HAPPY HALLOWEEN! 2cute4lyfe was in her element for this chapter- all of the decoration descriptions are courtesy of her!

We do not own Hetalia!

It's October 31st, Halloween, when the ghouls and goblins come out to play.

Since they were children Alfred and Madeline had thrown a Halloween party, including the best music, food, and the best scares.

The mansion was large, with a circular driveway, which was normally kept clean, but not tonight. Dead leaves were scattered all over, spider webs covering the bushes and porch railing. Grave stones were set up in the center of the driveway on the patch of grass and plants. There was a hole in the ground in front of one of the taller gravestones, a bloodied coffin laying open inside the ditch, deep scratch marks on the on the lid of the coffin. A small blood trail led back up to the house, whose only light was a flickering bulb. There was police tape blocking half of the porch off, only letting guests enter the home.

Upon entry they are welcomed into the foyer, a small room with an elaborate wood floor, coat racks on the wall all around for the guests. It was lit better than the porch with a beautiful chandelier hung from the ceiling, a few fake webs covering the glossy metal. A round dark wood table covered in black cloth stood in the center of the room, a bowl of candy occupying the space. Fog was leaking into the small room from the main corridor, which was dark with only candles lighting the way down. To the left was the living room doorway. Fog blanketed the wooden floors, so thick that you couldn't see your feet. The living room itself was the main gathering area, with a couple of chairs stood around a tall stone fireplace. Black fabric was draped on the walls. Once lit, the fireplace would give the room an orange glow. Spider webs stretched around the chairs with little plastic spiders stuck in them.

Alfred stood in the center wearing a body hugging Captain America suit. He had the head piece as well but had decided not to wear it while mingling. He was scanning the rooms to make sure everything was perfect, and so far this room checked out. Right before he left, he lit the fire and through some salts in to change the colors of the flame. He left and continued down the hall and went into the larger family room, which was organized so people had more space to chat and dance. Fog also coated the floor in this room, adding an extra flare. Music was pulsating through the walls, this room being the heart of the beat. Purple and green lights engulfed the room. A group of skeletons leaned against the walls. Another leaned against an armchair, holding a bowl of candy. The windows had blood splatters on them and there was a hatchet sticking out of the wall next to the door frame.

Alfred looked over his work, all of the covered furniture and the small details, and smirked proudly.

"Oh, there you are."

He turned around and saw Madeline. She was wearing a tight rippled dark gray dress with a sweetheart neckline, tattered ends, and a few small holes. Bruises were dotted on her legs and arms. She was wearing dark glittery eye shadow with dark maroon lipstick, which contrasted with her pale features.

"'sup?"

"Guests are pulling in and I would like you to greet them while I get all the drinks and food set out."

"No problem. It's probably Arthur and the others anyway." Alfred smiled and hurried towards the door, eager to see them.

The cast piled out of the van, looking around appreciatively. A few members of the cast were missing, presumably because their costumes had taken a bit longer to be perfected.

Gilbert whistled, decked out in his Dante outfit, complete with Rebellion on his back and the twin pistols Ebony and Ivory in holsters. "Damn. This must have taken quite some time." he said, impressed.

"I love the details!" Arthur gushed, gazing at the blood trails. He was dressed as a pirate, compliant with Alfred's suggestion. The bright green of his eyes contrasted wonderfully with the deep scarlet and gold of his outfit. The only bit of green he had on him was a cravat brooch almost the exact color of his eyes, but it was just enough. On his head was a hat with gold accents and a fluffy white plumed feather.

Alfred stood on the porch, opened the door once they got closer. "You all look great! Madeline is in the family room straight down the hall. Feel free to take some candy." he said, motioning to the bowl in the foyer.

Gilbert, Arthur, Matthias, and Lukas went inside to admire the rest of the decorations, but Ludwig and the twins hung back. Lovino was waiting for Antonio and Feliciano wanted to wait with him. Francis and Monique walked around, looking at the decorations.

One of the spare Volkswagens pulled in and parked next to the van, and Antonio stepped out of the driver's side, Peter hopping out of the passenger side.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me. I TOLD YOU NO CONQUISTADORS!" Lovino shouted angrily.

Antonio was dressed in a traditional conquistador outfit, and for once he didn't look sheepish when Lovino yelled. Instead, he returned it. "It's who I am, Lovino!"

Alfred laughed. "Okay, you guys can stay here and fight, but we're going inside. We have candy around the house, but snacks and refreshments are in the kitchen."

Peter grinned as he scurried inside. Lots of makeup had given him flawlessly pale skin with deep set dark eyes. His hair was messed up and fake blood was splattered on his torn clothes.

Madeline finished setting out the food and turned around to see Gilbert and Arthur in the family room. "Hey guys!" She smiled and walked towards them. "You guys look really cool!"

"You too, Maddy! Damn, that's a good look for you." Gilbert looked her up and down, grinning. "Hot."

Madeline blushed, thankful for the dark lighting. "Thank you. Feel free to grab some refreshments from the kitchen. We have nonalcoholic punch and we have an adult punch."

"Oh, thank God. Arthur, you stay away from the adult punch." Gilbert shoved him lightly away into the kitchen. Arthur got the message and walked away, leaving Gilbert and Madeline alone in the foyer.

"The house looks incredible." Gilbert complimented. "Did you plan all of this?"

Madeline nodded, adjusting the fake spider webs. "Yeah. Alfred and I love throwing parties, especially for Halloween. He gets so into it. We've been planning this for months. Even the bathrooms are decorated."

"Wow. Oh- Lud and I's desserts are in the van. Can you help me carry them in?" Gilbert led her out to the cast's van and opened up the back, unloading stacks of boxes full of cookies, cupcakes, mini pies, and four whole cakes.

"That's a lot of sugar!" She gasped, grabbing a box of zombie cupcakes and examining them. "This is amazing! You guys really went all out!"

"Lud and I are gonna have a family bakery someday! Once I'm all done acting, that is. I'm really excited. He's excited too. He just won't show it." Gilbert chattered away as the pair of them unloaded boxes and carried them into the house. "You should be an investor!"

Madeline giggled as they brought the sweets into the kitchen. "I would love to unload money into that. That sounds like a great idea. Two brothers, baking against the odds. Are you going to have specialty cupcakes?"

"Of course! We'll be a quaint little shop in Germany. There'll be the typical things that you can buy in shop, but then you can make custom orders for anything! Cupcakes included." You could tell just by listening that this was something that he was very passionate about.

"It sounds amazing. I guess I'll have to take a lot of vacations to Germany so I can have some sweets."

"Yeah, you will!"

"Do you have a favorite?" Madeline asked as they finished unloading and began unpacking the goodies.

"I like the red velvet gore cupcakes." He pointed to a big box filled with cupcakes decorated with bloody severed body parts. "Where do you want these?" He asked, holding up a box of cute pumpkin shaped cookies.

"I have cute serving trays in the cabinet, just let me get 'em." Madeline went into the bottom cabinet and pulled out a box. She opened the box and began assembling the 3 foot display shelves. "These are so handy. We can put them around the house with the candies if you want, and leave the pies and cakes in the kitchen."

"Okay, great." He got to work arranging the cookies on platters, an adorable look of deep concentration on his face as he did so. He did it like it was an art, making sure each cookie was in the perfect position. The pumpkin cookies had frosting faces, ranging from cute and smiley to angry with slanted eyes and jagged teeth. When he finished with that plate, Madeline snagged a happy pumpkin cookie, leaving a small gap in between the cookies. She giggled at the look on Gilberts face and turned to set up the other tray.

A look of absolute betrayal swept across Gilbert's face before he hurriedly starting fixing them. "How could you, Maddy? I trusted you!"

She smirked as she finished the second display. "I had to make sure they were yummy, and they are delicious! Thank you!" she said happily as she began placing the red velvet gore cupcakes.

"Thanks, I suppose." He frowned at the uneven amount of cookies, but there was nothing he could do about it, so he heaved a sigh and went to arrange the tiny pies on platters. "I'll put the cherry pies on this one, the blueberry pies on this one, apple on this one, and pumpkin on this one. Kay?"

Madeline nodded. "Yeah, no problem. You have full creative control of your goodies." She finished with the red velvet gore cupcakes and did the rest of the cupcakes on the other platters. The sweets were soon placed on their displays. The cakes had been cut and were contained in glassware, left on the island counter for easy access.

Gilbert smiled at Madeline, grateful for the help. "Thanks a lot! You're awesome. It looks great!" The sound of tires on pavement drew his attention to the window, and he stared outside excitedly. "People are arriving! I can't wait to meet your friends!"

Madeline shrugged, indifferent. "More like decent acquaintances. Most of them are Alfred's high school buddies, their friends, and some of my coworkers."

She walked out of the kitchen and went down the hall to the door, where Alfred was standing ready to greet his friends. Madeline greeted people as well as loads of people piled into the house and the music got turned up. More were to come, so Alfred remained in the foyer.

The cast looked anxiously between themselves. They were excited before, but now they were a bit nervous about meeting Alfred's and Madeline's friends. This sort of thing hadn't gone well for them on previous occasions. Much to their relief, no one paid any special attention to the cast because they were too busy catching up with their other friends or already trying to drink themselves into a coma. Alfred and Madeline greeted the last guest and went to join the party.

One girl, wearing a sexy sailor costume, approached Arthur. "Hey there Captain," she winked.

"Hey," replied Arthur. He looked the girl up and down. "I like your costume."

The sailor girl smiled. "Thank you! Now what is your name, Captain? I'm Zoe."

"Arthur. Are you a friend of Alfred's, or a friend of a friend?"

"Alfred's friend. He was my math tutor in school. That kid is insanely good at math."

"Really? Huh. He doesn't seem like it." Arthur looked over at where Alfred was mingling.

"Oh yeah, he's a total mathlete. But let's not worry about him right now. So tell me Captain Arthur, could I get you some punch?" Zoe asked, playing with her hair.

"You could, but I'm not sure that it's advisable. I can't hold my liquor." Arthur warned her.

Zoe giggled and put a hand on his arm. "Oh let loose, it's a party! Let's just have fun, okay? I'll be right back." She winked at him and left for the kitchen. Alfred eyed her as she left and saw Arthur still standing there, so he approached him.

"Hey, Alfred." Arthur greeted. "That girl's nice. She said you were her math tutor."

Alfred was taken aback and scoffed. "I think she is thinking of my friend Al, not me." He chuckled awkwardly.

"Is Al short for Alfred?" Arthur teased. "You don't have to be embarrassed that you're good at math. You should be proud! A lot of people aren't. Like Gil. He sucks at math."

"Well, if you say so. Thanks Arthur." Alfred rubbed the back of his neck, still embarrassed by the fact.

Zoe returned with two plastic cups of the alcoholic punch. She saw Alfred and giggled. "'Sup nerd, how's it going?" she asked while handing Arthur his cup.

"Thanks, Zoe." Arthur took sips of his punch while Zoe and Alfred got caught up. Alfred joked with her for a second but was soon dragged off by a friend.

Zoe smiled at Arthur. "Sorry about that. So, tell me about yourself."

"Well, I'm a Taurus. I'm bisexual. I'm from England... any of this catch your interest?" Arthur listed off, choosing to not mention his career for the time being.

"Bisexual? That's pretty cool. I once dated a closeted gay guy. It was an interesting experience, to say the least." she snickered.

"Did you help him come out? You should be proud. I would be." Arthur smiled at the thought.

Zoe nodded. "In the end, yes. He got a really hot boyfriend - but he wasn't as hot as you."

Arthur chuckled. "I'm flattered. I don't suppose you're dating anyone at the moment?"

Alfred, who was standing nearby, heard that and quickly looked over. Her body language was just screaming need and attention, but he wasn't going to let her get what she wanted. So naturally, he 'accidently' kicked a guy in the shin, and when the man turned around, he shoved Alfred. Alfred stumbled back and almost landed on Arthur.

"Oh shit! Sorry man, that damn meathead shoved me into you."

"It's fine," Arthur raised an eyebrow but said nothing about it. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Well, I was before that asshole wanted to start shit." he chuckled. "Have you guys tried one of the cookies? They are awesome!"

"Oh, Gil's pumpkin cookies? Yeah, they are! Zoe, have you tried one?" Arthur asked.

Zoe shook her head. "Wanna grab me one? They sound super yummy!" she asked Arthur.

"Yeah, she really needs to try one!" agreed Alfred.

"Sure!" Arthur went off to the kitchen to get a few cookies and another cup of punch for himself.

As soon as Arthur was gone, Alfred turned to Zoe. "So, have you met his boyfriend yet? Great guy. They've been dating for two years now. They're really cute together!"

Zoe sighed. "I should have known. He was so hot; of course he has a boyfriend. Is he here?"

"Yeah, he's the guy with the long blonde hair and nice suit."

"Well that's disappointing."

"Hey, there is this hot single guy you'd love though. Remember your crush from high school? He's totally free, you should go talk to him!" Alfred pointed out and patted her back.

"Okay! Thanks Alfred." She smiled and left. Alfred smirked victoriously and waited for Arthur.

Arthur really couldn't help himself; he downed one cup of punch while in the kitchen and got himself another, and then another. What was in this? It was fantastic! He got himself another cup and carried that and the cookies back to where Alfred was waiting, already feeling the effects of the alcohol.

"H-hey! Where'd Zoe go?" He asked, slightly upset.

"She's having boyfriend troubles and he just showed up. Guess they aren't taking a break anymore. They were always on and off."

"Oh... That sucks..." Arthur took another swig of punch and looked at Alfred appraisingly. "H-hey, Alfred! Did your outfit come with steroids or did you have to buy them separately?"

Alfred stared at him. "Well shit. Um, neither?" He said, startled by the comment. In a show of poor timing, Antonio and Lovino walked by, brushing against Arthur's arm.

"Toni!" Arthur shouted unnecessarily, considering how close they were. "Toni! Why are you dressed as a conquistador? The only things you've conquered are Lovino's ass and the churro cart at the mall!"

"YOU'RE GONNA FUCKING DIE, ARTHUR!" Lovino screamed.

"Bring it on!" Arthur challenged, downing the rest of his drink and stumbling backwards as he threw out his arms in challenge.

Alfred laughed so hard he had to lean back against the wall. "Holy shit! Harsh! That was amazing!"

Arthur opened his mouth to start talking more shit, loose-lipped in his tipsy-ness, but Alfred grabbed him by the hand and hauled him off, away from the crowd.

Music was pounding through the speakers, making it a little hard to hear anything else, but setting the right mood for a party. Ludwig and Feliciano weren't dancing and Gilbert was third wheeling, but he didn't seem to mind. The carefree smile on his face spoke only of elation, not bitterness. The smile widened as Madeline joined them and he immediately latched on and coerced her into dancing with him, perhaps to make himself appear less ridiculous.

Madeline, of course, agreed and laughed when he danced in a silly manor. "Dante, the dancing queen!" she joked and joined him.

"Don't laugh, I'm great at this. But this sword is getting in the way." He took it off and set it against the wall. "Alright, now I'm free to be the dancing queen! And will you, dearest Madeline, be my king?"

Madeline took his hand and bowed. "I accept. I will try to keep up with your amazing dancing, but no promises."

The music changed to a slower song and Gilbert grinned, wrapping an arm around Madeline's waist and tugging her close. He looked down at her with a warm look in his eyes. "Something tells me that you're good at slow dancing. Wanna lead?"

Madeline smiled, blood rising to her cheeks. She danced along, leading, her arms around his neck. "I don't mean to brag, but I am a slow dancing master."

"Perfect. Maybe you can teach me; I'm not that good." Gilbert laughed.

"Oh, you're fine. You're not stepping on my feet, so that's a plus."

"If I do, feel free to stomp mine." Gilbert said, playful yet completely serious.

Madeline smirked and gently placed her feet on his while they danced, so he was moving them both. "How about this?" she asked, closer to his face so he could hear her better.

"This is good." He said softly. He was suddenly hyperaware of everything, from the way she was looking up at him to the way she smelled. Her perfume was a pleasant flowery scent, not overly sweet and not cloying. He wondered if he smelled okay. Her face was against his chest. He really hoped he smelled okay.

Madeline closed her eyes, content in the state they were in. It only lasted another minute before the music became rowdy again. She stepped off his feet and smiled. "Thanks for that. Hey, could you get me a drink? My throats a little dry."

"Yeah, of course." He backed away from her and hurriedly went to the kitchen to get two cups of punch. What was that? Maybe he needed a drink too...

Madeline smiled fondly as she watched him run off. She leaned against the wall, next to his sword. She was barely there ten seconds before a guy came up to Madeline. She remembered him. He was one of Alfred's old football friends. This guy was one of the biggest dicks she'd ever met.

"Hey, Miranda right?"

"Madeline."

"Ehh close enough." he chuckled. "I got the M right."

"Wow. You did. Good job. Too bad I left my gold stars in my car." She sighed with a roll of her eyes and looked anywhere else but at him.

Gilbert was making his way through the crowd with the two cups of punch when he saw a big burly man chatting with Madeline, who didn't look at all interested. His jaw clenched and he pushed his way more determinately through the writhing mass.

"A little sassy? I'm down for that. You rich chicks always are."

Madeline sighed again. "I'm really not interested, so please drop it."

"Hey babe, sorry I took so long. It's so crowded." Gilbert said loudly, pushing the interloper aside so he could stand face to face with Madeline. Before he could think twice about it, he leaned down and kissed her. Madeline froze for a moment but kissed back. After Gilbert pulled away, she smiled at the guy.

The man sighed out of annoyance. "Ugh. You're not worth it anyways. Later girl, later Jack Frost." He groaned and left, hunting down another unfortunate female.

"Jack Frost?" Gilbert scoffed. "How original. Like I haven't heard that one before. …Sorry about that, Maddy."

Madeline smiled sheepishly. "No problem at all. Thank you for that, boyfriend~" She teased and sipped her drink.

Gilbert's cheeks tinged pink. "It made the guy leave you alone, so I don't regret it."

"Thank you. Hey, do you want to help me with something? I just want to make sure that the LEDs aren't dying again. Wanna come with?" She asked, finishing her drink and placing the empty cup on a table.

"Uh, yeah. Sure, why not?" He grabbed his sword and followed her as she led him down the hall.

Madeline led him outside; the backyard was riddled with fake spider webs and fake spiders. LED lights gave the webs an eerie glow. "Thanks again, for helping me out."

"No problem." As Gilbert helped her fix the placement of the LED lights, he couldn't help but notice that they were the only ones outside, and that it was very quiet.

"To be honest, it was getting stuffy in there. I just needed some air." She admitted and finished fixing the LED.

"That's what happens when a whole bunch of people are in one room together." Gilbert pointed out.

"I know," she said. "Oh! You have something on your jacket!" Madeline leaned in close and wiped away the smudge. "There, all clean."

"Shit, what was it? It won't stain, will it? I liked this jacket." Gilbert said worriedly, looking down and trying to see where it was.

Madeline shook her head. "No, it's fine. You're all good." She smiled and looked up at him. She seemed to be waiting for something.

"Oh. Okay," he looked at her oddly. "Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face too?"

"Yep." she smirked.

"Where? Here?" He put his finger on his cheek. "Here?" The finger moved to the corner of his mouth. "Is it frosting? Oh no, it's frosting, isn't it."

Madeline shook her head. "No, it's right here," she whispered as she leaned up and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Gilbert's eyes widened, but he didn't protest. His hands slowly rose to rest on her waist as he returned the kiss.

They were interrupted by the door swinging open, Alfred pulling along a tipsy Arthur. When he saw the two of them, he froze and then screamed. "AGHH! FUCKING SHOOT ME!" And he promptly spun on his heel and dragged Arthur back inside. Madeline pulled away and giggled, watching her brother flee.

"Hey Gil! Hey Maddy! Nice!" Arthur wolfwhistled as he was hauled away again.

Gilbert laughed as Alfred fled, looking gleefully down at Madeline. With his hands on her waist, he pulled her closer and kissed her hard. Madeline deepened the kiss, but pulled away after a minute. They stood, just hugging in complete silence, listening to the faint music from the house and the sound of each other's gentle breathing.

The crisp October air brushed against them, but it didn't matter.

Everything was at peace.