A/N: So life has been absolutely insane, but here's ch 19! I hope you all enjoy. I might get ch 20 up sometime this weekend.

Chapter Nineteen: Gameplan

The next two months passed without further incident. Berthold, as usual, rarely made an appearance outside his study; the few times he was seen, he either ignored the children or didn't notice them at all. Roy was pleased with this development, but he noticed the sharp change in Riza's mood. These moments always left her withdrawn. She never wanted to talk about what was wrong until things came to a head. Roy wasn't willing to wait that long. In his next letter home, he wrote how things had changed for the worse in the Hawkeye residence. He didn't say why. He did, however, ask when they could visit next. Roy waited, and waited, and waited for a response, but no letter came. Day after day, he walked to the post office, but by this point all he had to do was glance in the window and see the clerk shaking his head to know what the answer was to his unspoken question. It had been three weeks. The letter had plenty of time to be sent, delivered, and read. He kicked a loose rock with his foot as he trudged back up the hill, lost in his own frustration. He wanted to help her, but he just didn't know how.

Cigarette ashes fell into a ceramic bowl, flicked off by long, painted fingers. This was the third time she had read the letter this week, and she still wasn't sure what to make of it. Chris placed the cigarette back in her mouth to free up her hands, which folded the paper along the creases she had made. The creak of leather drew her from her thoughts, and she turned her attention to her newest guest. She harumphed and turned her back. Her hands found a bottle of whiskey and two glasses as she asked "What do you want, you old codger?"

"That's no way to treat your favorite customer," Grumman retorted as he took the bottle and opened the top. He filled Chris' glass before filling his own.

"You're a favorite because you spend the most money," Chris told him bluntly.

Grumman laughed rambunctiously as his eyes flicked to the piece of paper she still held between her fingers. "How is the boy?" he asked over the noise of clanking glasses and overzealous patrons.

Chris tucked the paper under the bar for safekeeping. "There's something he's not telling me. I knew to expect as much from a teenager, but this is bigger than sneaking out at night or causing trouble. He likes to think I'm ignorant." A cloud of grey smoke rose to join the haze in the air. "I know it has something to do with that man."

The old soldier took a large drink from his glass. He had a feeling that he was too sober for a conversation about his son-in-law. His eyes locked on to Chris', and she nodded. The piece of paper found its way into her hand once more, and she beckoned for him to follow. No one noticed them slip off, and Jessica silently took her place behind the bar. The room marked 'VIP' was scarcely used, and never by anyone else. Every week, Chris scoured the place down to the molding of the walls to make sure that the room stayed secure. This was, after all, where the real business was done. She passed the letter to her guest before settling on the chaise-lounge.

There wasn't much to be found on the page. The wording was that of a teenage boy: nondescript and lacking. Yet his worry managed to find its way through to the receiver. "What do you think?" Grumman inquired as he placed the letter on the wooden end-table.

"I think that you were right to tell me about him." Chris studied the end of her cigarette before taking another draw. Her next words mingled with the smoke. "I think the boy's starting to figure it out. I worry about her, too..."

"Damn it, if I could give the son of a bitch a piece of my mind, I'd-"

"I know," Chris cut off yet another telling of his elaborate revenge. After she was sure that her guest wasn't going to continue, she began "Roy wants to get both of them out of there, like you read. But look here, he didn't ask. I know my boy. If he wanted to visit, or take a vacation, he would have said so. But he doesn't give me any reason at all. It doesn't sound like he wants to quit. Read here, he's adamant that little Elizabeth comes with him. It's almost like he wants her to come more than he wants to visit himself."

Grumman gave the letter another reading, trying to draw as much out of the page as he possibly could. "Riza's pretty open about Berthold's neglectfulness; she thinks it's normal. Roy doesn't mind talking about it, either." He sighed, pained that both the children had come to accept it as a part of their lives. "Eva didn't want anything to do with me, but from what I could manage to gather, her husband didn't sound terrible in the beginning. Now, he's an arrogant jackass, and I don't think I'll ever forgive him for her death. But every time I check up on that town, nothing ever comes up about him. That house is so isolated..." He placed his hands on either side of his head.

This was a delicate subject for him, but Chris needed to be blunt. "Is this enough to bring them both here?" She looked at her companion for a long time, and he just looked at her in return. Breaking the silence, she added "If those children are suffering, he has no right to either of them."

"I know that. I just... I'm torn," the old man admitted, looking far more powerless than he was. "If we bring them home, they might resent us for the rest of their lives. Besides, you know as well as I do that this nation is unstable. There's been talk about sending me east. All because I didn't accept that sadistic offer... I can't bring Riza out there. There's a war brewing; everyone can feel it. The region's a time bomb."

"Roy-boy might murder someone if they're separated," Chris added in all seriousness.

The flicking of Chris' lighter was the only sound in the room. Her exhale disrupted the stillness of the air, her eyes fixed on the fog coating the ceiling. "We're sitting here debating whether leaving them with a neglectful man is better than bringing them somewhere their home would be safe but their environment wouldn't. What the hell has this place come to?"

"It's only going to get much, much worse. Most likely on both fronts."

"I envy the Ishvalans," Chris admitted, much to the surprise of her guest. "They have something to believe in, a higher power worth defending. But those two... Nothing kind would have made their lives this difficult."

Another silence passed. Grumman chose to break it, asking "So what are we going to do?"

"Bring them here. Not permanently, at least, not at first. I want them for an extended visit. We need to find out what's really going on in Giribaz before we make any major decisions."

"Deadbeat that he is, I'm sure Berthold will be more than willing to rid himself of them." Venom dripped from the soldier's words.

Chris rose from her chair. "I'll purchase the tickets first thing tomorrow morning."

"You're a good woman, Madam." Grumman smiled despite his discontent.

"Get the stars out of your eyes, you old coot."