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Games without Frontiers

Chapter 44: Sunshine after the Rain

Rating T

Soundtrack: Because of You – 98 Degrees

She knew what to watch for, the various symptomatic things that would tell her that her long wait was finished. That interesting... pain in her back, that she actually felt all morning but ignored, was one of them. As soon as she entered the bedroom, it returned with a vengeance that made her pay for her ill attention.

After a few, long moments of nothing happening, she got up to change her clothes. She dug through her luggage, found a comfortable pair of pants and shirt, and put them on.

It hit her again, this time racing left to right across her lower back in time with the lightning that raced across the sky. She found her way back to the bed and sat down, amazed by the intensity and suddenness of the pain. When it subsided, she stood and looked at the door with no small amount of trepidation.

As she stepped back into the front room, she prayed she could make it to the couch without the pain hitting her again. Gratefully, she lowered herself into the couch, and only then called Roy's name.

"Hmm?" He answered without looking up.

"This lovely little town... I'm sure it has a doctor, right?"

"I'm sure it does... why?"

Riza stared at the back of his head, half wanting to laugh at his obtuseness, half wanting to crown him with the butt of her gun. "I certainly hope that doctor is within walking distance of this... lovely house."

Maes looked up, even as Roy grunted something non-committal. Certainly, he recognized the slight hesitation in her voice, because his eyes widened and he stood, scattering papers everywhere. Roy frowned and looked up at his friend, probably wondering what in hell was wrong with him.

Maes was staring at her as if she were growing several heads at one time and backed toward the door. Riza would have laughed at him, but another pain laced through her back and this time squeezing and pulling all of the muscles around her stomach. Maes actually twitched in response. Only then did Roy turn to her, questions in his gaze.

"What did you say about a doctor, Riza?" he asked.

Oh, yes, the butt of her gun would do. "I said that I certainly hope that this doctor is within walking distance of this lovely house."

"Why?"

Sometimes, Riza wondered just how the man managed to become a State Alchemist. Surely, the examination was more complicated than what she was trying to tell him. Perhaps if she drew an array and transmuted some sense into his head... "Why don't you go and find out if that doctor is within walking distance, Roy? We're going to need him or her soon."

"No, no, you stay here... I'll do it!" Maes exclaimed, and dashed right out the front door, grabbing his overcoat in the process.

With the slamming of the door, realization hit Roy. His eyes grew as wide as saucers and those capable, talented hands began to tremble.

Riza did laugh this time.

]o[

She was laughing. Roy wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. Her laughter like this, free and unfettered, was a rare thing to see. But, he really didn't have time to think on that. Because, if he'd heard right, the baby was finally on the way.

Maes was a flat leaver. A stone cold flat leaver, who had run straight out into the stormy night as if his ass was on fire. Roy had to remember to thank his friend the next time he saw him. By maybe setting his ass on fire. With a boot to the ass. Unless, of course, he'd really gone to find a doctor, or someone qualified to help deliver this baby. Despite all of his impeccable training, military and alchemical, delivering a baby was nowhere near the top of his list.

"Roy."

He jumped at the sound, and then composed himself. As much as he would like to, he couldn't sit there in the middle of the floor and babble to himself about inconsequential things. Strength, that's what she needed right now. She needed him to be strong and even-tempered, in full command of the situation at hand.

"Roy."

He looked over at Riza. She looked so calm sitting there, hands folded over her stomach. Over their baby. So serene. It was hard to believe that she was about to bring another life into the world. A life that he helped to make. She was about to do something that no man could ever do. It was a miracle, that's what it was, a miracle.

"Roy."

"What?" Riza gave him a look and he felt immediately contrite for his sharp answer. He picked himself up off the floor and went to her, sat on the couch beside her and took her hand. "I'm sorry, Riza," he said in a much calmer voice. "What is it?"

Riza's eyebrow arched. She looked down at her hand. He followed and realized he was patting her hand in a manner that was probably annoying the hell out of her. He put her hand down.

"Is Maes really going to find a doctor?" she asked calmly, and then gave a little wince that made him want to run screaming from the room.

"Well..." Roy thought about it for a moment. It would certainly be interesting if Maes did find a doctor and bring that doctor back here. Hopefully, his friend would think about that while he was running around the streets. "I...well, about that–,"

"Don't tell me that you brought me to a town in the middle of nowhere–due any day–and don't know where a doctor is. Or if a doctor is even in the town."

Roy flushed. "That's not exactly the problem–,"

"Well, it's a good thing that we have some time for you to explain that."

He cleared his throat. "Um...well..." He really hadn't meant to tell her all of this in these circumstances, but she was sitting there, expecting an explanation, and there was no way he would do anything to thwart this woman right now. However, he could make the telling easier for her. He jumped up. "Do you need to lay down? I mean, I don't know anything about–,"

"No."

He blinked at the strength of that denial and looked closer at her. She was pale. And perhaps her hands weren't just laying calm in her lap. It actually looked as if her nails were digging into her palms. And she was sitting very still and straight. He frowned. "Are you sure, Riza? I mean, I know women usually need to be laying down for this kind of thing–,"

"I said no. I don't want to be in a bed right now," she told him. "I've got quite some time to go before... just, no."

Roy didn't believe her. Never had she actually told him a lie in her entire time with him, but he knew that she wasn't exactly telling the truth right then. She was in pain. He recognized the look, and she had to know he would recognize it. "Riza..."

She stood suddenly, quicker than he'd expected her to stand. "You know what?" She said sharply. "You decide how you're going to explain where the hell we are while I take a look around." And she turned toward the back of the house, heading towards the bedrooms, lined up so nicely back there.

Roy was at a loss. He looked around, hoping that something would jump out of the walls to tell him what to do. He bent down and picked up the papers, and laid them neatly on the couch. Dammit, he was a Colonel of the Amestris Armed Forces. He'd coordinated maneuvers for just about every occasion. He was a strategist par excellence. Why couldn't he work his mind around this situation?

One thing was in the front of his mind. He had to tell her. But this was neither the time nor the place to do so. However, if he didn't tell her now, and waited until after, she would think he was manipulating her, setting her up so that she wouldn't be able to do anything about his decision.

"Roy Mustang. Come here. Right now."

He closed his eyes, remembering what was in one of those rooms. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. Maybe she wouldn't kill him if he used that as an introduction to the rest of the tale.

]o[

Maes headed straight back to his house. He made no detours, no stops to find a doctor, nothing. He couldn't. One look out of his back window told him that he was being followed, and it would be the better part of intelligent if he just went home and figured out what to do from there.

He pulled the wet overcoat tighter around him as he raced into his home, hoping the weather would finally chase this person tailing him to drier ground. Gracia was standing in the front room, staring at him in mild surprise.

"I thought you were staying at the house for a while–,"

"It's Riza," he told her by way of greeting. "She's–,"

"I thought so." Gracia said, turning toward the large basket laying on the couch. "As soon as I saw the headlights, I knew something was wrong. " What did she look like when you left her?"

"Like she was in pain and wanted to knock the hell out of Roy for not noticing."

Gracia shook her head. "Let me finish with this basket and we can go."

Maes blinked at his wife. "What do you mean go? Go where?"

"Well, you can't very well go and get Doctor Winters, now can you?" Gracia said it with that no-nonsense voice. "And if you get any other doctors, someone is bound to figure out something is going on in that house up on the hill." She stopped for a moment and gave Maes a look. "Did he tell her yet?"

Maes shook his head. "He didn't have the time. She–it started right after I got there."

"He'd better tell her soon. She won't like to hear these plans after she's stuck in a bed, recovering and not able to do anything about it."

"She can't do anything about it now."

"Yes, but at least now she'll feel more in control of the situation. Don't you men ever think?"

"It's for her own good." Maes went to his wife and put his hands on her shoulders, turned her so that she was looking up at him. "And for yours."

She shrugged him off. "I know it's best that I don't know everything," she muttered, folding white linens and placing them into the basket. "But I haven't been protecting the back of our future Fuhrer for the past six or seven years. You understand that's been her entire life?"

Maes nodded, and then looked upstairs. "Elysia–,"

"My mother has her. Remember? You mentioned that you wanted me to have Mother take her for the weekend?"

"Oh. Yeah." Maes flushed, remembering his plans for his wife for the weekend. Well, that might not be possible now.

Gracia chuckled. "Don't worry, dear. We can take care of... that... when all of this is over." She leaned up and put a soft kiss on his cheek. "I'll be waiting."

Now he was flushing for an entirely different reason.

She grinned and patted his arm. "Help me with this and tell me what the house looks like. I can't imagine what she's going to say when she finds out..."

]o[

Roy walked up behind her, looking around the room for the first time himself. It was furnished just as he'd requested. A soft rug lay on the floor, so that she could sit there and play with the baby. Just next to the window saw the beautifully-crafted rocking chair he'd paid a fortune for, the amount of which was second only to the centerpiece of the room, the thing Riza was currently staring at it all in shock.

He put his hands around her waist and pulled her back against him, part to whisper in her ear, and part to keep her as immobile as possible, so she wouldn't clout him in the head for what he was about to tell her. "Do you like it?" he said.

He felt her tense, and felt her put her hands on his. Beneath his fingers, he felt her belly suddenly harden, as if all the muscles had clenched at once. He gasped, wondering how she was still standing after that.

"What... what have you done, Roy?" she asked, amazement lacing her voice. "Tell me now."

He sighed, and leaned his chin on her shoulder. "Well, ever since you told me about the baby, I've been thinking that neither your house nor mine is a good place to raise a child." He felt her tense again, and waited, feeling for that same sensation under his fingers. As it wasn't there, he assumed that the reaction was still shock.

"Wait," she said, turning slightly in his arms. "Are you telling me that you... had this house built? Without me knowing? How?"

Roy smirked and moved away from her, further into the room. "I don't know. And, yes, I had the house built."

"But... but... I don't understand," Riza was shaking her head and staring at him. "How could you do this without anyone knowing? And why would you build a house here, in the middle of nowhere?" She narrowed her eyes. "This isn't particularly practical or smart, Roy."

He looked down and shuffled his feet, rubbed at the back of his head. "Well. About that. Um. We're not exactly in the middle of nowhere."

She blinked. "What?" She actually managed to put her hands on her hips in a more familiar pose.

"Um. Yeah. Well." He winced. "We're actually not where I told you we were." He held up a hand. "I mean, yes, we're in a town called Geisa. But... Geisa is not east of home base. Well, it is but…" He looked back down at his feet and mumbled, "It's more like an hour east of Central."

There was silence that caused a chill to trip down his back. He looked up at the amazed look on her face. He gave her a weak smile.

"East of Central?" She exclaimed and gave that wince again that told her she was feeling another pain. Roy didn't like that. He wanted her to lay down. "Why did you lie about where we were going?"

"I didn't lie!" Roy exclaimed, mildly insulted. "I told you we were going to Geisa." Riza pursed her lips. Okay, so she didn't buy that. "Okay, so I didn't tell you everything. But there's a good reason."

"And that is?"

Roy sighed. "Maybe you might want to..." he almost said lay down, but changed at the last minute, "get comfortable." He reached out and took her hand. "Come."

"I told you I don't want to be stuck in bed yet," she said sharply. "And, Roy, you'd better explain–,"

"I will if you come with me." He quickly moved to the linen closet, hoping it was stocked as he'd requested. Yes, it had. He yanked out a few quilts and reached up in the top shelf for the extra pillows. "Come on. I promise I won't put you in a bed."

She followed him, dubious, as he moved back into the front room. Spreading the quilts and pillows on the floor, he made a nice, comfortable nest. Looking around, hoping she didn't think him completely insane, he moved to his overcoat and yanked out a glove. He smiled at her confusion as he moved to the fireplace. With a snap and flick, he had a fire crackling warmly. He arranged the grate, then turned and held out his other hand to her. "Come on."

She looked suspiciously at the nest he'd made. "I don't think I'll be able to get up off the floor if I go there," she told him.

"Don't worry. I've got you. Come on."

She took his hand, and let him help her into the pile of quilts and pillows. He wrapped himself around her as best as he could, satisfied. There. Now he could tell her and hold her immobile at the same time, and perhaps get the whole thing out before she killed him and made the whole thing completely moot.

"Now," she said, squirming a bit. "Tell me. Straight. No more games, Roy. Right now, damn it."

"Fine." He played with a loose thread. "After all this time, it's actually hard to say the words."

"Just say it. Does it have to do with this house? And why it's where it is? Because I can't think of a good reason that you would build a house so far away from Eastern unless you had a good reason."

He wrapped his arms around her as far as they would go. "I'm going to... do it."

"Do it? Do what? Roy, please, I don't have much time to play word games with you–,"

"I'm making my move. Now."

Riza became utterly still in his arms.

"Maes and I have been poking around these past few months... and... there's no other way to stop whatever these people are planning," he continued. "I have to make my move. Now, or not at all."

"But–,"

"And I had this house put here because I want..." he swallowed, knowing that this was the thing he'd been most dreading to say. " I want to make sure you two are safe. You and the baby."

"Roy, I–,"

"No, let me finish. There are plans going on in the higher parts of government. We can't put our fingers on everything, but I can tell you that it's not good. And it is connected to these... creatures that Edward keeps meeting. Maes knows more than me, but he won't tell me everything." He shrugged. "I guess it's to keep me safe. Keep my goal pure, so to speak." He felt that telltale tightening of Riza's muscles again. "Are you sure you're–,"

"Tell me the rest or I'll kill you right here and have this baby without you."

"Winter and Archer... and perhaps Bradley... they're plotting to do something with our child. With or without our consent. I can't let that happen. I have to move now."

"Let me... make sure I've got you right. You're going to make your play. Now?"

"Within the next month. Well, maybe longer now."

"And you put me up in this house for what reason?"

He stared at the back of her head. "Riza. You can't... you can't possibly think that you... I need to keep you safe."

"I'm supposed to be at your back, Mustang," she said around a gasp that she couldn't quite hide from him.

Roy looked up at the ceiling, hoping that help would come soon. He didn't like what he was feeling beneath his fingers, and he didn't like the way Riza was trying to conceal her obvious pain.

He had another vision of how this was supposed to go, and this was not the vision. Not at all. He hoped this wasn't an omen for the next few weeks.