A/N: It's been a while since I wrote any fic, so I'm suuuuper rusty. But I just re-watched Brotherhood and couldn't resist. Love Royai so much. *pathetic sniffle*

Roses to Bullets

01. Comfort

There's no comfort for the dead, solace for sinners, or respite for Fuhrers, but there is her with tea in tow and heart at hand.

02. Kiss

Meticulously, he studies the delicate curve of her lips, juxtaposed against a hardened jaw, and ponders how that lingering speck of strawberry frosting would taste.

03. Soft

She can never know how truly malleable (vulnerable) he becomes when her safety is at stake.

04. Pain

"Riza," he gasps as he reaches shakily (desperately) for her shoulder, "Stay—please."

05. Potatoes

No matter how laborious her efforts, she invariably burns the potatoes, but still he devours them with an ardor even Gluttony would have appreciated.

06. Rain

Drenched and shivering and brewing a plague, Roy vows to stand outside her apartment for an eternity if need be—until she forgives him (really, it wasn't his fault a stray spark charred the report).

07. Chocolate

Most women delight in receiving candy on their birthdays, but Hawkeye merely glowered and ordered him to resume his work since he obviously had ample time for frivolous ventures.

08. Happiness

Maybe when Amestris is scoured of corruption and the world made whole and righteous will he finally know happiness (or maybe happiness is her asleep, cradled fiercely against his chest).

09. Telephone

Rarely does he call her past two AM, but on the nights that he does, his words are slurred and thoughts adrift and always he is a microsecond close to admitting his love.

10. Ears

Roy may have hundreds of nostrums for the ills of this world, but he only has her who will listen unwaveringly to his complaints and laments.

11. Name

Names are sacred, and he whispers hers with the deference for god.

12. Sensual

He found her back to be the most beautiful part of her—beautiful and tragic and poignant to make him weep each time.

13. Death

She died countless times in his nightmares (mired in sweat and blood and screams) but none sufficed to prepare him.

14. Sex

The first time occurs shortly after her father's funeral and feels raw and cheap (dirty and weak, he succumbs).

15. Touch

Their fingers brush accidentally as she hands over the report; sheepish, he mumbles thanks, unable to meet her gaze.

16. Weakness

She will forever be his weakness (a political thorn to be used) and thus, with a heavy heart, he accepts her resignation—so to invite her to dinner later.

17. Tears

Blinking as the harsh hospital lights hit his eyes, Roy smiles and blithely remarks, "I believe this is the first time I've ever seen you cry, Lieutenant."

18. Speed

She could raze him to the ground in two bullets—one if she actually tried.

19. Wind

The winds of Briggs penetrate through skin and bone, clawing deep into the core, and Riza is (for once) beyond grateful for his alchemical talents.

20. Freedom

As Fuhrer, Roy delivers liberty to the oppressed, salvation to the damned—hero, they rejoiced—but somehow, he can't decide on an anniversary gift for his wife.

21. Life

In the grand scheme of things, one soldier's life is insignificant (all but hers).

22. Jealousy

"She's very pretty, sir…very…endowed," Riza snaps tersely.

23. Hands

Whereas her hands are rough from combat and singed with the acrid residue of gunpowder, his are soft and perpetually sheltered behind fine white cloth—and something she relentlessly teases him about.

24. Taste

"Try it," Riza insists, proffering an apple tart, "I'm sure seventh time is the charm."

25. Devotion

She might unquestioningly obey him during the day, but at night, he relishes in being at her mercy.

26. Forever

She swore to stand by him until he achieved his goal, but they never discussed what would happen (where she would stand) afterwards.

27. Blood

Helpless and horrified, he stares as blood sprouts in thin crimson ribbons from her neck—and knows that he has hurt her yet again.

28. Sickness

Even bedridden, she still manages to admonish him for neglecting paperwork (now that's dedication, he thinks).

29. Melody

Lately, no songs or laughter stir from the Fuhrer's mansion; it'll be another week before Riza returns from Resembool (perhaps he'd been too lenient in granting her such a lengthy vacation).

30. Star

The stars in Ishval shine more luminous, more startling than anywhere else, and on rare, quiet nights, they sit together—nearly touching but never quite.

31. Home

On stifling summer evenings when Master Hawkeye was too sullen to even sermonize, they would sneak off to the lake behind the estate and never had Roy felt so at home.

32. Confusion

Roy departs from his apprenticeship as mysteriously and suddenly as he appeared—and leaves her alone all over again.

33. Fear

Fear is realizing how dangerous her position can be, knowing that she can die, that one day she will to protect him.

34. Lightning/Thunder

Lumbering and mournful, the tempest descends, but Roy can only think about how magnificent she looks with her braids flashing golden like two electrified whips.

35. Bonds

Chameleonic, she transforms into whatever role he needs her to take, but always she remains his Queen.

36. Market

Affair sounds sordid and wrong (and incredibly hot); thus, Riza merely thinks of it as part of her adjunct duties to purchase him fresh vegetables and fruits.

37. Technology

"Thank god for tinted windows," Roy murmurs as he scorches kisses up her thigh.

38. Gift

Every morning for the past month, a rose has been materializing on her desk (to his dismay, she tosses today's offering aside and resumes work like always).

39. Smile

Her smile continuously evolves throughout the decades they spend together, and each metamorphosis never fails to amaze him.

40. Innocence

Twice he takes her innocence, but the second (purloining her father's very soul it felt) will permanently haunt him for the aftermath.

41. Completion

This must be it, the culmination of all that he's sought and fought for: watching her tuck back a damp strand of hair, ensconced in the sweetness of her shampoo, their legs lazily entwined.

42. Clouds

Perhaps with her will the rain finally dissipate.

43. Sky

His ambitions expand endlessly to the horizon and like the crisp firmament bloomed open to take, he will consume her whole.

44. Heaven

"Damn you, Hughes," Roy mutters as he hastily slips the photo of his daughter back into his wallet (praying that his interviewee hadn't noticed).

45. Hell

Enjoying a picnic with the husband, two fully-grown dogs, and three puppies sounded a lot more romantic (feasible) in her head.

46. Sun

He is the sun (he begins to expounds)—

47. Moon

And she is the moon (she drily mocks).

48. Waves

In the warm Cretan seas, she playfully splashes him with salt-stung water, reminding him what living really means.

49. Hair

"Your…your hair…but why!" he stammers in shock (Riza raises a brow, daring him to comment more).

50. Supernova

At the center of Truth, where the cosmos collide and explode and revive in infinite cycles, he sees her.