Whoa! Firefly actually managed to get a chapter out on time? What madness is this?!
Yep, it finally happened. I updated on time (kinda late, but close enough)! I feel accomplished.

So, this one is definitely happier than the first (which probably explains why I had such a hard time writing this *sweatdrop*), with some bits and pieces of Parental RoyEd if you squint.

Anyways, enjoy the story! And don't forget to drop a review! Tell me what you think, what I could improve on (constructive criticism is awesome!), anything!

Disclaimer:

I refuse! I won't do it! No more stupid disclaimers!

Timeline: A year after Ed was got his State Certification, a few months before he went to Lior


"Shit!" Ed shouted as his feet shot out from under him again. He winced as he landed hard on the icy pavement.

There was a reason Edward hated winter, and this was it. His automail was constantly aching and freezing up, making it impossible to walk.
Well, that and the fact that since every business in Central- including the library, Ed huffed- there was no way to do any research.

So the brothers were stuck walking down the snowy, icy street, trying to make it back to their dorm in the military barracks without freezing.

For Ed, it wasn't really going that well.

"Are you alright, Brother?"

"Yes, Al. I'm perfectly fine slipping and sliding my way down the street because my leg's jamming up in the cold." rolling his eyes, Ed carefully picked himself up, leaning heavily on a lamppost for support as his automail shook beneath him.

A sleek black car drove by, and Ed thought longingly about how warm it must be inside. Damn, why didn't he have a car?
But to both brother's surprise, the car actually stopped beside them. The window rolled down, and a cool, smooth, annoyingly familiar voice called out.

"Need a lift?" the Colonel smirked. Damn him, Edward thought. He must be nice and cozy, in his wool jacket and superheated car. Smug bastard.

"No!" Ed exclaimed impetuously, just as Al answered politely "Yes, please."

Leaning back, Colonel opened the door, and Al carefully stepped in, trying not to let his armour scratch the shiny paint job. Ed, on the other hand, had no such qualms, and while he didn't scratch the car, he did manage to cover the leather seat in snow. But if Mustang was bothered by this, he didn't let it show. He simply sighed and sped of once Ed slammed the door shut- a little more forcefully than necessary.

"What were you two doing walking around this late? It's supposed to snow again tonight, you know." was Mustang chatting? Okay, this was officially getting weird. Since when did Mustang chat?

"We were just walking home, actually." Alphonse answered, ever the polite one. "We just got back from Krame this afternoon." it had been a close call- the brothers had almost missed their train thanks to a huge windstorm. It didn't snow that far south, but boy did they get some big storms around that time of year.

"Yeah, and that lead you gave us was another dead end." Ed added sourly. Mustang made some noncommital noise in response.

The drive passed in silence for a few minutes, before Mustang spoke again.

"Are you two doing anything tonight?" Ed was starting to get suspicious. It was just plain weird, seeing Mustang so casual. He was even out of uniform, in a dark green dress shirt and black slacks.

"What?" Crap, had he forgotten something important?

"It's Christmas Eve, Fullmetal. Did you forget?" Yes, actually. The fact had totally slipped Ed's mind in the rush to get home.

"...Maybe." he sighed "Well, whatever. We don't usually celebrate anyway, right Al?"

"Yeah." the armour answered quietly.

"Okay then." It wasn't much, but it was at least some consolation to Ed that Mustang seemed to feel just as awkward in this situation.

The rest of the drive was silent, and it seemed endless, to Ed at least. Finally, Mustang pulled up in front of the dorms, and the brothers let themselves out of the car. But before they could walk away, Mustang called

"Hey, Fullmetal!" Ed turned just in time to catch the small wrapped gift flying towards his head.

"What's this?" he asked suspiciously.

"Merry Christmas!" and with that, he sped off.

Back in the dorms, after settling in a bit, Ed brought out the package again, tossing it up and down. It wasn't big, just a small rectangle wrapped in red paper.

"Are you going to open it?" Al asked.

"Might as well." he ripped the paper to reveal a bright red leather notebook embossed with a black Flamel. The stitching was gold, as was the ribbon attached for marking pages. Opening the book, there was a small note in thin cursive written in the front cover.

'Fullmetal,
I saw you writing in that little black notebook of yours the other day. It was falling to pieces by the look of things, so I figured I might as well get you a new one.

~Mustang

PS: Flip to the back. I found something interesting about some 'miracle worker' in Lior.'

Ed grinned and flipped to the back of the book. As promised, there were notes and pictures, and what looked like pieces from military files, all about some 'Father Cornello' guy.

"What is it, Brother?" Al asked curiously.

"Well, it looks like we've got ourselves a new lead on the Stone." he chuckled "That sly bastard."

But before he went to bed that night, Ed found himself staring at the cover. The notebook was perfect, with more than enough pages for all his research notes. Somehow, that arrogant Colonel managed to pick out the perfect gift.
He'd have to return the favour sometime.

"Merry Christmas, Colonel."


Well, not my best piece, but I attempted happy Christmas stuff, and I think it turned out okay. Awkward moments with Roy are always fun.

Merry Christmas, and if I don't update again anytime soon, happy New Years!