Of Secrets and Dresses

Riza sighed for the third time since she had left her house that afternoon and tightened her scarf around herself in an attempt to combat the cold. She glanced in all the frosty shop windows that she passed along the snow covered street and frowned. Wreaths were hanging on every door, garland lined railings and roofs, and everything in Central was merry and bright, but there was nothing merry for Hawkeye when it came to dress shopping.

The annual winter military ball was in a week and, courtesy of Fuhrer Grumman, all attendees were given the option to wear formal clothes as opposed to their dress blues. He made it clear that he wanted to see Riza in something other than her uniform. Not wanting to upset the Fuhrer, who also happened to be her grandfather, she was forced to search for a dress that would be suitable to wear to such a formal event.

But dress shopping had never been an easy task for Riza. The dress had to meet her special requirements and few actually fit the bill. If they did, they usually were not flattering. She had learned to lower her standards long ago when it came to clothes shopping and it was why she rarely shopped for new clothes, much to her best friend Rebecca's disappointment. Many an outing was declined for reasons Riza always refused to disclose. Rebecca knew her friend was lying every time Riza made an excuse about why she couldn't or didn't want to go, but she was a good friend and never pushed Riza to explain herself.

There were far more elegant shops to choose from now that Riza lived in Central and it was actually the first time she had ever truly looked at them. She hadn't ever needed anything too fancy to wear since moving, so shopping in this part of town never crossed her mind. Now that an occasion presented itself, Riza realized she had no idea where to even start.

She almost ran into someone when a particular shop caught her attention and she quickly stepped closer to the building to avoid a collision.

"Excuse me," Riza said. "I wasn't paying attention."

"I noticed."

At hearing the familiar voice, Riza actually took a better look at the man she almost walked into. She found herself face to face with none other than her superior officer, Brigadier General Roy Mustang, grinning from behind his scarf. He chuckled at the surprise on her face.

"I thought you were working today, sir?"

"I was, but I managed to finish up my paperwork and got out early."

Riza eyed him skeptically.

"Why am I having a hard time believing that?"

It's true!" Roy exclaimed, pouting. "Anyway, what are you up to in this part of town?"

Riza sighed and looked back at the shop she had been distracted by.

"Trying to find a dress for next week. I'm afraid it's been a long time since I last shopped for anything very fancy and I'm not even sure if I'll find something appropriate..."

She didn't need to elaborate. Roy knew exactly what she was insinuating and he frowned.

"Nonsense, Captain," he said gently. "I'm sure we can find something that would suit you."

Riza turned back to Roy and raised a brow.

"We?"

Roy grinned again and nodded.

"Oh yes, now that I've run into you, I'd be more than delighted to help you look for something." Riza opened her mouth to protest, but Roy shook his head before she could say anything, opening the door to the shop and gesturing for her to go inside. "This looks like a good place to start. Now, let's get out of the cold."