Halloween in Junon

By meteor9/Reiyu Onin

Disclaimer: I in no way own any rights to FF7 or it's characters. All rights are belong to Square Enix

Author's Note: Of course, there is no Christianity on the Planet, so this is already absurd in execution. Also, I wrote this a year ago for a contest. I suppose that by posting it now, I'm just a review whore.

Wait, I am…

"…and up until a few decades ago, they called it All Hollow's Eve." Thus the excited young woman finished her story. She glanced around at her friends for a bit as she anticipated her response.

A gruff voice answered first. "I've never even heard of this religion before. How the hell could you know so much about it?" Having said this, the blond man flicked his spent cigarette out a nearby window.

"Oh come on," she replied, "what does that matter, Cid?" She crossed her arms as she waited for the older man to speak.

He didn't.

"As I thought," she gloated.

He chuckled at that. "Whatever, kid, we still ain't gonna do it."

Pouting, she shot back "Aw, come on! It'll be fun!"

"I don't think you're going to convince them, Yuffie," stated the brunette who stood up from the couch.

"Hey, don't give up yet, Tifa"

Cid added, "Hell, I know you're not gonna convince us!"

Looking dejected, she stood in silence as she thought of something to say. The girl paced around for a bit, apparently deep in thought. After a few moments, she turned back to her comrades. "Look guys, we've gotta do something fun together at least once in our lives! We don't need to have a solemn mission every time we meet!"

Cid scratched his head and sighed. "Alright, alright, we'll do it. But that doesn't mean you've convinced me; I just want you to shut the hell up."

Barret decided to join in the conversation. "Well, if he's in, then I'm in. You jus' better not say a damn thing about a sailor outfit. I know you were thinkin' about bringin' that up."

"God, you make it sound like it's stereotypical to associate you with that suit," answered the ninja.

A vein popped in the big man's neck as he shouted, "That's 'cause I haven't heard the end of it for months!"

With Reeve's help, the team rented out the largest hall in Junon to hold their big Halloween bash. Yuffie had spent the last three days putting up streamers and carving out Jack-o-lanterns, searching for a decent caterer, and hiring a local band or two. It cost quite a bit of gil, but with the funding of Shin-Ra behind her, the ninja had no trouble in acquiring the best.

Wandering around the hall, Tifa glanced at everybody she passed, wondering where a particular member of the team was. Spotting Barret out of costume, she made her way over to him through the crowd. "Hey, where's Cloud?"

"I dunno. I told his spiky ass about this gig, but I never got a straight reply outta him."

She sighed. "He probably won't come...this isn't his kind of 'thing', ya know?"

Another voice suddenly entered the conversation. "He spent years in costume as that man Zack. I'm willing to guess that he's had enough of pretending."

Tifa jumped a bit when the new person came up behind here. Barret then said in disbelief, "Vincent? Man, you're the last person I ever expected to see here. You jes-"

"-full of surprises, yes." His face remained emotionless as he cut the larger man off. He then turned and disappeared into the crowd. Tifa also set out once again to look for Cloud.

Left by himself, Barret mused over Vincent's presence. "Heh, why wouldn't he come? He's practically a goddamn Halloween costume as it is."

"You know, I didn't expect so many people to show up tonight... I thought it was gonna be just the group of us." Reeve took a sip of punch as he scanned the crowd again.

Tifa shrugged her shoulders at this. "Well, that was the original plan, but Yuffie got carried away and turned it into a huge bash."

Nodding, Reeve answered, "Ah, I should've guessed." Taking another sip, he glanced to the left and to the right once more. "It does make me wonder who some of these people might be, though..."

"You think we might me in danger?"

"I'm not too certain. But it is a possibility. And..."

His silence was rather disconcerting. She probed, "And what?"

"...I'm getting a weird feeling from that man over there." Pointing off to the back corner of the hall, Reeve finished off his glass.

"The one dressed up like a specter?"

"Yeah... Something about him just seems...out of place, you know?"

He was rather far off, so it was hard to see anything really noticeable on him, though even if she was close, his face was still concealed. Only his lips were visible, and they seemed stern, almost in a frown. "I think I know what you mean." Suddenly, she realized something. "It's funny..."

Looking up from the bowl of chips, he asked, "What is?"

"I never pictured you as the type to have 'funny feelings' like that."

He just smiled and shook his head before stating, "I suppose I'm just being paranoid. Being a top-level executive in a company like Shin-Ra will do that to a person..." With that, he resumed gathering finger foods onto his plate.

"Well, just to be safe, I think I'll keep an eye on that guy."

Back in the fray, Barret was staring at someone, somewhat confused. "So what the hell you 'sposed to be, anyway?"

Yuffie looked shocked for a second, as if there was never any doubt of what she was dressed as. "A cactuar! What'dyou think I was?"

He glanced at her. Green pants, green shirt, green body paint, and hell, green hair dye. And she was covered in black pipe-cleaners. "Looked like a green monkey. What, is all them hair lookin' things supposed to be thorns?"

Snorting, she shot back, "Oh, like your costume is any better."

"The hell's wrong with mine?"

"All you did was throw a sheet over your head!" She tugged at his costume for emphasis, moving the roughly cut eyeholes out of place.

As he set about fixing his vision, he decided to set the girl straight. "Hey, if I'm the only one who can create a decent ghost costume without spending a damn gil, then I'm on top of things. I mean, look at that guy's ghost get-up. All them black robes and tatters, lookin' all silk and shiny and stuff, must've cost him a few grand. Or at least have taken a week to make."

She took a gander at the man in the corner that Barret had implied. After a second, she nodded, then turned back and quipped, "There's another difference; that costume's cool lookin', yours looks like crap!"

He muttered under his breath, "Hairy green monkey."

That guy...I think he's following me...

For the past five minutes, the brunette had wandered around the crowd, trying to keep an eye on the specter. Only, it seemed that no matter where she went, he seemed to have a better view of her than she did of him. This did not sit well with her, not at all. She picked up her pace and veered onto the dance floor, hoping that he would lose her in the crowd. Unfortunately, she wasn't watching where she was going, and she promptly found herself covered in the punch she was carrying. She had run right into somebody! She was about to curse, but someone interrupted her.

"Hey! Watch where you're goin', damn it!"

Brushing droplets of fruit punch off of her costume, she started to apologize. "Ah, sorry about that-" Getting a good look at her victim, she stopped herself. "Cid?"

Of course, he was just as surprised. "Tifa? Shit, I didn't mean to go off on ya like that."

Just then, she noticed what he was wearing. "That's an interesting costume you've got on. What is it, exactly?"

He lifted an arm and glanced at it, as if to remind himself of his appearance. "I dunno, some sort of knight outfit. The guy I got it from said it's a replica of the stuff the old Dragoons used to wear way back in the day." He stomped his foot to show off the metal work. "Heh, solid. So, what're you dressed as?"

She poked the yellow one-piece swimsuit she had on. "Ah, well, this? I suppose I just got lazy, and put together a Pollensalta costume." As if 'put together' could be used to describe putting a single piece of clothing on.

He chuckled. "Well, you sure as hell look better in that than one of those things ever did. Plus, you're not trying to kill us. Always a good thing."

"I suppose so."

Reaching into the pouch tied to his armor's waist, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes. "Well, I'm going out for a smoke. See ya." And with that, he left the hall.

Once again, Tifa found herself trying to avoid the gaze of the black-clad specter. There were really only so many places that she could dart around to in this one room, and staying in the crowd was not an option. Right after Cid had left, the specter was only three feet away from her, watching from behind a large man under a sheet. That reminds me, I forget to help Barret pick out a costume. I wonder what he came as?

Almost immediately as she stopped to ponder this, she felt a hand grasp her shoulder. "Hey!"

Turning around, she saw that it was the specter, and he had the same expression on his mouth as he had before. "Get away from me!" she yelled, and then pushed him away from her. Bolting from him, she found herself nose-to-brick against the back of the hall. Damnit, she thought, rubbing her sore nose. Before she could get away, however, the specter turned her around to face him, and then grabbed her by the shoulders. She could've sworn the temperature had dropped a few degrees, as well.

"Boo."

Her eyes went wide in shock. She knew the voice! "…Cloud! Damn it, you scared the hell out of me!"

He chuckled, and threw back his hood. His usually wild hair was matted down against his head, due to the costume. "Well, that is the whole point, isn't it?"

She heaved a sigh of relief. "But still…you're really creepy like that." Something still seemed odd, though. "Is there a draft in here or something?"

Cloud pulled back his sleeve, revealing a single-slotted bangle. "It's amazing what kind of atmosphere one can create with an Ice materia."

A/N the second: Well, I tried to keep Barret non-stereotypical, and yet in the same vein as how he spoke in the game. I still feel I may have failed, so apologies are in effect for anyone I may have offended.