Alright, so this is my one shot for AthenaGray15's one shot contest. I really want to win, so pretty pretty please review(because the number of reviews determines who wins partially, and when the poll goes up on her profile, you have to vote for me too, because the votes on the poll helps decide it too! I hope you will like this. I kept up my love of Luke Castellan and wrote what I thought his afterlife in the Underworld might be like. So, without further ado, here it is!
Luke Castellan:
You would think I would hate the Underworld. The way Percy Jackson described it, it sounded cold, dark, full of evil, and just generally bad. And yes, it was like that, in other areas that I wasn't in. All the time. But everything was easy to live through and enjoy when you have someone there to help you through it. Or when you aren't in those bad parts of the Underworld.
Oh, I know what your thinking. Did Jackson make you think I was passionately in love with his girlfriend, who wasn't exactly his girlfriend at the time?Alright,Annabeth Chase, I will admit, was my first love. I liked her like nobody would even believe. I had known her since she was a little kid, and she had been like a little sister to me. I really enjoyed hanging out with her, helping her learn about the fun and joy of being a demigod, and everything else that we did together, along with Thalia, my best friend in the entire world. Where was I? Oh yeah. I had a huge crush on Annabeth, but even the biggest of crushes can go away when you find someone new to spend time with. And I'm dead. She's alive. That's a whole new level of a long distance relationship, and I can't compete with all the living guys up there no doubt trying to battle for her attention. So I moved on. Ok, fine. Maybe the fact she also said she didn't love me like that back as I was laying there dying affected something too.
Today is my one year death anniversary. Most people probably don't celebrate that in the living world as a happy day, but in the Underworld, it's a really important day. Especially when your in Elysium. Alright, let me explain this to you so you'll understand. It can be a little confusing. Elysium is an after life for heroes. It's totally perfect. Everyone lives in a mansion, it's sunny and nice all the time, and the nights are clear and just cool enough, and everyone that lives there is really nice.
In terms of half the world, I'd probably be totally unqualified for Elysium. I mean, I did some really bad stuff. I turned against my own father, Hermes, and the rest of the Olympians, betrayed Camp Halfblood, lead the titan Kronos's army on a rampage to destroy the world, and hurt a lot of people. Those things aren't all in order of the consequence naturally, but my point is, I did a lot. Some people would say that those bad things should place me in the Fields of Punishment for eternity.
But then, there are those other people that would say I deserve to be exactly where I am right now for being a hero. My death was kind of messy, but I sacrificed myself in the end to keep Kronos from completely coming back. I saved Olympus, and the rest of the world, as well. And that makes me a hero in some people's records. But I ended up here, and obviously I'm happier to be here then the Fields of Punishment.
Like I said, everybody is pretty nice here. Especially my girlfriend, Abigail James. She is kind of like me. She's a mortal, which is not like me at all, and I start off by setting that fact straight because when you hear the rest of this story you'll be really confused if you don't know she's mortal. Most everyone else I associate myself with down here is a half-blood, or a demigod, as they are more commonly called, like me. Back to the story.
Abigail is the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in my life. She has pale, milk white skin, flowing chocolate brown hair that is really straight and comes down to about the small of her back, eyes as clear and blue as the lake at Camp Halfblood, the camp I used to go to(just in case you didn't know that.). And her smile...I can't even explain that with words. There isn't a single word to describe how wonderful her smile is. I think wonderful could be one word...but it isn't the only one.
And not only is she beautiful, no. She's also the sweetest, most wonderful person I've ever met. She was the first person to welcome me in to Elysium. Everyone else was welcoming, but she was the one that literally skipped over to me and said 'Welcome to Elysium! I know we're just going to be the most wondrous of friends.' I know, it sounds weird. I thought it did too, but then I realized not everyone was from the same time period I was.
Abigail died in the year 1861, at the age of 16. She was injured extremely badly pretending to be a man fighting in the Civil War. I know, insane. But she had cut her hair really short, and wore men's clothing, and did a lot more things nobody will tell me about, but anyway, she was injured, but she wouldn't allow the medics to even start to heal her until the men who were more injured then her were treated. Very heroic, don't you think? Well, there's her reason for being in Elysium. She was a true hero. And she spoke with the occasional colonial thing, but I had taught her a lot of modern language, so she spoke like a normal girl from modern times now. Not that I minded. She had things to say, thoughts of the world, that I had never heard someone mention. Or at least, not that they admitted, and stuck with when others challenged those ideas.
She was perfect when I met her, and she's still perfect today. Since she died at age 16, she is eternally 16, and we're allowed to look any way we desire to, so her hair is long, and the wounds of the war are long gone from her body. Not that I would know of course. I haven't looked everywhere, but I mean her arms and legs and face have nothing on them. She's flawless in every way, as far as I'm concerned. She doesn't think so, but I do.
She's like me because we both do things other people would find reckless, dangerous, and stupid. I mean, wars weren't for woman back in the eighteen hundreds. Not only did she get into the army, she picked up a rifle and went fighting(HOT, I know. But to any boy reading this, A)she's dead, so if your living, you can't get to her, B)she's in Elysium, so if your alive or dead in another part of the Underworld, you can't have her, and C)she is my girlfriend, so you can't have her, even if you live in Elysium.
It only increased my chance of eventually dating Abigail that she was single when I got here, and she was assigned to be my 'guide', which pretty much meant she was supposed to show me where Elysium stops and we aren't supposed to go unless Hades calls us there, where my house was, and all the major buildings, like the library, the swimming pool, the nightclub, and the grocery store(Elysium really is like it's own little city like that, not to mention that there are sections of the city for every century).
I noticed as we walked around that not only were there people from different time periods, but buildings too. Heroes that died a really long time ago might have a Victorian villa house, or a Greek building. I swore I saw a pyramid somewhere far off in the distance, but I haven't explored everywhere to find that out yet, and I would feel silly for asking Abigail about it.
Anyway, the end of my tour had ended when we reached a huge Victorian villa. It was cream colored here and there, black in other places, and it was gorgeous. I knew that we could imagine up how we wanted ourselves to look, and we could tell the judges at our trial once we got into Elysium what kind of home we wanted to live in. But I hadn't seen something this magnificent yet on my first day, and I didn't know how someone could describe a place like this in enough detail to have it turn out to be this perfect.
'Is this where you lived when you were alive?' I had asked her, pretty much too stunned to even know something else I could have said. I also didn't exactly think she could just dream up something like this. I figured she had to have lived there, because it seemed so perfectly detailed.
She had only given me a sad smile and said goodbye, and that she had to go. Well, I'm pretty sure that's what she said. It was more of a 'I bid you farewell until I may make your presence again.' But I got the gist of that as saying goodbye, and that we would see each other again.
I was smitten(a word I learned from Abigail that I know to mean like having a huge crush on someone.) immediately.
We started dating two months after that, after I properly made my interest in her known. She wasn't quite used to the rituals of just dating, being that she is from a time where dating was called courting, and that there were other people who just did not want someone like me, a murderer(there were some skeptics down here as well about why I was here and not in the Fields of Punishment.) to be with the precious girl hero that truly was a hero. There were obstacles for us to both cross. There were others from her time period that were hellbent on making sure I knew what was required of me, and considered alright. Those people were a little more old fashioned then Abigail herself, let me tell you. And they weren't even her parents. No, they were down with all of the other people that didn't fit in Elysium, but didn't fit in the Fields of Punishment either. They were wandering across a field for eternity. I learned the hard way what seeing that kind of thing can do to a person when their family was involved. Abigail had seen her parents a few weeks after I had gotten down here. And she was sad for a while about it.
Besides having a girlfriend and a nice house, and that kind of thing, I had also found some people I knew in real life down here. Mostly campers from Camp Halfblood, like former Kronos army member Ethan Nakumara,
Alright, so there's the information you have to have before I tell you what's happening this second. I think I've caught you up to everything, given you the information you need to know, but there might be a random spurt of information that I forgot before that I want to tell you later, so don't be too shocked about that if it does happen.
I wake up in my bed, just like any other day. My house is a Beverly Hills mansion, because that is the way I asked for it to be when I got here(I was stupid! Why didn't I ask for something simpler, or less flashy, maybe a house like Abigail's, which I learned I adored more then my own house). I stretch, climbing out of bed and walking into the bathroom, flicking on the shower and getting out of my pajamas. Any other day I would take just a quick shower, but today I take an extra long time, making sure every single pore on my body is as clean as possible.
Today is a special day, like a birthday, though people don't celebrate those much down here unless your over the age of 1000, and I need to make sure I look perfect. Yes, yes, call me conceited. Or self absorbed. Or ignorant. I guess I deserve that. But really, I'm not. I just want to look good for the secret plans Abigail has planned for me.I always want to look good for her, because she always looks so good without even trying.
I have a date with her around lunch time, and then we're going to a party tonight at one of her friends houses, and Abigail says it's just a get together, but I have a feeling she's throwing a party for my death date(I don't think anyone else's is today, at least, nobody I hang out with). What was I saying? Oh yes. Now I remember.
I cleaned myself up, got out of the shower, dried off, and pulled on my Camp Halfblood t-shirt and a pair of black jeans. Over the shirt I wear a leather jacket, and then, because I feel like it, I put on some black sunglasses. It's always really sunny here in the day. I walk out my front door, not bothering to lock up, because nobody steals anything from anybody here(since we have everything we want), and head down the street toward Abigail's house.
As I pass by, everyone is laughing. With joy, not at me, just to clear that up. I don't know if I mentioned this, but everyone is happy here. We all are living great lives, doing whatever we want to do, and it's just so wonderful that nobody truly is unhappy. From the moment I got here I could always hear the laughter, see the sunlight streaming, the only real light in the Underworld. I can't resist the smile that creeps to my lips. I love it down here. The Underworld is an amazing place, if you live in a good place. Or if your a child of Hades...possibly. Still have to deal with Persephone potentially being bitter. But then again, usually she loves demigod kids of Hades, because she's a nice lady. I've met her a few times, and she's pretty awesome. Sorry. I keep getting distracted.
I've now walked my way to Abigail's house. It's still as stunning as it was when I first got here, and I can see why Abigail lives here. She's perfect. The house is perfect...well, everything's perfect down here, but you get my point. Sorry I keep repeating myself. I am really in love with my girlfriend, and I want every person living and dead reading this to know about it.
I walk up the front path toward the door, knocking gently. I turn around, running a hand through my hair again, fluffing it up a little more so it looks messier. It'll get more messed up later on I'm sure what with the breeze outside, maybe Abigail ruffling it if I tempt her enough to make out with me(she's still not too fond of the idea of kissing someone for more then a few seconds. I can't blame her though. She'd been brought up to believe certain things were the correct thing, and they happened to differ from my ideas.)
I tap my foot subconsciously, still not receiving an answer, so I knock again. After about another minute of nothingness I decide to enter the house through a window. I mean, she's probably inside showering and didn't hear me knocking. Not a big deal, I can handle that, and I don't mind alternative means of going places. I mean, that practically comes with the title of being a Hermes child.
I walk around to the side of the house, seeing the arbor covered in little white flowers. It's easy enough to climb up onto it, and then from there, I raise myself up the last few feet to Abigail's bedroom window. I didn't go in immediately, just in case she was in the middle of something I shouldn't see. She's laying in her bed, her expression peaceful, her hair splayed around her face like a silky curtain. She's smiling in her sleep. Maybe having a dream. Does she dream about me like I dream about her? I think.
I swing my legs through the window, stepping in lightly and ducking under the window frame so I don't hit my head. Once inside, I walk over to Abigail's bed, and slide myself in next to her, propping myself up on an elbow to watch her. I enjoy watching her sleep, but if I don't wake her up she'll be mad she slept in too late(even though it's ten in the morning, and not really that late at all.) I get close enough to her and blow a cool gust of my breath along her neck. Her blue eyes snap open, and she looks at me.
"How'd you get in here?" She yawns, not missing a beat.
I roll my eyes playfully at her. "Darling, I've been here all night." I reply.
She groans. "Do I have my virginity?" She asks me, laughing.
I wrap my arms around her waist. "For now. But just say the word and I can help you change that real quick." My lips go to her neck, sucking on her skin. She squeals, but in pain or amusement I'm not sure.
"Luke, stop it. My dress for tonight doesn't cover up hickies." She squeals, and I pull my lips away gently.
"Aww. That doesn't matter. People know we're together. Or are we still at that stage where we steal kisses in the night and go on chaperoned dates?"
These are two things Abigail told me about that people did back in her time.
"Your so old fashioned, Luke. It's the twenty-first of centuries! You can kiss me whenever you feel like it, and I highly doubt there would be anyone who would want to be a chaperone one of our dates,"
She giggles, a feather light sound, before moving my hands along her waist line and back to my own sides.
"At least not the way you make it."
She climbs out of bed in her tank top and a pair of shorts. "I have to go take a shower. But please, do not hesitate to stay and listen to the sound of water."
Oh, so now she's being a girlfriend with an attitude. She has no idea how much she tempts me to do things to her. And as I can see, and you can too probably, she's not exactly the refined, proper good girl she was two hundred years ago. I've taught her things, and time changes people.
I get out of her bed slowly, waiting until I can hear the water of the shower running before taking off my jacket and shirt and walking in to the bathroom, holding the knob a certain way so it doesn't make a noise, and she'll have no idea that I'm coming in. Yes, another Hermes kid trick.
As soon as the door opens, a slew of warm, condensed air fogs me. She's taking a hot shower. Ooh, tempting. I throw my jacket and shirt on the floor and then proceed to take off my pants and my underwear, and then I pull the curtain aside.
Abigail screams, but only for a second before realizing it's me. Then she's only glaring at me playfully with fake anger. Or maybe it's real. I can't quite tell because her lips are forming a smile.
"May I help you? I'm kind of naked here." She mumbles, and I step into the shower, not saying a word, but pushing her gently back under the stream of the water.
"Just shower, Abby. Pretend I'm not here." I murmur softly in her ear.
She rolls her eyes and gives me a smile before continuing to shower. But me, being me, I can't keep my hands off her. The atmosphere, the girl, the lack of clothes. It's tempting me.
I move myself in next to her, careful to keep a little bit of distance. Wouldn't want her to think I'm trying to rape her, because I'm not. I kiss her gently on the lips, and the water hits our faces as our lips continue to meet. It is the wettest kiss I've ever had in my life, and not because she's slobbering on me, or the other way around.
And then I'm not just kissing her lips. I'm kissing her neck, her shoulders, her wrists. I stay upper body, and I stay away from her breasts, knowing if I go there, A)I will not be able to have any sort of self control, and B)My girlfriend is going to slap me into next week, because she isn't used to people touching her like that, kissing her in that spot. I don't blame her. If I were a girl I wouldn't want to have a guy kiss me there either.
She breaks away, gasping. "We're going to get all pruney if we don't get out now." She states, and she flicks off the water.
She steps out of the shower first, and I can see her wrapping a towel around herself before she hands me one. I wrap it around my waist and covet the still warm air around us. I'm happy. Abigail seems happy. Everything is good.
"Are we still on for lunch?" I ask her.
She turns around to face me. "That would depend. Do you have something to wear tonight for the party?"
I nod. "Unless something's changed."
She frowns and bites her lip. "Has something changed?" I ask her, laughing.
"Yeah. Silena changed her mind. It's not just a regular party anymore. Oh no, she made it a masquerade ball." She replies in a somewhat angry tone, but her eyes show she's thrilled.
"You look happy." I comment, and she blinks a few times, as though noticing that her eyes are giving me answers to questions I haven't even asked yet.
"I am, Luke. I...I haven't been to a masquerade ball in a very long time. Since...before the war."
I don't need to even ask her what war she's talking about. She has knowledge of other wars, but everything happening in the years 1845 to 1861 are the wars she recalls the best, obviously, since she was alive during them, and they are usually the only wars she talks about.
"Really? Well then we absolutely, positively must go to it." I reply, kissing her on the cheek gently and picking my clothes up off the floor.
"Silena said she wanted to have a ball, and then that she didn't know what to wear to one, so I'll have to lend her something of mine I'm sure."
"You own clothing for a masquerade ball?" I ask her.
She nods. "Of course. I have some of the clothes I had in my life, dear Luke. And for me, some of my clothing included floor length gowns. Girls wore them every freaking day."
She smiles at me, her eyes lighting up, and clutches her towel a little closer to her body.
"I'll give some privacy and go change in my room if you don't mind." She says, her cheeks flushing with a bit of color.
I think she's embarrassed about the fact that she's wearing nothing but a towel. I shouldn't have gotten into her shower. I've just ruined everything good about today's dates with her I'm sure. Why did I have to be so stupid as to get into her shower? I'm pretty sure my mom even gave me that rule at some point when I was alive before she had an episode. 'Don't get into the shower with girls'. Yeah, I can see her saying something like that.
I dry myself off, leaving my hair messy and damp, and pull on all of my clothing, walking out and finding her dressed as well, her hair pulled into a messy, damp ponytail, her jeans only partially zipped(she fixes that pretty darn quick),and her tank top partially wet.
"Did you even dry off?" I ask her.
She shakes her head. "Guess I didn't think of it."
I laugh and give her a hug. "It's alright. You were excited to help me go shopping for something to wear to the masquerade ball."
She hugs me back and nods, then pulls back and squeezes my hand. "Should we head downtown and see what we can find?" She asks.
"Sure." And we start walking out of the house and down the street toward the main street, where there are so many shops and stores and things that you could probably lose someone here. And this is only one of the streets.
"So...what does a boy wear to a masquerade ball?" I ask.
Abigail thinks for a minute, but she says nothing.
"Oh come on. Surely the boys trying to court you didn't show up to these balls naked."
That makes her laugh. "Of course not! They would be publicly executed if that happened."
"Really?" I exclaim.
"No. But they'd be in trouble...I'm trying to remember. A...wait, how do I put this into terms you'll understand? A white button up shirt underneath a longer jacket, usually the boys my age wore something neutral like black or brown or silver, but some wore blue or green or red. Sometimes they wore vests that buttoned over their shirts. Long pants in the same color as your jacket. A mask."
I'm sure I looked shocked. "It's not too bad. We'll find you something. I promise." She assures me, squeezing my hand and kissing me on the cheek again.
"Tell me a story, Abby."
She tilts her head to the side as we near the thrift shops. "Do you mind getting things from thrift stores?" She asks, ignoring my request.
"Of course not. If we find something that works, then I don't care at all."
She nods her agreement and I poke her in the side, causing her to flinch, just a tiny bit. "Tell me a story now?" I ask, like a whiny little kid.
She rolls her eyes. "About what should I tell?" A smile creeps along her face, making her look even more beautiful.
"Tell me what a masquerade ball would be be like for you when you were living." I insist.
The look on her face at that moment is one I have never seen on her before. She looks somewhat happy, like she wants to tell me, slightly fascinated, possibly that I even asked her for information about that, or that I cared, and then she also looks slightly sad as well, like the memories hold pain for her.
"Why do you want to know about this?" She asks, tilting her head to the side in a curious fashion.
I sling my arm around her waist, pulling her in a little closer to me. "I just want to learn about a time in history." I respond. She's always been a history nut, so of course she sighs and gives in.
"Masquerade balls were always a huge deal. The entire state of Louisiana probably attended one at some point, especially around where I lived. I lived in New Orleans, by the way. Every ball was practically a calling for a new dress, and not just any dress would do. I would have at least 2 layers of petticoats on underneath the skirts of my dress, and under that would be my stockings and underwear. On the top I had a corset, and then the bodice of the dress, which usually also laced up like a corset. It was really hard to breathe."
"So you always looked extremely slim?" I ask her.
She nods and smiles. "Everyone did. And boys back then loved seeing stuff as much as they do today."
"Continue." I prod.
"Masks were something else to get excited over. You know how girls fight over who has the best purse and stuff nowadays?"
I nod. "Well it was like that. Except these were masks, and if you had the best one, it was usually the most elaborate mask of anyone there." She sighs, and pauses for a moment, looking down the street. She spots a shop she wants to go in and pulls me through the door. I can tell as soon as we go in that we'll find everything we want here. I can also tell this shop is part of the 19th century section of Elysium. Abby gasps. "Continue your story. I want to hear more."
She walks through the racks, continuing to speak. "And the boys...well, boys didn't have nearly as much to worry about most of the time, but they were always the ones to ask the girls to dance. Always. There was no such thing as ladies choice or a girl asking a boy to dance."
"Did lots of boys ask you to dance?" I ask.
"Oh yes. My family hosted a lot of the balls, and therefore all the boys that didn't have dates, or even the ones that did, were pretty much required to come and ask my mother or I to dance. The ones that were closer to my age obviously came to me. My friend Victoria and I were quite the dancers. We knew every step to every dance. Half the time we'd have to play dumb so we didn't seem like we knew more then the boys we were dancing with."
She laughs then, and looks at some of the racks. She holds up a long dark brown jacket. "What do you think of this?" She asks. I think for a second. "Is it appropriate? Your the expert." She puts it back on the rack. "Not if you want to match me." She replies, and keeps looking. "So...you had friends back then?" I ask playfully, elbowing her in the arm. She smiles again. "A lot of people who were more of the people I talked to occasionally then friends. I had a few key people I spoke to a lot, and a best friend. Her name was Victoria Nakumara."
Nakumara? I knew a guy named Ethan Nakumara when I was alive. I still know him now. He worked in Kronos's army, like me, but he rebelled against the rising of the titan lord very close to the final battle. Ended up getting injured, and dying, but I knew him, and he had made it into Elysium. He was one of my closer friends. I wonder if Abigail's best friend had been related to him.
"I know someone with that last name." I reply.
Her eyes brighten up. "Really? Are they coming to the party tonight?"
"I think so. He might be coming. He wasn't much of a party guy though, so I don't know."
Abigail holds up another jacket, this one shorter and red and more of a vest. "What about this?"
I laugh. "What did I say before? Your the expert, sweetheart."
"I think this could work. Do you have a white button down shirt?"
I nod. "What normal guy doesn't?"
She puts her hand on my shoulder, which is weird, because she's standing on tip toe to do it. "I was just making sure. And since when are you normal?"
I laugh and throw my arms around her. "Since when are you asking me a bunch of questions?"
She snorts. "You win this time, Luke. I surrender."
I let go of her and she walks off to pay for the jacket(which she insisted on, I might add. No, I am not that terrible of a person), and I look around to see if I can find a mask to wear. Shockingly, there are not that many, and the ones I see are all incredibly overpriced, or incredibly flashy, neither of which I think I can handle. And then, I see it- the only basic black mask in this entire store, and it's in my price range. I hold it up to my eyes, seeing if it will work. It flexes to fit around, and there's two elastic bands in the back to secure it on.
"What'cha doing?" I hear, and turn around to find Abby.
"Nice mask. Very suave." She replies.
"You like it?" I ask, and she nods her approval.
I take it off and pay for it quickly, and then we're walking back to my house. "You bought me that awesome jacket, and so you are coming back to my house for lunch. We're having an actual date, Ms. James, and you will not deprive me of that."
"I would be most honored." is her reply in that airy tone I know she only uses when I ask her to say something old fashioned. But it's cute, and I love it, and I scoop her up into my arms as we near my house.
She squeals like a little girl and kisses me on the cheek, which is the only encouragement I need not to put her down until we are inside the house, and in my kitchen, where I set her down on the counter. She crosses her legs under her, resting her arms on her knees. I catch her looking intently at me, and I look back at her.
"What are you looking at?" I ask her.
"Something wonderful." She answers, and I lean down to kiss her gently on the lips.
"So...what do you want for lunch?"
She raises an eyebrow. "Not really hungry..." her lips go to mine.
"But I know what I want for dessert." She answers, and then moves her lips to my neck after getting her legs out from under her and kneeling so she can reach me properly.
I moan a little, and then break away, causing my girlfriend to pout. "How about a grilled cheese sandwich?" I ask.
She nods. "Sounds yummy." She kisses me one more time before getting off the counter and letting me make lunch. She sits on the couch in the living room watching crappy reality TV on MTV. Teen Mom comes on, which sets us both into a rant mode.
"If girls ever were moms at that age back in my time, they'd practically be exiled! Or they'd have to give up the baby...or they would die. Probably the second or third thing."
I wrap an arm around her shoulders. "Did anyone get pregnant at 16 back in the 1800's?" I ask her.
She nods and gives me a no-duh kind of look. "Mmmhmm. Victoria's sister did. And she was an outcast for pretty much the rest of her life, but she got pregnant at 16 when Victoria and I were about...7, so it was a while ago. She had a baby boy, and shockingly, there were no issues or anything. Her boyfriend went on to fight in the Civil War...good dude." She replies.
I leap over the back of the couch and sit down next to her. "What was it like, fighting in the war?"
"Scary." She immediately replies.
We continue to watch MTV for another half hour, both of us screaming and shouting and laughing at each other for no real good reason.
I smell the sandwiches in the kitchen and run to get them off the stove before they burn. I hand Abby her sandwich, and wordlessly we eat our lunch, smiling between bites and laughing as we burn our tongues on the still hot, gooey cheese. I could stay like this forever. But unfortunately, my phone rings, ruining the entire moment.
I pick it up as it's shrill ringtone pierces my eardrum. "Luke Castellan." I state.
"Hey man, it's Charles Beckendorf. Just wanted to check and see if you wanted to hang out before the masquerade ball tonight. I know Silena is going with Abby, so maybe we could do something."
"Sure, Charles. I'd love to. You have your clothes for tonight already?"
He laughs. "Yeah. I went shopping with Silena. She's borrowing something from Abbie apparently."
"Yeah," I look at Abby. "That's what I heard too."
Charles laughs. "Alright, so see you later."
"The party starts at 7. Come here at 6:30?"
Charlies is probably smiling on the other end. "Sure thing, man."
"Great. See you then." I say, and snap my phone shut.
"Who was that?" Abby asks, scooting into my lap.
"Charlie."
Abbie nods. "Is he the son of Hephaestus?" she asks.
I nod. "Yes. And thank you for remembering."
She kisses my lips daintily. "I have to go soon." she says, frowning.
I return the frown. "Aww. Why?"
She smiles. "It takes me a while to get ready. And Silena will no doubt try and be all 21st century, and I refuse to let her."
I smile back. "Do you have to leave like...now?" I ask her.
She shrugs. "What time is it?"
I look at my watch. "6:05."
"Yes! Oh my goodness, I have to leave. Sorry!"
She pecks me on the lips and rushes out.
"See you later, Cinderella!" I call after her.
"Better be prince-like, charming!" She calls back as she leaves.
Even after she leaves, I'm smiling. Then I head upstairs to my room to shower again. Just because I have nothing else to do.
It seems like a minute after I get out the doorbell rings. I figure it's Charles and open the door. Thank the gods, it is, and he comes in, laughing. "Hey...am I interrupting something?" He asks.
I chuckle. "No, just got out of the shower. Felt like walking down like this."
He nods. "Fair enough." He lifts a bag up for me to see. "I hope I got appropriate clothing."
He smiles. "I want to look as good as the girls do."
I roll my eyes. "Not likely. They have authentic stuff."
Charles frowns. "That's good for them, but bad for us."
I nod. "Well, we should go get ready."
The two of us walk up to my room. "Ignore the mess. I haven't had much time to clean."
I dry myself off from my shower and start getting changed into my clothes. When I turn around, Charles and I are both dressed, and looking pretty good, you know, for other guys.
Charles waves it off. "It's fine. Now let me see what your wearing."
I laugh and pull out the jacket and my long sleeve white shirt and a pair of tan pants.
"Nice...nice..." Charles laughs.
He pulls out a similar pair of pants, in grey, a black jacket, and a white shirt.
"I see we had similar ideas. Your clothes work though, because Abby approved mine, and mine look like yours."
I look at my clock, seeing that it is 6:40. "Shall we head out?" I ask.
"Yeah...we probably should. By the time we get there, it'll be almost seven."
The two of us get dressed, head out, barely speaking on the way.
"I wonder what the girls are wearing." Charles finally says.
I shrug. "Not sure, but I'm almost sure Silena is getting the Victorian era treatment from Abby."
Charles snorts. "Ha. That'll be interesting. I bet Abby'll be happy to do that."
I smile, chuckling. "You have no idea, dude...she was so happy to be doing something she did when she was alive...it made me so happy to see her so happy."
By that time, we've reached Abby's house.
I knock on the door, figuring the girl's are upstairs and I won't get an answer.
A cough is heard at the top of the steps, and both Charles and I look up.
Silena looks like a completely different person.
The dress she's wearing is really pretty. It's a golden yellow color with little bows on the front bodice, with white fabric slightly from the half sleeves that stop right above her elbow, and floor length, and for her, really well covering. Nothing is showing that shouldn't be, and she looks very...thin. I bet she's wearing a corset...yeah, she's clutching around, and taking really deep breaths. The mask she's wearing is black with white ribbon, and her blonde hair is trailing, curly and pretty, down her shoulders.
"You ok?" I ask, as she descends down the steps.
She nods. "If I didn't love Abby so much, I'd kill her...you know, re-kill. Corsets are spawn of the mortal devil."
I hear a giggle and look up the steps again, seeing Abby.
She looks like the most beautiful thing I have ever seen
Her dress is a light green color, with a somewhat low neckline, and shorter sleeves that end on her upper arm. Like Silena's, the dress is floor length, and very pretty. As for the mask, it's white with silver glitter, and there's a white feather on one side, and a butterfly as well. Instead of being on her face, it's held up with a post covered in white and silver ribbons.
Her hair is pulled up into a bun, except for 2 strands that fall on her shoulders, curly.
She smiles at me as she walks down the steps, not staggering for breath or anything, looking super pleased. But then again, this is what she's used to...or was used to...
She smiles even more broadly as she reaches me.
"You look...divine." I say, trying out a term that seems more...timeless. My girlfriend seems to appreciate that.
"Thank you." she says softly, pink rushing to her blinks a few times, then looks at Silena.
"You alright?" she asks her.
Silena nods. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just...gods you look good. I mean...really, you look amazing."
Abby looks proud of herself. "You don't look bad yourself." she laughs.
"Thanks, but you look better. I mean..you look relaxed in this...that's why you look so amazing. I don't look as good because I don't look as relaxed."
Abby chuckles. "Yes, but you look better in a tube top and mini skirt."
Silena nods.
"Anything we need to know, Miss colonial expert?" Charles asks.
"Mmmhmm. If you want to dance, you ask the girl. No girls are allowed to ask the boys. If you are getting something to drink, you should offer to get something for whoever you are with, and ladies don't leave the room alone without a respectable man accompanying them."
Silena snorts. "Sounds strict."
Abby smiles. "Things have changed a lot since I was 16 and alive."
I take her hand. "Will you accompany me to the ballroom?" I ask.
She curtsies. "But of course I will."
The two of us walk into the ballroom, which, for the first time I've ever seen, the lights are on, and there is music streaming out the door. Abby smiles at me. "Pretty, right?"
I look at her, not quite sure what to say. She looks down, blinking. I think she's going to start crying.
I wrap my arms around her. "I know...there are memories coming back, aren't there?"
She nods, blinking some more. "I miss it...I love living here, now...but it's sad to have to admit that the time I came from is dead."
I frown, hugging her tighter. "Come on, Abby. This is not a fun death day."
She frowns in response. "I'm sorry, Luke. I promise, I'll get happier." she smiles, her cheeks turning pink.
"You really do look amazing. I can only see the way this would have gone 200 years ago."
She leans in, whispering in my ear. "I'm breaking the rules this once. Would you like to dance?"
I smile at her. "I would love to." I laugh, and escort her over to the dance floor.
She places one hand on my shoulder and offers me her other one. I take it and put my other hand on the small of her back.
We dance slowly, moving barely and coveting the silence between us as the music plays and swells and finally comes to a close.
I bow, and Abby smiles, curtsying. "That was fun." I say.
She laughs. "It was. Would you like to-"
I put my finger to her lips. "You are breaking all the news tonight, aren't you? Forgotten already are the guides of your era, m'lady."
Abby raises an eyebrow.
"Would you like to get something to drink?" I ask her.
She nods. "If you would like to, I suppose I will."
I take her hand and lead her over to the table, where I see a bowl with purple...something.
"Wine." she informs me. "Want some?"
I give her a shocked expression. "You? Drinking? Well, Ms. James, you are indeed breaking the rules."
"You forget it was perfectly legal for everyone to drink in the 1800's, dear."
She ladled some wine into a cup for me, handing it to me, then gets some for herself.
She sips it in a ladylike way, and I sip my wine as well. Shockingly, it tastes just sweet enough to not taste gross. And I have had liquors before.
I hook my arm through hers, walking to some chairs on the wall and sitting in one.
"I'll be right back." Abby says, smiling and walking toward where the band is.
She takes a single microphone, tapping it a few times. "Oh, that works." she laughs.
"Ladies and gentleman, thank you so much for coming tonight. This is a wondrous turnout."
I look around, seeing that there are many people here, all of them friends of mine, or people that I know. Why are there so many people here?
"I have something to say," Abby says. "Luke, darling, happy death day! Congratulations for being here 1 year. I am so proud to be your girlfriend, and I have enjoyed it so much being here to help you learn how to live here peacefully and happily, teaching you everything I can teach. And you have taught me so much in turn. You are the best boyfriend I could ever ask for."
Even from where I am, I can see that she is crying slightly.
This is my death day party.
I stand up, walking over to her as everyone applauds. I take the microphone and hand it to another person, and then take Abby's face in my hands, kissing her lips, rubbing the tears away from her cheeks gently.
Everyone starts cheering even louder, the applause thunderous.
I pull back. Abby is crying and blushing furiously, fanning her face to make it stop, and I take her hand, stepping back down toward the dance floor as another song starts playing.
This time, we really are dancing, as it is upbeat. I don't know what to do, but Abby leads me through the first few steps, and suddenly we're dancing full out and having tons of fun. I'm laughing so much, and then it comes time to switch partners. Silena comes to dance with me, and Abby goes to Charles, and the four of us continue our dance, having too much fun to know what to say.
Then comes the next partner switch. I don't catch who Abby is with, but I'm with a girl who I don't know. She's wearing a red and black dress that only comes to about her knees, and has thin shoulder straps, unlike Abby's floor length, short sleeved gown.
She gives me a knowing smile and continues dancing with grace unmatched. Well, maybe Abby has that grace, but nobody else that I have seen. We continue our dance, then switch partners, Abby in front of me again, and the dance ends. I bow, as I did before, and Abby curtsies.
I take her hand and take her over to a table, deciding that I'm tired and want to stop and take a break for a little while.
"Can't keep up?" Abby asks.
"No!" I exclaim. "Of course not. I just wanted to give you a break."
She rolls her eyes. "Yeah right! You couldn't keep up with dancing almost constantly." she starts laughing, her eyes sparkling.
"No, I totally...totally could, but-"
"Why, Ms. James...you look divinial." The voice comes from behind Abby, and when I look up, I see it's the girl I was dancing with. The one in the black and red dress.
Abby's eyes go wide.
"Vic?" she asks, a smile creeping to her lips.
The girl smiles. "I go by Victoria right now, Abigail." she laughs.
"Well what a coincidence! I go by Abby now."
She gets up, wrapping her arms around the girl's neck, and vicebeen down here?"
Victoria smiles. "Just got back today."
Abby gives her a look, obviously confused.
"I tried for rebirth, and it got granted. I just completed my second life, and got here again. But I told them I wanted to look like I had in my first life at the age of 16...God I missed you, Abby. You haven't changed a bit..."
Abby blushes. "Well, I'm looking like I'm 16...before the war and all that."
Victoria sets a hand on her shoulder. "I like your dress...is this the one?" she asks.
Abby nods.
I don't ask what they mean, figuring I know what it means.
"I was wearing this the night before I left." Abby says, and Victoria nods.
I wasn't right...but then again, I have no idea what I was thinking they meant. Abby was on a battlefield when she died, so I really am not sure if I was thinking of something that didn't happen or not. I guess it doesn't matter.
"I remember that night. You got your first kiss that night as well."
Abby blushes. "Mmmhmm." she turns to me. "Victoria, this is my boyfriend, Luke. Luke, my best friend from my time, Victoria."
Victoria curtsises, and Luke bows to her. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." she says.
Wow! Abby and Victoria do talk similarly! That doensn't come as a shock really, but it's just...I should have seen that coming! This is so cool.
"Nice to meet you." I say, kissing her hand.
Victoria eyes me, then looks over somewhere. I follow her gaze, seeing her looking at Ethan.
"My great great great nephew." she says, smiling. "A descendant of my sister's."
Abby hugs her. "I'm so happy your family flourished."
"Yours did too..." Victoria says. "Your mother had another daughter...after you passed."
Abby gasps. "Oh my! And she-"
"Had a healthy little baby boy." Victoria finishes.
Victoria hugs her one more time as Ethan comes over, taking Victoria by the hand and pulling her toward the dance floor.
"Gotta go!" Victoria calls.
Abby waves, and turns to me, smiling broadly.
"So...your first kiss, huh?" I ask.
Abby flushes. "Indeed...I told one boy that I had a liking for what I was planning to do, and he kissed me. Told me to be careful."
The explanation comes so easily from her. And I can't even be jealous. I mean, it did happen over 200 years ago.
"But I love you." she says, giving me one more perfect kiss.
"More than anything in the entire world."
Her fingers tangle in my hair as I kiss her and lift her by the waist, showing my affection as best I can.
Best. Death day. Ever.
So there is my grand one-shot. I think it's good for not having any guide lines, but you should review and let me know what you think! I really want to know. And if your curious as to what any of the outfits look like, there are links on my profile, scrolled all the way to the bottom. Thanks again for reading!