You walked away through the streets, silent and lost in thought. "Marcus Felton has never married in his life. He's an alchemist from Delwin, and was recruited by the military twenty five years ago." Mustang's words echoed around in your head. I don't understand... You thought. I KNOW who my father is, whether I really knew him or not...I don't know where this story came from... You knew you couldn't possibly be wrong. Right? So why did you feel such an uneasy feeling? You walked on quietly; the scuffling of your shoes was the only sound to be heard on the street. Should I just go back to that building and find my father myself...? You wondered. You stopped walking and hit yourself in the head. "Argh! I don't know what to do!" You moaned, pulling at your hair. You took a deep, calming breath. "No...no. I need to find that man now. He needs to know what he's done to us...And NOW I need to find out what that Mustang guy was talking about...An Alchemist from Delwin? Unmarried? I don't get it!" You told yourself. You reached the end of the street and took note of where you were. "I'm going back to that building. If I found it the first time, there's no reason I can't do it again." You reasoned to yourself. You took a right down another empty street and headed back towards the military headquarters you passed by before. You reached the building half an hour later and pressed the buzzer. "Headquarters." A voice crackled over the radio. "Name and purpose for your visit, please." The voice requested. "...Winter. I have a appointment with Colonel Mustang." You said. You decided to use the Colonel as your excuse, since he's the one who caused you this trouble. You figured that the alias 'Winter' would also confuse him while you were let inside. "Understood. Please enter." The woman on the other end said. The gates swung open and you walked inside.
Roy POV
The telephone on your desk rang, breaking the silence, and you punched a button on your phone, switching the audio setting to speaker-phone. "Colonel Mustang." You said, moving a stack of paperwork on your desk. The other staff members in your office glanced up. "Colonel Mustang, Winter is here." You heard the voice of the receptionist say. "...Excuse me?" You asked, turning to stare at the speaker. "Your appointment, Winter, is here. I sent her in." The woman said. "Appointment?" Hawkeye asked in confusion. "Her?" Havoc repeated, eyeing you suspiciously. "I don't have any appointments today. And I don't know anyone named Winter." You said into the speaker. "Colonel? She said she had an appointment with you." The receptionist said. "I think I would know if I scheduled any appointments." You replied, trying to hide the annoyance in your voice. "I'm sorry, Colonel. I already let the young lady in." The woman said. "You already let-what?!" You demanded, slamming your hand on your desk and standing up. "Check the security cameras. What does she look like?" You asked. There was a pause on the line as you heard clicking noises in the background. "It's a young woman with beautiful red hair. She's wearing a green t-shirt and brown cargo pants and-" You cut the woman off there. "Call security and have them find and contain the girl." You ordered. You punched a button and closed the line. You glanced up to see your entire staff: Havoc, Fuery, Hawkeye, Falman, and Breda. Everyone was staring at you. "Well? That means you, too! Find that girl." You ordered. The others split up quickly, probably afraid that your short temper would make something explode near them if they didn't act fast enough. You took a deep breath to calm yourself and left your office. What does that brat want now? You wondered. "I'm looking for someone. A state alchemist by the name of Marcus Felton, the Storm Alchemist." You remembered she said that. "Damn it." You muttered gruffly. You picked up the phone and dialed Marcus Felton's number. It rang four times before a recording picked up. "This is Marcus Felton. I'm sorry, I can't come to the phone right now, but if you leave a message with your-" You slammed the phone down. That guy rarely does pick up... You recalled. You sighed. If you couldn't reach the man himself, you'd just find the girl who was searching for him first. You left your office and walked down the hall, searching for anyone with red hair. You saw a few people, but they were much older than the girl you were looking for. You ran into a few of your staff members, but each came up empty handed. You all gathered at the front of the building. "Damn it all." You growled. "How hard can it be to find one person?"
"What do we do now?" Fallman asked you. "What do you think? Keep looking!" You suggested. "Excuse me, Colonel Mustang?" A voice asked. You turned around. "Your appointment is waiting in your office." The woman you vaguely recalled to be the receptionist said. You exchanged a look with the others before all of you ran back to your office. You kicked the door open and you and the others rushed in. The girl you ran into downtown earlier was sitting in your chair; she was leaning back with her feet up and crossed on your desk. A small black and white puppy was curled in her lap and she was idly scratching its ears. "So it IS you..." You said, not bothering to keep the annoyance out of your voice this time. "Black Hayate!" Hawkeye called. The dog's head came up to see its owner, and he yipped once and put his head back down, not wanting to forfeit his source of affection. "Yes, it's me." The girl replied. "Well? What do you want?" You asked, getting straight to the point, yet knowing the answer anyway. "What is so important that you felt the need to lie your way into the military's headquarters? Deceiving the government is a federal offense, you know." "You know what I want. Or rather, who I'm looking for." She answered immediatly.
"I believe Colonel Mustang made it clear that there was a misunderstanding." Hawkeye said. "Please, you need to leave the building now. If you comply, we won't be forced to press charges for trespassing, either." She said. "I'll leave AFTER I find that man." The girl replied. "Hey, uh, what's going on? Should we arrest her, or what?" Fallman asked from behind you. "Do it." You said. The girl narrowed her eyes and gently moved the puppy out of her lap. She put him on the floor, and he whined a little, but trotted off. "I DARE you..." The girl said, voicing her challenge to the others. Hawkeye pulled out her pistol, and Fallman and Breda advanced a little closer. Fuery looked uncertain, and Havoc merely stared at the girl, lost in his perverted dreamland. "If you resist, I'll have you arrested right away." You warned her. "I don't want to fight with you, Mustang. I just want to find that guy, give him something, and leave." She said. "I told you, it's not the same person." You said, feeling your patience with this stranger slipping away. "And I told YOU I know who I'm talking about." She said. "If you really think you ARE right, why don't you just find him for me and take me to him. That way, I'll know I was wrong and I'll go peacefully." She proposed. "I don't make deals with strangers." You said bluntly. "You already heard my name," she said, "And I know yours, so we can't really be considered strangers..." She said. "The receptionist said your name was 'Winter', but I don't believe it." You said. "Well, that is something...Winter isn't my real name, but it's a name I've gone by..." She replied. Falman and Breda stepped closer and the girl pulled her feet of your desk, leaving her in a better position to react. Hawkeye had her pistol aimed straight at her. "I've already asked you once. Please, leave." She repeated. Winter studied her briefly. "You won't shoot." She said. Hawkeye fired off one shot; the bullet buried itself in the wall behind your desk. "I would." Riza said. The girl was quiet for a moment. On the other hand, the gunshot seemed to startle Havoc out of his reverie, and Fuery also seemed to decide something. "Surely this whole scenario can be resolved WITHOUT violence...right?" Fuery asked. "Yeah! And besides, you can't fire at such a cute girl!" Havoc protested. The room was silent as everyone just stared at him. "Well, you can't!" He said, crossing his arms. Before anyone could do or say anything, the phone on your desk rang. "Don't you-" You started to say as Winter reached for the phone. She punched the speaker button and you sighed irritably. "Colonel Mustang." You growled. "Colonel Mustang? Hello. This is Marcus Felton." The voice on the line said. You blinked in surprise; Winter's expression immediately shifted from wariness to fury, and she glared heatedly at the phone, scowling at it. "Hello." You said. "Yes, I just noticed on my answering machine that Ive missed one call, and the machine pulled up your number. Is there something you need?" The Storm Alchemist asked. You were quiet for a moment. "As a matter of fact, there may be one thing..." You said slowly. "What is it?" You heard the other ask curiously. There's a young girl here looking for you because she thinks you're her father. Do you know anything about that? That's what you wanted to say, anyway, but couldn't bring yourself to get the words out. "Mr. Felton, if you could just come down to my office for a moment, there's something I'd like to show you." Winter said in a fairly accurate imitation of your voice. "Alright, I guess." Marcus said from his end of the phone. The line clicked dead before you could say a word. Winter clicked the speaker phone off. "What the hell did you do?!" You yelled at her. "You're only adding to the list of reasons why I should arrest you right now! Impersonating an official of the law?! Just what are you trying to do!?" "I'm doing things the easiest way possible. This way, it will solve both our problems. I'll have my answer, and you'll be left alone." She said calmly. You frowned. "Breda, Falman. Do it." You said. The two men advanced around your desk and aimed to grab the girl. With surprising speed, she jumped from the chair onto your desk. Breda and Falman, who lost their balance because they missed grabbing her, fell to the ground together with one on top of the other. "I don't even need alchemy to stop your men." Winter said. "You're an alchemist?" You asked in surprise, eyeing her suspiciously. "I'm an alchemist." She confirmed. "Did you forget the snow from earlier? People don't just fall from the sky onto cement ground and live to talk about it." She added sarcastically. You scowled at her, feeling your tolerance of annoyances hitting an all-time low. There was a knock on your door to bring your attention to the newcomer, and the doorknob turned. "Colonel Mustang? It's Felton." A voice said as the door was pushed open to reveal a blonde man in his early forties. Quick as a flash, and before you or anyone else could even react, Winter had shoved past you towards the door. "You bastard!" She snapped. She punched Marcus Felton in the face and he stumbled against the door, not expecting the attack.
You took that opportunity to grab her by the shoulders and twist her arms back behind her back. Marcus looked up at you before taking in the others in the room and finally turning to look at the girl. "Ex-Excuse me?" He asked, placing a hand over his cheek, looking really confused. You narrowed your eyes when something flashed across his expression, but it was gone in a nanosecond. Suspicion? Fear? What was that...? You wondered, watching the older man closely. "You're Marcus Felton. The Storm Alchemist." Winter accused. "Yes, I am. Do I know you?" He asked. The question seemed rather guarded. "Hardly. Tell me...Does the name Felicia Felton mean anything to you?" Winter asked. The Storm Alchemist seemed to freeze for a moment. "Felicia...Felton?" He repeated slowly. He seemed to study the girl with new interest, but you noticed a deep, underlying suspicion. "Why, yes. Tell me...Do you know Felicia?" He asked curiously, cautiously. "Yeah, I knew her...But then again, you knew her, too, didn't you? Didn't you, Father?!" Winter demanded angrily. Felton's eyes widened in shock, and, if you weren't mistaken, there was a flash of horror in there as well. "No..." He whispered. "Are you...Lyra?" He asked. Winter froze in your arms for a minute. She didn't move even the tiniest bit, and you could barely tell if she was breathing or not. "...No." She said, after a while. "...Christelle?" Felton asked. Winter twitched in your grasp. "That's right..." She said quietly. "Christelle...Christelle, what are you doing here?" He asked her. "Is there somewhere ELSE for me to be?!" She snapped back. What's going on here...? You wondered. You were confused. It did indeed seem that the girl, Winter, Christelle, whatever her name was, was right, and that she did know Marcus Felton. And he seemed to know her, further proving that she was right. Apart from that, you were lost. Neither you nor the others had any clue what was going on, or even how to handle the little family feud that was playing out before your very eyes.. "You could always be at-" "Don't you DARE say HOME. I don't want to hear that from you of all people!" She yelled. Felton was silent. "I see. That must be...why you punched me." He said after a moment or two. "That's not the only reason." Christelle spat. "If this guy wasn't stopping me, I'd do it again!" She said, jerking her head at you. "Alright, what's going on here?" You demanded, determined to get a hold of things and be in control again. "I told you I knew who I was talking about." Christelle said, speaking to you this time. "Meet Marcus Felton, husband to Felicia Felton, a woman from the no-longer-in-existence village of Remick. Father of twins, Christelle and-" Christelle's voice cracked on the next word. "-Lyra." She said, swallowing. "Remick? You repeated the unfamiliar name. "Hawkeye?" You asked. "Sir." She said. "Remick was a rather isolated village in Amestris. Eight years ago, the village was attacked and destroyed. Who or what caused such a calamity, I'm afraid, is still unknown. There were no leads, and so the case was closed when the investigators were unable to pick up any clues...The entire village was wiped out. There were no survivors." Hawkeye told you. "'No survivors', huh? Then what about you two?" You asked, directing the question to Christelle and her apparent father. "HE survived because he abandoned his family for the goddamn MILITARY." Christelle said coldly. "And yourself?" You asked. "I survived because I was away...I wasn't in the village when it was attacked." She said. You had the impression that she was leaving something out, but weren't completely sure. "Then that means...Felicia...Lyra..." Felton trailed off. "I don't know what happened to Mother. She vanished without a word one night, and I haven't seen or heard anything to tell whether she's dead or alive." Christelle said. "And...Lyra? What happened to Lyra? Christelle...What happened to your sister?" Marcus asked. The girl trembled slightly. Is she...crying...? You wondered. She was shaking, but you couldn't see any signs of crying. "Lyra is dead." Christelle said. Her tone was flat, devoid of any kind of emotion.
Although that seemed to clear up things for Marcus Felton, it did little to make any sense to you or your staff. "My family...They're all...gone?" The blonde man asked uncertainly. "They're gone..." Christelle agreed. Her head jerked up and she gave her father a hate-filled glare. "They're all gone! Because of you! It's all your fault! If you had just STAYED, Mother wouldn't have left us! The village wouldn't have been destroyed! LYRA WOULD STILL BE ALIVE!" Christelle screamed. Her legs must have given out supporting her, because she fell to her knees and pulled you down with her. "I hate you!" She shouted. "I hate you! I hate you! I HATE YOU!" Her shoulders shook, and this time you knew she was crying. The tears streamed over her cheeks and dripped to the floor, and she shook violently with both anger and grief. The Storm Alchemist stared quietly at his daughter for a moment. "God help me...My family..." He whispered. He turned around and walked away without another word. You looked up at the others. You exchanged the same look: What the hell are we supposed to do NOW? You didn't think you could possibly kick the girl out on the street now. Her home was destroyed...She has nowhere to go...Normally, she'd be sent to live with her closest family. Damn it. That means that she'll have to stay HERE! You realized. You sighed in annoyance, and when you looked up again, it seems that the others must have pieced together the same conclusion. "I'll take her." Hawkeye offered, putting her gun away. You nodded; you stood up and pulled Christelle up with you. You hesitated just a moment before letting her arms go and letting Hawkeye take care of her. The Lieutenant led Christelle away; she followed without a word, still crying. You walked over to your desk and collapsed into your chair, feeling exhausted. "Well, that was...something." Fallman said, breaking the silence. You snorted. "Yeah." You agreed. "That was something all right."
Your POV
You let yourself be led away by the blonde woman; you didn't even fight back or struggle. You were able to stop crying and control yourself a little more, but that episode seemed to have sapped all your energy, and you were left tired and exhausted. I never would have thought that seeing him...would have this effect on me... You thought. You had only ever planned so far as to meet him. You figured you'd probably scream and cry and yell at him, but you had acted out and punched him before you even thought about what you were doing. "Here." The woman said, stopping in front of a door. First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye A sign said. That must be her. She opened the door and the two of you walked in. "Please stay here and collect yourself. This is my room, but it's alright to make yourself at home, if you can." She said. You didn't think you had the energy to respond, and thankfully, Hawkeye didn't press you for an answer. She left you alone and walked out. She said make myself at home...If I can... Those last three words were not lost on you, but they didn't serve to make you feel any better. You walked past the bed and over to a bare wall where hesitantly sat down. No place will ever be my home again...My home was torn away seven years ago, and I've been alone ever since... You leaned forward and let your head fall to rest in your hands. I don't know...what to do anymore... You were thinking. Your mind was fuzzy and your head ached. You shut your eyes as if that could stop the discomfort. You curled up into a ball, lost in thought. I don't know what to do now...The only reason I came to Central was to find that guy and make him pay for what he did to us...I suppose that happened, but I still don't think it was enough...A punch in the face doesn't equal what happened to our-my family. You corrected yourself. You felt your eyelids grow heavy, and before long, you were barely able to keep them open. You shut them once and immediately drifted off to sleep. You slept silently; not even moving a muscle. You had been really tired, physically and emotionally. You didn't wake up when Mustang and Hawkeye stopped by to check on you. They exchanged glances, and the two walked into the room and over to you. "Is it alright to leave her like this?" Riza asked. "Probably not. But everything happened so suddenly, I don't know what we could do about it, even if we wanted to do something." The Colonel replied. "Should we move her? I'll set up a futon for myself, so she can take the bed." Hawkeye whispered. Wordlessly, Mustang reached out and grabbed you, picking you up bridal style. He turned around and took three steps towards the bed, laying you down gently. Riza covered you with a blanket and tucked a pillow under your head. "This is all we can do for now..." Mustang said softly. The two watched you sleep for a moment and then left the room. You kept sleeping when Black Hayate found his way into the room, jumped on the bed and curled up next to you. You didn't even wake up when Havoc accused Mustang of stealing you to be his girlfriend, and Mustang retaliated by nearly blowing the Lieutenant up. You slept steadily, and didn't stir when Hawkeye came in hours later to check on you again before setting up a futon for herself.
The next morning, you stirred, feeling something warm and damp sweep over your cheek. You opened bleary eyes and turned your head only to feel the strange thing smack you in the nose before trailing up your face and over your forehead, leaving a trail of warm, dank smelling fluid smeared across your face. What the hell...is this?! You thought in alarm, bolting upright, wide awake. Black Hayate rolled down your front with the sudden movement and sat down, tongue hanging out of his mouth, and stared at you. He barked once and wagged his tail. "Oh...It's just you..." You said in relief. You dragged your arms across your face, wiping the dog drool off. You winced when you moved again. Oh...I fell asleep. Now I'm really stiff...Ow... You thought. You threw your legs over the bed and stretched out a bit. Wait a second...I could've sworn I fell asleep against the wall...How...did I get into this bed? You wondered. You spied a futon pushed against the wall where you were last night, so you figured that Riza must have moved you to the bed. You yawned, stretching your arms over your head. A note fluttered to the floor. "Ara? What is...this?" You mumbled, picking it up. "There are some clothes you can borrow on the dresser. Change and see Colonel Mustang immediately. We have plenty of things to discuss with you." It said. You blinked and sighed. It looks like...I'm in trouble... You looked up at the dresser. Sure enough, some clothes were neatly folded on top of the polished wood surface. You got unsteadily to your feet and walked over. But at least it's not a military uniform... You thought, picking up a pair of jeans and two different tops to choose from. You made sure the door was locked before peeling off the clothes you were wearing now. Before you changed into the clean clothes, you noticed a connecting bathroom and decided to take a hot shower. When you were done, you changed. The jeans fit fine, and the shirt you chose was a little snug, but otherwise the borrowed clothes were comfortable.
When you thought you were set, you walked out of Hawkeye's room and pulled the door shut behind you. You turned the way you had come the night before and headed slowly towards Mustang's office. I wonder what's going to happen now... You didn't have a home anymore because it didn't exist, so you couldn't go back to Remick. You figured you'd always be able to find that automail engineer in Rush Valley, but you weren't sure if he'd still be there. In the end, it looked like you'd be stuck at Central's military headquarters until further notice. You frowned at the idea. You were so lost in your thoughts that you didn't notice that you had walked right past the Colonel's office. It was only because the door was open and he noticed someone in casual clothes that he called out and caught your attention. "Where do you think you're going?" He asked, walking over to the door. You stopped walking and turned to face Mustang. "I wasn't-" "Just get in there..." Mustang said, cutting you off and pointing into his office. You glowered at him, but complied. You shoved past the Colonel and into his office. It looked like everyone who was there yesterday was there again, with the exception of your father, much to your relief. You knew you probably wouldn't be able to control yourself again the next time you saw him. "Well, I say we get started." Mustang said. You stared at him as he began to project his authority over the room. "What do you want?" You asked. He stared at you. "Well, there's the certain matter of all those crimes and felonies you committed recently that need to be addressed. Trespassing. Impersonating an officer. Assaulting an officer. The list goes on." He said, focusing on you the whole time. You frowned, but said nothing. It wasn't like you could just lie about it, either, and not in this room full of witnesses. Just what I'd need...ANOTHER thing to add to his damn list... You thought. "Well? What's going to happen to me, then?" You asked bluntly. You figured you'd rather just know here and now, instead of waiting for him to sugarcoat everything. "Well, any normal person would probably be sent to prison - no questions asked - for 10 years or so." Mustang said. You narrowed your eyes. "'Any normal person'?" You repeated slowly. You were clearly asking for an explanation, but you had the impression that the alternative to being sent to jail was something you wouldn't be too fond of, either.
"You said you're an alchemist, is that right?" He asked you. You nodded. "Well, I want to see some proof. I want to set up a challenge." He proposed. You answered immediately and said, "I don't need to prove anything to you. What does it matter if I am or not?" The Colonel shut his eyes and took a deep breath, as if to calm himself. "Because those who never saw you transmute snow yesterday want proof." He explained. You gave him an incredulous look. "Are you kidding me? Mustang!" You cried. He looked up. "Newsflash! It doesn't snow in the summer!!!" You told him. His eyes narrowed, and he glared at you. "Just do it." He ordered. You sighed. "What kind of challenge is it?" You asked after a moment. Mustang said nothing, but merely placed a bag on his desk in front of you. "Go ahead, you can open it." He said when you gave him a blank look. You dumped the contents of the bag out and discovered that it was full of wood. "You can transmute that wood into a doll." He suggested. You glared at him. "A doll? Don't insult me!" You snapped. You clapped your hands and slammed them onto the desk. Using the wood, the desk, and all its contents, you transmuted everything into a life-sized, statue replica of yourself. "Satisfied?" You asked snidely. "Huh." That was all Mustang said. His eyes were narrowed and he studied the statue and you quietly. Meanwhile, his team of colleagues inspected the stature closely. "That's amazing!" Fuery exclaimed. "Yeah, incredible." Breda agreed. "I like it, but the original is hotter!" Havoc said. "That's alchemy for you." Fallman commented. "It's not a doll, but I think it'll have to do. Can you undo the transmutation?" Mustang finally asked, no doubt worried about the paperwork inside his desk. You clapped your hands again and placed them lightly on your replica. It glowed lightly as you split the original components apart. A moment later, things were like they were before. The Colonel's desk sat in the same place, and a pile of wood sat atop it.
"Huh." Mustang said again. He fell silent again. When he stared at you next, you felt like you were being cross-examined. "So tell me one thing..." He said after a minute. You stiffened ever so slightly. What's he thinking? You wondered. The way he phrased that demand was odd, so it caught your attention. "What do you want to know?" You asked guardedly. He stared at you a moment. "How is it that you're able to perform alchemy...without a transmutation circle?" He asked. You bit you tongue and had to resist the urge to bolt. Damn it, this is bad...I didn't think...I never expected that this guy would be so sharp! You thought. You felt a bead of sweat slide down the back of your neck. I can't say anything...I will NEVER say anything! No...No one can know what happened that day...No one... "Well, are you going to answer the question?" Mustang asked. You kept your silence. The Flame Alchemist closed his eyes and smirked. "I guess not..." He sighed. You turned around and walked towards the door. I passed his challenge. There's no more reason for me to stay here. You reasoned to yourself. As soon as you pulled the door open, the Colonel spoke again. "But I'm sure..." Mustang said. You paused at the door, waiting for him to finish his sentence. "I'm sure that you couldn't possibly have performed human transmutation, right?" The Flame Alchemist asked, his tone implying the exact opposite. Since your back was to him and the others, they didn't see all the color drain from your face. You left the office and pulled the door shut so hard you accidentally ripped the knob on your side off. You didn't even notice, though, and just walked away. You were heading away from the Flame Alchemist and his team of officers, away from your worthless father and away from the military that he abandoned his family for. You didn't know nor care where you were going when you got outside; you just kept walking.
