Happy Halloween! Even though this is late. Sorry if it's a bit rushed near the end but I was running out of ideas. Plus this is already late and I didn't want it TOO late. Warning: there is a long authors note explaining some things at the end. Other then that this is the longest chaper I have done. Word count: 11, 161.
After spending nearly all my time shopping, cutting, and measuring my costume finished at last. I figured today would be a normal day at SOILDER but I was wrong. Genesis came busting through my room three weeks earlier with two invitations. One was for me and the second for a guest of my choice. I nearly ripped my hair just decideing what I was going to wear. In case anyone was wondering I was going to a ball at the President's building for a party. It wasn't going to by any ordinary party though. It was a Masquerade. Complete with mask, tuxedos, and pretty dresses to go with whatever the girls felt like dressing up as.
It was unexpected but the whole reason for the party was for an anniversy(sp?). This was the 100th year that SOILDER has been around. Ironiclly it's been was created on Halloween. I've never been to one before because I wasn't required to go. It was optional for Seconds, but First had no choice but to go. It gave off a good impression and showed we weren't all that bad. Genesis had begged me to with him for the past year but I refused. He figured I was going to another Halloween party. Actully I went trick or treating with Zack but I'll never tell him that.
I had about four hours until the party started. It was from about seven p.m. to one a.m. I had already given out my extra invitation to Slicer. The noobs weren't allowed to come because they still didn't understand the true meaning of SOILDER or something like that. Barely any of Thirds were allowed to come. Just the ones who were considered the best. Unless they were invited by a Second or First they couldn't come anywhere near the building.
He accepted my invitation happily, excited that he could go. I would have brought Aerith but Zack beat me to the punch. That resulted in me actully punching him because he knew I was going to ask her. For our costumes I wanted to be a dark fairy but Aerith wanted to be a fairy too. She decided to be a regular earth fairy and there went my idea. Well not really but it would be weird if we were both faries normal or not. I still managed to make both of our costumes in the nick of time. She had a long dress that would make people stop and stare.
Her costume was a beatiful sparkling green dress complete with a pair of small sparkly wings. There were parts of light blue, brown, pink, and a few different shades of green. The top looked like silk and had mutiple shades of green jewels along the hem. It flared out at the bottem where it had the mutiple many different colors to go with the earth. Her mask was a light green with small leaves, flowers and music notes on it.
Her hair would be down and in waves. The wings and mask would have glitter along the edges and along other lines. She would really shine at the party. To top it off she would have green flower shapped earrings and a headband. It looked like it was woven out of vines and leaves and flowers topped it off. The whole thing was silver that matched her outfit. The headband was more like a crown so she looked like a fairy princess. She even got a wand to make the costume better.
I still managed to come up with something and told Slicer. He knew what I planned to wear and he agreed to find a somewhat matching outfit. It took me forever to find a theme for our costumes. I thought about having a vampire theme but I'm not a vampire fan. Genesis suggested I be a werewolf instead because one of the werewolf colors was purple. I'm not sure how purple was a werewolf color. I think he just meant it was a female werewolf color. Even though I love purple I chose not to be a werewolf either.
Zack suggested I be a phenox and Genesis agreed. He even knew where I could get some firey looking red wings. I thought about it but chose not to. Angeal suggested a zombie or a egyptian princess. I turned down both idea's. After much debate with the guys I also declinded the skeleton bride, witch, ninja(not sure how that came up), grimm reaper, cat, and santa themes. I came up with my decision talking to Slicer about the weather. He meationed it being cold after I gave him invitaion and I got my idea.
I ran my hand through my now long hair. It grew back faster then I thought it would. It was now down the middle of my back. I'm hopeing it's because of the mako energy that made it grow so fast. Genesis confirmed it and I felt so relieved. Khristof was watching me on my bed. I knew he wanted to come and I would bring him. I took off his regular collar and put on a blue one that matched my theme. I wasn't sure if it would work but I used materia on him to change his fur color. It worked much to my surprise. He looked just as cute with white fur as he did with black fur.
I left Khristof on my bed next to a black bag that held my costume as I took a shower. I let my hair down so it frammed my face instead of slicking it back like a lion's. after washing it about three times I squeezed a base onto my hair then rubbed it in. After a minute or two I washed it out and squeezed another chemical onto it. After about ten minutes I washed the second chemical out. I stood under the hot spray watching the bubbles dissapear down the drain. I hoped the hair dye would work, if not I had a wig in my closet just in case. I rubbed my hair a few more times just to make sure there wasn't any leftover and stepped out.
I dried off quickly and checked the time. There was still about three and a half hours left before the party started. I had two hours until Slicer came to escourt me to the ball as he liked to call it. Slicer decided he would take me out to choose a bouquet of flowers for my costume and for a bag or something to keep Khristof in. I didn't mind him walking around, I just didn't want anyone to step on him as they danced. Reno would come to pick us up after that and give us a ride there. It would take about thirty minutes to pick us up and to go back, so we would be about thirty minutes late.
As long as we got there it wouldn't matter how late we were. Once I finished drying off and had my my bra and underwear on I took a look at my hair. It was dyed the perfect color. It didn't stand out as much but I wasn't worried. Slicer was going to bring me hair spray to help it stand out more. Not the kind he used to make it stand up but just to bring out the color. I still had two diffucult task to do in less then three hours. I did a few practice runs and it took me nearely four hours to get it all right. I was getting faster at it so I wasn't too worried.
I started with the dress. It had mutiple strapes that had to be tied in certain places. I wanted to get it done in time but I took my time to make sure it was done right. It took me about a half hour before I was sure it was on right. I strapped up my high heals and slipped them on. Now it was time for the most diffucult part. My hair and makeup. I could have done them first but I didn't want to risk messing up my hair or getting makeup on my dress. I could still get a smidge on my dress but at least it wouldn't be a lot.
I started on my hair first. I combed it out and managed to make my naturally straight hair wavy. That also took me about thirty minutes since my hair was so untamed. I now had an hour to do my makeup. I started with powder to make my skin look pale. Picking up my eyeliner and other things I got to work on my eyes. They had a beatiful shadow look to them that brought out my eyes. I topped it of with blue colored contacts that I had bought earlier today. I then used black eyeliner to outline my lips. Blue lipstick on the bottem lip and white lipstick on the top lip complete it.
Picking up a small brush I applied a bit of blue glitter to my cheeks. Once that was done I took my extra make up pencils and drew a large design over my left eye. I also drew a few more of the design on my somewhat exposed chest and around my other eye. I let the makeup sit for about fourty minutes to make sure it wouldn't rub off before putting on my mask. During that time I painted my nails and toenails to match my dress. I also added a few more dye to my hair that could just be sprayed on. It was applied to the tips of my hair and bangs.
I gave Kristof some food whie I waited for the makeup to be done. As he ate I put on a choker to match the designs on my face and a few silver bracelets. I opened a small box on my nightstand to pull out a pair of earrings. They matched my theme and glittered in the light when I held them. Kristof finished eatting and had jumped back onto my bed while I was putting the earrings in. I turned to him and held out my hands as if asking him what he thought. HE barked happily and wagged his tail. I'm guessing that was his way of saying he liked it.
I looked into my full length mirror and my jaw nearly dropped. I already knew my costume would attract attention when I put it on. The other three First classes all nearly had nose bleeds just seeing me wearing the dress. When I put on the makeup they were all speeceless. This was the first time I wore both the dress and the makeup together. I had to admit I did look amazing. I could hardly believe I was looking at myself. It felt like looking at a completely different person. Slicer would be so surprised once he got a look at me.
Just for the heck of it I twirled around in the mirror to get a good look at myself. My phone rang while I admiring myself. Yes it was a very selfish move but I couldn't help it. I checked my phone and reconized the number from the front desk in the lobby. I sat down on my bed, careful not to mess up my dress, and answered.
"Ms. Yuki-Hana, theres a young man here who says he's a friend of yours. He also says he's here to take you to the ball."
"He is. Just tell him where my room is and send him up." I replied. I hung up without another word.
Slicer was here, right on time I might add. I only had about five minutes to get my last minute things before he made it to my room. I reapplied a bit more make up along my arms and chest. Although I didn't want to I managed to cover up the tattoo on my chest with a lot of makeup. After makeing sure the dark tattoo couldn't be seen through the light foundation I attempted to even it out.
There was a knock at my door while I was making a new design. After carefully adding the finishing touches I checked my makeup and applied a bit more before walking towards the door. I took a deep breath and opened it. Slicer stood in the doorway wearing a white suit made of silk. He had a deep blue velvet tie with a small design to go with our theme. The buttons on his suit and cuffs were black along with his shoes. His spikey hair was a little tamed and not as spikey.
Slicer's hair was also dyed the same color as mine. He also came up with the idea to spaypaint the tips of his hair, or better yet his spikes. The only difference was that his hair shone even in the low lighting of my room. His skin also looked pale and he held out a corsage for me in his hand. It was a white rose with a small blue ribbon tied around it. The tips of the petals were blue. It had a thicker blue and white ribbon to slip over my wrist. In his other hand he held a small bag most likely the hairspray to make my hair shine too.
When he looked at me his jaw hung open. He looked, well speeceless. I gave him a little smile and held out my hands to either side of me.
"Well, what do you think?" Kitty asked.
What did I think? I thought she looked like a goddess. Her hair was all white with deep blue tips just like mine. Her hair fell around her shoulders in waves. Her bangs barely touched her eyes. They were shadowed different shades of blue. Around her eyes were snowflakes, one large one around her left and smaller ones around her right. They were the right size to be seen around and under her mask. Her lips were covered in blue and white and they were outlined in black. Kitty's skin was also pale and I could tell it was from power from the large poder puff in her room. It would have been easier to use body spraypaint. Her cheeks had a light blue sparkly blush on them.
I noticed her nails were painted blue and tiny snowflakes were painted on them. She also wore deep blue contacts. I could tell she put a lot of time into this. I felt like I barely had to do anything. I just got fitted for a suit and spraypainted myself. Her shoes were high healed from what I could tell. Behing her I could see Kristof sitting on her bed staring at me. I was too focased on her to care.
Her dress was the most stunning thing I've ever seen. I knew she was making her dress but I didn't expect her to go all out. Her arms were bare save for the silver bracelets. She wore a corset style dress that looked like it should have made her breast look smaller. It made them stand out more then they already did. The corset was deep blue and white in the middle. The white was in a large V shape and clearly it was made of silk. The blue was made out of velvet with a bit of glitter on it.. Blue strings went in criss-cross patterns across her chest.
Her dress flared out a little around her waist. It looked to be made out of silk. It too had different shades of blue but it was mostly dark blue. There were snowflakes along the skirt that sparkled when she moved. The most beatiful thing about her... I mean her dress was the bells she had attached to the dress. They were tiny but still made noise, a soft ringing that was sweet and gentle. The bells were in a V shape along her corset.
"Y-you look g-great..." I stuttered. Man what was wrong with me?
Kitty moved to the side so I could come in. I've seen her room before but It still amazed me. Once I went into the room I turned back to face her with the can for her hair in my hand. Thats when I noticed there were blue chains along her hips and hanging freely at her sides, about six all around. The bells on Kitty's dress jingled as she came and carefully sat in a chair. She turned her back to me. Thats when I remember I had the can in my hair. I carefully began to spray her hair.
It took about all of two minutes. Once I was done her hair shone just like mine. While the spray dyed I pulled out a second can and began shaking it. Mika had gotten up and taken a look in a mirror. I could see her reflection in the mirror, she looked really happy. I was so caught up at looking at her I forgot the can in my hand. The can was starting to make noise signiling it was done. Kitty turned back towards me eyeing the can.
"What's that?" she asked.
"It's for your skin." I replied. "It makes the paleness last longer. And cause it to stand out more."
She still eyed the can but calmly walked over to me. She held her breath and closed her eyes. I began on her face, and then to her neck and chest once she removed her choker. I didnt notice it before, along with the fake tattoo on her breat where the pawprint used to be. I tried not to stare while I worked but it was diffucult. She took off her bracelets and I began on her arms. I was very careful not to get any on her dress. Once I finished I told her it was ok to breath.
She turned and looked back in the mirror. She looked ghostly pale now instead of slightly pale. The powder barely covered her tan, with the bodyspray it made her look amazing. Her hair had dried now and still shone in the light. She was beatiful, although I wished she didn't have to wear the mask. It would cover up her face. Her skin was dry in about a minute and it began to shine too. I touched her arm lightly without reliazing it. I didn't even notice when I walked over to her, only that I was there. She turned around to look at me.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"Just checking to make sure it's dry. Dont want it to rub off if you get touched." I lied. I just needed an excuse.
She touched her arm and nothing came off. She even rubbed it a few times to make sure, but there was still nothing. She smiled confirming that I wasn't lying. It was once she smiled that I noticed the bodyspray had caused her makuup to stand out too. The blue snowflakes on her skin more then anything else. I put both cans in the small bag and pulled out a small dog harness. She eyed it questionaly.
"I thought we were going to go out and look for a bag." she said. "Why the harness?"
"We weren't the only ones," I replied "who wanted to put their pets in bags this Halloween. I thought I could surprise you and get the bag before I came here. But all the stores were out."
She gave a small smile as she looked at it. It was a plain light blue harness, adjustable so Kristof would fit into it. Kitty stood on her toes and kissed my cheek lightly. I could feel the heat rising to my face and tried to cover it with my hand. She didn't notice and thanked me for the harness. After Kristof was secure I put back on her bracelets and the corsage I got her. Once finished I held out my arm for her. She linked her arm with mine while the other hand held Kristof's harness. I led her out the building with a smile on my face, as we went to get out last minute things.
Although Slicer got me the harness for Kristof he managed to find a regular purse for me. I had a tiny one with me, holding my makeup and some gil. Slicer held both of our mask in his pockets along with our phones and emergency materia. The bag he found was large enough to hold Kristof and had a adjustable strap. It was blue and had snowflakes falling down into a big pile of snow printed on the front. It even had the first part of my last name printed on it along with some other word. The clerk told me it meant beatiful. Slicer proved him wrong by useing a translator on his phone. It meant princess. Either way I got it. Slicer chose to pay for it like a gentleman. I just placed my phone and mask in my purse along with the mini one. I also took the materia as being the only one qualified to actully have it.
Our next trip was to a florast to get my flowers. People stopped to stare at us as we walked by. I bet we looked quite the sight, like a snow prince and princess. Once at the florast Slicer managed to get twelve of the same type of rose he used for my corsage. Slicer took the largest rose and held it out for me. I took out a second and held it for Slicer to put on his suit. After cutting off part of the stems I handed the one to Slicer. I took small parts of my hair and tyed it in a loose knot around the second flowers short stem.
The bouquet had thick blue and white ribbons with snowflakes (that were attached to the purse) and tied them around the bouquet. They also had the same type of bells I put on my dress tied around it. They came with the flowers along with a big blue ribbon. I cut off parts of the ribbon and carefully tied it around Kristof's collar. I'm not the dress up your pet type but it fit and he didn't seem to mind it. Nor did he ming being in the purse next to a few other items.
Once I finished I felt something light fall onto my head. I turned around to see Slicer smiling and holding a small hand mirror. He placed a fake tiara on my head. It was silver and had blue gems in it that formed a snowflake. It was so beatifully done that it looked real, but with my enhanced eyesight I could tell it was fake. But I could barely tell. He too, wore something on his head: a small crown. It was similar to mine. I smiled back at him and thanked him.
I called Reno to pick us up once we were ready. While we waited we chatted about random things, how we thought the party would be, who would be there, the costumes. Slicer kept saying how excited he was because he got to go. Then he told me a story about how the other noobs acted to his ticket. A few got pissed, some were happy for him, one or two tried to destroy the ticket, the rest just plain didnt talk to him. I felt kinda bad once hearing about it. I knew he was already being hassled by the others for being the weakest, now they had more reason to mess with him. If they did he would have me to back him up.
Reno pulled up a little earlier then expected. He had on his usual Turk uniform only now he wore a red phenox mask. He held open the door of his car for us and bowed. When he stood back up he got a look at us and nearly panicked.
"Holy shit! You guys look amazing, yo!" he yelled. Everyone on the street stopped to watch us.
"Thanks Reno." I said.
He ushered the two of us inside the car and shut the door. Rude was in the front seat but he turned to us once we got in. His mask was plain grey, it was shapped like a Phantom of the Opera mask. He too was speechless until Reno hit him.
"Dont they look amazing?" Reno yelled in Rude's ear.
"Very. Like a snow king and queen. Where are your mask?" he asked
"We have them." Slicer replied. Rude eyed him causiosly
"So your this Slicer that Mika had taken under her wing." he said. It was more of a statement then a question.
"Yes I am. Don't worry, I'll take good care of her tonight." he said placing an arm around my shoulders.
"Good." he grunted. He turned back around and sat with his arms crossed.
"Put your masks on, yo." Reno said buckling up. "We'll be there in twenty minutes or less."
Slicer and I tied our mask around our faces. Mine only went to my eyes and halfway to my nose. It was blue with a snowflakes along it. Slicer's was the same only his extended to the tip of his nose. Mine had snowflakes that looked like they were blowing in the wind. His just looked like it was falling normally. Both of our mask sparkled in the light and were tied with dark blue ribbons. We buckled up and waited to arrive at the party.
I soon found out why Reno got here so fast, he drove like a mad man. Slicer and I were thrown back into the leather seats as far back as we could go. I held onto his hand for dear life as we zoomed by, barely making lights and cutting off traffic. By the time we arrived we were only ten minutes late and everyone had arrived. Rude mentioned that we were the last on the list to the man holding a clipboard by the front doors. He let us through.
From there Reno and Rude had to meat up with the President's son who was here to represent him. They gave us directions on how to the ballroom and left. We made out way just fine and could hear the voices and light music coming from the ballroom. They failed to mention to get there you had to walk down a giant flight of stairs to get there. I could see the people and there costumes. Many women chose the vampire theme. None of them wore white so I knew I would stand out.
The room was beatifuly decorated. Orange and black streemers covered the ceiling and smoke from fog machines covered the floor. It reached up to everyones knees and gently swirled around as people moved. The room was slightly dark but had candles lit up all around the room. A giant chandelier hung in the middle of the room giving off soft hues of light. From my distance I could see Reno and Rude standing next to a man with blond hair. His back was towards me so I couldn't see his face.
A bright flash of green drew my attention and I saw Aerith. She was standing next to Zack chatting away with the three First class generals. Her dress did sparkle but not by much, the colors were also a bit faded. She must have washed it or something because it should be shinier then that. A little ways away I could see Leo talking to Lazard. Both were in suits and wearing mask of course. I wasn't ready for this. I'm not the grab your attention type of person. I knew I attracted a lot of attention because of my costume, the last thing I wanted was to be the center of attention. I felt Slicer's hand on my shoulder.
"You ok, Kitty?" he asked.
"Fine, just bracing myself." I replied.
"For what?"
"For the long walk down." I said sadly.
"Let's just go." he said. "I dont want everyone to stare at us either but lets get it over with."
"Alright." I replied. I took a few deep breaths and then relaxed.
"Ready Princess Kitty?" he asked.
"As ready as I'll ever be, Sir Slicer." I said.
Slicer held out his arm and I lightly gripped it. Kristof gently touched my arm with his little nose to comfort me. I'm guessing he didn't lick me because of all the stuff on another deep breath we began the long horrible trek down the steps. As we decended I could already feel the eyes on us and hear the gasp. This was going to be a long night.
Aerith and I were talking to Genesis, Angeal, and Sepheroth when the whispers started. We were having discussions about our mask and how they actully related to us at first. Angeal had a white angel mask on, and Genesis was wearing a black and red vampire type of mask. Sepheroth wore a grey and white catlike mask (that plus his eyes was hilarious) and I wore a dark green mask. Mine was to have sometype of forest on it to go with Aerith's theme. Somehow (according to Angeal) it made me look a bit more like a puppy. I'm not sure how and I didn't want to know why.
Aerith's costume had surprised me a bit. I figured she wear white or pink because of her flowers. Instead she shown up in a stunning dress in many different shades of green. It had a small glimmer to it which I thought could have been a bit brighter. It looked a bit worn though, and she admitted that she had washed it even though Mika warned her not to. It confused me why until she told me that Mika made both of their dresses.
I asked her what Mika was wearing but she replied that she didn't know. The others knew but refused to tell me. Sepheroth also mentioned that Mika would be comeing alone. At the mention of that Aerith wanted to drag me off so we could go get her and I agreed completely. I know we haven't seen each other in a while but she still didn't deserve having to come here all alone. Before we could however, people started to gasp and whisper.
Then they began to increase in volume. Everyone started to get a better look at a couple just arriveing. I ignored it and continued with our conversation like nothing ever happened. The light music that filled the room falttered and finially stopped. I ignored everything and tried to stick to the conversation. It was diffucult though because the surprised sounds of everyone else was overpowering our voices.
"Who is that girl?"
"Look at her dress!"
"That guy is lucky as hell to score a chick like that!"
"Who's that she's with?"
"She looks like a pincess!"
"Aren't their costumes just to die for?"
"I wish I had a dress like that!"
"Have you ever seen such a cute couple?"
"It's like a prince and princess made from the snow."
I ignored everyone else as I tried to stick to the topic on hand. Aerith and I were trying to figure out where we were going to get Mika if she hasn't left yet. Genesis suddenly dropped out of the conversation and looked up, at what I'm guessing was, the couple everyone was talking about. A smile suddenly spread out on his face as he looked on happily. I tried snapping my fingers to get his attention but to no avail.
Sepheroth looked up too and a smile broke out on his face. Angeal had done the same. All three generals looked a bit awestruck at what they saw. Around this point the head musian continued to play where he left off. The others slowly continued to play along. Aerith turned around and gasped, she began to tug on my sleve willing me to turn and look.
I still tried to get the other's attention back to the conversation. Didn't they know that getting to Mika was more important then looking at some new couple? The crowd started to bunch together trying to get a better look over someone else's head. I ended up getting seperated from everyone else. Somehow I was now near the front of the group with my back towards the stairs. Everyone else in the room was still talking about them.
"Look at that cute little dog!"
"I wish I was with that guy..."
"Look at their hair! It's so beatiful!"
"They look so cold."
"They look so calm and collected!"
"They look like royalty."
"Dont they look adorable?"
"Isn't that guy hot?"
"She reminds me of Cinderella."
"Isn't that the new First class SOILDER?"
"It is! It's Mika!"
At the mention of her name I whipped around to see if it was true. It was, and it was the most stunning thing I've ever seen. Mika's skin and hair almost shone in the low light of the room. Her dress was many different shades of blue with a somewhat white corset. The dress actully had bells, real bells, going down it and hanging from her waist. She had a giant snowflake design over where the tattoo on her chest used to be. Snowflakes also decorated her face and mask, along with all of her jewelry. I easily reconized Kristof riding in the bag handing from her shoulder.
She truely did at that moment, look like a princess. But that was when I noticed the guy desending the stairs with her. He was in a simple black tux with a shirt, tie, and mask to match her dress. He had spiky white hair with blue tips and plae skin that also seemed to glow in the light. Both Mika and the Stranger looked nervous at all the attention they were getting. As they neared the end of the stairs, the fog began to swirl at their ankles. It settled at their knees when they ended at the bottem of the steps.
The music stopped playing as they made it to the bottem. They stood there for a minute,s till looking nervous at all the attention. Everyone staired at them waiting to see what they would do. It was quite for a moment before anyone actully did anything. Before I could get to them Leo Night, my old commander, stepped forward to greet them. Not long after he did the music began to play again. It was a sweet song, but had a bit of a chill to it. Just like Mika's costume. Aerith had arrived next to me while I was stairing at them. She too was caught up in the way they looked.
"She looks amazing! Don't you think so Zack?" she asked.
"Yeah, she does." I said quitely.
"Come on," she said as she pulled me towards her. "lets go say hi. I dont think I've ever met that guy before."
Sepheroth, Genesis and Angeal had joined them as well and they began to look less nervous. Once we reached them the stranger with Mika eyed me warily. I'm sure I've never met the guy before, so why did he look like he didn't like me?
"Hey, Mika!" I said patting her on the head.
"Zack! Nice to see you!" she grinned. Aerith had come up to hug her too.
"You look amazing Mika!" she exclaimed.
"I can see you washed the dress," she said, "although I warned you not to."
"Sorry about that." Aerith replied while rubbing the back of her head. "I spilled some juice on it."
Mika just shook her head with a smile on her face. I took this time to sneak another glance at the stranger. He must have felt my eyes on him because he turned his head until his eyes met mine. He was stilll giving me this weird look until Mika lightly hit him on the back of the head.
"I dont think either of you have met each other have you?" she asked.
"No." both of us replied.
"Well then, Puppy this is Slicer." she said gesturing to the guy she was with. "Slicer this is Puppy."
"Your name is Slicer?" I asked him.
"Yes." he replied.
"What kind of name is that?" I asked.
"It's my name." he replied glaring at me.
"Play nice you two." Aerith spoke up next to me.
This guy really made me uncomfortable. I was vagely aware of the music coming to a stop and everyone applauding. This 'Slicer' was still watching me, even though he must of thought I wouldn't have notice. Before I could say anything The band started up again with a simple tune that I couldn't name. It was a song made for everyone to dance. Mika took Slicer's arm and led him to the middle of the room to dance, but not before handing Kristof to Angeal who was going to sit this out.
Sepheroth decided to sit out too despite all the girls begging him to dance. Genesis decided to dance with and older woman who he seemed very friendly with (Angeal's mom). I took Aerith's hand and led her out onto the dance floor along with everyone else. Everyone else had started dancing to a simple waltz. I'm so glad that Mika managed to fit in teaching me how to dance along with making her costume. Also with training her new friend trying to get into SOILDER. Although I've never met him I would have liked to thank him for keeping Mika company while I was gone.
I didn't like the way the guy with the spiky black hair looked at her. Something about that look just set me off. A part of me wanted to go back and punch him, but the other part didn't want to upset Kitty. I'm so whipped, and I've known her for a month and a half.
"You ok there?" I heard her ask.
"Why wouldn't I be?" I asked her. She raised an eyebrow and made a face before answering.
"Well you didn't seem happy and you were making faces." she said.
"I'm fine Kitty." I replied. "Now lets dance, the music's starting."
I reconized the moves to be some kind of waltz. It seemed a bit different then a normal one though. The music was soft and elegant, most likely something you would here from a few hundred years ago. I placed on hand on Kitty's shoulder and placed the other on her waist.
While we were dancing the crowd shifted and exchanged partners. I danced with some random girl in a bright pink dress before the crowd shifted again. Kitty ended back up in my arms. She was smiling at what I could guess was her excitement at being here. We danced in silence before I switched partners again. This time I danced with the old woman who was dancing with Genesis. From what I could see she was dancing with Reno, I think. The song ended after a few minutes and everyone clapped. Another song, similar to the first began and I continued to dance with the older woman. She seemed pretty nice, I actully enjoyed dancing with her.
After a while the crowd shifted once again before I ended up with a new girl. I danced with her until the song ended, it was shorter then the first. The next song started up almost instantly. It was a bit fatser and required a lot of twirling. All around me I could see bright flashes of color from the women's dresses as they kept up with the music. As I danced I caught a flash of a fimilair dress before My sight was cut off again by the many colors. The last thing I saw was Kitty's smile before her cousin Aerith ended up in my arms.
After getting seperated from Slicer I ended up with a stranger. The guy was a good dancer, and he was pretty handsome from what I could see. We danced for a minute before he twirled me around and into the arms of someone else. I couldn't tell who it was at first but he felt familiar. His blond hair was slicked back and he was wearing a all white suit with a black tie. After a moment it clicked that this was Rufus ShinRa.
"Hello Ms. Mika." he said. "It's nice to meet you at last."
"N-nice to meet you too Sir."I stamered a bit nervously.
"You dont have to be formal with me." he replied with a sly smile on his face. "Just call me Rufus."
"Um, ok Rufus." I said still slightly nervous.
I knew not to mess with him. The Turks would be after me in a second if I did. I knew Reno and possibly Rude and Tsung would hesitate, but they would still obey orders. I would be eliminated in a hurry if I upset him. I had to make sure to leave a good impression.
"I've always been intrested in you." he said. Then he gave a small laugh at the face I must have been making. "Your the first woman to join SOILDER, and you made it to First class in about a year. Reno brags about you alot."
"Well, I guess I'm just lucky. And Reno brags about everything." I replied.
"Well I supose thats true. By the way," he began, he had a slight frown on his face. " I saw Reno's new hairstyle. Was there any reason to shave Reno's head?" We seperated and he twirled me around a few times before pulling me back.
"It was for revenge and he deserved it." I said. Rufus began laughing at my comment.
"Well thats the best from of revenge I've ever seen." he laughed out.
His laughter erased and all the nervousness I felt around him. He felt no worse then Seperoth but I knew better. WIth just a snap of his fingers he could have anyone killed, being the Presidents son and all. Rufus' laugher caused me to start laughing a bit. We must have looked strange to everyone else, dancing around and laughing almost uncontroably. We managed to calm down in time and catch some air as the song ended. The next song started up almost instantly. It sounded more like a samba and had a nice kick to it. Unfortunaly it was still another song that involved exchanging partners and all that.
"One more thing," he said after a minute of dancing. "I arragined for Reno to bring you to meet me, maybe once, twice a week. Since your nearly the talk of the whole town I feel I should get to know you better. Is that alright with you?"
"Sure." I replied happily. There was no way I could pass this up.
"Good I'll arrange the days for us to meet." he said while twirling me around. "Until next time, Mika."
He twirled me again into the arms of another man I didn't know. For the remainder of the song which lasted a full four minutes, I was passed to two more guys. The song ended at the second guy who knelt and kissed my hand. The band decided to take five and give everyone a break. Luckly for me I wasn't to far away from the snack table. I excused myself to get myself a drink, but then a waiter walked by holding out a tray. My partner got us drinks from the passing waiter.
We chated for a minute about the weather of all things, until the music started again. This time it was a slightly slower song, but it still had a samba beat to it. We bowed to each other and began to dance again. We exchanged partners soon afterwards. Once again I went through another two guys before I stopped at my last partner for this song. I ended up in someone else's arms, who I quickly reconized as Zacks. Zack gave me a smile before twirling me around a bit.
"Are you enjoying this party as much as I am?"
"You bet!" I said with a huge smile on my face.
"Dont you wish we came last year?" he asked.
"I wish we did!" I replied. "We really missed out." The two of us danced a bit more before he spoke up again.
"You know we were about to come look for you." he said suddenly out of the blue.
"We?" I asked. "Whose we?"
"Aerith and me." he replied. "We heard you were coming alone and wanted to come find you."
"And 'I', Zack not 'we'." I said lightly hitting him on the head. "And I would have been fine. I'm a big girl now."
"Says the one who cried during the deaths of Mufasa and Bambi's mom." he replied.
Before I could snap back at him he picked me up around the waist. I used my hand to cover the blush on my face as he spinned me around, like all the other girls in the room. So what if I cried? Simba lost his dad in a stampede and thought it was all his fault. Bambi's mom got shot by a hunter. How could you not cry? He set me back down as I glared at him. I would never admit it, but it felt wonderful to have him do that.
"If we weren't surrounded by a bunch of people I'd bite you right now." I almost snapped at him.
"Why?" he asked. He almost looked hurt.
"You cant mock Bambi and Simba." I replied glaring at him.
"Says the one who actully looks like Simba." he replied smirking.
"You son of a b-"
"Now now," he said putting a finger to my lips. "Were surrounded by nice people. No bad language."
I glared back at him through my mask. I was so going to get him back, I just didn't know how yet. Zack and I danced for another minute of this painfully long song before I was twirled yet again. I had to admit that this was the best time of the night for me. Just being with Zack at this moment made it special. Although I had to admit I was tempted to kiss him. After a few moments of dancing Zack spoke up again.
"Don't worry. I'll make you forgive me once you see your present." he replied.
"Present?" I asked. Before I could ask any more I spun me into someone else, who truned out to be Genesis.
We didn't speak, only danced. While we danced, I noticed Kristof hanging from Genesis shoulder. I'm glad he wasn't motion sick, I was afraid he would get sick at any moment though. This is exactly why I gave him to Angeal, I knew he wasn't going to dance anytime soon. He must have switched places with Genesis and Genesis didn't care if he got sick or not. If Kristof did get sick I'd make sure he threw up all over Genesis bed. I noticed that Genesis didn't look to happy after a minute.
"What's the matter?" I asked. His eyes averted till they met mine and he seemed, sad.
"I'm leaving for Wutai." I could see his body tense up a bit as he said it. He obviously wasn't happy about this.
"What for?" I asked
"A war is starting and they want me to lead our troops." he said. "I'll be leaving tomarrow afternoon."
"Why so soon?" I must have sounded desprete(sp?) or had some look on his face because his expression got a bit sadder.
"It's urgent and getting out of hand over there." he replied.
"When did you get this call? And why cant Sepheroth or Angeal go?" I demanded. I wished none of them would have to go. But I knew it wouldn't be that easy.
"Angeal still has to train Zack," he replied. "and Sepheroth has to take care of some missions in other places. Since I am no longer training you they saw fit to send me."
"Well when are you coming back?"
"I dont know when I'll be back." he said. "And I dont want you worrying about me."
"Then what will I do while your gone?" I replied sounding irritated. The truth was I really needed him around.
"Last week" he said. "I didn't say anything because I knew you'd be upset." I was upset now. It upset me even more he decided to wait to tell me until it was almost time for him to leave.
"But Genesis-"
"Shhh." he said putting a finger over my lips. "I'll be fine. But there's something I want you to promise me before I leave."
"Fine," I mumbled. "what is it?"
"Before I come back" he started, "I want you to tell Zack you love him."
His face was deadly serious so I knew there was no room for arguement. He always gave me that look when he wanted me to do something and not complain about it. I knew he wouldn't take no for a answer so I had no choice but to agree. He still watched me as we danced, waiting for an answer. I've always loved Genesis like a father, I never had my own. He's always been there to take care of me and guide me. Other then Zack's parents of course and the other villagers of Gongaga.
"I will." I replied quitely.
"Good," he replied giving me a small hug. "I know you feel like you cant tell him now, but I hope you will find a way to say it."
"I'm sure I will." I said. Actully I'm sure I wouldn't be able to tell him. But a promise is a promise.
"Behave yourself." he said. He leaned over to whisper in my ear. "And if anyone ever gives you trouble, remember to grab, twist, and pull." (this is what my best friend says you should do in case someone tries to rape you.)
Genesis gave me a smile and a small peck on the forehead before I was handed off to a smirking Leo. Before he let go he put the bag that held Kristof over my head. I managed to catch Genesis dancing with another girl out of the corner of my eye. He must have known I was looking at him because he gave me another smile. He was soon cut out of my line of vision by Leo who twirled me around on time to the music. When I looked back I couldn't see him.
The song ended and we took a quick break. It started back up after a minute and we continued to dance. Somehow Leo and I danced near the edge of the group of people. I caught a glimpse of Sepheroth from just over Leo's shoulder. He held out his hand and took my bag, which contained Kristof. I gave him a smile and a silent thank you before we were swept up by the crowd again.
I looked back towards Leo who gave me a reasurring smile. It was like he was telling me that everything would be alright without saying a word. Leo was always good at that. Somehow Leo's smile did comfort me and I instantly felt better. Because I knew he would be ok. Genesis may only be second comparied to Sepheroth but he could handle himself. But I still hoped my old mentor, and friend, would come back safely.
Leo and I danced for a minute before he passed me over to Slicer. The two of us talked a bit about how things were going before the music stopped again. The band had taken a longer break this time. We took this oppritunity to get some food from the table. We met up with Zack, Aerith and Angeal to chat for a bit. I zoned out of the conversation for a bit and stole a few glances at Zack. I knew what Genesis wanted me to do, but I was too afraid to do it. I had to keep my promise to him no matter what. How was I going to be able to tell Zack that I love him after all this time?
Once the music started up again I dragged Slicer onto the dance floor for one last dance. I noticed he gave Zack this odd look but I ignored it for the time being. The next song went by so fast it was almost a blur. People were constantly bumping into each other. I was nearly breathless at the speed of it. By the time the music stopped both me and Slicer were breathless. The crowd was pressed tightly together making it hard to move.
My body was pressed up tightly against Slicer's. I turned my head to the side to look at him but was met with a different surprise: My lips ended up landed on his. I tried to back up but the crowd ended up pussing me closer to him. To anyone else we would pretty much look like we were making out. I felt a slight blush rise up to my face the same time one came to Slicer's. The look on his face was completely surprised, I hope this wasn't as uncomfortable for him as much as it was for me.
I knew it was an accident, but I still didn't know how to react. I just couldn't move, and neither could she. I knew my face had to be a beet red even through all the stuff sprayed on my face. We were still surrounded by people and forcably pressed against each other. I caught a two bits of red out of the corner of my eye. The first was Reno, and he looked extremly pissed. The second was Genesis, and he actully looked happy. After another uncomfortable moment the crowd loosened up a bit and we were able to seperate. I glanced back down to Kitty and met her eyes.
She didn't say a word, all she did was give me a small smile like she was ok with it. I opened my mouth to apologize but she put a hand over my mouth. Before I could react she gave me a kiss on the cheek. The two of us ended up letting it go and continued on. After that we spent the rest of the dance talking about all the training we had to do. Once the music ended I managed to talk Kitty into dancing with me one more time.
We danced together, since we no longer had to change partners. Kitty mentioned how Genesis would be leaving for a who knows how long mission. I knew she was upset over him leaving, she almost looked ready to cry. I managed to comfort her and cheer her up before the tears could fall. I've never seen her upset before and I honestly didn't want to her her upset again. Kitty mentioned the way I blushed when we kissed (by accident) and that caused me to blush again.
She also pointed out that I had a mostly blue lipstick kiss mark on my cheek (since the two lipstick colors blended together when she talked.) from her kiss. We both ended up laughing at that. After about an hour of dancing, it was 11 at night and we were tired to keep dancing. We spent the rest of the night chatting with the others and watching everyong else. I still didn't like this Puppy guy, but if Kitty was ok with him, I would be. This had to be one of the best nights of my life.
~~~~ at 12:30 am ~~~~
The party had ended about an half hour ago. Reno had brought us back in his car because we were too tired to walk. In the ride over Kitty had fallen asleep, her head on laying on my shoulder. I'm not sure why but I put my arm around her which caught the attention of Reno. He saw the action from the review mirror but didn't say anything, only gave a small smirk. She was still asleep when he dropped us off at the SOILDER building.
Carefully picking her up bridal style, I carried both her and Kristof up to her room. After a little manurvuring(sp?) I managed to fish out the spare key Kitty gave me a week ago. I walked in a gently placed her and Kristof on the bed before stretching and falling back on it. I was glad I didn't have to train on weekends because I dont think I would have gotten up anytime soon. Kitty had woken up when I hit the bed but Kristof remained asleep.
"When did we get back here?" she asked while rubbing her eyes.
"About a minute ago." I replied.
Kitty sat up and stretched a bit as she yawned. Then she got out of the bed and continued to stretch. After that she started rubbing her arms, feeling the dry body spay that lingered. I sat up to stretch a bit before I got out of the bed. Kristof lifted his head and watched us with a sleepy expression on his little face. He layed his head back down and went to sleep after watching us for a minute.
"I need to wash this stuff off." she said still a little sleepy. "Plus I dont want to ruin this dress."
"Same here." I replied. I stood up again and stretched.
"You can go first then." she said. "This dress will take a moment to take off and to hang it up right."
I just nodded and went over to her closet. After looking through some of her clothes I found two hangers to hang my suit on. I took the hangers into the bathroom with me to change. Any other time I would have been in awe at how large her bathroom was but I was too tired. I could hear the sound of bells through the door, which was most likly Kitty taking off her dress. I blushed and tried to keep the image from entering my mind.
I carefully took off my suit and placed it on the hangers. The back of Kitty's door had hooks which was lucky for me so I had a place to put it. After turning on the water I got into the large tub like shower without waiting for the water to warm up. The cold water woke me up with a jolt and helped make my blush go away. After a minute the sound of bells stopped and I felt even better.
Once the water warmed up, I used some of the scented soap in Kitty's bathroom to wash away the remains of the spray. While I was in the process of scrubbing I heard the door to the bathroom open and close. I'm pretty sure that it was Kitty and that brought the blush back to my face. I tried to ignore it as I finished scrubbing. After about 15 minutes I managed to get the spray off but my hair was still white.
As I exited the bathroom I saw that Kitty left me a pair of sweats and a t-shirt on the large double sink. I was pretty sure the sweats weren't hers because of the size but I put them on anyway. I easily reconized the shirt as hers and put it on. It fit perfectly. I grabbed my suit before I left. As I exited the bathroom Kitty brushed by me and closed the door. I could hear her start up the shower once again while I dried my hair.
I went to her closet and hung my suit up next to her dress. After that I trudged to her bed exauseted. I climbed in and relaxed, waiting for sleep to take over. After about thirty minutes I heard the shower stop and Kitty came out with her hair mostly dry and tied up. I felt the bed dip down as she climbed in, with her back facing mine. She was asleep almost as instantly as she hit the matress.
Before I realized what I was doing I rolled over in the bed to face her back. Automataticly I wrapped my arms around Kitty's torso and held her close. She barely stirred but scooted back a bit so she was almost huddled against me. I could feel a warm feeling rise up in my chest and I smiled. This was the most wonderful thing I think I've ever felt. At that very moment, I really think I loved her. And I was willing to do anything for her.
I do realize that there wasn't a lot of talking. Thats because It was more of a ball and dancing type thing so there isnt a lot of speech. So I made their speech while dancing very short. Slicer and Kitty arent too good nicknames but I tried to pick names that are a bit far from thier actual names. With Cloud I always yell 'SLICE' when imitating him or being all fangirl about him. Or when he attacks with his giant ass sword of his.
Yes this is considered a DATE! Not just a friendly thing between friends. Since they've already kissed and even though it was for a prank(read last chapter) this is considered an actual DATE! No the date was not to make Zack jealous even though it did. Also yes, Mika is still in love with Zack and he still does not know. Neither does Cloud and no Mika does not love Cloud (yet) but she WILL! Yes Cloud is falling in love with Mika even though it's only been like a month and a half. Cloud is however suspicous of Zack because he saw they way Zack looked at her as they entered.
I do reliaze that when Cloud was spraying Mika with that bodyspray that it would be diffucult not to get it on her dress. I didn't mention it but he used a thin piece of cardboard to separate the dress from skin. Once he was finished and it dried she just adjusted her dress. Mika also did this for her hair when she spray painted the tips blue.
This was most likely posted after halloween but hopefully at least not too far behind. I got the idea for the party from a friend because she's having a masquerade for her birthday party in december. The costume idea i got from watching that Bratz commercial (yes the masquerade one) and from looking at halloween makeup kits at the mall. The mask I saw at a store in the mall called Earthbound. I changed the idea of some of them cause I cant remember how they look exactly.
I know this is LONG but last thing is people role over in their sleep so Mika doesn't care if she wakes up and she's all curled up next to Cloud or his arms are all around her. Also the sweats are Zacks. Plus this was written cause I've always wanted to go to/have a masquerade ball. That will happen on my 19th birthday (or prom) cause my 17th was in September and I'm going paint ballin on my 18th. Also Mika called Zack puppy for a reason which will be explained. Important authors note after this. Please read.
