Tiny snowflakes dance in the starry sky above Central City. Just as the beautiful people whirl through the ballroom of Le Bistro À Central, so too do the tiny specks of white.

As the crystals kiss the glass skylight of the dining room above the most prestigious eatery in all of Central City, they stick fast, providing a distilled and ethereal frame for the scene playing out at the table nearest to the fireplace.

A young couple. The man on one knee, the woman seated. Her azure eyes fall on her lover as he takes her by the hand, speaking clear and true as the diamond sparkling in the box he pulls from his coat pocket.

Her, all gentility and grace, he, all grinning teeth and expectant eyes.

The man at the table next to theirs thinks to himself that they'd make a fine couple, as his wife reaches across the table and slides her aged hand into his, smiling softly.

The busboy passing by with his bin full of dishes eyes the shiny ring as the top of the small satin box is lifted, jaded expression painted over his countenance. He mutters how that rock would pay a year's rent for him.

The waiter across the aisle stops his recitation of memorized specials, as his audience waits with bated breath for the young woman's answer.

The entire dining room bursts into applause as she drops down into the man's arms, shouting her confirmation over and over.

The box falls from his hands as his arms wrap around her, pulling her close. He kisses her temple, whispers into her ear.

Outside, a different commotion breaks the stillness of the bitterly cold night. A young man shouts his lungs out while being dragged backwards by his tie, held in the strong hands of his date that evening. His feet stutter a bit, as he fights (fruitlessly, he knows) against her unstoppable force.

A half-hour later, Ed curses, slamming his hands on the steering wheel of his stubborn car.

"Goddamn thing is seized up. Fucking snow..."

He leans his head against the headrest, closing his eyes.

"I'm sorry tonight's been so awful, Win." He apologizes. "Missed our reservation. Almost killed the waiter. My piece of shit car is stalled."

"And my heel broke." Winry pointed out, motioning towards the now useless shoe in the backseat.

"Thanks for the reassurance." The vitriol leaks from his lips before he can restrain it. Sarcasm being one of his many natural talents, it was hard to reel it in sometimes.

"Well, maybe if you had shaved EARLIER, we wouldn't have had to run from the car to the restaurant so we didn't miss the reservation! Which we did anyway!" Winry seethes back, meeting his biting words with fire of her own.

"Well, MAYBE if you didn't need two hours to get ready I COULD have shaved earlier!" Ed's eyes open, and his head lifts from the headrest. His voice animated now, he leans his face towards Winry.

"Well, I'm SORRY I wanted to look nice for my MORON of a boyfriend!" She's leaning forward as well, meeting him word for word.

"You don't need TWO DAMN HOURS to do that, Winry! How much good could two hours do anyways?!"

"What, are you saying two hours isn't enough to make me look good?!" She's shouting now. Though the topic may be new, the volume of this argument wasn't.

Ed's eyes goggle for a second as he back pedals furiously. "N-no! I mean, yes! Dammit! I mean you don't need to take that long! You look fine!"

"I wanted to look more than fine, you idiot! Tonight was supposed to be special!" They're nose to nose now, the car windows steam from their shouted breaths.

"You always look more than fine, and don't call me an idiot, nerd!"

"Dork!"

"Grease-monkey!"

"Pipsqueak!"

"I'm taller than you are, you un-cute hag!"

"The maitre d' was taller!"

"Then go on a date with HIM! Maybe HE can get you a table!"

A pause here, enough for a few quickened heart beats. Enough for the details and implications of that statement to sink in.

Winry sits back in her seat, crosses her arms. "Nope. His teeth were all crooked." She sniffs, turning her head up and away from Ed aloof lay.

Ed mirrors her. "Yeah. And his name was Jackson. Who names their kid Jackson?" Ed peers out of the corner of his eyes at her, gauging her reaction. When she chuckles a little, he grins.

"I dunno, Ed...I think Jackson is a cute name for a little boy." Winry turns her head back towards him, smiling brightly.

"Ohhhhh no! No child of mine will be named Jackson!" Laughs the former alchemist as he yanks at his tie.

Winry slaps at his hand, eyeing him severely before cracking a grin again. "Maybe I wasn't talking about you, Eddo." She grasps his tie, leaning in for a kiss. "Maybe I was talking about Jackson Senior?" Her breath ghosts along his lips as they gaze deeply into each other's eyes. "Maaaaybe..."

Ed cuts her off, lightly gripping her chin with his hand. Pressing his lips to hers, he can feel her grin through the smooch. "Don't even think about it. I worked too damn hard to get back to you."

Her radiant smile damn near lights the inside of the car. Ed can feel his stomach grumbling, and Winry can hear it. She kisses his chin once, then gathers her coat around herself and opens the door.

"C'mon, you sap. I saw a hotdog cart down the road, and you still owe me dinner."

Fifteen minutes later, the couple walk down the snowy street. They talk animatedly, holding hands and eating their hotdogs. Winry smiles in gratitude as Ed swipes at a bit of ketchup at the corner of her lip, and he yelps as she dabs a bit of the red stuff on the tip of his nose.

Running a few steps ahead in Ed's extra pair of shoes (luckily he keeps an old pair in the trunk), Winry's laugh echoes down the street as it echoes in Ed's soul. He laughs, running after her.

Suddenly, Ed's reflexes kick in and his head jerks to the side, barely dodging something whizzing past him. Dropping to one knee, Ed's pupils dilate and the adrenaline courses through his veins. Reaching for the knife hidden in his boot, Ed readies himself for a potential attack...

Before noting Winry's location a dozen or so feet ahead. Already stooping over for a second snowball, she stops and states at Ed's battle-ready stance.

"Ed?" She asks inquisitively, cocking her head a bit to the side. "You alright?"

"...yeah. Yeah, sorry. Old habits...die hard." Chuckles Ed as he wipes the snow from his pant legs before suddenly scooping a handful of snow and whipping it back at his girlfriend.

"Ed! Ooooh, you're gonna GET it!" Squeals Winry as she swipes the snow from her coat. "I kicked your ass when we were kids and it snowed, I can do it again!"

"Come and get it, nerd!" The laughing man shouts back, beckoning with both hands. "I'm right here!"

Instead of whirling another ball of ice at Ed's head, Winry sprints at him, trying to bowl him over with a flying tackle. Unfortunately, she slips on a patch of ice right before her take-off, causing Ed to dive forward and catch her right before she hits the hard, icy pavement.

"My hero!" Winry swoons in a mocking voice.

"Tch. Shoulda let your ass fall!" Ed grumbled, rolling his eyes. He stands up, grasping Winry's hand and pulling her up with him. His hands travel to the small of her back, one of her arms slings around his neck.

"If you'd done that, I'd have a big bruise on this ass you love so much!" She winks at him, pulling lightly on his braid.

"Ahhhh. Touchė." One hand slips from her back to her curvy bottom, cupping it firmly.

"Bad..." Winry whispers with a seductive smile.

"So?" Ed whispers back, leaning in for a kiss.

As their lips touch, Winry suddenly jerks back, bringing the hand full of snow that she hid behind her back right into Ed's face.

"So you need to be punished!" The vixen cackles, running down the street and casting a glance back at Ed that practically screams "come get me!"

Ed grins. It was a good date, despite the early inconveniences.

Tiny snowflakes dance in the starry sky above Central City. Just as a happy couple chase each other through the frost-kissed streets, so too do the tiny specks