A/N: The actual last chapter now, finally! As it says at the beginning, this story was written for mebh so I want to say a huge thank you to her for encouraging me so much when I was writing it and for being an amazing friend in general. I wouldn't be writing fanfic at all if it weren't for her, and would undoubtedly be a worse off person in many other ways too.

Alright, alright, there's plenty enough sap in this chapter already without me adding more here... so, as usual, I don't own FMA etc etc... enjoy the last chapter!

He didn't know where he was. He was laying in a bed, that much he could tell, the rough cotton sheets tucked tightly around his body, holding him in place. Roy blinked his eyes, trying to rid them of the blur of sleep. A flash of golden hair in the corner of his vision caught his attention and he turned to see Riza gazing at him from a chair next to his bed, joy and relief written clearer than ink across her face.

"You're awake; thank goodness." She said, reaching out to take his hand, her warm fingers interlacing with his. "Knox was beginning to worry. We all were, to be honest. You've been asleep for nearly ten hours." Roy stared at her, his expression blank as he struggled to comprehend what she was saying. He had slept for so long? Why? What was going on? Riza looked exhausted, he realised. There were deep shadows under her eyes and her hair was in disarray, as if she too had recently woken from sleeping. But the smile she gave him was bright and joyful, free from all cares, and despite himself, Roy's anxiety began to melt away at the sight of it.

"How are you feeling?" Riza asked, her thumb stroking over the back of his hand, the action gentle and soothing. Roy opened his mouth to reply but his words were lost to a fit of dry, painful coughing. Riza's mouth narrowed in concern and she hurried to pass him a glass of water from the bedside table. Roy drank it slowly, in small, controlled sips, remembering the times spent in Ishval dealing with dehydration. If he drank too quickly he could be sick, and that was one of the last things he needed right now.

When his coughing had stopped and his throat no longer felt as if it had been rubbed raw with sandpaper, Roy returned to contemplating Riza's question. How was he feeling? Sluggish, certainly, and, despite all reason, craving another few hours sleep. His head was pounding, there was an awful taste in his mouth and his stomach felt nauseatingly empty. "Not great..." he replied, all evidence having been taken into consideration. His voice emerged as a croaking whisper, a sounds that he would have found hilarious if it wasn't so painful. "What... happened to me?" He asked. He could remember nothing of how he came to be in the situation and the gaps in his memory were intensely frustrating, not to mention a little frightening. He could remember his birthday dinner... feeling unwell and leaving the table for a while... and then nothing. What had happened in those lost hours? "Did I have food poisoning?" it seemed unlikely and could hardly explain his missing memories but he could think of nothing else. And he did remember being sick after leaving the table, before his memories blurred and faded out altogether.

Riza bit her lip, her face suddenly pale and tightly drawn. She took his hand in both of hers, bringing it up to her lips and placing a gentle kiss on his cold fingers. Roy's eyes widened, confused by her sudden small gesture of intimacy. It wasn't like her to be so openly affectionate in public. Sure, they were alone in the room at that moment, but he was pretty sure by now that they were in a hospital, which meant that anyone could walk in, at any moment.

"No, Roy," Riza began, speaking softly, as if afraid of the impact her words would have. "You... you were poisoned. Atropine, from the belladonna plant. Knox identified it just in time and gave you the antidote. You've been sleeping it off ever since." For a long time Roy just looked at her, unable to form a coherent reply. What Riza had said seemed so unreal, something far too ridiculous to be true. Of course, he knew he had enemies, both inside the military and out of it, but even so...

"Who was it?" he asked. "Who poisoned me?" His disbelief grew even stronger as she told him, her voice hushed and her worried eyes never leaving his face. Roy had always thought of General Reynolds as a good man, a potential ally even. They hadn't always agreed on everything but he'd never imagined that the older general hated him to the point of wanting him dead.

"Why?" He couldn't understand it. The general was a wealthy man, powerful and higher ranking than Roy himself. Why would Reynolds risk all that he had- his job, his reputation, certainly his freedom and maybe even his life- to try and kill him?

"I don't know." Riza looked down at the bed as she spoke, not meeting his eyes. "Havoc was the one who secured the confession, he hasn't told me yet." There was a strange quality to her voice and Roy could tell that she was not quite telling the truth. He didn't like the idea of having information withheld from him but he was too tired to demand his question be answered properly. He would undoubtedly hear the reason many times more than he would care to when Reynolds was put on trial. Reynolds' trial... he groaned out loud at the thought of it. He would have to be a witness, there was no getting out of it, and that meant staying in Central all throughout the long weeks of judicial deliberating and media scandal. And they were meant to be starting the temple restoration project in Ishval's new capital in less than two weeks...

"What's wrong?" Riza asked, her voice alight with worry once more, which disappeared almost instantly when he told her what had been on his mind. "You nearly died and you're worried about scheduling?" she laughed. As quickly as it had come, her amusement vanished as the full impact of what she had said hit them both.

"You... you nearly died, Roy..." Riza said, her voice trembling. She moved to sit on the bed, pulling him into a close embrace, her lips brushing his hair as she continued to speak. "I don't have to tell you how terrified I was. After the Promised Day I hoped I'd never have to feel that kind of fear again, that I wouldn't have to see you suffer any more. Over the last few years I came to believe that was possible, that the worst of the danger was over. Last night... last night showed me just how wrong I was." She took a deep breath, holding him even tighter before continuing. "It was so terrible... no one knew what was wrong with you and you were just in so much pain... you didn't even know who I was sometimes..."

Riza paused and Roy could hear her trying to collect herself, to keep control of her emotions. She kissed the crown of his head and, not caring for who may disturb them, Roy shifted so they were eye to eye, kissing her softly on the lips. "But you're alright now." Riza whispered when they broke away, as if she could scarcely believe it, as if she needed to convince herself. "You're alright." She smiled at him suddenly, a playful light in her eyes banishing the gathered shadows. "But..." Riza's smile widened even as her tone grew stern; the voice of the young girl who had scolded him for failing to hang the laundry properly. "Roy Mustang, don't you dare ever try and die on me again. Is that understood?" She kissed him again, letting him wrap his arms around her as they both savoured the precious moment of privacy.

"Yes, Miss Hawkeye. Perfectly." He replied, laughing, running his fingers through her hair. They had so few moments in their lives when they could be truly alone; he was going to enjoy this one as much as he could. And if he had to be poisoned and saved from the brink of death to enjoy it then so be it.

... Yes, I let the epilogue descend into sickly sweet sappiness, what of it? Thanks for reading this, the worst planned out oneshot fic ever (and latest birthday fic ever, sorry mebh!) and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, please drop in a review if you can!