February 3rd, 1974

There was something terribly indulgent about getting up after the sun, Edward thought as he lay snuggled deep in the warm blankets that covered the bed he and Winry shared in their house in Resembool. It was a warm, floating, almost bodiless feeling to awaken in that position in which he fell asleep and lay most comfortably; perfect equilibrium where everything was just the right temperature, blood flow was optimal and nothing felt like it was losing circulation.

The downside to awakening late, in that particular position, and having that realization, was that he was awake. With that came the other sensations that heralded it being well beyond time to be up; a full bladder, and a growling stomach.

Ed poked his head out of the blanket burrito into which he had cocooned himself, and rolled free, almost enjoying the bracing chill of the cooler air outside the blankets that filled the large house in winter. It woke him up fully, and he pulled his thick bathrobe and slippers on over his shorts before padding out into the hall, stopping by the restroom, and then down and around to the stairs.

Hot coffee and cinnamon rolls were waiting, steaming fresh, on the dining table, even though the clock said it was nearly eleven in the morning.

Winry poked her head out of the kitchen and smiled. "Well I see you're finally up. I was beginning to think you were going to lie around in bed all day."

"A man can do what he wants on his birthday," Ed argued congenially as he picked up one of the sweet, sticky delights and took a bite, savoring the tongue-tingling flavor as he chewed. Then he crossed the rest of the way to the kitchen and kissed his wife on the cheek.

"Within reason," Winry countered, though she turned her head and kissed him back, catching his lips with hers.

"Who needs reason?" Ed asked, pulling her close for a more passionate embrace that lasted until his stomach started complaining audibly that one bite of a cinnamon roll did not breakfast make!

"Well apparently you still need food," Winry teased softly, breaking away. "And it's a good thing you're up. I won't have you missing the party later."

"Do we have to have a party?" Ed asked, feeling the first sour twinge in an otherwise perfect day so far.

"You like parties," Winry argued, as she had for the past few weeks. "And it's just family. Do you really not want to celebrate your birthday?"

"I didn't say that." Ed just didn't really want to have to admit that he was seventy-five, even as he was also grateful to have lived so long, and to be in as good of health as he was. That and to still have his hair, lighter but still gold, and thicker than most. If he had ever started going bald, he was pretty sure he would have used alchemy to force his hair to grow back in! Vain it might be, but he supposed at his age –he shuddered as the words crossed his mind- he had earned a little vanity.

"Then enjoy your right to gripe, but get it out of the way before everyone gets here later," Winry went back to working on food that Ed was sure was meant for the party later.

"I will," Ed replied with a cheeky grin, and finished off his cinnamon roll in two more bites. "Anything you want in town? I thought I'd go for a run."

"Your idea of a lazy day is lost on me," Winry chuckled even as she shook her head with a knowing expression. "And yes, if you really mean that offer, I have a few small things I'd like picked up." She handed him a little roll of paper that unfolded into a small list… about fifteen items long.

At least none of them were large or heavy. Ed smiled. "Don't worry, I'll handle it."

There was nothing chillier than the Cretan ocean in the morning in February, Minxia decided by the end of their first lesson with the diving equipment the next morning. Even so far south, the ocean was cold, and in the morning it just seemed even colder. Still, she couldn't deny that the lesson had been a lot of fun, and really interesting, even though most of what they had done was learn all the parts of the equipment, how to put it on, how to take it off, and how to check and make absolutely certain that each part was working properly. Then they had been allowed to get in the water off shore and play around in a secluded cove, getting the feel for swimming with it on and breathing under water.

:That was so cool,: Thrakos grinned as he flapped his way out of the water and joined her on the sand as they all started to get out of the equipment. They would have time to shower and dry off before lunch, and then the afternoon was going to be spent shadowing archaeologists and doing some digging and exploring of their own.

:I'm glad we're going to get to do that again,: Minxia agreed, smiling at him. Thrakos' good mood was always infectious, whether it was a day where that was easy to have happen or not. Today, it was easy. :Underwater everything is so… :

:Fabulous? Amazing? Wet?: Thrakos teased.

:I was going to say mesmerizing, and kind of ethereal,: Minxia corrected with a little sniff, though she couldn't fake anything other than joy for long, given she was feeling giddy with the pleasure that weightlessly drifting through the ocean water and seeing everything below so clearly had given her. It was a whole other world down there, and one she found herself eager to return to and explore more fully.

:Far better words than mine.: Thrakos nodded.

:Silly.: Minxia resisted the urge to smack the back of his head with her goggles, which were now dangling from her left hand by the strap. :It is fabulous and amazing and wet too!: Very wet. Oddly enough, she hadn't really noticed while they were down there. It was only now, dredging water behind them as they dripped their way up the beach, that she really felt wet. They hadn't been in full diving gear either, given they weren't going very deep. Just their swim suits and the breathing apparatus, and fins. Her single-piece dark purple suit now clung, and had bits of sand on it. :Now… for a shower.:

:Because we're not nearly wet enough,: Thrakos agreed, chuckling.

This time, Minxia did hit him with her goggles.

Her good mood was not quite as prevalent after lunch, as they set out following the archaeologist to whom she and Thrakos, as partners, had been assigned for the day. Not that she wouldn't normally have been thrilled to be assigned to the female college student, Rakaela Minette. There was dozens of questions she wanted to ask the older girl, and did ask, with every spare moment they had as they walked out to where they would be working that afternoon; about college, and majoring in archaeology and about Malathos and the dig. And, to her credit, Rakaela smiled and answered every question Minxia had with pleasant patience and enthusiasm.

The only thing that soured it at all for Minxia, was the fact that she was pretty sure Thrakos was more interested at looking at Rakaela than listening to her, and she had to admit –at least to herself- that it bothered her. If, for no other reason, than her good friend looked like an idiot every time he started to get that glazed expression that said he wasn't listening anymore, just being a guy.

Minxia didn't think she wanted to know what Thrakos was actually thinking about the older girl.

:And that's how I ended up getting into archaeology,: Rakaela finished up her story as they arrived at the edge of one of the shallower, but longer trenches dug into the sandy soil below a series of shorter pillars set close together around what, Minxia could now see, was an old inner courtyard, of what she guessed might have been the house of some well off craftsman, or minor noble. :So here we are,: she grinned and gestured to the site. :Home sweet home.:

:Do you spend most of your time in this one spot?: Thrakos finally asked a question.

:I've been working on this particular location since the start of Fall Term last year,: Rakaela admitted as they all dropped into the trench, which was only about four feet deep, but ran the length of the court yard and about a quarter of its width.

:What have you found?: Minxia asked curiously, her eyes going to every crack and crevice, even though she knew that there wasn't likely to be much that was out in the open. Though she did see a couple of spots covered by what looked like protective sheeting.

:Oh it's been a treasure trove,: Rakaela grinned as she led them over to the first covered area and removed the cloth to reveal a vessel, half buried, and cracked, but partially excavated. :Oil jug,: she informed them. :What's really interesting is that it doesn't seem to have held normal lamp oil. The stains are wrong in here,: she gestured carefully to the interior part that hadn't filled entirely.

Minxia and Thrakos took turns staring at the dull marks in the fired clay, though Minxia had to admit she couldn't see what Rakaela was talking about entirely, other than the definite discoloration. She had no idea what that specifically meant… yet. :What makes them wrong?: she asked.

:They're too acidic for the usual oil,: Rakaela explained. :It's eaten away a little too much, and the shade if this were cleaned up, would be a little darker than it should be as well.:

:What does that mean then?: Thrakos asked curiously.

:It means that the oil in this jug… might have been cooking oil,: Rakaela chuckled. :Or a mix of oil and vinegar, pre-done to make cooking faster. Or it could have been a hair treatment.:

:That's a lot of hair gel,: Thrakos grimaced comically.

At that, Rakaela laughed. :Yes, it would be, wouldn't it? But you never know really, without a lot of educated deduction. I've found a few other things that do indicate that this courtyard was very heavily used for a variety of reasons, and I suspect that, if we got to the center there,: she gestured towards the middle of the area, where nothing had yet been dug out, :we would find a well or a pool of some sort. The items all seem to indicate bathing and cooking, and things that would require a clean water source.:

Now this was fascinating. Minxia listened attentively and looked as Rakaela showed them a broken ladle, in three pieces, and what looked like half of a brass hair comb. There was even a small wheel that Rakaela suggested might have belonged to a children's toy. It looked just like the cart wheels of the time, but was small enough Minxia could hold it in her palm.

She could almost imagine the family that might have lived there, going about their evening routine, the way her family did almost every night at home.

:I've found more than this,: Rakaela admitted. :But a lot of it is smaller fragments, and most of it is now labeled and stored, or shipped back to the university for further study.:

:Do you think we'll find anything interesting today?: Minxia asked eagerly, her earlier agitation having evaporated with the commencement of actual archeological discussion. It helped that Thrakos was now looking with great interest at the little cart wheel.

:We might,: Rakaela grinned as she opened up her tool kit. :Though I can't promise anything. Sometimes we dig and don't find anything for a week or more at a time. Other days are really exciting and we find three or four new artifacts. That is, if you find partial dishware and household items exciting.:

:No weapons or armor or anything?: Thrakos asked, and Minxia suspected he was thinking of the wars and heroes they had read about.

:Oh a little of that,: Rakaela nodded. :Just not in this house here I've been working in.:

Thrakos looked mildly disappointed. Minxia smiled and gave him a playful shove as she picked up a small hammer and the little pick Rakaela offered before the college girl gestured to the spot she wanted Minxia to work on. :Don't worry. I'm sure we'll find something.:

The brisk run warmed Ed up quickly, and by the time he arrived in the small –but still growing- downtown area of Resembool, he was feeling quite warm enough in his red sweats and was glad he hadn't worried about a coat. He broke back down to a walk as he strolled into town and pulled out Winry's shopping list. Not that those were the only things he planned on shopping for, since he had a few things he was looking for himself, but he wanted to make sure he finished her shopping and got back to the house in time to shower and change into something else before family arrived.

Most of the list was last minute party supplies or things they needed for the house; a light bulb for the downstairs bathroom, fresh mint leaves –hard to get this time of year, but doable thanks to a local hot house- for iced or hot mint tea, more coffee filters for the coffee pot, a new tin of cocoa for the grandkids, apples –because all the rest had gone into pie, Ed would bet-, and so the list went, a mismatch of little homey items that Ed suspected wouldn't seem out of place anywhere. No auto-mail parts. No alchemy supplies. Not on this trip. He could have been some normal, average guy out for a stroll in his cozy little town.

There was a time in his life where he would have killed –figuratively anyway- to be that normal, happy guy. Now, Ed was glad to be happy, but he was also glad he wasn't really average.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Elric!"

Ed looked sideways and saw Marilyn Vicars, one of Reichart and Deanna's friends, standing in the doorway of the flower and gift shop. "Good afternoon," he smiled as he turned, shopping bags still over his shoulder, and approached the shop. "How are you today?"

"Well," she beamed, cheeks pink in the chill as she smiled brightly. "If a little chilly. Doing a bit of shopping?"

"There's always shopping that needs doing." Ed shrugged. "How's Steve?" he asked after her fiancé.

"Good," she practically beamed. "And the plans are almost finished. Good thing, with only a couple of months left. You will be at the wedding, won't you? You and Mrs. Elric both."

"Of course," Ed promised. There was no way they'd miss it. On top of being family friends –and it being Resembool- Steve was one of Winry's auto-mail patients going back to the day he'd lost part of a foot in a mining accident. Thankfully, he had given up on being a miner after that, and had spent the last three years working at the local auto-mechanic's shop instead. "We wouldn't miss it for all the tea in Xing… or an auto-mail convention," he added, chuckling.

"Now I know we'll see you," Marilyn chuckled. "That's a very serious promise."

"We're looking forward to it," Ed smiled back. "Though if I don't get home with this stuff, Winry might make me limp there," he teased.

"Don't go yet, I have something for you," and she left Ed wondering what it could possibly be, standing on the chilly stoop, until she returned a minute later with a very small bush in a pot; with dark leaves, but no discernible flowers. It looked familiar, given Ed had seen it growing on some of the higher hills in the mountains, but he couldn't recall exactly what it was called.

He also wondered why the plant was for him, but he took it. "Thank you. What is it exactly?"

Marilyn chuckled. "It's a mountain laurel. You know, it has those pink blossoms that turn white in the spring about the time the snow melts? It's for you. It's a birthday present."

Ed did not ask how she knew it was his birthday. He would bet his arm Reichart and Deanna had mentioned it. "Well thank you," he said again. "I think I know just where to plant it then. We don't have one in the garden yet. So, I know giving people plants is supposed to have meanings… but I can't ever get them all straight. What do laurels mean?" He knew about roses, but not much of the rest.

"Laurels represent success," Marilyn informed him. "Also renown and ambition, but in this case, it's a blessing of success in anything you do for the coming year."

Not that Ed couldn't lay some claim to all three. He chuckled. "Well then, maybe we ought to see about buying one for Aldon. He's the one running for office."

"I'm sure you'll find something to succeed at," Marilyn replied cheerfully. "Have a good day!"

"You too!" Ed, now holding the small dark-leafed bush in his other arm, headed back out into the street, feeling in a particularly good mood, and beginning to actually look forward to that evening's party. Family, presents, good food… there wasn't really anything not to like if he decided to be optimistic about it. At least he was alive and healthy to enjoy it.

Ed still had one more stop he needed to make, and that was the nearest convenience store. It only took a couple of minutes to pick up the last things on the list; dental floss and aluminum foil.

On the way back he passed the pet store window. Of course, what passed for a pet store in Resembool was more of a repository for extra puppies and kittens from the farms that did not need them, or wanted to spread the genetics around a bit. It also had the occasional batch of baby ducklings, turtles, an imported bird or two, and plenty of aquarium fish (with little electric heating elements for winter that kept them from freezing, which Ed thought were rather clever). Sometimes there was a rabbit or guinea pig.

Today, Ed found himself amused by the gamboling of a pair of ferrets. But it was not those that held his attention as, on a whim, he went inside to poke his nose around and see what was inside.

It was a puppy. A very large puppy, already at least twenty pounds, but it looked like a polar bear more than a dog at first. It had thick, pure-white fur, save for a light brown badger-mark on his left ear. He had huge feet, and relatively short down ears, and deep brown eyes. He was not the only puppy in the enclosure, but he was the largest, and the quietest. He just looked up at Ed soulfully as the others tried to swarm the gate for attention.

"Hey, Max," Ed called out to the store owner.

Old Max –Ed tried not to think about the fact that Max was only three years older than Ed and had teased him about his height in grade school- limped out from the back room carrying a bag of cat food. "Hey there, Ed. Can I help you with something?"

"Yeah. What's the story on that pup? The big one." Ed pointed to the back of the pen. "I don't remember seeing him in here before, but he doesn't look like he's all that new."

"Oh he's been in here a couple of weeks," Max replied, looking at the one Ed meant. "Came off a farm up the other side of the pass a ways. Cretan Mountain breed they said. Big litters, but they sold off the rest themselves save this one. Not sure why, frankly. Best behaved puppy I ever saw. Quiet. Friendly. Some hogwash about some minor conformation flaw and his seeming too mellow for sheep work. They use them to keep an eye on sheep, so it's no wonder someone around here finally bought a pair. Pretty as you can imagine; big size though. I saw the male when I picked up the pup from them. Had to have been near on a-hundred-and-fifty pounds."

That dwarfed even Pir and Daia, and they hadn't been small. Ed let out a low whistle. "You said he's friendly. He just kind of sits back there though. Does he like the kids at all?" He knew there were kids with their noses at the windows and cages in here every day of the week.

"Oh he loves them, when he can get to them," Max replied with a nod. "For all his size, poor fella won't push the other pups around to get at them though. Takes it himself, and just waits his turn."

"Sounds like Al," Ed chuckled. "Can I pet him?" He wasn't even sure what made him ask, other than it was a whim, but there was something about those eyes that called to him too, and Ed had always been a dog person.

"Go right ahead." Max grinned knowingly as he came over and slipped through the gate, waiting through puppies until he reached the white pup and hefted him up, bringing him out of the pen. He set the pup down on the floor. "Careful, or you're going to wind up with a new friend."

Ed chuckled, but wondered what Winry would do if he brought home a dog unannounced. He crouched down and scratched the pup's ears. "Hey there, fella."
Almost immediately, as if smart enough to know the other puppies couldn't get between him and his goal, the white pup waddled right over and licked Ed's hand, and leaned into it for petting, obviously enjoying the attention. Well he might be quiet and shy, but he wasn't hesitant!

Winry is going to kill me.

Alphonse couldn't remember the last time he had enjoyed himself this much. It had been a long time since he'd been able to enjoy discovery for the sake of discovery, without the pressure of something looming over his head forcing him to get through a mission, and yet was also more exciting than sitting at home going through research material in the safety of his house.

With all of the students paired off and assigned to professionals, he roamed the entire dig site, with Elicia at his side, poking his nose into everybody's research, and looking at a wide variety of fascinating artifacts. They had also spent a couple of hours digging themselves, and unearthed a pair of very old, but very lovely, earrings made from pearls and sea shell. Elicia's look of excitement as she very carefully used the brush to clear away the dirt and get them free was all it took to set Al's heart pounding. He was so very glad she had come with him.

Not that they had made the only discovery. Several of the teams their students were on had them working on new areas, or on detail work on items that were not easily broken, and two or three items had been unearthed or cleared of rubble that afternoon, much to the excitement of Al's students. He loved watching their enthusiasm for what was otherwise very tedious work. Far more tedious, he would have thought, than the assignments they groaned over back at school. But here they were, lying under the warm sun, not quite baking on the sand, working delicate things out of the earth. He was pretty sure they would not have been as excited about the half of a plate that came out of the old kitchen area of one house if it had just been sitting in a cabinet.

"We should check on Minxia and Thrakos," Elicia suggested as the late afternoon sun dipped down near the ocean. They hadn't made it out to that dig all afternoon, though it was furthest from the main portion of the site, and Al hadn't wanted to appear like he was lurking over his granddaughter's shoulder. Especially not with Thrakos around. Al had nothing against the boy, but given his uncle's reputation… and his own nature and how close he had gotten to Minxia, well he was trying very very hard to keep any grandfatherly over-reactions in check.

"Yes, we should," Al agreed, dusting himself off and heading up the hill towards Rakaela's dig. "I wonder if they've found anything interesting."

"If they had, I think we'd have heard the shout of joy all the way down at the cabin," Elicia chuckled.

It was a bit of a trek, but the exertion wasn't enough to make Al so much as pant. A fact that made him rather pleased.
As the site came into view, Al looked down into the pit, and found all three of the younger people intensely huddled around something that Minxia was staring at with such intensity Al was almost surprised the item didn't pop out of the earth from fear… or with alchemy. "So what's so exciting?" he asked by way of announcing their presence.

All three bodies jumped, and Rakaela looked up. :Professor Elric! You have great timing. Minxia thinks we've uncovered something related to alchemy.:

:Up here?: Al's interest was piqued. He slid down into the ditch and then held out his arms to help Elicia hop down as well.

Thrakos nodded, though Minxia never looked away from whatever was out of sight in front of her. :We were digging around near this door here,: he gestured towards two broken off stacks of bricks. :And found this box. At least, it looks like a box.:

As Al came around the side he could finally see what had them all so excited. It did, indeed, look like an alabaster box of some sort, not very large, but intricately carved. The carvings, he noted, did not look like transmutation circles, not even the type he was used to seeing in Creta.

:So why do you think it's related to alchemy?: Elicia asked.

:Because right over here by the edge,: Minxia poked at one exposed corner with her brush, :This word at the end looks like the end of the Cretan phrase for alchemy they used that far back, which is about making change.:

:And it doesn't mean money,: Thrakos commented.

Al squinted at the slightly marred words, but could almost immediately see what Minxia meant. :Good point. So whatever is in the box would be valuable either way, if they protected it with stone.:

Minxia nodded. :I was thinking… of trying to remove it with alchemy. It's pretty tightly wedged and it will take days to dig out, maybe weeks otherwise. I really want to see what's in it though!:

Rakaela chuckled. :Impatience isn't really part of the game. But, do you think it could be removed safely with alchemy?: She looked at Al, clearly just as eager as the rest of them.

Al inspected the box and the ground around it for a few moments before nodding. :Sure. The box seems sound enough. If we did it slowly and carefully, there shouldn't be any problem.: He looked at Minxia. :Go for it.:

:Wait, me?: Minxia squeaked. Clearly she had thought that Al would take over and do the transmutation himself.

:Of course you. It's your discovery.: Al stepped back out of the way. :And it's a very simple transmutation.: He had no doubt that Minxia could manage it, though he was pleased that she hadn't just leapt in and done it without a professional opinion. Ed would probably have done that at her age, without necessarily checking to make sure the box wouldn't just split open, or the ground around them fall to pieces because of some unforeseen weakness.

Minxia nodded, and turned back to the box, looking at it again critically before pulling a stylus out of her pocket and etching a simple transmutation circle into the sandy clay soil around the box. Then she placed her hands on the circle, closed her eyes, and concentrated.

Moments later the entire area glowed blue, and the box slid slowly out of the ground, landing in Al's outstretched arms; a grab he almost regretted as the small, but very heavy, box, tugged hard at his shoulders. :Good work,: Al grunted as he set the box on the ground.

Minxia beamed, but turned and began brushing the remaining dirt off the rest of the cover. Now free of the earth, it was clear that the phrase carved in the top of the box was the one Minxia had suspected, and Al would not be at all surprised to find some sort of alchemical artifact inside.

:What do you think is in there?: Thrakos asked excitedly.

:We won't know until we open it,: Al chuckled. :Go ahead, Minxia.:
His granddaughter beamed, and then reached out and hefted the lid off the box very carefully, in case whatever was inside was more delicate than the box protecting it.

The fading sunlight fell across several clay tablets, inscribed with words, still fresh and crisp, though cracked in places.

Al read the ancient text with little trouble. :It looks like the notes of an alchemist,: he commented, his own heart beating excitedly at the prospect. Not that he expected to find anything hitherto unknown in the work of the earliest alchemists. But that did not make the discovery any less interesting.

:But I thought the people who lived in this house were merchants, or nobles,: Minxia pointed out.

:Your mother is a Xingese Princess and you need to ask that?:

Minxia looked at her grandmother, and her cheeks flushed slightly. :Okay, I see your point. So maybe someone in the household was an alchemist, or they could have been protecting it for a friend. Who knows. Still, this is fabulous!: To her credit she did not attempt to pick them up.

:We should take these back down to the camp,: Rakaela said. :We need to catalog everything and there are better tools down there for studying them without accidentally destroying them.:

:Which would be a real shame,: Al agreed as Minxia put the cover carefully back on the box. :And it's getting late. We should head back.:

:I'll carry the box,: Thrakos offered, clearly eager to do something other than sit and watch.

:It's all yours,: Al gestured, resisting the urge to take it himself. Thrakos wasn't known for being clumsy, and he was sure it would be just fine. :Just don't break anything.:

:Right,: Thrakos grimaced as he carefully hefted the box into his arms and stood. :No pressure.:

There were certainly worse ways to spend a birthday than stuffed full of homemade apple pie and watching the new puppy frolic around the living room with the grand-kids It was pretty hysterically really, Ed thought, to watch Urey and Ted and Callie all rolling around on the floor like five year olds, getting licked and bounced on. Okay, so Callie was only eight, but it was still quite a sight! Little Rhiana kept toddling away from Reichart's arms towards the pup, but her father wasn't letting her get too close. Not because they were worried about the puppy doing anything that might hurt her; so far he didn't even mouth much and he was very cautious for a pup, but because she was not quite two years old herself yet, and still not entirely aware of her own strength. Though thankfully she and the puppy were near enough of a size for the moment.

"What are you going to call him, Dad?" Aldon asked as they sat at the table after dinner, watching the playful scene.

"I was thinking of Mal," Ed replied.

"Why Mal?" Aldon asked.

"Cause he looks like a giant marshmallow," Ed grinned.

Aldon snickered. "Well that is a pretty huge marshmallow," he looked at the fluffy puppy licking Ted's face on the floor. "I bet he sheds marshmallows."

"And I know who'll be vacuuming them up and brushing out his coat regularly," Winry commented as she came out of the kitchen with after-dessert coffee and tea on a tray. She set the tray on the table.

"Yes, dear," Ed grinned up at her, and stole a kiss. He was extremely grateful that Winry had taken the unexpected new family member well. She hadn't even hit him. Actually, he got the feeling she was just as fond of the puppy as he was. Mal had snuggled up to her immediately, and his gentle nature and good temperament were definitely endearing.

Winry smiled back. "I do love those words."

"I know you do." Which was why Ed made sure to use them every so often instead of making a sarcastic remark. A man had to learn at least a few things after fifty years of marriage. It was really a year for milestones, and this party was as much about that as his birthday. Not that there was any huge gift Ed could have given Winry that would have meant nearly as much to him as an entire lifetime together.

Aldon was grinning at them.

"Quit smirking," Ed growled good-naturedly at his son. "That's an order."

Aldon laughed. "And only because it's your birthday, I'll listen."

"Great present," Ed teased.

"I thought so." Aldon smiled.

Actually Ed had gotten quite a nice pile of gifts from various members of the family, though it was only the Resembool crowd who were in town at the moment. And Aldon's had been particularly clever; an automated coffee machine he had invented himself that was far superior and faster than the way Ed had been making coffee most of his life, and better than the old coffee makers he'd seen at HQ over the years. He suspected Aldon could make quite a bit of money marking those too, and had already suggested as much.

Ted and Urey had worked together to transmute a particularly awesome porch swing for two, which had been a joint present for birthdays and anniversary alike. It was a lovely piece, of hardwood and wrought-iron, altered and treated to avoid rusting and rotting. They had already installed it on the side porch with a view of the Xingese gardens and the swimming pool.

Reichart and Deanna's present had been a gorgeous quilt -just the right size for cuddling on the couch and sipping hot chocolate with a special someone- in rings of reds and black, with bright red and gold winter flowers in the center of the inter-locking rings, on white and green leafy backgrounds. Deanna had pieced and quilted the entire thing herself. Reichart informed them that his primary help had been that he had offered moral support and lots of baby-watching so that his wife could work in peace in the evenings.

Callie had made Ed a new coffee mug in a pottery class she was taking, glazed brilliant red with the crest on it. Ed had made a big deal out of that one, and Callie had beamed when he insisted on using it immediately.

But what made it all great wasn't the presents, but the love.
Mal broke away from the tussle on the floor, and trotted over to the table, where he sat down at Ed's feet and looked up hopefully.

Ed reached down and ruffled his fluffy white head fur. "Need something fella?"

Mal whuffled, which sounded for all the world like he was talking, and licked Ed's hand.

Then the pup peed on the floor.

Author's Note: 1/1/2013 Happy New Year! Hope everyone has had a great start so far, and enjoys both today's chapter, and today's little addition over in Movements. A new piece entitled "Resolutions" in honor of today.