A/N: Man guys, I am sorry this took so long. I have been super busy lately seeing as how the holidays are approaching. I'm planning on a christmas Omake that may or may not happen. Hopefully it will. I'm going to apologize in advance for all the errors that are most definitely in here. I am a terrible editor and I miss a bunch of stuff.

One more thing. As an explanation for Roy and Riza's character traits at the moment, this is what I imagined they be like as kids. They only got the traits we all know and love (such as Roy's womanizer traits, and Riza's scary traits) after they joined the military.

Thanks again for the morale support.

-Lili

Riza observed the contents of the kitchen cabinet, a dark scowl on her face. It appeared her father had been so busy he'd forgotten to buy food…again. Riza understood her father was busy, but he was always running to town for alchemy books and whatever chemicals he could find for his many experiments. Was it really that hard to stop by the grocery store and pick up some food? Riza heaved a sigh, realizing her morning was going to be spent shopping. She flipped open one of the kitchen drawers and pulled out a pen and a scrap piece of paper.

"Let's see, eggs, bread, milk…" she listed each item then pocketed the scrap piece.

"Dad! I'm going out for a bit." She called across the house.

She heard a muffled reply that sounded vaguely like "Be back soon." She decided to take that as a sign of consent as she opened the door to leave.

Riza didn't head into town very often. When she was smaller she'd only been once or twice with her father. She had never gone to the Central school with other children, nor ventured very far from her small house. As she had gotten older she had gained enough knowledge to be able to venture to the general store on her own.

"Hello," the lady at the cashier said cheerfully. "Is there anything I can help you with."

Riza smiled, "No I should be alright." She gazed at the aisles lined with food, and tried to decide where to start.

"Lets see…" she said under her breath. "I need some breakfast stuff, so I might want to start over there…" she made her way to the very back wall and began shifting through cartons of eggs. A bell rang announcing someone else had entered the store. In the back of Riza's mind she heard the cashier lady greet the new visitor.

She continued to glance through the different rows of food, trying to decide which prices were the best when she felt someone's presence behind her.

"What're you doing here?" Roy asked, a look of surprise on his face.

Riza blinked. She wasn't expecting to see Roy here, but this was near where he lived. "Hi Roy." She greeted. "We ran out of groceries, so I went out to get some."

Roy frowned. "It's weird seeing you outside of Master Hawkeye's house," he said. Suddenly he began stuttering. "Uh, n-not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just kind of strange to see you here, you know? 'Cause we've never really seen each other outside of training."

Riza smiled. "Yeah, it is kind of weird isn't it? I don't really come to town that often do I?"

Roy seemed to calm down a little, and gave her a sheepish smile. "Yeah, right." He agreed.

There was a very awkward silence, and the two sat quietly.

"Do you know If they have any cheaper eggs then this brand here?" Riza asked.

"Um…I think this brand costs less." Roy answered, pointing to a different carton.

"Ah, yes that works." Riza said. "Thanks."

More silence followed.

"Roy? Where did you run off to?" A boisterous female voice called.

Roy suddenly looked panicked. "Uh-Coming Madame," he called back. Riza curiously glanced in the direction of the voice.

"Who's that?" She asked.

"My aunt…" Roy whispered back. Just then a woman rounded the corner and into Riza's line of vision.

She was a plump robust woman with layer upon layer of makeup pasted to her face. She had an air of severity surrounding her, and her dark eyes matched with Roy's own. Riza noticed however that her eyes seemed to be far more calm and focused, where Roy's were cloudier and vague as to wear they were actually looking.

"Hello there." The woman smiled at Riza. "Are you a friend of Roy's?"

"Uh…yes." Riza smiled in return. "My father is his Alchemy master, so we spend some time together."

"Oh you're Berthold Hawkeyes daughter?" the Madame smiled. "He's a very good man, used to stop by my bar back in the old days. Tell him I said hello."

"I'll make sure." Riza said, deciding she liked the boisterous woman.

The woman gave Riza a warm smile. "It's been a long time since Roys taken any interest in a girl." She said. "He always is so shy. It's a good thing he friends with such a pretty girl like you, maybe he'll man up a little."

Roy's face had gone completely red in a matter of seconds and his eyes were locked on the floor. His arms were folded stiffly across his chest.

"Maybe we should go now Madame." He tried quietly, his voice cracking a little. He tugged her hand a little in the direction of the door.

The woman pursed her lips and gave Roy a severe look.

"Where are you're manners? You know how you should bid a lady farewell."

Roy immediately began to back pedal. "Oh, yes, sorry." He gave Riza a very flustered glance before bowing his head a little and muttering something incomprehensible.

"Speak up." The Madame said firmly.

"Excuse us but we must be going now." Roy stammered. Riza had to cover her mouth to keep from snickering at the poor boy's embarrassment. The Madame seemed to be satisfied with the boy's awkward farewell for she didn't say anything else.

"Please feel free to come and visit anytime." She smiled at Riza and took her leave.

Roy lingered a moment longer. "She always makes me do that." He whined. He then scowled at Riza when her giggling finally reached his ears. "It's not funny!"

"I'll see you tomorrow Roy." She smiled. Roy sighed and gave her a nod before racing after his aunt.

Riza smiled at him as he went. She had heard him grumble about his aunt before, but the woman seemed like a very good caretaker for him. She could keep him in line rather well from what Riza could tell. With these warm thoughts in mind she picked out the last of her groceries and began her own trip home.

Her father seemed surprised when she returned from her outing.

"I could've gotten those groceries for you," he explained. "I was going to head into town today to pick up an order."

"You would've forgotten again," Riza teased as she put her groceries away.

Hawkeye gave his daughter an exasperated look and began aiding her with the food, a partial apology for forgetting to shop in the first place.

"I saw Roy and his aunt at the store." She said. "She told me to say hello to you."

"Do I know his aunt?" he asked looking up.

"Well she knew you, she's a Madame, and she runs a bar…" Riza used the details to help jog her father's memory.

Realization flooded into is eyes. "Madame Christmas is that boy's aunt?"

"Yes?" Riza felt confused. "Is there something wrong with that?"

"No," Hawkeye said. "I just didn't realize that he was her nephew."

"What do you mean?" Riza asked.

Hawkeye looked over at his daughter and ruffled her short hair, a somber expression on his face.

"If I remember correctly Madame Christmas's brother served as a state alchemist for some odd years." He said. "He and his wife died in some kind of accident a little while back. Madame Christmas took care of their child after their death." Hawkeye looked down at Riza who was staring at him wide eyed.

"All this time I never realized I was training the son of a state alchemist." He said, placing a hand under his chin. "Not a very happy past is it?" he asked Riza.

Riza nodded and gripped her father's hand tightly. He smiled at her and continued to pet the hair on her head. "The world isn't always a happy place, one day you're going to find that out for yourself. Until then promise me you'll do what you can to enjoy the life you've been given."

"Mm…" Riza responded. She'd known for a long time now the life could be cruel and unforgiving, and that there were many people who had suffered pain she could never fathom. But as she stood there imagining Roy's nervous stuttering, she realized for the first time how real the shattered and painful world was.