I watch as the sanctuary's agents and workers put up the decorations. In just four hours, Gordon's back lawn will be filled with guests of all ages here to celebrate a big event that I have no idea what it is. Ravel just came up to Madam Mist and me with the idea that people needed to celebrate something. Somehow, he got us to agree.
The weather outside was nice and cool which made it better for the people to put up the bright decorations. I watch two kids about the ages of eight and eleven use their elemental air powers to blow up balloons. One of the balloons got away and whizzed past my ear. "Sorry, mister!" The older of the two says.
I laugh and wave it off. I am in a good mood, which is something that has been hard for me to be lately. Being an elder takes a lot out of you. It's stressful, frustrating, boring, and annoying. But this week has been one of the best since I became an elder a year and a half ago. Skulduggery and Valkyrie have gotten some of the most wanted people on our list put in jail, Ravel came up with this idea for a celebration, Mist has been gone most of the week with a cold, and the best part- we got Tanith back. I smile and go inside the mansion.
I look down a hallway and see Valkyrie and Skulduggery hugging. They won't admit it, but we all know that they love each other. I see Skulduggery whisper in Valkyrie's ear and she starts to laugh and playfully punch her best friend. I resist the urge to laugh. "It's gross isn't it?" a woman whispers in my ear. I turn my head and see Tanith's gorgeous face right in front of mine. I shrug and turn around to face her.
She is wearing her normal tight leather (which believe me, I have NO problem with), her curly blond hair is pulled back, and her blue eyes sparkle with joy. "Looks like everything's coming along," she points out looking out the window.
"Yeah," I respond. I try to stare at her face and not her body, but no matter how beautiful her face is it's still hard to keep my eyes off of her curves. "So, how are you feeling?"
"Still have some dizzy spells, but it's getting better." The dizzy spells were just one of the side affects she's been facing since the Remnant got removed. She's been having moments where she blacks out, times where she doesn't know where she is or what she's doing, she'll randomly start screaming and covering her ears, and being unable to tell what's real and what's not in some cases. She smiles her sexy smile and I feel my heart practically melt.
I feel hands push down on my shoulders and suddenly Valkyrie lands from a jump off my shoulders next to Tanith.
Skulduggery walks up behind me and puts his skeletal hand on my shoulder. I've been exposed to this for years, but it's still an odd thought that my best friend is a walking, talking, egotistical, skeleton. I look at him and we watch as the girls walk off, arm in arm, talking and laughing. "You're blushing," Skulduggery says flatly.
I scowl at him and I know he would be smiling if he could. "Do you know if Vex is coming?" I ask him.
"No cl-" he stops in mid sentence and I see him looking straight ahead. "Yeah, he's here." I look in the same direction and see Vex chatting up Valkyrie and Tanith. I put my hand to my head just as Ravel walks over. He looks at Vex and the girls and shrugs.
"Good job putting this together, Ghastly." I shoot him a glare.
"It's your idea. You put it together," I hiss shoving my clipboard into him.
"Fine, Mr. Grumpy Bear." I look at him and open my mouth to say something when he looks back at Tanith and the others and cuts me off. "Hey, Tanith, did you know that Ghastly's nickname is Mr. Grumpy Bear?" I go wide eye and can feel my face go bright red. Valkyrie is already on the floor rolling with fits of laughter. Skulduggery pats my shoulder and starts to laugh too. Tanith puts her hand to her mouth as if to hide her laughter. I meet her eyes with mine and they seem to be pitting me.
"I'm going now," I grumble to Skulduggery and Ravel. I walk down the hall toward the door.
"I was just kidding!" Ravel calls after me. I just keep walking. I didn't want to deal with him right now.
I get outside and fumble for my car keys in my pocket. I pull them out and then drop them. I bend over and pick them up, when black boots step in front of me.
"It was just a joke," Tanith's British accent says. When I don't respond, she crouches and puts her hand on my arm.
I look up at her and see the worry in her face. "I know."
"Then don't take it to seriously, Ghastly." I stand up and she does the same, our eye contact never breaking. "You're really different now."
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"Well . . . you're more . . . you don't take things as lightly anymore I guess. I don't know, its just you're not yourself." I look at her feeling confused. She looks to the side and swings her arms back and forward- a habit she's had since I met her. She suddenly goes still and I see the far off gaze she gets in her eyes.
"Tanith?" I ask quietly. I gently put my hand on hers and her head snaps back towards me.
"What? Sorry, um . . . what are we talking about again?" I can see how tired she is.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, just kind of spaced out for a moment. I should be going home. I think I need a nap before tonight you know?" I nod and she smiles sweetly. "I'll see you later Mr. Silly Bear." She turns around and I hope to whatever higher power out there she didn't see how hard I'm blushing. I shake my head and make my way to my van.
Four hours later, I park my van in front of the mansion. I see familiar faces and non familiar faces. I make my way to the back lawn and the first thing I see is Valkyrie pulling Skulduggery from his seat onto the dance floor. I see what she's wearing and my jaw almost drops at the one-shouldered dress that's electric blue with black sequences making an elaborate pattern. It ends just above her knees, and is skin-tight, and very, very sultry. I had no idea what to say about it.
I walk over and take his seat next to Vex and Shudder. "I can't believe I'm here," Shudder mumbles.
"You didn't have to come," I tell him.
He looks at me and sighs. "I do when Ravel literally kidnaps and blind folds me. Then pushes me into the back of his car and drives me here." I look at him then at Ravel who just so happens to join us at this time.
"Why are you extra annoying today?" I ask him. He grins evilly.
"I'm even more annoying," he says teasingly. I look at him not sure what he's getting at. He nods his head to the right and my gaze follows him. There at the gate is Tanith. My heart practically stops when I see the dress she's wearing. It is a deep purple color with a lighter purple around the bust. It's sleeveless, low cut, and ends just blow her knees in a small handkerchief style. It isn't skin-tight like her normal clothes, but it catches my eye even more.
"What did you do?" Shudder asks Ravel. I don't hear him respond. "Really?" I hear Shudder say in a displeased tone. I know that Ravel whispered the answer in Shudder's ear.
I look at them and try to calm down the fluttering in my stomach. "What?" I ask. Shudder looks at me and shakes his head. "What?" I repeat.
"Oh, Tanith, there you are," Ravel cuts in joyfully.
"Uh, hi," she says. I look at her and smile and she smiles back. "Well, don't you look nice oh mighty elder." I sigh and she laughs.
"They got you doing it too," I point out. "Damn them." Tanith laughs again and Ravel stands up. He walks over to her and grabs her hand and kisses it. My eyes meet his and he winks. What was he doing? "Do you care to dance?" he asks her.
"Sure, I guess," Tanith tells him. They walk out onto the dance floor and I turn to look at Shudder and Ravel.
"What the hell was that?" I ask mainly to myself.
"It's Ravel, who knows what goes on in that funny little brain of his," Vex says. We sit in silence and at the end of the song, Ravel and Tanith walk back over to us. "That was entertaining. Ravel, I swear you've gotten even worse at dancing."
"Oh, shut it, Dexter," Ravel snaps. Tanith smiles slightly. I then listen to a conversation on the TV show Dr. Who between Vex, Ravel, and Tanith. Shudder just sits there in his seat looking so bored that I swear he's about to just bang his head against the table to make sure he's still alive. "So, Tanith, this being your first actual sanctuary party, how do you like it?"
"Honestly, it's sort of boring." My exact words for all of these things.
"What would make it more exciting?" Ravel asks curiously.
"Well, for the most part dancing. Not slow dancing, really good dancing that's not for people who want to fall asleep on their feet." I smile at her description of slow dancing.
"I have an idea," Shudder says. We all look at him.
"The silent one now knows how to talk," Vex teases. Shudder tosses a glare at him. "What's your idea O' Silent One?"
"Put on music that will make people dance." I see Tanith perk up in her seat.
"YES!" she says loudly. I watch as Shudder gets up and walks over to the stage. Ravel and Vex look at each other and follow him. "What are they doing?" she asks.
"Probably putting on music that will make people dance," I answer.
"Are they any good?"
"No clue."
"OK then," she says with an unsure tone. We watch as my friends get up on the stage and pick up the instruments. They start playing and are surprisingly really good. The beat of the song is a good dancing beat. I see Tanith laugh and stand up. She walks over to some of the young kids and starts dancing with them. Slowly more people join- younger people about Valkyrie's age. I watch as Valkyrie and Tanith bump their hips together. They both know how to dance to this type of music. I sit there and enjoy watching.
Tanith walks over to me and sticks her hand out towards me. I look at it and then at her. "Come on," she says in a sultry way. "I won't bite . . . much." I feel my cheeks grow warm and she laughs. She grabs my hands and pulls me up into the dancing. She leans in close and tells me, "Just follow my lead." She guides my hands to her hips and pulls me in close to her. Her arms wrap around my shoulders and I can feel her body moving against mine.
I try to keep the redness from my cheeks, but by Valkyrie's expression, I'm failing at it. Dance damn it! Valkyrie mouths to me. I look at Tanith. Her lips are stretched in a challenging smile. Slowly, I start to move my body along with hers. Valkyrie nods and I see Skulduggery pull her into the crowd. Soon, the music flows into me and the only things in the world are Tanith, the music and I. I spin her around and her dress flows around her.
When I pull her back, she presses her hands on my chest. She quickly guides me around all the dancing figures around us. Soon we're off the dance floor, but the music is still loud and has control of me in a way. Tanith pushes me into a chair in the shadows and sits on me so that her knees are on either side of my hips. I feel her hands slowly move on my chest. Her body against me, her hands rubbing my chest and shoulders, the dancing, everything is quickly turning me on. The music slows down a bit to a more romantic song, and I look at Tanith.
The lights above us make her look like she's glowing. Her hands slowly glide up to my face and she leans in close. I place my hands on her back and slowly make my way down her soft dress. She closes her eyes and I feel her soft lips on mine. At first the kisses we share are soft and long, but they quickly build up to firm, rough, passionate kisses. The song ends and she pulls away from me, breathing hard. She stands up and grabs my hands, pulling me out of the chair. She pulls me past the crowd, out the gates leading to the front yard and to the front of the house.
She kisses me gently over and over again. We slowly fall to the ground, and I lay on top of her. I kiss her neck. "EWWW!" I hear a girl say. I quickly get off of Tanith and sit up. I look and see Valkyrie. "I seriously didn't need to see that!"
"You didn't see anything," Tanith says.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. If I let that go on any longer I would have." I role my eyes at her and she smiles in a childlike way.
"Go," I order her.
"Fine. I'm leaving, I'm leaving." She smiles again then makes her way back to the party. I look at Tanith and see she's blushing. She grabs onto my necktie and pulls me up and walks me to my van. She pushes me against it, and kisses me. We stand there, music in the background, kissing and hugging under the only street lamp that works.