"And one, two- allongé!"

"Energy through the ends of your fingertips!"

"Make sure you're turning out from your hips, not your knees!"

"Point your toes!"

"Engage your core!"

"BALLON! "

The corrections flowed endlessly, and quite loudly, out of Ms. Izumi Curtis' mouth. She was as fierce as she was loud, accenting each correction with a sharp rap of her baton against the well-loved wooden floors of the studio. She moved like a vulture, slow, steady and with a keen eye for sickled feet and incorrect posture. It was easy to see why she was the most feared and respected ballet master of the American Ballet Company.

"That was the most pathetic attempt at petit allegro I've ever seen! Take a thirty second breather and let's take it again, from the top!" She says, with a slight glint in her dark eyes. The dancers take their short reprieve with a smile and quick, shallow breaths. This is Izumi's class after all, thirty seconds is as generous as she gets. Two young dancers face each other, heads bowed and hands on their knees as they catch their breaths, the sweat beading at their hairline and streaming down their chests.

"You know for a retired principal dancer, she sure has an insane amount of energy." The smaller of the two whispered as he pushed the damp golden strands of his hair off his face, taking great care to leave one strand sticking straight up.

"Yeah, are we sure she's still human?" The taller one spoke lowly before checking his surroundings, his short, blonde hair sticking to his forehead as he turns to look towards the front of the studio. The small one, Ed, laughed. "You're right, for all we know she's been replaced by some weird cyborg teacher bot, or maybe she's-". A sudden dark aura interrupts their whispered conversation.

"You stupid pupils want to know what I am?" Izumi says, her voice unsettlingly calm. The boys slowly turn their heads to look at their teacher, panic clearly written across their faces. "I've already told you, I'M A HOUSEWIFE!" Izumi's voice reverberates through the room, shaking the mirrors, and causing the boys to clutch their chests in shock and horror. The rest of the dancers scramble into their spots as the boys try to keep their souls from leaving their body.

"It looks like your break is over, so let us resume. From the top, with the corrections, a five, six, seven, eight!" Izumi roars as the piano resumes and she makes her way to the front of the studio, footsteps muffled by the soft landings of her pupils.

—

"Teacher was extra hard on us today, brother." the taller boy, Al says as he gently places his warm ups and shoes into his dance bag. He grabs a small towel and wipes his face, head and chest before hanging it around the back of his neck. He glances over at Ed as he zips up his bag and stands up before swinging it onto his right shoulder. "Maybe we offended her when we said she wasn't human?" He asks with a furrow of his brows and a slight frown. He takes a sip from his water bottle as he waits for Ed to finish packing up.

Ed chuckles softly as he shoves his water bottle and shoes into his bag. "No, I don't think she would be offended that easily." He says with a soft shake of his head. "If anything she's tough on us because she wants us to be at our best for when the Mariinsky comes to town. She can't have her top students shown up by some Russian brats now, can she?" He stands up slowly, feeling his muscles sigh and his joints groan at the effort. He slings his bag across his body and places his hands on his hips. "If we intend to keep our spots as the youngest soloists in the ABC then we have to put in the work." He holds up a finger, as if scolding Al.

"It's as teacher always says 'Hard work beats talent-"

"-when talent doesn't work hard." The brothers finish in unison, bursting into giggles at their synchronized imitation of Izumi. They walk in stride towards the exit of the building and onto the streets of New York's Upper West Side. They're silent for a couple of blocks before Al speaks up.

"Brother," Al starts as he looks over at Ed, amusement sparkling in his enchanting golden orbs. "Don't get offended, but you reek." he jokes, creating distance between them in case Ed decides to swing. Ed laughs, as he looks at Al with an expression of mock-offense. "Oh yeah? Well you're not doing so hot yourself! You smell like a sweaty poodle." He playfully shoves Al in the opposite direction as he breaks into a run.

"Brother! Where are you going? Why are you running?!" Al yells at Ed's quickly retreating figure as he breaks into a run to try and catch up to his surprisingly fleet-footed sibling. "Brother!" Al calls, still running after Ed, voice lost to the swift city winds.

—

Across the street, Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye look over at the young brothers. They share a quick look as Roy's deep chuckle breaks the comfortable silence between them. "You know, it's easy to forget that the company's best male soloists are still children." He says as he adjusts the glove on his right hand.

Riza nods her head in silent agreement as she adjusts her bag's strap back onto her right shoulder. As the ABC's principal dancers and the highest ranked individuals in the company, they had gotten to watch the Elrics as they wove effortlessly through the ranks of the company to their current place as soloists. They've become self-proclaimed thorns in Roy's side, especially Ed, taking advantage of every opportunity they might have to annoy him. However, she can't help but feel a deep mothering instinct whenever she sees them. She knows Roy has a soft spot for the boys too, but unlike her, he expresses it by riling up the smaller of the two brothers. She giggles quietly to herself as she remembers a particularly funny argument between Roy and Ed.

Roy looks over to Riza with a puzzled expression on his handsome face. "What's got you giggling like a schoolgirl, Hawkeye? Surprised I don't actually hate the kid?" He says jokingly, dark eyes shimmering with amusement, a sly smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

She laughs, a melodious sound that makes Roy's heart skip a beat. "Don't worry about it, Mustang. We all know you secretly want to adopt the Elrics, there's no need to lie." She says as she looks him dead in the eye, shooting him a smirk of her own.

Roy doesn't react at first, shocked at her playful comeback. He lets it sink in for a bit as he pushes a hand through his dark hair, ruffling the unruly layers. He doesn't say anything, but the soft smile and light blush coloring his cheeks give him away. "Well, we can't have the Elrics knowing that, now can we? It would ruin my reputation." He jokes, stopping to look wistfully at the lights of the city. They pause for a bit until Riza tugs him along and they fall back into their comfortable silence for the rest of their walk home.

.

.

.

AN: Hi there! Just the usual reminder that I don't own these characters or these stories, I'm just a fan with too much time and lots of love! Anyways, here's the first chap to a lil passion project I've decided to entertain. Enjoy! XD

Live, Laugh, Love,

✧ ABF ✧

—