A/N: This part is more like a fluffy prologue. This fic is going to be a two-shot because Ed and Alfons always make me end up writing way more than i expect. i guess that's better than the other way around, right? Enjoy some Christmas in June...


It was a bright, crisp, late-November morning when Ed opened his mouth to ask, very possibly, the stupidest question of his life. It didn't seem stupid to him, but by the looks of things, it would probably appear dumb to his roommate. Ed knew it would've been best to try and figure it out on his own so he wouldn't look like a fool in front of Alfons, but so far all he'd gleaned from posters and passers-by was that it was another shitty season for buying things — all thanks to the completely crippled, collapsed economy wrought by the war, of course. The foreign kid was at a loss now; it seemed like everyone in this world was so well-acquainted with whatever it was no one need bother aloud with the details. Edward wanted to punch himself out of sheer frustration. There was no one else he could trust to ask. He had no other choice. Resigned to his more-than-likely embarrassing fate, he opened his mouth to interrogate his flatmate about it over breakfast.

"Hey, Alfons...what's — um, what's Christmas?" He stuttered out. So much for being confident. Alfons nearly choked on his coffee.

"What? What do you mean 'what's Christmas?' I know you're not very fond of religion, Ed, but you can't possibly tell me you've never heard of Christmas," Alfons stated with disbelief, staring at his roommate like he was an alien. Ed didn't try to argue the point that he kind of was. He didn't think it would be well-received.

Edward just fidgeted with his hands and shifted awkwardly in his seat under the scrutinizing gaze before he suddenly became defensive; "Well, sorry! I can't help what I don't know! But I keep seeing it everywhere. Just tell me what it is," He demanded. Alfons just kept staring at him for a few more moments then shook his head.

"Honestly, Edward, you've got the longest neck of anyone I've ever seen," it was Ed's turn for befuddled staring now. Alfons continued, "I didn't know it was possible to always have your head so high in the clouds and live under a rock," he laughed. Ed almost did too, not that he would admit it.

"You still haven't answered my question," the displaced boy pouted. Alfons chuckled.

"Christmas is a holiday. It's about giving," he explained, with all the clichés about 'good will towards men' and 'Christmas cheer' intact, "on Christmas Day you're supposed to give gifts to all your loved ones; your family and friends. Spend time with them," he finished. A thoughtful pause occurred.

"So then who's this 'Santa Claus' guy I keep hearing about?" Ed leaned forward with a raised eyebrow. He asked the question so suspiciously Alfons all but burst out laughing.

"That's just for little kids, Ed," he clarified once he got himself under control, "He's a big, jolly guy with a red coat and a long white beard. He's supposed to ride a sleigh guided by flying reindeer. You leave him cookies and milk," Ed screwed up his face, "and he comes down the chimney on Christmas Eve and leaves presents for all the good boys and girls while they're asleep,"

Alfons felt pretty silly saying all of that out loud, and it wasn't hard to tell Ed found it hard to believe. He was looking at Alfons like he was the crazy one. "That's ridiculous," he huffed, "And a little creepy. We don't even have a chimney," the golden-eyed boy pointed out.

"I'll have to read you a Christmas story sometime," was Alfons' only response.

"And so when even is Christmas?" Ed continued. His fellow engineer gave an incredulous sigh, but he did so with a small smile on his face. Ed was really something, sometimes.

"It's on December 25th," he disclosed.

"Every year?"

"Every year," Alfons reassured.

Ed made a humming noise, like he was pondering something, "Okay...so that gives me like a month to get you something...I can do that," he said to himself. Not that Alfons couldn't hear everything he was saying. He perked up a little at that, if he was being honest.

Actually, he was kind of surprised. He knew Ed wasn't from around here — he never seemed to be particularly interested in the surrounding culture either. Alfons would never have guessed the blond boy didn't know what Christmas was though; that had shocked him immensely. 17 years on Earth — well, that was debatable by Ed's standards, not that Alfons took him seriously — and the kid had never once heard of Christmas. How was that even possible? What kind of sheltered existence was this boy living? Alfons felt kind of bad for him.

But, at least he finally looked to be taking tentative steps into the real world. He knew Ed had a profound interest in science (and more...unreasonable things), but that could be hard to relate to sometimes. However, if he was curious about commonplace, cultural events...maybe he had a better chance of talking to people. He'd seem less outcast. Ed rarely took to engaging outside of his own fantasies and personal life; hell, he barely participated in life outside work, so Alfons was happy for him. Maybe he was finally making some progress, even if the only person he'd be getting a present from was Alfons. Edward's antisocial tendencies and quick temper still weren't keen on making friends, it appeared. Perhaps he'd tell him the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, Alfons jokingly mused.

Well, if this was his friend's first Christmas, he'd be sure to get him something special.


By the time Christmas Eve rolled around, all the presents were wrapped and tucked away safely hidden in their rooms for tomorrow morning. Alfons seemed a little disappointed that they didn't have a tree in the apartment to put them under, which Edward thought that was kind of weird. What would they need a tree for? Alfons talked about how you were supposed to put up a tree and hang ornaments and lights all over it, but that just seemed like a pointless fire hazard to Ed. The trees could stay outside, thank you very much. Alfons still hung stockings over the fireplace-less mantel though.

Even if all the Christmas traditions seemed bizarre and impractical to him, he had to admit there was a good purpose behind it. It wasn't like he could argue that spending time with people you cared about or giving them gifts to show your appreciation for them was a bad thing. It was a great thing actually; it proved that maybe this world wasn't completely heartless. He was confident that he'd gotten Alfons a gift he would love and honestly, he was more excited to give it to him then he was to receive anything. That attitude seemed to be in the 'Christmas spirit' that Alfons was always talking about. Maybe Ed was actually pretty good at this.

Right now though, they were eating a dinner of brats and lasagna. Ed had started making the brats before Alfons could stop him. It wasn't long until Gracia, the landlady, had stopped by to drop off the lasagna she had made for them, also in the 'spirit of Christmas'. Apparently Alfons had expected her to do that, and that was why he'd been baking cookies earlier. They traded off food and their thanks, wished each other a merry Christmas and parted ways. Ed had tried to invite her inside and share the lasagna with them, but she said she was going off to have Christmas Eve roast with her family that evening.

"How come you're not eating dinner with your family, Alfons?" Ed asked him when he shut the door. His roommate seemed to be going all out this holiday season, doing every Christmas-y thing Ed could imagine, yet he hadn't even visited his family.

"Actually, I'm going over to my mother's house for dinner tomorrow," the German boy stated. Alfons set the lasagna down on the table with everything Ed had cooked. He was always grateful for Gracia's cooking; they often got sick of their meager meals — a university student's paycheck couldn't afford very much, especially not these days.

"Oh," Ed said, almost delicately, realizing he'd be eating by himself tomorrow. Edward didn't often eat dinner without Alfons, when they weren't at the lab at least.

But Alfons wasn't finished talking yet, "I was hoping you would come along," he finished. Ed looked at him, dumbfounded.

"What? Why would you want me there?" Ed inquired. Truthfully, Edward was relieved Alfons was inviting him, but on the other hand he was worried; he really didn't want to intrude on his friend's time with his family. Ed didn't belong there with them, it wouldn't feel right.

"C'mon, Ed, do you really think I'd leave you all alone on Christmas Day?" He spoke, seemingly able to read Ed's mind. Alfons knew his eccentric friend had no family whatsoever; if being an orphan on Christmas Day wasn't the saddest thing Alfons could think of, he'd gratefully get a lobotomy so he couldn't come up with anything worse, "Besides, I've told my family a lot about you. They're excited to meet you,"

"You have? They are?" Ed asked, astonished. Why would anyone want to meet him?

"Yeah, you come up a lot in conversation, I guess because they haven't met you yet. They know everyone else on the team so far but you," the blue-eyed boy announced. Ed smirked.

"I see where you get your curiosity from, Alfons," he replied.

Alfons chuckled, "I guess," he said, "So. Are you going to accompany me then?" He queried.

Edward considered it for a minute. Eventually, he reluctantly agreed. He still believed he would be imposing on something private, but he knew Alfons would nag him to go if he said no. Plus, Ed was already pretty forlorn as it was; he really didn't want to be by his lonesome in the apartment, knowing that Alfons' family — that every other loving, whole family — would be enjoying each other's company while Ed sat on the couch and mourned his own. He was worried he might do something stupid if he did that. So, he relented.

"Sure," he agreed, and plastered on a smile for good measure.


Edward would fervently deny any and all claims that he was overly-excited for his first Christmas; he wasn't some infantile five year-old. If Ed had gotten up a little earlier than was strictly necessary and 'accidentally' woke Alfons up with his racket in the kitchen the next morning, well, it only happened to be a coincidence that it was also December 25th. Luckily, neither boy had to say anything for Alfons to get the hint that Ed wanted him to get out of bed already so they could continue with the day's proceedings.

Very sleepily, a pajama-clad Alfons shuffled into the living room with a mess of bed-head and a cavernous yawn. He was holding a small, plainly wrapped package topped with a bow near his chest. Ed looked very similar, sitting on the couch with a long cylindrical tube — also plainly wrapped with some twine on it — laying at his side. On the coffee table he noticed two mugs of such eponymous substance and two plates of scrambled eggs — just the way Alfond liked them. He smiled.

"Merry Christmas, Ed" he said with still-snoozy, but definitely not false cheer.

"Merry Christmas!" The blond boy wished back, completely awake. Alfons noticed his flatmate's coffee mug was already almost empty; he shook his head and smiled while Ed wasn't paying attention.

Ed reached down next to him and practically shoved Alfons' gift into his lap when he sat down. Alfons chuckled at his over-eager friend and handed him his gift as well. Ed took it but kept watching Alfons.

"You go first," Ed proclaimed.

The golden-eyed boy was watching him intently; Alfons found it pretty amusing. He didn't think he'd ever seen someone over ten years-old this giddy on Christmas morning. He liked to imagine Christmas never wore off, but there was just something different about seeing someone experiencing it for the first time. Alfons almost reveled in the opportunity; he likely was never going to see someone over one years old experience Christmas for the very first time ever again. You really didn't come across someone like Ed very often.

Alfons gently slid the ribbon off the end of the tube and started to carefully tear the brown paper off whatever other paper was likely underneath. Actually, he was surprised to find it was canvas rather than paper. He unrolled it like a scroll and examined what was painted on it. Alfons audibly gasped; the background was a beautiful representation of the night sky that reminded Alfons of why he'd first looked to the stars anyway. In the foreground was what you could call an artist's rendering of the rocket Alfons was currently devoting his entire life to creating. At the very bottom in the left hand corner was lettering so small he almost missed it. It read 'The sky is not the limit'; Alfons grinned – it was obvious Ed had written it, no one else's handwriting was that atrocious. Still, Alfons couldn't be more grateful. It was probably the most sentimental thing Ed had ever given him, the blue-eyed boy was surprised his friend wasn't even a tad embarrassed. For all the emotion Edward showed on a daily basis, this filled his quota for a week.

"Ed, this is amazing, where did you get this?" He exclaimed, turning expectantly to his friend.

"It's funny actually. I never noticed it before, but there's a shop just a few blocks away owned by an artist," — that looked alarmingly like Hawkeye — "and I asked if she took requests. I went by there every day after work," which was why Ed had been leaving a half hour early the past few weeks, "and brought by some of the old, more outdated blueprints to model it after. So, sorry that the rocket's not totally up-to-date, but I didn't want you to get suspicious," Ed explained.

"'Sorry?'" he scoffed, "Ed, this might be the present I've ever gotten! How did you even afford this?" Alfons asked.

Ed shrugged, "I don't know. I didn't have anyone else to buy gifts for," he stated sort of awkwardly. He also just really wanted Alfons to know how much he appreciated him, since he never said it out loud. This was the perfect day for that. Ed had always been bad with words anyway. Alfons had welcomed Ed into his own home without hesitation. Ever since his dad had left, Ed wondered what would've happened to him if he'd not had Alfons. Not to mention he prevented Edward from going insane out of pure loneliness, even if Alfons thought he already was crazy.

"Guess I had extra money to spare. Also the lady gave me a discount because she said I reminded her of someone she knew once," Ed had honestly been shocked at that revelation. He was pretty sure they'd become friends once he disclosed he had the same feeling. He'd have to visit her sometime and wish her a belated merry Christmas. Maybe he'd invite her over for New Year's. Whatever he did, he was sure Alfons would be elated that Ed had found another friend.

They sat there in companionable silence, admiring the artist's handiwork. It really was incredible. Ed thought that if he ever made it back home, he'd have to end up slyly complimenting Hawkeye for it, even if it would be illogical to do so. Oh well, Ed's perception of logic had been skewed a little since coming here anyway. Actually, everything about Ed was a little skewed nowadays. He'd come to terms with it.

"So, are you going to open your present or are we just going to sit here and stare at mine all day?" Alfons joked amicably.

"Oh, right!" Ed exclaimed as he picked up the package off his lap. It was either a book or something contained in a box. As he pulled off the bow and a strip of paper tore off, he saw that it was the former. That already had Ed's pulse beating just a little faster. For how little Ed talked about himself, Alfons sure did know him pretty well. He supposed it was inevitable when you lived in the same house as someone.

When he finally got all the wrapping paper off and Ed saw the cover, his heart did a weird stuttering thing and his eyes went wide at just how well Alfons seemed to know him. It looked to be a rather old book, judging by the worn covers and scuffed edges. The pages were yellowing and it would probably need to be rebound soon, but Edward didn't care about any of those things nearly as much as he cared about what was imprinted on the spine. Alchemy.

"How?" Ed whispered, eyes never once leaving the aging, delicate cover.

Alfons recounted in his head the good fortune he'd had stumbling across it. He'd strolled down to the flea market a few weeks prior with the intention of getting gifts for Ed, a few other friends, and his family. As he walked down the aisles idly picking at things and looking at handmade crafts or jewelry, he thought about what he could possibly get Ed. He had a pretty good idea of what he'd be getting everyone else, but Ed was so closed off. Alfons didn't know much about the kinds of things he was interested in.

The younger boy had been walking around the market for hours. He was cold and shivering and his fingers were starting to go numb. Alfons thought he could make out small snowflakes in the atmosphere. He supposed he'd have to look harder, at some other time and location, to get a gift for his roommate. But that's when he stumbled upon it. It was just one tiny booth; Alfons had thought about just skipping it entirely — it looked pretty strange, but then again, Ed was a pretty strange guy himself, so who knew? He walked over to judge for himself.

He felt a little silly at first, browsing over everything in the little set up. Everything this man was selling was based in superstition and the occult; crystals, palm readings, divination tactics. Both boys were scientists; Ed wouldn't be able to appreciate any of the things this guy had to offer. He was turning to leave, to start heading back to the apartment until he noticed a stack of old books in the corner. The very first one he'd picked up was the one he'd given Ed.

Alfons stood in that corner, just holding that book for so long he was sure the shop owner was going to eighty-six him. However, he was still apprehensive about purchasing a book on alchemy for Edward. His delusional friend would often rant about the principles of it and how useful it was. The long-winded speeches were constantly brought about by all the faulty appliances in their apartment; the stoves and the plumbing were always breaking down. Alfons really didn't want to feed into his flatmate's illness; he didn't want Ed to think he was condoning any of his false beliefs; but at the same time, Ed always talked about alchemy in conjunction with his 'home', like it was something familiar to him. Alfons would've been murdered by Edward for even thinking it, but he knew Ed was insecure about his situation. It was simply because, to Ed, everything was alien and inconceivable. Assimilation didn't seem to be his friend's forté — not that he really ever tried — and it was making life a lot harder for Ed in terms of fitting in and feeling comfortable around other people. That was why he kept to himself, Alfons knew.

Well, Ed was miserable enough most of the time; the German boy supposed this might brighten up his Christmas considerably. Against his better judgement, Alfons swiftly paid for the old tome and headed back. He hoped he knew what he was doing.

Judging by Ed's reaction to his gift, this was either the epitome of success or something had gone terribly wrong. Edward was speechless. He wasn't saying anything (not like he ever really did) and Alfons couldn't gauge if he'd somehow screwed up or if Ed was just that floored.

"How did you find this? Where did you find this? Alfons, I...I don't know what to say," Ed stated. He kept turning the book over and over in his hands and carefully flipping through the pages as if he couldn't believe it was a real, tangible object, "This is great," he whispered, "Thank you. I really can't believe you got me this," he spoke softly, though he grinned so hard Alfons thought his face had to hurt from the strain of it.

"You're very welcome, Ed," Alfons replied. Any previous doubts or hesitance he'd had to give Edward the book seemed ridiculous, in retrospect. His roommate was standing on top of the world right now with that book in his clutches. He looked genuinely content for once. Alfons almost couldn't believe he'd thought about not giving it to him.

They sat quietly, finishing off their breakfast and marveling over each other's gifts. Alfons considered where the best place to hang this piece of art would be; at the apartment or at the lab? Edward thumbed through the book. It was all basic alchemy he already knew, but he was so desperate for things to be like how they always were that he couldn't take his eyes off the page. He could almost pretend the physical presence sitting adjacent to him was his brother, and they were back home, studying alchemy like they always did together. It was a nice illusion.

They weren't due to arrive at Alfons' mother's house for another 8 hours, so they had time to kill. It was a quiet day, both inside and outside of the apartment. No one was outside; all the shops were closed. The streets were empty and snow-covered, making light from the sun reflect off the layer of white and creating an infinitely brighter day. Cars rarely passed by. Both scientists lounged in the living room, reading books or the newspaper. Actually, Alfons was only half-focusing on the things he read; he'd always stop to glance at the painting sitting on the table, just to take pride in it. Edward read and re-read his newly owned book like he'd never be sick of it. He probably wouldn't, not as long as he was here. Ed was completely lost to any world while reading and, today especially, he didn't plan to be found again for awhile. He wanted to revel in the peace he felt.

Right now, this world truly was soft, silent, and sufferable. If only it would've stayed that way.


A/N: To be continued (please drop a review! keeps me goin')