Here's a little one shot that I couldn't get out of my head until I wrote it down. Yes, it's a YAHF. Why do I write this, because I can. Well here we go!
Traveling around with his two best friends to pick out a Halloween costume Xander Harris looks down at the money clenched in his hand, a meager twenty-dollar bill, and stashes it into his pocket.
You see, it's the day before Halloween and he's been roped up by the principle of his high school to guide some kids around town for tomorrow night. To tell the truth, Xander doesn't mind too much and in fact he's somewhat glad that he doesn't have to stay home with his parents. Crossing the gateway into the new costume shop in town, Ethan's, he takes a moment to glance around while looking for a gun to go with his BDU's at home. Unable to find the right one he sighs as he knows that he's going to have to spend his whole twenty for a new costume.
Moving towards the back of the store, he sees a costume that draws his attention, almost as if it were made just for him. He sees a gun, silver in color, sheathed in a hip holster. A blue haired wig rests on top of the mannequin's head with a small walk-man looking device sticking up out of the jacket's bottom pocket with a wire leading up to that mannequin's neck ending in headphones.
Reaching his hand out, Xander takes the price tag in his hand and notes that it's in his price range at seventeen dollars. Grabbing the outfit with excitement, he fails to see that a small red armband falling off. Moving to the register, Xander sees the girls walk out with bags in their arms. He's about to call out to them when a voice interrupts quietly.
"So the great sacrifice has chosen." Xander quickly turns to the voice to see its owner is a middle aged man staring at him.
"I'm sorry," Xander says, "what did you say?"
Just realizing that he's spoken out loud, the middle aged man clarifies. "I'm sorry young man," he says, "but you see, the person who you've chosen to go as was known as the great sacrifice. Many people have looked at this costume only to walk away from it paying it no mind. In fact I've been forced to lower the price considerably sue to that fact. Oh, where have my manners gone? My name is Ethan Rayne, and this is my humble shop."
Looking across the counter at the clerk, Xander decides to be polite. "My name's Xander." he says, "Say would you ring me up for this please?"
Taking the outfit in his hands Ethan smiles, "Of course but there seems to be a small piece missing, I'll go get it for you."
After a short moment, Ethan walks back with a small red armband in his hands. Moving to the register he smiles at Xander and starts to talk.
"I forgot to put this piece with it, so I went and got it out of the back room. Sorry for the delay. If you would like, I'll throw in a box that you could carry it in for free. I've been wanting to get rid of it you see, to many bad memories and I figured that you might enjoy using it."
"Sure," Xander says all the while happy that there's a generous person here on the Hellmouth.
Taking his new purchase back to his house, Xander sets the decorative box onto his bed. The wooden box is intricately carved with the depiction of a human body with two faces on it. Opening the box, he can see a deck of cards on top of the costume that wasn't with it in the first place. Curious, he opens the deck to find that they're tarot cards. Looking at the bottom card he sees that it's the fool.
Great, he thinks to himself, even the universe thinks that I'm a fool.
Putting the cards back in their box, he sets them to the side and pulls out his costume and hangs it up so as it doesn't wrinkle. Taking the gun out, he's amazed at its heavy weight. Looking at the butt of the gun, he sees two prongs that when pulled out would fit into a wall socket. Shrugging with a why not going through his mind, he pulls them out and plugs it in, at which the lights flicker on and off again for a few seconds then abruptly stop. With a small grunt of "huh" he figures that it's probably a coincidence. Shrugging again, Xander look back into the box to find a book to his great surprise. Picking it up, he opens it to the first page only for a sheet of paper to fall out and land gently on the ground. Picking it up from the floor, he begins to read it.
Before you sign this contract, please be aware that you abide by the terms of this document.
Xander pauses at this, wondering why something like this would be included with a simple Halloween costume. After pondering over these words for a few moments, he begins to read again.
As the signer of this contract, you will be held accountable for all of your actions, either meaningful or otherwise. If you agree to these terms then please sign on the line below.
Looking at the end of the page, Xander sees a stylized "X" with a line next to it. With him subconsciously agreeing to what's on the contract, he doesn't even realize that his hand picked up a pen next to him and signed. Putting the contract on his bed stand, he looks back at the book and picks it up. Opening it back to the first page he finds that all of the words are in Japanese. Closing the book, he glances over to the clock and notices that it's nine. Deciding to go to bed, he sets the book back into the chest and closes it then goes to bed.
As he sleeps he never notices his contract slowly fade from view followed by an old man's voice mutter, "And here we have it, another Wild Card. Oh dear, what are we to do now I wonder?"
"I don't know," a young woman's voice mutters in reply with an emotionless monotone, "but I do hope that he'll be all right, unlike the last one."
Scene Change
Ah, the night of Halloween. A night where children of all ages dress up as all different sorts of things, from witches and wizards to villains and heroes. Some even dress up as the things that go bump in the night without realizing that those which they dress as are very real.
It just so happened that this night would change the world as they know it, only they would never find out.
Not wanting to be late, Xander puts on his costume and goes over to Buffy's house as to meet up with his two friends. After being invited inside by Mrs. Summers, he sits down onto the couch across from the lady of the house while waiting for his two friends.
After a brief exchange where spandex was mentioned, the three leave towards the school where they would pick up their own group of children for the evening.
An hour after leaving the house, both Willow and Xander collapse on the ground while Buffy takes on the mindset of a European Lady from the eighteenth century.
Willow, who wakes up first, immediately sets out to find the object of her affection to make sure that he's alright. Finding him on the ground, she screams which causes Xander to wake up startled. When she sees that he's awake, she calms down until she sees his eyes widen looking past her. Turning around, she finds herself facing a monster towering over her form.
Running towards Xander, she goes to grab his hand when she sees him holding a gun. Seeing him move it up, she wonders if he's going to try to shoot it for a brief moment until he puts it to his right temple. Yelling at him to not pull the trigger, she's silenced by the devil-may-care grin on his face. She then hears one word that would change her life forever.
As he pulls the trigger he quietly says, "Per-so-na."
And here we are! In case you don't know who he dressed as, look up the Protagonist from Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3. Well to all of my readers out there, until next time.