By Blood Connected

By Blood Connected
A Fanfiction by Vir M.
Chapter 8
“All-Hallow’s Eve”

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I ran down the hallway as fast as I could, grinning like a loon, my mind racing along with my legs.

We were at peace!

I could go to the dance!

I dashed across the cold, moonlit grounds, nothing more than a pale face floating through the dark. I reached the theater building not even breathing hard, energized by my joy coursing through my system, let myself into the unlocked building, and retrieved my costume from its locker. Then I hurried off to the dressing rooms while pulling my dress out of its hanging bag.

I held the thing up to me as I flicked on a light switch. It was unwrinkled, luckily, and I quickly began to strip down. Once undressed, I stepped into the outfit, then reached behind myself to do up the buttons. Our musical theater teacher had taught us the art of dressing with out help, and I was very grateful I had taken that course at that moment. Once buttoned in, I proceeded to tightly tie up the laces of the corset-ish thing. It wasn’t a REAL corset-- I wouldn’t be at all constricted-- but it certainly looked real enough for my purposes. Once I had finished dressing, I looked in the mirror.

I was very pleased with what I saw: the dress highlighted my thin waist while the corset pushed up my A-cup breasts, making them look more full than they really were. The dress flowed gracefully around me in soft, black folds, giving me a regal air.

I reached up and ripped the rubber-band from my ponytail, freeing my hair so it fell around my shoulders in soft waves. I turned to my bag, grabbed a brush, and attacked the strands until they framed my face pleasingly. I had no make-up, so the stuff I applied that morning would have to do. I then gently lifted my mask from the side-pocket of the dress bag.

It was delicate paper-mache, thin, light, and frail, shaped like a butterfly. It was black with small red, faux-pearls edging it. The eyes were rimmed in crimson and their edging flowed into a leafy pattern as it arched down and away from the eye-holes, mirroring the slant of my own eyes

I gently lifted it to my face, then secured it around my head with a red ribbon. I arranged my loose hair so the ribbon was hidden, looked at myself one last time in the mirror, then walked out the door towards the gymnasium.
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They had decorated the place with orange and black streamers, glowing jack-o-lanterns, sheet-ghosts hung from the ceiling while a black banner loudly screamed in orange: “HAPPY HALLOWEEN!” Tables had been set against the walls, leaving a space in the center for a dance floor. A DJ booth had been erected at the front of the gym, and the disc jockey was currently blasting bass-heavy techno. I rushed right over to the crowd of dancers and joined in.

I’ve never been comfortable dancing, but all that changes when I hide behind a mask. I’m something of a coward when it comes to dancing in front of people. In this case, however, no one knew it was me, so I was free to dance however I wished. The pounding bass vibrated up through the floor; my heartbeat matched the frantic rhythm of the drums, and I could simply float there, moving. When the song ended, I stepped away from the crowd to take a seat at one of the tables.

I sat there, breathing heavily and was about to go get myself some punch when I heard her:

“Jira?”

Ami and Karen were standing about four feet away from me, eyes wide behind their masks. I raised a hand in lazy greeting.

“Yo.”

“Jira! It is you!” Ami squealed in surprise. Karen began to grin like a maniac as they both wrestled me into a three-way bear hug. “What are you doing here?”

“Aeneid and I came to terms.” I said. Their faces looked confused.

“Came to... terms?” Karen asked. “You said ‘terms,’ right? Not ‘blows?’” I grinned at her.

“To put it shortly, I blew up in his face about how unfair he was, so we compromised... and here I am.” I said, spreading my arms wide. “I love your costumes, by the way.”

Ami was dressed as a princess, her long blonde hair drawn into a braid and her pink dress setting off the rosy colouring of her skin. Karen was dressed as a vampire: long black dress, red-lined cloak, false fangs made to fit her teeth that were indistinguishable as fakes, save for their length. They both looked lovely, and I was struck by a small pang of jealousy.

//Why can’t I ever look like that?

I banished the thought as soon as it registered; I wasn’t going to be brought down even further by stuff like that, not when the evening had taken such a turn for the better. I forced the thought aside as I smiled at them, mask grinding against my cheekbones.

“Did I miss much?”

“Not really.” Ami sighed. “Its been rather boring so far... but hey! Soon they’re going to start the waltz’s and stuff.” Each school dance had a twenty minute segment for the teachers composed of classical dances and oldies music, and even though the students were encouraged to join in, many did not. I loved them, however.

“It’s not like we have partners though.” Stated Karen matter-of-factly. “Though I suppose having a female partner is acceptable...” She turned to Ami and deepened her voice to a more male-ish pitch. “A dance or three, milady?” Ami giggled.

“Feeling silly, huh?” They laughed, and I joined in with relish. It had been far to long since I had gotten to spend quality time with them.

Suddenly, the DJ’s voice came blasting through the speakers.

“Ladies and gents, how’re you feelin’ tonight?”

There was a cheer from the student body, and applause from the faculty.

“Glad to hear it, glad to hear it...” Said the DJ. “Next up, we’ve got the stuff for the oldsters!”

The ‘oldsters’ looked rather uncertain at that.

“This year, we’ve got a twist! ‘Find a partner to dance with that has a similar-themed costume as yours...’” he was obviously reading off of a card. “Well, you heard, me, find partners, guys!”

Ami was promptly whisked away by a tall boy in chain-mail; Karen was lead onto the floor (protesting all the while) by a Dracula impersonator.

I was left alone.

I scanned the crowd, looking for a costume... and found none. A ‘Gothic Courtesan’ was a made up category, after all...

The music began to play: a swing-dance. I watched the couples dance for a while, then leaned my forehead into my hand. I wanted to be out there with everyone.

Oh well. I thought. Can’t win ‘em all... I should be thankful I even got to go! Still, I was bummed. This part of the night was my favorite... The swing ended, and a slow waltz began to play. Waltz are my favorite... I thought wistfully.

Then a hand descended onto my bare shoulder.

A very, very cold, metallic hand... I spun around, and found myself staring at a very strange armored figure. The armor was dark-blue, almost black, and was spiky and sharp around the shoulders and helmet. Two large, curled horns protruded from the helmet, looking like a strange, upright ram. A black cape cascaded from the back of the chest piece, and none of the wearer’s skin was visible.

As I stared, shocked by his sudden appearance, I was hit by the realization that his costume and mine would make a very fitting match indeed.

He had obviously come to this conclusion as well. He lifted that heavy, cold hand off of my shoulder and extended it towards me, gauntleted palm upraised. I held out a hand wordlessly, and allowed him to grasp the proffered limb and pull me to my feet. His grip was gentle but firm, despite that strange armor, and his mailed fingers created a delicate yet steel-strong cage around my digits. He lead me gently to the floor, seemingly gliding despite armor.

//His costume’s amazing... I wonder what that stuff is made out of? I thought. //Can’t be metal; he wouldn’t be able to walk. Isn’t plastic though... It sure does feel metallic... No plastic in all the world could’ve mimicked the metallic coldness of those plate-mail gloves...

He placed a gentle hand on my waist, then proceeded to lead in the waltz. I stared up at that helmet, attempting to peer through the slots in the visor to see its occupant, but I was too short.

//Damn my height to hell. I thought sulkily. //I could really do with a can-opener right about now...

He was surprisingly agile as a dancer. He lead flawlessly, spun me when needed to, and never once stepped on my toes.

When the gliding music faded, he stepped away from me and bowed from the waist with a flourish. I laughed, then curtsied. He stood, and something about his stance told me he was amused at my antics.

Another song, a more lively one, picked up, and I was swept into his armored embrace once more. The fast turns were dizzying, and I felt like I had left my human shell behind me. I laughed, cheeks flushed with the joy of it all.

When we broke apart, he made another deep bow. Then he turned, and began to stride away from me. I was about to call after him –I mean, a name WOULD be nice– but I heard Ami calling, so I turned to her instead.

“Who was that? He sure had a nice costume...”

“I dunno.” I said. “He didn’t take off the helmet.”

“Oh...” she pouted. “Too bad.” I turned away from her then, and looked back the way he had walked.

He was already gone.

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AUTHOR TIME
I’m uploading this chapter at the same time as # 9.
I know this one was crappy....My writings seem to be deteriorating... Oh well... My home life hasn’t been great recently. I don’t get along with the people I live with.... Anyway, critiques everyone!!! I LURVE COMMENTS!!!!!