Odd was hesitant despite his hand already closed around the doorknob, and voiced his concern for the millionth time of the day. "Are you sure?"
"Oh come on," Jeremie was rolling his eyes on the other side of the door.
"It's too late for second thoughts Odd. Just come out already," Aelita strained to keep the impatience out of her voice.
Frowning in disapproval, Odd sighed to himself, "I've had second thoughts since the beginning." But he came into the hall anyways.
"Oh, nice," Jeremie nodded, as if he had been proven wrong, and DID actually like it.
"It's great don't you think?" Aelita smiled at Odd, admiring his attire like she had at the thrift store when she had first spotted it and insisted it be purchased.
Odd just stood there like an impatient kid, waiting for the ok to get going already. The faster they got to the gym, the happier he would be. Being a model for Aelita was not exactly his favourite pastime, especially while wearing this monkey suit. Only it wasn't just ANY monkey suit.
What he was wearing happened to be an eighteenth century relic, black as night with blood red accents. A long dark cape with underlining and an oversized collar just topped it off. This was a vampire outfit.
"Can we go now?" an impatient Odd asked with a sigh.
She nodded in giddy excitement. "Jeremie, have you got yours?"
"Yeah, just gimme a sec," the boy stepped into his room, closing the door.
Meanwhile Aelita fluffed up her hair, "How do I look?"
A small smile spread on Odd's face. He couldn't stay unamused for long. Maybe it was just that he had such a well developed sense of humor. He replied: "Positively gruesome."
She shot him an unimpressed stare. "Well thanks a lot." It may not have seemed like it, but it was all in fun and they both knew it.
Just a few moments later Jeremie was out, and the trio skipped along the empty halls, off to the gym. The whole rest of the school was already there.
• • •
Halloween was a joyous time at Kadic, and it wasn't just the students who went all out, there was always the staff, and everybody. That's why, minutes later, when Aelita entered the gym linked elbow-to-elbow with a couple of vampires, Jim was right there with his opinionated commentary.
"Those are quite some costumes you two," he was obviously speaking to Jeremie and Odd, who wore practically matching getups. Then he turned to their companion. "And what are you?"
"Why, I'm the victim," Aelita angled her neck around to show two perfect little fang-entry wounds.
Jim chuckled heartily, and let them go by.
As they entered the busy gym, dim by design, with flashing lights and cob-webbed top to bottom in decor, it occurred to Aelita that that is what she really was, a victim. Even though she didn't think of it that way at all. Ironically, the two 'vampires' she had come in with, were actually vampires, and somehow they went along with her hair-brained plan for them to go as themselves. So now at least they weren't stuck with fake fangs messing up their speech like other wannabes.
Splitting up unintentionally, she found herself alone on the dance floor, suddenly remembering that it had already two weeks since she had found out. Two weeks since her life had turned upside down. First Jeremie, then Odd, she often joked to herself about who might turn out to be a blood-sucker next.
She spotted a wave from her pals and decided to stop staring out into space and greet them like a normal person.
"Hi guys! Wicked costumes, no pun intended," Aelita giggled, noticing Yumi's green-tinted face and pointy hat. She wore a long-sleeved black dress, with little sequin patterns of the same colour, swirling all around it.
"None taken. And besides, I left my spell book at home," Yumi joked.
"Hey, have you guys seen Odd?" Ulrich looked around, blowing the feather from his hat out of the way only to have his fake sword start clanking a little in it's sheath. Who knew being a pirate meant having the reflexes of a slug?
"He's pretty hard TO see," Jeremie admitted, just coming back from the buffet. "Punch Aelita?"
She shrugged and took the glass. "Why? Is there something wrong?"
"Pfft, just the amount of girls surrounding him. Look," Yumi pointed a dark-red fingernail.
Just like Jeremie said, you could only spot the very top of Odd's hair past the sea of girls, dressed up in every costume under the sun.
"Huh, looks like they forgot what his feet smell like at the end of the day," Jeremie shrugged.
"Wow, talk about a lady's man," Ulrich snorted. "Well I'd better go rescue him."
"Yeah," Yumi nodded, and watched him go with a look in her eye that Aelita recognized instantly. She knew it from experience, and the times that she had had that same dreamy expression, with a sigh and a smile. What else could it be?
• • •
Meanwhile, across the floor, Odd was surrounded by a gaggle of giggling girls, surprisingly attracted to him. As Ulrich pushed his way through the crowd of ghouls and she-goblins, he heard things like: "Odd, I love your costume," or "Hey, are you here with anyone?" Ulrich just rolled his eyes. "Ok, let me through," he tried to coax the crowd.
Soon he was next to Odd, clapping a hand down on his shoulder, "Hey good buddy, how did you become such a magnet?"
"Dumb luck?" he shrugged.
Ulrich glanced down at Odd's mouth. "Hey, nice fangs."
Odd's hand immediately flew to his teeth, on instinct, and then he remembered that today it was ok. "Oh, thanks."
"You seem so on edge. Chill out, it's a party! Right girls?" Ulrich's reply was a bunch of inthusiastic, girlish "yeah"s.
"Well, we'd better get going, huh Ulrich?" Odd sounded just the tiniest bit relieved.
"Yeah sure," he nodded. "Come on. The others are waiting." The girls looked a little disappointed, but disbanded all the same, as the guys headed back to their pals.
• • •
Back on their side of the gym, Aelita, Yumi and Jeremie were discussing different costume ideas when Theo spontaneously came over and complimented Yumi's.
"Oh, thanks Theo. I like your costume too." She smiled back. "Gangster right?"
"Yup, straight out of the 40's. Pretty sharp huh?" He tipped his hat up and adjusted it.
"Yeah," she had to agree, it was a pretty cool costume.
A new song came on, the classic Monster Mash, and all over the gym people jumped up in anticipation. As the words began, Theo turned to Yumi. "Do you want to dance?"
"Sure," she took his hand and was led onto the floor.
Right about then Odd and Ulrich came back over, with the latter looking around for Yumi, until he spotted her. "What is she doing with him?" Ulrich almost snarled.
"Oh come on," Odd said, trying to talk some sense into his pal. "You know Theo's had a crush on her since forever."
"So what? That doesn't mean he can just do what he wants." Man, if looks could kill, Theo would already be dead ten times over.
"Relax Ulrich," Jeremie told him, sipping his punch.
"After all, it's just one dance," Aelita added.
"Yeah, one dance, but what next?" He questioned, just as the song ended.
Odd elbowed him friendlily, "Chill out! It's a party! Remember?"
Back on the dance floor, they separated, Yumi waving to Theo before she came back, wearing a small smile.
"How was it?" Aelita asked cheerily, just trying to be a good friend.
"Not too bad actually," she nodded. "You should try it."
Aelita turned to Jeremie with a hopeful look. He just glanced away nervously. Then suddenly he became more focused, and a little siren, all too familiar to the five, started going off in his 1800's jacket pocket.
Scooping his phone out and turning off the alarm, he informed the others, though they already knew what was going on. "XANA's attacking the skid."
"Aww, and this was just getting good," Odd frowned.
"Sorry to wreak your night guys, but we have more important things to do," Ulrich reminded harshly.
Aelita grabbed onto her dark skirt, lifting it slightly so she could move more easily and with greater speed. "Ok, let's go," and they were off.
A/N:
Hi again guys and gals. Sorry, I promised to have this up earlier but stuff happens so yeah. And yes my author's note is lame today, but, I don't really have much to say.