Happy Thanksgiving guys! Sorry this one took so long.

Roy was on his third week of training. After the incident with the exploding transmutation circle, Hawkeye had decided to keep him on the basics of alchemy for a while before he actually began transmuting. In other words Roy was confined to sitting in the living room with a book titled "Alchemy for Beginners," reciting the alchemic breakdown of things like paper, or floor boards.

Riza usually took it upon herself to go in and keep him company while he was studying. It was in this way that she got to know the boy better.

It turned out his father had been an alchemist, and a fairly good one at that. Roy had, had the unfortunate misconception that alchemy could be inherited, thus his interest in the art. However, the awful truth was, that Roy utterly talentless when it came to alchemy.

"I wonder if there's hydrogen in paper…" Roy mused absentmindedly as he rested the book on top of his head.

"I don't think so…" Riza said. She placed a sandwich next to him for lunch.

"Maybe ammonia?" He tried.

"I don't think that's right either." Riza rolled her eyes. Was it really that hard to find the alchemic breakdown of something like paper?

She also noticed was how much he hated books and reading.

"As an alchemist you have to study a lot," Riza explained as the two went through the books on her father's shelf. "My dad is always reading something and working on different kinds of theories."

Roy frowned. "I thought alchemy would be more like physical training." He picked out a thick research novel with lots of tiny handwriting, and began flipping through it.

Riza glanced at him. "It is a science you know, you can't expect there not to be research behind it."

Roy stared at the book blankly. "Any chance Master Hawkeye has something with more pictures in it?"

The best Riza could produce was a book filled with nothing but pictures of transmutation circles, and a children's story about an alchemist her mother had read to her when she was small. The children's story immediately became Roy's primary research source.

He could also be very nervous around people, as he had demonstrated on the day of their meeting. He became more comfortable with Riza as time went on, but he was still terrified of her father.

"Roy!" Hawkeye shouted.

Roy jumped and swiveled around to face his master.

"Y-Yes sir?" Roy sputtered.

"Were you sleeping just now?" Hawkeye asked with a raised eyebrow.

"S-sorry sir." Roy stated as his eyes drooped in shame.

"Have you not been sleeping well Roy?"

"No sir." Roy said.

Hawkeye stared at him for a moment. "If you don't have the energy to do your work you shouldn't bother showing up to learn."

"I'm sorry" Roy said. "It won't happen again."

"See to that." Hawkeye sighed before wandering back into his study.

Riza peeked in the room. "If you want to sleep some more you can have me stand guard and warn you if he's coming."

"It's ok, I need to focus on this." Roy looked disdainfully at the stack of papers.

"You know he's not mad at you." Riza tried to explain comfortingly. Roy stared glumly at the floor.

"It's ok…" he sniffed. "I can take care of myself."

Riza highly doubted that statement. Roy was about as capable as a three year old, and even less independent.

"You lost your quill again?" Riza exclaimed.

"It was right here."

"Did you check under the desk."

"Yeah."

"What about behind your ear."

Roy frowned and checked. "How did I not notice that it was there?"

Riza sighed. Sometimes Roy could be a real airhead.

That being said, there were moments where Roy showed he had a strange kind of potential. A good example would be the time where Roy expressed his dream of using alchemy to protect people, but it was more then that. Whenever injustice seemed to cross his path he would take on a new air of solemnity.

"What's with all the bandages?" Riza asked as Roy came in one morning, his right arm wound in a freshly wrapped cloth, and a large purple welt on his forehead.

"Some idiot was terrorizing a cat in the alley by my house." Roy said quietly, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Riza gasped. "You got beat up trying to help that cat?"

Roy went a little red. "Not exactly…"

Riza listened as Roy explained how he had heard someone outside throwing bottles at the poor animal, but had not had the nerve to go out and fend off the man himself. He had waited until he was sure the man was gone, then raced outside to rescue the cat. Unfortunately for Roy, the cat had been scared out of his mind and when he felt Roy's hands scoop him up…

"So he clawed your arm to shreds?" Riza was close to laughing at this point. Roy was beet red.

"It was my own fault…" He stammered, nervously yanking on his bandages. "If I'd gotten out there sooner it would've been fine."

Riza smiled warmly and ceased chuckling. "It was a nice thing to do," She said. "Even if you couldn't help it completely."

But there were times, even Riza couldn't sympathize with Roy.

"You don't really want to join the military do you?" Riza asked in a hushed voice. The two were sitting at the kitchen table again.

"If my dad hears you saying stuff like that he'll reject you as a student." Riza warned.

Roy glanced around nervously for a moment to make sure his master wasn't listening in. He then turned back to Riza.

"If I could get a state certification, I could get a lot of power in the military I could re-shape the nation."

Riza frowned. "State alchemists don't care about anyone but themselves. They hurt people and my dad says that they don't respect the laws alchemy." She narrowed her eyes and stared at the cup of tea she had clasped in her hands. " You shouldn't want to become one."

Roy stared at her blankly. "That's not true. State Alchemists exist to help the people right?"

Riza furrowed her brow. "Well that's what they say, but in truth-"

"If I can gain enough military power I could change the way the military works and make it better." Roy explained, waving his fork around to demonstrate his point.

Riza stared at him in bewilderment.

"Just focus on learning alchemy for now," she said. "If you show up in the military and make your transmutation circle explode there's no way they'd accept you." Roy's blank expression suddenly looked embarrassed, and Riza chuckled at him.

"Oh can it..." he muttered, lowering his gaze to food.