Disclaimer: I don't own FMA… but I'm so sad that the manga is over…. *sobs*

Thicker than Rain

Chapter 14: Healing Ties

"The conduct of my life has been, is, and will always be the echo and reflection of my conscience."

~ Arturo Toscanini

~O~O~O~O~O~

Roy waited outside the address scribbled on the piece of paper that Arturo had given him.

Looking up at the building, then, after consulting the piece of paper once again, he stole a glance at his silver pocket-watch.

"Nope… this is the right place… I just wonder what's taking him so long… it's been half an hour…"

The bastard is probably just trying to wait me out… that's all… stupid mind games.

Roy then broke out into a grin.

"Maybe, if he doesn't show up, he left and we can call off this whole, stupid… 'Bonding' thing." He said to himself enthusiastically, "Wouldn't that be-"

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted when a series of loud thumps ending with a final, dead, thud reached his ears.

The door of the apartment complex opened and his cousin sat at the floor of the stairs, looking stunned and in pain.

Roy's eyes widened and he instantly rushed to his cousin to try to help him up, but Arturo waved him aside.

"I'm okay…" he mumbled, obviously embarrassed, "I don't know what happened… I-I just suddenly got weak…"

He took a gasping breath and coughed loudly and violently.

"Y-you're obviously not all right!" Roy yelped, "You just fell down a flight of stairs!"

"I told you I'm all right!" Arturo barked, his eyes gleaming with determination, "Stop trying to put off our bet. You lost, and that's FINAL!"

The Lieutenant General stood up and winced, trying to stifle his pain with a grunt.

"Now, what do you want to do?" he asked, his tone once again calm. He looked at Roy, trying to feign that nothing happened.

Roy visibly hesitated.

"Um… well… I…" he said, fumbling for the words.

"Why don't you choose… since you won the bet and all…" he said finally, his mind blank.

"How 'bout we go get something to eat? You look hungry." Arturo suggested, a smug smirk, making its way onto his face.

Roy looked down at his stomach, which had started to gurgle irritably.

"All right…" he said, walking to the sidewalk, raising his hand, "I'll go hail a cab."

~O~O~O~O~O~

The ride in the cab was an awkward one. Neither officer muttered a word until they reached their destination… a local restaurant… one that they often brought their dates to, when they were younger.

"Let's get a table outside… I need the fresh air…" Arturo said, sitting down quickly in one of the cast-iron chairs.

Roy nodded, though he watched as his cousin hunched over the table, gasping for breath.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Roy asked, "You seem really sick."

Arturo shook his head,

"Don't call me that. What did I tell you about that, Roy-boy?" The General growled.

Playfully or not, Roy couldn't tell, but the waitress came over, smiled, and broke Roy's train of thought.

"What can I get for you this afternoon?" she asked, her voice pleasant, though high-pitched in tone for Arturo's liking.

"I'll just have some water, thanks." Arturo said, "I'm not that hungry today…"

Roy looked at him, and then, turning to the waitress, ordered a sandwich.

They could always share if Arturo gained his appetite back.

Not that Roy was in a sharing mood, of course.

"Not hungry? As far as I could remember, you always had a huge appetite." Roy chuckled.

Arturo just smirked,

"Well, you obviously don't know me that well." He said, taking a sip of his water as it was brought to the table.

Roy bobbed his head,

"Yeah… I guess…" he said, "It's been a long time since we've spent time like this." He said.

"A very…" he paused to cough, "Long time…"

Once Roy's food arrived, Arturo shifted in his chair.

"I'm really not hungry…" he mumbled, raising his hand once Roy offered him half.

The sight of food made Arturo's face grow slightly pale, and he took another small sip of his water.

Roy eyed his cousin. He was acting strangely…well, stranger than usual. He looked at his sandwich with a decree of caution and took a bite.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary with it, so he just left it alone.

His cousin just watched him, almost as though he was studying every move he made.

A vein pulsed in the Colonel's head,

"What?" He yelped, practically slamming his hands down on the table.

Arturo looked genuinely startled at his cousin's behavior and looked at him like a confused dog.

"I didn't say anything." He replied casually.

Roy huffed,

"You didn't have to…" he muttered, "Whatever… never mind… I'm just tired… that's all."

He took note of the hurt expression that lined his cousin's face, and it got his mind drifting again. All he wanted was out of this place… away from the awkwardness and back in his safe office with his cousin back up North… that's not too much to ask, right?

Arturo studied him again for a moment.

"Well, finish up… I'd like to take you somewhere." He said, grinning widely.

Roy looked puzzled for a moment, as he finished his sandwich.

"Okay… let's get going…" he said.

I wanna get whatever painful surprise is waiting for me over with…

~O~O~O~O~O~

Arturo gave the cab driver the directions, and when they arrived, Arturo instantly sucked in as deep a breath as he could muster without coughing.

He went to lean against the railing, which overlooked the water bordering Central city. Their mother's bar was only a few miles away.

Roy took a quick glance around. He couldn't help but feel slightly familiar

"Do you remember coming down here when we were kids?" Arturo asked suddenly.

Roy didn't respond for a moment, as he needed a moment to ponder… but nothing came to him… but the look on his cousin's face made him want to remember.

"Yeah." He lied slightly, "I remember."

Arturo turned to look at him fully,

"I don't think so…" he said, "Or you don't want to remember."

Roy didn't respond… something didn't feel right… but he couldn't put his finger on it. He was so focused, that he didn't hear his cousin's words.

Arturo tensed slightly when Roy didn't respond, but only stood silently, looking out as far as he could.

A cold breeze rushed past them, and Roy shivered. Arturo just stood, lifted his head and smiled, enjoying the familiar chill.

It's nowhere near up North, but it's close enough. He thought fondly with a soft smile.

More silence passed between them as Arturo tried to come up with different conversation starters. All he wanted to do was talk… That's all he wanted…

Nevertheless, he couldn't help it if Roy didn't listen… that was out of his control.

Roy just continued to brood as he leaned against the railing, trying to follow his cousin's gaze… but nothing seemed to catch his eye. It was just familiar surroundings, nothing special. His cousin had just been away for too long…

I guess they don't have too much scenery up north…

Roy continued looking forward, stealing a side-ways glance in his cousin's direction every few seconds, but the older man kept his gaze forward, as if waiting for some long-lost lover to return to him… but Roy simply knew this wasn't the case… or, not that he knew anyway.

"You wanted to spend time with me... why is that?" Roy asked, "Why couldn't you just leave me alone… to mind my own business and live my own life? I don't understand why every time I see you, my life is being flipped upside down…"

He gave an exasperated sigh.

"Because I really don't need the stress… trust me." He added as an afterthought.

Arturo turned back to him, his face emotionless and pale.

"I know you don't, Roy. I know." He said simply, "I just like screwing around with you. You should know that by now."

Roy gave a huff.

Yeah, no freakin' kidding…

But as his cousin turned back to gaze at the water, Roy couldn't help but notice a tinge of a smirk lining his cousin's face.

Roy eyed his cousin skeptically. He was being too friendly for his liking… but he wasn't about to let his guard down… no… He was too smart for that.

He wasn't about to fall for his tricks again…

Fool me once, shame on you… fool me twice, shame on me…

That's how it goes, right? Except there was no response for countless times, unfortunately.

"You used to come here when we had an argument." Arturo said, "Do you remember that?"

Roy looked up, thrown off by the question. It was such an odd thing to remember, yet it seemed familiar and warm. He tried to think of it, but he shook his head, coming up with nothing.

"No… I don't… I don't remember too much from before Ishb-"

Roy paused, as a pained expression shot over his cousin's face and he broke into another violent coughing fit.

Things got awkward again, and Roy shifted uncomfortably.

"Well… maybe I remember one thing…" He said, trying to break the negative silence and humor his cousin.

Arturo turned to look at him expectantly.

Roy broke into a grin, almost forgetting that his cousin was there.

"I remember… Mom was there, and she had sent you to get milk from the marketplace. I tagged along with you…"

"You brought Mr. Momo too." Arturo reminded him.

Roy gave a laugh,

"Yeah, I did. But by the time we got there, they were all out. It was winter, I recall… We were so worried that mom was going to be angry at the milk, we asked for a big, empty cup. We filled it with snow from outside. Both were white, so we hoped that she didn't notice…" Roy laughed, "And, you know mom… of course she found out… she called us idiots and was about to send us out, until we got water all over her new wooden floor. God, she was so mad at us…"

Arturo also laughed, but broke off coughing again.

When he was finally able to get his breath again, he beamed.

"Yeah… it took quite a while for us to get it completely dry… between the floorboards was the hardest part, I remember… and the splinters were terrible." He added.

Roy nodded,

"Yeah, they sure were…" he said.

He smiled.

For the first time since the war's aftermath, he smiled at his cousin.

Maybe he wasn't so bad after all… if he kept this up, they might be able to get along.

At the strike of that thought, Roy's stomach instantly sank.

They might've been able to get along… Up until now, Roy hadn't even considered the option.

"Um… Hey, Artie?" Roy asked shamefully, afraid to look his cousin in the eyes.

Arturo looked at his young relative.

"Yeah, Roy?" he asked, looking at him, for the first time in a while, with a kindness that Roy hadn't even thought could be in his cousin's eyes… and it only made his stomach sink further.

"I-I just wanted to… um, well… I just wanted to say I-I'm…"

Roy was about to open his mouth when his cousin broke into another coughing fit and collapsed to the ground, blood seeping through his fingers.

"ARTURO!" Roy cried out, falling to his knees to try and catch his older cousin.

Flashbacks of him screaming out for Riza as he caught his master… the same blood everywhere and the same panicking feeling that rushed through him; it was all too familiar… but last time, things didn't end well… he lost someone important to him, and he wasn't about to do that now.

He screamed for help once again… because that's all he could do…

God, once again, he felt so damn useless.

~O~O~O~O~O~

The Lieutenant General was rushed to the hospital and as Roy watched him be rushed into the emergency room, he was afraid to go in.

For the first time in a while, he felt ashamed and unworthy.

He had treated his cousin so poorly these past years… and all because he couldn't handle a few jokes…

He clenched his fists. Every time he was about to enter the room where his cousin was recovering, he'd chicken out and take another lap around the waiting room.

But as he was waiting, it wasn't long before Hawkeye rushed in.

"I-is he all right?" the Lieutenant asked, practically breathless.

Roy looked at her, stunned for a moment, but he shrugged stiffly.

"I-I don't know." He said, "the doctor didn't tell me anything… he just- collapsed… blood was everywhere."

The Colonel shuddered and looked at Hawkeye, whose face fell instantly.

"Just like my father…" she said painfully.

Roy's jaw stiffened and he nodded quietly, suddenly feeling extremely guilty.

I'm just spreading the pain today, aren't I?

He tried to make it up to her in an extremely feeble attempt.

"B-but your father was sick for a long time, right?" He asked, "Arturo wasn't sick… well, not beyond a usual cough, but… nothing ever serious like this, right?"

Riza looked at him uncomfortably.

"There are a lot of things you didn't know about him, Sir." She said, her voice was practically a whisper, "But your cousin… The Lieutenant General… he's been sick since Ishbal…. Th-that's why he was sent home."

Roy's eyes widened,

"H-he told me that he got to go home earlier, because he outranked me!" Roy said harshly, "And my cousin pulled plenty of strings in the military… he-he's almost as corrupt as the rest of those Upper ranked officers!"

The glare that Riza shot him was as sharp and stinging as the bullets that came out of her military-issued rifles.

"No, he wasn't, Sir… and I would suggest you treat your cousin better." She said.

Roy looked back in the direction of the emergency room and realized that she was right… as usual.

"And why aren't you in that room with him?" Riza questioned once again, "You should be by his side… making sure he's all right!"

Roy turned away from her, unable to find any more words… his throat was suddenly dry, and he felt the urge to cough himself.

Hawkeye gave a sigh,

"Just call your mother, and I'll go in to see how he's doing." She said, "All right, Sir?"

Roy just nodded dumbly and went to find a payphone.

~O~O~O~O~O~

As the Lieutenant walked into the room, a loud, mechanical breathing sound that reminded her of those strange adventure novels by her father's favorite fiction author, Julian Verne.

Something about the sound made her feel timid, but she walked in anyway.

In the center of the room laid the Lieutenant General… the usual, strong-looking officer was now pale and deathly faced.

She looked over the room, and pulled over a chair to sit next to his side, her eyes focused on the breathing apparatus that sat next to his bed like a moving gremlin. Her mind seemed to concentrate on it, but a shifting in Arturo's hospital bed drew her attention.

The ill General's eyes fluttered open and he took a panicky glance around the room.

"Wh-where am I a-and where's Roy?" he gasped out as his hand feebly reaching for the button, so he could sit himself up.

Riza leaned over and carefully helped him sit up. She then delicately put a hand on his to comfort him.

"You're in the Central City Hospital… and Roy is outside calling your mother right now." She said gently, "He'll be in soon."

Arturo took another wary glance around the room, looking almost frightened about where he was, but hearing that Roy would be in soon seemed to comfort him a great deal.

Arturo then focused on Riza and gave a gentle smile.

"I'm glad you're here." He said, "It's always...a pleasant experience to…wake up to an angel…by your side."

Riza closed her eyes and smiled.

A knocking on the door drew both their attentions, and Roy stood awkwardly in the doorway.

"Come in." Arturo said, his voice still weak, as he breathed into the respirator.

Roy nodded and walked in, standing behind Riza.

"How are you feeling?" the Colonel inquired, his eyes softened.

Arturo just leaned back in his cot, his breaths shallow to keep from coughing.

"I've been better…" he muttered.

He coughed again, the respirator's mask became speckled with blood.

Roy winced every time he coughed, and he gripped the back of Riza's chair.

"Mom'll be here in a few minutes… she's on her way right now." He said.

Arturo nodded, and leaned back against the raised back of his hospital bed.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, but Arturo was the one to break the silence.

He was never one for awkward silences.

"You look nervous Roy… like you want to ask me something." He said, looking up at his cousin, "What is it?"

"I didn't say anything." The younger Mustang replied, "I-"

Arturo gave a quiet smile.

"I know you, Roy…" he said, "You have a lot of questions to ask… you were ever the studious, curious cat… always needing to know about everything… You're also an Alchemist."

Roy looked confused, but he nodded.

Arturo glanced at the Lieutenant.

"I'm sorry Riza… but would you excuse us for a second? There's something very important I need to tell Roy… but when our mother comes, please, let her in." he said.

The Lieutenant nodded and stood up.

Arturo smiled, watching her.

She paused in the doorway and gave him a salute, snapping her feet together and her left arm snapping at her side.

Arturo weakly returned the salute, but as he smiled, he motioned for her to come forward. As she did, he pulled her into an embrace, and then, without another word between them, she walked out.

Arturo settled himself again, then looked up.

"You never did forgive me for my last name," he said, shutting off the respirator and removing the mask.

Roy's eyes widened,

"Hey! Put that back on!" he yelped, practically lunging for the button.

Arturo grabbed Roy's wrist tightly, like a python.

"I can leave it off for a few moments…" he said, "It's uncomfortable anyway, and extremely unflattering, so don't change the subject."

The Lieutenant General gave a grimace as he stifled another bout of coughing, and continued with the conversation.

"'Mustang' wasn't my original last name, Roy." Arturo started, "When our folks died in that fire, and mom… our aunt, took us in, I took her name… I took her name for you, Roy. So we wouldn't be like cousins!"

He gasped for air, but held up his hand, motioning for Roy to stay put.

"Cousins…are often distant… never getting to see each other… but we were closer than that, Roy… we were like brothers… after all those years of living on the street, mom provided us with a family… and that's what we were…. We were brothers." Arturo said, finally breaking into a fit of hysterical coughing.

That's what we were…

Roy, who had taken Riza's place in the chair, leaned forward.

"And we still can be! With mom's help, and Riza being there, we can-"

Arturo cut him off.

"Roy… I don't know what the Lieutenant told you, but you're a big boy now, and I can stop hiding things from you…" he said, "Besides… we had such pleasant day, I think you deserve everything I can give you…"

"Stop talking like that!" Roy said angrily, "You sound like you're dying or something!"

Arturo gave his cousin a blunt look.

"That's because I am… I've been dying for months…" he said, "But I had to see you at least one more time… and clear things up with the Major General… Yeah Roy… there's a reason she really dislikes you, and it's not your quest to become Fuehrer."

Roy shook his head in disbelief.

"B-but… why didn't you tell me?" He asked, his eyes blurring with tears, "I-I would've helped you if you told me you were dying!"

Arturo chuckled,

"I know… but I needed to help the man I wanted to become Fuehrer." He said, "I don't believe that giving him more obstacles to worry about would benefit him any…"

Roy's jaw dropped.

The man he was talking about… the person he wanted as Fuehrer… that was…me…

"I-I…b-but… why?" Roy asked, "I thought you were the one who wanted to be Fuehrer...that I was always competing against you for the position!"

"What would I need with it?" Arturo asked, "I'm dying… there's nothing else I really needed to live for, except to see you succeed in ways I couldn't… but all you needed was time and some good people to back you up… Who do you think assigned you your team? Hmm? It sure wasn't Bradley."

"B-but, what about your alchemy?" Roy pleaded, "You haven't finished it yet! An alchemist can't die without finishing their research! Hawkeye Sensei even said that!"

Arturo's eyes gleamed with a sudden sharpness.

"But I did finish my alchemy, Roy." He said, "A long time ago."

The words stung Roy harshly… the same words his sensei uttered before his death.

That silenced him… and Roy found himself without anything to say… he just wiped his eyes and listened to his cousin speak.

I can't believe it… I owe him everything… my team…my position… even my relationship with Riza…

Roy opened his mouth to speak, but Arturo raised his hand to silence him.

"Look Roy, there's no need to apologize or thank me… I want you to do three things for me." He said, "First of all… I want you to take care of Riza… I know you already promised one alchemist this, but I want you to promise again. She's a good girl, and she's like my little sister… you screw her over, and I'm gonna be pissed. Second of all… I want you to keep up with your dreams… that means doing your paperwork and stop being a whiny bitch. You'll never be Fuehrer if you keep acting like that… it's inefficient and makes you look weak. And the last thing… is that I want you to take care of Mr. Momo… Treasure him, for Pete's sake, because I risked my ass to get that monkey. Oh, and don't forget to take care of Mom, okay? That's another thing I want you to do."

"But Mr. Momo went missing years ago!" Roy argued, "You told me that!"

Arturo broke into a smirk and chuckled.

"I lied." He said simply, "Mom still has him, along with your embarrassing holiday photos."

Roy's face fell, but he gave an obedient nod, showing his understanding.

"I promise… all of them, Arturo…" he said, a tear making its way down his cheek.

Arturo gave a sigh.

"What did I just tell you about being a whiny bitch? Tears count in this, okay?" Arturo muttered, "Geez, do I have to write it out for you? Don't you know that people of Xing always keep their promises?"

Roy wiped his face with the back of his hand, trying to force a smile.

Arturo leaned back in his cot, satisfied with the gesture.

"Good… now, I'm getting really tired… I think I'm done talking for now… Would you mind if I took a rest?" he asked, blinking tiredly.

Roy looked reluctant, squeezing his cousin's hand.

"No… go ahead…" Roy choked out, "It was good seeing you, Artie… have a great rest."

Arturo returned the squeeze of his cousin's hand, and closed his eyes… starting his journey into the eternal rest.

Roy bit his lip, as he felt a hand on his shoulder and the familiar smell of perfume fill the room.

"H-he's gone, Mom…" he whimpered, "I-I can't believe it…"

Madame Christmas looked down at him,

"I know, Roy-boy, I know… but remember what you promised him." She said, tears pouring down her own face, "You have to keep moving on."

Roy nodded in understanding.

Riza made her way over to Roy, pulling him into an embrace.

"I'm so sorry…" she whispered to him.

Roy hugged her,

"I know… but you don't owe me any apologies…" he said, "You of all people don't owe me an apology."

He buried his face into her hair, and he just stood there… not knowing what else to do.

~O~O~O~O~O~

Things were a bit difficult, but Roy went to work the next day, despite his loss. He knew that Arturo wouldn't want him to take off from work… and it would go against the promise he made anyway.
"Sir, can I speak to you for a moment?"

Roy looked up from the document he was signing to see Lieutenant Hawkeye saluting him at the front of his desk.

"Of course, Lieutenant, what is it?" he asked.

"It's a private matter, Sir." She said, "If I could confer with you alone…"

Roy put his pen down and gave a nod.

"Of course, Lieutenant." He said, following her out the door.

Once they found a quiet corner to have their discussion, Riza reached into her jacket and handed him an old, leather book.

Roy eyed it suspiciously.

"Wh-what is this?" he asked, looking up at her, puzzled.

"The Lieutenant General want you to have this after his passing." She said, "I promised him that I'd give it to you… it's his alchemy."

Roy opened it, shocked and flipped open the book.

Scrawled all over the line-covered pages were all different symbols… dots with tails hanging from them, connected to other dots by curved lines. The names of musical instruments scribbled along the margins and all sorts of other things that were foreign to Roy.

"But I can't read music!" Roy whined, but some writing caught his eye.

It was written on the back cover with black ink.

"Dear Roy,

I know you can't read music, but I felt that I wouldn't want anyone else to have these secrets, but you. I know you'll be able to uncover it… but if you can't, you're dumber than I thought… but if all else fails, I suggest you ask that Edward boy… he seems like a really smart kid. I bet he'd be able to figure it out!

Your cousin and Superior Officer,

Lieutenant General Arturo Ligue."

~O~O~O~O~O~

((Sometime in the Future))

"I don't understand it, Lieutenant."

Hawkeye looked at him curiously.

"Well Sir… your cousin did have lung cancer… he was going to pass on at some point." She said solemnly.

"No, no… not that, Lieutenant." Roy corrected.

Hawkeye tilted her head to the side.

"Then, what is it, Sir?" she inquired, "What are you talking about?"

"I mean, I'm finally victorious over the bastard, but he has to go and ruin it by making me feel like a piece of shit!" Roy accused, "How is that Equivalent Exchange?"

Hawkeye gave a sigh,

"Well, I doubt that was his intention, Sir." She said, "He only meant well after all."

He turned to her with tear-filled eyes,

"I know, Lieutenant…" he said, "I know…"

A crack of thunder boomed overhead, and both military officers glanced up.

"It looks like rain." Hawkeye observed, "Would you like me to get your umbrella?"

Roy shook his head,

"No… it's all right." He said, wiping his eyes, "I'm coming."

He gave her a smile, reaching for her hand.

"Good… because I'm sure your cousin would be very proud of you, Sir." She said.

Roy gave a sad smile,

"I know." He said, "I only wish he was here to see this."

Two men in dark suits met Roy as he walked back towards the car.

"Fuehrer Mustang, has everything been taken care of?" one of them asked.

"Yes… everything is fine." He said calmly, glancing back over his shoulder.

"Sir, are you coming? The children are getting impatient." Hawkeye said, as she stepped carefully into the car.

Roy nodded,

"Of course, Riza… I'm coming." He said, getting into the car.

He gave one more smile, and snapped his fingers… his eyes focusing on the blue wisps of gentle electricity that swirled around them.

Don't worry, Artie… I got you covered. I'm not afraid of the rain anymore.

((THE END))

((A/N: Thank you everyone for sticking with me until the end of this fic! I just wanted to say, that I dedicate this fic to my younger brother, Brandon… because he really puts up with everything I dish out at him. Anyway, what do you guys think? I'm curious? Love it? Hate it? Your words mean a lot to me! Thanks again for reading!))