Fridays were the best days, leaving time for studies, for alchemy, and for being with friends. Hex liked Fridays.

Tugging on the strap of his backpack and pushing his scarf down around his chin, he padded through the nearly empty corridors of Marin Hall, up the flight of stone stairs to the second-floor labs, coming from his own finished work for the day, and goggles still perched on his forehead.

He passed by darkened rooms, teachers long-gone, a few others open, with their lights on, and the odd student bent over test tubes, beakers and science notes. And he stopped at one room, where he knew the person he'd been seeking would be.

Sure enough, Roy was there, and Hex watched him as he stood in the doorway, the man sitting on a high stool, one leg tucked up, the other dangling as he absently chewed the end of his pen, and an Erlenmeyer flask merrily sizzling on a Bunsen burner.

Hex's steps were soft as he made his way past marble-topped counters, Roy none the wiser that he was even around. The compound in the flask was probably done, judging by the color, and Hex smiled as he turned off the gas, the flame beneath it dying.

Another step, and his hand came to rest gently on Roy's shoulder. The man jumped.

"ACK! Jeez, Hex. Say something before you try and give me a heart attack next time." He brushed his bangs out of his face and set his pen down, looking up at the chimera, who grinned back.

"Hey, what are you doing here, anyway? You done?"

"Yeah, I finished just a little bit ago," Hex replied, nodding, and gesturing to Roy's near-dry compound. "I think you are, too."

Roy followed it, and hurriedly grabbed up a pair of tongs. He sighed. "Guess I got too caught up in finishing the notes."

He transferred a bit of the liquid into a beaker with a powder dusting the bottom. The color abruptly changed, and the new mixture foamed. Roy stared. "Huh. That's interesting."

Hex laughed. "I think it's the property of the acid they had us create. It's pretty powerful stuff; stronger than hydrochloric."

"I gathered." Roy set the tongs and flask down, picking up his pen and jotting a few more notes before he shook out his hand and closed his notebook. "And I think I'll finish up the conclusion later."

Another nod, and Hex smiled, shifting his backpack on his shoulder again, as Roy slipped his books into his messenger bag and tugged on his thick coat. "Um. Hey, Roy?"

The man stood, slinging his pack over his head to let the strap rest heavily on his shoulder. "Hm?"

"D'you- um. Would you... walk back to the dorms with me?"

Roy looked at him again, and a smirk akin to a smile spread across his lips as he stepped around the counter to the door. "Sure."

Hex's own lips curved, and he followed into the hall, lights in the room flicking off and door closing. Their footsteps were loud in the hall, and as they went back down the stairs to the main, marbled floor. The large, ornate outside door creaked as it opened, ushering them out into the snowy Quad, trees heavy with January-white.

From echoes to nearly silent crunches in the evening air, their footsteps were the only sound, unless one listened closely- it was almost like the scarcely falling flakes made their own noise.

"It's so pretty out," Hex murmured, snuggling deeper into the woolen scarf around his neck.

"Yeah," Roy agreed, his own voice barely above a whisper, as if something louder would disturb the sleeping world. Carefully, his chilly fingertips touched Hex's palm and slid to rest between the chimera's own fingers, which curled over Roy's knuckles. He smiled, a flick of a glance to Hex's face, where the red couldn't all just be from the cold.