DISCLAIMER: As much as I want to, I do not own Full Metal Alchemist or any of it's characters!

A/N: I'm still working on this. It's my first FMA fic, so don't hate me if I totally get them out of character. I just love Roy and Riza soo much. Okay, well, there's a slow start, but will get better. I PROMISE! Just read and I'll update ASAP! Please review too! Oh, and in the chapter title, RH means the chapter is told from Riza's POV, RM means it's told from Roy's and G means General 3rd person POV.

Chapter 1: The Beginning. RH.

Colonel Roy Mustang. That is who I work with. Or rather, I baby-sit. Many people ask me how I manage to keep my cool while working. Keeping track of the Colonel, the Elrics and the rest of the idiot officers I work with, seems like a rather frustrating thing to deal with.

But I don't see what's so bad about it. I mean, I stand beside the Colonel all day (something most women would kill to do), occasionally deal with Havoc or someone and I get to carry around a gun. (On some special days, I even get to use it, which I seem to look forward to.) Yes, I have this place in the pa-

The handle to the door jiggled and I looked up, hastily rising out of the chair I was in. I was quite relieved to see Lieutenant Colonel Hughes enter the room.

"Oh, Lieutenant Hawkeye," he said slightly in shock. "I was looking for Roy..."

My eyes wandered to my journal which was still sitting on top of Roy's desk, wide open. There were several hearts doodled across the top page and I prayed that Hughes wouldn't move close enough to see them. I focused back on him.

"He's not here at the moment," I replied as calmly as I could. "I believe he was helping Edward with something."

Hughes raised an eyebrow. "And you didn't accompany him? Odd..."

His eyes swept over the room and then locked onto me almost accusingly. I tried to look as innocent as possible.

"Hmm..." he said slowly. "I guess I'll check back later. If he's dealing with Ed, he'll need a little while to cool down..."

"Yes, sir," I saluted him quickly.

He returned the gesture and left, still glancing around the room as if he half expected Roy to pop out from underneath his desk.

As the door shut behind him, I sank back down into Roy's chair and touched my journal. Before I began writing again, I scanned the top of his desk.

Whenever the Colonel left me behind, which, mind you, wasn't often, I liked to sit behind his desk. I couldn't really explain why, But I liked the feeling of being there. It was quite peaceful. For a while at least...

The door banged open, this time without warning and Roy entered the room, looking furious. I shot out of his seat, bringing my journal with me. I grabbed the book that had been sitting on the corner of his desk and used it to cover my journal.

"That kid, I swear..." he said angrily, moving toward his desk. "He's going to get himself killed, and then I'll have even more to deal with..."

"Trouble with Elric, sir?" I asked politely.

Roy sat down, sighing deeply. "He thinks he's immortal, that's all. Someone needs to teach him a lesson."

"Why don't you do it, sir?" I suggested.

He scoffed. "It would kill him to listen to me," he said matter-of-factly. "Ed does and says only what he wants, no matter who else gets hurt in the process."

I smirked lightly, though he didn't notice for he was staring down at a pile of paperwork. "Sounds like someone else I know..."

The phone rang shrilly and he answered it quickly. I watched as he rubbed his eyes in a tired sort of way. I sat on the arm of the nearest chair and waited. Usually it was quite easy for me to tell who he was talking to, (I had overheard several phone conversations) but this time I couldn't tell. Not that I was really paying attention either. I found myself a bit distracted.

When he hung up, he returned to his paperwork, looking a bit more relieved. I always hated the awkward silences that fell between us, but never dared to speak. I was sure he wouldn't appreciate being bothered while he was working. I only wish I knew what he was working on.

"Don't look so bored, Hawkeye," he said absently.

I looked up quickly, sliding off the chair. He wasn't even looking at me, but there was a hint of a smirk dancing across his lips. I opened my mouth to say something, but closed it quickly as I realized I really didn't have anything to say back.

"Maybe you should go check on Ed," he said. "Make sure he hasn't destroyed anything...or anyone."

"Yes, sir." I said, turning toward the door.

Before I left, I glanced back at him, but he was still staring at the same piece of paper he'd held in his hand for nearly ten minutes. Sometimes I wondered about him and whether he was really doing what he looked like he was doing. I was certain I hadn't seen him look up at me while I was sitting on the edge of the couch, and yet, he knew what I was doing.

Walking down the hall, I headed in the direction of the Elrics' room. I knocked on the door sharply and heard a small rustling inside. The door opened a moment later and I came face to face with Alphonse.

"First Lieutenant Hawkeye," he said, sounding stunned. "What are you doing here?"

"Is Edward here?" I asked, trying to peer into the room.

Edward appeared at Alphonse's side, looking even shorter than usual. He looked at me, confused. I merely smiled at him, which I'm sure only made him even more nervous.

"First Lieutenant Hawkeye," he said slowly. "Why are you-"

"Can I come in?" I asked.

Edward looked behind him and nodded quickly. "Sure."

Alphonse moved and I followed Edward into the room. It was easy to see that they had been working on something, as there was a pile of papers sitting on a small table. I stared at them for a minute and turned back to Edward who was still standing by the door.

"What are you doing here, Lieutenant?" he asked.

"The Colonel told me to me to come and check on you," I told him. "I assume you three had a rough morning."

"Two," Alphonse interrupted. "I had nothing to do with it."

I didn't take my eyes off of Edward. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Not really," he answered quickly.

I raised an eyebrow and stared at me. "Edward, please. The Colonel was concerned about you. What are you planning?"

"Who says I'm planning anything?" he said, finally moving away from his door.

I looked at him doubtfully. "Edward..." I gestured toward the papers on his table. "I know something's going on. Why don't you tell me?"

He sighed. "It's nothing. Honestly. I'm not even sure it's going to work."

He moved over to the papers and filed through them. I watched him carefully. Alphonse moved closer to us and watched as well. Edward read over one quickly, frowning.

"None of this is making any sense," he said. "Ishbala this, Ishbala that...then the whole thing with the doctor. I don't know what to do..."

"Are you talking about Marcoh?" I asked, kneeling down beside him to look at the papers.

There were all about the Philosopher's stone and the research that others had done to find it. Edward continued to stare at it, looking irritated. I nodded lightly and put down the papers I was looking at.

"I wish I could just figure out how he did it," Edward said, annoyed.

I stood up and looked down at him. "I'm sure you'll figure it out."

He shrugged, but didn't look up at me. I nodded to Alphonse, who nodded back and I headed for the door. There was nothing left for me to do there. I stopped at the door and glanced at Edward.

"I assume I need not remind you to be careful..." I said quietly.

He nodded and I left. I was starting back toward the Colonel's office, when I spotted Lieutenant Ross passing by. At first I thought nothing of it and continued walking, but then I turned to catch her attention.

"Lieutenant Ross!"

She turned to face me. "Lieutenant Hawkeye."

"I want you to keep your eye on the boys," I said professionally.

She smirked a little. "Which ones?"

I frowned, trying to look serious. She did as well, realizing I wasn't in the mood to joke around. "If anything goes wrong, or seems out of sorts, alert me or Colonel Mustang immediately."

She nodded shortly, "Yes, ma'am." She saluted and headed toward Edward's room. She would stand in her usual spot outside the door and keep an eye out for anything suspicious. It was her usual job, but occasionally we'd have to remind her of it.

"On second thought, Lieutenant!" I said, turning back toward her. "For safety's sake, just alert me. The Colonel's in another one of his moods."

"Yes, ma'am." she repeated.

Opening the door to the Roy's office, I spotted him immediately. He was staring out the window, and didn't seem to notice I was there. The papers he'd been looking at before were spread out on his desk. Several books were piled in the corner. I closed the door quietly and started toward him.

"How's he doing?" he asked, without turning.

I froze. "How did you-"

He turned to look at me over his shoulder, smirking. "You are the only person I know who can enter a room so quietly."

I smiled as he approached me slowly. "Yes, sir. Edward is fine. A little worn out, but he'll come around. I have Lieutenant Ross keeping watch over him and Alphonse."

"Good work, Hawkeye," he said, nodding.

"Thank you, sir..." I replied quietly. He was now standing right in front of me, staring at me, as if he expected me to say something else. My vocal cords seemed to be malfunctioning, for I couldn't find the right words to say.

As he opened his mouth to speak, the door opened again. Both our heads turned quickly in the direction of the intruder. Hughes was back again. He stopped quickly when he spotted us.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." he said coyly. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No," Roy said firmly. "But in the future, you might want to try knocking for a change, Hughes..."

Hughes smiled and nodded. "Yes, sir. Anyway, the Führer would like to speak with you."

Roy looked confused. "Concerning?"

"I don't know," Hughes answered. "But he said it was urgent."

Roy glanced back at me, but I avoided his gaze. He moved toward the door. "Hawkeye, you stay here. Answer the phone if someone calls. It may be important. If you need me, send someone to come and find me."

I wondered why he didn't want me to come find him myself, but knew better than to disobey orders, even most especially when Roy was the one giving them.

"Yes, sir."

He disappeared through the door and left Hughes and I to ourselves. I tried to busy myself with a book from Roy's desk, ignoring the sly looks Hughes continued to give me. I didn't want to know what he was thinking.

"Hawkeye," he said slowly.

I ignored him and turned the page, not really reading what was written there.

"Hawkeye," he repeated. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Not particularly, Lieutenant," I said coolly.

He smiled and walked over toward me. "Are you sure? 'Cause you know Roy'll never tell me..."

"It's nothing, sir..." I said resolutely. "Now, if you'd please leave me alone. I have work to do."

Hughes nodded and started back toward the door. He stopped before it and turned back to me. "Well, I've been telling Roy for years that he needed to find someone. I never thought it would be you, Hawkeye, but I have to say-"

I fingered the handle to the gun on my hip. "Tell anyone about this, Hughes, and I will-"

Hughes held up his hands innocently, backing against the door. "Hey, hey, hey, now I never said I was going to tell anyone. My lips are sealed."

I pulled it out and pointed it straight at him, still keeping my gaze on the book, watching him slightly out of the corner of my eye. "What did you see tonight?"

"Absolutely nothing." He answered hastily. "Oh, is that Sheska calling for me? I'd better be going. Good day, Hawkeye."

When the door closed again, I slipped the gun back onto my hip. I would never shoot Lieutenant Colonel Hughes. Even if he started a rumor about Roy and me. There was nothing going on. Never was, and probably never would be.

It was my job to protect him. I had dedicated my life to that. We were simply co-workers. That's all we were.

That's all we'll ever be...

Frowning, I turned back to the desk and was tempted to sit back into Roy's chair. Instead, I walked across the room and sat in another chair he had, burying my nose into the book, this time actually reading it. I was interested to find what it contained...

The Philosopher's Stone, which has been sought by many for hundreds of years, is rumored to have a strange make up. No recorded procedure to creating said stone has ever been found, but there have been many accounts of scientists who have created an item that holds the same properties...

A/N: Okay, so this is it for now, until I update the next chapter. I have the next couple written, so come back to find out what happens! It's gonna get better! PLEASE REVIEW!