Author's note: Happy holidays everyone, please consider this chapter a holiday gift from turtlequeen2 and I. We hope you enjoy the chapter and can't wait to hear what you think.
Humming softly under her breath, she rolled towards the Fuhrer's office. This was her last stop of the morning, and she was happy that she had the afternoon off. She and Mark were doing some shopping that afternoon, and Rosette admitted to herself that she was actually looking forward to it. When she reached it however, the redhead frowned. Ms. Douglas wasn't at her desk, which seemed odd. Biting her lip, the young woman considered her options, then decided to make sure the papers were delivered personally rather than wait. Gathering her courage, Rosette rolled up to the door and tapped politely. "Sir? I have those papers you wanted."
"You may enter," came the commanding voice from behind the looming double doors. By the tone of the Fuhrer's voice, it was obvious that he was preoccupied with some other type of business.
Squaring her shoulders, Rosette quietly entered the room and saluted, not wanting to interrupt her superior more than she already had.
King Bradley was hard at work, signing documents that could have very well been new laws for the country's citizens to follow. Once he heard her enter the room, his pen was lowered onto the desk and his head lifted from the papers in order to give her his full attention. "At ease," he replied, telling her that she didn't have to continue saluting him. His hardened expression softened, looking at her much like a father would look at his daughter. "You can set the papers here on my desk, if you please," he then instructed.
"Thank you very much sir. I wouldn't have disturbed you, but your secretary appeared to have stepped out, and I wanted to make sure you got these." The redhead said as she did as she was told. Her hair looked neatly trimmed now, unlike the hacked off state it had been in when she'd first arrived in Central.
"Ah, yes," the Fuhrer remarked. "I believe her break time is right now." He slowly rose out of his chair as he tried to assess the woman's appearance. Something was certainly different about her. After blinking a few times, he finally asked, "Did you get a hair cut?"
"Lieutenant Hawkeye gave me a trim, Roy didn't like that. He's still mad about my haircut and I am absolutely forbidden to go near scissors for the next year." The young woman smiled.
The aged man let out a laugh in reaction to hearing about the colonel's response. "I see..." he murmured. "I personally think it's a nice improvement."
Rosette shook her head. "I agree with you, but Roy likes my long hair."
King Bradley gave her an encouraging smile. "Give it some time... Maybe he'll get used to the change," he suggested. "It's not as if he'd want to see his sister displeased, right?"
"In some ways, he can be very..." She paused, seeming to think twice about the words, "Old-fashioned at times."
"I wish you luck then," the man chuckled. He then bristled as a reminder flashed across his head. "I actually have something that will be of use for you today," he informed her.
"Really?" The redhead asked, brightening. Peeking out from beneath the sleeve of her uniform, the bruise around her wrist was still blue-black in color.
Bradley reached into a pocket on his military jacket and pulled out a few bank notes. After seeing her outstretch her hand, he placed the money within her palm. "I want you to spend this on something that will properly hide the injury on your wrist," he explained. An emotion sparked across his visible eye as he looked down at her as if treating the conversation like a top-secret meeting before a birthday party for someone else. "Preferably something fitting for the eyes."
"Thank you sir... bruises are slow to fade on me for some reason." She beamed, dazzling him with the light of her smile. "Mark and I are going shopping this afternoon."
"I'm imagining that you're going to give Lieutenant Stone a work-out?" the Fuhrer remarked with another laugh.
"Well, I'm sure that the next time I go shopping, Roy's going to tag along so..."
"It's too bad I won't be able to see that," the old homunculus remarked. Giving her a small smile, he finally asked, "Shouldn't you go get ready? I wouldn't want you to keep people waiting for a conversation such as this."
The redhead smiled. "Thank you sir. I wanted to make sure you got those papers in case they were something important."
The Fuhrer gave her a small nod. "You're dismissed," he formally stated, granting her permission to leave.
Saluting again, Rosette gave him a dazzling smile of farewell before leaving the room.
As soon as the young woman left the room, the smile fell away from King Bradley's face. Something told him that Rosette's smile could be used for more than just an expression for others to see.
Happy that her last task of the morning was complete, the redhead was humming softly to herself as she made her way back to the filing room. She was pleasantly surprised to find Mark waiting for her. "Good morning Mark! Sorry to keep you waiting, let me go punch out and then we can leave." Rosette's voice was cheerful and bright as she greeted him.
Upon seeing Rosette's face, Mark's expression brightened. He seemed pleased to see her again. "That's fine. I'll just wait here," he replied, leaning against the wall behind him. The homunculus beneath the human disguise couldn't figure out if he was really pleased to see her or if he was acting too well, causing annoyance with himself.
A minute or two later, Rosette emerged. "The Fuhrer gave me an assignment to take care of while I was out, so we'll need to take care of that first." She said as they made their way towards the exit together.
Still acting and continuing to act as if he were in high spirits Envy, as Mark, nodded with an added smile. "You're the one in charge of where we go so it's not like I'll object," he informed her.
She laughed. "Well, if I don't take care of this first, I'm going to spend it all on books!" Blinking as they entered the sunlight, Rosette sighed. "This bruise really offends him, I think."
Mark raised his eyebrow at her words. "Why? What did Fuhrer Bradley give you?" he questioned.
"He gave me some money and told me to buy something pretty that would cover the bruise on my wrist." She said quietly, showing Mark the money that the Fuhrer had given her. "It seems like a lot to me…"
Envy enabled Mark's eyes to widen, honestly surprised to find that the Fuhrer went to such lengths for the woman. "...D-did he expect you to buy a gold bracelet?" he stammered out.
"I don't know. He said: 'I want you to spend this on something that will properly hide the injury on your wrist, preferably something fitting for the eyes.' But I've never had that much before, and I don't know anything about jewelry…" Rosette admitted sheepishly.
The homunculus wanted to roll his eyes at the situation. Wasn't Pride taking his role a bit too seriously? Still, his human mask allowed him to laugh. "If you're planning to buy something nice for your wrist, I'm sure I can offer some assistance," he remarked offhandedly.
"Thank you very much Mark. After all, orders are orders." Rosette beamed. "Do you have any suggestions on where to go for pretty things?"
"Well, I do know of one store in particular..." Mark trailed off, recalling the stores he passed by while walking through Central.
"Lead the way." The redhead slowed slightly so that Mark was in the lead, letting him be the leader.
Mark nodded his head, taking his place in front of her and beginning to walk in the direction of the town after exiting the military building. After a few more minutes passed, the two were standing in front of a quaint shop with the name "Ralph's Jewelry" plastered across the window glass. "It's this place," he confirmed walking forward to pull open the door so that she could be the first person to enter the place.
Her eyes widened, and she was very careful entering the shop. "Wow… Mark. Are you sure that…? Everything in here is so…" The redhead sounded awed and amazed.
"Beautiful? Pricey?" Envy supplied, sounding amused as he guessed words to end her sentence. Set around them were glass structures protecting ending shades of various gems and crystals.
"Where would we even start?" She asked, her eyes were still rather wide as Rosette struggled to take everything in at once. "I doubt that there's anything simple in here…"
The homunculus made a dramatic pause, glancing over all of the cases before spotting a few gold chains in the case farthest to the back of the store. "How about over there?" he suggested, pointing to the area.
"All right." Rosette followed him trustingly, carefully avoiding the cases with the ease of practice. "Have you been here before?"
"Yeah, once," Mark answered, seeming to know his way around the store. "I was looking into buying a watch."
"Did you find one you like, or would you like help looking for one?" The redhead asked as she looked at the chains he had suggested with a thoughtful frown.
The military man frowned at the question. "We shouldn't be shopping for me," he pointed out. "This is your day out."
"I don't see why we both can't get something we want. It's the least I can do after you kept that other guy from… whatever it was he that wanted to do before he dislocated my arm." Rosette said calmly. "Besides, I like helping people Mark."
"Are you sure?" Mark pressed, outwardly showing that he would feel awkward doing something like that for himself when he was supposed to be guarding her life at all times. Truthfully, Envy was continuing to be surprised at her selflessness. How could a human do so many selfless acts without having any fear of it backfiring on them?
"I'm sure." She grinned. "It's not like you are slacking, since you are still with me. If someone asks, just blame it on me! After all, it's not like you could refuse, right?" With a wink, she turned her attention back to the jewelry in the case. "I don't think any of these in this case will work Mark, they aren't wide enough."
Mark couldn't help but smile when he heard her reasoning. "That's true... I can't refuse," he murmured. Once he heard her comment about the jewelry, he pointed to the next case full of silver chains. "What about these ones?"
Solemnly, Rosette rolled over to check them, and then pointed to a thick but rather plain one in the middle. "That one might work, but I'll need to try it on first. Any others catch your eye Mark?"
The lieutenant frowned slightly upon seeing her boring choice. "I thought the Fuhrer said that he wanted you to get something 'pleasing to the eye'?" he murmured. "Doesn't that mean that it should be noticeable?"
"I don't want to call attention to it though..." Rosette said. "I'm not really into the flashy jewelry. On me it just looks tacky, like lace on a horse blanket, it doesn't make any sense."
Mark's frown didn't seem to dissipate with such an answer. "What about making a compromise?" he suggested. Glancing down at the case of silver, he pointed out another chain that looked about the same. The only difference was the small emerald centerpiece that was in the band.
"That's very pretty." When the salesperson took it out, Rosette beamed. "It fits! What do you think Mark?"
The homunculus in human form flashed her a smile. "I think it looks beautiful on you, Rosette," he commented.
"I think I'll get this one then." She said, nodding to the saleswoman.
After watching the salesperson fetch a box for the silver chain, Mark began looking around for a watch in another case. "Rosette... do you think you could give me some suggestions on what would look right on me?" he questioned.
"Which wrist are you going to wear it on?" She asked, frowning as she studied the cases.
"My right wrist," Mark answered. "Why?" he then asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"You'd be surprised how a small difference can change the overall picture of things. I like to pay attention to details." She pointed to slender gold watch. The band looked like woven gold and the hands had tiny diamonds that twinkled in the light as they moved. "Do you like that one?"
Within the disguise, even Envy had to pause and marvel at how beautiful the watch appeared. "...It seems that you have a knack for picking out jewelry for other people," he commented.
"Who do you think keeps my brother looking his best at parties and such? It's not him! I love my brother, but he has absolutely no taste at all..." She shuddered. "It's a good thing you can't mess up a uniform, otherwise I would have been living here in Central for years!"
The homunculus couldn't help but let out a laugh at this. To know that one of his annoying tools had to rely on his sister for fashion tips was just too priceless!
"He once tried to wear a dark blue shirt with, get this, dark brown pants. Luckily for him, I was visiting at the time!" Rosette snickered. "As always, little sister saved the day and won him a few dates."
Mark let out another chuckle. "...So... are you the reason why the Colonel is notorious for being able to date so many women around here?" he couldn't help but ask.
"I can't take all the credit." The redhead said modestly. "I just help."
"Yes... but, at the same time, it wasn't some power he acquired overnight on his own like many others think," the soldier pointed out.
"I just help with the appearance, the rest is all him." She laughed. "And no, he didn't use me as practice either."
The young man flashed a grin at her response. Looking back down at the watch, he remarked, "Since I do like this watch, do you suppose I should get it?"
"Sure, if you like it and don't see anything else you'd like better." She opened her purse as though to pay for his watch too.
The homunculus blinked. When in the hell did she decide that it was her right to pay for his watch? "...Wait," he suddenly blurted out, sounding as if he had reached a form of realization. "Are you intending to pay for my watch?"
"Why not? I don't mind; think of it as a gift Mark." She smiled brightly.
Inwardly, Envy wanted to twitch. It was times like this when her cheerful disposition seemed to piss him off. It was as if he were struck powerless when she pulled the smile card out on him. Forcing himself to heave a sigh and remain calm, the homunculus replied, "If you insist..."
"Well, if it really bothers you, we can always split the cost." Rosette offered politely, still beaming at Mark.
Mark forced a smirk. "That would actually make me feel a lot better," he admitted.
"All right. How much is it?"
Mark read over the tag and answered, "It's about 60, 000 cens." Pulling out his own wallet, he glanced down into the compartment holding the bills. The Fuhrer had made sure that Envy was well prepared before sending him out into the public. "So, 30,000 cens each."
Though her eyes widened slightly, she didn't say anything as she paid her share until after the saleswoman walked away. "Good thing we are splitting the cost!"
The lieutenant nodded his head. "It's a very good thing," he agreed, handing the store clerk his own share of the money.
Taking the bracelet out of its case, the redhead pushed up her sleeve and offered him her bruised wrist. "Could you please...?"
"I'd be honored to," Mark said with a grin as he took the bracelet and secured it around her wrist.
"Thank you very much Mark." She smiled at the bracelet. "Much better, it's a little loose, but I have a small wrist. Was the Fuhrer really that mad that guy..."
"The last I heard of it... the Fuhrer suggested putting the bastard on trial in order to be court marshaled," the young man explained in a nonchalant tone.
Her eyes went huge. "But I wasn't really hurt! I thought at most he'd get suspended..." As Rosette spoke, she handed her new friend the watch.
Mark shook his head. "You have to remember that King Bradley almost treats you like the daughter he never had," he remarked, taking the watch away from her and putting it on his wrist.
Rosette thanked the saleswoman, but there was still a frown of concern on her sweet face as the two of them left the shop. "That may be true Mark and that is very sweet of him, but in doing that, isn't he doing exactly what he said my brother couldn't do?" She asked, trying to figure out this puzzle.
Envy inwardly wanted to gawk at her logic. 'Dammit! She's smarter than we give her credit for!' he mentally growled. 'This is why I was against his involvement!' Outwardly, however, he frowned as if it were something he had just learned. "I never thought about it like that before..." he murmured.
The redhead shrugged. "Of course, it's not my place to question the Fuhrer... but it does make you wonder..."
"I suppose it does..." Mark hummed while inwardly stewing. The homunculus soon knew that he'd have to report this news back to his allies.
"Well, where to next Mark, bookstore or typewriter store?" She smiled at Mark again.
"Knowing that you may spend a good while in the bookstore, I think we should go to the typewriter store first," the young man suggested.
Rosette laughed. "Ouch! You've been talking to my brother haven't you. All right! Let's go."
Mark flashed her a teasing smirk. "Whatever gave you that idea?" he questioned innocently, taking his place beside her as they left the store and went back out into the street.
"Because Roy's the only one whose ever seen me in a bookstore." Rosette winked.
As the two continued to walk, they were stopped by a sudden shout of Rosette's name. Upon looking ahead, Envy mentally groaned. 'Great! It's the Fullmetal pipsqueak and his brother...' It was just what he needed today! What was even more difficult was that he had to pretend he didn't already know them.
Edward stood beside Alphonse, but raised his eyebrow upon seeing the unfamiliar face. "...Who's this guy?" he asked, not meaning to sound as rude as it did.
The redhead braked quickly and turned sideways. "Ed? Al? I thought you'd already left Central! Hello!"
Al clanked beside his brother. "Ed, be nice. Hello Rosette."
The young state alchemist resisted the urge to roll his eyes at his brother's scolding. "It's not like I hit him in the face or anything," he grumbled like a pouting child.
"This is First Lieutenant Mark Stone, he's my bodyguard." Rosette explained.
Making a show of taking notice of the pocket watch chained to the outside of Edward's pocket, Envy forced a smile. Glancing down at the alchemist's face, he remarked, "You must be the Fullmetal Alchemist, right?"
Edward took in the new information and nodded his head in response to Mark's words. Looking over at his brother, he further explained, "This is my brother, Alphonse."
"I could see how people would get you two confused based on your military title..." Mark murmured with a smirk.
The young alchemist bristled since it was a sore subject with him. The two things that annoyed him the most about meeting new people were that they either called him "short" or confused him for his brother.
"I thought you had already left Central." Rosette repeated patiently. "Doing some shopping?"
"Oh... yeah," Edward murmured before letting out a nervous laugh in reference to who he was shopping for. "...You could say that."
Rosette smiled and held out her wrist. "What do you think of my new bracelet Ed? Isn't it gorgeous?"
The state alchemist looked down at the wrist and was going to comment on the bracelet until he saw the bruise poking out from underneath of the loose chain. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he glanced up at her face and demanded, "Who did that to you?"
Alarmed, Al gently grabbed her arm and pushed the bracelet up slightly so that Ed could see the full extent of the bruising. "Rosette... What happened to you? Who hurt you? Please tell us."
The light in her eyes and welcoming glow on her face vanished as Rosette vainly attempted to pull her arm away. "I'm fine... it's nothing... really..."
Edward's eyes narrowed even more at Rosette's answer. "It sure doesn't look like 'nothing' to me..." he murmured.
'Dammit! These damn idiots will ruin everything before it gets off the ground!'Envy growled within his mind. If the Elric brothers suspected any foul play, they would step in as her protectors and get in his way or, even worse, figure out that Mark was Envy based on whatever information she could tell them. Knowing that his plans would crash and burn if he didn't step in, Envy as Mark stepped forward. "If I may interrupt..." he began. Not waiting for a response, he continued. "Rosette and I were in the cafeteria when some soldier began to give her some trouble. Feeling the need to defend her, I took the guy out before the Fuhrer came by to see what all the commotion was about..."
"I wasn't really hurt you two, just a nasty bruise and a dislocated shoulder, that's all. The Fuhrer was very upset and assigned Mark as my bodyguard so Roy's fingers wouldn't start itching. My brother is rather blunt at times." Rosette sighed.
"Rosette, you should be more careful. I thought we told you to keep out of trouble, can't Roy keep an eye on you?" Al said, letting go of her arm.
"Trouble usually finds me, not the other way around. As for Roy, the Fuhrer buried him in paperwork, and Lieutenant Hawkeye has her hands full just making sure something gets done everyday." The redhead explained.
"'Just a dislocated shoulder'?" Ed echoed, wondering what in the heck Rosette considered an actual injury. Though, as the woman continued to explain herself, he couldn't help but mentally snicker at Roy's continuing predicament. 'Obviously, someone is making sure the Colonel's keeping up with his punishment work...'
Forcing a smile, Mark added, "I can assure you that I'll make sure Rosette doesn't get hurt by anyone else while I'm around."
"Yeah, I fixed it myself, so it wasn't that big of a deal. It wasn't like I broke something." She smiled at them. "I'm always getting bumps and stuff, so I've learned not to sweat it. Roy gets more upset than I do about these things. I'm a bit of a klutz, so I'm always getting into something."
Al would have smiled if he could have. "I wouldn't have called you a klutz Rosette. Don't sell yourself short. Would you like some company?" He asked, Ed hadn't told him when their train was leaving.
"I wouldn't wish to impose on the two of you. Surely you are busy as well." The redhead said politely. "Please don't worry about me; what happened wasn't your fault."
"You wouldn't be imposing!" Edward assured the young woman. "Though..." he trailed off, looking over at his brother. "We do have a train to catch in an hour."
Mark immediately stepped in. "Well, we wouldn't want you two to risk being late for your train!" he interjected.
The state alchemist shrugged. "We still have our own things to do so it's not like we're just hanging around to keep people company," he replied.
With those words, the homunculus inwardly scowled. He knew that continuing to argue with the brothers would make him look suspicious. 'Why the hell did they have to show up?!'he inwardly snapped, just itching to kill the annoying pests.
"Would you happen to know where the typewriter store is Edward? I would like to see what they have so that I'm not at Roy's mercy later when I drag him back here to plunder his wallet." She smiled to take the sting out of the remark as the redhead shook her wrist slightly so that the bracelet fell back into place to hide the bruise.
Edward paused for a few moments, thinking over the question. "I think me and Al passed by it a few minutes ago," he answered, pointing in the opposite direction with his thumb.
"Thank you very much." Rosette smiled warmly at the Elric brothers and nodded at Mark, turning to go. "Let's go Mark. I might be a while in there..."
Envy forced another smirk to form on his human canvas before turning away from the brothers. "I had a feeling..." he trailed off in a joking manner.
The redhead sighed. "You'll be bored; I'll mostly be taking notes." She was almost apologetic about it, but not quite.
Clanking from behind signaled that the Elric brothers were following along.
Resisting the urge to turn around and snap at the two brothers, Mark replied to Rosette's words. "It's not like my job is to be entertained by you," he pointed out.
Rosette flashed a small shy smile at Mark as they walked to the shop. "I'll try not to take too long..."
Edward smirked from behind the couple. 'That's probably code for 'I won't take five hours but I'll take at least two hours',' he mentally snickered.
She looked about to say something else, but upon entering the store the redhead stopped in her treads, seemingly not noticing Al running into her from behind. "Oh my..." The words trailed off in choked off yearning as she rolled forward, entranced by a typewriter in a stand near the middle of the room. Almost without thinking, she whipped out a pad of paper and a pencil stub and began to scribble rapidly.
Mark raised his eyebrow, wondering just what Rosette was writing down. He had no clue that buying a typewriter would require so much observation.
The young state alchemist watched with amusement as he saw the woman become entranced by the sights in the store. "Our train will definitely come before she leaves," he remarked loud enough for Alphonse to hear.
"She did warn us... I think we can go, she seems safe enough." Al answered, watching her circle the typewriter before resuming her note taking.
Edward nodded his head. "He seems more together than that other bastard," he remarked offhandedly.
The redhead looked like a child on Christmas morning, but that joy died as she studied the price tag. With a sad sigh, she wrote down the price before moving on to another typewriter.
"Hey, Rosette!" the young alchemist shouted, half-expecting her to ignore him since she was so engrossed in what she was doing. "Me and Al are going to leave so good luck on your typewriter hunt!"
"Thank you Edward. Goodbye Al, keep an eye on Ed." She replied absently.
Al tapped Ed's shoulder. "How much is it?" He asked quietly.
"I don't know..." Edward murmured, walking up to the typewriter in question and lifting up the price tag. The young alchemist's eyes widened slightly before looking back at his brother. "She has Winry's similar taste in expensive hardware..." He could only answer.
"That much?" Al sounded worried.
"It's about fifty thousand sens," the state alchemist murmured back.
Al sighed and shook his head. "We can't afford that... the Colonel would kill us..."
Edward nodded his head in agreement. "I don't even think he'd appreciate anyone else spoiling his sister," he added.
Mark idly watched the two brothers interact, making sure to keep his attention on them in case they tried anything strange or suspected him of anything. 'Why does the Fullmetal Pipsqueak want to buy something for her? It's not like he's dating her,' the homunculus within inwardly remarked with an inner scowl.
When the Elric brothers left for their train, the redhead was still taking notes and checking prices. She looked very serious now, with no life or joy in her expression. A minute later, she slid the pencil behind her ear and flexed her hand with a wince. "How long has it been Mark?"
"Close to forty-five minutes," the soldier answered after looking down at the watch that was recently bought for him. Glancing back up at her face, he raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"Just curious. I won't be too much longer... I think." Rosette replied, shaking out her hand.
"There's no rush," Mark assured her with a small smile.
"Thanks." She smiled slightly back. "I almost have everything I need." As Rosette spoke, she was already reaching for the pencil again.
The older man nodded his head, inwardly glad for that fact since he was never known to have the greatest amount of patience in the world.
When the redhead finally stopped writing, a half an hour had gone by before she finally closed the pad after rechecking her work. "All done."
Mark's face had relief written all over it when he heard her words. "So, you're planning to come back here later to buy a typewriter?" he questioned.
"Well, I'll need to talk it over with Roy first... That's why I took all these notes." Rosette sighed. "The haggling will take a few days."
Walking towards the door, he held it open so that the young woman could exit the store. "That sounds like a lot of fun," he said in a half-joking manner.
"Not all the time, I had to fight with him for a week for the first one." Rosette answered, smiling in thanks as she joined him. "Are you hungry at all?"
Mark shrugged his shoulders. "I could eat a little, I suppose," he answered. "What about you?"
"I could use a snack and a drink. I'm sure you'd like the chance to rest your legs for a while." Rosette smiled, offering to share the joke. "Don't worry, we'll break as long as you need it."
The so-called human couldn't help but laugh at her humor. "All right, then," he remarked, beginning to look around for a restaurant.
Politely, the redhead allowed him to choose the place. "Have you been bored all day?"
"No, not really," Mark replied after thinking about it for a few moments. "Aside for waiting on you in the typewriter store, I've been entertained for the most part." Upon spotting a small cafe beside them, he stopped. "How about this place?" he then suggested.
"I promise that the reward will be well worth the effort. This looks fine." Rosette smiled happily. "Where will we sit? Do you have a preferred seat?"
"Do you mind sitting outside?" Mark asked with a lifted eyebrow.
"Nope, not at all, the weather is beautiful today." Rosette calmly slipped behind Mark to allow another person to pass them.
"Good, then," the older man responded, his tone sounding pleased. Leading the way to a free table while carefully weaving between other customers, he pulled a chair out of the way so that Rosette could take her place at the table he found them.
With a smile, Rosette politely took the offered seat and put on her breaks. "Thank you very much Mark."
"You're welcome," the soldier returned before taking a seat across from her.
The waiter came and took their orders, before departing with smile. "You seem to be well known here Mark." His 'date' complimented.
Mark let out a laugh. "You think so?" he asked, sounding as if he were in disbelief of her words. "I've only been to this place once before."
"Usually if service takes less than five minutes, it means either you are a favorite or that business is really slow and they want to impress you so that you will return." Rosette explained with a smile.
The homunculus smirked. "It's probably because I left one of the workers here a very nice tip the last time I was here."
Amused, Rosette laughed. "Well, it's a start."
Mark leaned forward on his chair slightly so that he could give her his full focus. "There's something I've wanted to know for a while now..." he trailed off. "Why do you need a typewriter so badly?"
"I'm an as-yet-unpublished author and I'm hoping to get published here in Central." Rosette explained. "Roy told me that none of the publishers here would even consider reading a hand-written manuscript."
The older man's expression brightened, looking as if he was glad to learn something new about the woman. "There's a tough crowd here in a big city like this," he murmured, agreeing with the colonel. "Though, you could always get the assistance of the Fuhrer..." he added, knowing how fond the man was of Rosette.
"No." The word was said firmly. "I will either succeed or fail by my own efforts alone. If I relied on other people, than I would never know what I can or cannot do on my own. It would be foolish to do that in case something happens to the person that I am relying on."
Envy found himself taken aback by the statement, not expecting such boldness. 'Heh. She sounded almost like those brothers just now...' he mentally noted before he allowed himself to smirk outwardly. "Interesting..." he spoke. Shaking his head before she could get suspicious of his behavior, he went on to say, "I'm sorry for the suggestion. It's just that I know a lot of people would jump at the opportunity since it's not like the Fuhrer is fond of many people like he's fond of you."
"The easy path isn't always the one with the reward at the end Mark." Rosette replied. "Besides that, the Fuhrer is a busy man. If I ran to him every time I needed a favor, when something really bad pops up- and knowing my luck, it will- then he won't believe me. Every time you ask for something, you are opening yourself up to a kind of personal debt."
Mark nodded his head, trying to understand her logic. 'I wonder how Pride will take this news?' he idly wondered before replying. "You have a point there."
"If I do something by myself, the success is mine and mine alone, and nobody can try to worm his or her way into making me share the reward for my hard work." Rosette smiled. "Not even my brother."
The soldier found himself pondering another question. "So, if you do get famous here, how do you think Colonel Mustang will react?" he asked. "He's already protective enough of you as if is... If you're constantly getting nagged for an autograph or a promotional stunt, don't you think he'd go insane?"
"I have no doubt he won't be happy, but I'm sure that he'll figure it out." Rosette shrugged. "If nothing else, I'll make him marry someone. A few kids will tie him down and keep him out of my hair."
"Though, until then..." Mark trailed off with a near grin in place. "I'll be working lots of overtime."
"I'm pretty sure that there won't be any more trouble. Word has spread quickly about what you did; I don't think anyone wants to chance it..."
The older man snorted. "You'd be very surprised at how many idiots are in Central."
"True... well we'll figure out something I'm sure Mark. I doubt I'll get that famous..." Rosette smiled as the waiter returned with their orders.
"Oh, I don't know..." Mark drifted off, not sure if she even knew her own talents. "You have a way with people so I wouldn't be surprised..."
Although she blushed, the redhead just laughed it off. "I'm nothing special, trust me. People are just blind to anything that doesn't directly involve them."
"Claims the girl who already has half of the staff of Central wrapped around her finger," the man teased in a joking manner, though he was inwardly serious.
"Only about a quarter, this, if you actually want to measure it; is only my pinky finger." Rosette said modestly. "And of those, most of them are scared of me for some reason." She took a sip of her drink. "Honestly though, I'm not about to run for office."
Mark let out another small laugh. "I don't think they're scared of you," he assured her. "They're scared of your brother."
"Yet another reason not to climb the ladder, too many people would think Roy is the one behind my rising in the ranks." Rosette shrugged.
"That is another good point..." The older man murmured in agreement. Looking down at his order of a single slice of vanilla cake, he decided to take the first bite after letting it sit for a few minutes.
She smiled as she ate her fruit salad. "Is it good Mark?"
After swallowing the first bite, the young man gave a subtle nod of the head. "Just like I remembered it when I had it a week ago," he explained with a smirk in return.
Rosette laughed softly. "This salad is really good too. I'm telling Roy to come here!"
"I suppose he could take a date here," the homunculus noted. "It seems like a nice enough place."
After a minute of thought, the redhead shook her head. "Too public."
"You think so?" Mark pressed with a raised eyebrow. "What would you think would be an ideal place to go, then?"
"Well, that would depend on if I wanted to be seen with that person or not. I would bring a date here, but I have nothing to hide on the relationship score. Roy couldn't unless he was actually seeing that person for fear of a scandal ruining his plans."
"I never thought about that possibility..." the man admitted, genuinely interested in her form of logic. After taking another bite of his cake and swallowing, he remarked, "You always seem to be looking out for the Colonel as much as he always seems to be protective of you."
"Our relationship is... complicated..." Rosette looked slightly uncomfortable as she took another bite. "It's a long story."
Inwardly, Envy became very intrigued. "Is it a long story that isn't meant to be told in public?" he questioned in as innocent a voice as he could muster.
"Yeah... The two of us have never told anyone... It's very painful among other things." Rosette took another bite to avoid saying anything else.
"Ah, I see..." the man remarked, outwardly being understanding and respectful of her wishes to keep the story a secret. The homunculus side of him, on the other hand, was reeling with curiosity, now becoming determined to find out her true relationship with the colonel.
The redhead now looked very far away, lost in her own thoughts as she ate without noticing. Although only a table separated them, it seemed that the two of them were worlds apart.
Mark frowned slightly, not liking the silence that began to settle over the two. Since he knew it was obviously a touchy subject, he wanted her to- at the very least- speak to him about other things. The far away look in her eyes was enough to give him chills. "Rosette..." he began.
"What? Oh!" Mark could almost see the thump as Rosette came back from wherever she had been. "Sorry about that." Her smile was sheepish. "You were saying?"
The older man resisted the urge to comment on her sudden spaciness but withheld the urge. "I was going to ask if there was a particular time you wanted to head back to headquarters...?"
"I wasn't given a time limit... did you receive other orders Mark?" She pushed away her now empty bowl.
"Not that I'm aware of," Mark replied in an honest tone. "It just seems like we gone done earlier than expected..."
Disappointment flickered in her eyes, but she nodded in agreement. "True... I suppose we could stop for the day. Roy can't be left alone for long anyway."
The older man nodded his head, calling for a waiter so that they could get their bill. "...I can pay for this," he offered. "It's the least I could do after you helped me buy such a nice watch." His last sentence said in an almost teasing manner.
Rosette smiled, blushing lightly. "Thank you very much. You've been very patient with me today."
Pulling out a wallet from his uniform pocket, he brought out a few bills and coins, paying in exact amount for the waiter to collect. Looking up at the woman, he smirked again. "It's no problem, really," he insisted. Watching for Rosette's reaction, Mark then brought out an extra ten thousand sens in order to place on the table for a tip. Rising up from his chair, he asked, "Shall we go?"
Although the redhead's eyes grew wide and she paled in alarm, Rosette did not comment on Mark's tip as she followed him back onto the street. 'With that much money, he could have easily saved up enough to buy the typewriter himself!' Rosette thought in amazement. 'I wonder if he makes more than Roy; or if Roy's been being a miser on me…'
Envy inwardly snickered at Rosette's reaction, highly amused at how she paled with surprise. He made a mental note to throw out more sens in the future as he walked beside her.
Shaking off her shock with an effort, Rosette forced herself to smile. "You should be more careful. If we get mugged I'm blaming you!" She joked to her escort.
Mark raised his eyebrow at her joke, looking as if he wanted to scoff at the notion. "They could try to mug us, you mean," he replied with a sudden smirk. "Not that I'd wish it upon us, of course."
"No thank you. I don't want my arm broken, I can't fix that." Rosette agreed with vigor.
The soldier nodded his head before added, "I don't think I'd be able to fix my own self if the Colonel found out that it was my fault that your arm got broken."
"I hope you are a fast runner..." The redhead shuddered, a shadow falling over her face.
"Or immune to flames..." the young man added, cringing just as much as she was.
"That would be asking for a miracle." She said softly, briefly breaking her chair to go around a group of people. "I hope you are on good terms with your chosen deity."
Mark let out a small laugh. "I wouldn't know," he admitted. 'It's not like my kind believes in God anyway...' Envy mentally noted. Giving her another smile, he replied, "This just means I can never fail you."
"Don't make promises you can't keep. They always come back to you to bite where it hurts most." Rosette advised. Before she could hide it, a flash of something slipped out from behind her cheerful mask.
The older man stopped in the middle of the street, seeing the emotions of what he would imagine being deep, heartfelt pain pan across her face. A frown crossed his lips, not liking the expression one bit. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I said something reckless, again, didn't I?"
"It's okay." Rosette said. "People don't often mean that as deeply as they think they do. It's not a reflection on you..."
Mark's frown remained for a moment more as he thought to himself. 'I wonder who hurt her badly enough to cause this many mental scars? I hate to admit this, but I feel the sudden urge to kill...' The homunculus mentally wanted to hit himself for thinking such thoughts. Did this mean that he was already bending to her will?
Shaking herself again, you could almost see the cheerful mask- and it was a mask- click back into place. Rosette did this so well that her smile made you doubt if what you saw behind it was real after all. "It's a beautiful day. Let's detour for some ice cream on the way back, my treat this time!" She said brightly as she rolled alongside him.
Envy blinked before forcing his human disguise to return the smile. What part of her was real and what part of her was fake? It made him scoff to think he had to ponder about it since he was the self-proclaimed master of fake masks. "Sure," he replied, beginning to walk alongside her again.
Later that night a content looking Pride sat in his office, idly nursing a cup of red wine while he waited for Envy to show. Everyone else had retired for the night, and he would have to leave soon as well to avoid his wife's gentle but nerve-hitting nagging. Privately, Pride admitted to himself that there were some pitfalls to being a married man, even if that marriage was just a front...
Since Envy was still in his human form, he made sure to keep a type of formality in case some officers were lurking in the halls. Holding the back of his fist to the door of the Fuhrer's office, he knocked a few times before waiting to be allowed inside.
"Come in." The Fuhrer called, setting down his glass on his desk.
The homunculus opened the door to the room and shut it behind him cautiously before turning back into his original form. Though, the glimmer of his watch could still be seen on his wrist, not bothering to take it off before returning back to base. "I've learned a few more things about her," Envy began, getting straight to the point.
"I don't suppose you'd care to share." Pride said in a good humor.
"Her past still deeply bothers her," the homunculus began. "Though, that isn't surprising. What is interesting is that I found that she admitted the true nature of her relationship to Mustang is something only known between the two of them..."
The Fuhrer's relaxed expression vanished and he sat up arrow straight in his chair. "Really? I wonder if..." He mused.
"'If' what...?" Envy questioned, wondering if the aging homunculus knew something that he didn't.
"I wonder if the Ishbal massacre has anything to do with it..." Pride mused aloud.
The older homunculus took a few steps forward in order to approach Pride's desk, now very interested in what he had to say. "Are you implying that they could have met there?" he pondered.
"It is a possibility. I'd never heard of Roy Mustang having siblings before that time... Thinking about it, I remember thinking it odd that he'd asked for leave but hadn't specified how long he'd be out of the force for..." The older looking homunculus frowned in deep thought.
Envy couldn't help but smirk slightly. "Well... it seems apparent that Mustang has many skeletons in his closet from that war," he commented.
"And there are a few, it seems, that aren't in his closet at all." Pride agreed thoughtfully. "This is getting interesting but… I doubt that she will tell you where the truth between them really stands if the two of you were merely friends…"
The evil smirk left Envy's face once he heard Pride's words. "I already managed to figure that out on my own," he admitted. "That's why I thought up an idea that you might be interested in..."
"Oh? Such as?" The Fuhrer prompted patiently. "Keep in mind that it might not happen right away..." He reminded Envy.
The older homunculus nodded with understanding, knowing that what he had in mind might be noticeable- and might even require the permission of their creator. "I propose that you hold a gala for Central headquarters," he began. "As for the cover, you could suggest that it would be to raise military morale since lately, they've been involved in so many military exercises."
Pride looked surprised and a little amused. "Don't you think you are moving a little fast? At any rate, this will take a while to arrange... May I ask why you are suddenly suggesting a party when you hate humans so much?"
Envy stifled a sigh, expecting such a reaction. "I can already tell that Rosette has some interest in my human disguise," he explained. "And since it will take you a few weeks to get that to run properly, I'd use that time to get closer to her." He frowned, thinking about the setting of the gala. "As for the humans, I'll have to suck it up and deal with it."
"You realize that you might not be able to ask her to be your date." Pride pointed out, wondering what Envy's plan was.
Envy smirked. "I don't necessarily have to go as her date," he remarked. "If you make the setting appealing enough, she'll want to go and I'll have to attend as her bodyguard to ensure that she doesn't get touched by any inappropriate men..."
Pride smiled. "I think I'll be there as well, to provide backup of course."
"That sounds good," the other homunculus responded, sounding glad that his plan would be working out.
"What else have you learned Envy? Is she enough to keep you interested? I haven't heard anything from the Master yet..." Unspoken was the worry that Envy might kill Rosette out of boredom before knowing exactly what their Master's orders were yet.
The homunculus knew what Pride was implying and answered his 'brother's unspoken concern. "Don't worry. I think this human will keep me entertained for a good while..."
Pride raised his eyebrow questioningly. "Oh?" His tone spoke volumes. "How far are you going to go?"
Envy shrugged. "As far as our Master allows."
Before Pride could reply, Lust's figure slid out of the hidden elevator located behind a particular bookshelf. "What?" she taunted. "Don't tell me you're already falling for the little kitten?"
Immediately on the defensive, the androgynous homunculus narrowed his eyes at Lust. "What do you want?" he demanded.
"Lust, I trust this is important..." Pride said with a warning in his voice, feeling annoyed that he hadn't gotten everything out of Envy yet.
The woman's cold eyes developed warmth as she approached the two. "Master sent me up here to check on you two since Envy's a bit slow in returning..."
Envy resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her defense.
Pride's voice immediately took on a respectful tone. "What exactly did the master say?"
Lust smirked, her expression naturally looking seductive given her name. "The Master is very interested in this new development," she announced. "She wanted me to tell Envy that he needs to go as far as necessary in order to win over the human girl. That woman's connections to the Flame Alchemist could prove to be highly useful."
Pride raised his eyebrow at Envy. "Come to think of it, you've never played a boyfriend or a husband before." He teased Envy.
Envy raised his own eyebrow in return. "Do you honestly believe it will go that far?" he questioned, genuinely curious. At the moment, he couldn't picture himself married and with a human family.
"You might have to depending on how far things go between you two, otherwise the Flame Alchemist might start undoing your work at a certain point. Particularly if she starts getting nervous and starts questioning your intentions..."
Lust let out a sudden laugh at Envy's question. "I don't see why you're bothered by that," she taunted. Eyeing the homunculus' watch, she observed, "The fact that you kept her gift with you tells anyone that you hold some type of feelings for that girl."
The older homunculus glared sorely at the woman. "You're just assuming that I value it," he growled.
"Still, that is a smart move. You never know when you will bump into her, so it's better to wear it all the time than to be caught without it." Pride replied, trying to defuse the tension in the room before a fight started and wrecked his office.
"Hm... perhaps..." the female homunculus trailed off. Before Envy could react, she moved forward with her superhuman speed and gripped his watch-clad wrist, bringing it up to her face so that she could better inspect the watch. "Envy's little kitten has good taste in fine jewelry..." she chuckled. Her eyes then scanned his face, waiting for a reaction.
In the instant after Lust said those words, Envy roughly jerked his wrist from the woman and stepped back from her, trying his hardest to control his temper. "Don't touch me!" he snapped.
Lust sneered, her expression smug. "I'd say that our little Envy has a crush on the human girl, if I didn't know any better..."
Envy's hands formed into fists, resisting the urge to kill Lust a few times over as he glowered at her with smoldering hatred. 'How dare she touch my watch!' He shouted in his mind. He didn't believe Lust's hands were deserving to touch the gift that Rosette had so carefully picked out for him. His rage didn't even allow him to stop and think over his odd thoughts.
"Lust, leave him be, Envy's only following orders." Pride forced his voice to stay calm.
The woman's sneer remained, nearly morphing into an outright grin as she nodded her head in agreement to Pride's words. "Fine, I will... for now," she stated.
'I want to kill that bitch!' Envy mentally growled as he tried his best to calm down.
"Envy, take a few days off and go report to the Master." Pride continued, giving Envy a vacation. "I'll look after Rosette."
Standing in silence, Envy didn't reply until he was calm enough to unclench his fists. "Fine," he grit out, walking past Lust and giving her one last glare before opening up the bookshelf that led to the elevator.
"Make sure you give a full report to the Master and ask for permission about the Gala while you are at it." Pride said, draining his glass of wine. "I need to get home to my wife and son."
"Got it," Envy grumbled, tossing a wave back towards the aging homunculus without bothering to turn around. Pushing back the iron gate leading to the elevator, the homunculus made his way into the contraption and didn't bother to wait for Lust as he pressed the button to be lowered underground. However- he couldn't help himself- the temperamental homunculus thought about how he wished he was going down to see Rosette instead of his master...