[FMA Big Bang Fic] Chasing the Desert (5/9)
Title: Chasing the Desert
Author: bay115
Genre: Drama/Romance
Rating: R
Word Count: ~40,000
Pairing/Characters: Roy/Riza, Miles/Miles’s wife, Scar, Breda, Fuery, Maria Ross, Grumman, various other canon and original characters
Warnings: Language, some violence, mild sex, instances of discrimination over a fictional race/culture (in this case, the Ishvalans)
Summary: Once upon a time, there was a king and queen who wanted to set things straight…
Chasing the Desert
Chapter Five
There was a visible hole on his forehead where the bullet had entered, blood splattered on his tunic and striped sash. His red eyes stared straight at the sky, as if he was looking into the eyes of his God. His white hair and brown skin were caked with dirt.
Riza stared down with stunned eyes at the first person she had shot to death, unable to control her hands from trembling; she gripped her rifle tighter. Next to Riza, a young man, Collins, looked impressed. He was also holding a rifle.
“Wow, that’s a nice shot there! You got him good. I heard you were talented, but whoa! Riza?”
Riza remained silent and shell shocked, her mind still focusing on the man. He was skinny and young, most likely a scholar and not a warrior. She imagined him studying his people’s culture and religion, always reading a book or holding strong philosophical and idealistic discussions about things like human nature, politics, and life. Her stomach jumped as she realized that this man had a bright future and she had ended that for him.
“Maybe I was too hasty,” Collins said in a low tone. Riza didn’t turn to see him frown. “However, we’re snipers and our targets are sure to be dead in an instant.”
Somehow the hole on the forehead grew bigger, but it was probably her imagination. The blood on the man’s shirt dried up and grew darker in color. The mud on his skin and clothes turned to dirt. His red eyes still stared straight at the sky, stared straight at God.
“Hey, are you okay?”
No words came out of her. Riza thought it was terrible that he had to set aside his books to pick up a weapon to defend his life with. She on the other hand could shoot with no problem-how ironic. Before shooting him, she saw him with a rifle, his hands shaky and unsure how to use it.
“Talk, Riza.”
He was a slim, young Ishvalan with a bullet in his head and his future stripped away from him. His red eyes still stared at the sky, but somehow they pierced through her soul too.
“Please talk, Riza. Riza. Riza!”
Not wanting to gaze at the man she shot anymore, Riza closed her eyes. She tried to forget her surroundings.
“Mindless soldier, not having second thoughts about shooting me.”
Riza tensed; that didn’t sound like Collins at all. She looked back down, seeing the corpse remain still. No, the dead shouldn’t be able to speak. Riza then gasped in fright when she noticed his hand twitching while his eyes were still rolled over. After the dead man slowly got up, he took a few steps towards her and halted. She swallowed hard.
“Mindless soldier, not having second thoughts about shooting me,” he repeated.
“I’m not a mindless solider,” Riza stuttered.
“If you’re not a mindless solider, then why did you kill me?”
Riza wanted to say she had been thrown into the battlefield and that it was orders, but couldn’t get the words out. The Ishvalan gripped Riza’s shoulders and kept shaking her at that instant, which caused her to freeze and unable to get way.
“Give me my life back! Give me my life back! Give me my life back!”
+++
What jolted Riza awake with a sharp gasp, her chest heaving in rapid succession. Once she was able to control her breathing again and look around her surroundings, she was no longer out in the desert in the blistering heat and in her uniform. Instead she was in a room of an old hotel building and wearing nothing. Beside her, Roy, just as naked as she was, stirred and gazed at her with sleepy eyes.
“Riza, are you okay?” Roy asked lazily, still not fully awake.
Riza’s heart jumped. She felt bad waking Roy up and wasn’t sure if she wanted to talk to him about it. Then again, it might be a while until they were able to fall asleep again. She lowered her head and sighed.
“It has been a while since I had those nightmares.”
“Nightmares? You mean…”
Before Roy could finish, Riza looked him straight in the eye and nodded. “Yes,” was all she could manage to say.
As the silence lingered on, Riza closed her eyes and rolled over so that her back was facing Roy. She could hear the barking of dogs from outside, so she paid attention to that for a while to distract herself from thinking about the dream. It wasn’t long until the sound of the bed creaking caught her attention and she felt Roy’s fingers tracing around her back, over the tattoo he had partially burned off. She shuddered, imagining him gazing on with distressed eyes. He stopped his motions and wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed a gentle, warm kiss on her shoulder.
“You said to me that the war will never be over as long as you live. It’ll never be over for me, either.”
A sense of relief coursed through Riza’s spine. She of course knew he had those dreams too, which made her feel better that they both experienced the same thing. For years they had been living with the sins stuck on them like daggers on wood, but always continued marching on with fierce resolve.
“It’s a good thing that we‘re still alive, then, Roy,” Riza finally said, smiling.
“I want you to keep on living,” Roy told her. “I want us to keep on living.”
Right after Riza spun around and locked her lips with Roy’s, she looped her arms around his neck while Roy placed his hands on her sides. They stopped a moment to catch their breaths and look at one another, Roy cracking a grin as Riza let out a soft laugh. Hearing him say they should keep on living was all she could ask for as comfort.
+++
The next day Roy left to go see Doctor Marcoh while Riza was at the bazaar. She was awed at the many vendors where people were selling a large variety of goods. Judging by the hollers she heard from the sellers, most of the items- there were mentions of clay pots, hand sewn garments, rosaries, and woven mats-weren’t too expensive. There was even a larger crowd outside where a vender was selling dessert cakes and chaanch. She continued looking around until…
“Riza? Riza Hawkeye?”
Riza froze and turned on her heels. Facing her was a red haired man that looked about the same age as her. She noticed the dirt scattered all over his buttoned shirt and black pants. Her eyes widened when she realized who he was.
“Greg Collins? It’s been a while.”
Collins grinned. “Almost seven years.” He looked at her curiously, as if he realized there was something different about her.” Wow, you have long hair now. It looks good on you.”
Her heart stopped, but she was able to keep her face mostly straight, allowing only a small smile. “Thank you.”
“Hey, do you want to catch up?” Collins asked after a momentary silence fell between them. “I know a great restaurant you might like.”
Riza’s eyes were clouded with uncertainty at first. Roy should be back at the inn soon and she wanted to get there quickly. On the other hand, meeting with Collins was a great surprise and it would be a shame to not take advantage of that. More than likely it would be a short affair. She made her decision, she nodded.
“Sure.”
+++
Collins took Riza to a newly opened eatery that served popular Ishvalan cuisine called The Great Red Sands. They had ordered onion soup and goat meat, which Riza thought tasted great. They came inside right at lunchtime, so there was already a huge crowd of people enjoying their meals and talking. Everyone including them sat down on cool stones.
“So Collins, what you have been doing all this time?”
“Well, after Ishval I got transferred to West Command and climbed my way up to First Lieutenant. Speaking of which, I heard you got promoted to Captain recently. Congratulations.”
A small smile lit up Riza’s face. “Thanks, and congratulations on your promotion, too. A while ago I heard from one of my friends you and your family were at the ceremony.”
The Captain hadn’t seen her old friend in a while, but was able to keep track of what was going on with him, spotting his name through gossip once in a while. Back in Ishval, she and Collins were snipers in the same unit. Riza was glad now to have a conversation with him.
He laughed. “Yeah, my wife and son were ecstatic about it.” Collins paused with a thoughtful expression and stoked his chin with one finger. “How about you? You don’t have a family or at least a husband yet? I find it hard to believe a sweet, pretty woman like you being single.”
Riza chuckled. “I would date someone once in a while, but I don’t have the time to have a relationship now.” Of course Riza was seeing Roy, whom she loved more than anyone else in the world, but she wasn’t going to tell Collins that; there was no need for him to know.
The friends became quiet as they continued eating their lunch. It was then Riza realized she hadn’t asked him the one question that was bugging her since they entered the eatery.
“Sorry to ask, but why you’re here in Ishval? I’m certain you know why I’m here.”
“To help Mustang with rebuilding Ishval, yes. The reason I’m here is because my wife’s sister is married to an Ishvalan, and my family is visiting them.”
That stopped Riza for a split second. This was something Collins hadn’t told her about when they were in Ishval and she wasn’t sure how to react.
“How did your sister in law and her husband take it that you were assigned as a sniper and had killed many Ishvalans?” she asked, the only question she could think of at this time.
“They were furious with me fighting in Ishval and didn’t want me to see them up north. As soon as this district was reopened, though, they moved immediately and my sister wrote to me asking that I come over.” A short chuckle escaped from the man before he continued. “When I first came here a week ago, the three of us talked and they told me while they still won’t forgive me for what I had done, they wanted to talk to me again and were willing to give me a second chance.”
“We’re just soldiers doing our jobs, or that’s what I would like to think.” Riza stared down at the lassi, a yogurt drink that came along with the meal, and saw her reflection. For a second, her twenty year old self appeared, drained and distressed. “I can at least help the Brigadier General with restoring Ishval.” She looked back at Collins and smiled.
“I’m sure you and Mustang will do just fine,” Collins responded and then beamed at her.
+++
Doctor Marcoh’s clinic wasn’t too far from the inn Roy and Riza were staying at. It was a two story building with the first floor where he would see the patients while the second floor served as his living quarters.
When Roy entered the place the scent of incense welcomed him. He sat in a chair at the back of the room, where he was getting his eyes checked. Marcoh had him first read letters from a board, which he had no problem doing. Roy was then asked to follow the dot on the stick as Marcoh moved it from left to right several times-he was able to do that too. Other measures he had to do were tedious to him like walk in a straight line and balance with one foot, but that was normal procedure.
“I heard about what happened in Xerxes from Scar this morning,” Maroch said as he shone a flashlight in Roy’s eyes. The younger man tried his best not to squint. “Sorry things didn’t go so well.”
“It is to be expected,” Roy said in an indifferent tone. “I let them know I’m working on revising the policies and lived.”
“Understandable the Ishvalans are skeptical of your plans for rebuilding their lands. At least you got the message across.”
Roy stayed silent as Marcoh continued checking on his eyes. His mind drifted to a single thought---would negotiations go differently if he were blind? Would the Ishvalans say with confidence his punishment for being involved in the Ishval War had been handed to him already by God? Perhaps they might respect him more that he didn’t take advantage of their people’s lives for his gain?
“Before I used the Philosopher’s Stone on your eyes,” Marcoh suddenly said, interrupting Roy’s train of thought, “you told me how your blindness made you saw those nightmares more clearly. “
Roy flinched inwardly. “Yes, I remember telling you that. I hated every moment of it.”
When he was blind the nightmares of him during Ishval played more clearly to him. The sights and sounds just felt too real to be true. Roy was then reminded of his time with Riza last night-seeing her terrified like that brought deep pain to his heart. His fingers touching the burn marks on her tattooed back, their heated kiss, the laugh that escaped her which he would give anything to hear again…all of those still burned inside his head. Indeed the war would never be over for them, but they were able to get by.
He was snapped back to reality when Marcoh turned off the flashlight and set it aside on the table.
“Everything looks in working order. There’s no sign of brain damage and your sight seems to be fine. I’m going to need you to come back here in a few months. I know you and your men will be busy in Central and seeing other Ishval districts.”
“I can arrange another visit here, no problem. A lot can change during that time.” Roy wanted to say the changes would be good ones, but wasn’t counting on it.
Marcoh nodded. “Good, then. Let me know in advance of the arrangements and then I’ll set up an appointment for you.”
“I’ll be in touch, Doctor.”
+++
(Art by seta_suzume)
After finishing lunch, Riza and Collins were strolling around the market square and looking around the different vendors. There was silence between the two until Collins spoke.
“Hey, I just realized this now. Where is Mustang? You two always seemed to be together.”
“He’s getting his eyes checked now by a doctor friend.”
“Oh yeah, I remember hearing Mustang was temporarily blinded. I forgot though, how he lost his sight in the first place? From what I heard, he saw something traumatic.”
That caught Riza’s breath for a second. Not too many military personnel within Central Command know the true story behind how Roy lost his eyesight and then regained it. For now the story was that he had conversion disorder for quite some time.
“You can say that,” Riza finally said. Collins wasn’t too far off from the truth.
Riza and Collins continued looking around more vendors. The Captain had bought some bananas and peaches while her friend spent his money on corn and cabbages. It wasn’t long until they were done walking around and needed to go back to their respective places.
“Well, I better head off now. It was very nice talking to you, Riza,” Collins said with a huge smile.
Riza smiled back. “Same here. I do hope we meet again.”
“If that happens, Mustang better be with you this time.”
That made Riza let out a short laugh. “I’ll make sure of that. Take care.”
Collins waved goodbye to Riza and dashed off to the left. Riza watched his back for a while until he was too far to see. Indeed, it would be great if Roy and Collins were to meet and get to know one another. It would be a while until that happened, but Riza didn’t mind. She made her way to the inn, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
+++
Roy was reading a book while waiting for Riza to come back; it shouldn’t take the Captain long looking around the market square. Just then, Roy heard the jingle of keys and saw the doorknob turn. He smiled and closed the book when Riza came inside holding a bag.
“Hey. What took you so long?”
Riza set aside the bag on the table and turned to face him with a tiny smile. “You won’t believe this, but I met an old friend of mine. Greg Collins, sniper from my unit. I bumped onto him while shopping and the both of us went out for lunch and chatted.”
“Collins, huh? He sounds familiar.”
“He’s a First Lieutenant at West City Command now. I have to say, it was very nice to talk to him again. We got along really well back then.”
“That’s great your day with him went well,” Roy said, grinning.
“Thank you.” A grateful smile spread across Riza’s features. “How about you? Did your appointment with Dr. Marcoh go well?”
“It did. He said my eyes are fine, but still wants me to come back in a few months to have them checked again.”
“Really? Glad to hear that.”
He beamed at her, choosing not to reveal all the things that had been weighing on his mind today as it would surely devastate her to know.
+++
The next day Roy and Riza left the inn and were putting their things in the truck. As soon as they were done both Miles and Scar appeared.
“The both of you leaving already?” Miles asked.
“We need to get back to Central now and get some paperwork done so that we can reopen more Ishvalan districts,” Roy explained. “Plus Fuery, Ross, and Breda are going to report to us on Gunja.”
“I know. Hopefully some of the districts will be reopened soon so that Scar and I can watch over them.”
“We’re doing our best,” Riza said.
There was a short moment of silence from everyone.
“Mustang, Hawkeye,” Scar said abruptly. “I’m sorry for how my people reacted to the both of you back in Xerxes.”
“You don’t have to be. None of this is your fault, or Miles’s. They have a right to be skeptic.” From the corner of his eye, Roy saw Riza look at him with deep sympathy.
“I’m not blaming myself,” Scar said, no hint of anguish in his tone. “I just wished things didn’t have to turn out that way, even if it is inevitable.”
“Understandable,” he said, and stopped for a split second. “Take care, the both of you.”
Everybody shook hands with one another and then Roy and Riza hopped into the vehicle. The driver was able to start the jeep quickly, so the two military officers were already off to the train station. During the ride Roy had no doubt Scar and Miles would do a great job overseeing the progress of Ishval, but hoped nothing bad would befall them.
End of Part One
Onto Chapter Six!
This entry was originally posted at http://bay-alexison.dreamwidth.org/79151.html. Feel free to comment wherever you like!
Author: bay115
Genre: Drama/Romance
Rating: R
Word Count: ~40,000
Pairing/Characters: Roy/Riza, Miles/Miles’s wife, Scar, Breda, Fuery, Maria Ross, Grumman, various other canon and original characters
Warnings: Language, some violence, mild sex, instances of discrimination over a fictional race/culture (in this case, the Ishvalans)
Summary: Once upon a time, there was a king and queen who wanted to set things straight…
Chasing the Desert
Chapter Five
There was a visible hole on his forehead where the bullet had entered, blood splattered on his tunic and striped sash. His red eyes stared straight at the sky, as if he was looking into the eyes of his God. His white hair and brown skin were caked with dirt.
Riza stared down with stunned eyes at the first person she had shot to death, unable to control her hands from trembling; she gripped her rifle tighter. Next to Riza, a young man, Collins, looked impressed. He was also holding a rifle.
“Wow, that’s a nice shot there! You got him good. I heard you were talented, but whoa! Riza?”
Riza remained silent and shell shocked, her mind still focusing on the man. He was skinny and young, most likely a scholar and not a warrior. She imagined him studying his people’s culture and religion, always reading a book or holding strong philosophical and idealistic discussions about things like human nature, politics, and life. Her stomach jumped as she realized that this man had a bright future and she had ended that for him.
“Maybe I was too hasty,” Collins said in a low tone. Riza didn’t turn to see him frown. “However, we’re snipers and our targets are sure to be dead in an instant.”
Somehow the hole on the forehead grew bigger, but it was probably her imagination. The blood on the man’s shirt dried up and grew darker in color. The mud on his skin and clothes turned to dirt. His red eyes still stared straight at the sky, stared straight at God.
“Hey, are you okay?”
No words came out of her. Riza thought it was terrible that he had to set aside his books to pick up a weapon to defend his life with. She on the other hand could shoot with no problem-how ironic. Before shooting him, she saw him with a rifle, his hands shaky and unsure how to use it.
“Talk, Riza.”
He was a slim, young Ishvalan with a bullet in his head and his future stripped away from him. His red eyes still stared at the sky, but somehow they pierced through her soul too.
“Please talk, Riza. Riza. Riza!”
Not wanting to gaze at the man she shot anymore, Riza closed her eyes. She tried to forget her surroundings.
“Mindless soldier, not having second thoughts about shooting me.”
Riza tensed; that didn’t sound like Collins at all. She looked back down, seeing the corpse remain still. No, the dead shouldn’t be able to speak. Riza then gasped in fright when she noticed his hand twitching while his eyes were still rolled over. After the dead man slowly got up, he took a few steps towards her and halted. She swallowed hard.
“Mindless soldier, not having second thoughts about shooting me,” he repeated.
“I’m not a mindless solider,” Riza stuttered.
“If you’re not a mindless solider, then why did you kill me?”
Riza wanted to say she had been thrown into the battlefield and that it was orders, but couldn’t get the words out. The Ishvalan gripped Riza’s shoulders and kept shaking her at that instant, which caused her to freeze and unable to get way.
“Give me my life back! Give me my life back! Give me my life back!”
+++
What jolted Riza awake with a sharp gasp, her chest heaving in rapid succession. Once she was able to control her breathing again and look around her surroundings, she was no longer out in the desert in the blistering heat and in her uniform. Instead she was in a room of an old hotel building and wearing nothing. Beside her, Roy, just as naked as she was, stirred and gazed at her with sleepy eyes.
“Riza, are you okay?” Roy asked lazily, still not fully awake.
Riza’s heart jumped. She felt bad waking Roy up and wasn’t sure if she wanted to talk to him about it. Then again, it might be a while until they were able to fall asleep again. She lowered her head and sighed.
“It has been a while since I had those nightmares.”
“Nightmares? You mean…”
Before Roy could finish, Riza looked him straight in the eye and nodded. “Yes,” was all she could manage to say.
As the silence lingered on, Riza closed her eyes and rolled over so that her back was facing Roy. She could hear the barking of dogs from outside, so she paid attention to that for a while to distract herself from thinking about the dream. It wasn’t long until the sound of the bed creaking caught her attention and she felt Roy’s fingers tracing around her back, over the tattoo he had partially burned off. She shuddered, imagining him gazing on with distressed eyes. He stopped his motions and wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed a gentle, warm kiss on her shoulder.
“You said to me that the war will never be over as long as you live. It’ll never be over for me, either.”
A sense of relief coursed through Riza’s spine. She of course knew he had those dreams too, which made her feel better that they both experienced the same thing. For years they had been living with the sins stuck on them like daggers on wood, but always continued marching on with fierce resolve.
“It’s a good thing that we‘re still alive, then, Roy,” Riza finally said, smiling.
“I want you to keep on living,” Roy told her. “I want us to keep on living.”
Right after Riza spun around and locked her lips with Roy’s, she looped her arms around his neck while Roy placed his hands on her sides. They stopped a moment to catch their breaths and look at one another, Roy cracking a grin as Riza let out a soft laugh. Hearing him say they should keep on living was all she could ask for as comfort.
+++
The next day Roy left to go see Doctor Marcoh while Riza was at the bazaar. She was awed at the many vendors where people were selling a large variety of goods. Judging by the hollers she heard from the sellers, most of the items- there were mentions of clay pots, hand sewn garments, rosaries, and woven mats-weren’t too expensive. There was even a larger crowd outside where a vender was selling dessert cakes and chaanch. She continued looking around until…
“Riza? Riza Hawkeye?”
Riza froze and turned on her heels. Facing her was a red haired man that looked about the same age as her. She noticed the dirt scattered all over his buttoned shirt and black pants. Her eyes widened when she realized who he was.
“Greg Collins? It’s been a while.”
Collins grinned. “Almost seven years.” He looked at her curiously, as if he realized there was something different about her.” Wow, you have long hair now. It looks good on you.”
Her heart stopped, but she was able to keep her face mostly straight, allowing only a small smile. “Thank you.”
“Hey, do you want to catch up?” Collins asked after a momentary silence fell between them. “I know a great restaurant you might like.”
Riza’s eyes were clouded with uncertainty at first. Roy should be back at the inn soon and she wanted to get there quickly. On the other hand, meeting with Collins was a great surprise and it would be a shame to not take advantage of that. More than likely it would be a short affair. She made her decision, she nodded.
“Sure.”
+++
Collins took Riza to a newly opened eatery that served popular Ishvalan cuisine called The Great Red Sands. They had ordered onion soup and goat meat, which Riza thought tasted great. They came inside right at lunchtime, so there was already a huge crowd of people enjoying their meals and talking. Everyone including them sat down on cool stones.
“So Collins, what you have been doing all this time?”
“Well, after Ishval I got transferred to West Command and climbed my way up to First Lieutenant. Speaking of which, I heard you got promoted to Captain recently. Congratulations.”
A small smile lit up Riza’s face. “Thanks, and congratulations on your promotion, too. A while ago I heard from one of my friends you and your family were at the ceremony.”
The Captain hadn’t seen her old friend in a while, but was able to keep track of what was going on with him, spotting his name through gossip once in a while. Back in Ishval, she and Collins were snipers in the same unit. Riza was glad now to have a conversation with him.
He laughed. “Yeah, my wife and son were ecstatic about it.” Collins paused with a thoughtful expression and stoked his chin with one finger. “How about you? You don’t have a family or at least a husband yet? I find it hard to believe a sweet, pretty woman like you being single.”
Riza chuckled. “I would date someone once in a while, but I don’t have the time to have a relationship now.” Of course Riza was seeing Roy, whom she loved more than anyone else in the world, but she wasn’t going to tell Collins that; there was no need for him to know.
The friends became quiet as they continued eating their lunch. It was then Riza realized she hadn’t asked him the one question that was bugging her since they entered the eatery.
“Sorry to ask, but why you’re here in Ishval? I’m certain you know why I’m here.”
“To help Mustang with rebuilding Ishval, yes. The reason I’m here is because my wife’s sister is married to an Ishvalan, and my family is visiting them.”
That stopped Riza for a split second. This was something Collins hadn’t told her about when they were in Ishval and she wasn’t sure how to react.
“How did your sister in law and her husband take it that you were assigned as a sniper and had killed many Ishvalans?” she asked, the only question she could think of at this time.
“They were furious with me fighting in Ishval and didn’t want me to see them up north. As soon as this district was reopened, though, they moved immediately and my sister wrote to me asking that I come over.” A short chuckle escaped from the man before he continued. “When I first came here a week ago, the three of us talked and they told me while they still won’t forgive me for what I had done, they wanted to talk to me again and were willing to give me a second chance.”
“We’re just soldiers doing our jobs, or that’s what I would like to think.” Riza stared down at the lassi, a yogurt drink that came along with the meal, and saw her reflection. For a second, her twenty year old self appeared, drained and distressed. “I can at least help the Brigadier General with restoring Ishval.” She looked back at Collins and smiled.
“I’m sure you and Mustang will do just fine,” Collins responded and then beamed at her.
+++
Doctor Marcoh’s clinic wasn’t too far from the inn Roy and Riza were staying at. It was a two story building with the first floor where he would see the patients while the second floor served as his living quarters.
When Roy entered the place the scent of incense welcomed him. He sat in a chair at the back of the room, where he was getting his eyes checked. Marcoh had him first read letters from a board, which he had no problem doing. Roy was then asked to follow the dot on the stick as Marcoh moved it from left to right several times-he was able to do that too. Other measures he had to do were tedious to him like walk in a straight line and balance with one foot, but that was normal procedure.
“I heard about what happened in Xerxes from Scar this morning,” Maroch said as he shone a flashlight in Roy’s eyes. The younger man tried his best not to squint. “Sorry things didn’t go so well.”
“It is to be expected,” Roy said in an indifferent tone. “I let them know I’m working on revising the policies and lived.”
“Understandable the Ishvalans are skeptical of your plans for rebuilding their lands. At least you got the message across.”
Roy stayed silent as Marcoh continued checking on his eyes. His mind drifted to a single thought---would negotiations go differently if he were blind? Would the Ishvalans say with confidence his punishment for being involved in the Ishval War had been handed to him already by God? Perhaps they might respect him more that he didn’t take advantage of their people’s lives for his gain?
“Before I used the Philosopher’s Stone on your eyes,” Marcoh suddenly said, interrupting Roy’s train of thought, “you told me how your blindness made you saw those nightmares more clearly. “
Roy flinched inwardly. “Yes, I remember telling you that. I hated every moment of it.”
When he was blind the nightmares of him during Ishval played more clearly to him. The sights and sounds just felt too real to be true. Roy was then reminded of his time with Riza last night-seeing her terrified like that brought deep pain to his heart. His fingers touching the burn marks on her tattooed back, their heated kiss, the laugh that escaped her which he would give anything to hear again…all of those still burned inside his head. Indeed the war would never be over for them, but they were able to get by.
He was snapped back to reality when Marcoh turned off the flashlight and set it aside on the table.
“Everything looks in working order. There’s no sign of brain damage and your sight seems to be fine. I’m going to need you to come back here in a few months. I know you and your men will be busy in Central and seeing other Ishval districts.”
“I can arrange another visit here, no problem. A lot can change during that time.” Roy wanted to say the changes would be good ones, but wasn’t counting on it.
Marcoh nodded. “Good, then. Let me know in advance of the arrangements and then I’ll set up an appointment for you.”
“I’ll be in touch, Doctor.”
+++
(Art by seta_suzume)
After finishing lunch, Riza and Collins were strolling around the market square and looking around the different vendors. There was silence between the two until Collins spoke.
“Hey, I just realized this now. Where is Mustang? You two always seemed to be together.”
“He’s getting his eyes checked now by a doctor friend.”
“Oh yeah, I remember hearing Mustang was temporarily blinded. I forgot though, how he lost his sight in the first place? From what I heard, he saw something traumatic.”
That caught Riza’s breath for a second. Not too many military personnel within Central Command know the true story behind how Roy lost his eyesight and then regained it. For now the story was that he had conversion disorder for quite some time.
“You can say that,” Riza finally said. Collins wasn’t too far off from the truth.
Riza and Collins continued looking around more vendors. The Captain had bought some bananas and peaches while her friend spent his money on corn and cabbages. It wasn’t long until they were done walking around and needed to go back to their respective places.
“Well, I better head off now. It was very nice talking to you, Riza,” Collins said with a huge smile.
Riza smiled back. “Same here. I do hope we meet again.”
“If that happens, Mustang better be with you this time.”
That made Riza let out a short laugh. “I’ll make sure of that. Take care.”
Collins waved goodbye to Riza and dashed off to the left. Riza watched his back for a while until he was too far to see. Indeed, it would be great if Roy and Collins were to meet and get to know one another. It would be a while until that happened, but Riza didn’t mind. She made her way to the inn, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
+++
Roy was reading a book while waiting for Riza to come back; it shouldn’t take the Captain long looking around the market square. Just then, Roy heard the jingle of keys and saw the doorknob turn. He smiled and closed the book when Riza came inside holding a bag.
“Hey. What took you so long?”
Riza set aside the bag on the table and turned to face him with a tiny smile. “You won’t believe this, but I met an old friend of mine. Greg Collins, sniper from my unit. I bumped onto him while shopping and the both of us went out for lunch and chatted.”
“Collins, huh? He sounds familiar.”
“He’s a First Lieutenant at West City Command now. I have to say, it was very nice to talk to him again. We got along really well back then.”
“That’s great your day with him went well,” Roy said, grinning.
“Thank you.” A grateful smile spread across Riza’s features. “How about you? Did your appointment with Dr. Marcoh go well?”
“It did. He said my eyes are fine, but still wants me to come back in a few months to have them checked again.”
“Really? Glad to hear that.”
He beamed at her, choosing not to reveal all the things that had been weighing on his mind today as it would surely devastate her to know.
+++
The next day Roy and Riza left the inn and were putting their things in the truck. As soon as they were done both Miles and Scar appeared.
“The both of you leaving already?” Miles asked.
“We need to get back to Central now and get some paperwork done so that we can reopen more Ishvalan districts,” Roy explained. “Plus Fuery, Ross, and Breda are going to report to us on Gunja.”
“I know. Hopefully some of the districts will be reopened soon so that Scar and I can watch over them.”
“We’re doing our best,” Riza said.
There was a short moment of silence from everyone.
“Mustang, Hawkeye,” Scar said abruptly. “I’m sorry for how my people reacted to the both of you back in Xerxes.”
“You don’t have to be. None of this is your fault, or Miles’s. They have a right to be skeptic.” From the corner of his eye, Roy saw Riza look at him with deep sympathy.
“I’m not blaming myself,” Scar said, no hint of anguish in his tone. “I just wished things didn’t have to turn out that way, even if it is inevitable.”
“Understandable,” he said, and stopped for a split second. “Take care, the both of you.”
Everybody shook hands with one another and then Roy and Riza hopped into the vehicle. The driver was able to start the jeep quickly, so the two military officers were already off to the train station. During the ride Roy had no doubt Scar and Miles would do a great job overseeing the progress of Ishval, but hoped nothing bad would befall them.
End of Part One
Onto Chapter Six!
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