#and gracia. his wife my gf. riza. my gf.

[queenofthestarrrswrites]

time for me to pontificate below on how this man will not leave me be and how all this was from my graduate classes l o l

i think this is such an interesting concept to tease out...because ultimately why was hughes' death portrayed as bad?

the most obvious answer is that he was murdered in cold blood by what he thought was (maybe) his wife. BUT...roy and riza's ultimate belief is that they - and everyone else in ishval - are war criminals who deserve death for their crimes.

which lies in the tension of what roy believes and what he claims to be true. by his logic, hughes ultimately deserved to die. yet his actual death brings roy to the genuine edge of his sanity. he can't have it both ways, though. he cannot spare his best friend and his (maybe, sort of) gf while condemning all others to die. either he must admit that perhaps their lives do have some value outside of the worst things they've ever done OR he must admit that those he loves the most are also worthy of a violent end.

juicy, delicious, incredible.

it's also the perfect vehicle for the catholic imagination, and in 2025, i am writing what i want. even though FMA (and this fic) don't have explicit religious themes nor do you have to be religious to enjoy them, it's all about the nature of evil, sin, and forgiveness. is there really redemption beyond evil? how do those who've committed evil reconcile with the world and themselves? how is no one else going mad over the fact that roy had his two palms pierced when he was on a mission to save the world?

screaming, crying, throwing up

also i just like the idea of gracia, stepping to hughes' shoes, both as a surrogate bff and a completely removed bystander, to talk some sense into roy. FMA is so economic and precise with its storytelling, which is a huge strength, but i want to know more. are they friends? does his death bring them closer or further apart?

by queenofthestarrrs

Roy knows he doesn’t visit his best friend’s widow and daughter as much as he should.

Words: 5829, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/M

Characters: Gracia Hughes, Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye, Elicia Hughes, Maes Hughes

Relationships: Gracia Hughes & Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye/Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye & Maes Hughes & Roy Mustang, Gracia Hughes/Maes Hughes

Additional Tags: Male-Female Friendship, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Survivor Guilt, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Off-screen Relationship(s), no beta we die like hughes, Character Study

[thpenguin]

I've seen exactly one (1) maes hughes kinnie but. pspspsps where are you