Chapter 4
"Woohoo! Party time!" Alfred punched a fist in the air. As predicted, the prospect of a good old-fashioned party had cheered him up immensely. Plus, with Gilbert hosting, the party was sure to be a winner. He could be annoying at times, but man did he know how to entertain.
He straightened his tie, and smoothed down his hair one last time. Then he burst into the community center's gym. He was instantly met by a cacophony of flashing lights and loud dubstep. The gym was already jam-packed with people. Just then, Gilbert walked by, wearing a Rainbow Dash T-shirt and covered in glowsticks. He looked over, and noticed Alfred.
"Alfred! Come on in, dude! Looking awesome!" He fist-bumped Alfred, then smirked. "I gotta go back to my post of Awesome Co-DJ! Catch you later, bro!" He disappeared into the crowd of people. Alfred waved after him, then began to make his way through the crowd to where he could see a refreshments stand.
He pushed and shoved his way through the throng. It was so dark that he could barely make out anyone's face. There were occasional flashes of light from the central stage. Gilbert had apparently made it back onstage, as a loud voice cut through the crowd.
"All right, folks! It's time for the karaoke section of our awesome party! We'll pick someone at random from the audience, let them pick a song, and then good luck to them!" He made a strange noise that sounded like a cross between a laugh and a hiss. The spotlights unified into one, and began roving around the crowd. Finally, at a signal from Gilbert, they stopped in the middle of the crowd, highlighting someone. Alfred could make out scruffy blond hair. Francis and Antonio appeared from nowhere, and went down into the crowd, bringing the unfortunate man up onto the stage.
Alfred's heart stopped.
There, on the stage, was a relatively short man with wild blond hair, bright green eyes, and outrageously thick eyebrows. He had a roguish grin on his face, and teetered slightly as he walked to the center of the stage.
Alfred stood there, not daring to believe his eyes. It was impossible! He had died! For Christ's sake, he'd been in the room when it had happened!
But his eyes and his heart were both telling him the same thing: The man onstage was, without a doubt, the one and only Arthur Kirkland.
Arthur wobbled around on stage a bit as he got his bearings. Gilbert whispered into his ear, and he whispered back. Gilbert nodded, then walked back over to the mixtables. A moment later, the music started. He immediately began singing.
If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
Tears began to form in Alfred's eyes. He wanted to leave, get out of there, but he stayed, transfixed by his lover's voice.
Lord make me a rainbow I'll shine down on my mother
She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colors, oh well
Life ain't always what you think it ought to be, no
Ain't even grey but she buries her baby
The sharp knife of a short life, well
I've had just enough time
Alfred could see Arthur start to falter in his words. The crowd cheered him on, oblivious.
If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
The sharp knife of a short life, well
I've had just enough time
The crowd had begun to fall silent now, noticing the emotion behind his voice.
And I'll be wearing white, when I come into your kingdom
I'm as green as the ring on my little cold finger,
I've never known the lovin' of a man
But it sure felt nice when he was holdin' my hand,
There's a boy here in town, says he'll love me forever,
Who would have thought forever could be severed by
The sharp knife of a short life, well,
I've had just enough time
Alfred couldn't take it anymore. He began shoving his way through the crowd. Arthur kept singing, fully engaged in the song.
A penny for my thoughts, oh no, I'll sell 'em for a dollar
They're worth so much more after I'm a goner
And maybe then you'll hear the words I been singin'
Funny when you're dead how people start listenin'
If I die young, bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
With a final push, Alfred broke through to the front of the stage just as Arthur stopped singing. Just then, he noticed the commotion. He stared down at Alfred.
For a moment their eyes met. Alfred could see surprise, fear, and a hint of…regret?
Then he turned, and pelted offstage, bumping into people left and right. Alfred hurriedly gave chase.
Crap. Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap. I ran blindly out of the gymnasium, ignoring the confused and annoyed looks that passersby shot at me. Seconds later, the door burst open once more, and I could hear footsteps right behind me.
This was bad. I'd broken the taboo law, let him see me. How could I have been so careless? I skidded around a corner, desperately searching for the exit doors. Luckily, Alfred had never been very good on his feet. I winced slightly as I heard the inevitable crash. Under normal circumstances, I would have taunted him behind my back, but that would make things even worse.
I smirked to myself. Luckily, there was a reason why I had never been caught in a heist (well, except for that one run-in with Matthias, but that was beside the point, and anyways, I would have gotten away if I hadn't tripped-but I digress).
At last, I spotted the exit doors, and made a beeline towards them. Alfred was hot on my heels, however, and made a move to block me. As if that could stop Arthur Kirkland. I began speeding up, and tensed in preparation. Then I grabbed his shoulders and pushed off. Flipping neatly over Alfred, I continued in my mad dash towards the exit. Alfred didn't take long to recover from this shock, and was almost immediately tailing me once more.
I turned corner after corner, beginning to pant with exhaustion. Finally, I entered a large plaza, with plenty of shoppers milling about. Perfect. I dove into the crowd, and mingled quickly, taking my glow-sticks off for good measure. I slowed to a casual walk, and prayed he wouldn't see me. I watched him from afar, looking over each person in the crowd. Finally, he gave up in frustration, stomping away. I watched him go, sadly. Then I walked on, back in the direction of my apartment. That had been too close.
Hey all!
First of all, I'm reeeeeeally sorry about the late update. Please don't kill me! I haven't forgotten about you guys, really!
Also, happy Thanksgiving, all! Have a good one!
Finally, yes, I did make Prussia a brony. In my headcanon, he is a brony. DEAL WITH IT.
Keep reviewing! You guys are awesome! Voodoogirl360 out!