Hewwo. It's chapter three of the fanfic Bittersweet, and we're kind of totally in love with it. We love reviews! And favorites! And alerts! -sings- "I wanna be a billionaire, so frickin' bad." We want a billioooon reviews. ;) Okay, maybe not that many. But, if you could...
And we missed you chocolvr69! You're our faithful fan through and through, and you have no idea how pleased that makes us. :)
Disclaimer: We don't own Fullmetal Alchemist, because if we did, Lex would know whether or not Ed could swim. :( ...Does anyone know?
After about half an hour of practicing, Liz stopped to stare at Roy. "Miss A, how am I supposed to play when your boyfriend is staring at you like that? He's ruining my chi!" It was true that the colonel was staring at Alice. It just floored him that such a quiet, timid woman could teach someone to play that difficult-looking instrument. He also couldn't understand why Alice looked so happy whenever Liz played a piece well.
"Liz. He isn't staring. You're being ridiculous. If you say one more word about it, you will be leaving my house, and the lesson will end." This threat wouldn't have worked on many of Alice's students, but Liz genuinely enjoyed her lessons. To even mention taking it away instantly shocked her into submission. Liz became the ultimately obedient student.
The next half-hour, as Alice had planned, passed without a hitch. Roy ate his sandwich, although her heart sank every time he moved in fear of him touching her stove. Liz, never one to be ignored, made certain to give Roy another up-and-down before turning to Alice and saying, "Yes, Miss A. I approve."
Before Alice could respond to this, Liz was already out the door and running through the rain. Alice smiled slightly and shook her head as she closed the door. She turned to find none other than Roy Mustang standing directly behind her. "What a strange girl," he said with his signature smirk.
"That may be," Alice replied, "but she's also one of my best students. Not to mention that she's always good for a laugh. Oh, how was your sandwich?"
"It was quite good," Roy answered politely. "I can't remember the last time I had a sandwich." The woman's cheeks turned a light pink.
"Well, uh, there's still half an hour before my next student comes. The rain doesn't seem to be letting up any..."
"What do you suggest we do in the meantime?" Roy crossed his arms and casually leaned against the door frame. Alice stood for a few moments and marveled at how cool the colonel always managed to look. It was a skill that she most definitely lacked.
Alice looked down at her feet; the girl was far from skilled socially. "I, um, apologize. I'm not very good at entertaining people. I never have been." She looked longingly towards the wall that separated Ivy's apartment from her own, really wishing that Ivy would come over for once in her life.
"We could just sit and talk, if you were comfortable with that." Roy gestured to her furniture, and she quickly took a seat, thankful for something to do other than twiddling her thumbs.
"So... the military," Alice began lamely. "What exactly does your job entail?" It was a dumb question, and even she knew it. At the very least she was trying. That alone should have made Ivy very proud of her neighbor.
"I boss around the underlings," Roy chuckled before moving on. "Havoc is one of my select team, and there are four others who constitute it. They're a merry band of idiots, but they always manage to pull together for me in the end."
"Well, they sound interesting," Alice said with a small smile. She always wondered what it would be like to work alongside other people.
"Just wait until you meet them."
"Wh-What?"
"Well, I figured that the team would want to meet Havoc's darling younger sister," Roy replied with a wink. "And meet my 'girlfriend'." He couldn't help but laugh at Alice's face. It was a look of red-hot shock. "I was kidding. You take things way too seriously." She breathed a sigh of relief. She was afraid that Roy had been completely serious. "Although Havoc has been bragging around the office about his hot new-found sister, so I suspect that he'll eventually drag you to meet the team one day..."
Alice sighed. She wasn't used to meeting this many new people. She found the very idea of it exhausting. "Great..." Roy smirked slightly at her lack of enthusiasm. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Alice jumped at the sound. "That must be Benji," she said standing up and walking to the door.
At the door stood a boy of seventeen. He was black-haired and tall with light brown eyes. "Hello, Benji. Shall we begin?" Alice stepped aside from the door so the boy could walk in.
"Whoa, Miss A. Were you aware that there's a man in your house?"
Alice sighed and put her hand on her forehead. "Yes, Benji, I am quite aware. Though thank you for your concern."
"I'm Colonel Roy Mustang," Roy said as he stood and shook the boy's hand.
"Benji Jeck. Colonel, huh? My dad was in the military too."
"Hmm... Jeck... Can't say that I know him. Is he still active?" Roy stroked his chin in thought.
"No, he isn't. He died in the war in Ishbal. He died from some sort of accident. The military wouldn't tell us anything other than that," Benji answered quietly. Roy turned solemn all of a sudden. Benji sat down at the piano and Alice started the lesson. She was surprised to see Benji open up to someone he had just met. It took her several sessions for him to say much of anything to her at first. She supposed that maybe Mustang somehow reminded him of his deceased father, but Alice wasn't about to ask. It seemed to be a tender subject, not only for Benji, but also for Roy.
Benji played heartwrenchingly well that day, and it was all Alice could do to not hug him on the spot. She couldn't keep the stupid grin off her face however,
"That was... phenomenal! There isn't an adjective to describe how beautiful that was, Benji. Your legato was so fluid, there wasn't a gap anywhere... oh, it makes me want to scream with joy." Alice was radiant with happiness, gaining more joy from her students' efforts than from anything else. When Benji gave her a quick smile before turning back to the piano, she was content.
"I know you don't enjoy it like many do..." Alice whispered, "but you're fantastic Benji. You're really, really good. You've got a lot more talent than I, and I hope you're able to put it to use." Benji stared at the wall intently, seeming to ignore Alice. The pianist sighed, and said, "Well, since you've played so wonderfully today, I suppose I'll let you go early. Just tell your mother; she might dock my pay."
Alice ended with a slight giggle, although it seemed as though Benji hadn't been listening. He stood up abruptly, approaching Roy where he had been sitting on the couch.
"You were in Ishbal too, yeah?" Roy nodded silently at the boy's words. "If you ever… if you ever hear anything about my dad, tell Miss A so I can figure out what happened to him. It kills me every day when I see my mom cry over something that I can't even begin to fix."
Roy met Benji's eyes steadily, his own dark with hidden pain. "I'll do what I can, kid, but… don't expect much. The State's tight with what happened at Ishbal."
Benji made his way for the door, stopping before stepping out into the torrential downpour. "I used to think that I wanted to be in the military too, just like Dad. After all they've put my mother through, I've changed my mind."
"I understand. The military isn't for everyone. Stick to the piano, kid. It's your chance to make people happy. That's one thing that the military has never been able to accomplish." Benji nodded and ran home. Roy looked down, suddenly interested in the floorboards.
Alice stepped closer to the man. "Are you okay, Colonel?" she asked timidly.
Roy sighed before looking into Alice's green eyes. "I'm fine. And you can call me Roy, you know."
"Oh, um, yes. Sorry."
"If your students play that well, I can only imagine what your playing sounds like," Roy said with a faded smile after a slightly awkward silence. "Would you play something for me, Alice?" Alice smiled, turning slightly pink as she went over to the piano and sat down.
"What kind of piece would you like to hear?"
"Anything."
Alice shuffled through her music. She smiled slightly when she came to a certain piece. She straightened up and began to play. The beginning was quiet and playful. Roy closed his eyes, and the melody carried him away. His childhood; back when everyone was blissfully unaware of the evils of the world. The music grew more triumphant and a bit louder. Reckless adolescence; becoming a State Alchemist and how proud he was; and how young. The music became louder and more steady. Even stomping of soldier boots on Ishbal's dusty ground haunted the air. The music grew intense suddenly, like there was a battle raging. And suddenly there was a twinge of sadness in the notes as the battle raged on. Roy tensed up suddenly at a bad memory before the piano grew soft and full of regret. Gradually, the notes sweetened and the tempo relaxed. The last chord was... bittersweet was the only adjective to be thought of.
Alice stood up and walked slowly over to Roy. His eyes were still closed and his body tensed. "Um, Roy? Are you sure you're okay?" she asked quietly.
He looked up, a bit startled at her voice. "Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. That was really quite beautiful." Alice blushed. "I think the rain's letting up," he said nodding at the window. "I think it's about time that I leave."
"It's been lovely, Alice. I'd be delighted if you'd let me come back again sometime." He didn't look at the pianist, and she wouldn't have made eye contact anyway. He took a few steps towards the door before Alice spoke, so softly that it could've been mistaken for silence.
"Um... I think I'd like to see you again. Maybe even meet your team someday, if they'll have me." She shuffled her feet, waiting for the cruel cut-down, but all Roy did was look back, smile, tip his hat, and step out the door without another glance.
At the last moment, however, Roy looked back to the shy woman, and said, "Well... I suppose I'll see you tomorrow, Alice Ackerman." All Alice could manage was a small wave, and a slight but heartfelt smile.
Quick last note: What do people in the FMA fandom have against OCs? We were just wondering. We noticed there aren't many OC fics here...