Of course there was nothing worse than the Isbalan war. All the blood, bodies, and gunfire would haunt Riza Hawkeye forever. Nothing could compare to the pain that came with listening to the agonized screams of the war victims and the echoing sounds of explosions. Despite this, Riza was beginning to believe that something that would be just as treacherous and dangerous for the country Amestria was just around the corner. Something called 'the Day of Promise' was approaching, and she didn't know how to prepare herself for it.

The Day of Promise almost seemed like an execution date to her. There was no chance of her survival this late in the game, right? She knew that she was no match for the homunculi since her brief fight with Gluttony so long ago. The force she was up against now was even worse than him. It was present with her everyday, at every moment, hiding in the shadows, as if waiting for the word that it was okay to kill her.

She could only hope that she'd be given a quick, painless death. She hoped that they wouldn't threaten her into doing something she wasn't meant to do. She hoped that she'd be the first to go. Experience with the homunculi had taught her that it would be easiest to go first because it was impossible for her to let go of the people she cares about.

It was all unpredictable, of course, and she knew she shouldn't spend too much time thinking about it. She couldn't help it, though, while she worked for King Bradley. Her job was a lot duller now that she never had to use her gun. She hardly ever got news from central and she hadn't heard from any of her fellow officers whose positions had also been changed (Fuery, Breda, and Falman). She hadn't spoken to the Colonel since she had seen him in the cafeteria several months ago. Her only company was her dog, Black Hayate, but that would have to be enough.

Even though it was a lot more trivial than the upcoming Day of Promise, Riza was also hurting because she had to carry the secret of the homunculus Pride with her everyday. She couldn't confide in anyone or they'd be killed. She had told the Colonel that Selim Bradley was a homunculus that day in the cafeteria (in code, of course) but he had avoided her ever since.

Her new fear of the dark was sure to be apparent to Pride, but she couldn't hide it when she was alone in her apartment. If she didn't have Black Hayate for company, she was sure she would have gone insane long ago.

From the corner of her eye, Riza caught the time on the clock. It was past eight. Once again, she had overworked. She placed down her teapot and turned to her boss, who was no longer paying attention to her but rather some papers on his desk. She paused for a moment, staring at the homunculus who was in charge of their country. Had he decided that she would work under him because it would necessary when the Day of Promise arrived? That must be it. The question was, why was she there instead of one of the others?

"Sir, the time," she muttered, pointing to the clock. "Can I go now or do you need anything else?"

He looked up from his paperwork. "It's fine, you can go." She left without another word, like she did everyday.

Relief swept over her as she stepped out of the Bradley mansion, but it didn't last for long. After she realized how late it was, the darkness stood out to her, and her eyes seemed to point out every shadow and dark figure on the street. Just like every night when she walked home, she felt like each one of them was watching her, waiting to pounce on her when the right moment arose. She kept looking straight ahead, not allowing her mind or eyes to wander from her destination.

Her plan didn't work as well tonight as it usually did. It was a new moon that night, and the only light were from the dim, flickering street lamps. Darkness flooded in on her from all sides, and she felt as if it was going to suffocate her.

There was no way to hide from darkness. Sleeping with the lights on was only a false sense of security. Light causes shadows, and that's where Pride was, watching her. The only thing she could do to convince herself that it was all right was to remember that they probably wouldn't kill her before the Day of Promise. It calmed her down a bit, but not much, because it still meant death for her.

She scanned the nearly empty streets, wishing that she could find some company, especially with the new moon keeping the moonlight from her. But just like every night, no one came.

At last, she made it on to a main street, though she knew that the next turn she took would take her to an even darker, emptier back road to her apartment. She allowed her eyes to wander over the passing cars and faces, keeping her mind preoccupied.

"Don't tell me you're back here for more flowers!"

The word flowers struck Riza's memory and she peeked over her shoulder to see a lady at a flower stand, addressing none other than Colonel Roy Mustang.

"No, that's not it this time," he laughed. "I was wondering if there was any news on the Fullmetal Alchemist's whereabouts. I heard he went missing recently."

"The Armstrongs haven't told me anything about it," she told him, "but this news may surprise you: the head of the Armstrong family has retired and moved away, leaving his position to Olivia!"

Roy smiled and understanding swept over his face. Surely he was thinking the same thing Riza was – news of the Day of Promise had reached Olivia Armstrong!

"Thanks for the information," he said in conclusion as he turned away.

The lady laughed. "For some reason, I feel like you know more than me right now!" He merely smiled but said no more.

He nearly banged into Riza as he walked back onto the busy streets. He took one look at her and the expression on his face told her that he wished he hadn't been seen near her, and she took a step back, regretting eavesdropping on his conversation. She wasn't the only one with the pending Day of Promise on her conscious. The last thing he needed was to worry that the homunculi were suspecting them of planning something together.

She nodded in recognition, "Nice to see you, Colonel," and turned away, continuing back down the street.

"Lieutenant!" he called after her. Shocked that he hadn't taken the chance to get away, she looked back, a curious look in her eyes.

"What is it, Colonel?" she asked cautiously.

He walked over to her. "Are you walking home right now?"

She looked up at him, a puzzled expression on her face. "Yes, I am. Why?"

He examined her for a moment before answering, "You don't look to well. Do you think you should be walking around? You're really pale and shaky."

"I'm fine," she lied. Usually people couldn't notice how she was feeling so easily. She was pretty good at hiding it. Was it because she had worked for the Colonel so long that he able to recognize it so easily?

He raised an eyebrow, a smirk creeping across his mouth. "I don't think any of us are really fine right now," he muttered in a hushed voice. He looked up and down the street before continuing. "Maybe it would be alright for me to give you a ride to your apartment."

She shook her head, backing away again. "That's out of the question. We can't be seen together. Not until after all this is over, if you know what I mean."

" 'Until it's over', huh?" The unsure look in his eyes told her that he was unsure that he'd survive the Day of Promise either.

She nodded, not knowing how else to respond to his morbid statement. "That's right. Right now, it's too dangerous."

"Everything's dangerous," he muttered, rolling his eyes at her before grabbing her sleeve and pulling her to the car. "Just this once, let me do you a favor. You really don't look good."

She gave up with a sigh, allowing him to push her into the car seat.

"You should really invest in a car of your own," he advised her as he started up the engine.

"I've never needed one before," she pointed out. "Besides, that's the least of my concerns right now." She looked down at the shadows that rested at her feet. Surely someone was watching them right now. She needed to be more careful about what she said. It was dangerous enough.

"How's it been in Central headquarters lately?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Uneventful. All I've been doing is paperwork. It's not as exciting as it used to be."

"At least you're keeping to your word and doing all your work," she mumbled. "Anyway, have you visited Havoc lately?"

He laughed. "You know the answer to that."

"He's being moved to the east. Maybe he'll run into my friend Rebecca?"

"Maybe."

The car pulled up in front of her apartment and stopped. She grabbed her bag and leapt out.

"Thank you, Colonel." She smiled and hesitantly began to walk towards her door.

"Not a problem Lieutenant." He leaned against the wheel thoughtfully and laughed, though his laugh seemed empty and dark. "I'd say 'see you tomorrow', but that wouldn't be true, would it?"

She shook her head, a sad smile on her face. "Not anymore." He didn't say any thing else, so she went to her door and unlocked it. Once she stepped inside, he drove away.

She dropped her bag onto the ground as she shut the door and locked it. She scanned the room for Hayate and after a moment of looking around she realized the lights weren't on. Somehow, her eyes had adjusted to the dark and the shadows didn't seem so menacing anymore. She reached to turn on the light but thought better of it, deciding to enjoy the temporary relief of her fear of the dark. Exhausted, she went immediately to her room where Hayate was lying, asleep, and fell onto her bed with a yawn.

Somehow she felt safe in her room. Maybe being in the Colonel's car had brought back the feeling of the old, less complicated days. She shut her eyes and saw his smirking face in her mind. It was the last thing she saw before drifting off to sleep.

That night, Riza Hawkeye slept without the lights on.