047. In the dead of the night

Riza Hawkeye was used to being on her own, despite the others occupying the large old house, so it wasn't completely unreasonable for her to feel like a complete idiot as she stood outside the bedroom door of her father's apprentice, chewing on her lower lip nervously. Outside it was raining and every now and then there would be the flash of lightening and boom of thunder. When she was younger, much younger, her father allowed her to crawl into bed with him. As she got older, and he become more obsessed with alchemy, her father found new ways to explain to her how to cope with her fears of the storms. Not all his methods were full proof. She cringed as another flash of lightening lit the dark hallway, soon followed by the crash of thunder she mentally braced herself for. Indeed, she felt like an idiot standing outside the door of her father's apprentice.

With hesitation, she raised her hand and gave a gentle knock on the door. She waited a moment, hoping for a quick response before knocking again, a bit louder while hoping her father wouldn't respond to the noise instead. She had taken into consideration that the young man on the other side of the door probably slept like the dead but that didn't stop the annoyance that had built up inside. Irritation had flooded over her, removing all fear of the storm outside as she reached up to pound on the door once more.

"Riza-chan?" Spinning, she let out a sigh of relief as her wide amber eyes fell on Roy Mustang. He cocked his head to the side and looked at her with tired eyes. "What're you doing?" Allowing her body to relax, the female frowned at him.

"I should be asking you the same!" she snapped quietly, placing her hands on her hips and looking up at the older teenager expectantly. "I was expecting you in bed by now." Roy had stared at her with sleepy eyes before he rolled them at her.

"You're one to talk, don't you think Miss Hawkeye? A lady shouldn't be looking for male company at such hours." Thankful that the darkness could hide any blush that threatened to cross her cheeks, Riza scowled, trying to ignore the smirk crossing the handsome male's face.

"I wasn't looking for you!"

"Then why're you outside my room?" An eyebrow raised, he had her stumped and a good lie was hard to come by with the loud crack of thunder that sounded. Riza cringed once again and Roy noticed. "Afraid of storms?"

"No!"

"But you just…"

"I just want someone to talk to!" she stated boldly and scowled down at her feet. She felt like an idiot more and more with each passing moment. "I can't sleep." At this, a modest smile crossed Roy's face and he walked past her, opening the room door.

"Sure, I'll keep you company." Snapping her head up, Riza watched as the dark haired male walked into his room before swiftly shuffling after him, closing the door lightly behind her. Turning, she took into account his room wasn't as messy as she had expected. Yes, there were random articles of clothing hanging off of random pieces of furniture and sketches scattered across his desk, but the room was otherwise liveable. "So, are you going to stand by the door the whole time or sit down?" Roy was now sitting on his bed, patting the spot next to him. Riza crossed her arms over her chest and looked away.

"I don't want you to get the wrong idea…" she stated swiftly.

"And what idea would that be? You're afraid of storms."

"I am not!"She hissed, only to stiffen at the crash of thunder and swiftly make her way to his side. She ignored the knowing look her father's apprentice was now giving her as she pulled her knees up to her chest and huffed.

"Its alright to be afraid. You're only human." Roy informed with a teasing smile. Shaking her head, Riza wrinkled her nose in disapproval.

"No it's not ok. I'm not a little kid." She grumbled.

"You're twelve years old, not a grown up. I was afraid of storms all the way up until I was nine. Then one night my foster mom left for some business and the only person that could keep me company was one of my sisters… She told me some twisted theory on lightning and thunder that only a little kid could have believed and ever since then I haven't been afraid." He explained as he leaned back against his head board. Riza looked at him curiously before shifting her positioning and sitting next to him, though still hugging to her legs. Her father wasn't exactly the best at being comforting when it came to fear. He had told her once that lightening and thunder were a natural phenomunum that worked hand in hand and were nothing to fear. He then began spewing out some scientific nonsense that left her unconvinced and still wary.

"So, what did your sister tell you?" She asked quietly. Glancing at Roy, she noticed a thoughtful look cross his features.

"Well, she told me that there is no peace without chaos. She said when a large storm hits, its because someone up in the heavens has been infuriated to the point of a rampage. You know, like if they had something precious taken away. The thunder we hear is the rampaging and the lightening we see is something being broken. When rain accompanies it, that's the tears being shed during the fight." Riza looked at Roy in outrage. How could anyone tell such a story? From what she was told, Heaven was a peaceful place, not a war zone. "After a storm, she says, there can usually be a rainbow seen, and since rainbows represent a promise, when it is seen that means that those in the heavens who have been fighting promise to never fight again."

"Your sister is strange." Riza muttered quietly and Roy let out a laugh.

"A little, but the story was so absurd I could never get it out of my head and every time a storm passes that's all I can think of. I think up a new fight every time." He looked at Riza and a grin crossed his face. "Wanna know what tonight's fight was?"

"I suppose…"

"Right! So a woman asked her husband to go out and buy her ice cream but he took too long to come back, that's why it was slowly getting dark before the storm came," Riza raised an eyebrow at the fourteen year old she was sitting next to her. "When he finally comes back, she greets him with yelling, as to be expected, but he tells her its ok he didn't forget about her!"

"So why is the storm still going?" Riza asked skeptically. Roy looked at her with an expectant expression.

"Because, he forgot her ice cream!" He answered as if it were the most obvious answer. "Instead he brought her back yogurt." He answered with a knowing air. "That's why the storm is getting louder. I mean, who wants yogurt when there's ice cream to be eaten?" he asked, flashing a playful smile. Staring at him in confusion, Riza began laughing into her legs.

"You're so weird." She informed between giggles. Smiling sheepishly, the future alchemist laughed.

"Ok, the story might be a little outrageous, but you can't say it doesn't make the storm less threatening." Giving it some thought, Riza nodded.

"I suppose." The rest of the night, Roy entertained his new late night companion with various stories he had come up with over the years for different storms until she had fallen asleep against his shoulder.