A/N: Written from neither Soul nor Maka's POV, this story is huge change of pace to cap the week. It is based on YYeann's fantastic art sequence. Really, this is Yyeann's thing; I just put words to some fantastic art and am grateful for having been granted the privilege to do so.
Lyrics from The Beatles "I Saw Her Standing There," Coldplay "Shiver," Radiohead "Creep," Lady Gaga "Love Game, Shakira "Hips Don't Lip," Air Supply "Lonely is the Night," REO Speedwagon "I Can't Fight This Feeling," George Benson, "Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You," Matchbox 20 "Disease," Owl City "Bombshell Blonde," The Bangles, "Eternal Flame," and finally, The Beatles, "Listen, do you want to know a secret?"
First I Love You (or Of Texting and Underpants):
It was turning out to be a hell of a night. Kilik Rung, two star utility meister, had somehow gotten dragged by two of his closest friends into what could only be termed a sleep over. There were snacks. There were video games. There were movies. There was music. There was a shit ton of beer.
When Star had casually mentioned that the girls were sequestering themselves for a slumber party at Gallow's Mansion, and just as casually suggested that maybe the guys should cook something up of their own, Kilik remained quiet. This shit had nothing to do with him, really, and he was too old for a sleep over by a good bit—they all were, really. Soul agreed and said as much out loud, adding that it'd be nice not to have his meister telling him to get his feet off the coffee table or not to drink from the damned carton like a savage for once, and, for himself, he planned to kick back and relax in his underwear, feet on every available surface, glasses rejected for the night.
The problem was, Star could be pretty persuasive when he had a mind to—or when his friends thought that the least destructive option might just be the one the assassin was hell bent on—so Soul had finally, reluctantly, agreed to have them over for the night. Other male members of Spartoi had been invited, but Ox and Harvar claimed other plans (Kilik figured their 'other plans' centered doing anything that didn't involve hanging out with destructive, unpredictable ninjas,) and Kid (no longer a member of Spartoi, perhaps, but still in their circle,) had claimed a mountain of paperwork to deal with—he'd spend his time in the Death Room. That left Kilik, and Kilik had not been able to say no when asked directly. Honestly, he didn't even want to. Star and Soul were two of his closest friends, they didn't get to hang out much anymore, and hell, a sleepover wouldn't kill him. So, in his way, the pot meister had actually been looking forward to the little get together, and really, all things considered, he was pretty damned glad he'd gone. It was nice to get away from the twins for a while (Marie had happily agreed to have them over for the night) and the prospect of free (well, provided by Black*Star) beer and video games really was a pretty damned good one.
At this point, he was drunk. They all were. Black*Star was flipping through pictures on his cellphone, looking for Shinigami knew what, though he kept going on about cat tits, Soul had broken out his guitar and was strumming various things aimlessly, and Kilik, well, Kilik was nursing his half dozenth beer, lounged on the couch and watching his friends because he had nothing better or more entertaining to do at the moment. Drunk people were funny, after all, especially Star, who had absolutely no filter even without alcohol, and Soul, who rarely drank, but when he did, went from snarky and aloof to down right chummy and talkative, suddenly content to be the center of attention. Drunk Soul was pretty much a blast and his antics were always well worth the price of admission.
Kilik noticed, then, that Soul had begun to sing. Oh yeah, he was trashed. The pot meister chuckled as he kicked back to enjoy the scythe's antics.
"Well she was just seventeen, if you know what I mean, and the way she looked was way beyond compare," he began, then suddenly shifted gears completely, the strumming on the guitar changing.
"I'll always be waiting for you, so you know how much I need you, but you never even see me, do you? And is this my final chance of getting you?"
Well, the meister thought idly, the boy clearly had someone on his mind. Not really surprising—he'd had it pretty bad for his pigtailed meister for, well, for as long as Kilik could remember. It would have taken an idiot not to see it. Apparently, the scythe meister was an idiot, because Kilik was also fairly certain she had it bad for her weapon, and yet, here he was, pining in song for the girl he wanted and thought he couldn't have. It was pretty damned silly. The various members of Spartoi who weren't Soul and Maka had discussed their situation many times, and the general consensus was that both weapon and meister were pretty far gone for one another, yet both of them seemed unable to see the truth, to see their own feelings reflected in their partner.
The song shifted again. Well, at least it was entertaining to watch
"When you were here before couldn't look you in the eye. You're just like an angel. Your skin makes me cry. You float like a feather in a beautiful world. I wish I was special, you're so fucking special."
This was getting bad. The songs were getting more and more whiny and depressed—man, the guy really did have it bad. It was sort of hard to be entertained when someone was starting to look that pathetic. Often, the pot meister had considered giving one or both of them a little nudge, but then, he'd convinced himself they would figure it out on their own given time and that it was really none of his damned business anyway. But then time had passed, and passed, and passed and the two idiots kept fumbling around each other. Kilik was beginning to see why Liz kept scheming to get them together because clearly, cluelessness on this level could persist indefinitely, and it was time for the two of them to just get a fucking room already. There was so much sexual tension between them you could cut it with the boy's scythe blade.
"How about something we can dance to, man?" Star mercifully cut the angst fest off. Soul scowled at him for a moment but then just shrugged.
"Whatever, dude. Whatchu want?"
"Lady Gaga, dude, lets have it!" Black*Star suddenly vaulted over the couch, grinning at his own suggestion. Kilik figured he was fucking with the death scythe but Soul just shrugged again.
"Sure, whatever," he said as he as slipped his already loosened Spartoi tie from his neck to affix it to his head.
"Da fuck is that dude?" Star eyed the tie.
"Figured I should look the part," he grinned and started to play again.
"I wanna kiss you, but if I do then I might miss you, babe. It's complicated and stupid, got my ass squeezed by sexy Cupid, guess he wants to play, wants to play
A love game, a love game."
Annnnnd the drunk bastard had figured a way to turn even Lady Gaga to his ends. Yup, this was getting out of control. As the song continued, Kilik figured it might just be the time and place to do something about all of this.
"Hold me and love me. Just wanna touch you for a minute. Maybe three seconds is enough for my heart to quit it."
As they got to the bridge, Kilik and Star joined in.
"Let's have some fun, this beat is sick. I wanna take a ride on your disco stick
Don't think too much just bust that stick. I wanna take a ride on your disco stick."
Star snorted, cutting the song short. "Yeah, you two losers wish someone would ride your disco stick."
Kilik laughed outright at that because he had definitely had more action than either of his friends, but Soul had a bit of a far away look and the utility meister had a pretty good idea that he was imagining someone very specific having her way with his disco stick, as it were.
"Shakira—do some Shakira!" Star cut his thoughts short.
"Seriously man?" Soul raised an eyebrow.
"What, dude? It's better than that whiny assed emo crap you were torturing us with before. Sides, Baki likes it, and—"
Soul cut him off. "Sure, whatever, cool. Got just the thing."
And the playing started again, then the singing.
"I never really knew that she could dance like this. She makes a man wants to speak Spanish. Como se llama."
Black Star suddenly cut in with the answering "Si."
"Bonita."
Star repeated "Si."
"Mi casa," Soul was smiling as he sang.
Kilik had definitely seen enough. Soul was so drunk that he was belting out every song about his meister, and hell, he'd been watching the two of them circle each other long enough, he figured. Maybe it really was time to kick the elephant into the light and get his pining friend to do something to get the girl he was gone over to pay attention to his long neglected disco stick.
Before Star could reply again, Kilik cut in with "oh, Maka, oh Maka!"
When Soul gave him a questioning look, he chuckled. "Dude, like I totally ship you and Maka. SoMa 5 ever—and I just—" he walked behind his friend, draping himself over him, patting him down to try to find his phone because it was past time the death scythe stopped dragging his damned ass "—I can't. Ain't you gonna confess or somethin'?"
"Star, hand over my phone," the scythe said with a small head shake. "Kilik, much as I like you man, get the fuck off me."
Kilik laughed in response. So that's where the phone was—explained a bit what all the talk about cat tits was, too. The utility meister found himself wondering idly if there really might be some such thing on his friend's phone as he peeled himself off his back and walked up next to Soul. The meister quickly noticed his friend's grin and thought maybe he was getting somewhere.
"Star?" Soul suddenly questioned. The assassin still had the phone and seemed to be texting something. "Shit!" The deathscythe swore and lept over to swipe the phone. Kilik peered over his friend's arm at the screen to see that Star had texted Maka:
whacha doin sweet cakes
"Fuck, Star, that's the best you could do?" Soul rolled his eyes as Black*Star crowded up behind the scythe next to Kilik. Kilik shook his head at him in sympathy. It was a pretty pathetic pick-up line.
"What?!" The ninja looked offended. "That's a godly opening line! You should be thanking me!"
"Whatever," Soul shrugged as he read Maka's response of:
Check your recipient, Casanova.
"Fuck," the white-haired boy shook his head as he typed in:
it's Soul
Right? Her response came quickly.
"Shit, shit, shit," Soul chanted, then uttering a drawn out "uhhhhhh," typed in:
lonely is the night when am not with you
"Seriously, dude, more emo crap?" Star scoffed. "You suck at this."
Soul didn't dignify that with a response, though Kilik couldn't help the chuckle that escaped, earning him a scowl from the white-haired boy just before Maka's reply appeared:
Are you drunk?
"Like, duuuuh," Star laughed. "Fuckin' genius, that one."
Soul took a second to elbow his friend in annoyance, who replied with an indignant "hey!," before typing:
i can't fight this feeling anymore i've forgotten what i started fighting for
"Duuuuude, seriously, you are one cheesy fucker when you're wasted. You should give me that before you embarrass yourself anymore. Just straight up tell her you want to do her and get it the fuck—"
Kilik had gotten behind the assassin and got a hand over his mouth before the blue-haired boy even knew what hit him. The pot meister nodded to Soul.
"I got this—do what you gotta do."
Star struggled a bit but quieted down at Maka's next reply:
I swear, if the apartment's a mess, I'll chop your head off
"Shit," Soul shook his head again and typed something new:
nothin's gonna change my love for you. you outta know by now how much i love you
Star suddenly managed to bite his captor's hand and Kilik let go. The ninja crowed "duuuuuude enough with the sap. You sound like a fuckin—" but whatever he was going to say was lost in the vibration that indicated a reply:
SHUT UP
Soul's face fell a little and Kilik nudged him. "I've got a good one," he offered. The death scythe shrugged and handed him the phone.
"Not like you could make it worse," the scythe mumbled. Kilik typed in:
you taste like honey, honey tell me i can be your honey
The utility meister then returned the phone to its owner with a self satisfied grin. Mischief managed, totally.
"Good one!" Star high fived Kilik. "Smooth, dude."
Soul didn't respond, he was too busy staring at the screen. And staring. And staring. "Ugh," he groaned after two minutes had passed, typing a new message:
Maka
There was no reply for another minute and the two meisters exchanged guilty looks because their friend, normally a giddy drunk, looked suddenly miserable. He typed again:
Maka
SCREW YOU GO TO BED
The reply came suddenly and Star snatched the phone typing:
is that a yes
Soul grabbed the phone back just in time to read:
OMG NO
"Fuck," Soul looked miserable again, staring at the last message as if he could change it. Kilik was getting frustrated; he'd pushed this and it was going to shit, damnit.
"Dude, it's—" Star stopped as the phone vibrated:
Soul
One word.
"Don't answer," Kilik smiled. She was worried—perfect. Maybe this was going to work after all. Another vibration underscored the thought:
Soul?
Soul was about to type something in response, but Kilik put his hand over his friend's to still it. "Patience, grasshopper," his smile remained. "Let her sweat."
Finally, a third vibration:
Maybe if you sing to me properly?
They were grouped around the phone, and Star and Kilik grinned maniacally at the words, Soul sporting a soft, slightly nervous smile.
"Gear up, boys. We gon crash dem sleepover!" Black*Star shouted, followed by a loud "Yahoo! My man Soul is finally gonna get him some."
Soul was still smiling, but suddenly frowned. "What should I sing?"
"Don't worry dude—I got yer back. Got just the song." The ninja was rubbing his hands together like some sort of cartoon villain and Kilik couldn't help but to be doubtful, but as they put their heads together to plan, he had to admit it was pretty damned perfect.
The first thing they did was to gather more liquid courage, because unless Soul stayed completely wasted, this wasn't going to happen. Next came straightening the apartment, something Soul himself insisted on, because if this worked, he had informed them both earnestly, it would suck to have it fall apart over a few stray beer cans. After that, they decided to make themselves presentable and an argument quickly ensued. Soul thought that they should just go as they were, but Black*Star shook his head, slung his arm around his bro, winked at Kilik over Soul's shoulder, and said,"Nah, dude. Boxers. We do this in our shorts. It'll be all romantical and shit."
Soul looked skeptical and turned his eyes to the more reasonable pot meister, but it actually didn't sound like such a bad idea to Kilik. Sort of Risky Business. Being serenaded at a slumber party by dudes in boxers and dress shirts and nothing else? Fuck yeah, girls would eat that shit up. So Kilik grinned, and nodded. "Cool, man, you should do it."
"Right?" Star held up a hand and Kilik took the bait, high fiving.
"Well, fuck," Soul finally relented. "Why the fuck not?"
So they all stripped off their pants and took off their ties and partially unbuttoned their shirts and drank a few more beers. That was when Kilik realized that he didn't have on his lucky Scooby Doo boxers—crap.
"Dudes, I need my lucky boxers if we're gonna do this thing."
"You have lucky boxers?" Soul's eyebrow shot up. "How the fuck does that even happen?"
Kilik smiled and waggled his eyebrows. "They were the first boxers I got lucky in."
Star started laughing uncontrollably at this, gasping out between giggles. "You...got your cherry popped...in Scooby Doo...boxers?"
Kilik's grin widened as he shrugged. It was a pretty good memory. "Chicks dig Scooby Doo, what can I say? 'Sides, 'least I got my cherry popped, man. But if we're gonna get our man Soul some action, those boxers need to be ON."
Soul scoffed. "Dude, this ain't your house. Just wear what you got on."
"Nah, man," Kilik protested. "Gotta dress the part."
"Fuck, man, I'm not drunk enough for this shit," the scythe grumbled under his breath, downing another beer in a few large gulps. When he was done, he shrugged. "Fine, whatever—wear something else," he eyed the ratty plaid things the pot meister was currently sporting. "'Cause those things are just sad. Borrow some of mine. Laundry basket's on my bed."
The utility meister disappeared into Soul's room, sifting through the laundry basket quickly. It seemed to be mostly girly shit, but finally, he saw a pair of stretchy, star spangled boxer briefs that looked sick, so he shucked off his own shorts and slid them on. They were an admittedly tight squeeze, but hell, they were sharp. He eyed himself in the mirror with approval, heedless of the effect of his beer goggles, and strutted out before his two friends waiting on the couch.
"'Bout time, dude. We need to get the fuck out if we're gonna do this thing."
Star lept up towards the door, but Soul started to snort, eyeing the blue boxer briefs with amusement. His snorts soon turned into full blown, uncontrollable laughter, and the other two boys seemed confused until, finally, choking back enough of his mirth to speak, Soul gasped out, wiping away tears.
"Dude—dude—those—are Maka's."
Kilik looked down and shrugged. So they were a little small and did resemble Wonder Woman's bottoms a bit, come to think of it, but whatever.
Star just slung an arm around each of them, either not hearing or not caring about the pot meister's odd taste in underwear.
"We ready to do this thing, dudes?"
The question was followed immediately by a chorus of "fuck yeahs!" as the trio headed out the door.
Realizing that they were far too drunk to drive, Kilik called in a favor from a reluctant Harvar, who picked them up in his van and swung by Kilik's place to grab some electronic necessaries (because who else was going to provide a kickass impromptu PA/music system to make this work,) before ferrying them to the mansion. As much as he'd initially resisted, it had taken less effort to convince the lightning spear than Kilik had expected—Harvar clearly wanted to kick back and watch the spectacle and even brought his meister along for the ride.
The advice was flying, too. Ox thought Soul should bring flowers; Maka might not be an angel like Kim, but all girls liked flowers. Star thought he should just walk in there and plant one on her. Harvar occasionally snorted, not thinking much of any of those suggestions, and for his part, Kilik insisted they stick with the plan. Since Soul agreed with Kilik, it seemed that the show would go on.
Looked like he was getting to play Cupid tonight. Kilik was just drunk enough to figure that that wasn't at all a bad thing.
—
Tsubaki watched as her best friend paced and fretted, fretted and paced.
"This has to be a joke, Right? Ha ha, stupid Maka to fall for it," she finally turned back to her friend, her green eyes full of fear and anger.
"I don't think so," Tsubaki shook her head.
"You wouldn't, but you know that has to be it," the meister sighed. "Why did stupid Liz have to put in that last message?"
The shadow weapon had been watching the scythe meister fret for ten minutes at least and sincerely hoped Liz and Patti were back soon to help. The two had run off quickly after having squeed loudly at Soul's final reply of:
be right over
They had disappeared to gather some beautification supplies, as they put it, insisting that if their friend was to be wooed by the weapon she had been secretly pining over forever, then she was going to damned well look the part. . Another minute later and the two pistols came crashing back into the large upstairs rec room in a flurry of movement and laughter, sweeping up the stunned meister to usher her to a chair and begin their ministrations. In their arms were clothing, several makeup bags, a bag of hair supplies, in short, anything and everything to do their dirty work. For her part, Tsubaki didn't really think her friend needed all of it—Maka was naturally pretty, in that girl next door sort of way, and Soul clearly liked her as she was—but Patti and Liz had other ideas, and if there was one thing that the dark arm weapon had learned over the course of their friendship it was that when the sisters got an idea in their heads, it was generally for the best to leave them to do their dirty work.
Maka clearly wanted to protest and was looking decidedly like an animal caught in a trap, but she couldn't get a word in even if she had been able to form one that was intelligible. Tsubaki walked over behind her clearly stunned and nervous friend, squeezing her shoulder in comforting solidarity as Liz and Patti threw aside different pieces of clothing, looking for the ones they wanted and, finally, having decided, moved to the make up bag.
"Alright," Liz turned back to Maka, standing over her, one hand cocked on a hip. "Are you ready for the Thompson treatment?"
The scythe meister swallowed slowly then shook her head, seemingly about to refuse, when Patti cut off the words before she could speak them.
"'Course, sissy! After all, Maka's smart enough to know that the easy way is always better than the hard way!" The deceptively innocent little blonde threw an exaggerated wink towards her seated friend and Maka just sighed, defeated.
"I, uh, guess…" she trailed off. Tsubaki knew she had already been nervous, worried about whatever was going on with Soul. Maybe this was just the distraction she needed, really. She even thought Liz, at the very least, might know that too as the pistol smiled her way for the barest instant before brandishing a brush at Maka and setting to work.
It really was like something from a movie. There were lotions and creams, highlights and low lights, potions and powders. There were multiple types of brushes and irons and hair dryers, half a dozen different styling products, perfume and body spray and wax and tweezers. When it was all through, Maka was smooth, almost glowing, her long legs on display in a swishy little purple dress that had apparently been bought for Patti, only the bust was too small. It fit Maka like a glove, and Tsubaki had to wonder, devious as the sisters could be, if they hadn't bought it and squirrelled it away, simply waiting for just such an opportunity. With access to Kid's platinum card and a known propensity for scheming, the dark arm certainly wouldn't put it past them. They had left their friend's hair down and softly curled, and it was sleek and shiny and beautiful. Her makeup, not overdone, looked natural but made her eyes stand out, even more luminous and green than usual. And her skin, and there was an awfully lot of it on display, looked soft and luminous.
The shadow weapon had to admit that the sisters knew their stuff. If Soul weren't already totally gone for his meister, and it was pretty clear to all and sundry except said meister that he was, then he surely would have been after seeing her tonight. Maka was always cute, but tonight she looked radiant. She also looked terrified as the ordeal ended and they all waited for something to happen. So far, they were still waiting, a good hour after that text, fifteen minutes since Maka had been completely made over, for the weapon to show. So far, they had been disappointed.
"He's not coming," Maka said, shaking her head. "And good. It was a joke, an idiotic joke, and now the boys are having their little laugh and we can all get on with our lives. There isn't enough beer on the planet to get Soul to see me that way. Hell, Black*Star probably got ahold of his phone and had a good laugh. Now, can I get back into my pajamas so we can finish the movie?"
"No!" the two pistols said as one.
Maka just shook her head again and started to rise. And that's when they heard it. There was honking outside. The horn honked once, twice, and then a third time, loud and long.
"See?" Patti squealed as she got up and ran to the French doors leading out to the balcony. Liz winked over at Tsubaki and she strutted over herself, and, curious and feeling a little out of the loop, the shadow weapon followed. It was a temperate night, a little cool but not cold, and as she made her way out onto the second floor balcony after the two blondes and looked down, she enjoyed the cool breeze blowing through her currently loose hair. And then she saw it. It was a black van tricked out to look like the A-Team might be driving it around. Tsubaki had seen it parked near the school a few times and was pretty sure it belonged to Harvar. Standing on top of the not-quite garish vehicle were three figures with a portable spotlight shining down at them that someone had affixed to a nearby tree—Soul, Black*Star, and Kilik. The boys were—Tsubaki stifled a giggle. They were in their Spartoi shirts, partially unbuttoned, underwear, and nothing else. Her meister was sporting black boxers covered with silver stars under his shirt, Soul had on a pair of red boxers with something that looked like musical notes scattered across them, and Kilik—oh my—Tsubaki threw her hands over her mouth to stop her laughter—Kilik was in a pair of Wonder Woman boyshorts she was pretty sure were Maka's. They really must be that drunk. Soul had topped off his own look with his Spartoi tie slung around his head like a makeshift headband, and if they looked a mite ridiculous, it was sort of adorably ridiculous, and the shadow weapon couldn't wipe away her broad smile.
The boys were waiting patiently, eyes glued to the balcony. Soul had a guitar slung over his shoulder and there was a microphone stand in front of him. Black*Star and Kilik seemed to be speaking periodically to Soul in between them, who was alternately looking like he wanted to vomit, or perhaps jump, when he wasn't grinning madly and laughing.
Off to the side, as Tsubaki scanned the odd scene, she noticed Harvar and Ox fiddling with some controls on a small portable table at the back of the van. Wow, they had all gotten involved, then. This was—really something. Suddenly, there was a loud screeching noise emitted from speakers that she had failed to notice positioned on either side of the van, facing towards the mansion, and the boys below covered their ears in surprise.
"Sorry!" Ox called out, but if there was an answer, Tsubaki didn't hear it because that was when Maka finally stepped out next to her, looked down, and gasped, her hands flying to her mouth.
"I…I…" she started to back up, seemed to want to run back into the mansion to hide, but Patti beat her to the punch, shutting the doors and blocking them with a malicious grin.
"Nuh uh, not after all that work. The least you can do is hear the poor boy out."
Maka just shook her head again, her face red. Suddenly, electronic noises started coming from the speakers below, loudly, followed by drums, the music beginning. Soul stepped up to the microphone, looking a little green but nonetheless began to sing:
"That blonde, she's a bomb, she's an atom bomb. Rigged up, and ready to drop! Bad news, I'm a fuse, and I've met my match. So stand back, it's about to go off!"
The moment the white-haired boy started to sing, a grin crept onto his face and he belted out the lyrics with gusto. Soul didn't have an amazing voice, but it was deep and steady and he could carry a tune. His enthusiasm was endearing as he continued to sing:
"That vixen, she's a master of disguise! I see danger, when I look in her eyes.
She's so foxy, she could lead to my demise. So I'm running, 'cause I've run out of time."
The deathscythe's eyes were clearly riveted on his meister on the balcony, his determined smile still plastered on his face. Tsubaki found herself turning to Maka for her reaction, who was currently opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water, too stunned to do anything but look and gape. The shadow weapon turned her eyes back to the show again, the music finally progressing to the chorus, where Black*Star and Kilik suddenly joined in with gusto, if not much musical prowess:
"She's a bombshell blonde, wired up to detonate! I'm James Bond, live to die another day! Bombshell blonde, high explosive dynamite! She's all I want so I, I'm on a mission tonight!"
Tsubaki recognized the song. It was actually one that Black*Star liked and not Soul's usual brand of music. She smiled quietly to herself, seeing her meister's handprint all over this entire thing. He really was something, and him letting his friend take center stage like this made her heart swell with pride for an instant. Soul was singing alone again, and the shadow weapon couldn't help but to think that the song, silly as it was, fit Maka and Soul perfectly:
"Her love is a drug laced with ecstasy, and her charm is spiked with a spell.
A hot mess in a dress gets the best of me. She's ice cold, but she's making me melt!"
Another glance over at her friend told Tsubaki that Maka was confused. She was beet red and shaking her head, but she'd crept to the edge of the balcony and her eyes were riveted on her weapon. That, she supposed, was progress. Perhaps Soul thought so too, or maybe he was too drunk to know what to think, because as they got through another round of the bridge and came to the chorus again, he began to add in his guitar to the pre-recorded accompaniment and was jumping around for emphasis, causing his voice to become more breathy.
As he finished the chorus again with "She's all I want so I, I'm on a mission tonight!" he pointed straight at Maka and grinned toothily, causing the meister to squeak with embarrassment and try, unsuccessfully, to duck and hide behind the wrought iron balcony.
The song continued, Tsubaki's eyes alternating between Maka, who eventually stood back up, though she was fidgeting wildly, and the increasingly showy antics of the guys below, before it finally ended with all three boys pointing to Maka at the final words. The scythe meister just shook her head in disbelief as the music faded, and Soul smiled up hopefully.
"This one's for you too, Maka," he said into the mic, and then began to strum the electric guitar. It was wired to the speakers, and the music was clear and sweet—Tsubaki wasn't exactly surprised that such a skilled pianist could manage a guitar so well. For her part, Maka had ducked again, though the thin, ornate guard rail wasn't really effective cover. After a few bars, Soul began to sing the second song of the night:
"Close your eyes, give me your hand, darlin'," the deathscythe held out his hand at this, and the two pistols made excited squealing sounds from their place on the other side of Maka. The song then continued and he sang "do you feel my heart beating? Do you understand? Do you feel the same? Am I only dreaming, or is this burning an eternal flame?"
Tsubaki smiled softly, her eyes drawn to Black*Star, who was actually swaying with a tambourine. She really loved this song, and as her meister's eyes met hers and he smiled up at her in his turn, she knew, for his part, this was as much for her as it was for his friends and her smile widened. Her eyes moved back to Maka, who she happened to know also loved this song. Maka was still red, but she seemed entranced and had started to sway slightly to the music, her face blank. Once again, the shadow weapon figured that it was progress as her eyes moved back down again:
"I believe it's meant to be, darlin'. I watch you when you are sleeping, you belong with me. Do you feel the same? Am I only dreaming, or is this burning an eternal flame?"
They had reached the bridge and the two meisters joined in with the deathscythe again; each slinging an arm around him, they swayed together as they sang.
"Say my name, sun shines through the rain. My whole life so lonely, but you come and ease the pain. I don't want to lose this feeling, oh!" Tsubaki smiled at the slight change in lyrics, smiled at the three boys down there swaying in solidarity, smiled at her friend whose blank look had become a soft smile of her own. The shadow weapon was pretty sure that this was the sweetest, most romantic thing she had ever witnessed, and her heart swelled with happiness because surely, surely, this was it and her two dearest friends would finally be together now!
They kept singing, the song mostly just repeating the chorus with increasing intensity, kept swaying together until it ended. The other boys backed off after the last note rang out, and Soul looked up, his eyes still riveted to his meister as he spoke.
"This is the last one, promise. And I, uh," he suddenly scratched the back of his head nervously. "I know I don't deserve, well, you know. I don't. But, I, uh, I thought—" he just shook his head, reddening, and started strumming the guitar again. He was still clearly drunk, as were Black*Star and Kilik, who were nudging at him to continue—Tsubaki could read all the signs in their sluggishness—but he was coming to some sort of end, here, and perhaps the alcohol was fading enough to leave him feeling vulnerable. The shadow weapon felt for him, but she knew this couldn't end badly because whatever else Maka might be feeling at any given moment, now or later, Tsubaki was sure that her friend loved her weapon. Glancing at thy scythe meister, the dark arm noticed that she was red again, her arms now crossed over her chest to ward off the cold, but she wasn't fidgeting quite as much and that was another good sign.
The song itself began with his guitar strumming a bar before he cut in.
"Listen?" Soul sang, followed by Star and Kilik leaning in to add "Do da do!"
"Do you want to know a secret?" came Soul's deep voice again, and another round of "do da do!"
"Do you promise not to tell?" He leaned closer to the mic, but his eyes remained on the girl he was singing to, and all three belted out "whoooa whoa whoa!"
The death scythe was smiling softly as he continued, and next to him, Kilik and Black*Star crooked beaconing fingers as Soul continued, every line followed by their response:
"Closer."
"Do da do!"
"Let me whisper in your ear."
"Do da do!"
"Say the words you long to heaaaar. I'm in love with you. Wooo-oooo-ooo! I've known the secret for a year or two," again, Tsubaki smiled at the small change, "nobody knows, just we twoooo!" Soul cut off and smiled sheepishly as he spoke into the mic for a second, reddening. "And, well, maybe, sort of, all of Spartoi now, but uh," he shook his head, his face scarlet, and started strumming again, "anyway," another head shake and then he took up the song again, which just repeated itself through the chorus.
Tsubaki found herself a little lost in the sweet silliness of it all. It was really romantic, and she thought Maka must see it, too, and she smiled down at the whole spectacle happily as the song finally came to an end, Kilik and Black*Star's arms slung around Soul a final time as they all looked up at the balcony. Tsubaki looked over to Maka, wanting to see her reaction, but the spot where her friend had been standing only moments ago was empty and the shadow weapon heard a soft whump on the grass below where the meister had jumped from the balcony to land in a crouch, dress riding up her thighs at the motion, before she straightened and strode over to the van. She looked up at her weapon, who was looking down at her, wide eyed.
"Can we talk?" she was tapping a foot expectantly, one hand on her hip.
"Uhhhh…" Soul said articulately as he shook his head, clearly not having planned this past the serenade. Black*Star groaned "Awww, man!" and Kilik just shrugged helplessly.
"Whatever. Guess I'll come to you," she announced before making a running vault up the front of the van to land gracefully on top, the three guys having backed off to make room.
"We'll just uh, leave you two alone, then," Kilik grinned between the two of them as he grabbed Black*Star and pulled him in a jump off the van. The utility meister landed in a skilled crouch, but the assassin, caught off guard, hit the ground in a heap with a loud, "umph," and then growled a low "what the fuck, man?" at Kilik, who shrugged again. Tsubaki didn't see anymore, however, because her eyes shot back to the top of the van, where Maka had slowly approached her scythe. Soul took a nervous step backwards, his bravado quickly fading when faced with the object of his affections so near. Tsubaki saw that the scythe meister was frowning at her weapon, her fists clenched at her side.
"Maka I, uh, I'm—" He looked so unhappy, so defeated, that Tsubaki wanted to run down and hug him. Why was Maka doing this? Shouldn't she be—
"How long?" she said finally.
"Huh?" Soul looked dumbfounded, looked like he wanted to escape, looked ready to curl up and die, and Tsubaki was equally confused by the question, equally upset by the outcome.
"How long have you felt this way?" The meister repeated slowly, patiently, as if she were speaking to a small child. Soul met his meister's gaze, his cheeks dusted red, his hand rising to nervously scratch the back of his neck again.
"Dunno. Couple of years."
"A couple of years?" her voice was incredulous, almost outraged, and she took another step forward, backing him to the edge of the van.
"Um, yes? I just…" he trailed off and smiled nervously, a broken smile, as he shook his head. They were speaking quietly enough that they would have been inaudible from the distance but for the mic picking up their voices. For several moments, the meister said nothing. Then, she took another step forward, standing directly before her weapon, and this time, he had no place to go. Tsubaki noticed that her friend's face had softened, and as Maka reached up a hand, Soul flinched back as if expecting her to strike him, but she only put her hand on his cheek softly, meeting his eyes.
Maka took a deep breath and stroked his cheek as he leaned into her touch, his eyes closing at the contact. Finally, she spoke again softly, so softly that the mic barely picked it up.
"I love you too, idiot," she said before removing her hand, holding it with her other hand in front of her and fidgeting slightly. Tsubaki could tell that her friend was nervous and was proud of her—she knew how hard it had to have been to say that, to tell the truth instead of flying off the handle and running away.
"R..really?" A goofy, hopeful little smile lit on Soul's face and Maka returned the smile before laughing. The mood lifted, lightened, and the shadow weapon felt her own lips turning up with her relief.
"Why else would I put up with your drunk antics without chopping you?"
"Hey, you like my drunk antics, admit it," he grinned. 'Sides, yer the one who asked for it."
"Nope," Maka grinned back at him. "That was Liz. She swiped my phone." "Ohh…" he groaned suddenly, shaking his head. "Sorry."
"Don't be. It was—sort of cute.
"Cute? You mean totally sexy, right?" He grinned widely again, waggling his eyebrows.
His meister's response was to punched him in the arm with a huff. "Don't push your luck. Nice outfit, by the way," Maka swept her gaze up and down her partner with a snort. "Really classy."
"Hey, it's supposed to be cool," he pouted.
"Supposed being operative," she smiled fondly and shook her head.
"But, uh, you look good. Um, beautiful," Soul said suddenly, his gaze sweeping her form as hers just had his a few moments ago.
"Oh—um—thanks," Maka went scarlet with the complement, causing her weapon to stretch his lips into his own fond smile.
They both looked at each other after that for several moments, the awkwardness heavy in the air between them. Considering the half dozen odd people who stood as their audience, it was almost eerily quiet; everyone was clearly as eager as Tsubaki was to hear the drama play out.
"So, uh, what now?" Maka asked, fidgeting her hands again in her renewed nervousness.
"Uhhhh…" Soul seemed to think for a moment, his hazy brain working through her words, then grinned suddenly. "I know!" He offered another goofy grin and Maka raised a skeptical eyebrow.
"Well?"
"Just... This." He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers and Tsubaki gasped then grinned a bit goofily herself as she witnessed it all with sheer delight.
Maka appeared a bit stunned for an instant, but only an instant, before she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him back. He pulled her closer, and as what began as a chaste kiss got more heated, Black*Star whooped from somewhere below and the rest of Spartoi let out a cheer, causing the two on the van to break apart suddenly, each face flaming.
Weapon and Meister looked at each other for a minute, some unspoken communication clearly passing between them, because a few moments later, Soul transformed into his Maka's waiting hand, she mounted his haft, and they sprouted wings. Their flight was a little wobbly—Soul was still pretty drunk—but soon they disappeared into the night to another round of cheers and a scream of "get 'er done!" from Black*Star that caused Tsubaki to shake her head with an exasperated little smile.
The shadow weapon did not cheer, but she did hug herself, her smile growing as she watched them fly away. After all, in such a moment, they probably wanted to be alone, and really, they deserved to be.
As others began to realize the show was over, the boys were dragged into the mansion and the slumber party became a celebration of the two who had left. Not long after, as Tsubaki danced with her meister, she couldn't help but to hope that her time would come soon as well, but for now, she was just happy for her friends, pleased to have witnessed such a silly and drunken, yet also sweet and perfect declaration of their love.
