1. "There is a difference between appreciation and appropriation. Appreciation is when someone seeks to understand and learn about another culture in an effort to broaden their perspective and connect with others cross-culturally. Appropriation on the other hand, is simply taking one aspect of a culture that is not your own and using it for your own personal interest. Appropriation could mean of purchasing a piece of jewelry or clothing that may have important cultural significance to that culture, but simply using it as a fashion statement... Regardless, taking a part of another culture without understanding what it truly means can be harmful not only to those whose culture you are using but also to those with whom you share it." (Quoted from greenheart dot org.)
Bonjour vous-autres! Comment ça va? Moi, comme ci comme ça. J'ai des midterms dans une semaine, en septembre et octobre. Blegh.
Okay I'll stop lmao. (Tbh though it's good practice for me!) Hi everybody, hope you're doing well! This chapter is like a third laying groundwork for upcoming arcs, a third Rayllum fluff, and a third Halloween shenanigans. A healthy mixture, in my opinion. I hope you enjoy!
xXxXxXx
Explaining Halloween to Rayla had been an… amusing conversation, as apparently there was nothing at all like it in Xadia. Callum almost wished they'd had that particular conversation in person, mostly because he would have killed to see her expressions. Claudia had informed him later that they'd been hysterical and she regretted not taking pictures.
After learning the basics of the holiday, Rayla had been intrigued, and had expressed interest to do some research of her own to see how it had evolved out of the Day of the Dead. Really, it was no surprise - to him, at least - that she was considering adding history as a second minor. He was thinking about doing the same, though he was more interested in Xadian history himself.
Rayla had been understandably disgusted to discover, however, that some 'costumes' people chose to wear on Halloween were utterly disrespectful. She'd called him and ranted for a good half hour about a 'sexy Skywing costume' she'd stumbled upon on Amazon and how Xadian culture was not a fad and shouldn't be treated that way. He let her talk as long as she needed, because he knew she needed to get it off her chest and was also aware that it wasn't his subject to have an opinion on, per se.
That said, he was pretty pissed, too. It was revolting how xenophobic Katolis could be while still fetishizing Xadian culture.
Once she'd gotten her anger out, she informed him that the original reason she'd called was because Claudia had invited them to go to a Halloween party with her, and she wanted to know if he planned to go before she made her own decision.
He definitely did not intend on going, though he didn't tell that to his girlfriend with quite so much vehemence. Callum explained that it was tradition for him and Ezran to go trick-or-treating for an hour or two and then spend the rest of the night watching cheesy horror movies; sometimes Claudia and Soren joined them for the second part.
He didn't mention that he was often uncomfortable attending big parties, not that he really felt he needed to. Especially because Rayla asked so softly if she could participate in his and Ez's tradition, as long as she wasn't intruding.
Was that love? It had to be.
Not to mention if she came with them, then he could hopefully keep her mind off the upcoming game against Neolandia, as that currently had her stressed to no end.
Callum asked Ezran's permission, too, for formality's sake if nothing else, to which his younger brother eagerly agreed. Claudia was incredibly chill about Rayla not coming to the party with her; apparently Soren would be going, so there'd be at least one person she knew there and could follow around like a lost duckling if needed.
That left one dilemma for him and Rayla - costumes.
Callum had been perfectly fine with wearing his costume from Felix's party earlier that year, but when his girlfriend had admitted - while blushing - that Claudia suggested they do a couple's costume and she was not necessarily opposed to the idea… How could he say no?
Funnily enough, it had been Ezran, not Claudia, who took the reins in helping them choose characters to dress as and putting together the necessary costume pieces, with the help of numerous trips to thrift stores. Or maybe it wasn't really that odd, considering that Ezran had been texting with Claudia almost non-stop the entire time they were shopping.
In other words, that was why Ezran was the one currently looking their costumes over, Callum dressed as Sokka and Rayla as Yue, both characters from Ezran's second favorite show.
"You guys…" Ezran began, "look so awesome!" He beamed at them, understandably proud of his handiwork. "It's amazing what you can put together without paying for exact replicas of costumes."
"I dunno," Rayla mused, turning to smirk at her boyfriend. "I think Callum looks kind of dumb with his little ponytail. He should've gone all out and shaved the sides of his head."
Callum rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out at her. "You're one to talk." He patted the twisted knot on top of her head. "I think your hair's a little short for your character. You should've gone all out and gotten extensions."
Rayla laughed. "Okay, okay. We're both lazy cheapskates." She linked her arm through his. "Still… We make a pretty awesome power couple."
Callum couldn't help but grin. "That we do."
Ezran cleared his throat, giving the two a pointed look.
Callum and Rayla exchanged a knowing glance before turning back to Ezran and saying, "Thank you" in perfect unison.
Ezran nodded in contentment. "You're very welcome. Feel free to come to me for all your costuming needs in the future."
Callum snorted. "That sounds like a really bad television promo for a local costume shop."
Ezran promptly stuck his tongue out at him. "Ha ha. Someone's a comedian." His expression then transformed into his signature bambi eyes. "Now will you please say the line, Callum? Pretty please with a cherry on top?"
Callum sighed. "Ez, I'm telling you, I don't sound -"
"You sound exactly like him, Callum! Come on, say the line? Pretty please with two cherries on top?"
Ugh. How was Callum supposed to refuse such a desperate plea? "Fine." He pulled the plastic boomerang off his back, holding it up mock-triumphantly. "Boomerang! You do always come back!"
Ezran burst out into delighted laughter. "Okay, okay. Now the other one."
Callum grimaced. He was considerably less fond of the other one. "Do I have to?"
"Aw, come on, Callum," Rayla teased, elbowing him in the side. "Don't break poor Ez's heart."
He hated it when they ganged up on him. Which happened too often. "Fine. Only one more." He returned the boomerang onto his back, then extended his arm as if he was holding a small bowl. "Drink cactus juice! It'll quench ya! Nothing's quenchier - it's the quenchiest!" He hadn't known 'quench' could be used so many times in a single sentence, and he wished that knowledge had never been graced upon him.
Both Rayla and Ezran laughed, though Rayla's laughter was more of a snicker and Ezran's was an ecstatic giggle. "Perfect," Ezran said, beaming at him. He then glanced at the clock on the wall of Callum's bedroom. "Okay. It's 6:45, and Ellis told me she'd arrive at seven. Since that's also when trick-or-treating officially starts, we'll be able to leave right away once she gets here."
"Er, can you remind me who Ellis is again?" Rayla asked. "The girl at your party was Aanya, right? Ellis is a different person?"
Ezran laughed. "Yes, the girl at my party was Aanya. Ellis is someone else. We have English together. As far as I know, you've never met her before."
Rayla gave him a thumbs up. "Got it."
Ezran then left Callum's bedroom, presumably to go wait for Ellis by the door so he could let her in when she arrived.
"So just to be clear," Rayla said, turning to face her boyfriend, "we're basically chaperoning for Ezran and his friend?"
Callum nodded, moving to sit cross-legged on his bed, pleased to note that his girlfriend immediately sat next to him. "Yep. Although if I'm honest, our neighbors around here will give candy to anyone dressed in costume, but as a matter of principle we don't directly ask for any."
"But if they offer, I'm assuming you don't refuse?"
"Exactly! See, you're catching on fast." He winked at her. "But even if we don't end up getting any candy ourselves, Ezran is usually more than willing to share his profits." He paused. "Well, within reason."
Rayla laughed. "How very generous of him." She ran her hand over Callum's comforter. "So this is your childhood bedroom, huh?" She glanced around them. "I was hoping there'd be corny movie posters or something, so I could make fun of you and take pictures as blackmail."
It was true the walls were a little bare, but that was mostly because he'd never been a poster guy. "I took most of my stuff to my dorm, since I live there five days a week. Also" - he shrugged - "I'm a very boring person. You can make fun of me for that, if you'd like." He was considering adding a bulletin board to the walls, though, to pin up his old sketches and the polaroids of his friends that Soren sometimes took.
Rayla nudged his shoulder with hers. "You're not boring. Don't sell your weirdness short. And I have no doubt that you had some strange hobbies as a kid, anyways."
Callum grimaced. 'Strange hobbies' may not have been how he'd describe it, but… "Okay, this isn't specific to just me, but when we were little, Soren and Claudia always wanted to play 'rescue the princess', right? So -"
"- so you were the princess, weren't you?" Rayla interrupted, eyes widening. "Soren would obviously want to be the knight and Claudia probably liked being the bad guy, which means they made you be the princess, didn't they?"
Callum stared at her for a moment. "You know us way too well," he finally said, prompting Rayla to burst out laughing.
"Oh, I would have killed to see you in a poofy little dress and a tiara," she managed to get out, wiping tears from her eyes. "That's so good. That's so good!"
"For your information, I totally rocked the princess look. I could probably still rock it if it weren't for the heteronormative, patriarchal society we live in that is so restrictive of gender presentation," Callum pointed out, unable to keep a grin off his face. "And maybe one day I'll even show you a picture."
Rayla gasped. "You have pictures?!"
"Obviously. My dad documented everything we did when Ez and I were little."
"Callum, I am begging you to show them to me. Bid me do anything. I'll even kill Claudio."
"What?"
"Shakespeare reference. Don't worry about it. But seriously - I'll do whatever you want."
Callum paused before raising an eyebrow. "Whatever I want?"
"Within reason, you big dork. But yes." She clasped her hands together, giving him an imploring look. "Please."
Callum stroked his chin, as if in deep thought about her request. God, he loved being able to tease her so easily. "How about this?" He tapped her nose. "I will show you an entire scrapbook from my childhood - after you win the National Championship."
The familiar competitive spark that Callum adored danced in Rayla's eyes. "High stakes, big reward. You are truly a man after my own heart." She offered him her hand. "Shake on it?"
He could think of other - better - ways to seal the deal, but he obliged.
"I didn't think anything would be able to sweeten the taste of winning the championship," Rayla mused, "but that just might do it."
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch," Callum warned, but he knew his tone was far too lighthearted for it to be effective. "Anyways. What about you? Any embarrassing childhood hobbies I should know about?"
Rayla scoffed, dramatically tossing one of her braids over her shoulder. "Me? Of course not. I'm amazing at everything I do, so nothing I've ever done could be embarrassing."
"Babe. I know that's not true. I saw the concept sketch you originally drew for your geology class, as well as the diagram you ended up tracing to turn in."
Rayla gasped. "How dare you insinuate such a heinous thing." Then she grinned. "But let's just say it's lucky you have more than enough artistic talent to count for the both of us." She slipped her hand into his before resting her head on his shoulder, though she was careful not to mess up her carefully-pinned hair. "Embarrassing childhood hobbies, hmm?" She snapped her fingers with her free hand, the buddy tape having been removed a day earlier. "Got one. When I was little, Runaan really wanted me to learn archery, like him. He had Ethari make a toy bow and arrow and everything."
Callum chuckled. "I feel like there's a 'but' coming."
Rayla snickered. "And you would be right. He tried so hard to teach me, but I was just awful. He eventually gave up when I almost broke a silver flower Ethari had made for him as an anniversary gift. On the bright side, my parents suggested afterwards he try teaching me hand-to-hand combat, which I had much more success in, so it all worked out in the end."
The thought of a young Rayla guiltily handing over a bow and arrow made Callum smile. "The best stories are the ones with happy endings."
"Very true." There was a pause, then Rayla lifted her head and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "You know… I've been thinking."
"Mm. A dangerous pastime."
Rayla laughed. "Shush. I'm trying to be serious here." She fiddled with the edge of her violet sleeve. "I… I want to introduce you to Runaan and Ethari."
Callum blinked. He hadn't known what to expect from her, but that hadn't been in it. That hadn't even been on the table. "Really? You're… You're sure?"
Rayla nodded. "They know I'm dating someone. I mean, I told them a few days ago. And while I never said that you were from Katolis, it'd be nearly impossible for me to meet someone who's Xadian while I'm not in Xadia, so they've probably pieced it together already." She grimaced. "That's probably why they aren't exactly keen on talking about it."
Callum felt overwhelmed by her words, which meant he couldn't even begin to imagine how Rayla had to feel. "If you're ready to tell them, then so am I," he said, taking her other hand in his. Even if he was petrified that Runaan and Ethari would hate him. "I know how important this is to you. Just let me know the time and place, and I'll be there."
"I probably want to wait until after the big game this weekend," she admitted. "I need to be able to completely focus on that, since the rivalry with Neolandia is so important to the team."
"Of course," Callum said, nodding. "We can do it next week, the week after, a month from now if that's what you need. It's your decision, and I'll support you and be by your side no matter what."
For a moment, Rayla said nothing. Then she released his hands and pulled him into a tight hug. "Thank you," she whispered into his shoulder. "I love you."
Callum could feel his face heating up at her words. And then time seemed to slow around him, because… because that was the first time she'd told him I love you, wasn't it?
It felt… completely surreal. He was pretty sure he was going to explode from the - the sheer bliss that was swelling inside his chest and flooding through his entire body. If that wasn't love, then he didn't know what was.
Realizing he needed to do or say something in response before too much silence could pass, Callum returned the hug, squeezing her as tightly as possible, as if that action could somehow transfer the warmth dancing inside him into her. "I love you, too."
And he did. He really did.
Rayla seemed to relax in his arms, as if she'd been afraid that his reaction was going to be something very different. "Good. It'd be embarrassing for me if you didn't."
Callum laughed. "Come on. How could I not love you? Rayla, you're the most amazing person I've ever met."
Rayla pulled out of the hug, mischief glinting in her eyes as a smirk inched onto her lips. "Is that so? Keep talking like that and I might just kiss you."
Callum raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He tilted his head. "Well, you are amazing. You're also brilliant, funny, and beautiful."
Rayla leaned closer. "Uh huh. What else?"
"You're the best athlete at KSU, even if Soren might argue otherwise. You're also the best writer I know, and I'd have failed my English midterm without you."
"Mhm… Yeah, that'll do." And when she pressed her lips against his, Callum felt like he was flying through the sky and would never fall back down.
The blissful moment was short-lived, however, as Ezran soon walked into the room and rolled his eyes upon seeing them.
"Come on, you guys," he said, startling them apart and causing them both to blush red as rubies while they pointedly avoided eye contact with him. "Kissing isn't a part of Halloween. Hurry up and come into the living room so you can meet Ellis and we can get going! Trick-or-treating waits for no one!" And with that, he promptly disappeared out the door.
Callum glanced at his girlfriend. "To be continued?"
Rayla nodded. "Absolutely."
They then followed Ezran into the main room, where he was standing next to a petite girl with long, braided black hair who was dressed as Wonder Woman.
"Callum, Rayla," Ezran said, gesturing to them, "this is Ellis. I have English with her."
Ellis beamed at them. "It's so nice to meet you guys! Ezran talks about you all the time."
Callum smirked at his brother. "Oh he does, does he?"
Ezran rolled his eyes, though his face had a distinct flush to it. "I have no choice but to talk about you. Our interview narrative assignment is about family."
"Aw, you consider me to be your family?" Rayla said, placing her hand over her heart. "Ez, that is so sweet."
Ezran laughed. "Of course I do. Since you and Callum are dating, that makes you basically my sister-in-law. And for the record, you're a much cooler sibling than Callum."
"I mean, that tracks."
Callum rolled his eyes in response.
"By the way, I love your costumes!" Ellis added eagerly. "Avatar is one of my favorite shows! I actually own it on DVD."
"Thank you," Callum and Rayla said, again in unison, much to the amusement of the younger two.
"I helped them put their costumes together," Ezran said proudly, puffing out his chest. "And I'm super happy with how they turned out."
"You should be!" Ellisa agreed. "Remind me to give you a call next year to help me make my costume."
Ezran laughed. "I'll pencil it into my schedule."
Callum couldn't help but smile fondly as his brother talked with Ellis. It wasn't as if either of them had lonely childhoods or anything, but it was still nice to see Ezran making friends with people his age. It was also probably good for his emotional and social and whatever-al development, too.
"Anyways," Ezran said, handing Ellis a cloth bag decorated with black cats and keeping the one with cartoon jack-o-lanterns all over it for himself, "are we ready to head out?"
Callum made sure he had a house key and his phone in his pocket, and upon confirming he did, they were off.
Their neighborhood wasn't a particularly large one, which meant he and Ezran knew almost everyone who lived there by name. It also meant they knew which houses gave out the most candy as well as which houses to avoid entirely.
"Are you sure this place isn't abandoned?" Rayla asked skeptically as they walked down a driveway leading to a small house without any lights on.
Callum laughed. "Yes, I promise it's not abandoned." He stopped at the single step, with Rayla doing the same as Ezran reached up to knock on the door. "Ms. Latora is very close to totally blind, so she doesn't usually have her lights on unless she has guests over. She doesn't really need them, after all."
"Huh," Rayla mused. "Never thought of it like that."
The door opened, revealing a tall, slender woman with curly black hair shaved close to her head.
"Trick or treat!" Ezran and Ellis said together.
Ms. Latora smiled. "Let's see. I recognize Ezran, and… a friend of Ezran's?"
Ezran laughed. "Yes ma'am. I'm with my friend Ellis! Also, she's left-handed."
Ms. Latora chuckled. "Thank you, Ezran." She extended her left hand, which Ellis shook with a bright grin. "It's lovely to meet you, my dear."
"It's nice to meet you, too!"
Ms. Latora released Ellis's hand before smiling at all of them. "Now, if Ezran is here, Callum must be here as well. Am I correct?"
Callum laughed. "Always are, Ms. Latora. But I also have a friend with me. Someone you haven't met before." He gently nudged Rayla forward. "Ms. Latora, meet Rayla. My girlfriend."
Rayla shook the hand offered to her. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Latora. And happy Halloween!"
"Pleased to meet you two, honey." Ms. Latora smiled at her before releasing her hand. "You've got yourself a good one with Callum, you know."
They both blushed at her comment, and even though the woman was blind, Callum had a feeling she didn't need to see to know exactly what their reactions had been.
"Enough teasing," she continued. "As Ms. Rayla mentioned, it is indeed a happy Halloween!" She turned to her left to grab a plastic bowl filled to the brim with different types of candy and chocolate. "Feel free to take as many as you want. Including you two." She gestured to Callum and Rayla. "No one is too old for candy!"
Callum glanced at Rayla, who proceeded to mouth she's the best while Ezran and Ellis eagerly helped themselves to several pieces. Callum took only one, as he did every year, and Rayla followed suit.
They said their goodbyes before returning back to the sidewalk along the street, heading down to the next house. They skipped one with a yard decorated head to toe with Halloween props, earning a quizzical look from Rayla.
"Why not there?" she asked curiously. "They seemed to have plenty of Halloween spirit."
Callum opened his mouth to answer, but Ezran beat him to it.
"The people who live there are racist as hell," his brother said bluntly, his expression unusually empty.
Rayla almost choked on her Kit Kat, and Callum had to lift his hand over his mouth to cover his amused smile at her reaction, even if all things considered it probably wasn't funny. "Got it. Let's keep going."
Callum finished off his gummy worms, sticking the plastic wrapper into his pocket before taking Rayla's free hand into his own. "They actually harassed our parents a lot when we were little," he said, slowing down his pace to be just out of earshot of Ezran and Ellis. "I don't remember much, and I'm sure Ezran doesn't either since he was even younger than me, but apparently after we moved here they followed our parents around and mailed awful letters to the house. You know, complaining about 'contamination of the gene pool' and stupid stuff like that. Basic anti-interracial rhetoric, but they went ridiculously far with their bigotry and didn't stop until my mom threatened to get a restraining order."
Rayla winced at the story, gently squeezing his hand. "I'm so sorry that happened to you guys. They sound like human garbage."
Callum shrugged. "It could have been worse. And at least they don't bother us anymore. I'm pretty sure no one else in the neighborhood talks to them after my dad… 'went public', I guess, about what they did."
Rayla nodded. "Is that why their decorations are so extra? Trying to win back some semblance of status?"
"That's our best guess. I honestly don't know why they haven't moved out already." Or maybe he did. Regardless, it wasn't something he wanted to think about on a night that was supposed to be fun. "Hey," he said, changing the subject, "you know, I never did thank you for choosing to come trick-or-treating with me instead of going to that party."
"You don't need to thank me," Rayla scoffed. "I'm not exactly a huge party girl. Not unless I know exactly who is hosting and organizing it."
Callum wasn't huge on parties at all, but that was a fair assessment. "Still." He gave her a soft smile. "I'm grateful."
Rayla chuckled, and she winked at him. "Don't tell Claudia, but when it comes down to it, I choose you. Always."
Callum could feel himself blushing at the sentiment. "'I choose you'," he repeated. "Wow. I love being a pokémon."
Rayla burst out laughing, and she had to wipe tears from her eyes. "No. Stop. I -" She was cut off by her own snickering. "You are so amazing, sad prince."
Well, he did try. And so he said that much, too, earning himself an amused head shake from his girlfriend.
They continued walking around the neighborhood for close to an hour and a half, with Ezran and Ellis racking up quite a stash of candy each. Ellis said at one point that she might die if Ezran didn't invite her back next Halloween because her neighbors were nowhere near so generous with what they handed out. Callum and Rayla also continued to receive compliments on their costumes, which made Callum think that he probably needed to give Avatar a rewatch, since the first time he'd seen it he'd only halfway been paying attention. They ran into one little girl dressed as Mai, and she actually asked for a picture with them. Her costume was fantastic, so obviously they couldn't refuse.
It was when they were turning onto their last street for the night that they were greeted by the dull pounding of music from a house about halfway down.
Callum glanced at Ezran. "I didn't think the Johnsons were throwing their Halloween party this year."
Ezran shrugged. "Maybe something changed?"
"The Johnson family used to throw a big party on Halloween every year," Callum explained to Rayla and Ellis as they began walking down the street to Mx. Irene's house - the only stop they made on that particular road. "Then Mr. Johnson ran into some financial difficulties, so we didn't think they were going to have a party for another year or two at least."
"I didn't think they'd throw a party ever again," Ezran added. "But good for them if they've managed to fix things up!"
Callum winced as they got closer to the house, the music already starting to seep into his skull. He resisted the urge to plug his ears, as that would mean he'd have to let go of Rayla's hand.
"Wait a second…" Rayla slowed to a stop - regretfully - at the end of the Johnsons' driveway. "Is that… Claudia's car?"
Callum blinked, then squinted as he looked where she was pointing. "Uh…" He frowned. "Yeah, I think it is."
Rayla laughed, rolling her eyes. "Wow. I can't believe she forgot to mention that the party she was going to was in your neighborhood." She released his hand and pulled her phone out of her pocket, presumably to text Claudia.
It was technically Claudia and Soren's neighborhood, too, at least in that Viren lived there, but they really only stayed with their dad during breaks.
Callum noticed Ezran and Ellis pulling ahead, and he quickly jogged to catch up with them. "Hey," he called, stopping as they turned around to face him. "Rayla and I need to take care of something real quick, so when you get to Mx. Irene's house, ask xem if you can wait there for us, okay?" Mx. Irene was one of the younger people in their neighborhood, having just graduated from KSU xemself three years ago. Their dad had asked xem to look in a few times on Ezran when Callum himself hadn't been available, so that made xem trustworthy in Callum's book.
Ezran nodded. "Okay!" He turned to face Ellis. "Just so you know, Mx. Irene uses xe/xem pronouns."
Ellis gave him a thumbs up. "Cool!" She had the most can-do attitude of anyone Callum had ever met. Second maybe to Soren.
"Oh, Ez!" he then called before they'd gotten too far away. "You have your phone, right?"
"Yep!" Ezran replied, patting his pocket. "Text me when you come to get us!"
Callum smiled, although he wasn't sure if his brother could see. "Copy that! Stay safe!"
"Always do!"
Callum watched them go to make sure they were heading towards the correct house before returning to Rayla, who was still standing at the edge of the Johnsons' driveway.
"Update," she said, smirking at him. "Claudia and Soren are here, and Claudia said she didn't realize it was your neighborhood until I mentioned it to her."
Callum snorted. He had a feeling that was a lie, but he knew Claudia didn't really like people knowing where Viren lived and therefore also knowing where she stayed when she needed a place to escape from the world. "Our friends are idiots."
"I know. I love them." Rayla typed something else out on her phone. "Claudia also said that she's kind of bored, so she's going to find Soren and see if he wants to leave." She glanced at him. "I assume they're welcome to join us for the marathon of bad horror movies?"
"Obviously. Just let them know we won't be able to start until Ellis has been picked up."
"Will do."
As Rayla texted away, Callum found himself taking in his surroundings. His ears had adjusted to the blaring music, at least for the most part. There weren't too many people outside the house, though the few that were… Well, they were clearly - er, inebriated. Wasted. Drunk as hell.
Ugh. Callum hated parties.
"I can't say I'm terribly upset we didn't come," Rayla said, moving next to his side and grimacing as some guy stumbled and fell face-first into the grass on the other side of the yard. "Felix's party was way better than whatever is going on here."
Well, Callum didn't exactly have the fondest memories of Felix's party, either, but at least no one there had been completely wasted. "Agreed."
Rayla suddenly leaned forward, eyes narrowing. "Wait. Hold on." She frowned. "What's that girl wearing?"
Callum's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he tried to figure out who she was talking about, eventually determining that she'd pinpointed a girl across the yard dressed in a gold and bronze - maybe some shades of brown and orange, too? - outfit with an ornate headdress of a similar color scheme. "Er… some kind of weird sunset costume?"
Rayla didn't answer, instead practically marching across the grass to the girl, who was leaning against a tree in an obvious attempt to keep herself from falling over.
Callum scrambled after his girlfriend, very aware that there was some sort of tension brewing and also certain that he did not want it to boil over and get Rayla into trouble. As they got closer, he could unfortunately smell the almost unbearably-sweet stench of alcohol.
"Oh, hi!" the girl said as they stopped in front of her, her words practically melting together. "Your costumes are so. So. Good. I love them. I love you."
Callum was slightly weirded out by her unexpected affection, but he somehow resisted the urge to take a step away. He also somehow resisted the urge to pinch his nose.
Rayla seemed completely unperturbed. "Thank you," she said calmly. "If you don't mind my asking, what is your costume supposed to be?"
The girl used the tree to push herself up into a standing position. "I… am a sexy Sunfire queen," she said dramatically, gesturing to her scanty clothing. "Pretty cool, right?"
Callum noticed Rayla's shoulders stiffen, and he briefly wondered if he was about to have to stop his girlfriend from punching a random drunk girl. Or worse. Also, he was certain he'd heard the term 'Sunfire' before -
Rayla took a deep breath. "I really hate that I'm the one who has to tell you this, instead of someone you actually know, but your costume isn't… appropriate. And I'm not referring to what it doesn't cover. It is a poor representation of the Sunfire queen's traditional coronation attire, and it is not meant to be worn… frivolously."
The girl's eyes widened. "What?" She covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh no. It's not" - her voice dropped to a loud whisper - "it's not clutteral probation, is it?"
Callum grimaced at her butchering of the term, but Rayla managed to keep her expression neutral.
"Yes. It is very disrespectful. Your costume is not only an inaccurate depiction of ancient Sunfire garb - the headdress you have is actually that of royal guards, not the queen - but it also fetishizes Sunfire culture and arguably Xadia as a whole, which further contributes to xenophobia in Katolis. I really doubt that was your intention, but the impact of your… 'costume' is what matters."
Callum was both proud of his girlfriend as well as disappointed in his own lack of knowledge. He'd have to do more research into Xadia's clans to further educate himself on their traditional attire, too.
The girl stared at them for a moment, then burst into tears. "I am so sorry," she sobbed. "I will never wear this again!" She then proceeded to start taking off her costume - in the middle of the yard, holy hell - prompting both Callum and Rayla to jump forward and insist that no, no, it was okay, she didn't need to stop wearing it right away. Just in the future.
"If - If you're interested in Sunfire culture," Callum started hesitantly, glancing sideways at Rayla, "maybe do some research to learn more about it, and to see if there are ways you can show your admiration without… without being disrespectful?" His advice came out as more of a question than a statement, but Rayla nodded and sent him a small smile before returning her attention to the drunk girl.
"Yes, that's definitely something you can do. Cultural appreciation is a different matter." She snorted. "Honestly, every country needs to learn how to better appreciate cultures outside of their own."
The girl sniffled, wiping her face with her sleeve before pulling them both into a hug. A hug that smelled overwhelmingly of alcohol. Callum wanted to die. "Thank you so. So. Much. You guys are my best friends." She let go of them, fumbling as she pulled her phone out of the small purse hanging over her shoulder. "I'm going to call Hubert right now so I can go home and change clothes and learn about Sunfire culture and become a better human being." And with that, she stumbled clumsily away.
"Er, do you think she meant an Uber?" Callum asked as they watched the girl gradually make her way down the driveway.
Rayla shrugged. "Hubert or an Uber - at least she's not trying to drive herself home."
A fair point.
"Callum! Rayla!"
They turned around to see Claudia and Soren heading their way, Claudia decked out in the best Morticia Addams costume Callum had ever seen and Soren wearing a more simplistic Luke Castellan costume, made obvious by the surprisingly realistic scar trailing down his face and his Camp Half-Blood t-shirt.
"Let's skedaddle," Claudia said upon reaching them. "I am so tired of being around people who only know how to talk about their latest sexual escapades."
Rayla snickered. "I told you not to go to this party."
Claudia sighed. "I know, I know. I just couldn't resist the urge to show off my amazing costume!"
Understandable. It was epic.
"Oh, also!" Claudia said excitedly, bouncing back on her heels. "I found out my role in Macbeth!"
Callum's eyes widened and he was fairly certain Rayla's did the same. "Really? What part did you get?!" he asked, knowing there was only a slim chance he'd actually recognize the character. Hopefully it was one they'd talked about while at the ice cream parlor.
"I'm the head witch!" she said, beaming. "I'm so excited!"
Rayla gasped, grabbing Claudia's hands and giving them a tight squeeze. "Oh, I called it! I said from the beginning you'd be great as one of the witches!"
"That's awesome, Claudia." Callum couldn't help but return her wide smile. "You're going to be the star of the show."
Claudia laughed. "You know I try. But I'll do my best not to steal it too much from the others."
"Anyways," Soren said pointedly as they climbed into his car. "To move on from all school-related talk - what movies are on the bill for tonight?" He waited to make sure they were all buckled in before driving down the street to pick up Ezran and Ellis from Mx. Irene's, presumably having been informed by Claudia.
"Any cringe-worthy horror movie is an option," Callum said as he texted Ezran to let him know they were outside in the car with Soren and Claudia. "As long as it doesn't cost too much to rent or is available on Netflix."
Soren laughed. "Okay, nice. We should make popcorn."
Callum grinned at him. "Always do."
They were soon joined by Ezran and Ellis, who shared the candy they'd gotten from Mx. Irene with everyone. At first it looked like it'd be a tight squeeze trying to fit everyone in the car, so Claudia suggested that Rayla sit on Callum's lap, earning her a death glare from the both of them and a loud, synchronized "ew!" from Ezran and Ellis. Callum then sighed and resigned himself to sitting on the floor. It wasn't like they were travelling far.
But even from his rather uncomfortable seat and the strange vantage point it put him in as he conversed with his friends, Callum knew there was absolutely no place he'd rather be.
xXxXxXx
Fun fact: I wrote this chapter before I watched atla, so I chose Sokka and Yue as their costumes because of what I'd seen on Tumblr, lmao! Gotta love it.
Shoutout to the people who discover my fic later and happen to read this chapter on Halloween. I'm sure the planets will align and that will happen to at least one person. Whoever you are, you're awesome. Anyways - we'll be getting into some more intense story arcs again! Obviously this fic is still a slice of life kinda deal, but slice of life does mean dealing with some of life's struggles, and I can't wait to get into that. (Fear not - fluff and humor will still abound.) I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and thank you for reading! On va se revoir!
