Holidays Are Hell

Chapter 1: Riza's Revelation

NOTE: Thank you so much to OTP for cowriting the first part of this with me. It started out as oneshot idea and now I have a completely different direction in which I want to go. This is yet another story that will be a multichapter.

Disclaimer: I don’t own FMA

AN: A long time ago (I think it was around August through October) I got a request for a Christmas fic. If you are the person that requested it please let me know so, I can dedicate it to you. Also, they wanted Maes Hughes alive so he’s alive in this.

Riza's Revelation

The snow fell from the sky and coated Central city in a blanket of white as the Hughes family waited for the train to arrive. Maes was wearing a long, black coat and a hat with puffballs that Elecia got for him one day. Gracia was bundled up in a cream coat with white mittens, and little Elecia was wrapped up in a tiny pink coat with snowflakes on it, a fur lined hood, and doggy mittens (a gift from her Uncle Roy). Maes was holding her hand as he looked down the track, watching for the train.

"I hope it gets here soon. It's freezing out here and we are going to be late checking in," he said, looking up at a clock situated on the platform.

Elecia looked up at him, squinting her eyes a bit so that the falling snow wouldn't fall into them. "Why isn't Uncle Roy coming with us? He comes every year and we always have cocoa and candy canes together! Then we have snowball fights!" She then looked down at her feet and sighed. "I want Uncle Roy to come."

Maes sighed heavily. He too wanted Roy to come with them. "He said he had something important that kept him from coming with us this time. Ha, the poor man doesn't know what he's going to miss!" He turned to look down at his daughter, who was now looking back up at him. He shot her a huge smile. "We're going to have a lot of fun sweetie. We'll have candy canes and cocoa."

"But it's not the same without Uncle Roy! Doesn't he like us anymore? Uncle Roy will be all alone on Christmas and no one should be alone on Christmas! Right mommy?" She said, directing her gaze up to Gracia.

Gracia smiled softly but didn't speak anything. She felt the same way as her daughter. She knew that Roy's only family was still in Xing, and weren't very fond of him at all. She felt like Roy was part of their family and regretted that he wouldn't' be accompanying them. She was so thankful to Roy Mustang for saving her husband. If it weren't for him, Maes would be dead. He would have never survived being shot in that phone booth.

Maes wanted to stay in the military but Roy convinced him to get out and move to a different city until everything was over. And within a year, it was. Then, for two more years, Roy gave up his commission and went to the North. They'd met Roy during the festival up there and he hadn't mentioned anything about living in that area or resigning his commission. It was just the usual fun week. This Christmas would be the first time Roy wouldn't be there with them. At first, they were going to go down South, but Elecia wanted snow instead of the beach so Maes readily changed back to their normal trip.

Elecia sighed heavily. "I love Uncle Roy."

Maes hated seeing his baby girl so down in the dumps. He bent down and picked her up. "I know honey, but he just can't come with us or meet us there," he said. "I do know what we can do though."

"What?" she questioned.

"We can call him on Christmas and wish him a Merry Christmas and give him a phone hug. How does that sound?"

"Will that make Uncle Roy happy?" she asked, followed by a tiny sniff.

"Of course it will! It will make his day! And let's not forget to let daddy give him a few words of advice as well," he said, just as the train pulled into the station.

"How about that pretty blond lady?" she questioned.

"Pretty blond lady?"

"The one at Uncle Roy's office! The one always around Uncle Roy! Will she be there too? I like her and she's pretty! Just like my dolls."

Maes almost burst out laughing at her comment about Riza because it was so damn true. "I believe she will be. Let me tell you a little secret," he said and moved close to her ear. "I happen to know that Uncle Roy loves the blond lady, and I'm very sure that the blond lady feels the same. I think they should get married and have a little girl like you."

Elecia laughed aloud. "Daddy! You sound like that one guy that shoots the arrows and makes people fall in love. You should act like him and that way Uncle Roy and the pretty lady will get married and have a little baby!"

"Elecia! Don't put your father up to things like that!" Gracia scolded, but the amusement tone overtook scolding tone.

It was already much too late for that, Maes was cooking up some diabolical plans to get those two together whether they wanted to or not.

"It's too late for that Gracia. I already have many, many, plans for that and all of them are fool proof," he said as the train pulled into the station. He handed Elecia to Gracia and picked up their bags.

"Maes, if all of the plans are fool proof then why do you have more than one plan?" Gracia questioned, following her husband toward the train.

Maes scratched the back of his neck and smiled hesitantly, "So if one doesn't work I have a fallback plan."

Gracia laughed at his silly answer that didn't really answer anything. She sighed, and kissed his cheek before a conductor helped her onto the train.

Most people had already traveled to their destination earlier that week so they were able to find a compartment with only an elderly couple occupying it. They made their way over to the corner of the compartment and took off their coats. Elecia was happily looking out the window, anxious for the train ride to start.

Elecia laughed in delight as the whistle blew and the train began to move. She crawled onto her father's lap and laughed but soon into the ride, when her excitement died down significantly, she fell asleep. Maes laid her down on the seat beside him and covered her with her coat and then his. He then looked over to his wife and smiled.

"So you really think a woman like Riza Hawkeye is good for Roy? Is she what Roy needs?" Gracia questioned, catching Maes completely off guard. "I mean, I only met her once and even then, well she seemed so cold."

Maes smiled widely at his wife. "Of course I am sure. They were made for each other. It's destiny. I watched them for years when I was in the military. They have all those little quirks that make them perfect for one another. She's definitely what Roy needs."

"She's…god, this is going to make me sound horrible, but, she's not very feminine. A man like Roy needs a wife, not a bodyguard. After what he's been through an officer is the last thing I would suspect he needs. Maybe we should try to match him with my sister Lacy. She'd be a good thing for him."

Maes was surprised at the suggestion of anyone else except Riza. Of course, if Gracia had been in the headquarters with them, saw them work together, and saw Riza bring Roy back from places Maes wouldn't attempt to bring him back from, she wouldn't be saying those things.

"You don't sound horrible. You sound ignorant on the subject . She's not really always like that. You should have seen her when she adopted Hayate, and you heard the way Elecia talked about her."

"You mean she isn't the proverbial ice queen I've heard about?"

"No, not really. She's just not good at showing her emotions to people she doesn't know much about. I've seen her around her friends. When she's around them, she's much more easy going, especially when around Roy in a casual setting. Despite what you think, Riza cares for Roy in a way that no other woman can. Those so called women that he dates don't understand him and could care less. They just see his position in the military, or his looks. Roy puts on an act for those women. He doesn't do that with Riza. He just lets himself go and she can help him in ways no one else can."

Gracia nodded and looked down at her lap. She really did feel awful for what she said and made a mental note to try to get to know Riza Hawkeye a bit better. Especially if Roy loved her as much as Maes expressed.

"I'll invite her for tea sometime so I can get to know her. I feel horrible for thinking all the things I did about her."

He chuckled lightly. "Don't' worry about it. Now if only they would stop being so stubborn about the whole thing and just get married already!" he exclaimed.

"Maes, why don't you let them take their own sweet time about it? If they care as much as you say, it will happen eventually."

"Because it's just too much fun to mess with them!" he said, beaming. "And I don't like waiting. They've known each other for years and years. Since they were both teenagers. If someone doesn't push them it may never happen."

"What am I going to do with you?" she said, laughing lightly.

"I could make a few suggestions but we are on a train right now so I'd better not," Maes teased, causing Gracia to blush, cough, and then turn her gaze toward the window.

---

The rest of the train ride was silent and comfortable. Elecia awoke right when they pulled into the train depot at their destination. Maes helped his daughter back into her coat before putting on his. As he opened the door to the cabin, the cooler air of the North hit him and he shivered. They got off the train and made their way through the depot and into the small town.

"So, what do you want to do first?" he asked Elecia who was looking around, awed by all the beautiful Christmas decorations.

"Maes, we need to check in remember?" Gracia notified him. "Then we need to have some lunch."

"Oh yeah," he said with a laugh. Then they walked to the hotel where they stayed every year that they came to this town. They walked up to the front desk where a plump friendly woman was standing. She turned to them and offered a genuine welcoming smile.

"Welcome to Hotel Fromage. May I help you sir?"

"We have reservations under Hughes," he said.

The woman looked down at the book in front of her and after flipping a few pages, she ran her finger down a list of names. "Ah! You've been upgraded to one of the suites, courtesy of Roy Mustang," she said. She went over to a small safe to get the keys.

Maes was stunned at the revelation. He smiled widely and looked at his wife. "That rascally dog managed to do something for us even when he didn't come."

"He's too generous. The suites here cost a fortune."

"Roy's loaded, I guess this is his Christmas present to us," Maes said, as the woman handed him the keys. "Please enjoy your stay."

"We will," Maes said, "Thank you."

They then made their way to the elevator and up to the hotel suite.

--

After unpacking, they bundled up and made their way to the café where they had lunch every year. As usual, it was crowded but not so much that it was uncomfortable. They found a nice corner booth next to the heater and enjoyed some warm soup and peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. Elecia even got a special treat, when the waitress brought her a big cup of hot cocoa with marshmallows.

When they were finished with lunch, they made their way to the shopping district to pick up a few gifts. They sent a few via post to Roy back in Central and, upon Elecia's suggestion and downright stubbornness, they ended up sending Riza a doll that looked like her.

As they made their way back to the hotel, Maes glanced over at the frozen pond they were walking past. To his absolute shock, he saw Riza Hawkeye, sitting on a bench with a small blue bundle in her arms. Hayate was sitting by her side, as if he was guarding her from anyone that would step too near.

"Maes, isn't that…" Gracia started to question.

"Yeah, but what is she doing here?"

"Better yet, whose child is she holding?" Gracia asked. She hated to admit it, but she knew her curiosity was just as strong as Maes's.

"Maybe it is Uncle Roy's baby!"

"No Elecia, your uncle Roy would have told us if he was a daddy," Maes said. "Wouldn't he?"

"It's not my kid," a familiar voice said. Maes and Gracia jumped in surprise and turned around to see Roy standing there.

"Uncle Roy! You came!" Elecia said, rushing to him. Roy bent down to scoop her up into his arms.

"Hey kiddo," he said with a laugh. "I had to do a bit of work before I came up here. I can't stay as long as usual because I have to get out West to take care of some matters and then go back to Central to get my things shipped."

"The blond lady came too?" she questioned.

"Riza?" Roy asked.

"Yeah! Miss Riza! That was her name!" She then turned to look at her mom and dad. "Why didn't you tell me that was her name? I've been calling her blond lady."

Maes and Gracia laughed. "We're sorry," Gracia said.

Elecia giggled and turned back to hug Roy. She pulled away and looked at his face. "Miss Riza looks like a mommy." She turned to look at Riza sitting across the street.

Roy directed his gaze over to her and was stunned at just how right Riza looked sitting there holding the little bundle. She looked gorgeous as she stared down at the baby, a soft smile gracing her lips. Her hair was flowing down against the red coat with the white fur lined cuffs and hood that she wore. Her cheeks were flushed due to the cold hair and her eyes were almost sparkling.

"So, whose kid is it?" Maes questioned, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"It's her cousin Sophie's," Roy said, staring at his friend and then motioning back to Riza. They all turned to see Riza standing and handing the baby to a woman that looked very similar to her. "We needed to pick up some paperwork here before we go out west and Grumman asked her to stop by their home. This was the first time Riza was aware that she had family other than her grandfather, alive. They insisted that we stay with them.

"Yay!" Elecia said.

Riza walked over to the group when her cousin left her company. "Sir, I'll be going on to Western Headquarters," she said.

"Oh, why don't you join us?" Gracia asked, genuinely wanting to know about the woman before her.

"Yeah Miss Riza!"

"Yes, Christmas Eve is three days from now. Join us. The more the merrier," Maes said.

"Um…"

"You've never spent Christmas with us before. It will be fun," Roy said.

Riza shook her head. "I don't …I don't celebrate holidays. I'm sorry." She said, in a low tone, shocking everyone present. She met Roy's gaze. "I'll meet you at Western HQ sir," she said and walked away, leaving a stunned group behind.

AN: I know, I know, it’s a day late for Christmas. However, it’s still considered the holiday season and last year’s holiday fic “Going Home is Hell” was started on the 12/25/07 and this was started the 12/25/08. Going Home is Hell was extended into March. However, this fic won’t take that long. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter and please review.