Hi! okay, well, i'm sorry i didn't get this out on royai day! i really meant to, honestly, but my life has been hectic lately... most dont know it, but my family is getting ready to move across the state before the end of july so i've been having to do a lot of cleaning and packing and crap to get ready and it really detracts from my writing time, plus my birthday was on last thursday and i went camping with mah friend dreamcollector, and i'm trying to hang out with all my friends one more time before we leave. its depressing, hard work and it takes a lot outta me :P

but enough of that stupid stuff! i did a continuation of the last chapter, but its cute and fluffy, so dont worry. its fun :)

enjoy, and dont forget to review! love ya!

Chapter 5: The Smiling Blonde (continued)

The memories dredged up by dreams were most often unpleasant ones that made Roy wish he hadn't fallen asleep.

The chances were high they would contain something he regretted, be it something he did or did not do. The Ishvalan War came up most regularly, and with it painful memories of death and destruction he'd rather have tucked into the back of his mind at all times.

But he is lucky tonight.

Because tonight, he dreams of Riza.

(*FMA*)

Roy was beginning to wonder why he tried.

"Never in my life have I met such a quiet and obstinate girl." Roy complains to his best friend.

Maes Hughes snorts loudly, "Sounds like someone has a crush!"

Roy makes an annoyed sound. "Hardly! It's infuriating, how she just calls me, Mr. Mustang with that pretty little voice of hers, but she never looks me in the eye! She doesn't give me the time of day, and it's almost as if she thinks I carry some sort of disease that she might catch if she gets too close."

"Well, you do." Maes tells him solemnly. "It's called stupidity, and honestly I think I might have caught it from when we first met." Hughes fakes a sneeze and Roy thwaps him upside the head, not appreciating the comment.

"I'm being serious!" Roy says. "What did I do wrong? I'm not in love with the girl, hell I'm not even friends with her. But I'd rather not have her mad at me. If she went to Master and said she wanted me out of there, he might listen to her."

"From what you told me about your master Roy, I doubt it." Hughes tells him thoughtfully. "He seems more like the type to tell her to get over it then make him a sandwich while she's at it."

Roy just stares at his friend in horror. Then the expression melts and he shrugs. "You're right. He is kind of an ass… But I have no choice but to live with him if I want to learn more than just basic alchemy."

Maes stands up and drops a coin on the table for the waitress, finishing the last of his coffee in a single gulp. "I dunno, Roy. My guess is you're just gonna have to talk it out with her. See ya later. I've got stuff to do, so you'll have to tell me how it goes tomorrow."

"How what goes?" Roy is confused.

"Your talk with Ms. Hawkeye. She's right there."

Roy turns to look back at the front of the diner, where indeed, the girl stood, her blonde hair making her stick out amongst the taller, darker haired people.

When he turns back, Maes is gone, and suddenly Riza is standing right next to him.

"Mr. Mustang, sir. My father requests that you come back early for today's lesson."

"So he sent you out to get me?"

"Yes." Riza answers simply, her voice free of emotion.

They start walking back toward the old house, Roy following behind a silent Riza.

"Did I offend you or something?" Roy calls out to her, crossing his arms tightly around his chest to try and keep out the biting cold. He never liked winter..

She is so surprised by the question that she stops in her tracks and looks back at him quizzically. "What makes you think you've offended me?"

"Well." Roy stomps his boots to rid them of extra snow that took away from his traction. It also meant he could take his attention away from the pretty blonde. God, and why in the world was he blushing? "You seem like you take a lot of trouble to keep your distance from me. And you never call me my name." Riza doesn't mention that she was told specifically to avoid contact with him at her fathers order.

"You're name isn't Mr. Mustang?" She says slowly, not quite following the emotionally distraught boy.

"No..Wait yes…well, you know what I mean! You don't call me my first name! I don't understand why you have to be so formal!"

"My father tells me to be. As the girl in the house, I ought to know my place and-." Roy had seen how Master Hawkeye treated his only daughter, and he hadn't much approved. Womans rights had increased tremendously before the war had broken out, but in the Hawkeye household, it seemed as if things had stayed primeval and Riza was confined to household work and chores. Roy was taught never to treat a girl so wrongly and disagreed strongly with his master in that respect, though he was smart enough never to voice it. But now he practically shouted it to the world.

"Your place? Come on Riza, you're not a girl! You're a woman! You can't honestly want to stay here for the rest of your life, taking care of your father while he treats you badly! You deserve much better than that."

Roy claps a hand over his mouth. He hadn't meant to say so much, and especially not something against his master to whom he owed quite a lot.

But Riza reacts differently than he might've expected.

The smiling blonde says nothing, but her eyes sparkle as if she had discovered some new hidden treasure. "The last time someone treated me like a human was my mother before she died."

"I'm sorry," Roy instantly apologizes.

"No…" Riza replies. "Thank you for… allowing me to smile again."

Allowing? Roy thinks to himself, his eyes wide.

He stays silent for the most part as he follows behind Riza again, staring at the snow covered sidewalk.

"You can always talk to me, you know." Roy says simply, still concentrating on the ground.

Riza doesn't look back, but Roy knows shes smiling once more.

"I know Roy."