Hawkeye blinked at the man before her, eyes narrowing in an unspoken question. When she opened her door that rainy Saturday evening, the last thing she expected was to see her superior officer, Lieutenant Colonel Mustang, at her door with a lopsided grin adorning his adorable face.

"Good evening, Lieutenant,"

Riza frowned and eyed what appeared to be a game board under Roy's arm.

"What are you doing here, sir?"

Roy chuckled and scratched the back on his head.

"Well, I had nothing to do today, all caught up with reports!" Riza stared at him skeptically. "I am! And well, I was just wondering if you knew how to play chess? I could use some practice for my weekly games with the general."

Riza sighed. "No, sir, I don't really know how to play. Shouldn't you ask Breda or something?"

"I did, but he was...busy." Riza saw through his lie and pinched the bridge of her nose. "I could teach you," he offered, and Riza could hear the hint of pleading in his voice.

He wanted to spend time with her. It had been a while.

"All right, come in."

She stepped back and motioned for him to enter her apartment. Roy got to work with setting up the chessboard on the small kitchen table while Riza made tea.

"So what prompted this, exactly?" Riza didn't look away from what she was doing even as she spoke and she missed the sour look on Roy's face.

"I haven't won a single game against the general. The old coot is too good."

A small smile graced Riza's lips as she turned to bring the tea to the table.

"Then what makes you think it's a good idea to teach me how to play?"

Roy took the cup of tea she offered him with a nod of thanks and shrugged at her question.

"Because it could be fun," he answered, grinning behind his tea cup.

Riza rolled her eyes and set her cup down on the table.

"All right, well, where do I start?"

Roy set his cup down and began going over the rules, picking up a piece when he spoke about it and moving it in the directions that particular piece could go. Riza quietly took all the information in and nodded occasionally at what Roy was saying.

"Not too hard, right?" Roy leaned back in his chair and picked up his tea again.

Riza shrugged. "I suppose."

"Since I'm playing with the white pieces, I go first." Roy grabbed a pawn and moved it as he spoke.

Riza plucked one of her own pawns from the board and moved it. They continued on in this way for a while, moving pieces without speaking, Riza concentrating intently on the game, until Roy gulped the last of his tea and cleared his throat. He was winning so far, having captured four of Riza's pieces, but she had captured three of his and he was not liking the odds of this game already.

"I thought you said you didn't really know how to play?"

"I suppose I catch on quickly."

"Hmm, so it seems…"

Halfway through the game, it was apparent that Riza was indeed a quick study and Roy could no longer afford to slack off or be distracted. Admiring Riza across the table every time it was her turn was apparently costing him. It was time to get serious. Unfortunately for him, the decision to not take Riza lightly came too late and he soon found himself in checkmate. He groaned and flopped theatrically backward in his chair.

"How? Why? I guess beating me at chess runs in the family."

Roy's grumbling elicited a short laugh from Riza.

"It's only because you didn't utilize your queen to gain the upper hand. You had plenty of opportunity."

"The general always says that too and I always tell him the same thing."

"And what's that?"

Roy looked at her straight in the eye and held her gaze.

"I could never sacrifice my queen."

Riza could feel a blush creeping up her face at the tone of voice he used. There was no question to Roy's meaning with those words. She sighed and sent him a glare.

"You're an idiot, sir," she said, making Roy frown. That was not the response he had been imagining. "If you don't use your pieces to your advantage, you'll never achieve your goals. Your pieces are expendable, the king is not."

"Out of the question. You're not expendable-"

"I will do everything in my power to protect you, even if it means sacrificing myself. You're too important for the future of this country."

How had this turned from a friendly game of chess to an argument about whether or not the men on his team, particularly her, should be used as pawns for sacrifice in his gamble to make it to the top? Little did Roy know that it would be an argument the two of them would hash out many more times in the coming years.

He had so many things he wanted to say, so many words to counter hers. He wanted her to know just how important she was to him, but, instead of saying anything, he simply huffed a sigh and glared at her.

"Either way, you've won this game… On your first try too. Color me impressed."

"Thank you, sir."

Thunder rolled in the distance, signaling a change in the conversation.

"Hm, I better leave before the storm gets any worse."

"Right." Riza helped him pack up the chess game and walked him to her door. "Thank you for stopping by, sir. I had fun."

Roy turned back to her from her doorway and smiled.

"I'm glad. See you on Monday, Lieutenant. Have a good night."

"You too, sir. See you then."

Roy turned from her to leave and Riza closed her door, both wishing he could have stayed. Neither of them ever slept very well on stormy nights. Sometimes Roy wished she had never pledged to follow him. If she hadn't, he'd be able to tell her about the growing feelings he had for her. Instead, they would both go to bed alone in their separate apartments, tossing and turning as the storm raged outside their windows and inside their hearts.