Of course no one had really explained much to the original pilots about that night which had been a saving grace to some of them , Wufei surely would have been embarrassed about his outbreak of rage at Jason who had run like a mad man to escape the enraged Chinese boy. Savanna didn't have so much to worry about as Trowa had seemed mostly stunned upon seeing a headless horseman ride by him and just disappear. Amy had been seen but there was no way they could really link her being there to all the strange happenings in the surrounding area and thankfully Matt had managed without so much of a scrape leaving Trel who had faced off with Duo instead of doing the smart thing and just disappearing , almost toying with him before she had left. Of course Trel had told Nikita all about it but was certainly not about to repeat the story to any one else for fear that they might just have taken the whole thing the wrong way.
The final vote was to try and scare each other senseless with a night of gross horror movies since no one really wished to venture far from the base with how quiet it had been as of late. They had worked most of that day moving things around in the research room or war room to accommodate all the pilots and furniture that they would need for that sort of a night while some of the original pilots went out looking for good candidates to be used that night in their very own scare festival.
It was almost a weird scene as this was the first time they had taken time out to just relax as a group , even the party at Quatre's mansion had ended up as a show with so many people around to both protect and entertain but now it was just 12 friends sitting around watching movies like any other teen party.
"Oh .. you gotta see this part Quatre , this is where they find a body in the dryer ..." Jason exclaimed excitedly , trying to pull the cushion out of Quatre's hands so he didn't miss any of the good parts.
"Jason ... some of us haven't seen it" yelled Savanna , having thrown a pillow from her perch beside Trowa , they had claimed a pair of foam lounge chairs near the wall.
"I don't want to see , that is what the cushion is for" mumbled Quatre , relieved at the break from having to fight Jason for his relief.
"Oh please , everyone knows it is all fake" laughed Duo as he really didn't seemed to bothered by the movies.
"Yeah , tell that to my mind when I wake up too ..." snickered Trel who had been smart and just closed her eyes when it got to gory , reminding herself that what ever it was wouldn't last 5 seconds against her Gundam.
"Well if everyone is scared then why did we rent them?" asked Heero , who had really seen no point in this to begin with.
"Not everyone is scared , I have two brothers that would call this tame" replied Amy as she snuggled closer to him , she had scored a blanket and was happily curled up next to him on a small sofa.
"Is it bothering you ?" Matt asked Relena , he couldn't tell in the dimly lit room but she seemed a little edgy at times.
"Why do people make movies like this , that thing isn't even real , I swear I saw the blade wabble" she commented , her eyes still glued to the screen.
"Because they have a sick twisted mind but unlike the sick twisted minds we know so well the poor buggers that make them don't have a 60 ft metal machine to do these things so they make movies instead?" he managed to say , keeping a straight face while everyone looked at him , well keeping it till Relena looked back in shock before he broke the face of stone with a broad grin.
"Ah man ... what a way to go , in a hot tub ..." sighed Jason , still giving the cowards an update on what was going on in the movies.
Quatre jumped up as if he had been shot when a scream echoed across the room only to find a very ruffled Niki glaring at an abashed Wufei , who had moved his arm from the back of the couch and brushed her shoulder scaring the bejeezus out of her. "Anyone need more popcorn?"
"Yeah , a bowl over here would be great Q-man" choked Duo who had been laughing so hard that he earned himself an elbow from Trel.
"I'll help out , anyone up for more drinks" huffed Niki , she had not been one for horror movies to begin with and was glad when Quatre opened a window of escape , even if it were only for a few minutes.
Everyone had been up for more drinks and the popcorn was always a great movie treat but by the time Quatre and Niki had returned the movie was over and Jason was dancing about with another one in hand.
"How about a suspense instead of a chiller killer movie this round Jason , let everyone have a chance to get their stomachs back" said Matt , he had never seen so many pale faces in one room for a long time.
"Awh ... but this one is really good" Jason whined back.
"Jason ... if anyone wakes up screaming I am gonna make you go settle them down personally" chided Savanna , trying to make Jason choose the lesser of the two evils.
"Awh but mommy ..." he continued , he knew he wasn't going to win against her so he flopped down in his chair and put his best effort into pouting much like a child would.
The movie progressed smoothly after that , they had laid off the gore entwined movies for the classics like Sleepy Hollow and such , and during the final movie Jason got up and left quietly as a plan had come to mind , gaining himself little notice as it was near the ending of the last movie.
When the movie had finally finished the others reluctantly faced the fact that sleep had yet to be attained , and that if they were attacked in the night they may not even notice till they were well buried under rubble.
While they dispersed the lights dimmed out , leaving them in almost total darkness as Jason let his little joke go , he had been working on this for some time and had been waiting for the last moment to set it all up , he still had the equipment from the last time they'd played this game but this time he was just going to help Halowe'en along.
Ghostly figures danced down along the hallway above everyone's head as he had used the intercoms along the hall to amplify the sounds that they had recorded long ago , letting the projectors swoop the images he had uploaded for a few minutes before cutting them and positioning himself right in the center of the corridor , throwing something at the group as he let out some nasty noises.
"Oh jeez , how the hell did that thing get in?" asked the up till not unfaltering Duo who had hit the floor when the ghostly figures appeared.
Relena had hit her face in Matt's chest as he puller off to the side of the corridor , he had a good idea what was going on but had to make sure it was exactly what his suspicions chalked it down to.
Amy started laughing as soon as the tossed item hit the floor , she had to lower Heero's gun though as it was pointed at the shadowy figure that stood in the low light. "You shoot and we will be down a pilot"
Trowa had pushed Savanna behind him in a protective stance only to have an apparition go right through him which shocked him enough so Savanna could peek out from behind him. "Jason ... I am going to kill you ..."
Wufei watched in stunned silence , he had never been much for believing in the supernatural so it was almost amusing to him until he saw the form that was making itself into an obstacles just a few feet from them.
Niki hid her face in her hands trying not to fall down laughing , she had heard all about this but it was a lot more interesting to see the reactions instead of just imagining them. Of course she had never guessed that the original pilots would fall for it but few seemed unaffected by the scene as it unfolded before them.
"Oh good lord , pick yourself up out of the dirt will ya" said Trel , trying to pull 'Mr Macho' up from the cover he had tried to find.
"I don't understand ... what is going on?" asked Quatre , who had been about the only one that remained in the same place , having been glued to the spot as he tried to understand the situation.
"Fear me ..." came a distorted voice from the figure as it advanced on them but inadvertently slipping in the ketchup Jason had used in his rush to complete the whole scenario and falling to his backside from the oversight. "Owh ..."
"Jason , we really need to work on your sense of humor" Matt finally spoke , not having a complaint about how quick Relena had sought him out for protection but now wondering how many of them would end up with nightmares due to this stunt.
It had been Amy that found how he tapped into the lighting system and turned them back up as Savanna stood over Jason giving him a tongue lashing that even made Heero blush a little.
"A question ... " it was Wufei's voice as he kept his eyes on Jason , knowing that costume anywhere and Jason's dead companion was no defense in this situation." ... does he do this every Hallowe'en or just when I am around?" the malice in his voice couldn't be mistaken as his eyes showed his rage from deep inside.
"Um no ... it's not like that Wufei , really it isn't" Niki said , pulling the Chineese boy away before Jason found out just what Duo got every time he had enraged Wufei. "Now just let me explain it all , it really is a funny story ..."
"Um ... I'm going to bed , it's been fun and all but ..." with that Trel was gone , there was no way she was about to explain her part in any of this , especially to Duo who had just now picked himself up from the floor listening to Savanna yelling at Jason about how that was inappropriate.
"Hey wait ... aren't cha gonna explain it to me?" he yelled after her as he took off down the hall , trying to catch up with a cocky grin plastered to his face , knowing this would be an interesting story to hear.
"Salem" was all Trowa said , finally putting it all together and was almost amused to find out that he hadn't imagined it all , and that the stories he had heard from the others actually happened.
"Yeah , I should have known" smirked Heero as he watched Amy , he had seen her there after all but had never put the two incidents together.
Matt just grinned as Relena gave him a questioning look , none of it made any sense to her as no one had ever mentioned this until tonight. "Mat , what is going on here?"
"That is a question I would like answered myself" said a now very confused Quatre , looking at the whole group as almost everyone was either amused or embarrassed by now.
"Oh man it is great , you really should have been there Quat , we had a whole base pissing themselves in fear that night , not to mention a few pilots the way I heard it" Jason said , laughing so hard between Savanna's red face and the lost looks on both Quatre and Relena's face.
"Storm ... I am going to kill you" was all they heard from an adjoining hallway as it seemed Niki had finished explaining it and the fact of just who it was he had chased that night sank in.
"Oh jeez... we get medical benefits here right?" Jason asked and scrambled up just as Wufei came flying around the corner with Niki in hot pursuit of him. That was all the convincing Jason needed as he took off like a flash , looking for a good place to hide.
Relena just laughed , it seemed that she may have missed some in the translations but she doubted that was the first time Jason had run before the rampaging Wufei. "Well with that I think it should be safe enough for you to explain it over a warm cup of cocoa"
Their party wore down gradually from there , Duo had returned looking pleased with himself , holding a hand made scythe he had procured from Trel's Gundam after tackling her to the ground a few yards from the haven she sought that night. Trowa by this time had gotten the whole story out of Savanna and was content that the trick had not intentionally been played against them. Heero remembered Amy being there but did not find out about Matt being in the base as well until he explained his part in the whole thing and the entire time Quatre had a nasty case of the giggles while listening to three stories at once.
The funny part of the whole night was that Jason never did resurface before the others went for a well deserved rest , but none of them had chosen their own rooms to rest in either. For the first time in what seemed an eternity there seemed to be no gap between American and Original pilots , just a group of friends out to have the time of their lives with nothing to hold them back , not even fear of death or scar of war lingering in their minds.