Chapter 13: The Guys' Murky Halloween
Chapter summary: Gray, Natsu and the other guys spend their Halloween night. Greasy pizza and flammable drinks fuel the spooky feast.
Saturday night: Natsu, Gray, and the guys were dinning at Pizza Fat. It was the 31th of October, Halloween night.
Loke to Zeref: Man, I can't believe we all agreed to your plan. Really? Anyone came out with a better plan than going to play Ouija in the cemetery with a creep like you?!
Zeref: Don't complain, it's Halloween's night and my plan is the best.
Gray: And the girls are out to Hargeon in a five star hotel!
Lyon: Yeah… Cana invited them, she had like a pack or a super offer…
Gajeel: Don't complain that much dudes!
Natsu: Yeah, it's gonna be fun! Zeref even got disguised!
Gray: To me his costume isn't that different from his usual clothes…
Lyon: Yep… your style is gothic? Emo-punk…?
Zeref: Unique and custom I'd say.
Lyon: Anyway. How long have we been waiting for the waiter? I'm gonna starve before my pizza is ready, damn…
Gajeel: Yeah… at this pace I'll have to order another drink.
Lyon: By the way. Where is Loke? Is he coming?
Gray: He said he wasn't coming to the supper but maybe later he would join us. I don't know why he can't come… he didn't give explanations.
Natsu: Uoo hoho! I think our pizzas are coming!
The group ate pizza and after that were ready to wander the Halloween nightscape and maybe vandalize some public or private property.
Lyon: This is boring… it's still full of children and old people.
Zeref: It's still too early.
Gray: We should find a quiet place to spend time. A propos, do you know some party we can go?
Lyon: Well… there must be several parties going on, but it's just that we haven't been informed.
Gray: Is it possible Loke abandoned us cause he had a better plan?
Lyon: Fore sure.
Gray: Naah, I don't think so. I'm gonna text him. (Gray's text: "Sup dude? R u up 4 sth cool tonite? I'm w/ da guys in the park, come over whenever possible!". )
Natsu, why don't we start drinking, we should consume all this booze we brought…
Gray: Thank goodness someone thinks right! Pass me a beer!
Natsu: Catch it! Here it goes!
Gray caught the beer can Natsu passed him and had a first big swig.
Gray: Come on guys, join me!
The rest also got a beer and started drinking.
Lyon: I guess it's safe to drink here in the park…
Gajeel: Don't worry… I don't see any cop nearby and we are almost alone here.
Zeref: Hey! I also brought some weed… Do you guys want some?
Gray: Hell yeah! Why not?
Lyon: Such a bad influence… my mum is right. I shouldn't be hanging out with you guys.
Gray: Oh… shut up, you are always the first one to mess things up!
Loke: Who's always the first one getting in trouble?!
Loke appeared suddenly and surprised his friends.
Gray: Hey Loke! Where were you?
Loke: Doing nothing interesting. It's just that I had a family meal. Bye the bye, what are you guys doing here in the dark shadows of this ghostly night?
Zeref: Getting ready to invoke the dead!
Loke: Smoking that much you'll see them soon.
Zeref: You are one to talk…
Loke: Haha haha. Well, may I get something to drink?
Natsu: Sure, what do you want? Beer or vodka-RedBully?
Loke: The later!
Natsu poured the mix in a plastic cup and gave it to Loke.
Loke: Thanks!
After getting a bit toasted –all of them-, the boys strolled the park and the neighbourhood, and ended up in front of one big old cemetery.
Zeref: Well gentlemen, the way to supernatural adventure is right before you. You cross the gate.
Lyon: Why don't you go first? You are the most knowledgeable on the subject.
Zeref: My pleasure.
Zeref entered the cemetery and the rest followed him. Dressed like some sort of obscure monk and carrying a sports bag, Zeref went first and explored the graveyard, only illuminated with some dim old lamps and the sky glow.
Zeref: Here it seems a good place to play.
Zeref sat down and placed an Ouija board he printed and a glass cup on the graveyard floor. From the sports bag he also draw a soda bottle with a dark liquid inside.
Loke: What's all this?
Zeref: Has any of you played Ouija before?
Natsu: In a videogame. Does it count?
Zeref: Maybe, you know how to play?
Most knew that Ouija is a creepy board game to communicate with the dead.
Zeref: It's very simple. In the board we have the alphabet letters, numbers, yes, not and goodbye. We all hold the inverted glass cup with one finger and let the dead slide the glass over the board through our fingers and communicate with us.
Gajeel: That's a bit fucked up.
Gray: It can be fun. I've never played before and in Jumanji they had fun.
Natsu: And what's inside the bottle?
Zeref: Just a cocktail I prepared. I found it on the Internet.
Lyon: In an emo suicide forum?
Zeref: Kind of.
Natsu: Is it good? What does it have?
Zeref: I like it. It has RedBully, black vodka and coke, essentially.
Natsu: Can I taste it?
Zeref: Sure, but be careful, it's strong.
Natsu tasted it.
Natsu: I've tasted better things… but it's not entirely bad.
Gray: What surprises me is how black is this. How did you do it?
Zeref: Well, it's a gothic cocktail, mixing dark things… coke, black vodka, also some black and blueberries.
Gray tasted it.
Gray: Hey, it isn't that bad. I like it cause it isn't very sweet but still reminds of the flavour of those delicious girly drinks…
The others also drank it.
Loke: No, I don't think it's strong… A propos, you could have done more, there is barely half a glass per head…
Soon after the guys sat down around the Ouija board and started playing.
They all put one index finger on the cup and Zeref started reciting trashy spooky verses.
Zeref stopped a moment.
Zeref: Hey! Keep it cool. Don't push the glass intentionally! Let the energy flow!
Lyon and Natsu: It wasn't me!
Loke: OK… but if the glass doesn't move at all it's going to be boring…
Gray: A propos Zeref, did you read Playing Ouija 101 or some kind of guide or watched a video tutorial to play this? If we have to contact spirits I want to be well advised, just in case.
Zeref: Worry not, I've read a ton about the stuff.
Zeref started again reciting some verses to invoke the dead. He related to the names in nearby graves and asked insistently and a bit comically if they wanted to contact them and maybe leave a message for someone alive or something…
Loke whispered in derision "B.S., B.S., BS, BS, that's BS, Buuuuull…. Shiiiiit, we won't even catch the FM"…
Gajeel whispered: Shush Loke, have some respect!
And nothing happened for three long and awkward minutes. The glass didn't move and nobody intended to move it. Meanwhile the atmosphere was quiet and chill, with only some slight city noises perturbing the mortuary silence of the cemetery. A cat meowing, the wheels of a car drifting in the distance, some youngsters chuckles between swigs of illegally obtained alcohol… Regular nights were mysterious and entertaining on their own, but the Halloween night was top in this regard.
Suddenly and unexpected for all of them, all the night sounds vanished as someone had vacuumed the entire atmosphere. The cemetery lights and the sky glow intensified and brightened up the site. Next, the glass cup started to tremble and advance through the board.
Loke (astonished): Am I the only one seeing the glass move?!
Lyon (almost shocked): Geezuh! We are not fucking alone here!
The glass kept moving and stopped on certain letters. Natsu spoke up the letters.
Natsu: F…
Gray: Fuck! I can't believe this…
Natsu: … U…
Zeref smiled mischievously while the spectacle begun…
/End of the chapter/