A/N: Had this written and completed days ago for Halloween. Not as slashy as I'd like it to be, but hopefully it's enjoyable enough. Also, I miss writing about these two.
This contains SLASH. You have been warned.
It was bad enough Mitchell had a hard time sleeping, but add the event of the power suddenly cutting off, well, he knew it was going to be a very long night.
The only thing providing light in his room was his battery-powered table clock, flashing bright red digits of just a little after midnight, whereas all the streetlamps stretching down the road outside his window were shut down and the buildings nearby were dark as well. He blindly found his way to the door and flicked the switches to no avail.
"Uh… guys? Hello?" Mitchell called out to nobody in particular as he poked his head out, listening as his voice echoed throughout the obviously empty corridor. Frowning, he hesitated between retreating back into the safety of his room and going out to find Ilona's or Gideon's quarters to fix the power problem.
Fumbling through the dark was no ideal way to spend the night, not when his tired mind shaped figures and shadows when none were there. Then again, it seemed preferable to find somebody than being cooped up in his quarters where the cold was chilling and the silence was deafening.
A layout of the barracks laid out before him and soon he reached (what he thought was) the rec-room. He paused by the entrance, listening for anything. He could always count on a blackout to cut off one of his senses, rendering vision completely useless.
Before long, he heard soft mutterings and padded footsteps from across the room, coming in from the opposite entrance. "Who's there?" he asked, the sounds stopping abruptly. For a moment he felt an eerie tingle creeping up on his shoulders.
"Mitchell?" came the reply that slightly put him at ease. It was Gideon—and not even the blinding dark could prevent him from recognizing his captain. "Where are you?"
"Across the room, I think," was the private's best guess as he moved away from the entrance to approach the other's voice. From the shuffling of feet, he guessed Gideon was doing the same. "What happened?"
"Damned if I knew that, but it looks like the entire base is out."
"Is there anything we can do here?"
"No, not without a source of light. I misplaced my tab and I'd rather sit this one out then get electrocuted."
Mitchell hummed in reply. They had stopped walking after their voices were close enough and a quietness settled between them. At least it saved the awkwardness of having to look at each other in the silence.
"You're up pretty late," the captain remarked suddenly.
"Couldn't sleep and then the lights went out," Mitchell replied, his clothes making rustling noises as he sat on the floor.
"Why, couldn't handle the feeling of defeat?" the teasing lilt was unmistakable and the sound of fabric that followed indicated Gideon sat, too.
"That was a one-time slip-up," he muttered, recalling the day's hand-to-hand combat training with Gideon.
"I admit you seemed distracted."
He remembered the feel of Gideon's skin against his own as they wrestled, the smirk he threw every time the private caught a punch, the appeasing look of pronounced muscles as they stretched and tensed. "A rare and lucky chance that gave you the window to win," he said, face heating up at the memory and relieved the dark concealed him.
"Get your head out of your arse," Gideon chuckled, pushing the other lightly. The shove didn't startle Mitchell but rather the warm hand against his shoulder did; a rough palm radiating heat to contrast the cold air. Not to mention his voice, especially when it was that of delight (however small), it hit his ears in such a pleasant way. Or was it the dark, cutting off his vision, in return making other senses stronger and more sensitive than they need be?
"I guess it was because of the movie Joker showed me before training," Mitchell said in an effort to continue the talk.
"What movie?" Gideon inquired, and he could imagine the raised eyebrow.
"You know Joker wouldn't choose a trashy movie for Halloween," he smirked. "Horror, of course, and it was complete crap at the time."
"Making out nonexistent pictures in the dark?" Gideon was teasing again.
"Unexpectedly, the movie contributed in the most indirect way possible," the private admitted almost bitterly. "It was pretty spooky when the power went off."
There were some moments of silence before Gideon suddenly whispered, "Bet it's good to have someone warm nearby, eh?"
Mitchell jumped away from his voice, the sudden closeness coupled with hot breath and rough timbre in his ear pulling him back at the same moment it sent a jolt of electricity down his spine. A deep pink tinted his face as he stared at the pitch-black.
"Now that you mention it, you think this could be some wanker's dumb idea of a Halloween prank?" Gideon spoke again, this time his voice wasn't as close as before, though there was a trace of smugness in his tone.
"Uh…" Mitchell took some seconds to gather his thoughts and pondered. "It's possible, but a real pain in the ass for everyone else. Maybe they tried turning off the power to one building but ended up taking out the whole base."
"The wanker's late though, Halloween ended twenty minutes ago. Irons is going to have his arse."
"As will everybody else. Spectacular way to interrupt my thoughts."
"What were you thinking about?"
Obviously, saying 'you' was not a good idea. "A few things."
Gideon nudged him. "Frightened of the dark?"
"In your dreams."
"Don't be scared," the richly-accented voice cooed provocatively. "I'm here."
Mitchell rolled his eyes and didn't reply. After some seconds of relative peace, something tapped the other shoulder and he arched an unimpressed brow in Gideon's direction, despite knowing he couldn't see it. "Nice try."
"I didn't do anything," the captain denied, almost cheekily. "You're too much into the Halloween spirit, mate. Mind's making things up."
"Load of bullsh—" Mitchell was cut off abruptly by the jab on his arm. "I don't see what you get from this."
"What?"
"Stop touching me."
"I'm not," and without the help of vision, the private couldn't tell whether Gideon was just playing with him or not. His hearing alone was unsuccessful in deciphering his tone.
A thumb swiped across the back of his neck and goose bumps rippled through his skin. "Stop it," he hissed, the touch making him shudder. "You're just looking for trouble, aren't you?"
"I am convinced your mind's playing tricks on you," Gideon snickered.
After a few moments, an oval of warmth slid down his back, body jerking involuntarily in response. The trail left behind burned into his skin.
"Hey," Gideon said suddenly, alert. "Did you see that?"
"Haha, very funny," Mitchell rolled his eyes, feeling heat about his cheeks. "Don't bother covering it up."
"Cover what? I saw movement. Did you hear anything?"
"Either you're hallucinating or finally realizing that your childish jabbing at me can get you in a mess."
"Still with the accusations, eh?" Gideon sounded amused. "What kind of mess, pray tell?"
"It's dark," Mitchell started, realizing how awkward the next sentence would sound, "and your blind attempts might end up with you touching a part of me neither of us would like."
There was a longer silence this time. The seconds wore his guard down, which is exactly why he yelped at the sudden hand on his inner thigh.
That's it, Mitchell thought, annoyed and embarrassed as he grabbed the arm, which of course belonged to Gideon. The taut muscle in his grasp was pulled forward, bringing the captain along with it. There was little effort in getting Gideon out of his comfortable sitting position and putting him face-down on the cold floor.
"Wrestle in the dark? You're a sore loser after all," Gideon laughed, a sound from deep within his chest that rumbled pleasantly in the pitch-black. "Using some ghost hands as your excuse just so you could kick my arse in a place with the upper-hand."
"If you think I'm good at wrestling blind, then you're sorely mistaken," Mitchell scoffed just as a weight threw itself onto him, pushing him down to the floor. He raised his arms to block some light punches to his face just as the other straddled him. "And you started this, Gideon—touching places you shouldn't be."
He paused at the firm squeeze on his thigh. "I've got a hunch you'd like more."
Mitchell sat up, throwing the other off balance, bumping into Gideon in the process. The lack of light directed their adrenaline to the senses of hearing and touch—the silent breathing, the heat of the other's skin. There was a struggle; the exchange of sharp intakes of air, an entanglement of limbs. At one point he felt something rough and damp against the bridge of his nose, and he pulled away, a burn prickling his face.
Just as he did so, he noticed a figure standing a small distance away.
"Holy shit!" he cried out, stumbling back from where he once had Gideon straddled, away from the grinning skeleton across the room where an upward-facing beam revealed it.
Not half a second later and Gideon too saw it. "Fuck me," he cursed, and there was a frantic rustling of fabric as he hastened to stagger away. The skeleton stood still for what seemed like forever, head slightly tilted, teeth bared; dread and creepiness personified.
Suddenly its shoulders bobbed up and down, and soon a bubble of laughter burst from it—only the sound was one of pure joy, feminine and delighted. It took some moments for them to realize who it was.
"Ilona?" Mitchell's jaw effectively dropped.
The skeleton only laughed harder—as if on cue the power turned back on, brightness flooding the room. Then they realized the bones were actually a printed design on an elaborate Halloween jumpsuit, her fair stone-carved face painted with white and black makeup contoured eerily across her features.
"Oops, should've scheduled the blackout for longer," came the gleeful comment from their predator, accented voice confirming her identity.
"Ilona," Gideon sounded scandalized. "You cut off the power?"
Her laughter reduced to giggles. "Oh yes."
"Why?" Mitchell sputtered next.
Her giggles lessened into a radiant smile. "I was thinking of going outside to terrorize some people, but you two showed up before I could leave."
"You're a little late, don't you think?"
"Yeah, but doing it before midnight would be much too predictable."
"How did you see us?"
Ilona procured a pair of night goggles from a hidden pocket. "It was quite fun, honestly, to sit on the sofa and eavesdrop on your suggestive conversation."
"Suggestive?" Gideon repeated with an arch of the brow, throwing a quick glance from Mitchell to Ilona.
"What? Mitchell's interested and you were flirting," Ilona shrugged with a chuckle. "And I decided that train of thought was much too entertaining to let go, so I found ways to let it linger."
"You mean you were the one touching me?" Mitchell asked, blushing when Ilona nodded. Oh goodness…
"Huh, Mitchell wasn't lying about the ghost hands then," Gideon muttered, almost sheepishly.
"Except that last one, the touch on your inner thigh," Ilona said quickly. "Can't take credit for that. That was Gideon."
Mitchell looked over at his captain, who had also glanced in the same direction but immediately averted his gaze as soon as they made eye contact. Ilona continued with a hint of satisfaction: "Sure enough I managed to get you two all over each other, and after some humorous moments of watching, went ahead and decided to get in place for my big scare."
Ilona was watching them the whole time. Mitchell was so mortified he wanted to creep into a deep dark hole and never come out.
"I don't understand what delight you derive from this," Gideon stated finally, sounding a tad embarrassed.
"Perhaps an example was seeing your funny attempt to kiss him, but missed and kissed him on his nose instead," Ilona countered smugly.
This time a silence hung among the three of them; Ilona knowing she had won, Gideon obviously not having a comeback and Mitchell being dawned with realization and a strange amusement.
"I'll see to it that the power shuts off again soon," Ilona notified nonchalantly, heading for one of the exits. "Why not take advantage of it? After all, you two seem much more comfortable with each other in the dark."
Surely the quiet self-satisfied chuckle that followed was one of delight, but with the way it echoed and receded down the dark hallway, Gideon and Mitchell knew it was going to be the stuff of nightmares.
A/N: Thank you for reading. Don't forget to leave a review! :)