the bane of many Ishvalan soldiers, mostly officers, but there were still a good number of foot soldiers who knew the name of Riza Hawkeye. The licking of their lips told her about the things they had planned for her, the final humiliation of a female soldier in battle and the ultimate wound that even if they left her alive, would never heal because everyone would know that Riza Hawkeye had been raped by the enemy. They got serious real quickly, as they started unbuttoning her shirt teasingly slow with grins permanently plastered to their faces. Next came her shirt, which they didn't rip off like so many other rapists, but they took their time removing her coat and then her shirt, leaving her clad in only her bra and a pair of pants. The pants came off next and then she was almost naked before them and they were about to get rough, as attested by a knife being pulled out, but before they could do that, a shot rang out over the hot desert and she felt the warmth of blood on her skin. After the sound of two more shots, Riza opened her eyes and saw that all of her would be rapists were dead on the ground, smoldering bullet holes on their foreheads.

"Little sister, you should be more careful of what's coming from behind you," said the young soldier as he walked down from the top of the cliff without his helmet on with a drop of blood leaking down the side of his head from a nasty wound. In his hand was his trademark six shot revolver, smoke still pouring out from the barrel of his gun, and Riza had counted every shot that had been fired. There had only been six shots.

"Come here, I have something to help that wound on your head," said Riza as she motioned for him to come over to her as she walked to her pack to take out her med pack that was hidden in one of the pockets.

"Don't you want to get wiped out and dressed before that happens," asked the young soldier as he watched her fish out the med pack, her rump in the air for him to see. He was a bit embarrassed to see such an intimate part of her, but he had the uncanny ability to never blush in front of anybody, especially her. Either way she could tell when he was nervous just by the way he breathed in front of her. "You don't have to be shy, Vashov, it's alright if you see me like this since you're nothing like those perverted men in the camps. Besides, I once had to help you bathe when you were weak from pulling the men out of the sand dune and had been shot in the left arm."

"Who says I'm nervous," asked Vashov defensively before turning away. "I'm perfectly fine, I just believe in being a gentlemen is all, nothing more than that."

"Oh really," laughed Riza as she hugged him close to her. The sight of him with cold dead eyes that had a strange trace of anger on them, even though they were as emotionless as a freshly cut head, was so unlike every face she had ever seen him make and for once it was like his mask had broken. "You saved my life and I will pay that debt back somehow, just wait one day."

Flashback ENDS

Now was the time when she was chasing after him, the safety on her gun long since turned off, and now she was caught between two loyalties, her loyalty to the "little" brother that had saved her life and her loyalty to the commander that she loved with all of her life. The murky sewer waters sent chills through her bones as she trudged further on, but every tunnel seemed the same and even if she had Black Hayate with her, it would be impossible for her to find him. The only direction she could use was this sense in her mind that she knew where he was, like she was seeing a trail left behind by the memories of their time together and the friendship they had during the war. Maybe this was the bond that they shared or maybe it was the fact that she was determined to bring him in and either prove his innocence or exact revenge upon him for betraying her. What will I do if he is a homunculus and he has been betraying us, thought Riza as she pondered over the question. As soon as she turned the corner she felt a gun to her head and she turned her head slightly to see Vashov, grinning like he had always grinned as if nothing had happened between them, but it was all a lie. Something big had happened between them and it couldn't be ignored by simply acting like it hadn't.

"Please put the gun down, Riza, we don't have to do this," said Vashov calmly as he let his face show his true self, the one that was hidden behind that mask that he always seemed to project.

"All this time, you were lying to me behind my back," shouted Riza as she knocked his gun away and tried to elbow him in the face, but he caught her attack in his hand with little ease. "Did you ever even feel happy enough to smile when you were around me or were you just only doing that for a private laugh in your head?"

"Little sister, I'm sorry that things have come to this, I really did have lots of fun with you," replied Vashov with a smile, one that actually seemed to fit him now instead of those little kid smiles that were filled with an innocence that he lacked. "Every laugh I had was meant to be just as hard as it was, every smile was just as bright as it was, and I just thought a lack of innocence wouldn't help you ease your mind. You are one of the best friends I ever had and might I add, you are the closest thing to a sister that I have ever had, but I'm afraid that it must end for a time, hopefully to be restarted again. Just give me time and you will see that I am not your enemy, but an ally that you need very much, especially since they plan to assassinate the man you love."

"What do you mean," asked Riza with a blush as she knew he knew who he was referring to, but embarrassment got there before realization. "Wait! You mean that the Philosophers plan to kill General Mustang?"

"Don't worry, I will do all I can to prevent it and point you into the right place," assured Vashov as he patted her on the head and stepped toward a hole. "I know right now I don't deserve your trust, but because he is special to you, I will keep him from harm, just as long as you only stick to exposing members of the Philosophers. The object that they are trying to gain is something that was once in my possession, but unfortunately, it was taken from me and now the Philosopher's stone is lost somewhere. I need that stone, big sister, for like you, I also have someone whom I love and I wish to make her human with it. I will contact you when I have something useful for you, but until then, goodbye, big sister."

He then vanished into the hole.