(Figured I would show you guys what I listen to while I write. I do not own the music or the video.)

Life at the office was hectic. There was always something happening. Some squabble to be laid to rest, plenty of paperwork to be done, the occasional shot or two from Riza's gun to get them all back on track...By all means, it was a lively place to be.

Jokes and pranks ran rampant, innuendos and rather inappropriate references to the night previous were everywhere.

Betting took place frequently, on both idiotic and childish things such as betting on which droplet of water would get to the bottom of the windowpane first, and more serious things.

Things such as bets on of Riza would actually shoot Havoc for smoking that tenth cigarette, or if Mustang would finally snap and burn the whole place to the ground at the sheer amount of paperwork he was dealing with.

Thankfully, that hadn't happened quite yet. Riza just had to hope that that continued to be the case as she left the office to retrieve yet more files that needed to be looked through and signed, and drop off already completed work.

The long stretches of hallways were near abandoned at this time, what with lunch not for another half hour, and breakfast hours already over. Everyone was in their respective offices, save for those who were out on tasks like Riza.

Even then, people were few and far between. On her walk through headquarters, Riza encountered only three others. Two carried stacks of paperwork much like herself, the other seemed rather resigned at their task of retrieving a new box of what appeared to be paperclips.

However, that didn't stop her feeling as though she was being watched, like an animal trapped in a cage made of one-way glass. Whatever was there could see her, but no matter the amount of stealthy glances around, Riza found no one that could be put to blame. Had she not been burdened with the papers on her hands, she would most definitely have her hand near her gun.

--

The rest of her walk was uneventful, other than the continued feeling of being watched. As she reentered the office and closed the door behind her, she was aware of the heavy weight of eyes lifting from her back.

Any other person may have dismissed the sensations of being spied on as just a moment of paranoia. Riza, however, was no regular person. She was trained in war to be constantly alert of her surroundings, and there had most definitely been something watching her.

The rest of the day passed normally. In the hectic setting of the office, the worries of the unseen stalker were soon washed away as she urged the men to get their work done so they could all go home on time for once.

Miraculously, they only messed around for another hour, and they were wrapping up the last of the documents by seven o'clock. By this point, the room was silent besides the quiet scratching of pens on paper with a wood background. It could nearly be considered peaceful.

Riza finished the last of her daily work, and set it with the rest of the neatly stacked files. Over the course of the next half an hour, Falman, Alphonse, and the newest addition to the team, Jacob, all stacked their work along with hers.

They were done for the day. Riza, unfortunately, was not. She still had to ensure that the Brigadier General finished his work, else he'd have double the amount to do. He'd been getting better at finishing his papers since his promotion, but he was still a ways away from her being able to leave for the night and trusting him to finish it.

Another two hours passed before Mustang emerged from his office for the final time that evening.

A quick look at the time revealed it to be nine thirty as both she and Mustang retrieved their coats from the coat rack by the door. When both were out of the office, the door closed firmly and locked behind them, they walked in near silence out of the building, and down the steps to the main grounds.

Only the janitors would be left in the building, by this point, as Mustang's team was well known for being the last people to leave.

--

Riza walked home alone. She always had, what with her quaint house being so close to  Central Command, only a mere three and a half miles away.

With her gun at her side, wearing her uniform, and with her awareness of the happenings around her, she had never once been afraid of taking the walk home when the sun had already set.

She wasn't afraid that night, either. She bid her Commanding Officer and friend goodnight, and started her walk.

The air was brisk, odd for a night that followed such a beautiful late spring day. Only the brightest stars could be seen through the clouds, and past the street lamps she walked by. The moon, however, shone as brightly as ever, barely peeking over the buildings. Only the thinnest clouds crept through the darkened sky.

Riza reached her home, safe as always, and had barely rested her hand on the steel doorknob to her house when her eyes narrowed. Discretely, she glanced around her even as she unlocked her front door.

There was nothing.

The night was as still as ever, save for the occasional few cars making their way to the nearest late night bar or liquor store for a drink.

It was nothing, Riza decided, laying to rest her pointless worries.

She knew what real threats felt like. This was not one.

In the distance, a dog barked.

Riza locked the door behind her that night, and ate a light, rather late dinner. The usual.

After a shower, a few chapters read in a rather captivating book about a child who befriended the wind and who went on rather marvelous adventures with it, she went to bed.

A small, pitch black spider rested on the windowsill of her room.

--1029 Words--

Well that took ages to finish. Sorry about that. But hey, it's out now?? Is that any consolation?? No? Oh well.