I sincerely apologize for the long wait for this chapter! It's been so busy with the holidays and such that I didn't have time (or the motivation) to write this next one. Hope you enjoy and please write a review! I seriously enjoy getting reviews.

Also I want to thank my friend for editing these before I post them. They've helped me out on the last couple chapters and I haven't credited them yet. Thank you!

Tobias knew he was nearing the shooting range because of the various gun shots he heard as he approached. He walked through the gate and saw many people using the guns. As he observed the people, who were mostly lower ranking officers, he eventually found the woman he was looking for. She was barking orders at one of the men lying on the ground as he shot at a target.

He accosted the older, blonde haired woman and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and realized who he was. "Oh, Colonel Mustang," she said with a quick salute. "What brings you here?"

He returned the salute. "Call me Tobias, please. This isn't anything formal, Riza."
"Alright," she replied turning her eyes back to the officers. "What do you want?"

"I need to ask you some things about you-know-what," he replied leaning against the wall beside him.

"Later," she told him. "I'm a bit busy now. Private Jenkins! Don't point the gun at other people unless they're your enemy!" Riza sighed heavily. "I swear I'm working with a bunch of idiots that have never seen guns before."

Tobias chuckled. "Then I guess it's a date. You and me I mean. Tonight at seven?"

Riza glanced at him and sighed. "Fine. Where? The Plaza?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you there then," he turned to walk away, but Riza stopped him.

"I feel like your father just asked me out on a date instead of his son," she said without looking him in the eyes. "Don't take that the wrong way, but you just look so much like him. Except your eyes. You have your mother's eyes." Riza looked at him softly and warmly.

Tobias smiled. "I get that a lot. However, I am not my father. As you said, I am his son. See you tonight, Miss Hawkeye."

Later that evening, Riza showed up in the main plaza of Central wearing a simple light blue dress that fell down past her knees. It was a warm evening, but she wore a darker blue shawl to cover her shoulders anyway. She assumed she was early (or that Tobias was just late) because she did not find the man right away. She spotted him as he walked towards her. He was wearing a simple dress shirt with dress pants.

"I feel underdressed," Tobias said with a chuckle. "You look nice."

"Thank you," Riza replied. "So you have questions you want to ask?"

"Yes," Tobias replied, "but first. Dinner."

They entered a café, sat at a far table, and after looking at the menu for some time, they ordered their meals. The waitress took their menus and walked away. Riza looked around them before speaking.

"Since I know you're going to ask about your parents and the Fuhrer, I'll let you ask what you want to know," Riza said setting her silverware neatly beside her.

"I'll start with the obvious question," Tobias replied. "Why? Why did he want to kill off my parents?"

"I'll let you in on something that very few, if any, know about. The Fuhrer, is not who he says he is," Riza said leaning forward. "Don't worry, I will answer your question, but you must know this first. Kalmin is not his real name. His real name is Solf J. Kimblee. He was also known as the Crimson Alchemist. He used to be a soldier and state alchemist. He served in the Ishvalen war with your father and I."

"Wait, so why did he change his name? What did this Kimblee guy have against dad?" Tobias asked, now very intrigued.

"I'm getting to that," Riza said irritably. She sighed. "Kimblee was eaten by a homunculus named Pride. You know what a homunculus is, don't you?"

Tobias nodded. "Dad told me about them a few times. Didn't like talking about them much."

"We thought he was gone for good," Riza continued. "Kimblee, I mean. However, Kimblee's soul somehow managed to escape shortly after Pride was defeated. My best guess is that it went into the body of a random soldier lying in the streets."

Tobias' mind whirled at this new information. "How do you know this? Who told you?"

"Through grapevines," Riza replied. "And when your father was running for office, he found out as well, but instead of exposing the war criminal, he kept it a secret."

Tobias rubbed his chin. "That doesn't make sense. If Kimblee was an enemy, why didn't he reveal who Kalmin really was? It would have been an automatic win for him to become Fuhrer."

They paused their conversation as the waitress brought their food. "Will that be all?" the perky blonde waitress asked.

"Yes, thanks," Tobias replied already digging into his steak and potatoes.

"It sure is nice seein' sons takin' their mothers out for supper," the waitress commented with a smile.

Tobias and Riza looked up at her in surprise. "I'm not his mother," Riza defied.

"She's not my mother," Tobias echoed.

The waitress blushed darkly. "Oh! I am so sorry! That's mah fault! I didn't mean ta get into yer business!" She looked down at the floor as she walked away, her pony tail swinging from side to side. "Shouldn't be assumin' things that are wrong," she muttered to herself.

Riza and Tobias watched her leave and then stared back at each other. "Well that was awkward," Tobias said stating the obvious.

"We don't even look alike," Riza commented. "Anyway, what was I saying?"

"I asked you why dad didn't reveal Kalmin as Kimblee."

"Ah, yes, I remember now," she replied with a nod. She bit into her sandwich while she thought. "I believe Roy mentioned something along the lines of it not being fair. He believed that Kimblee had changed since getting this new body from the other soldier. Plus, it would be hard to prove who he really was. How can you prove someone's soul entered another body?"

Tobias chewed his meat while considering her reply. "You know what happened with the Elric brothers though," he said at last. "Didn't Alphonse Elric's armored body begin to reject his soul? That would happen with Kimblee though wouldn't it?"

"It's possible." Riza's voice trailed off. "It's been thirty-some years since then. I assume it would do the same thing eventually."

"This brings up something deeper than I thought it was," Tobias said finishing his potatoes. "But there still lingers the question as to why my parents were killed."

"Oh, yes, sorry," Riza replied wiping her mouth with a napkin. "One theory is that Kimblee hated your father, for obvious reasons, and when he acquired his new body, he found he couldn't do alchemy anymore."

"Jealousy," Tobias said. "That's one theory yes, but it's kind of childish, don't you think?"

Riza nodded. "Childish, yes. Then another theory is Kimblee just wanted to be better than Roy. Maybe to show that he could fulfill Roy's dream while laughing in his face."

"And to add insult to injury, he killed them," Tobias added.

She nodded again. "That's all I know," she stated as she wiped her hands after finishing her sandwich. The waitress brought the bill and took away the plates without saying anything or looking at either Riza or Tobias. Riza looked up at Tobias. "You're paying tonight, I'm guessing?"

"Yeah," he replied getting out his wallet. "I think I'll stick around for a bit longer though. I have another date coming," he said with a smile.

Riza wiped her mouth on the napkin. "Oh, cheating on me already?" she asked with a smirk. "That's not a good thing on a first date."

"Who said we were dating, 'Mother?'" Tobias retorted with a grin.

Riza chuckled. "Fair enough. Have a good night, Colonel," she said standing and putting on her coat.

"You too," he called to her back as she exited the restaurant.

Several minutes passed when Tobias heard the door of the restaurant open and close. He heard as the light foot steps walked towards his table. "Did I arrive in time?" a voice asked. It was Rachel. She sat across from him and removed her coat revealing a stunning light green dress that flattered her figure and features.

"I suppose you did," he replied. "Riza just left."

"Oh, darnit," she muttered. "I was hoping to say hello to her. I got caught up at work and lost track of time. You said eight right?"

"Yeah," he told her. "Riza couldn't stay long. I'll tell you what she told me though." It took a long time, in which another waitress had taken Rachel's order and had brought her food, by the time Tobias finished. "What do you think?" he asked.

Rachel rubbed her chin. "I think it sounds reasonable," she replied. "I mean especially since what happened with the Elrics is almost like what happened with this Kimblee guy. If what Riza told you is true, then his body will eventually start to reject his soul."

"Exactly," Tobias replied.

Rachel gave him an odd look. "Aren't you going to eat anything?" she asked.

He shook his head. "No, I already ate before you arrived."

She nodded. "Uh-huh." She wiped her mouth. "I, um, want to apologize for earlier."

"Apologize?" he asked. He chuckled. "Whatever for?"

"That kiss," she replied blushing. "I shouldn't have kissed you back."

"Oh, that," he said also turning red in the face. "No, don't apologize. I was the one you kissed you first."

"I don't want this to be awkward between us," Rachel blurted.

"No, of course not. Come on, we're adults now," Tobias said with a small laugh. "Why act like primary school kids?"

Rachel blushed an even darker red that matched her hair. "I was wondering if you'd like to go on a real date sometime. Not just to tell me information."

"A real date? I think I could do that," he told her.

"Tobias Mustang!" Rachel cried.

He looked at her confused. "What?"

"I'm sorry," she said looking down at her lap. "I should go," she said grabbing her purse and coat. "I shouldn't have said anything." She quickly stood and walked out the door.

"Hey! Wait, Rachel!" Quickly, Tobias set the money on the table to pay for the meal and chased after her. "Rachel!"

"I'm sorry, Tobias," Rachel said when he caught up to her.

"Stop apologizing," Tobias told her. "I'm confused as to why you're apologizing. You did nothing wrong. It was just a kiss. And what's so wrong about wanting to go on a date? The fraternization laws were disbanded years ago."

Rachel looked at him painfully. "I haven't told you anything yet. You will probably find out anyway so I'm just going to tell you."

Tobias was worried now. "What is it?"

She took a deep breath. "Tobias, I've been ordered to go work in the Fuhrer's office. I won't be under your team anymore."

"What? No way! Why would he do that?" Tobias asked.

"It's just like what happened with Riza and your father," she said quietly. "Tobias, I'm worried for your safety. I think something bad is going to happen."

He pulled her into a tight hug. "Don't worry," he said softly. "We'll figure this out. Whatever happens, we can get through this. Who knows, he may end up telling you something important."

She shook her head. "No, you don't understand."

He held her out at arms length. "What do you mean? Now what is it?"

"I'm leaving the military."

And that'll be the last of this chapter. It's pretty long and that'll make up for taking over a month for updating. What do you think? I'll keep you in suspense to what's going to happen to Rachel now.

Did anyone catch that Tobias told Riza and Rachel different times to come to the restaurant? Put that in there on purpose. ;)

Hope you enjoyed and please review!