Chapter One Hundred and Sixty Nine

...

"The next time you decide to open a restaurant the night before Halloween, please don't," Angelina said to Enzo, kissing his cheek.

"I thought it would be better than Halloween itself. Was I wrong, Angel?" Enzo asked, glancing from the kitchen out to the restaurant through the porthole windows in the doors.

"I'm not sure, but either way, people are still dressing up like it's Halloween. I've had to stop a fight between a vampire and a werewolf, and there's someone dressed up with a tail that almost tripped poor Jolene. If Denny had still been here, it would've been a catastrophe. Oh, maybe they're dressed as a cat. There was a cat ear headband, I'm sure of it," Angelina murmured.

"All right, next time I'll open on the first of November instead. People will be sick of Halloween and won't cause a disaster or catastrophe," Enzo said with a quick smile, returning his attention to the food he was plating up.

"Thank you, sweetheart," Angelina said, just as there was a howl of pain from the restaurant. She rolled her shoulders, cracked her neck from side to side, and smiled coolly as she headed out to deal with whatever had happened between the werewolf and vampire now.

"You okay, Jolene?" Enzo called when he saw her enter the kitchen and glance over to the freezer like she was going to walk straight into it and refuse to come out for the rest of the night.

"Tempted to stab a customer with a wooden stake, but otherwise fine."

"That's a usual night shift for you, Jo. Pa, table three's wanting a change to their steak. Medium-rare, not well done," Milo said.

Enzo raised an eyebrow. "Do they have a time machine for that?"

"Ma said I'm not allowed to ask sarcastic questions, but I'll guess no."

Jolene snorted. "I'll eat the steak if it means I get to stay in the kitchen for an extra ten minutes."

"Well done steak? Please, it'd take fifteen to eat, at least. But you are due your break, so let Angel know and take your time. There's a crate in the freezer, if you want to sit in there."

"It's actually soundproofed this time, so you can scream at the customers, too," Milo added brightly.

Jolene perked up. "Excellent! Angelina, I need my break early. Please," she added, almost desperately as Angelina walked into the kitchen.

"Of course. The freezer is - "

"Just heard about the sound proofing. I'll be in there for at least five. I'll eat the steak when I'm out," Jolene promised.

Enzo set aside the perfectly made well done steak and started on a new one instead.

"Can I help with the desserts or are there more tables to clear?" Milo asked, glancing between his parents.

"You can help with the desserts. Don't make the bubbles so large for the mousse this time, okay? You've been practising after school with your friends, yes?"

"Okay, Pa. Yeah, I've been practising. I'll bring a test dessert for you in a minute," Milo said in excitement, hurrying over to an empty station.

Enzo and Angelina watched their son for a moment, both so proud of how confident he was. The skirt was helping - an A-line that wouldn't get in the way in a busy and flammable kitchen - but Milo definitely seemed happier with friends, too.

"You dealt with the werewolf howling?"

"Oh, that was the vampire. He tripped over the tail and started abusing people, including Jolene who offered to help him up. Security escorted him and the werewolf out of the building entirely, and have promised to send me the tape of him falling flat on his face later."

Enzo snickered. "I think Jolene would like a copy of that."

"We'll watch it on the big screen while everyone's cleaning up," Angelina promised, looking forward to it herself after the hectic and stressful night that wasn't yet over.

...

"Will anyone get the outfit or do you think they're going to confuse me for that dancer with fruit on her head?" Craig asked, adjusting his dress and checking his makeup in the mirror.

"You'll be with all of us, so it will make sense, Carlotta," Grant said, slipping on his Phantom of the Opera mask, and holding his cape in front of him dramatically.

"If anyone's watched the movie, at least. You look just like Minnie Driver," Beau said in fascination, his outfit as Raoul with tight pants and billowing shirt distracting Craig from his own reflection.

"Angel of Music, are you ready?" Grant called, crowding up against Craig and stroking his breasts and sequin-covered body.

Beau grinned and set his sword aside before joining them, teasing at Craig's exposed neck with his mouth and his hands moving to cup Craig's ass. "Hmm, not exactly like Ms. Driver. I recognise that ass," he said, squeezing.

Craig made a hnggh noise as his boyfriends teased and kissed and touched him mercilessly. It was five months before they'd finally get to have sex. He planned on doing everything he'd been thinking and dreaming of with them, as many times as possible, and possibly once more, just because he could.

"Not exactly the entrance I was expecting to make, but damn, you look delicious," Jewel said, fanning herself.

Beau opened his eyes and looked over, his hands stilling when he saw Jewel dressed as Christine. "Fuck me, you look amazing."

"Come next March and we'll see who's fucking who, babe," Jewel said with a wink.

"You mean I can't come 'til then?" Beau asked, eyes wide with an exaggerated pout. He grinned when Jewel snickered in response.

"Speaking of: Darla sent a thank you note in the last delivery; apparently we paid the Sweet Spot's rent with our order alone," Grant said, grinning. He turned around to see Jewel and his jaw dropped behind the mask.

Jewel had curled her hair and was wearing a flowing white dress that emphasised her breasts and long neck. She grinned and blew a mocking kiss at their three stunned expressions. "Just wait 'til you see what I'm wearing under it," she said, laughing when their gazes immediately dropped down. "Come on, I need a month's worth of chocolate."

"We're going to Westville, right? They give out the full size chocolates," Craig added.

"Of course. I'm not letting my boys get subpar chocolate," Jewel said decisively, moving to kiss Craig deeply. "God, you look amazing."

Craig made a noise against Jewel's mouth and licked his lips as he pulled away. "I love you."

"Do we really need to get chocolate?" Beau asked, his tight pants tighter.

Craig and Jewel looked at each other and then to their boyfriend. "Yes," they chorused.

"Come on, Beau. The sooner we finish trick or treating, the sooner we're back and stripping those dresses off them."

Beau considered Grant's words. "We can just buy discounted Halloween chocolate tomorrow and strip the dresses off now."

Grant paused. "I'm not seeing a downside to this plan," he mused, glancing between them and the door.

"The downside is I spent an hour getting my hair curled like this and I want my free chocolate," Jewel said firmly.

Craig looked between the three of them. "Aren't you all forgetting one important thing? Or several important things? We promised Mr. and Mrs. S-C that we'd take the frogs trick or treating. We have to go."

As if on cue, there was a knock at Edith's front door. Craig used x-ray vision to look through the floor to see who had arrived, not entirely surprised to see the Sylvan-Colores family at the door.

"We're making out later, right?" Beau asked, frowning.

"Of course. We're giving the kids back at the end of the night, and testing out the new California King I bought," Craig said, grinning.

"By testing out do you mean making out or jumping on the bed?" Jewel asked with a grin.

"Both," Craig said with a solemn nod. "But not in this dress. Or with boobs; bouncing hurts."

"Yeah, you're telling me," Jewel muttered, hands on her breasts with the phantom pain.

Grant hooked his chin over Beau's shoulder, both of them watching her intently. "Go on, babe."

Jewel rolled her eyes and pushed Grant's face off Beau's shoulder. "Come on. I want to get home early so I can run over the plans for Gemstone's again."

"Jewel, babe. You've gone over the plans ten times. Hourglass herself gave them to you. Your store's opening day will run perfectly, even with you at uni, okay?" Grant reassured her, kissing her cheek.

"Kids! Time to go!" Edith called loudly.

Jewel sighed. "Fine. I'm still looking over the plans again; Gemma might need something else from me that I haven't thought of."

"You embossed the ring boxes yourself, we all helped to tie ribbons to the bags, Terrence gave you a computer with so much memory it makes Apple and Microsoft computers look like shitty toys, not to mention all of the security and encryption that Adam installed on it. Gemma will probably have to draw blood to unlock the damn thing."

"Your security system for the store is awesome, too. I actually want someone to try to rob it," Craig said with a snicker. "Uh. Not immediately, obviously. Like, later, once you've brought in a billion dollars in profit?" he added when he saw Jewel's expression.

"Good. Come on, or all the good chocolates will be gone. All your Snickers are mine," she called over her shoulder.

"You were talking to Grant, right? I'm not handing over my Snickers!" Beau called, hurrying after Jewel with Craig and Grant on his heels.

"Oh, don't you all look lovely?" Edith cooed at the children surrounding her home's foyer, colour and fabrics and outfits galore. "Now, where are my grandsons?" she asked, frowning when she didn't see their red hair in the myriad of colours from the younger frogs.

"Elijah, Elliot, if you've turned invisible again, we can't go get chocolate from strangers!" Craig called.

"That's really messed up when you think about it," Beau muttered to Grant, who nodded.

"It's not going to stop me, though. You?" Grant asked, grinning.

"Nah, I want chocolate. Oh, there's Elliot and Elijah. I thought they were going with Victor and Connor to the Sanctuary?"

"They are. Ry's on his way with Connor, according to the group chat, and I think Aleph is bringing - "

Craig's scream of terror had Grant stopping abruptly, both he and Beau running over immediately to find Jewel hugging Craig to her chest and murmuring soothing words as he trembled.

"What happened?" Beau asked, looking around and trying to find the source of Craig's unexpected fear.

"Rain and Storm decided to dress up as the twins from The Shining," Jewel explained, nodding to the frog twins nearby, Rain tugging at his wig with a nose wrinkle.

"There's no way in hell that they decided that on their own; they probably don't even know what The Shining is," Beau hissed under his breath.

"Rain, Storm? Who gave you the idea to dress like that?" Grant asked, a thread of steel under the kind tone he used for the four-year-olds.

Rain tugged at his dress, obviously uncomfortable. "Daren. I don't want to play anymore! I want chocolate!"

"Daren, huh? I'm going to talk to your big brother and make sure he doesn't make you play this game again. Okay?" Grant asked.

Rain looked up at Grant, eyes narrowed, then he smiled big and nodded. "Okay!"

Storm pouted, a wobble in her lip and tears starting to form in her eyes. "Where's Dame and Die? They're supposed to be here!" she cried.

"Who and what?" Beau asked, looking as bewildered as Grant felt.

"Thana's bringing them, dearie. She's just, uh, preoccupied with Aleph right now," Edith said, grinning as another betting pool came to a close. "I'll have to let your mother know she won when she picks you up later."

"Won what?" Storm asked curiously.

"Uh... my Halloween raffle. Aleph, Thana! Rain and Storm are waiting!" Edith called loudly.

"Where's my wife?!" Rain demanded.

"You got married? I didn't get an invitation or else I would have bought a gift for you," Beau said with a grin.

Rain frowned and looked up and up at Beau. "Lift me up."

"What's the super word?"

"Please, thank you, fuck," Rain replied dutifully.

Beau snorted. "Did Daren teach you that, too?"

"Aleph did. Pepe makes a funny face," Rain said, holding his arms up impatiently.

Beau held him carefully and lifted Rain onto his hip. "There you go."

"Higher! Please, thank you, fuck," he added quickly.

Beau realised that Rain was probably using him to see out the door, and set him down once more. "Face the door and I'll put you on my shoulders. There you go, and up!"

Rain wriggled his butt until he was comfortable. Storm's eyes widened and she tugged on Grant's cape to do the same for her.

"My shoulders aren't as broad as Beau's, sweetie. I can give you a piggyback ride though," Grant offered, crouching beside her.

"Okay! Please, thank you, fuck," Storm added eagerly, scrambling up Grant's back and holding tight around his neck.

"Not so tight," Grant wheezed, Storm adjusting her grip.

"Aleph! Get inside!" Rain yelled at the top of his tiny powerful lungs, Beau's ears ringing.

"We're coming!" Aleph called back, standing in the doorway with Damien and Diablo.

Edith looked over with interest at the possibility of two betting pools closing, her expression falling when she realised he didn't mean it in the way she expected. "Where's Thana, dear?"

"Just getting her shoes," Aleph replied, threading his way through the foyer with Damien and Diablo on each side so they could make it to Rain and Storm.

Half of his brothers and sisters were in the crowd and desperate for his attention, Aleph's name and questions being called.

"Give me a minute, everyone. I'll look at all of your costumes in great detail," Aleph promised. "You know the drill: alphabetical order!"

Edith, who had been trying to organise the children without success, was a little annoyed when they all hurried to comply with their eldest brother in seconds.

"Rain and Storm are dressed as the twins from The Shining," Grant said as he set Storm down, his throat aching.

"Bader or Daren?" Aleph asked, stopping with the two devils.

"Daren."

Craig was finally starting to calm down. It helped that their child-like voices were nothing like the twins from the movie, and he kissed Jewel briefly in thanks for her help.

"Look what Dare taught us!" Storm said, looking at her twin.

"Come and play with us, Danny."

Craig grabbed Jewel and buried his face against her so he wouldn't scream.

"Super fucking Jesus, that's terrifying," Aleph muttered under his breath. "Uh, you did great, kids. But don't do that again, okay?"

"Why not?"

"Because... uh... "

"You do it so well that someone's going to piss themselves!" Oberon called, Pandora snickering behind him.

"Ewww," Quinn said, scrunching her nose at the thought.

"Promise you won't do it again tonight?" Aleph asked.

Rain and Storm both nodded solemnly. They wouldn't do it again tonight. Next week was a whole other matter. Besides, if they got candy and chocolate for dressing up tonight, then they should get it every time!

Damien hugged Rain and Storm, even as Diablo held Storm's hand with one gloved hand and a plastic pitchfork in the other. Damien stood by Rain, clutching his pumpkin bag, blushing when Rain planted a kiss on his cheek.

"You've got to say hello like that since we're wives, okay?"

"You're too cute. You want to wear rings so people know you're married?" Jewel offered.

Diablo glared. "We're getting married, too!"

"You all want rings then?"

The four nodded firmly.

"I want a pink one!" Storm decided.

Jewel created four rings: two in a purple-pink colour and two in green-blue. "What do you think?"

"It's all right. I got a car with my cereal this morning. Want to see?" Rain asked.

Jewel kissed Craig's cheek and passed him to Beau to cuddle so she could help the children put their new rings on. "I'd love to see it," she said, amused that a car would be more interesting than her creating jewelled rings out of thin air.

"Are those real?" Aleph asked, seeing the diamonds glinting in the overhead light.

"It's the weakest kind I could make without them breaking to pieces."

"This is all lovely, but where is your outfit? You're meant to take them trick or treating, and you can't go in your normal clothes like that," Edith said with a glare at Aleph.

Aleph stood and adjusted his jacket, grinning at Edith. "These aren't my normal clothes," he said, slipping something out of his pocket and fitting it on his neck, two bolts seemingly protruding from his skin.

"Frankenstein? Why would you... oh," Quinn said, snickering when she saw Thana walk in dressed as the Bride of Frankenstein.

"Whoa. How long did it take to do your hair like that?" Kiara asked.

"Hmm? Oh, it's a wig. I don't have enough hair to do this for real," Thana said, touching her hair gently, and looking over to see Aleph and her boys watching her. She frowned on seeing the coloured bands around Diablo and Damien's fingers. "What did you two get?"

"Jewel made rings for us!" Diablo said excitedly.

"Real?" Thana asked. She had seen Gemstone's pre-opening display in the Sanctuary building and knew how much a simple band cost. She couldn't afford two, not even with her new wage.

"They're free," Jewel said with a smile. "The next one you've got to pay for," she said, nudging Aleph and smirking.

"Now, now, don't rush them," Edith said. "Aleph, why don't you look at your brothers' and sisters' outfits?"

"She hasn't started the betting pool on their engagement yet," Craig explained quietly, Jewel snickering.

"She's got one for us, how does she not have one for Aleph and Thana?" Grant muttered.

"Gran wasn't sure Thana would agree to date him; she'll change it when we leave," Craig said. "Ooh, I got her password. Want me to change ours?" he asked with a grin.

"Nah. I plan on winning," Beau said, kissing him firmly.

Aleph raised an eyebrow at Najair's outfit. "What exactly are you meant to be?"

"Gorgeous," Najair said with a grin, flipping his pink hair over his shoulder. "Well, that and Persephone. Goddess of Spring version. Kiara is the Queen of the Underworld version; you didn't ask her."

"I thought she'd kick me if I asked why she was wearing a dress," Aleph admitted, waving at Kiara when she glared at him.

"I'm Demeter, since you didn't ask either," Maleah said, rolling her eyes.

"So is Lorcan Hades or what?"

"Eww, no. Pat is dressed as Hades. Lore is dressed as Eros. It's a webcomic," Najair added.

"He's just wearing a pink shirt and pants, how am I meant to know that?" Aleph asked. "You look like humanised versions of Care Bears," he said, jumping back before anyone could hit or kick him.

"You suck, Al!"

Aleph ignored Kiara's insult and looked to the triplets. Oberon, Pandora, and Quinn were all dressed as their namesakes: the King of Fae, the Greek girl with jar, and a Celtic goddess. "Hmm. Your sewing's improved, Obe. You three aren't sick of these outfits yet?" Aleph asked; they were easy to guess since they'd done the same thing every Halloween since they were old enough to participate and choose their own outfits.

"Nope! We won't stop unless someone guesses them right," Pandora said.

"You could go with a box instead of a jar?"

"The original version has a jar. I refuse to let modern day society dictate what Pandora opened and - "

"We want chocolate tonight, Pan. Shut up," Quinn said, her hand clamped over her sister's mouth.

"Heidi's going to be here soon with Stevie, Zach, and Eth. Can we go now?" Oberon asked.

"What are they dressed as?" Aleph asked curiously.

"Don't know yet. She wouldn't say."

A knock at the door had them all looking over, Ethan and Zach standing there and waving as tens of people looked at them. Ethan was dressed as Gomez, Zach as Morticia, and as Heidi entered behind them, everyone saw she was dressed as Uncle Fester, complete with a light bulb. Stevie rolled in after them, dressed as Professor X.

"No one told me it was a theme. I could've been Pugsley," Stevie said.

Heidi shook her head and took the glowing light bulb out of her mouth. "You love dressing up like Professor X. Anyway, Iris and Juno dressed up as Kitty Pryde and Rogue, and more people will recognise you than us, I bet."

"Hopefully that means I get more chocolate," Stevie said, grinning.

Pat arrived in a blue outfit, his hair powdered white, and wearing red contacts. He was also carrying several stuffed animals, all dogs, which he handed out to Kiara, Lorcan, Maleah, and Najair with a grin. Each one accepted their stuffed dog with a kiss, ignoring Edith's curious expression.

"All right. Who's ready to go? We're running out of time if we want to get to the houses before the full size candy is gone," Ethan said, looking at the map he'd created.

"Is that all of you then? What about the rest of your friends, dear?" Edith asked curiously.

"They're at the Sanctuary building with the orphan kids. They've got green ribbons hanging on the doors for people who have candy and red ribbons for 'do not disturb'. Eth and I handed them out this morning," Zach said, grinning.

"We have three minutes before Ms. Parker gives out the last full size chocolates. We need to leave now if we're to get to Mr. Hardison's before that group gets to him."

"How do you know that?" Thana asked curiously, even as they all started out the door, bags and props in hand.

"Eth has been working on this map since he was five. Average times, income, and propensity for distributing full size chocolate," Zach said proudly.

"We already passed three large Halloween groups on the way here, and they are likely to take the majority. We will have to skip ahead of them and return to these other houses for the smaller chocolates and candy on the way back," Ethan said decisively.

"We're following you, Eth. I'll give you whatever you want if I get ten full size Snickers," Jewel said, grinning.

Eth grinned, his fake moustache tweaking. "I'll get you twelve."

The children, teenagers, and adults all followed Ethan down the street, Zach stupidly proud of his boyfriend and the wicked gleam in his eye.

...

"We're coming back after an hour and putting the red ribbon up, right?" Warren asked.

"Honey is meant to meet us so we can go trick or treating with her; we'll put the ribbon up after that."

Warren glared at the curtains separating them. "And the reason I can't see your outfit yet?"

"Because that's how surprises work, hottie," Layla said, grinning.

"Hippie."

"Are you in your outfit yet?"

"Yeah, I'm going as a hospitalised super," Warren said, rolling his eyes.

"Warren. You're meant to go trick or treating with me," Layla said, poking her head between the curtains to pout at him.

He grinned and kissed her, biting her protruding lip. "Stay in with me."

Layla licked her lips as they pulled away, then shook her head, the curtain rings jangling against the rod above them. "I promised Ida I'd walk with you. This counts as walking."

"We already did four laps today. Twice."

"Are you sure you can handle doing more?" Layla teased, closing the curtains sharply.

"Fine. But I'm taking the anti-grav with me," Warren muttered, pulling his shirt over his head.

"I'll carry it; I don't want you getting dependent on it."

Warren sighed and opened the bag Honey had dropped off for him earlier, tugging out a long length of material. "I won't get dependent, hippie. It's been a while, but it's not the first time I've had to learn how to walk again."

There was a pause from the other side of the curtain. "What?"

"Back when my dad kidnapped me, he broke both of my legs after I blew a hole in the wall," Warren said absent-mindedly, preoccupied with the length of material and how it was meant to work, let alone wear the damn thing.

"What?"

If he didn't know Layla's power intimately for himself, Warren would have thought she had some sort of ice power with how cold her voice was then. "I tried to run, he stopped me from running," he said, shrugging, and, as he finally worked out the material, slipped it on over his head.

A toga? Super Jesus, it wasn't even an original costume. And he was going to freeze his ass off in it, no matter the climate controlled building, he mused, even as he slipped off his sweats. Rearranging the material so it sat properly, Warren realised Layla hadn't replied.

"Still there, hippie?" he asked.

"I'm going to kill him," Layla snarled.

"Hmm, who?"

"Your father! He broke your legs!"

"I was, like, six."

"You were a child! I need to call Ida and find out how long these drugs stay in my system, and the second they're gone, he's dead."

"You say the sweetest things." There was no response, but he heard a furious tapping on a phone. "Hippie? What are you doing?"

"Calling Ida."

"You mean it? Seriously, what about the plan?"

"Fuck the plan."

"Hippie, no. This can't happen now. Ugh, I need to see you. Look, I'm opening the curtain, okay? It's Halloween, not a damn wedding, and - " Warren stopped as he opened the curtains and saw Layla's outfit.

Well, the toga made more sense now.

Layla's hair was done up in a braided updo with curls over her shoulder, a few small vines keeping them in place, while her green Homecoming dress was wrapped around her body and flowing over her legs, looking every bit the goddess he thought she was. She smiled at him briefly, then turned her attention back to her phone, her smile fading to determination and hatred so thick that he could even feel it through his vine brand despite the drugs.

"Hippie. Put the phone down."

"Make me."

Warren didn't have enough strength to lift her, and smacking her phone out of her hands wouldn't end well, so he did the next best thing. Stepping forward, he grinned when Layla lifted her arms to hold her phone out of reach, and started to tickle her sides.

"Warren!"

"You told me to make you. Put the phone down and I'll stop," Warren said, grinning as she laughed under his ministrations.

Green shoots burst from under her skin, small buds forming and tiny leaves unfurling. Warren stopped in surprise, looking at the plants covering her forearms and starting to creep up her arms. Looking at Layla, he grinned when he saw flower buds scattered through her braid.

"Looks like you won't have to wait long for the drugs to leave your system, hippie. Don't kill my father though, okay? We're going to do that together, and I want to see it in person," Warren said, cupping Layla's cheek and kissing her.

Layla sighed softly as he pulled away and put her phone aside. "Fine. But we're doing that plan sooner rather than later. I refuse to let him live any longer than he already has."

Warren smiled, broad and warm. "Super Jesus, I love you. Oh, and about the plan, I have an idea to make our bet about The Days of our Super Lives even better."

Layla's eyes widened and she tugged him to sit next to her. "Tell me everything."

...

Ry couldn't help but feel excited. This was his first Halloween since starting to transition, and he was extra super utterly excited for the fact he could go out in a costume and not have to wear a binder.

"Can we go or do you need a few more minutes in front of the mirror? We can be late," Connor said, grinning at his son from the bathroom doorway.

"Don't tease, Papa. I'm just excited."

"Hey, don't be just anything. You're allowed to be excited, good?"

Ry glanced at his father in the reflection of the mirror and nodded. "Good, Papa. Ooh, can we take photos?"

Connor grinned and held up his phone. "Way ahead of you, Mr. Roberts."

"That's Dread Pirate Roberts to you. Speaking of, where's your costume?" Ry asked, stepping away from the bathroom basin and frowning when he saw Connor in his regular clothes.

"I'm a homicidal maniac; they look just like everyone else."

"Borrrrriiiiing," Ry booed.

"Harsh." Connor snapped a photo, then grinned. "Victor's got my costume; it's meant to be a surprise."

"Wait, so you don't even know? I thought you organised it with Victor already?"

"Oh, we did. There were several ideas though, and I don't know what one he chose."

"Oh! What were the ideas?"

Connor coughed as he remembered exactly when he and Victor had discussed their Halloween ideas, and how little they'd both been wearing at the time.

Ry wrinkled his nose. "Never mind. You're certain Victor has the costumes, right?"

"Positive. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can find out what my costume is," Connor cajoled, grinning even as he took another photo of his son.

"Good point. Okay, I'm good. I just need my Halloween bag - oh, you got it. Awesome, thanks, Papa."

"All good, son. Think we'll need a grocery bag for all the chocolate you're going to get?"

Ry snorted. "Yeah, right."

"Hmm, you're probably right; we'll need two."

"You're a dork, Papa," Ry said, nudging Connor as they left the apartment.

Connor laughed. "Oh, I know, and you love me. I'll lock up if you want to get the car started?" he offered, holding the car keys up.

Ry's eyes widened and he grabbed the keys, running and sliding under the stair railing to drop downstairs.

"You want splinters in your ass? That's how you get splinters in your ass!" Connor called down, locking the door and checking the handle before following his son down the stairs.

...

"Lex, I'm done. I can't do another floor," Lexie said, exhaustion etched in her voice and across her face.

"All right. I'll let Alex know. I think he's eaten more chocolate in the last hour than I've seen him eat in the last three months."

"He doesn't usually eat sugar. He'll be hyper for days," Lexie murmured, her head already starting to drop to her chest.

"Alex?" Lex called to his grand-nephew, waving him back from the group of kids that were trick or treating as a group with them.

"Yeah? Gran? Is Gran okay?" Alex asked, almost dropping his Halloween bag before his grip tightened and he ran over, eyes wide and pupils dilated.

"I'm fine. Just tired, Alex," Lexie said, blinking suddenly and patting Alex's hand. "You keep having fun. There's plenty more candy to get, and I look forward to seeing the mountain of wrappers in the morning."

Alex grinned, a small laugh escaping almost involuntarily. "I won't eat enough to make a mountain. Maybe a small hill."

Lex snorted. "You can add mine to it; I'm not going eat - "

"Lex, no! Those are mine," Lexie gasped, reaching back to wave at him.

"You've got a whole bag already, Gran!"

Lexie paused, either gathering energy or trying to think of an answer. Then she smiled, triumphant. "I could have two bags."

Alex giggled.

"All right, I'll halve it between the two of you; time to go upstairs while you're still ahead, Lexie."

"Mmm."

"I won't be too much longer, okay?" Alex said, smiling.

"I'll put the red ribbon up, but the door will be unlocked. I'll stay awake," Lex promised.

They all knew he wouldn't be able to sleep unless the door was locked, and staying awake to ensure Alex returned safely - and so he could lock the door himself - was Lex's way of showing he cared.

"Thanks, Lex. I'll try to get more Baby Ruths for you," Alex said with a smile.

Lex brightened, a genuine smile on his face. "Thank you."

The front doors of the Sanctuary opened, Alex and Lex both looking over automatically from their position on the higher floor. Alex's eyes widened when he saw Connor walk in beside Ryuu. Ryuu, who was wearing a very accurate depiction of Dread Pirate Roberts, complete with tight pants, mask over the top of his face, a flowing and open black shirt, and a sword at his hip.

Lex grinned at Alex slyly. "Well, looks like you'll be having more fun tonight than even you anticipated."

Alex's cheeks turned red and he shook his head. "Jesus, no. Stop it, Lex."

"I'll take Lexie with me and leave you alone. Oh, before I go: Connor, Victor, up here!" he called loudly, drawing the attention of seemingly everyone.

"Oh, my god. Seriously, Lex?" Alex hissed, wishing the landing railings weren't made from glass so he could hide behind them. He swore he could hear 081 giggling from another floor; hopefully that was because of the sugar and not his predicament?

Lex grinned, waving back at Elliot and Elijah. "I am a villain, you know."

"Worst villain ever," Alex muttered.

Lex just laughed and headed over to the elevator to meet the couple and kids, Alex waiting with Lexie and wondering what on earth he was going to do next.

Lex greeted them properly once they'd stepped out of the elevator. "Good to see you both again. Have you had a good Halloween so far?"

"According to Ry, Halloween doesn't start until we actually get the candy and chocolate. But other than that, it's been good," Connor said with a grin. "How's your evening been?"

"Good, good. Lexie and I are about to head back upstairs. Alex was going to keep treating on his own. Can he join you for a bit?"

"Yeah, sure. The more the merrier. I'm sure there was a punk pirate on Dread Pirate Roberts' ship," Connor said, grinning at the mohawks and patched leather outfits they were each sporting.

"I would've liked to see that," Lexie said with a smile.

Alex smiled at his Gran and when he forced himself to look over at Ry, he saw that Connor and Victor were dressed as Fezzik and Inigo Montoya. In their pram, Elliot and Elijah were dressed as a Rodent of Unusual Size and Princess Buttercup respectively. "You're all dressed as characters from The Princess Bride," he said, feeling stupid even as the obvious words left his mouth.

"Yeah, I chose Dread Pirate Roberts and Victor surprised us with the other costumes. They look awesome, hey? Elijah demanded to be Princess Buttercup, and he looks very pretty, so he's happy. Elliot's happy he can chew on his tail, but he told Craig he wants to choose next year's costumes," Ry said, grinning.

Alex couldn't stop his grin in response to Ry's, and looked at Elliot to see him chewing on his R.O.U.S. tail with what could have been a very smug and proud grin of his own.

"You have fun, all right? See you later, Alex," Lex said, realising his sister was nodding off again.

"Thanks, Lex. I won't be long," Alex promised.

"Don't you worry about that. Just enjoy yourself," Lex said, patting his shoulder before taking hold of Lexie's wheelchair grips and pushing her over to the elevator.

"All right, who's ready to go trick or treating? I've left room for three whole chocolate bars," Connor said, his face serious.

"Only three? You can do better than that, Papa!"

Victor could see that Connor was teasing thanks to his colours, and grinned. "Don't worry, if you don't eat the rest of your Halloween stash, I will," he said, patting Connor's hand.

"Oh, you think you'll take my spoils from me?" Connor murmured, tugging Victor close and kissing him.

"Ugh, Papa, stop!" Ry groaned, covering his face and almost pulling off his mask.

"Nope," Connor said against Victor's lips, grinning when Victor chased his lips.

"You're embarrassing me. Worse, you're ruining The Princess Bride for me. In no universe does Inigo Montoya make out with Fezzik. I'm leaving," Ry groaned. "C'mon, before they start making out even more," he said, taking Alex's hand and heading along the corridors and up stairs, his father's laughter echoing behind him.

"Uh, Ry? I think we lost them. I'm also pretty sure we've made it to the kids' level," Alex said, seeing all of the handles with red ribbons. "They're probably still trick or treating. I think there's a bet between them to see who gets the most chocolates."

"What are they betting?"

"Hmm?" Alex asked, distracted by the feel of Ry's hand in his.

"What do they win if they get the most chocolates?" Ry asked, looking around for any green ribbons, pouting when he was unsuccessful.

"The chocolate, I guess. Uh, where are we going?"

"I'm going to look over the landing to find a door with green ribbons on another level. Oh, hey, there's Honey. Hi, Honey!"

"You're two minutes early, Ryuu!" Honey called back.

"Says you! Where's the chocolate?"

"Level thirteen. Come down here already!" Honey said, waving.

Layla and Warren joined her, waving up at Ry and Alex with an anti-grav disc floating between them. Warren had his arm curled around Layla's waist and if it wasn't for the pale pallor of his skin, Ry could think he was being possessive.

"Is Warren all right?" Alex asked with a frown.

"Uh... I'm not sure. You can check him when we go down, hey?"

"Yeah, if he'll let me. People don't usually like me diagnosing issues without being asked first."

Ry snorted. "Doesn't surprise me. How many times have you tried anyway?"

Alex felt his neck grow hot. "Too many. The lady very clearly had jaundice and her doctor was being a dick."

"What, you just burst in on their appointment?"

"No. She was in Gran's hospital room; I overheard and might've gone on a small rant. It did get me a meeting with the Director of the hospital, though, so I don't care. Also, I was right about the jaundice."

"Ha, nice. Oh, there's the elevator. Finally," Ry said, stepping inside and pressing the button for the 12th floor. He realised he was still holding Alex's hand and let go abruptly. "Oh, shit. Sorry, I didn't realise... Uh, sorry."

Alex bit his tongue so he wouldn't do something stupid like take Ry's hand back in his own. Instead, he just nodded briefly and tried not to miss his warmth.

It was going to be a very long night.

...

End of the hundred and sixty-ninth chapter.