Like a Wounded Animal

Chapter One

It was a calm, brisk day. Nothing new. The weather had stayed calm and similar for around the past week. It made life for a family man rather interesting, especially when you had to play with your daughter every chance you got away from your desk.

But Maes Hughes had never minded that. As long as he could have time with Elysia, he had never cared.

Besides, with his best friend as the Fuhrer, we was allowed, as reluctant as Roy had been to let him have them, certain privileges. Not much, but at least he could have more time with his family.

Elysia Hughes, herself, now eight years old, old enough to go to school, was happy that her Papa walked her to school on his way to work, and was proud enough to tell everybody that her Papa was best friends with the Fuhrer. “And Uncle Roy is over for dinner all the time.” She’d say, smiling as all of the other children her age blinked in amazement.

Today was really no different.

“Goodbye, Elysia.” Hughes chuckled, ruffling the little girls hair as much as he could with her twin pigtails.

“Bye bye Papa!” Elysia called up to him, hugging her father tightly around the waist. “Do good at work.”

Hughes smiled broadly. “And you do good at school.” He told her, knowing the grammar was incorrect, but it was too cute to really correct. Anyway, she’d be learning things like that too soon for comfort anyway. ‘Just let her be cute now’ he thought, watching her run off to go join her friends.

Sighing heavily, he stood there for a long while, watching as his little girl, his precious daughter, and only child, walk into the building with the pack of eight year olds that were her friends, and even longer than that.

“Bye bye.” He repeated to himself, almost sadly. Behind his glasses, his golden eyes grew wide and teary, and his lower lip quivered. “It’s just too CUUUUUUUUUUUUTE!” He cried.

He heard a laugh from the building, a familiar little tone. He looked up to see Elysia waving to him from the window of her classroom. “Silly Papa! Go to work!” She called out to him.

“Hu-huuuuuh?” Hughes grunted out, looking at his surroundings, then sweat dropping a little, rubbed the back of his neck. “Y-yes Elysia-chan.” He said, actually jumping to attention and saluting her, as if she were the Fuhrer himself. He watched as she giggled and saluted back before turning and beginning to walk the rest of the way, alone, to Central Headquarters, the heart and soul of the State Military, and all of Amestris,

As he mounted the wide, marble steps of the large, in fact, monolithic building before him, he stuck his hands in his pockets, beaming, almost evilly, as he carried his head down, the reflection from the sun such that it glared out the lenses of his glasses, blocking his eyes from view, and making it impossible for any passing official of the military, or privileged State Alchemist, could tell what he was thinking.

“Brigadier General Hughes!” A feminine call interrupted his thoughts, and effectively stopped him from entering the building; its massive oak doors open right before him. He looked around to see if he could spot the source of the call.

There, off to his left and approaching, was coming a tall, blond woman, her blond hair pulled back into a ponytail and up into an odd sort of bun. Brown eyes were searching him for an answer he hadn’t yet given.

“Lieutenant Hawkeye, good morning to you.” He told her, a sort of nervous smile cropping up on his face.

Any man in Central, or East Headquarters for that matter, would be a fool not to be at least slightly worried around First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye. The girl was a dead aim, and could fell anyone with either of her pistols. It was just a bit unnerving to be approached by her.

“Can I help you with something?” Hughes asked her as she stopped in front of him.

She nodded, and then looked away a bit. “Have you seen the Fuhrer recently?” She asked.

“He was at my house for dinner last night.” Hughes nodded. “Why?”

Riza looked back to him and nodded. “Alright.” She said, beginning to walk off. Hughes, however, reached out to her, and caught her by the arm.

“Why, did something happen to Roy?” He asked, his eyes narrowing out of concern for his friend. The Flame Alchemist could take care of himself, everyone knew that, and he had seemed fine when he left the Hughes’ estate the night before, but a lot could have happened between then and the time he got home.

“I don’t know, but he isn’t in his office.” She told him, her eyes shinning with worry.

Once again, Maes’ golden eyes widened. Then he blinked, beginning to think. “Maybe he’s still at home, decided to sleep in or something?”

She shook his head. “He hasn’t been late for work a day in his life.”

“Sick?”

“From what?”

“… I don’t know…” Hughes said. “I was just throwing out ideas.”

“Besides, he probably would have called you if he was going to stay in sick.” She shot back.

“Ok ok! Calm down Lieutenant!”

“Brigadier General?”

“Yeah.”

“I am calm, just worried.”

Hughes nodded, “I understand that. Come on, we’ll call his house and see what’s up. If he’s incapacitated or anything, his bulter’ll know.”

Hawkeye nodded, following Hughes into the building and down to his office. Despite having been booted up the ranks by his friendship with Roy, he still held the same one. Scheizka was there to great him and Hawkeye, and then subsequently ask if anything was wrong after seeing the looks on their faces.

“Yes, everything is alright, Schiezka.” Hughes told him as he marched through her office, Hawkeye right behind him, into his own and sat down at his desk.

“Then why do you look so worried, Brigadier General Hughes?”

Maes motioned for her to be quiet, and picked up the receiver for his phone. As he dialed, his bookworm of an assistant got up from her desk and walked in. She looked up to Hawkeye for answers, but the officer only gazed at her and then looked back to Hughes.

“Leo?” He asked as the butler had evidentially picked up the phone on his end. “Its Maes Hughes… I was wondering if Roy was there at all, or if he was sick or anything, because… we can’t find him he-“ He stopped mid sentence, his brow furrowing. “Alright… no… yeah… I understand… thanks….”

He hung up the phone and took a second to rub his temples.

“Well?” Riza asked.

“Leo… doesn’t know where Roy is.” He said, his tone quiet. “He never came home last night from dinner…”