Title: Annoyance
Characters: Roy and Riza
Genre: Romance/Friendship
Type: Cannon
Words: 1081 (without AN or Intro)
Annoyance
(noun) a person or thing that disturbs or bothers in a way that displeases, troubles, or slightly irritates
Roy was, despite his careless attitude, a very methodical man.
Every morning he woke at exactly five o'clock, a habit he had never broken since boot camp. By five thirty, he had taken a shower, and at six, he had eaten his usual breakfast of two eggs and three pieces of bacon. By the time the clock read seven thirty, his vehicle was already parked in the office parking lot, and he had clocked in.
His afternoon was little more relaxed compared to his morning. Usually he worked on paperwork until his lunch break, and afterwards he more or less focused on any current investigations. Of course, this put the office behind with paperwork, but he really didn't have the heart to care.
Riza, however, put an end to that after the entire office received a notice saying they were two months behind. She had threatened him that if he put them behind one more time, she was going to lock him in the office until he finished it. So, in order to not get his hide skinned, he began to do more paperwork but lagged behind just enough to annoy her.
In the evenings, he generally went to a bar. Most of the time, he picked up a woman, but occasionally, he remained alone and tried to drink away any bad memories that had resurfaced.
That day seemed to be no exception. His morning occurred in the same fashion as any other, and the afternoon appeared to be following the same path. Of course until those damn Elric brothers interfered.
Edward had refused to come into the office that day (something about how the cold and the snow made movement impossible with his mechanical arm), which had backed the office paperwork system to the roof. The mission Roy had for Edward not only had a clue about the philosopher's stone, but also provided vital intelligence (and although he would never admit it to him, Edward was his best intelligence gatherer), and without this mission Roy had no choice but to bring the office to a standstill.
In the afternoon, Roy was going to send a messenger to retrieve Edward kicking and screaming, but he abruptly called off the order when Winry walked into the office.
Roy, personally, had no problem with Winry. She was kind, honest and protective, all traits he admired, especially in a women. In a way, she reminded him of the way Riza would have acted had she not pursued a military career.
The girl politely informed him that Edward was deathly ill, and there was no way he was going to reach a functioning state until the end of the week. And when Roy had thought they were done, Winry had surprised him.
"Don't you dare uses this against him, but he can't focus during the winter. His mother always preferred the winter because it was in the summer her husband had abandoned her. In the winter, it was just her and her boys. That's why he usually asks for missions at the end of summer so he can spend time with his brother and reminisce on the good memories."
He was a lot of things, but blind was not something Roy ever claimed to be. It was obvious those boys had, to this point, lived a strenuous tragic life and as a result they were so much older than they should have been. Which is one of the reasons he liked to mercilessly tease the boy, besides the fact the boy was way too sensitive.
After thanking Winry and promising to wait a week, Roy decided to play catch up as much as he could. In careful consideration, he assembled a small team to confirm the intelligence he needed.
However by the end of the work day, this apparently wasn't enough according to his gorgeous, uptight lieutenant. Just when he was going to leave, Riza, in a matter-of-fact tone, informed him he would be staying to help with the remaining paperwork unless he wanted his custom white alchemy gloves to be ruined by Black Hayate.
Not wanting to risk having to buy a new pair of gloves, (those gloves were extremely expensive and he didn't think his funds would allow for another replacement) he stayed. It was not without its rewards. Riza, who knew about his evening ritual, had brought some wine and in silence they worked.
The clock read ten o'clock by the time they had finished, and both of them were past tipsy.
At some point, Riza had gotten irritated with her hair and let it down. It was prettier that way, Roy decided, as he inspected his drunken lieutenant's flushed face and glowing transparent amber irises.
"What was the occasion?" He asked, lifting his glass of nearly empty wine.
Soft, elegant fingers stole his attention as she lightly dragged her finger against her wine glass. "Today's my grandfather's birthday."
Roy had heard of the Hayate Hawkeye. He was one of the militaries most decorated officers in its history. It was said two years before he could retire, he left the military. Apparently in an ambush his son and his wife had been killed, orphaning his young granddaughter. He had raised the girl by himself and from Roy's understanding, the man was strict and old school, which had explained Riza's unbendable conservative views.
"It was very difficult for him to raise me by himself. He once told his friend that facing grenades or a gun was not nearly as scary as raising a child."
She paused, as if she forgotten how to breathe, before continuing, "He's also the one who gave me the nickname the queen. He said I was protective like the queen chess piece and that if I were to ever meet anyone to make sure he was worthy of being a king."
Roy liked seeing this side Riza. Normally, she was painfully guarded, and this sense vulnerability reminded him she was human. Although, truth be told, the rigid Riza was much sexier.
For once, he found annoyances in his schedule like the Elric brothers and paperwork to be enjoyable. For without them, he never would have learned about those around him.
"To a beautiful queen." He toasted.
"To a worthy king" She toasted back with a small rare smile which caused heated shivers down his spine.
Sometimes, annoyances were good things.