I return with more! Today was the first day of school for me, wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Actually, it's good to be back... Hmm, I should really get started on my bio homework... -stares at the paper blankly- Meh, maybe later... Anywho, hope you enjoy!

"I CANNOT believe that guy!"

Ed yelled, slamming the door behind him as he kicked off his shoes and threw off his coat. Al looked up inquiringly at his brother's loud entrance.

"You can't believe who?"

"Mustang!" Ed shouted, throwing his arms in the air. "The bastard!"

"What did he do?" Al asked, although he had a good idea what Roy did to make Ed so pissed off.

"He told me that Winry and I should be a couple, and he kept asking me all these damn questions about her!" Ed was pacing back and forth in front of the TV, mumbling and cursing under his breath. Never in his life had he felt so stupid or so embarrassed. How could I spill so much? He wondered, although it had been his actions to do the talking.

"Brother, don't you ever stop and think that maybe Roy's right?" Al questioned, flipping off the television since Ed was blocking it. "Maybe... maybe you and Winry should get together."

Ed stopped pacing. He had not actually ever considered that, although it had crossed his mind more times that he thought necessary. Winry was the only girl he had a close relationship with, the only person he could trust besides Al. Perhaps... he should consider it?

"No, no!" he shook his head furiously and looked at his brother in disbelief. Ed was starting to feel fishy about all this. First it was Roy telling him this nonsense, now it was Al? Something was definitely going on... Would Al gang up with Roy and plan something that involves Winry and me? He asked himself as he glanced at his brother, who was looking through some book called 101 Tips to Keep Your Cat Healthy and Happy.

Nah! He wouldn't do that! Ed shook his head. He trusted his brother with his life; there was no need to question something so serious as that. He turned to his younger sibling and asked, "Al, where were you after work?"

"With Julia," Al accidentally spilled, his cheeks burning as he realized what he had said.

Ed raised an eyebrow. "Who's Julia?"

"She's um... s-she's just a friend," Al chuckled nervously, pulling the book up to cover his face.

"Ooo, Al's got a girlfriend!"

"Oh, leave me alone," the book retorted. Ed chuckled.

"Whatever Al. I'm going to bed." Ed waved off as he headed upstairs.

"'Night!" Al called to his retreating brother. He turned a page in his book, wondering if ice-skating would help out with the "Secret Mission."

"Whoa! Are you a real elf?"

A little boy asked, marveling at the braided-boy with hopeful eyes. Winry had overhead, giggling behind Ed, who laughed a dry laugh.

"Come on kid, I'm not that short." he chuckled slightly, handing the confused child a candy cane before ushering him to Santa's lap.

"You took that rather calmly," Winry said, happy that he did not explode.

"Yeah well, I have a soft spot for children," Ed replied with a toothy-grin. Winry smiled back and Ed couldn't help himself as he got lost in her deep pools of crescent-blue, whirling and spinning, spinning into the deep chasms of-

"Ed! Are you listening to me?"

He blinked, snapping out of his reverie. "Huh?"

"I asked if you know where Al is," Winry repeated.

"Oh, he's..." Ed looked around, spotting the familiar antlers next to the camera. "...he's talking to Hawkeye."

Winry let out an "oh" as the conversation with Riza the day before remerged. She was still baffled about her friend's advice and questions that left her wondering all night if Riza was working too hard...

"So, what did you get out of Winry?" Al asked, voiced low so no one would hear him.

"From the way she was acting, it's safe to say that she likes Ed," Riza replied behind the camera, snapping a photo.

"Roy found the vice-versa," Al said, glancing every now and then to make sure the two people they were talking about were out of earshot.

"Good. Now all we need to do is get them together," Riza clicked a button and flash of light went off. "Do you have any plans?"

"Yeah, we're going ice-skating afterwards at the frozen lake downtown."

"Ice-skating, eh? So they know how to?"

"I think Winry does, but brother's never tried it before."

Riza snapped a shot, smiling behind the camera. "Excellent."

Snow had covered the grounds in a pure white; snowflakes fell soundlessly and gracefully to the ground. A cold but gentle breeze swayed in the bare branches, rays of sunshine escaped through the thick clouds.

Winry wrapped her sweater more closely around her as she put on her pair of skates. It had been awhile since she had skated so she was excited to get onto the ice again. She looked over at Ed, who stared blankly at his pair.

"Looking at the skates won't make them appear on your feet," she snickered. Ed scowled at her.

"Shut up," he grumbled.

"Do you need help putting them on?"

"No," he hotly said, fumbling with the laces and hooks.

"If you're sure..." Winry offered one last time.

Al appeared moments later, already wearing his skates as a girl Winry had never seen before stood by. Her brunette hair was pressed down by the cat-embroidered hat she was wearing, freckles were splashed across her face, while her hazel eyes looked at Ed and Winry warmly.

"Hi guys," he greeted with a grin. Ed's eyes darted from Al then to the girl next to him before going back to Al and smirked.

"Is this Julia?" he asked curiously.

"Yes," Al shot Ed a look as though he was warning him not to say anything stupid. "Julia, this is my older brother Edward and my friend Winry Rockbell." Ed and Winry nodded in acknowledgement; Julia did the same.

"Ok, well we're going to skate around," Al informed, heading off towards the rink.

"Wait! Al!" Ed called after him. "I don't know how to skate!"

"Have Winry teach you!" Al waved as he and Julia took off. Ed frowned after his brother and continued to make a tangle out of the laces. Winry offered to help but he rejected, telling her that could do it himself, which he did, just only after a good fifteen minutes. All tied up and ready to go, Ed hobbled with Winry to the ice. He put a foot on the frozen water, feeling how slippery it was before pulling it back in.

"Uh, on second thought, I'll just watch," he said, heading towards the bench.

"Oh no you don't," Winry tugged him back, sporting a teasing smile. "You're not fwightened are you?"

"I'm not!" he lied through his teeth. "I just, uh... have a bad stomach ache. Yes, that's it!" He clutched his stomach as he began to moan in pain. "Oh, ow... my stomach... had too much food. Ooowww..."

Winry raised an eyebrow unconvincingly. "You know, you better be glad that you didn't get that lead role in the school play."

Ed frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

She shook her head. "Never mind, never mind! Now come on, I'll teach you how to ice-skate."

Without waiting for a reply, she took his hand and carefully led him onto the ice. Feeling unbalanced and uncomfortable, Ed took hold of Winry's arm, clutching it tightly as though he were hanging onto it for dear life.

"Ok Ed, just do what I'm dong," she said, gliding a few places slowly with Ed doing the same. She watched, patiently instructing him even though he was cursing and mumbling out of frustration.

"Come on, Ed," she lightly said when he showed no signs of letting go. "You can't hold onto me forever."

"Yeah well, I can try," he shot back as he caught himself from falling forward. Winry's heart jumped when he gently squeezed her hand; his touch was electric, sending a tingling sensation throughout her body. Despite the chilliness in the air, her cheeks were heated and warm. She mentally cursed her complexion when she realized it was a fair pink.

After a while, Ed had gotten used to it and eventually let go of Winry's hand.

"You know, this isn't so bad," he said, feeling proud to be able to conquer the basic technique of ice-skating. "It's pretty easy once you get the hang of it."

"Yes, and you're only thinking that because one of the best taught you," Winry said jokingly.

"If you're referring to yourself, you're way out of your mind."

Winry punched him on the shoulder. He let out a small "ow" as he rubbed the spot she had hit, mocking a hurt expression.

"Gee Winry, I never thought you could be so violent." He eyed her when he saw she was laughing. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing... it's just that even with the skates on, you're still short."

"WHAT!" he exclaimed, but she had dashed off. He sped after her, going as fast as he could without tripping or crashing into the other people.

"Come on Ed! You're going to have to go faster than that to catch me!" Winry shouted, sticking out a tongue at him. A few skaters whizzed by, catching her off-guard. She lost balance and slipped, falling to the ice and landing on her behind. Of course, when Ed started laughing, it was only fair to pull him down with her.

"Ow!" Ed yelped, laughing. "My ass!"

"What's wrong? Not enough junk in the trunk?" Winry snickered.

"I guess not," Ed snickered back. "Apparently, you have too much."

Winry's mouth hung open as she crossed her arms and stared at him in disbelief. "Edward Elric, have you been looking at my ass?"

"What? No!"

"Then are you saying I have a big butt?"

"No!" he scoffed, face red from embarrassment at the interesting topic they were arguing about.

Pause.

"Ow!" Ed yelled, wiping the mini-snowball Winry had made from the frozen ice. "What the hell was that for?"

"For staring at my butt and being a pervert about it," she retorted with a smirk. "You just can't resist the beauty with the booty."

"You're talking about yourself right?"

THWACK

"Ow!" Ed wiped more cold ice from his face. "I was kidding!"

"So you think I'm beautiful?" She smiled cutely at him. Ed felt his face heat up as he avoided looking at her.

"No- I mean, yes! I mean..." Deciding to leave the question unanswered, he threw a clump of ice at her, which she threw one back in retaliation, which started an ice-throwing war between them. They spent a few memorable minutes chucking ice at each other until a skating rink employee, much to their dismay, kicked them out for their behavior.

"Dumb bastard!" Ed shouted as he returned his skates, wearing a sour look. "We weren't being disruptive."

"Are you sure?" Winry asked, setting her skates down in the return booth. "I mean, we accidentally hit like three other people, including the guy who kicked us out."

"Oh yeah. I forgot."

Silence.

THWACK!

"Ow! Dammit!" Ed yelped, wiping away the remnants of a real snowball Winry had made. He scowled at her, a playful sparkle shone in her eyes as a challenging smirk resided on her lips.

"We still have to settle this, bean boy!"

"Bring it on, miss beauty with the booty!"

Winry blushed, allowing herself a private smile before pelting a snowball at Edward.

Honestly, I don't know where the butt-name-calling thing came from. It just sorta poofed into my head.

Thank you so very very very much for those who reviewed! You guys are so awesome! I love you all!

Ooo, looky at that shiny button right there.