"I don't get it." Paine randomly declared, as she helped Baralai with the endless paper work he had to fill out. (She never did figure out why he had so much of it...but she'd learned not to question such things, for the answers were always quite lengthy and ultimately boring.)

Baralai looked up from his work to give her a puzzled look. "Get what?"

"The point of Halloween."

Baralai thought for a moment and then returned to his work. "Okay."

Paine frowned, and continued talking. "I mean...why do people dress up anyway?"

"I think it's to give kids a sense of freedom...after all, it's the one time of year someone can be whoever and whatever they want without judgement from others."

Paine pondered this for a moment. "But why should we teach children to want to be someone else when they could be happy with themselves?" Paine asked curiously.

Baralai's frown slowly transformed into one of the smiles that Paine so loved to see. "I don't know." He said. "Though I think some people like to emulate others because it helps them grow."

Paine grinned. "So you mean to say, that putting on fake Vampire teeth and harassing people for candy is a trait we should all develop?"

Baralai chuckled as he returned to his paperwork. "Yup." He said in all seriousness. "teaches people to be bold."

"And what about the ridiculous scary stories?" Paine questioned, challenging his wisdom.

"Teaches kids to be brave."

Paine grinned. "And pumpkin carving?"

Baralai frowned, trying to think of a response. "Appreciation for art..." He muttered. "Creativity..."

Paine's smile grew wider. "And I suppose you'd say the pranks and tricks teach craftiness?"

"Oh you're crafty alright."

"Oh really?" Said Paine, leaning over the desk to come closer to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his.

He returned the kiss, and as they intensified it the whole world fell away from their thoughts, their surroundings nothing more than a blur.

They were interrupted by Baralai's secretary, Amy, opening the office door. "Sorry to interrupt—" she stopped when she saw them. She grinned sheepishly and slid the manila folder she held onto the desk. "I'll just leave this here." She whispered and with a thumbs up to the two, she scurried from the room.

Paine laughed, "Well. This escalated pretty quickly."

Baralai pouted, having wished the kiss had lasted longer. "Not quickly enough." After a moment he said, "Y'know, I think Halloween was invented to distract people from the sorrows brought by Yevon and Sin."

Paine smirked. "Ah. You finally figured it out. So are you distracted yet?"

Baralai grinned, and then slowly started to clap. "Well played." He said. "Well played. I believe you win this round." He kissed her again, and then she sat back down. One thing was for sure, this would be a Halloween they wouldn't forget.

A/N Halloween and Paralai...two of my favorite things! Yay! Lol. Anyway, this was originally going to be something else, but it turned into this beautiful (*sniff sniff* Lik dis of you cry every tim) amazing masterpiece of a one-shot. XD Seriously though, I did enjoy writing this, and there will probably be a few more sequel one-shots to this. Anyway, I hope you liked this, leave a review for some respect points. XD love y'all -Reibun