Chapter 56j: Penance or Perversion?
I have never felt this much regret over trying to placate Setty on one of her whimsical ideas.
A jawbreaker here or there, no big deal. Helping her sneak out when mom and dad aren't watching? No big deal, either.
But this outfit? That is just pushing even my bottom line!
"Come on Setty..." I plead, but she resolutely shakes her head no, smiling at me as if she's seeing the stars fall down from the sky and gets to make all the wishes she wants without limitation.
"It's amazing, Nee-san! It's the best costume. See? We're matched! If you don't go, then mine will just be frumpy and boring."
Noooo, we're not matched at all! How is yours even comparable to this? It's like black and white! Water and fire! Pain and pleasure! Completely utterly different!
Behind me, mom's sniggering is especially hurtful. Why is she taking Setty's side on this? Just then, her hands firmly tug on the cords and I feel the air being squeezed out of my lungs, and I can't even find the air to complain anymore.
"It's your own fault, young lady. Who told you to let your sister arrange your Halloween costume?"
Mom's amusement is full of the I-told-you-so schadenfreude that she is so great at employing against us kids. Not that she even told me not to let her do this. Thankfully, she releases the proverbial reigns just a little to the point where I can comfortably breathe again. Has she worn one of these things herself in the past? She must have.
"How could I have known she'd come up with something this embarrassing?!"
I scowl but the other two just end up laughing; seeing Setty and mom agree on something is as scary as it is weird. It just makes me remember what these clothes I am putting on are, and embarassment colours my cheeks.
"Why'd you get on my case when I got those leather pants to the point where I had to return them immediately, but just letting this happen?!"
My lashing out at mom is perhaps a bit undeserved as she isn't the one to have chosen this costume, but it is damn suspicious. She doesn't seem phased by my anger though, and I can feel her finally tying off that inconvenient torture object known as a corset.
They are fucking impossible things. There's a difference between unwieldy and impossible, and this is clearly the latter!
"This is Halloween, love. Besides, you didn't choose it yourself, so I'm not worried. It's completely different from casually walking around like some sort of easy woman without morals."
My scowl as I turn around to face mom probably says it all. "Now you're just being mean. Shoo, shoo!" I tell her, starting to push mom out of the room who seems to be caught in a fit of laughter because of my predicament. Yes, she definitely needs to go. I'll do the rest myself!
"Just call if you need more help, and make sure to show your face before you leave, okay?" she utters between her laughs, and I am not sure if it is motherly concern or schadenfreude that is making her suggest it.
"Shoo!"
The door closes with a very satisfying click into the frame. I turn around again, feeling a bit flushed and peering at Setty, whose expression is torn between utter glee and utter adoration as she looks at me.
Can I even put up a fight when faced with that expression?!
If you don't try... I perform as deep a breath as I can before moving on.
"I think you should be going with Cain, though. You were so pumped up about going trick and treating with him the previous years."
My excuse isn't much of an excuse - our trick and treating are the best memories! - but she's been acting so weird since the trial.
"I put Cain in the doghouse. He's been bad." she responds, sticking out her tongue for the typical laughs but I can tell she's annoyed I even brought him up just now.
The struggle to repress a snort is real: the mental image of that kid chained up in a physical doghouse somehow strikes me in an irresistable way on my funny bone. No matter how I think of it, I can't help but feel he deserves such treatment, and just a bit of the guilt for taking his place tonight disappears. Still, there's a lot more where that came from.
Nope, nope nope! I can't go feeling bad for myself right now. I've got to support her!
The little perverted manipulator! Good on you, Setty! You go girl!
"But did it have to be like this? I'm going to look like a damn prostitute! Or a slut!"
Aaah, why'd I go back to complaining?! I thought I was going to be a supportive big sister just now and then my mouth and mind betrayed me!
The heavenly smile that slips onto her features is accompanied by a nod as she holds out the silken dress that I need to put over the corset, almost as if revering me. "You're not that nor a slut, sis. You're a vampire! A gorgeous woman of four hundred decenniums, a lady who is in the prime of her afterlife!"
Damn, she's a little manipulator, too! I know because I'm giving in to that pathetic 'I really want you to' gaze of hers feeling both flattered and embarrassed at the same time.
Why am I not fighting this more, but just putting this dress on without a complaint? Catching a glance of myself in the mirror, I can't help but feel this is a thousand times more embarrassing than when Cain was getting an eyeful because of a little sweat!
This is so not fair, Setty! This isn't an apology you are making me do but a torture you are putting me through!
Then suddenly, I understand. Is this why this is all she wanted to do for her birthday? Setty! You scamp!
"So. What are you, then?"
I have to counter with something to keep my mind away from my building up shame, because any more of this fanatic stuff and I might just turn into a bat. Or dust. Disappearing into the ground sounds _great_ right about now...
Hell, if I didn't know any better, I'd think her brother put her up to this costume idea! Why else would an elven-years-old girl come up with this kind of weird costume?!
She takes a moment to twirls around, causing her simplistic white dress to billow out a little bit. The simple cotton stands really in contrast to this Victorian-inspired black silk and leather combination she's forced me into for this evening. Even in terms of skin shown, her outfit is the absolute opposite, with cuffs that go to her wrists and snugly hug them.
"I'm going to be your snack. What else could I possibly be?"
Her response is as saucy as it is weird. Okay...? What else? What am I not getting here?
My gaze must be quite funny, because she bursts out in laughter.
"Your expression is so weird, Nee-san. It doesn't fit all that effort you put into being pretty!"
I give her a playful push. "Oh, shut up. Just tell me what you are holding out on me, because you are holding out on something, you little scamp."
She giggles and nods. "Fine fine. Just promise you won't be mad. I had Cassandra's help a little bit with this costume."
Now that explains a lot, and my eyes roll. I should have known. Where else would this little kid suddenly get so much inspiration from for a Victorian vampire outfit? Geez. Maybe her dad is right that Cassandra is a bad influence on her...
She's digging through a plastic bag that's been conveniently placed in the corner of the room, and out of it comes what I can only imagine as a BDSM collar. Holy fuck.
That's 100% a bad influence. Completely. Utterly!
My dropped jaw caught her attention, and she laughs again as she clicks the collar around her neck. "See? I'll wear this, and you hold the leash. I'm the food you take with you for when you get thirsty!"
"What the hell, Setty? How'd you even come up with this? If people see me I am never going to live this down!" I almost yell at her, only remembering to keep my voice somewhat acceptable because causing a fuss might just make mom and dad end the outing entirely, and then I'd be in the doghouse together with Cain.
But is this weird outfit the price I want to pay just to make her happy? Come on, Setty!
"Sure you are. Come look at this. Come!" She seems childishly happy to move on to the next step, and the last thing to come out of the bag is a long tube with a sealed bag at the end; it reminds me just a little of a blood transfusion bag like you see in hospitals.
"See? I'm going to hide this under my armpits! And then next is the tube is in my arm! Like this! So when you want a drink, you can just pretend to slit my wrist with your evil talons, hold your wine glass under it - here it is! - and have grapejuice blood come out!"
Even though I can tell that Cassandra and probably Timothy helped out with these accessories, I find myself actually looking forward to scouring the night tonight. This costume combination.. it is really amazing. Far better and way more memorable - ugh - than last years ghost. And the year before that with the atrocious superhero stuff.
Look how bubbly and excited she is: her words aren't even coming out sensibly anymore. That's too damn cute!
Fuck it, let's do it! Haters be damned!
Soon, I finish putting on the finishing touches with some hairbrushing, makeup and footwear that lifts me up just a bit more. In the meanwhile, she's affixed her little bloodletting-apparatus with some tape to her chest, and with the white dress over top, I can't even tell it is there anymore.
Not that I pay much attention to that; her doting gaze is hard to ignore! Her enthusiasm for this night out is so damn cute and adorable.
"Nee-san, you are going to make the guys give us all their candy because they'll love your costume! And I'll have everyone else give the candy because they'll feel bad and empathize with me!"
And with a sentence like that, her cuteness shatters into a thousand motes of imaginary light. Did you have to say that?!
She's totally a manipulative, sweets-obsessed little miss grubby mittens! She's as manipulative as that brother of hers!
I can't help but to vindictively spritz her with some of my perfume, but she darts out of range like the little monkey she is that clowns around without a care, pretending to have ended up in a coughing fit due to it. Soon, we're both stuck laughing at eachother for no real reason other than that we are having fun.
"Eee! Don't forget your fangs, sis! And your glass! Let's go and become rich!"
Hurriedly, I follow her last instructions, and off we go to terrorize the neighborhood... dear God.
I almost forgot.
We're definitely leaving through the back door. I'm not giving mom more ammunition to shame me with! Or dad any photos... hell no.