Title: Silent Tears

Type: Oneshot (2/2)

Pairings/Characters: Royai

DISCLAMER: I own nothing other than the fanfiction itself

Summary: SPOILERS for chapter 70 of the manga and episode 37 of Brotherhood. What happened after Riza hung up the phone on her "friendly neighborhood florist." Royai.

A/N: Check out Chapter 4 of Pictures of the Past and see if you can find the connection between it and Silent Tears ;)

"I'm not going… I can't."

"You have to. You don't have a choice."

"Yes, I do, dammit, and I'm not moving."

Roy let out an exhausted sigh, looking at Riza as she sat across the room in his favorite chair. He was clad in his work pants whereas she was still wrapped in a blanket, perfectly content in her pajamas. She refused to make eye contact with him as he spoke to her. She always had been a stubborn one. "Riza, listen to me. You have to go in to work. If you don't, they'll get suspicious and probably come after you. If you report like usual, even a little shaken, that will just make them happy – at least for now; they want you upset and you know it."

"I'm weak." Riza murmured.

"What?" Roy asked, not because he couldn't hear her but because he couldn't hear her words.

"I'm weak. To me, crying is the ultimate sign of weakness – I've been doing a lot of it lately, and I'm not proud of it." She still refused to make eye contact with him. "I've gotten soft… I'm afraid they're going to eat me alive." Riza let out a small, cynical laugh. "Listen to me – I just admitted I'm afraid. God, I'm losing it."

"Dammit, Riza, why won't you listen to me?" Roy said, crossing the room in only a few strides and grabbing her by the shoulders. "It's okay to feel weak – that's what makes us human. Tears and fear are just a part of life. Why won't you accept that?"

"Because, Roy." Riza said, turning her head to pierce him with her hazel gaze. "Because I don't have that luxury. I never have. There's no room for self-pity in my life. The last time… when I thought I'd lost you… that's the first time I can remember crying since my mother died – out of emotion, anyway…"

Roy winced, remembering all too clearly the tears that had streamed down her cheeks as he had destroyed the intricate tattoo on her back, marring the perfect skin. She had screamed so loud… He was brought back once more to the present by the sound of her voice.

"My father drilled it into my head over and over again that things such as that were a sign of weakness, that there was no room for them in life if one wanted to do anything with their lives-"

"That man was cold and distant. You can't compare him to normal people."

"That may be true, Roy, but he was still my father. Like it or not he did have at least some influence over me." Riza muttered, glancing away and shaking her head. "God knows I don't like it. But it's just a part of who I am… I can't get rid of it so easily. And besides, if I wasn't strong then I wouldn't be where I am now."

"You are strong, Riza, but not because of your reluctance to feel weak. You are strong because of who you are and what you have done, what you continue to do. Know that, and don't let yourself fall into the same false sense of security your father had by blocking people out. It's okay to cry, to feel fear; you may not like it - hell, no one does, but others can help you. Others that care about you."

"They'll think I'm weak, too."

Roy pulled her to his chest, holding her close. "I'll never think you're weak. Trust me, you're the strongest person I've ever known, and the fact that you can allow yourself to cry makes you even stronger. All I ask is that you come back from your lapses into fear stronger than you were before – I know you won't let it destroy you."

"No." Riza said, smiling softly into his shoulder. "I have too much to live for to do that."

A/N: I tried to give this story a little bit of closure in the end, and this is what came of it. It's rare for me to write anything without a little bit of humor, so this is a bit unusual for me. However, I am extremely happy you all liked it.

Rate and Review – it makes me a happy writer :)