A/N: This one-shot was written last year for a challenge at the Aurikku comm on LJ. I waited around too long and Halloween had come and gone by the time I remembered that I never posted it here. D: I phail at life. lol So here we are, a year later, and I actually remembered I really needed to put it here. lol! Yay me! I really hope you enjoy my little story, I certainly had a great time writing it.
-Lilah Kelly
Where the Hell is my Coat?
: A Halloween Story :
Rikku checked her reflection in the mirror one last time, wiping off a trace of face paint that had smudged in her attempt to get ready. The large clock in the adjoining room rang the time, and Rikku groaned, looking for her coat as she gathered her keys and purse together.
"Where the hell is my coat..." she mumbled, searching frantically for the large piece of black material. She located it on the floor next to her bed, where it had fallen in a heap. Throwing it on, she ran for the door, remembering to lock it behind her.
Once in her car, she buckled up and started the ignition, throwing the gear into drive and tearing out of the parking lot of her apartment complex. If she didn't hurry, she'd probably be the last to arrive at the party, and she hated for everyone to look at her, especially in the get-up she was wearing. She felt very uncomfortable. Rikku wasn't even sure how Paine had convinced her to buy the damn thing, but she was a persuasive one, that warrior.
The drive from Djose to Luca was a boring one, so Rikku popped in her favorite CD, singing and bouncing along to all of the fast songs as she drove. Half an hour later, she parked the car at the hotel whose address was printed on the invitation, now in a chipper mood.
She got out, quickly locking the car doors, and made a mad dash for the front entrance. It was cold, considering the time of year and Rikku's outfit...if the small amount of material she was wearing could be termed an outfit. As she entered, a man at the front desk greeted her and, noticing her face paint, nodded in the direction of the ballroom, where the costume party was in full swing. The name "ballroom" was misleading, though. It was nothing more than an over-sized conference room, but these hotels used cheesy names like that to make it sound more appealing, Rikku guessed.
In any case, she was greeted by very loud music and a massive coffin at the door, complete with a cackling skeleton inside. Rikku almost jumped when she saw it, but it was only a prop. The rest of the room was littered with an obscene amount of streamers - in the traditional black and orange colors, of course - and "ghosts" hanging from the ceiling on almost-invisible wire. It looked corny, Rikku thought with a snicker, but there were already tons of people there and they looked like they were having fun dancing and chatting with each other.
While Rikku was taking this all in, someone called out her name and "yoo HOOO'ed" at her. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw Yuna running towards her. Rikku's eyes widened when she saw her costume.
Yuna was dressed as an Al Bhed, in an outfit that Rikku herself might have worn. As she approached, her smile widened as she noticed Rikku giving her the once over.
"I decided to pay tribute to the other part of my heritage. What do you think?" She gave a twirl, giving her the full effect. The top itself was green, decorated with buckles along the front. The skirt was brown leather, and barely fell mid-thigh. Completing the outfit were a pair of brown and green boots, some brown elbow-length gloves, and pouches fastened around her waste. She'd also found a pair of goggles and was using them as a sort of headband. If not for her hair and eyes, she could have passed for a true Al Bhed.
"You look great, Yunie! Pops would be proud. Where'd you find the outfit?"
Yuna giggled. "Buddy and Shinra helped me put it together."
She looked Rikku over, noticing that she was still wearing her coat. "And what about you? Is the coat part of your outfit, or are you just covering up?"
Rikku blushed, pulling it tighter around her. "Nope, just cold."
Yuna's eyes twinkled. "I don't think so, dear cousin. It may be cold outside, but in case you haven't noticed, it's sweltering in here. What with all the people and lights making it hot. Come on, take the coat off and let's get a look at you!"
Rikku sighed, knowing she was right. Besides, her face paint might come off if she got any hotter and started sweating. Reluctantly, she peeled the coat off, dumping it into Yuna's arms. Yuna didn't notice though, as she was too busy squealing over Rikku's costume.
Rikku had come as a cat, not being able to think of anything else on such short notice. Paine's insistence on helping her find the right costume had worried her, but she had appreciated the help at the time. Now, though, she was regretting it. She felt almost naked. The costume itself consisted of a strapless black body suit, very high heels, some fishnet stockings and a long tail. That was it. Rikku had finished off the costume with a headband, adorned with cat ears.
"Oh my gosh Rikku, it's so adorable! And you look fantastic in it!" She squealed again, and made Rikku turn around so she could see the entire outfit. She had a conniption over the life-like cat tail that was sewn right into the back of the costume. "Oh, it's so lovely. I wish I had the body to pull something like that off. Or the confidence. I don't think I'd be able to stand here in that outfit, everybody staring at me. But you wear it soooo well!"
Rikku sighed. She seriously hoped that Yuna knew she wasn't making this any easier on her. She already felt self-conscious about wearing the costume. And now, thanks to her cousin, she was fully aware of the looks she was getting. Albeit, they were seductive looks, coming from most of the men in the room -and even a few women- but still, it made her uncomfortable.
"I need a drink," she muttered, leaving Yuna at the door with her coat still in her arms. Rikku made her way to the refreshments table, and stared at the sight that met her there. It was a large bowl, full of something red, and had floaty bits of fruit in it. Gagging, she decided to forgo the drink for now. Instead she turned and watched the other party goers dance and have a generally good time, while she stood nearby, trying to hide her nakedness by crossing her arms.
'Maybe I should just go home and put some clothes on...' she thought, as she leaned against the table and sighed.
An hour later, Rikku was still bored. No one had talked to her for more than five minutes before rushing off to dance or talk to someone else that they knew. She didn't care though. She'd rather stand in a dark corner of the room all alone. She'd moved from her place at the table, after a couple dressed as hobbits had rudely asked her to get out of their way. She obliged (but not before muttering a few curse words in Al Bhed) and went to hold up the wall.
She was standing there, sulking, when a well built man came over and leaned against her wall. She subconsciously scooted away, not wanting any company. But the man didn't seem to take notice of her. He stood there withdrawn, like herself, and silent. She tried to study his face, but it was covered with a black mask, the only openings being around his eyes and mouth. His hair was dark, but it was almost impossible to tell its color. It was so wet with gel or some other hair product that had been used to slick it back. His outfit - a well tailored suit - was the same shade of dull black as his mask. He seemed so familiar to her.
She was trying to figure out just who he reminded her of, when his head turned and he caught her staring. She turned her head quickly, mumbling an apology for openly staring at this stranger. He didn't say anything, but continued to look at her, which made her fidget. She looked down, embarrassed, and noticed just how much cleavage was showing in her outfit. She suddenly became mad as she realized what he must be looking at.
"Like what you see?" she asked, in a biting, sarcastic tone. The man only shrugged, and continued to stare, no word ever leaving his mouth. Rikku fumed even more, wondering who this masked person was.
"Well, I'll give you something to look at..." and she pushed away from the wall, swinging her hips as she walked away, only glancing over her shoulder to give him one of the most vicious 'go to hell' looks she could muster. She stomped off towards the entrance, looking for Yuna and her damned coat, when someone grabbed her arm and swung her around.
"Nice costume Rikku."
"Baralai. Nice to see you." she said, sarcasm dripping from her voice. She nodded to the woman standing behind him. "Paine..." was all the greeting she gave her. Paine, looking paler than usual, gave her a small wave.
"I must say, my lovely girlfriend here did a fine job of helping you pick out your costume. She bragged for days about how she'd found the perfect thing just for you."
Rikku only rolled her eyes. "I feel like a sleazy call girl from the slums of Luca! Now, if you guys don't mind, I need to find Yuna so I can get my coat and go."
"No need to yell..." Paine said, rubbing her temples. "Ooh Baralai, I've just had the sharpest pain run through my head. I feel a migraine coming on. Somebody musta spiked the punch..." Baralai, looking concerned, said a quick goodbye to Rikku and led Paine towards the lobby of the hotel, where it was much quieter. Rikku sighed and went back to searching for Yuna.
After half an hour, though, she gave up and decided to brave the floaty fruit in the punch bowl for the sake of getting drunk.
Midnight found Rikku sitting in the lap of some random guy, telling him her whole life story. Only problem was, she was speaking in Al Bhed and the man obviously didn't understand her. He just liked the way her chest jiggled when she came to an exciting part. The man, who had been drinking the punch as well, was getting a little too friendly with his hands. Only when he started getting very persistent, did she start yelling. The man in the black mask, who had been hiding in the shadows in the far corner, walked up behind Rikku and gently lifted her out of the man's lap, setting her down beside him. He gave the drunk man a menacing glare before grabbing him by the collar. The man, who was obviously scared in his drunken state, started to stutter an apology. The masked man let go of him and he fell back onto his seat with a 'thunk'.
Rikku retreated to the opposite side of the room and huffed. She had sobered up somewhat after that little display, so she was feeling a bit embarrassed, as well as scared. The masked man, following her to make sure she was alright, placed a hand on her shoulder. With a growl, she rounded on him.
"Look mister, I don't know who you are, but I don't need you to fight my battles for me. That guy just had a little to much to drink and I could have handled it," she yelled, almost tipping over. The masked man reached out again and steadied her. Dizzy, she let him keep her in his grasp for a moment, while she regained her balance. Maybe she hadn't sobered up as much as she'd thought. She looked up at the man, annoyance still in her eyes. He was just standing there, watching her to make sure she didn't almost fall over again. She hated to admit it, but he was showing concern for her, even though he had been practically eye-molesting her earlier. But she supposed that wasn't his fault. I mean, her boobs were practically coming out of her top. She had enough of a conscience to feel guilty.
"I-I'm sorry for yelling at you." she said, looking away. "I'm just...sooo annoyed right now. And not having a very good time. This party has turned out to be one of the worst nights ever."
The man nodded. Rikku became annoyed again. "Don't you talk?" He shrugged, turning away as if he meant to leave. "Wait! Don't go yet." He stopped mid-turn and looked at her. "I just don't want to be abandoned again at this awful party. No one's hardly talked to me, but I guess I can't blame them. I've been dead set on having a bad time since I got here. Other people can probably sense that." He nodded, as if in understanding, and stood closer to her while the party ambled on.
They stood there for awhile, silent, as the dancers floated by them. Rikku was itching to dance, but she was pretty sure that if this guy didn't talk, he sure as hell didn't dance. She almost asked anyways, but stopped herself in time. Besides, the song was coming to an end, so it didn't matter.
Over the past few hours the party had been winding down a bit. There were still lots of people there, but only half than what had originally been there to begin with. With fewer people around, the mood was much more intimate. Even the DJ could sense it. The lights dimmed slightly and a slow song came on. Rikku was so uncomfortable standing around with nothing to do. The masked man sensed she was bored again, and held out his hand in an offer to dance. She hesitated, then grinned, taking his hand.
Rikku practically dragged the poor man onto the dance floor. Once out there, though, she became uncomfortable again. Slow songs meant you had to dance close to someone, and she didn't know this man anymore than she did a few hours ago. He stood facing her a moment before putting a hand on her waist and pulling her against him. She tensed at the contact, but relaxed instantly. She still had the strange feeling that she knew this person, but she didn't care at the moment. The masked man was a rather accomplished dancer, something she would have never thought. Men that were built like he was usually spent their time lifting weights, not taking dance lessons. Rikku giggled at the mental image of him in a ball gown.
She stifled her giggles and instead tried to focus on the dance. She looked up into the man's face then and everything seemed to get blurry. The music, which was loud, seemed to fade away slightly. Rikku couldn't seem to take her eyes off of her dance partner. His face - what she could see of it - seemed to soften as he stared back at her. As the music and people around them faded into nothing, the masked man leaned closer and closer to her, quickly closing the gap between them. Rikku barely registered that she had closed her eyes until she felt his lips on hers. Her eyes flew open in shock, but she closed them again and relaxed, kissing him back. She came up for air a few moments later and put her arms lightly around his neck, her face buried in his chest. They gently swayed through the room, oblivious to the stares there were getting. When the song ended, Rikku and the masked man didn't stop dancing. It took her a moment to realize the song was over. She blushed and thanked him for the dance, before running off towards the ladies room.
Yuna, who had been dancing with Tidus only a moment earlier, followed her there. "Well! What a sight!" she said, as soon as she had pushed through the door. "Who was that mysterious man you were...ahem...dancing with?," Yuna teased her cousin, giving her a wink.
Rikku splashed her face with the cold tap water from the sink, washing away any remnants of her face paint, before staring at Yuna's reflection in the mirror. "I don't know. He's doesn't talk. And I've yet to see his face..."
"He seems familiar. I was hoping you might know who he was, because he reminds of someone. But I can't seem to put my finger on it..."
"Yeah, I felt the same way too..." Rikku looked dreamily at the wall.
Yuna cleared her throat, bringing Rikku back down to Spira. "Oh, well. No matter. You should just go have as much fun with him as possible. Make it a night to remember! I, on the other hand, must go and find Tidus. He said something about "more vodka" and the punch bowl, so I better go get him out of whatever trouble he's gotten himself into. See ya!"
She bounded out of the restroom before Rikku could think of a reply - or think to ask her where her coat was. She sighed, looking at herself in the mirror briefly before exiting out the swinging door.
Once back in the ballroom, she looked around for her masked friend, but didn't see him. Panicking slightly, she scanned the room again, this time more thoroughly, but still didn't see his tall figure. She was upset at his disappearance and continued to look for him for another half hour, before giving up.
Rikku was tired, but completely sober, and ready to go home more than anything. She accepted the fact that she'd never know who the masked man was that had given her such a passionate kiss. It would remain in her mind forever, though, she was sure. The perfect ending to a Halloween night, if a little depressing.
Sighing, Rikku glanced at the clock on the wall and her eyes bugged out. It was almost 2 a.m.! No wonder she was so tired. With Yuna having disappeared yet again (probably with Tidus in tow), Rikku decided to just forget her stupid coat and make a mad dash out to her car to avoid freezing her cute little butt off.
On the way out of the ballroom door, though, she noticed an opening to the right with the sign "Coat Check" above it. "All riiiight! Bingo!" Yuna must have stashed her coat in there. And if not, she'd just 'borrow' someone elses. Not that she felt good about it, but she was desperate (and cold) enough to do it if she had to.
She entered the room, perusing the hangers. Her eyes wandered to the opposite end of the coat room, which was no bigger than a small sized bedroom, before her breath caught in her throat.
There, standing across the room from her, was her masked friend...donning a red coat she had stared at for more than she cared to admit during Yuna's pilgrimage. Confusion and a flood of emotions washed completely over her as she stared at him. Her heart began to race, much the same as it had done 5 years earlier. He had stopped and turned and was now looking at her, the mask gone and those deep brown eyes staring back at her.
She took a tentative step towards him and said the name of the one person she thought she'd never see again...
"Auron..?"
...o...o...o...o...o...o...xXx...o...o...o...o...o...o...
"What tha...??"
She was really confused. No one had seen him since the pilgrimage nearly 5 years ago. He had always been a bit of a loner then, but he had all but disappeared after Sin, and now here he was again, making Rikku feel things she thought she'd forgotten -or pushed out of her mind- years ago. She'd had nothing more than a school girl's crush on him then, being only 15 at the time. But now, seeing him again...looking much the same as he used to, was starting to bring back those feelings. She didn't understand herself at all.
He continued to stare, as if waiting for her to get over the shock of seeing him again. She was flustered that he was still looking at her. She thought about the kiss they had shared not that long ago, and how close they had been to each other, and she blushed even redder. Auron showed the tiniest hint of a smile at her embarrassment.
"Stop laughing at me..." she said, looking down. He stepped closer to her and she tensed for a moment, unsure of what he was going to do next.
His smile continued to get bigger as he looked at this once hyper teenager, now grown into a beautiful young lady. Standing before her, he tipped her chin up with his finger and met her gaze. She smiled softly, and, without warning, threw her arms around him in a hug. Auron put his arms around her as well, and they stood there, holding each other. Rikku looked up at him again, her eyes flickering back and forth between his eyes and mouth. Understanding her need, he crushed his lips against hers, kissing her more passionately than before.
Rikku seemed to melt in his arms, under the heat of his kiss. She broke away from him briefly, whispering "I missed you" against his ear, before he claimed her mouth once again.
...o...o...o...o...o...o...xXx...o...o...o...o...o...o...
"..but why are we leaving now?" Tidus whined as a disgruntled Yuna dragged him through the ballroom.
"Because it's late and you're just trying to find trouble. Really, what were you thinking spiking the punch like that? Poor Paine will have a headache for days."
Tidus snickered into his hand, winning a sharp glance from his girlfriend. He shrugged and pulled Yuna into his side, giving her a wink for good measure.
"Don't think you can just smile and simper and make me get over it. You're in big trouble, mister."
"Oh am I, now?" he said, wiggling his eyebrows.
Yuna turned a slight shade of crimson, "Hush...I mean it."
As they made their way to the front of the room, Yuna paused at the door of the ballroom.
"What now?" Tidus asked, now in a hurry to leave and get home to find out what his "punishment" was.
"I've got to grab Rikku's coat. I'll only be a second. Wait here."
She pushed her way through the door, while Tidus stood tapping his foot against the polished floor. Ten seconds later, a shocked and wide-eyed Yuna flew out of the coat room and grabbed his hand, hauling him towards the lobby.
"Hey wha...Wait a minute." he exclaimed, having been caught off guard.
"No time. Must leave." she said quickly, fishing for her keys in one of the pouches on her costume.
Once at her car, she slowed down, taking a deep breath. Tidus looked at her questioningly. "Why the rush? And where's Rikku's coat?"
"Uh...," Yuna said, blushing furiously. "She doesn't need it."
Tidus gave her a look."But it's freezing, Yuna...and she wasn't wearing much of anything when I saw her."
Yuna unlocked the car doors, trying to look anywhere but at Tidus's face. "Oh, believe me...she's plenty warm."
-fin-
:Just a small note - I decided to have Auron retain use of both of his eyes due to the fact that Rikku would have realized it was him in the mask if one eye had been scarred. I apologize for the innacuracy, but, truth be told, how much of this little one-shot is canon anyways? lol: