On Halloween night the residents of Warehouse 13, minus Steve, stood gathered in the foyer at the base of the stairs of the B&B, each of them decked out in their Rocky Horror costumes. Claudia leaned over and straightened Artie's bowtie.
"Thank you for agreeing to participate," she said softly to her mentor, and Artie gave her a half-smile.
"I haven't been to a Halloween party in a very long time," he said gruffly. "And in this costume, I get to sit in a wheelchair all night. I'm actually looking forward to this. But if you tell anyone that, I'll have to kill you."
Claudia grinned fondly at him before shuffling over to the mirror to check the state of her glittery eye shadow. Behind her, Pete was stomping around and making growling noises. They'd used Marilyn Monroe's hairbrush to turn his hair platinum blonde, and he was dressed in little more than gold boxer shorts.
"You're going to freeze once we get outside," Myka said to him, twirling a piece of her extra curly hair around her finger. Pete gave her a cocky smile as he stepped towards her, admiring her tiny maid costume.
"I know a way you're going to keep me warm later," he crooned, tugging at Myka's apron. Myka swatted at his hand with her feather duster, but there was a teasing sparkle in her eyes.
"You two are worse than teenagers," Abigail commented, holding up her camera to snap a picture of the pair. Pete kept a hand on Myka's waist as he grinned at Abigail.
"I really like your costume too," he teased cheekily. "Can I touch-a touch you later?" He yelped as he gained another swat from Myka. Abigail had opted for underwear-clad Janet, and between her costume, Claudia's, and Myka's, Pete was having a hard time keeping his leering to a minimum.
"What's keeping Steve?" Myka wondered, covering Pete's eyes with her hand. Claudia pouted her glittery red lips as she put her hand on her hips.
"Jinksy?" she called as she stood at the foot of the staircase. "You ok up there, buddy?"
"Just go without me!" Steve's voice echoed down the stairs. "I don't want to go!"
"Steve?" Claudia tried again.
"This is a bad idea!" Steve shouted back. "I should never have let you talk me into this."
"Oh, come on, Poopypants!" Claudia cried. "We're all showing off our legs down here! Come join the party."
A frustrated growl came from upstairs, followed by a couple of loud thunking noises.
"You have to promise not to laugh," Steve's voice was hesitant. Claudia couldn't stop the amused grin that spread across her face.
"Steve, no one is going to laugh at you," Myka called, smacking Pete in the chest when he opened his mouth to comment.
"Come on, Steve, we're going to be late," Claudia whined, eliciting another grunt from upstairs. Finally, Steve appeared, taking the stairs hesitantly in his high heels. He paused at the landing, discomfort and worry etched all over his face. An awestruck expression crossed Claudia's face, and she clapped her hands over her mouth to stop herself from squealing with joy.
"Oh dear goddess, this is the best day of my life," she squeaked. Steve was wearing every part of the costume she'd bought for him, from the fishnet stockings and corset to the temporary tattoo, curly wig, and drag queen make-up. Every expectation she could have possibly had, had most definitely been exceeded.
"Right, that's it, I'm not going," Steve declared as he took in the slack-jawed group below him. A cry of protest echoed through the B&B as Steve made to head back up the stairs.
"Steve, you look incredible," Abigail told him gently, and Steve pursed his lips, clearly unaware that of the trout-like pout the lipstick he wore created.
"I look ridiculous," he muttered, crossing his arms over his chest. Pete turned to Myka as Claudia climbed the stairs to where Steve stood.
"I could totally pull that off," Pete muttered to Myka, who shushed him by running her fingers through his hair and kissing him softly on the lips.
"Jinksy, you are so winning us first prize tonight," Claudia gushed, prising his arms apart so that she could grip his hands in hers. Steve looked pained.
"I feel stupid," he told his best friend.
"You look fabulous," Claudia murmured gently. "Come on, buddy, we're all covered in glitter from head to toe. You're part of the team."
Steve cast his eyes over the group who stared back at him earnestly. Myka gave him a reassuring smile as Pete winked. Claudia gave his hands another squeeze as she looked up at him with her big Bambi eyes. Steve exhaled loudly.
"You're lucky I love you, Claudia Donovan," he muttered, and Claudia's cheeks coloured even as she let out an excited squeal and dragged Steve down the remaining stairs.
"Come on, come on, let's go before he changes his mind!" she cried, heading for the front door. "I want to win that first place trophy!"
"Hey Steve, how does my butt look in these shorts?" Pete asked, earning an exasperated groan from Myka as they followed after Claudia and Steve.
"Honestly Pete, can we just go one day without discussing your physique?" Artie grumbled, making for the door. Abigail let out a laugh as she heard Claudia start to sing 'Sweet Transvestite' as she coaxed Steve into the car. Making sure the porch light was left on, Abigail locked the front door of the B&B and rushed to join the rest of the Rocky Horror Warehouse team.