Day 3 - Double Date (Making up for yesterday's short fic. This one has been in the works for a while and this seemed like a good opportunity. Crona is nonbinary, but is wearing a dress! Using they/them.)
A/N: So I'm trying to finish the rest of the prompts I didn't do for KidxCrona week 2015 before the end of the year. So here is, Day 3: Double Date.
"Kid, you gave Crona the invite to your party right?" Soul asked casually, chewing on his pencil as he looked over his notes for Stein's class. Kid was reading and seemed very distracted when he answered,
"No, of course not."
Soul bit his pencil in half and stared at Kid, who was still stuck to his book.
"What the hell do you mean, 'no'? You are inviting Crona right?" Soul's voice had taken on a rather strangled tone. Kid finally seemed to realise that he was alarming Soul and looked up.
"No, I mean I don't intend to invite Crona at all." The reaper said simply.
For a long moment Soul simply stared at Kid, mouth slightly open and squinting.
"Do you intend to get your head caved in?" Soul finally asked. Kid shut his book with a snap and leaned over the table, looking Soul dead in the eye.
"Trust me when I say, Maka won't be swinging any books at me. Just don't bring it up to her and wait till the party." With that, Kid gathered his things and walked out. Soul stared after him for a solid ninety seconds.
"Holy shit, he's going to die," Soul whispered aloud.
"I'm going to kill him." Maka gritted her teeth as she stomped up the stairs to Gallows Manor. This was made all the more impressive by the two inch heels and sea-foam green ballgown she was wearing. Soul winced as one of the heels came down night next to his foot with a threatening 'clack'.
Soul hoped that Kid had enjoyed a fruitful youth, because it was about to be cut short.
"I can't believe his utter fucking nerve. Not inviting Crona? I thought he'd gotten over it!" Maka continued to rave. Behind her Tsubaki winced the same time Soul did, when Maka threateningly smacked a hardbound encyclopedia against her palm.
"Maybe he forgot Maka? This is the biggest party Kid's thrown in a while." Tsubaki pointed out, tugging her dark silver wrap closer.
"Yeah right, and he didn't 'forget' anybody else? When I get in there I'm going to-" Before anyone could find out how Maka planned to kill one of their friends she was interrupted.
"Why are you still bitching about Kid? It's the biggest party of the year, and I'm here. Let's talk about how fucking amazing me and my goddess look!" Black*Star grabbed Tsubaki and dipped her on the stairs. Tsubaki clutched his arms but grinned and giggled. Her long black hair nearly brushed the ground.
Soul rolled his eyes, and wrapped an arm around Maka's waist.
"Let's just go in, and after the party we can tilt all of his paintings in different directions," he suggested. Maka seemed to brighten, but then frowned again.
"It's just that I think Crona would have really liked it. I just don't know why Kid wouldn't invite them."
Soul shrugged and they entered the Gallows.
The front hall was brightly lit and the most prodigious of Death City were milling about, dressed to the nines.
"Hi guys!" Patti bounced up to them in a strapless blue dress that had a broad white ribbon wrapped around her waist. Behind her was Liz, in a sparkling red ballgown that trailed to the floor.
"You look nice, Liz." Tsubaki complimented. "Where is Kid?" She peered over the crowd.
Liz frowned. "You know I haven't have seen him since this afternoon." She rolled her eyes. "I'm sure he's planning on making an entrance, or making sure absolutely everything in the house is still symmetrical. We stayed up until two AM last night checking the whole place." Then she caught sight of Maka's frown. "Uh-oh. What did he do?"
"He didn't invite Crona."
Liz's eyes popped open and her jaw dropped. "What?" Even Patti looked surprised.
"Do you know why?" Liz sounded totally bewildered.
Maka shook her head. Before she could say anything else, she was interrupted.
"Hiya, hiya, hiya! How's it going?" Lord Death's voice boomed over the crowd. "I wanted to thank you all for coming to Kid's party. We'll get started as soon as Kid gets here." The Grim Reaper paused. "I don't actually know where he is, to be honest." The crowd chuckled.
"You need not wait for me any longer, father." A voice came from upstairs. Everyone looked up through the grand staircase. Kid was looking imperiously down from the top floor. "Ahem, if you will maestro?" The violinist from the band nodded and began to play. Kid's head disappeared back over the rails. There was a pause as Kid descended. But then, sudden mutters and gasps trickled through the crowd.
Kid was walking stately and slowly down the polished stairs, one arm behind his back and on the other was…
"Is that Crona?" Black*Star asked, actually looking rather surprised.
It was Crona. It was Crona as no one had ever seen them before. Head held high, even as their eyes stayed on the floor with a dark blush painting their cheeks. Crona's hair had been pinned back with small skull barratts. It was long enough that it just brushed their shoulders and their bangs were cut straight across their forehead, not a hair out of place.
Crona's dress was an exercise in decadence. It must have been custom made, for no one had ever seen a style quite like it. From the front it was a high collared all the way up Crona's long neck, but then split straight down with black and white. Whenever they stepped forward though, there was a flash of color. It was a pale pink chiffon, like the inside of a seashell. There was no zipper at the back of the gown. Instead there were eight ribbons, neatly tied, the same color as the chiffon. It ended at their waist and revealed a significant amount of pale smooth skin. It was sleeveless, but Crona wore long black opera gloves. And on their hands were unmistakably, Kid's signature skull rings. Kid was dressed to match, in black and white. His flashy cravat was a pale pink as well, and of course topped with Lord Death's mask symbol.
When the couple reached the bottom of the stairs, it was to the dying notes of the cello. The crowd was so quiet, a dropped pin would have sounded like an explosion.
Kid's smile was smug. A late growth spurt had put him as the same height as Crona and he was able to hold hands with them comfortably.
"Thank you all for attending my annual party this year, ladies and gentlemen. We shall momentarily move to the dining hall, where there is an eight course dinner. Then the ball shall officially start." Kid and Crona bowed.
With a hand on her back Kid steered Crona toward the dining hall, apparently oblivious to the mutterings that were beginning to fill the hall. He shot another smile at Soul and the rest of their friends.
"They-they tricked us." Maka stuttered as they followed the crowd. She whipped around to look at Liz and Patti. "Did you know?"
Liz shook her head, "No. But that dress was handmade, so they must have been planning this for a while."
"A while." Soul repeated dully. "Are you saying they snuck around, dating each other behind everyone's backs and decided to reveal it as dramatically as possible?"
Everyone looked at each other.
"That absolute show stealing bastard. How dare he take the spotlight from me? Who the fuck does he think he is?" Black*Star raved.
Maka was utterly speechless, mouth opening and closing. Soul took her shock as an opportunity to move her toward the dining room.
As people seated themselves around the different round tables, 8 in all, all of the whispered conversations were about who Kid had chosen as his date tonight.
Kim ran up to them, clutching the hand of a protesting Jacqueline.
"Oh my god, Crona looked amazing. Do you know how much that dress cost?" She hissed to Tsubaki, who shook her head.
"I didn't know they were dating." Kilik slid into the eighth seat next to Liz.
"Haha, you know what's funny? Neither did we." Liz threw a hand up in the air.
"Nothing is funny. I might never laugh again." Maka pouted at the table. Soul patted her shoulder consoling.
"So wait, does this mean Crona is a girl?" Ox had popped up and was hovering next to Kim.
Soul shot him an irritated look. "No. They're just wearing a dress. If we use your logic, then Azusa is a dude 'cause she's wearing a suit."
All of the guests had filtered in and were taking their seats. Kim, Jacqueline and Ox had left for their tables.
Kid and Crona were seated at the head with Lord Death, Spirit, Azusa, Stein, Marie and the head reporter of the Death City newspaper, Maximilian Tatin.
Sometime during the first course Maka dropped her fork on the floor. Quickly, she wriggled out of her seat and dropped under the table. Peaking through forest of legs and table clothes, she spotted Kid and Crona's table.
Resting on their touching knees, Kid and Crona were tightly clasping hands. Kid stroked his thumb over the outside of Crona's hand. Maka bit her lip as she smiled.
"Maka, get out from under the table. Your dad is looking over at us," Soul hissed.
"Ouch!" As she got back in her chair she rubbed at her head. Spirit looked horrified for a moment, then he glared at Soul.
"What were you doing under there?" Liz took a sip from her wine. Black*Star made a crude motion, pumping his arm up and down. Maka punched him in the arm.
"Nothing. I just dropped my fork."
"Okay, but you should know that you're blushing." Tsubaki pointed out.
The first dance was lead by Kid and Crona.
They moved as one in an elegant square, eyes never straying from the other's face. Their hands were clasped tightly, palm to palm. Kid supported Crona with a hand in the middle of their upper back and Crona's was wrapped around his upper arm. Around and around they spun, staring at each other, the only noise the music and the gentle swishing of Crona's dress. The foxtrot only lasted about two minutes but it was clear to everyone in that time that this was less about Kid showing off or entertaining and more about announcing his dedication Crona.
"Unbelievable," Maka muttered again as Kid and Crona bowed again, the audience applauding.
"Which part?" Soul asked.
"That they didn't tell us!" Maka hissed. That stung the most. She was Crona's confidant! She was the one Crona was suppose to come to for support! Not Kid.
Suddenly Soul laughed in her ear.
"Maka Albarn? Jealous?" He whispered.
"I am not! It's just…" She sighed as she looked over at Kid and Crona. They were talking to his father, who was listening silently as Kid spoke. After a moment Lord Death seemed to laugh and patted Crona gently on the head. Kid grinned, a rare sight. But what Maka was looking at was Crona's face.
It was open, the expression utterly besotted as they watched Kid. The tenderness and caring was there in their dark blue eyes, anyone could see it.
'Oh, so that's what Crona in love looks like.' Flitted through her brain and Maka's eyes widen a little at the revelation.
"They're coming over here." Soul squeezed her arm in warning.
Kid had spotted them through the crowd and bowed to his father before grabbing Crona's hand so they could get through the crowd.
"Maka, Soul," Kid said coolly, still smiling widely. Before he could get any farther though Liz and Patti appeared.
"Hey Kid. How's it going? Something you wanna tell us?" Liz looped an arm around Kid's neck, and raised a hand to his hair. Her voice dropped threateningly. "Spill or I swear I'll ruffle it."
Kid's eyes widened in horror. "Um. Surprise? Crona and I have been dating? I had the dress made specially for them? I was tired of father badgering me about 'settling down'?" He rattled off quickly before Crona rescued him, gently removing Liz's arm.
"I-it was my idea," they admitted quietly.
"Crona!" Maka sounded hurt. Crona turned their eyes to their friend.
"I-I'm sorry, Maka. Kid wanted to tell everyone but I didn't want to." They're eyes shifted to the ground. "I was afraid Kid would get in trouble." Kid gently wrapped an arm around them. Crona looked at him softly, peeking out from their gently curled fringe. "But I wanted to do something special f-for this party."
Kid gently brushed a stray hair from their face, his hand lingering on their cheek.
"You made me very happy." He solemnly informed them. For a moment the two were in their own world, staring in each other eyes.
"Ahem." Liz coughed, and both jumped.
Maka sighed, but smiled. "I wished you told me, Crona. That's what best friends do. We could have talked about how dumb boys are, and I would have loved to help you with your dress."
Crona smiled shyly. "C-can we, next time?"
Maka hugged them, standing on tip-toe to reach the other person's cheek.
"It's a date."