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FullMetal Alchemist: Shattered Hope, Dreams, & Faith (Athene & East)


Makros had to bite down on his own tongue pretty hard to avoid lashing out at Riza when she said that it was her own plan. Despite wanting to simply rip into the woman he couldn't for two main reasons. The first of course was the new found voice at the back of his mind reminding him of a simple promise made to what he had to count as he closest friend.

"Never do anything that hasty again. Not without a really fucking good and justified reason. Please. Swear that to me."

How exactly was he supposed to respond to Riza's plan without breaking that new found promise. He let out a low breath as he turned back towards the arena. Of course he wasn't comfortable with the idea that they had just put Aisyah into a fight with a serial killer. He had read the files on most of the mans victims. Almost all of them had been masters of the craft in some way or form. So the idea that they could all just be killed by one man, and that the man was now fighting a completely normal seventeen year old girl was a little disturbing in all honesty.

The second thing that made him hold his tongue was because as frustrating as the situation was, and as much as he wanted to see Riza hang by the foot again for it, he had to admit that she was right. If she was really going to be a soldier than she would have to face down odds like this. If she was going to progress and be the powerhouse he was sure she could be than she couldn't take short cuts like he had.

That and well... some part of him knew Aisyah could take care of herself. As much as he didn't know what else to say on the subject matter he honestly had to agree with Riza that this treatment was for the best. He wouldn't say it to her face, instead just leaning back into his seat. "I never said she couldn't win. Just that this was dangerous."

He folded his arms, still half tended to throw some seeds at Riza, but knew that if he did he would be getting shot and not just with paintballs. He huffed, but at the same time she was right. Aisyah had been completely supportive of him. "Kick his ass!"


Roy blinked as Riza sent him the message that this was something else. He had kind of wondered if it was just Grumman looking for some sort of poster child, but it was clear to him that there was something more disturbing going on if the order hadn't come from the fuhrer. A new conspiracy? He didn't see how that was possible, father and the homunculi all seven were currently accounted for.

Which meant that for the moment this new conspiracy had it's roots in something else. For now he was trying to ascertain the point of it. If the two of them were important to someone elses plans than taking them to the east and having them both train would be a good way of keeping them under watch. If they were involved it would be easy to spot them out.

For now the exams were just that, and he could already see that Aisyah would probably be good for the military. A specialist sure, but since she was already going to be working alongside an alchemist they would both be getting some level of autonomy, it was his job to make sure they actually deserved that or if they weren't involved with the enemy plans. Markos was easy to spot, his life was on record, but Aisyah?

She was an unknown, an Ishballin monk turned towards the military, it wouldn't have been impossible for her to orchestrate the train robbery that got their attention in the first place considering that she existed outside of the system for so long he didn't know where her connections were if any. It meant that he had to pay close attention to this fight.

There was also the fact that Markos's alchemy dealt with plants, at the end of the day plants vs fire, he was pretty sure he had a clear advantage in that fight. Then again his wife would likely be the one to take him down even faster.



Scar was trying to keep his pace with the girl making sure to always keep the offensive. She was a little tougher than the he had first believed. Considering the blows he was raining down upon her, she kept pace with him well, and as she made her move he was actually caught by the sudden switch from defeanse to offense.

The way she grabbed his arm and yanked him down made him want to curse partly because he lacked the proper foot hold to make sure he didn't hit the ground with the full force of her attack. As his body tumbled forward he tucked in, and rolled with the momentum.

As his free hand hit the ground to shield him and push the momentum forward so he could roll out of any hold Aisyah was trying to put him in, he brought his legs up twisting to lash out at her face with a hard kick to counter or push her away from him so he could better regain his ground. Pushing off with his free arm so that he could come to a complete roll and land on his feet.

However in performing his roll whether the kick was successful or not he had placed Aisyah firmly to his back, leaving him open for a moment.
 

Riza grinned, smiling as the fight continued to play out. All things considered, she was doing a lot better than she'd guessed. This may not have actually been her decision. But since she was pretending to be the person that was making Aisyah go toe-to-toe with Scar, Riza actually felt pretty good in her choice. It had been a perfectly logical and sound one.

"Dangerous?" Riza repeated, chuckling softly. "Mr. Fischer, don't insult any of us here. Do you think if any of us didn't understand that, we'd be here? Lest I'm mistaken from Olivier herself, she got on that train with full intentions of coming to Central herself. Between that and the fact she voluntarily went to the Ruins to be trained ... she knows what she wants and, according to her maneuvers, what she's doing."

She really did, too.

Riza wasn't sure if she felt more impressed or a bit sorrowful for the girl.

Then ... she really gave up any chance of having a normal childhood up, huh?

... It couldn't help but make her remember two very specific siblings. Of course, with Ed having relinquished his powers, he was retired. Both were, but at least Alphonse had the option to return if he wanted to.

Every now and again, Riza's peripheral vision wandered to her husband. She peeked curiously, hoping to try to figure out what he was doing. But that was easy enough to notice; he too was watching. So the better question was ... what was going through his mind?

Asking outright was - for the time being - out of the question. She'd just have to wait ... unless he could figure a way to talk to her in a cryptic manner. Or she could, whatever may or may not happen first.
The pull on Scar's arm and roll it resulted in wasn't as much of a pure attack like one would assume. Yes, it had been meant to get the man off balance, and cause some discomfort to her racial comrade.

But in all honesty, the primary point of it had been forcing him to move with the momentum.

And now, she got him basically where she wanted.

The kick wasn't dodged; then again, she wasn't overly worrying about avoiding Scar's attacks. Not unless they were aimed for spots that she was afraid of being hit, anyway.

Just as he moved with the tug, Aisyah allowed herself to stumble back a bit, helping ensure there was more than enough distance between them.

.... And then ... she ran forward. If Scar had been expecting a kick in retaliation, that wouldn't be what he'd feel.

Whether this was better or worse would be up to him.

.. Probably amusing - at least to the audience, and very likely interesting.

But apparently, Aisyah would jump up and wrap her arms tightly around Scar's neck. Naturally, this would be deadlier and likely more effective had she chosen something like a kunai. Still, the chokehold on its own could be as dangerous, more so when a skilled and very well trained soldier was applying the hold.

And that was what Aisyah intended to do; force him to tap out or somehow win with this move.

Even if that backfired, it'd definitely weaken him.

Assuming you can stay on for more than a few seconds, that is, she inwardly added.
 

Markos grumbled slightly of course there was danger to be had in the military. Of course he knew that she was signing up for one of the most dangerous jobs there could be, and he was just going to have to learn to live with that, and yes there could have been damage. He wasn't about to try and talk Aisyah out of it, nor could he explain to Riza why it bothered him so much when she was in danger.

Of course this was one of his oldest friends, even if she hardly resembled the kid that he used to know anymore so there was that. There was also this other sinking feeling in his gut that something was wrong with this exam, and he wanted to contest Riza, he really did, but oddly the words didn't come from him.

Rather it was Roy who spoke up first.

For all the benefits that being married to Riza had her interpersonal skills when it came to reading others was not one of them. It was sometimes kind of funny how the eyes of the hawk could miss something obvious, but still Roy's hand came to land on his wife's lap. Leaning over to her.

"I think you can cut him a little slack Colonel. He's worried about her because he loves her." Roy knew the feeling, and recognized the look on the boys face. It was the same look he saw in the mirror the day he had run to assist Riza and Fury when they had been on mission against the homunculai, or any of the other times that he had broken protocol and put himself in danger because of Riza.

For his part Markos coughed and even choked on the words sputtering for a moment as his hands went up. "Wait.. I never... I don't love her, she's just a friend, a very good female friend. One I care about, and don't want to see get needlessly hurt. So I don't... I mean it's not like were dating or anything, she just got back into my life. I don't want to end up loosing her to anything that could hurt her."



When Aisyah hopped onto his back it was different from what The man would have expected. He stood two heads taller than her, so whens he jumped onto his back it wasn't like she could actually touch the ground. He almost wanted to chuckle if it weren't for the fact that her arms were around his throat which did make things considerably more dire. If she had taken some kind of knife she probably would have won this match here and now.

He lurched his body backwards for a moment, his arms reaching back over his shoulders, and grabbing her by her own shoulders as she wrapped her arms around his throat. If she had been an alchemist so many years ago this would have been the end of her life. However as it was he was able to get a firm grip around the arms that were holding his throat and lift her as he lurched forward.

He put all of his weight and strength into the motion as he heaved her off his body flipping her over his head and slamming her down onto the Matt. About to bring her down full force by her shoulders into a full on flip throw.
 

When Markos's voice seemed to disappear, that was Riza's first sign something was on his mind. But was it only the match and its outcome? Her head tilted as she studied the older of the two childhood friends, as if trying to use his eyes as a set of mirrors to see what he was feeling or thinking about. They were meant to be the doorway to the soul, after all, and for damn good reasons. Alas, what Roy had noticed was correct. For all her strengths, Riza wasn't without her flaws. A quick temper could sometimes be one.

Before that, however, was a tendency to overlook things that were supposed to be really simple to see or note.

"I think you can cut him a little slack Colonel. He's worried about her because he loves her."

Her head lifted as she looked into her husband's onyx eyes and smirked. "Ohhhhhh. I see, I see. Young love. How cute." Riza made damn sure to emphasize heavily on the word 'cute'; no doubt a jest about how Roy had described her being incredibly protective of him. "That's understandable, Markos. Just ... word of advice. Be discreet, alright? I wouldn't want either of you getting a write up for something you two shouldn't be doing out in the open."

Now that she heard Markos stammering, it was much easier for Riza to catch onto what her husband had observed. It was most definitely simpler to see and hear that Markos did have more than mere affection for his comrade. There was no mistaking that.

... Even with herself and her spouse teasing him, though, Riza knew that - for now - there was only one individual who could truly decide if it was love or something else they were feeling for Aisyah. Naturally, that was Markos himself. Thus, she wouldn't do anything past teasing, even if she was a bit tempted to. Instead of saying anything more, her hand gently wrapped around Roy's her left thumb gently brushing the top of her lover's slightly calloused palm.
Shit! No, no, no, no, no!

Part of the reason Aisyah had chosen to grab onto Scar's neck in this position was because, by default, the back was uusally one of the hardest spots to reach. And it typically applied to anyone, regardless of how tall or short they were. So seeing his hands moving back and trying to grab for her made Aisyah's grip strengthen. By now, she was glad she decided not to wrap her legs around his waist. It would indeed have trapped her and forced her to stay in a rather vulnerable position.

So while her lower body was free, Aisyah pulled a leg back, thrusting her knee as hard as she could into Scar's back.

Alas, the hits - even though they were impacting the right areas - weren't obviously doing enough damage. Soon, a large hand found her shoulder, making her eyes widen. Instincts took over as Aisyah put her hands on top of Scar's, covering the shoulder as she was soon hurled onto the mat. Every time she rolled, the younger Ishvalan felt her stitches threaten to come undone.

By the time she completely stopped, Aisyah was shuddering and panting. There were a few saving graces, but the main one that kept returning to her mind was at least teh bullet had been extracted. The throw otherwise would have been much more painful.

Fuck! Now what?!

Weak winces and whimpers were the only things Aisyah allowed Scar to hear as she pushed herself to her feet, albeit somewhat shakily. So far, he'd come up with solutions to everything she'd done. It stung her pride, but she was clearly seeing and better comprehending why Scar had offered for her to grab a weapon. It was pretty much mandatory.

... No. Not quite that. Easier for you, yes, but ... you can do this even without a blade or gun ...

Besides, if she wanted to be realistic, Aisyah knew she wouldn't always have the ability to grab something to use against an opponent. Thaat was very likely a subconscious reason why she didn't bother taking anything to assist in this fight. And, much like this spar, there would be others where things simply wouldn't go her way.

Everyone has a weak spot. Just gotta find his ...

Slowly, Aisyah allowed her hands to fall away from her shoulder before charging forward again. It wasn't the exact same tactic, but she did send her own barrage of punches mixed in with kicks towards various areas of Scar's body. Some went for his upper body. But the ones Aisyah put more effort and strength into were his lower body, particularly the hamstrings. His speed, lack of technically, hadn't gone unnoticed. If she could use that to her advantage somehow and begin turning this around for herself ... she could at least do well enough to pass, if not completely win the fight.

That was her hope, anyway.
 

If there was a color to Makros's face it was bright red. Roy had just tapped into something that he had still been completely unsure how to approach. Even if he did love Aisyah she had become so different from the one from his childhood that he had barely known her. Yet the three days before the examination they had been inseperable, and she had taught him much about melee combat. She was no longer the shy cute girl sure, but the woman she was now was commanding confident and if he did interefear he would probably loose any and all chances of having a relationship with her let alone struggling to maintain being her friend.

He knew she could handle herself, but at the same time he was terrified for her at every turn. He had no idea how she did it, how Riza had done it, being just a regular soldier. He had been a member of the central military librarium and he had been in over his head. Yet she could remain perfectly calm under fire even taking a bullet, without much of a flinch.

He swallowed for a moment trying to quell all the voices and fears in his head and simply watch the fight, but he was now embarrassed, and worried. "There's nothing even to hide. Even if I did love her, which I am not admitting too, she wouldn't love me back. I mean I'm an alchemist, and she lived with Ishballin monks. My skin and blood aside I'm basically what she would call a heretic."

Roy just rolled his eyes. It was indeed young love, considering the boy in this equation was a few months over twenty, and the girl was seventeen. It was basically their turn to be stupid and think that society would hate them. He remembered that feeling.

He shook his head for a moment as he regarded his wife, it was indeed cute. Feeling her hand entwine with his he looked at the kid who now seemed heart broken and then to his wife. "You should give him some advice."

Roy wasn't going to touch this crises of belief and love with a tenfoot pole he rarely got his own marriage right all things considered the number of rules that he and Riza had to follow was basically a lexicon, but he had managed to catch the Colonel's heart, and she was a woman. She would probably know how to get the attention of someone like her considering that both Aisyah and Riza had similar traits.



Scar had thought for sure that his last attack had finished this fight. Tossing the woman onto the ground as hard as he could had seemed to be a match ending power hit. But the truth was Aisyah was remarkably resilient, and didn't take that long to start getting back up.

He could see the damage that had been done with the strike her breath was more ragged than it had been before, and she was rolling her shoulders as it was some kind of injury. Likely the bullet wound she had taken during the train ride in.

Still she rose back to her fight and charged him. Compared to the first set of blows that she had unleashed her punches now were starting to get weaker, if this was a war of attrition maybe he would win after all, or at least that had been the thought when he had tried to lock down one of her arms, only to be surprised by a kick to his side.

The stab wound that had been dealt to him by King bradly had never completely healed correctly. It had been closed with Alchemy and he had been seen by a proper surgeon, but they had never been able to fix it, and the wound had always pulled on his side making his breath ragged in the mornings. Having Aisyah's foot slam into that knocked his breath away from him and caused him to stagger back for a moment opening him up to more of her punches in the combo.

His feet shifted as now his breathing was getting more tired and heavy, and he threw himself at the girl bringing one of his massive arms in to try and take a strait line upper cut. This was a power move with all his weight and strength behind it, his goal was to connect with her solar plexus and end this match with one hard decisive blow.

But that also meant that if it didn't connect he would be out in the open again.
 

Oddly enough, the advice was much quicker to come to Riza's mind than noticing Markos may or may not have some intimate feelings for Aisyah. Barely a second passed before she turned and looked over at the young adult, wearing a kind but somewhat stern expression. It wasn't so much used for an intimidation tactic, but it was a hint to help make damn sure the librarian knew she was being very serious with what she was about to offer him for tips.

"Are you sure about that? How Aisyah feels about you, I mean?"

Her empty hand raised, quietly signaling for him to not speak just yet. Oh yeah, there was definitely more Riza had to say.

"It's obvious she knows you're an alchemist, if only by a few minutes. But I'm rather certain she's known longer than that, hasn't she? You don't have to answer any of this out loud, for the record. It can be in your head for all I care; just be honest with yourself when you do this. Now then, think to when you first revealed - or she found out, whatever happened - that you dove into alchemy. How long has it been since then? Now ... the golden question. How many opportunities since then have vanished? How many times could she have left and turned her back on you? I already know it's at least one, likely more, and that was from when you got your watch."

Her head turned back again as Riza briefly studied Aisyah. A firm nod would be seen before she locked eyes with Markos once more.

"She isn't just fighting for herself, you know? As a non-alchemy using soldier myself, I can feel her energy, her determination, her everything. In her own ways, she's fighting for you. To show that she's not going to simply up and walk away. Hell, that could have happened over the past few days, if she truly wanted to. She didn't have to keep the living arrangements Miss Armstrong assigned you two, you know? But I know she remained with you. Did that ever occur to you it wasn't simply a fluke? That she had reasons - besides the more obvious ones - for not storming out the front door?"

After those words were uttered, Riza stopped. She knew Markos now had a lot to think of, all of which could be done now or later. Hopefully, though, that had all been more than helpful enough.
Yes! Found it!

As Scar grunted and staggered backwards, Aisyah lowered her head, immediately zoning on what she'd found. His side, it seemed, had already taken a considerable amount of damage in the past. Which was ... interesting. That hinted - since it wasn't a new wound - it had been a pretty severe injury. Furthermore, one that hadn't healed at all, or at least not correctly.

If it weren't for the fact she was sparring this man to earn her spot as a soldier for Central, Aisyah would definitely feel a lot more guilty. Not to say that wasn't the case ... but she wasn't allowing it to dominate her mindset then and there. She had agreed to take this exam, knowing and assuming fairly well all the risks that would come with it. It'd be pointless to simply stop and give up, especially when she found a hint that would greatly help make this fight easier for her to win.

"Agh!"

As the upper cut arrived, Aisyah tried to kick again at Scar's exposed wound. Only to fall back, wincing as her shoulders slammed against the mat once more.

And when they did this time ... her eyes widened.

... FUCK!

The force from the throw had been something she'd worried about. Now, it was confirmed to Aisyah that had been a valid fear. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed a bit of crimson painting her camouflage-patterned tank top. The rough impacts had been enough, and now, her stitches had come undone.

"Son of a bitch .... " she muttered, not even realizing until a few seconds too late that had been out loud. Her hand pressed tightly against the mat as Aisyah very slowly and carefully forced herself back up to her feet.

"I never said I'm giving up!" she shouted, making a medical team that had started to run out stop dead in their tracks.

"But miss, you -- "

"I know. I get it. It's nothing lethal, though. If I wanna stop, believe me; I'll say so. But not before then."

Pausing to make sure they would actually listen to her first, Aisyah then charged forward, swinging her right arm for Scar's side ... only to lose her balance and run past, merely hitting the air instead as a new surge of pain shot through her body. Aisyah gripped her teeth with her lower lip, panting as she turned around and re-faced Scar. If he was going to succeed in his next attacks, then it wouldn't be with her back turned to him. The young teen steeled herself, shifting to an offensive stance as she waited for Scar to come at her.

All the while, more drops of blood began falling on the ground and carpet underneath her and Scar's feet, steadily turning the area a dark hue of crimson.
 

Markos opened his mouth to let her know that he was sure, but when she held up her hand he did the second smartest thing he had done all day, and shut in order to listen to Riza as she spoke. The idea that Aisyah may actually feel different about him, or that she could possibly return his feelings felt odd, but looking back on their days spent together, they hadn't really brushed anything too personal.

Markos's throat suddenly felt very dry as he watched the fight the way she was going at it, the moments before the punch. She was admirable in every way he could think of, and maybe there was something to what Riza was saying. She had chosen to stay with him when accommodations could have easily been provided to her. Despite his home being one giant case of culture shock to her. She had chosen to stay with him.

Watching her fight, Markos had known she wouldn't leave, but that was at least in part because this was also her dream. Her desire to stand atop the pyramid she wanted to fight for herself and prove that she could stand on her own two legs, and compared to her, even with alchemy he was more or less the weak one. He was no longer really sure where the two of them met in the middle.

So the idea that she could return his feelings wasn't so alien to him in the end. Still at the end of it, he would let her make the first move. Considering how direct Aisyah had been about everything that she wanted, if she wanted him, she would probably ask sooner or later.

Till then he was more happy to just have her at his side. But first she had to survive this match, and with her arm like that... Why didn't she take a weapon damn it? Sure she was her own weapon, but she could have chosen to take a knife, and when he saw the blood on her shoulder it was all the harder to not step in. He got to his feet rather steadily. He approached the ring Approaching the medics that Aisyah had called off. He held up his watch. "I can perform medical alchehestry"

He turned to Aisyah. "If her wound opens any further or becomes a danger to her body, I will personally attend her, and call her an idiot for hurting herself too far. You got that Aisyah, you loose this I'm turning you into one of my experiments!"

Roy's hand went to Riza's shoulder staying her from interfering as Markos left. He was pretty sure that Markos had no intention of actually damaging Aisyah's exam. He knew the feeling the boy was going through. It was hard to stand by and watch as someone else risked their lives in your name. He knew that all too well. "Young love indeed. Reminds me of us when we were young. Then again I don't think we were ever as young as those two."

Despite his mistrust of Markos he actually found himself rooting for the young boy now and then. "Oh but if you have any more of those rubber bullets, feel free to shoot him if he steps into the ring before the match is over. It would be a good learning experiance for him."



This was actually starting too look more like a blood sport than it was a fight, especially with the wounds the two of them were suffering through. His breath was still tight from the kick, though it seemed his punch had paid off. As she had stumbled. past him with her wide swing.

The fact that she was bleeding, and looked like she was on her last legs did not really make Scar pause. He had wanted to see her determination and grit in this match, and see for himself the reason she had decided to join the military and work alongside alchemists. And so far he had seen that.

So knowing that she would not stop the fight he closed in as she defenseless and brought up his arm. going for at first what looked like another power blow to her stomach like the one that laid her flat the last time, however in the last seconds his hand opened and switched from a punch to grabbing Aisyah's throat.

He lifted her as his hand closed down around her wind pipe. It was his left hand, the arm of destruction, and if he wanted too here and now he could have beheaded her, however that was much too extreme, and much too violent. Just because this arena felt like a blood sport, it was still a military exam. His other hand went her gut grabbing her and lifting her full over his head as he picked her up.

For a moment the world went still, before he He brought Aisyah's full body down hard throwing her against the ground. "if you're smart... you will stay down this time."

The constant heavy power moves were starting to exhaust him and that along with her taking advantage of her injury had left him ragged.
 

Riza smirked, first merely watching Markos and noting the gears turning through his mind. She could at least discern he was thinking carefully about her advice. That was good enough for her to make up for the lack of being able to read minds. Her smile stayed on her face, though it noticeably fused with a concerned frown. Suffice to say, Riza was very glad she hadn't actually made this decision. Because now, she certainly would have felt horrible if that actually had been her choice.

It had been a given that Scar would have so many advantages against her.

But ... I didn't think it'd be this bad, either ....

Riza barely managed to hide a soft snicker when Aisyah refused to allow the medical team to help her out and, effectively, end the match. "She really is an Ishvalan version of me. Very interesting indeed." She could at least better understand one thing Olivier had repeatedly insisted. It was feeling less ad less like a coincidence that Aisyah happened to appear when she did. Slowly but surely, Riza was better understanding what the elder Armstrong sibling meant.

And now that she was noticing so many similarities between herself and other people, those were feeling less and less random. Some unseen deity seemed to have an interesting sense of humor ... or something. Whatever it was, that would likely be revealed over time.

"Well, young when we fell for one another ... no. In that regard, you're correct. But I most definitely did used to be seventeen at one point in time, and I'm sure you used to be twenty. True though; by those ages, we weren't having such feelings for one another." When she heard Roy ask about if her guns had any fake ammo still in them, Riza quickly nodded, "Mhm. I do still have my blanks, dear. I didn't change them to normal bullets, in fact."

It thus now came down to waiting and seeing if she would even need to take a shot at Markos or not.

... But just in case, Riza quietly pulled one of her pistols out, already keeping it held and at the ready. From what she'd seen of Markos's temper and mannerisms, that would honestly depend on how this match continued to go. If Scar kept his advantage, it would be a very likely, strong 'yes'; likely accompanied with quite a few explatives.
Aisyah could feel tears of pain and anger beginning to fill her eyes. Her head rapidly shook from side to side as she blinked them away. This match was not over! She wouldn't dare let them fall! And if she'd needed anymore incentive, it arrived as Markos hurried close to the stage. "DON'T YOU DARE! YOU STAY OUT OF THIS! I'M NOT DONE YET!"

Her fists clenched tightly as Aisyah's body shuddered. The words were obvious in whom they were truly directed at. And Scar would easily realize that. Aisyah's eyes, however, stayed locked onto her opponent. Watching him, carefully observing his movements in hopes of being able to get some read as to what he'd do.

Well, fuck ...

With Aisyah resorting to feigning some moves, she honestly should have expected the same tactic to be used against her. But it hadn't even crossed her brain; not until it didn't matter and Scar's hand was wrapped around her throat.

He's ... not really going to kill me .... he can't!

.. Of course, with how she looked in the arena, it was easy to assume she could have been wrong. The very real fear and possibility of her life legitimately being in danger made Aisyah's instincts kick in. She swung her legs furiously, trying her damnedest to reach Scar's weak spot. Meanwhile, her right hand tried to slide between Scar's flesh, hoping to keep some oxygen flowing to her lungs. Even if he did spare her, it'd be easy enough for him to try choking her out, which was partly what Aisyah assumed was happening.

... Whether she was happy to be proven or not was uncertain.

"AGHHHH!!"

Her entire body trembled and ached. She'd be damn lucky to walk out of this without further breaking anything else. Aisyah felt almost certain a few things had popped ... though why or what from was beyond her. Her eyes slowly closed as she gasped, panted, and coughed quickly. Desperately even. For a few seconds, Scar's advice about staying down sounded really fucking good.

Idiot! she screamed at herself, hastily re-opening her blue orbs and glaring furiously at Scar.

"Never! Not ... giving ... up!"

It wasn't simply dreading failing her exam that was keeping her so headstrong and determined. She did want to prove herself. If Aisyah chose to heed Scar's 'advice', then she may as well kill her pride, her motivations, her years of training. And that was something she couldn't afford risking going through with.

"URRRRGH!"

Pulling her right leg back, she swung it hard against Scar's side. But even when the attack collided, she didn't immediately stop. She kicked him again ... and again .... and kept assaulting him. When Aisyah's leg felt too tired to continue, she would switch to her arm, repeatedly punching the already wounded area.

If she absolutely had to lose, fine.

But she was hellbent on taking Scar with her.
 

Markos actually took a step back when Aisyah screamed for him not to interfere. He wanted too, when she was hoisted into the air he actually was gripping the side of the arena hard enough that the wood felt like it was going to break his knuckles going white as he watched Aisyah get thrown to the ground.

this match felt rigged. It felt so wrong that Aisyah his best friend his closest ally and confidant would be put into this twisting situation, and to see her fight on without any aid was gross. Damn it girl why didn't you take a knife or something! Looking to the weapons she had chosen not to take it was a sad reminder that at the end of the night no matter what happened to Aisyah she had chosen this fight for herself and nothing he could do would convince her otherwise.

Even if this was a really dumb fight. For the crowd they had gone from the curiosity of watching an event, to the roarus crowd that you would find at any boxing match, to the general audience being quit, sure there were the few people who still saw this as some sort of sporting event, but most had come here to see alchemists at their peek. For Markos it made him feel incredibly powerless. Though he knew he had put Aisyah through the same rings when he had been in his match. He gripped the side.

"I'm just here for the clean up, and to make sure you don't go breaking yourself!"


Sometimes Riza Scared Roy, if just a little. When she drew the gun without much of a question, and the look in her eye told him that she would get great satisfaction out of shooting him. Heck he was half tempted to allow his wife just to shoot him anyway, but also didn't want to distract the fighters.

"I take it you are going to have a lot of fun with these two in boot camp then? Considering you are helping me train them." He had to wonder if that was a smart idea, a general getting so involved with training them. They were special sure, but it could be seen as fair treatment.



Scar was taken aback by the renewed vigor in Aisyah. He thought for sure that his last blow had finished it, and yet she got back onto her feet refused medical help again, and then she started to fight striking him in the worst spot, he couldn't get his guard up for her first kick or even the second, as each time she impacted his old wound it drove the breath from his lungs.

He staggered back loosing ground as she attacked his side, her fists driving home blows that while they held less punch than his own would have, were still powerful strikes aimed with precision. At the same time he couldn't seem to get his hands on her. All of his strikes went wide and each time he tried to attack he stumbled or was put back with another blow.

Gearing his arm back he maid for one more power shot, a strait arm, but was halted and knocked off to the side by one of her kicks. A blow so accurately aimed, that it actually knocked him off his feet. He rolled along the ground for a moment before coming up and facing her, but now both sides were getting tired and worn out.
 

As if she literally were a hawk, Riza's eyes narrowed as she zoned right in on Markos. The gun was kept atop her lap, but held firmly in her right hand for now. There was no immediate need to intervene. And, assuming his declaration about merely being down there to aid the medical team was true, then - hopefully - she wouldn't need to pull back on the trigger. Still, she kept her eyes locked onto the young adult, waiting to see what she may or may not need to do.

Her ears, meanwhile,were listening to everything. Including her husband. And his words most definitely made her chuckle softly. "Hmmm? Me help out? That's an interesting thought. You don't usually want assistance with tasks only you were originally assigned to. But I suppose I could give you some aid, if you'll really need it."

Nonetheless, Riza's head moved up and down, giving her husband an affirmative nod.

"Well ... it's clear who's paired up to help which individual then, isn't it? I can't do alchemy, so it'd be mostly pointless for me to train Markos. Unless ... actually. Maybe that may not be true. Aisyah will need to see the risks and rewards of alchemists, especially should she face a foe that uses it. Let's not kid ourselves; more people use it than don't. She's one of the five or so percent who has proven she can hold her own in the more archaic and traditional ways. So .... perhaps you should train Aisyah while I deal with Markos? Got a preference?"

Her head didn't fully turn, but Riza most definitely did look at her husband with peripheral vision. A very curious and amused glint could easily be detected in both her eyes and smirk. It was true that originally, she hadn't thought she would be helping out with this.

But now, she was glad. This was already going to be very interesting regardless of how her husband responded. Riza could already sense that much to be true.
What's wrong with my body?!

Aisyah had been trying to take advantage of Scar breathing heavily and clearly not expecting her to get back up to her advantage. To be somewhat honest, though, a lot of Aisyah was amazed at what she was doing. Even she had expected herself to give up. She was so fucking sore, and steadily becoming exhausted. It only got worse each time she missed with an attack.

No doubt adrenaline rush was helping her keep moving, as was her own sense of pride.

But how much longer would that last?

Every time she feared the response would be something along the lines of 'not much longer', she threw another punch or kick at Scar, growling as they continued to miss.

NO! Not yet! Fuck, shit! I ... don't .... want to be told no just because an old wound got re-opened!

At the same time, even she could feel her left arm was approaching Scar at a much slower pace than compared to when the fight had started. Even if it wasn't broken somehow, it was definitely fucked up in its own form and fashion. In fact, that was probably true for any part of her body Scar had hurt somehow.

There!

When Scar rolled and lost his balance completely, Aisyah ran forward. Surely she could get him while he was prone. Practically helpless, right?

... Apparently not, as her own balance faltered. Nothing twisted or rolled, but her body was so sore that Aisyah's legs caved in. The adrenaline was beginning to die down and she was feeling more and more tempted to close her eyes and take a very long nap.

The only thing keeping her from going through with that was the equally fatigued man beside her.

Aisyah trembled, trying to make the adrenaline rush stay - possibly re-start even - as she shakily tried to scoot away from him, not wanting to be in his range so Scar could easily grab her.
 

"Well it was your suggestion to put them under my training in the first place." Roy looked at Riza with a smile, enjoying the fact that she had taken his advice and was still training her gun on Markos who was pretty much oblivious just watching the fight as things went on.

Aisyah was probably one of the best martial artists he had seen in years. even though she could have gone down several times now, she had in fact stayed up, and was running Scar ragged something that not even state alchemists had done, even though he wasn't exactly in his prime anymore he had to give her credit where it was due.

"The boy uses plants, and has already given his opinion on my alchemy. He would refuse to learn anything from me, and the only thing I would get from him is target practice. On the other hand Aisyah's mind is more open, she's agile on her feet, and could stand to learn how to fight someone with a range that she can't compete with. I think it makes sense to divide and conquer."

"That's not to say Markos won't give you some problems. He's not a one trick alchemist like most of the old wave of state alchemists. People like me or Kimblee who do one thing very well. Training Markos will be about teaching him how to react, forcing him into situations where he can't have the same prep time, and forcing him to think outside of his green thumb. It's a task right up your alleyway, if you don't mind getting strung up again. After all he's already made it to state alchemist, he's now a rare 10% of the craft, the paper iq test state alchemists are given, along with the samples from his 'garden' that he submitted with his application all mark him as a master of the craft."

Roy shook his head a faint smile as he looked the two profiles over in his mind. "He doesn't need to learn alchemy, he needs to learn how to deal with the rest of his life. Twenty years old and he's lived in a library for most of that time. No social skills, He probably can't cook, and he's never even fired his service pistol. Basically he's an idiot savant, and he's going to test your patience."


Scar was starting to feel sore in his bones. He could see Aisyah becoming clumsy in her motions, some part of him did worry that it was perhapse a side effect of blood loss, but as neither of them were hitting each other at the moment he also knew that this was running to it's close.

As the two of them were loosing energy and blood, as well as feeling the onsets of battle exuastion. It was clear that here and now that this needed to end. The fact that they were also both on the ground was tiring him out, the needs of sleep calling to him saying that even this fighting matt would do just fine.

As she scooted away he got to his feet, letting her do the same. Neither fighter had the energy left to go further so this was going to end it, and he would give her the dignity of going out on her feet.

Braced, haggered, but ready he charged in. Going for the high rode, and leaving himself open as Brought down the full force of a haymaker against her bleeding and weak side the strike he was sure going to knock the last bit of resistance from her.

Only to feel in those last few seconds something stab hard against his own side, his body staggering for a moment as his vision went black. Falling to the ground needing rest.

[video=youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWXlCVKDroA[/video]



The battlefield fell silent and Markos watched as both competitors went down. Neither one of them rising from the ground. He waited with tense bated breath as the fight was called, and once it was well and officially over he and the rest of the medical team was on the field.

He looked over Aisyah's body, quickly placing a hand on the field a blue calming light forming over the ground to make an alchestry symbol rather than a transmutation circle. closing the wound with alchemy to prevent any further bleeding.

He sniffled, part of him wanted to beat Aisyah into further unconsciousness for worrying him. The other part of him felt proud of her for taking down someone in such a way. Then there was the rest of him that was just exhausted with all of this, and wanted to go back to his apartment crawl into his bed and sleep for five years.
 

Riza shrugged as her husband reminded her of what Markos thought of him. "Unfortunately, he will have to learn that won't often matter. Opinions on people won't, anyway. For things like battle? Probably. More likely than not. But ... point made. It probably is wiser to make this easier on us instead of more difficult."

Of course, there likely would be some challenges already. After all, she was agreeing to train the man she'd had to lie to about who arranged Aisyah's fight. It'd be a miracle if after this, Markos wouldn't try to take any frustations out on her.

Not to say Riza was scared. Especially knowing her husband would be nearby. It helped decrease any chances of the boy being able to pull off any overly lethal or deadly moves against her should the pocket watch itself fail. These were all just very nice, reassuring precautions she was taking note of more than anything.

" ... Wait a minute ... "

Slowly, people began to stand up. Shocked gasps ad whispers echoed around the stadium. Riza grimaced, hating that her view had now effectively been blocked. When she got up and stood on her two feet, though, her mouth couldn't help but fall agape.

" ... Holy crap. Are they ... both .... ??"

Her question would be answered as the match was declared over due to the two competitors knocking one another out.

"Heh. Well, well. I'll be damned. I don't think anyone has done that to Scar ever before. Even Bradley didn't get him that badly, lest I'm mistaken. Looks like you'll have a very interesting pupil to take up, my love."
"Hah ... hah .... "

Aisyah trembled, wincing as she forced her muscles to move. Everything was screaming, internally begging for it all to end. She was exhausted. As someone who had been trained by numerous monks and fighters in the Xerxes Ruins, it was borderline impossible to get Aisyah to this type of state, let alone so quickly.

Lo and behold, Scar had done it. That ... spoke volumes. The man was amazing and probably more competent than anyone else she'd met or been taught by.

The thought was intimidating, more so as she pondered on it for a few moments.

Not now ... she reminded herself, weakly shaking her head from side to side before lifting it. After adjusting her sight and making sure she was only seeing one Scar as opposed to two, Aisyah ran forward, throwing her right leg as hard as she could at the exposed injury.

"Ahh!"

Her body shuddered as the shoulder was smacked once more. Somehow, even harder than the other times. The man was as worn out as she ... yet Scar had put as much strength into the hit as she had.

"Son of a ... "

That was as far as she got. Before the last of her consciousness disappeared, however, she heard what Aisyah was almost positive to be Scar's body plop to the ground. That made a satisfied smirk weakly spread over her face.

She'd won then ... hadn't she? Hopefully that was the case.
"Ngh ... "

It would be hours before Aisyah regained consciousness. The familiar white background implied she was back in a hospital room, though ... was it really the exact same location as before?

"No," she simply heard beside her.

Aisyah wearily turned her head and found Riza sitting beside her, flashing quite the proud grin at the young teenager.

"You're inside Central's base. This isn't the hospital you were first taken to. Right now, you're practically an open book to anyone nearby. With that being said and done, congratulations. You more than earned your spot as one of our soldiers. Very well deserved. As you can assume, I have both good and bad news for you. What do you want first?"

Aisyah frowned, feeling what brief moments of relief had been swimmiing through her vanish as quickly as it appeared. "Hmm. Bad, I suppose."

"Alright. Because of the constant assault on your shoulder, it did get fractured. The good news is it was closed. So it didn't pierce through your skin or sever any muscles, tendons, or ligaments. Still, do try to take it easy. I doubt you want that shoulder permanently ruined."

"N-no. Definitely not."

Aisyah owered her head, now looking at the shoulder. It at least didn't look nearly as bad as part of her had expected ... then again, like Riza had relayed, closed versus open was probably a huge difference.

You're not the doctor, though. Markos is, she reminded herself, her eyes widening slightly as she quickly sat up. "Is he around? Oh god, he's pissed at me, isn't he?"

Riza merely chuckled softly. "Actually ... he's probably more furious at me than you. That match ... was my doing. My arranging. And it seems it was the right move to make. You did really well against someone who could use the more typical fighting moves plus alchemy. It was more surprising he didn't resort to alchemy, I think."

Aisyah felt her heart stop. Prior to Riza dropping that hint to her, she never would have guessed the same man she'd fought was that deadly. Strong, obviously. But hearing he could do both melee fighting and alchemy? That was absolutely terrifying.

"Pardon me, miss, but holy fuck. How do you find people like that?"

Riza grinned, merely standing up. "The entire story is too long to relay. What I can hint, however, is ironically enough, Scar found us. Not vice versa. Anyway ... when you're dismissed, you will be awarded the title of Captain. Further details of your boot camp will be given later. For now ... you and Mr. Fischer have earned a very well-earned moments of reprieve. As such, I' going to let him know you've finally woken up."

Aisyah would find, when following Riza's movements, she wouldn't need to wait that long. Plopped in a nearby chair was the sleeping form of her childhood friend.

Slowly, Riza lowered a gloved hand and lightly moved one of Markos's shoulders. "She's up," the blonde would simply state before saluting the two newcomers and exiting the from, leaving them to their own devices.
 

On the one hand, Roy was pretty sure that Scar was holding back considering that he had never once used alchemy. There was a moment where he had been holding the girls neck where even just a few years ago it would have been over for her. That said in the here and now she had held her own better than any single person had before her.

As the medical team arrived to take them away he looked over the three people in the ring. Markos, Aisyah and Scar, the three ishballin's turned military men. If there was any chance of fixing the east, or any other problem that came to this country it would take the lot of them to figure it out successfully.

It was a lot to ask of them, but something told him that they would be fine in the long run. When Riza spoke to him Roy nodded. "I admit I have high hopes for those two, please try not to kill your new student."

He paused for a moment when she called him his love in public, a soft blush running across his face. "Please Riza, your embarrassing me. Not out in the open like this."



Markos woke when he felt a hand shake him. Looking up to see Riza, he grunted in afermation as he rubbed his face for a moment trying to shake off having slept in a chair, again.

Getting to his feet he dusted himself off. "Thank you Colonel." He got to his feet shaking himself and stretching completely, taking deep breaths of air as he walked up to Aisyah's bed. As his eyes were more awake slowly with each passing second they seemed to glow for a moment, as he had to stiffle a breath.

Standing at the side of her bed, he honestly didn't know what to say. He looked at her for a moment half way between absolutely livid, and completely terrified.

"I closed your wounds, and assisted with putting everything back into place. You were pretty roughed up, and I had to use Alchehestry to do the initial closing. You won't find any stitching this time, nothing that can pop loose or break back open, but the method i used wasn't a complete fix you will have a lasting scar, and your arm will take a few days to return to full strength as the newly grown muscle needs time sit and patch together."

He gave her the facts his voice not trembling as he looked at her. He kept replaying a conversation the two of them had, as long as she wasn't being forced to participate in alchemy she could live with it. She just had her wounds closed with alchemy, she probably hated him for that.

"I'm sorry, it was the only thing I could think of. You... scared me!" He sniffled and brushed a hand along his eyes. "Why? It's been less than a week and we are already back in the hospital. I just got you back in my life, and already I had to patch you back together."

"If you died if something ever happens to you... I would force you back! I don't care what I'd have to do, you're far to precious for me to loose do you understand that? I should put you behind a desk for the rest of your life captain, I could do it you know. I outrank you now, i could just order you into a desk job and keep you safe... But you'd resent me for it... I'm just... I can't... If that wound had been any worse I'd have had to use alchemy... to sacrifice some portion of myself to patch you up. Do you understand? I'm ordering you to be safe for me."
 

As Riza entered the halls, she raised a gloved hand in front of her mouth, muffling a very worn out yawn. Naturally, quite a bit of paperwork had needed to be filed away. Even though it hadn't actually been her decision to pit Aisyah versus Scar, she was still going along with that lie. And so, that meant she had to act like she was going to take the responsibility. Thus, she had spent most of the time Aisyah had been unconscious dealing with the 'busy work', as Roy tended to love calling it. It was one of those unfortunate but very essential evils in her line of work.

"Ngh ... glad that's over with," she muttered, conversing more with herself than anyone.

Riza would be a few paces away from entering Roy's office before her eyes caught Sheska. "Ahh, good! Could you turn this in, please?"

In her hands, Riza had been holding all of the documentation explaining why Aisyah was in such bad shape, what had happened, and so on. Would you please go turn this in to the Fuhrer or the next highest person?"

As Sheska grabbed the parchment and thumb swiftly through it, her head tilted slightly. Thinking she hadn't heard her or something, Riza opened her mouth and began to repeat herself, only to be interrupted by the smaller female. "Miss? This was already turned in though. About twenty minutes ago, to be precise."

" ... I see. Do you know whom gave those over by chance?"

After seeing Sheska move her head from side to side, a knot tightened in Riza's midsection. "Hmmm. Very well. I guess ... I'll keep those for my reference. I'll find somewhere else to put them away. Forgive the interruption then."

After saluting one another, the two parted ways, with Riza looking very concerned and worried. It seemed whatever was going on wasn't simply a paranoid thought. No, there was a real, legitimate concern. Something was going on in Central that neither she nor Roy knew about. Riza had officially all but confirmed it for herself with the latest talk between her and Sheska. In all honesty though, she didn't want to bring those topics up just yet.

Upon finding herself in front of Roy's door, she knocked three times before entering, tossing the papers swiftly away. "I was given the wrong ones. They were already turned in, apparently. Now then ... we're done for tonight I'd say, don't you agree? Let's go home, shall we?"
In and out ... in and out. Aisyah continued taking deep breaths through her nostrils, trying to keep a more calm and collected attitude. Even though it had been years since she saw Markos, she was terrified. It was pretty dumb, really. But on one hand ... maybe it wasn't? That had been why she asked Riza if he was angry at her or not, after all. And it wasn't that she didn't believe the elder Amestrian. It was more like ... she was hesitant to easily believe Markos wasn't at all furious with her.

Few, if any people, wouldn't be experiencing some degree of distress.

But ... that wasn't the same as outright rage. So she'd be alright.

... Right?

"Markos, ummm ... "

"You... scared me!"

If Aisyah did note or hear that alchemy had been used on her, she wasn't caring enough to scold or bitch him out. Her heart sank as she lowered her head, feeling unworthy of being able to look at him. "I'm sorry. I ... that was definitely not my intention. Nowhere near it. But at the same time .... " Slowly, Aisyah lifted her head, looking back at Markos with a now determined and resolved look in her eyes. "Surely though, you did know this wouldn't be any easier than if I were attempting to become an alchemist, right? It's just as risky as your own occupation, if not a tad more. And so ... "

She paused, allowing him to finish his rant before speaking up once more.

"I'm glad you think so highly of me. But I refuse to acknowledge or agree to things like an unholy revival. You wouldn't even bring the real me back; or so that's what I've been told. Either way, no. If you want to use alchemy for wounds ... alright. If that was really what had to be done, I'll understand. But to go against the will of our faith and defy Death itself?"

Aisyah's head moved from side to side.

"I forbid it. Somehow, I'll find a way to remove whatever you put on me without having to resort to using alchemy myself. There are ways to undo everything, no matter how impossible it may seem. The main point, Markos, is I came to Central knowing and realizing the risks that would await me as a soldier. I now better comprehend them. That being said, you're right. Not only would I resent you, I don't think any higher-ups would allow me to stay behind a desk."

It was easy to detect that 'any higher-ups' immediately referred to people like Riza, the Armstrongs, or Roy. But really, the point was what mattered, as well as factoring in every other name the two didn't know about.

"I .... can't promise to be completely safe for you. That's not really what soldiers do. We fight. We protect what we're asked to guard, and we do it with almost no questions asked. So if that means giving my life for anyone here, including you ... "

A weak grin spread over her face.

"I'll do it, Markos. In a heartbeat. The best I can promise is I'll try to stay safe for you. But I can't make any guarantees, even if a part of me wants to. I'm sorry."
 

Roy was half asleep at his desk when he heard the knocks he had just enough time to brush his eyes and pretend to be working on some paperwork when Riza entered the room.

When she said that someone else had handed in the paperwork for Aisyah it was more than a little worrying. It meant that someone else had their eyes on the new pair. He stood up and looked out at his wife. He shook his head in answer to the question that she didn't ask.

"It wasn't me."

If it wasn't either of them that left one of the other four generals, and Olivier was back in Briggs by now. Either way this was starting to get worrying. For now he just walked towards Riza, offering her a gloved hand. It was the end of the night, they were off duty, he could be a little more affectionate now.

"We will figure that mystery out at another point, for now I agree lets go home." He was all too happy to walk beside her instead of always having her behind him.



Of course he knew that they were going to be in danger most of the time. They were in the military now. If given an order both of them would have to obey it, and that also meant there was always a chance that either of them would end up dead in the long run, and saying that he could bring her back while sincere and honest was probably disturbing in it's approach. "Okay you're right going against the universe it's self would be pretty stupid on my part. I just..." He did however loose his tongue after a moment.

"Could you stop that?" He said giving another shake of his head. "How many times do I have to remind you that it's not my culture. I was raised by the state, not by Ishball, sure I have the skin and eye color, but I've never followed the religion. That would be like me saying that our culture is one fully dedicated to science. It's not your path, so please start respecting that Ishball has never been part of my path."

He could accept her belief in god, he just wished she would respect that he didn't have any such belief.

He sniffled for a moment, trying not to cry as he looked at her. "You will need to avoid any heavy lifting for a few days, no additional strain on your arm. Aside from that as long as you are near an attending physician I've already cleared your release from this place."

He shook his head, there was more he wanted to say of course. Part of him thought that he should try to confess his feelings, but at the same time that moment seemed lost after. He sighed and shook his head. She had agreed at least agreed to be safe. He let out a sigh.

"We should go." He said averting his eyes and turning his back so that she could get out of the hospital bed, he had brought some fresh clothing for her to change into, but her original outfit had been completely ruined, and she was now just in a hospital gown.
 

In all honesty, Riza hadn't originally intended to ask Roy if he had been the one to turn the papers in. Yet when he seemed to read the small yet very curious part of her mind which was dwelling on the thought and give the answer she mostly expected, a slight frown crossed her face. "Hmmmm," she mused, gently tapping her fingers on top of her sleeve. "That's ... disturbing. Someone has managed to get and stay at least three to ten paces ahead of us, maybe even more. There are almost no people with the authority and ability to go over our heads. Despite this, we don't really have any definite leads. Very nerve-wracking indeed."

Riza let out a weary sigh, quietly trying to figure out if she could make any sense of what was going on.

... Alas, no such luck.

"Well ... for now, they've got us beat, I suppose. I don't like admitting it. But it'd be worse for us to just point fingers at random people. So ... let's go home, shall we?"

While it could be argued Riza wasn't in her prime as a soldier much anymore, there were other tasks she was definitely still more than capable of. The ones she made no effort of hiding via the cheerful tone in her voice and slight glint in her eyes, however, implied they needed to be home, not at work, to go through with those.

.... Unless he felt like being really bold.

But she doubted it, and truthfully, Riza wouldn't blame Roy. Beds were always better surfaces to use than desks or tables, especially more so for certain mature activities. Roy would easily notice as they began leaving the building there was definitely more energy than usual in Riza's steps. If he only thought she was ready and eager to get home, he knew now how she felt.
" ... I see. So that's really how you feel, huh?"

The snap from Markos when he insisted he didn't care to follow the faith and religion of her kin wasn't really something Aisyah had expected. And honestly? It kinda stung.

Was this what alchemy did to everyone? Made people who used to walk down the more typical and mostly correct paths stray?

If it weren't for the fact Markos had been hesitant to follow their culture back when they first met, Aisyah would feel that would have otherwise been the case. "Alright," she added, bowing her head slightly, "I understand. I'm sorry. I'll drop the matter then. On the flip side though, you don't have to be so snippy with me. I don't really appreciate it."

Her head plopped down against the pillow. Slow, steady breaths were taken as Aisyah listened carefully to her recovery instructions. It was nothing new nor unexpected. Rest. Take it easy. Don't do any overly heavy lifting for a certain amount of time. All that good jazz.

"That's fine. I didn't intend to carry anything too heavy anyway. At worst, groceries or anything else I may need to buy. But ... nothing worse than that. Agreed. I'm ready to head back."

While Markos turned around, Aisyah took the opportunity to better examine herself. Amazingly, there was no sling like she'd half-expected. Her shoulder was tightly wrapped. A gentle roll of the joint hinted underneath were a new set of stitches.

Hopefully these are sturdier, she thought, pulling the gown off and changing into the new outfit Markos had brought over.

" .... I know we've both had our respective bitchy moments. But ... I do appreciate all the more positive times we've had, despite being together for a brief period. So thanks for sticking with me and everything. I'm not asking you to like the fact I'm going to be putting myself in danger a lot. But ... do respect that I chose this career, just as I've been doing so for you to become an alchemist. Alright?"

Flashing a small, tired smile, Aisyah raised her hand, muffling an equally worn out yawn.

"Home. Yeah ... that sounds great about now. Let's go."
 

Mustang couldn't read minds, but the way Riza was walking told him plenty, and he was more than happy to keep pace with her. If they were anxious to get home it was because they wanted to have a chance to be alone. Something that had become rare in the passing years.

Walking up to the house, most people would have considered this place elaborate in some way. Generals got a part of state land, and Roy certainly hadn't turned down the offer of the estate, even if they only used a hand full of rooms in it. It was a quiet place.

Walking into the main foyer of the house, he turned and grabbed Riza as soon as they were inside. Puling her into a warm enticing embrace as he kissed her passionately. His tongue flicking against hers. Tasting her lips as his hands hungerly pulled at her jacket and then at his own. Tossing things like his boots to the far end of the hall, and honestly he doubted he would even get much further than that. Beds were great, but the floor?

That was often the best.




Markos sighed why was it always like that? they got into a stressful situation and then they snipped at each other. He hadn't meant to sound that aggressive about it, but this was a touchy subject for the two of them.

In truth he wasn't religious, an all knowing all loving god wouldn't allow for war orphans to exist. Bradly himself had called for God to strike him down, during the civil war and yet it had been the hands of mortals that had killed Bradly.

All was one, and one was all. There were no chosen ones, or fated extremes, no grand destinies you get one life to do with the most you can, and out of his life all he really wanted was to help others. He could agree with Aisyah on that. Speaking of which despite wanting to turn around and see Aisyah's body as she changed from her gown to actual clothing. Markos never so much as peeked behind him, being the honest gentleman.

"Aisyah," He started but paused if she didn't understand why he wanted to keep her safe. Then really there was no point in saying it out loud. No she would have to make the first move on that front.

"We both have the military uniform, and if we are lucky then one day we can get to where Roy and Riza are. I'm going to be relying on you to have my back on the field Aisyah."

He returned her smile with one of his own moving a little closer to her. She had still lost a lot of blood today, and he didn't know how strong her legs were after all of that.

"You have my fullest confidence, but a friend is still allowed to worry about your safety. I've never looked down at your choice I wouldn't be wearing this uniform if I didn't agree with you after all." He walked beside her, but was unsure what to do. Part of him wanted to take her hand.

But in the end the walk home fell into an uneasy silence, by the time he had opened the door to the apartment they were sharing he was just as exhausted as she was, but as he flicked on the lights something was very wrong.

For one he hadn't had to use his key, and the doors lock had clearly been forced, secondly the main living room had been ripped apart. With the sofa having been cut into, and diliberately searched.

Markos opened his bedroom door, immediately to find his books scattered pages upon pages of journals had been ripped apart and then thrown along the room. The circles he had been working on and using the chalk wall had been tampered with and erased.

In his panic however had failed to notice the most crucial part of all of this. The smell, and heat. The noise comin from his green lab. Black smoke bellowed from behind the door, and the doorknob would be too hot to touch. The apartment was full of smoke, but it didn't matter.

None of it mattered. His life's work was gone.
 

A very small amount of other soldiers - no doubt jealous of her marital status - had tried to accuse Riza years ago of being a gold digger. She had only fallen in love with Roy because he was a high-ranking soldier. For that matter, he was, even to this day, one of Central's best alchemists. For her, though, those were all bonuses. He could have been lower in rank and she would have still fallen in love. He had proven time and time again his heart was in the very right place, with her and the other soldiers, alchemists or not.

Especially when he watched her bleed out ... she had seen it. Not perfectly given her own vision almost faded out. But she could never fully erase the fear that had entered his eyes that fateful day. He was legitimately scared. For her and the others that were with them. Not himself. No, he was last on his list of priorities that evening. That was why he lied about committing the ultimate taboo.

Of course, it didn't matter. In the end, he was forced to open the gate. For at least a few days, he stayed blind, the condition being reversed once he received a Philosopher's Stone.

Most other people Riza knew would have crumbled. Allowed the despair and forced condition to drive them mad. But not Roy. He stayed strong, continued to fight until Bradley and all the remaining Homunculi were dead. Granted, he needed her help in aiming his shots. But if he could swallow enough pride to do that much rather than give up, that earned more than enough respect for Riza.

"Mmmm!"

The kiss yanked Riza away from the grim thoughts. Her arms happily rose, lightly wrapping around Roy's neck as she leaned into the kiss. Her mouth opened, giving him easier access. Riza's own tongue trailed over Roy's caressing and dancing with the other muscle as she deeply french kissed her husband. While her other half began working on disrobing their upper bodies, Hawkeye took the lower. She first slid out of her boots. One hand remained lightly pressed on the nape of Roy's neck.

Meanwhile, her right moved down, undoing first her own zipper and button. No effort was made to keep the pants from falling, revealing a red, silk pair of panties. Rather than moving her lingerie aside, though, she opted to move her hand across, resting it on her spouse's crotch. After teasing his clothed cock with a few gentle touches, her hand carefully worked on lowering his button and zipper, beginning to expose the very thing she desperately wanted.

Where did she desire it the most?

Everywhere, to be completely honest. This was an evening they were long overdue for. And if they were about to become Markos and Aisyah's direct supervisors soon for boot camp, it would be all the more reason to savor tonight. There were no guarantees about when they'd have another moment like this. Honestly, chances were it wouldn't be for at least a month, if not longer. Even more incentive to focus on nothing but the only man she dreamed of being with every second of her life.
"Hm?" Her head tilted as Markos called her name out. When he hesitated, an eyebrow raised. Had he forgotten? Not likely ... but maybe. Her instincts, however, originally jumped to something was on his mind. But then ... was that why he was about to speak to her? To voice whatever concern or thoughts he had? ... It sounded like that was a good enough assumption. Of course, she didn't know what he was truly thinking, which made the half-lie he chose to say that much more realistic and believable.

"Only lucky?" she teased, chuckling softly. "I hope we'll have more than that. We both showed skill in our respective fortes, after all, during our exams. We'll need a lot more of that as well as luck to get where Roy and Riza are. Still ... it does seem possible. So maybe we will. Until then ... eh?!"

Her cheeks flushed as Markos hinted she would trust her judgement for more battle-oriented tasks.

"W-Well ... alright. I'm flattered you think that highly of me and all, just .... I don't think you'd be horrible. If, like, you had to listen to your own instincts or something. We may not always be together, you know? We may be separated, be it because of orders or ... other circumstances. No matter what, we'll need to be ready and able to adapt. That's all I'm trying to say. Hopefully it made enough sense." When he added his own part about being able to still worry about her as a comrade, Aisyah nodded. "Well, yeah. Naturally. That makes sense. I just ---- "

The short walk suddenly turned into a nightmare as they arrived at what used to be Markos' place, but now appeared to be turned into a crime scene. One of arson, from what she could discern, as hinted by the smoke.

"Oh god. Markos ... "

Her less hurt hand raised, covering her mouth; partly from the sight of how his place now looked and thus out of reaction, and also to keep herself from inhaling too much smoke. Slowly, Aisyah walked inside, following him into the apartment. As he began checking his room, she started investigating the living room. What she was doing? Even Aisyah wasn't exactly sure, to be honest. She just knew it felt stupid to stand in the doorway wearing a clueless expression.

"What ... I mean. It seems like ... did someone steal something? That's what it looks like."

As she spoke, she removed her hand to help ensure her friend could help her. After finding her voice and finishing the question, her hand re-covered her mouth, preventing too much smoke from infiltrating her circulatory system.
 

Mustang let out a soft moan as he felt Riza caress his clothed cock before trying to get at him with as much vigor as she could put out. his pants easily surrendering to her hands and being kicked off as Roy made an attempt to step out of them.

The kisses between Roy and Riza didn't break as he kissed down her neck. His hands moving to her Jacket, pulling the zipper down and practically ripping it off her shoulders as he tossed the decorated uniform jacket onto the ground where it belonged.

One may have assumed that he would then go to take off his jacket, but instead Roy broke the kiss, so he could lift off Riza's shirt.

He had always been kind of mesmerized by her body. When he had first seen the tattoo along her back it had been a comical start of a relationship. With he covering her front half with a towel while he took notes of the alchemy written out on her back. It had always been strange that her father had chosen to tattoo her with information that she had never fully understood. Or that he had trained him over his own daughter.

Back then he had never been allowed to see her front half, because no alchemy or writing was present there. Now however his fingers drifted over her stomach as he kissed her neck, tossing her shirt with her jacket and his pants in clusters over by the front door.

He was locked in desire with Riza. His wife could be avaricious at times but he was always ready to please. Tonight may end up being the last night in a while they could do anything as a couple, so he wanted to do as much as possible.




Markos sat choking on the air. having long fallen to his knees, his eyes burning as he looked over his collection of books. Immediately he could spot the three that were missing.

Unfortunately those three were probably the most important, and going over everything still in his mind he didn't know how he was going to replace all of this. This was everything he had ever worked on, and now it was gone. It was painful to look at, both because the smoke was burning his eyes, and because he didn't know what someone else could do with his research.

When he felt a hand on his shoulder he looked to see Aisyah, and for a moment he wanted to just tell her to leave, before remembering that he was standing in his appartment as it burned to the ground. It wasn't exactly the best idea for him to stick around right now.

"My research, my work... it's all gone. Someone took my journals."

He like every alchemist had encoded them, but it wouldn't take long for someone with the knowledge of alchemy to break down his encryptions. They had clearly known what they were looking for considering he had labeled his books as volumes of old fairy tales, no one should have known what too look for, and yet they were the only three books missing among his collection.

Taking a hand full of stuff he knew he could save, he held out a hand asking for Aisyah to help him to his feet. Still shaking he managed to move with her out of the apartment and waking up a neighbor to call the local fire department. Since the area was too dry for him to create water he just had to sit back and watch as the apartment was broken into by fire men, and the blaze that was once his plants was slowly put out.

It took hours, of him and pretty much everyone he lived around till it was cleared for them to go back inside. Once in the house. He looked around. The fire was out but the smell of smoke still lingured, once he was let into his lab was damaged, dark smoke lines and unsafe insolatation was everywhere. His chimara's his plants were were accounted for, but burned alive.

"Don't disturb the soil, some of them were designed to regenerate, if their stem and roots survived the blaze it's possible that they could be hungry, or defensive. I'm gonna have to figure out which ones survived and replant them somewhere else."

Looking around his eyes still burned from the smell. "We should just go to a hotel for the night, I have enough money to put us up somewhere for a night if you don't mind sharing a room."
 

"Mmmmhhh ... "

Each new kiss and touch from her spouse only made Riza more and more hot. Drenched even in certain areas. It wasn't that she'd never wanted Roy. Far from it. But there was something about this specific night that separated it from most of the other times they'd been together. It held a large amount of significance. Intimacy. It felt very akin to falling in love all over again ... or something like that. And in some regards, that wasn't an unfair guess. Their relationship had been so unorthodox that, honestly, they never really followed the traditional steps. There hadn't really been many - if any - dates. There had been certain customs heeded, however; a proposal and wedding being two of them.

But this was starting to feel as sacred as all of those things plus more that Riza may or may not be forgetting.

"Hah, hah ... "

Her head lifted in time to see Roy's eyes focused on her breasts. "Ohh? Like what you see, hmm?" Her hand slid down, lightly brushing and massaging his now exposed length and gently stroking the erect muscle. "I ... I'm going to try something. Don't you dare laugh at me."

It was a certain 'something' that in all their years of being together, Riza had never mustered up the courage to try. But if tonight was going to be this special, this memorable ... then why not?

So, she sank to her knees .... and trapped Roy's cock in between her breasts. One hand was used to keep them carefully pressed together, ensuring the shaft stayed in place. Slowly, Riza began moving her chest up and down, panting a bit.

Oh god. I can't believe I'm doing this ...

Her face burned as she kept going. Partly to help from having a nervous break down and partially out of pure desire, Riza opened her mouth and lightly began sucking on the head of Roy's cock, teasing and flicking it slowly with her tongue.
" ... Markos?"

Seeing him sitting so close to the smoke was a rather sad sight. Literally one full of sorrow and pity. He probably wouldn't want it, but ... well. It was difficult to stop certain things, reactions being one of them. The softened eyes of Aisyah gave a bit of a hint as to what she could - and was - feeling and even thinking.

"Come on. It's not smart to stay here and die from asphyxiation or something just as dreadful."

Slowly, Aisyah reached down, lowering a hand and offering it to Markos. Whether he accepted or not, she eventually helped him up to his feet and guided him outside, allowing the firemen to enter without any problems. While the fire was being extinguished, she said nothing ... mainly because what could be said? Sorry? No, not this time. If this were about something completely different, maybe. But no. His most prized possessions had been stolen.

Theft was something that Aisyah just couldn't relate to, as it had never happened to her before. The fact it was something he had truly loved and cared about? She definitely couldn't begin to guess how he was feeling or even how to comfort him.

"Maybe someone who investigates the arson will find something?" Aisyah finally offered. "I mean, there had to be something left behind; fingerprints, footprints, hints as to how they got your door open. I'm sure a lead will come up ... or at least your journals will be found again."

... Sharing a room?

The implications alone made Aisyah blush. Staying in a hotel tended to involve that people did so for more sensual reasons. Still ... he had a point. Staying here would be stupid. Dangerous even.

"No. I don't mind."

As they turned to leave the burned down apartment, she looked right into Markos' eyes, "I'll understand and respect that you don't follow our religion. But at least ... try to hold onto the concept of faith, perhaps? Things will get better. I promise."

A small smile spread on her face as she reached forward and gently took one of Markos' hands into her own. "I would lead ... but I have no idea on where the various buildings are yet. So ... care to guide us?"
 

Roy looked at his wife with a desperate curiosity soft moans escaping his lips as he felt her hand stroking his cock. His own hands taking off his jacket as the two of them were now naked, and barely past the front door.

When she sank to her knees he had no idea what to expect, and again her request to not laugh at her was odd. She had sucked on him before, and when she started to lock his cock between her breasts the only words that escaped past his lips were a soft 'oh' sound as set herself to work.

It was rare to see Riza so embarrassed. While he was the goofy one of the two on the outside, here in the privacy of their home he got to see other side of Riza. The more bashful playful side, and the side that got embarassed from pleasing her husband.

The flick of her tongue as pleasureful as it was, didn't really compare to the softness of her breasts against his cock, it was a new feeling, and one he enjoyed. His hand softly going down to rest on Riza's blond hair. "I've been pent up, so I probably won't last long this first round."

He gave both his warning, and his delight, because while he may cum fast at first he had plenty of stamina to spare, and there was always more than one round.



It was hard, to see his entire life scattered around him like this. As far as he could tell the room that had served as his lab had been an inferno and none of his plants had really survived.

He checked around for them still, hoping that in the ashes he could salvage something from his creations. His notes were gone, which meant he would have to recreate most of these from memory. It wasn't impossible he knew the majority of them, and had created multiple.

His lifes work was still in his head, he could salvage all of this, but at the same time there was the pain and paranoia that someone had done this and they could do it again. Leaving for the night was the safest option of course, and he didn't want to stay here. Now that he had access to larger funding he could probably move out.

Walking out of the apartment he took Aisyah's hand and let out a soft sigh. "It's not that I don't have faith in anything."

Though right now it was certianly hard to see that faith, and how it could be rewarded. "I believe in the general goodness of humans. The potential we can achieve in our life time. I have faith that the majority of people in this world are good. I'm not spiritual, but I certainly believe in a cycle of life and renewal."

He waved towards the apartment. "Fire, the great destroyer, or equalizer for instance leaves everything left to ruin, but ashen soil is highly fertile. In a forest fire the forest will actually come back stronger and more resilient. Nothing in this world is every truly lost, it just changes shape... at least that's how i have come to see the world."
 

The moans were all Riza needed to hear. Almost instantly, relief swept through her. Her muscles visibly relaxed; though not to the point she completely stopped with her ongoing task. Still, it now didn't look as if she were in her more serious mindset, either. Everything work-related had been well thrown out their window and was, at least for now, the last thing on her mind. The main focus at - and in hand - was pleasing her husband. While Riza continued ensuring her husband's shaft stayed in place, she soon found one major downside with this experiment.

It left her unable to even touch herself.

If this had been a more typical oral session, she could have at least done that while also pleasing her lover.

Then again, this wasn't his fault. She honestly should have realized that would be an obstacle much sooner. And at the same time, something told Riza it would be worth the wait. When Roy really wanted to be, he could be a different type of 'wild'. One that no one in Central would have ever assumed or guessed. And, if at all possible, even more 'strict'. Dominant, some could argue. But they were fine. These were the sides of Roy that she had come to know and love, just like how he had found foreign aspects and sides of her.

"Mmm, it's okay, love. I kinda am too, so I figured you would be. But that's why ... mmmh .... we have all night to work on getting all of our frustrations out."

A coy smirk adorned her lips as she let her words linger, knowing fully well what she had said. He could interpret them any way he wanted. Actually, more than the interpretation, Riza found herself more intrigued. How exactly would Central's only Flame Alchemist go about heeding her words?

The anticipation made her whole body shudder, particularly in between her legs.

She wouldn't wait to feel and find out for herself. Until then, she resumed licking, going even faster and adding more vigor into her movements. When she felt the tell-tale twitches, her mouth opened widely, ready to swallow every drop that Roy gave her.
That's why I said to not yet lose faith, silly.

She hadn't meant to come off as assuming Markos had already given up on humanity as it was. Then again, he was in a delicate state. And while it was a bit hard to put herself in his exact situation, Aisyah found herself able to do so enough. If only because she had something she was just as passionate about. So if she had to think about returning and finding - somehow - she was unable to put her training to use, then yes. She would be in this devastated state, more likely than not.

Granted, off the top of her head, she couldn't immediately view how that would play out.

But then again, it was likely for the best not to dwell on such images. Let alone 'what-if' ones.

So ... her head lifted as she listened to Markos's brief philosophical talk. It was definitely an interesting point of view. And there was only one thing she could have argued about that was ever 'truly lost' but ... decided against it. Not simply because of what Markos returned to, but tonight had been rather eventful as it was.

At least say something! she inwardly scolded herself, flushing slightly as the awkward silence lingered between them.

"I uhh ... I'm sorry. I guess ... talking has become a bit of a weakness since partaking in my training. I'm being a pretty shitty friend by giving you the cold shoulder. But umm ... it may seem really petty - especially after how the past week or so has gone - but I actually am glad we found one another again. It's been crazier and more hectic than I would have ever assumed. But I don't think I'd want it much of any other way."

Flashing Markos a tired but truthful smile, she continued following him to the hotel.
 

Roy tried to hold back his voice as Riza played with him. Tried too, but on more than one occasion he failed as he let out small curses utterences of words that he would never really use in public, but here in his own home and with his wife he let down some of the usual norms and professionalism that he was so used too with Military life.

He was so far enthralled with what Riza was doing that looking at her eyes he was lost in the fire of them. As she brushed his cock with her breasts and sucked on it's tip he was feeling more like he was going crazy, and it didn't take long for that familiar heat to rise up along his back, or the twitching of his cock to let out pre-cum.

Of course he could tell that his wife knew what to expect, and was already opening her mouth to accept every drop that he would spill, but at the last moment Roy pulled away from her face, grabbing his cock and giving himself a few strokes so that his climax wouldn't be in his wife's mouth, but rather on the breasts she had been using to milk his cock with.

He watched with complete satisfaction as his cock dripped every last drop of cum onto his wife's beautiful breasts, the majority of it pooling against her cleavage as he expended his cock.

Roy moved not speaking, as his hands went to his wife's hips, his cock expended but still surprisingly hard, and lifted her. He picked Riza up by her hips and gently placed her onto a shelf spreading her legs, and before she could say anything, or before his cock could go down, he brushed the head of his cock against her folds, finding the entrance to her pussy, and taking her in one hard thrust. As he thrust himself inside of her he pressed his lips to hers, glad to not have to taste his own cum on her lips, as his tongue attacked hers with a vigorous flame of passion.



Markos Watched Aisyah for a moment before she spoke she always seemed so lost in her own world, it was a world he couldn't really follow into, but he was happy to walk beside her. When she snapped out of it and appologized he sighed. the truth was he was also kind of out of it. he was tired, more from the draining day than anything else.

He wanted to curl up and sleep, but as she smiled towards him he couldn't help but smile back. Even reaching out and taking her hand in his, holding her gently as the two of them walked.

"I know things are never really gonna be like they were back in the day. You're not the little girl I knew, and I'm not the same shy little boy I used to be." He spoke softly as they walked through the night.

"If I'm going to be honest with you I think that whatever training you did may have hardened you a little too much. It's kind of disturbing to see you so... sullen, I can't really tell if your happy or sad anymore when you are silent. But when you smile... it makes my heart beat a little faster."

He chuckled shaking his head. he could die from the amount of cheese in that sentence. "I'm glad that if I'm gonna work beside anyone it's you, and I'm happy I found you again."

"Oh and, not talking is fine."
 

"Mmmmhh .... "

Riza's face flushed, turning darker and darker with every curse and sound of pleasure she heard come from her husband. Although it was unorthodox, there was something ... incredibly arousing about knowing she and she alone could make him do things he'd otherwise never let anyone else see and hear. A very odd thing to be proud of, no doubt. But at least it wasn't the worst thing she could be happy about.

Up and down Riza kept moving. Only when the inevitable throbs and twitches from Roy's cock registered did she halt. Her mouth opened a bit wider as she expected him to feed his next spurts of spunk into her mouth. Only to gasp, slightly taken aback, as he readjusted himself and covered her breasts instead. Riza didn't think it would be anymore possible to turn an even deeper hue of red. Somehow, though, her face was doing just that as she stared down at her now messy chest.

"Mmm. Been a while, hasn't it?" she mused, contemplating whether to leave it alone or work on cleaning herself up. In the end, it seemed best to go with option A. They were nowhere near done, after all. It'd make her efforts pointless if she tried to clean up now.

When Roy began to move, she followed her spouse, watching curiously. Anticipation and some juices flowed through - or down, depending - Riza as she waited to get some sort of a hint. He didn't speak. In fact, he seemed to be following the 'actions speak louder than words' proverb as soon, she found herself turned and pressed against a shelf.

Heh. He must be in quite the frenzy tonight~

Not necessarily a bad thing, but certainly a rare display to see. It was easier to see him get really into fighting before a wild sex session. Her head turned as she started to throw a tease over to him. Instead of words, though, a moan left her mouth. "Yesssssss! Mhmmm, Rooooooy! So goo --- mmmff!"Their lips locked, silencing Riza for the timem being. Feeling her lover's tongue start rapidly dancing with her own, she returned the gesture and swirled her own muscle happily around his.

All the while, her muscles happily clenched around the rod slamming up into her moist sex.
While Aisyah tended to think on certain reactions, she didn't seem to follow her unspoken rule. So when Markos reached out and held her hand, she simply closed around it. Accepting the gesture, as it were as natural as breathing. And maybe in this moment, it was. Not to say she didn't trust anyone else at Central. However, she iddn't know any of htem like she knew Markos. Having a familiar face was, therefore, a huge relief for her.

Not that it would have been impossible to function as a soldier even if she'd never met Markos, but definitely more difficult.

"I partly understand. I'll concur it's definitely hardened me. At the same time though, if I hadn't undergone the training, I wouldn't have earned and secured my position. So where you use the word 'disturbed', I'd say ... it's a nuisance. I know what I signed up for and all. But I guess I missed the fine print where it mentioned losing a good chunk of my social skills."

A gentle laugh passed her lips as her tired smile widened. Hopefully he could appreciate the humor, or at least the attempt at it. It wasn't really Aisyah's forte. But the effort would count for something, right? Hopefully.

"But when you smile... it makes my heart beat a little faster."

"Well ... " More blush painted her face as she managed to nod, acknowledging what he said but simultaneously unable to help but feel slightly confused. Why was she reacting that way? Where had it even come from?

... Your emotions have been weirder than usual since the reunion with Markos ...

It wasn't his fault. Deep down, she knew that much. But, still ... she couldn't help but realize the timing was almost too perfect. Was he at least linked with why she was reacting in these strange ways? Maybe. It was definitely a possibility.

... In the end, her head merely shook, dismissing whatever thoughts were racing through her mind.

"Long night," she muttered after mulling over what to say. "It's probably been more for you though, huh? Maybe one of the others from Central will find a lead out. I .. really am sorry about what happened to your work."

His experiments might not have matched her beliefs, but that didn't mean someone had the right to break in and do whatever they pleased. Especially to possessions that weren't theirs in the first place.

After a bit more walking, the two would finally arrive. Poor Aisyah barely kept herself awake long enough for Markos to finish booking them a room. Once they walked inside, she wasted little time in slipping her shoes off, then walking sleepily towards the bed. "Mmm, night, Markos ... "

Whether he would say that back or not would remain a mystery. Almost immediately after her body plopped onto the bed, Aisyah fell asleep, still wearing a bit of red on her face as well as her smile.
 

The sound and smell of sex quickly overpowered the room, it was entrancing and the lure of Riza's body was far too much for Mustang to let himself hold back. His arms wrapped around his wife's body pressing her chest to his. The feeling of her breasts wet with his cum sliding against his own chest was odd, but not unpleasant.

His hands were busy holding up his wife's thighs keeping them split apart, and lifted, her ass spread as his cock slapped against her wet cunt, delving deep into her folds while he made grunts, his yellow eyes focused on her as she cried out.

There was a fire running through Mustang today, he wasn't entirely sure what it was that was causing him to be so wild, maybe it was knowing that he wouldn't get another chance with her for a while, maybe it was the fact that he had been told off so much today that having power over her was driving him a little crazy.

Maybe it was just that he had missed this contact, and tonight he wanted to take as much as he could, while making sure that the pleasure was mutual and lasted as long as possible. He really didn't know just how many times he could cum either. Currently his thrusts were so eager that he wasn't exactly sure what would happen when he unloaded, so he wanted to make sure each shot counted.

He lifted Riza, pulling her off the wall, and off the shelf, and onto him, making sure that he was the only thing that was supporting her weight like a strong pillar. he kissed her neck biting the soft lobe of her ear as he held her. His hands held her ass as that was the easiest way for him to support her weight. His fingers lightly probed her back entrance threatening to stretch it, but not doing so.

"Mmmf Riza." He could hardly think with how his mind was, but he knew he wanted to smother her. "It's been too long." His voice scratched warmly against her ears. "I love you."

As he held Riza's body against him Roy started to walk, each step causing a bounce to echo through her body and his cock to slap against her as he took her to their shared bed tossing her onto the soft blankets and pillows, Roy's movements continued well through the night.

____Central Hotel____​


Markos yawned, his mind was already coming up with the list of books that were lost in the fire, things he would need to re-grow, and something to suppress fires in the future. a fire proof plant almost sounded like an oxymoron, he was sure he could put something towards it, besides it would be useful if they ever came to blows with mustang.

Something cut through all of that mental listing and tasking when he heard Aisyah laugh. He was surprised that during that time she had never actually let go of his hand, but hearing her giggle if only for a moment brought a new level of joy and warmth to his face. Maybe it wasn't so impossible to read her after all. Maybe she was just as readable as ever, and he was just a bit foolish for thinking that it was more complex than it actually was.

When she said that it had been a long night he could feel it. Getting shot at by the colonel did not make him extremely happy about how things had gone down. What's more he had been completely terrified during Aisyah's bout with Scar, and then there was the fact that he had made it, he had his watch now.

only to come home to his appartment becoming ground zero for an inferno. That was about as stressful as a day as he could imagine. Walking into the hotel it was all supposed to get better, right up until he saw it.

Bed, singular. He watched as AIsyah without a care in the world just kicked off her shoes and slammed down onto the bed, not even getting under the covers or removing her clothes. She just slept in her clothing that was covered in smoke. admittingly it was just a tank top and shorts, but even from barely being in the house he could feel his nose burning.

"... Night." He said said more to himself, since Aisyah was out cold. He was tempted to wake her, force her to take a shower, or something, considering he now had to sleep next to her.

Instead he just sighed. It didn't feel right for him to remove her clothes, or for him to really sleep next to her considering that as far as he could tell he hadn't been anything more than a friend up to this point.

Walking up to the bed, for his part he had to take off his clothing. He had been wearing armor enscribed with alchemy, taking off the shirt, and at the same time pulling off the rest of his clothing he figured it would be fine if he slept naked, as long as he remained under the covers. He had never felt comfortable using pajamas.

He even set down pillows between them, to make a line that couldn't be crossed.

He had to sleep with his back to her, as that was the best way to get the smell away from him, but for the most part he would sleep soundly. if a little disjointed.

___Central Station 2 days later___​

The sun hadn't even resin yet, and already yet Markos was standing at the train station. Aisyah had been cleared for duty which meant it was time for the two of them to start moving to their next destination. Markos had always assumed that the alchemist examination and the rank it provided would be all the proof he would need to be in the military.

He didn't exactly expect basic training to be a thing. Boot camp was the worst out of all the camps, and yet here he was. The last of his belongings not consumed by fire were in a green bag, along with a couple of new sets of clothing, and a new journal he was working on from scratch. While Aisyah had been dealing with other doctors and their perspective opinions on what exactly she needed to do, he had been trying too rebuild the majority of his lifes work. Thankfully his master thesis, and an assortment of flower seeds had been on him for the combat trial, but he had lost a lot of his precious chimera's in that fire.

The military police were still going through his apartment along with the forensic's team to investigate but they were unable to tell him what started the fire. He would have accused mustang if it weren't for the fact that they had been with the man the entire time. Still someone burned down his home, and he had a bad feeling about that. Now he was at the station waiting for Aisyah to get here, and the people who would be training them.
 
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