FicWad

Halloween was Aurielle's favorite holiday. So, naturally, everyone else thought her strange.
"Hey, Spooky," people would call to her at school. "When did you finish your Halloween costume? January?" Aurielle would blush and remain silent. So what if she started thinking about her Halloween costume early? In the end, she didn't think it mattered.
One day, only a few days before Halloween, Austin Lyman, the cutest boy in the eleventh grade, and Aurielle's secret crush, came up to her after school.
"Hey Sp-Hey Aurielle," he said. "I'm having a Halloween party. And..." He held out an invitation. "You're invited." Aurielle stared at the invitation in his hand, then looked up at Austin. Could this be for real? The blue eyes under the perfectly styled golden hair showed no sign of mirth. His smile seemed sincere, and showed no sign of stifled laughter. Aurielle slowly reached out her hand and took the invitation.
"Thank you," she said softly, a tiny smile on her face.
"So, I'll see you there," Austin said. "I can't wait to see what you're going to be this year." He winked at her and strode out of the locker hall. Aurielle stared after him.
"This has got to be the best day of my life," she whispered.


A few days later, it was Halloween, and it was also the day of the party. Aurielle stared at her reflection in the full-length mirror in her room. She had put masses of black eye shadow, eyeliner, and mascara on, making her dark brown eyes look incredibly large. Her brown hair, which her mother wouldn't allow her to dye black, was caught up in an elegant bun surrounded by black lace. But her dress stole the show. The strapless top was tight and resembled a corset, while the skirt was long and flowing, made with black velvet and silk. Long, black lace half gloves covered most of her hands and arms, just showing her black-nailed fingers. Blood red lipstick and a rose and thorn metal choker added the final effect. Aurielle strode down her staircase and out the door.
It wasn't that far to Austin's house, so she was there in a few minutes' time. The moment she walked in, there was a hush in the room. Aurielle looked around. All the girls she saw were either in Disney Princess costumes, fake vampire or corpse outfits, or skimpy leotards with animal ears and tails. Austin, dressed as a dead football player, came over to her.
"Ah!" he said. "Our guest of honor!" He wrapped an arm around Aurielle's waist and brought her over to a group of popular guys and girls. "Hey, you guys know Aurielle, right?" he asked. The group nodded.
"Yeah, she does all those great drawings," a guy dressed up as a werewolf said. One of the girls, wearing a black leotard with black fishnet tights, stilettos, and black cat ears and tail, went up to her.
"Your outfit is seriously OMG," she said. Aurielle, having no clue what OMG meant, just smiled, assuming it was a compliment.
"Thanks," she said.
There was a crash, and everyone turned around to see what had happened. One couple was seriously getting into their making out.
"Whew! It's gettin' hot in here!" a boy dressed in a Scream mask said. Aurielle stared at the couple. She had never kissed a boy in her life.
"Why don't we step outside?" a girl in a Tinkerbell outfit suggested. The others nodded.
"Hey, I have an idea," the werewolf boy said. "Let's play 'Kiss in the Woods.'" Everyone except Aurielle nodded.
"Excuse me, but...what on earth is 'Kiss in the Woods'?" Aurielle asked.
"It's a really easy game," Cat Leotard Girl answered. "A girl goes into the woods, right over there." She pointed at the woods a few feet behind Austin's house. "And then everyone out here sends a boy in. He kisses her, then runs back out here. Then the girl has to guess who kissed her."
"And..." Scream Mask Guy added, "If the girl guesses right, she gets to kiss the guy of her choice."
"Why don't you go first, Aurielle?" Austin suggested.
"Um...okay," Aurielle said hesitantly. She walked into the woods.
"Keep going!" Tinkerbell Girl cried. When they couldn't hear her footsteps anymore, they all started laughing.
"Austin, your idea was brilliant!" Cat Leotard Girl exclaimed.
"By the time Spooky figures out we're not coming, she's probably going to be crying and all that!" Scream Mask said.
"She'll be the biggest joke this school has ever seen!" Tinkerbell Girl added, giggling hysterically.
"But Austin, how could you do such a thing?" Werewolf Boy asked, smiling. Austin shrugged.
"She just seemed like a perfect target, and I couldn't resist," he answered. "And anyway, Spooky needs to by taught that her idea of Halloween isn't accepted in the world anymore. Now come on. I think we need to go see how many bedrooms are filled."

Aurielle finally sat down on a stump. She had figured out that they weren't coming, and she knew that if she went back, everyone was going to laugh at her. She sighed.
"Why do I have such a crappy life?" she asked herself. She was too busy thinking of suicide to notice the shadows move. Suddenly, she did finally notice something in the corner of her eye. She turned her head and saw grotesque black figures only a few feet away from her.
"Wh-who are you?" she asked shakily, standing up. When the figures didn't answer, only came nearer, Aurielle screamed and ran away. Her skirt got caught on the branches all around her, but she kept running, barely hearing the ripping above her own heartbeat. Then, all of a sudden, she felt someone's arm catch her, stopping her. Whoever it was shouted something in what sounded to be Latin, and Aurielle heard something like a candle being snuffed out. She looked behind her and saw that the black figures were gone, save for a little black smoke.
"And this is why you should never trust shadows," the Latin-speaker said. Aurielle turned her head towards her rescuer. The moonlight shown brightly on his face, showing his every feature, from his slightly long jet-black hair to his alert, sparkling silver eyes. He seemed to notice her staring and turned his head toward her. He smiled, exposing his two long fangs.
"Hello," he said pleasantly, with a charming British accent. He looked around as he let go of Aurielle's shoulders. "You're not here /alone/, are you?" he asked. Aurielle couldn't speak. She just nodded. The young man looked at her curiously. "Are you /serious/? Out, in the woods, on Halloween night? Honestly, what is your mother /thinking/?" He shook his head and grew silent. Aurielle ventured to speak.
"My mother doesn't care what I do. She says that I'm the reason my father walked out, so why should she care whether I live or die," Aurielle explained. She had no clue why she was telling a complete stranger this, especially one with a costume like his. No one she knew would ever go to the trouble of wearing a dress shirt, black slacks, black vest, and a black cloak all night long. The boy seemed to be thinking about her answer. Then he smiled at her.
"Then how would you like to come to my home for Halloween?" he asked. Aurielle shrugged.
"Sure, why not?" she said. She knew she should probably be suspicious, but, for some odd reason, she trusted this guy. The young man smiled.
"Spectacular! I'm sure you'll love it, given your costume," he said. He took her hand and started running at full speed. Aurielle gasped. No human could run this fast.
"Excuse me," she said as they ran. "But, what's your name?"
"Shade," the boy said, turning his head back towards her and smiling again.
"Shade, what are you?" Aurielle asked. Shade stopped running, and Aurielle lurched forward from the sudden stop of motion. Shade caught her.
"My dear girl, what else could I be? I..." He paused dramatically. "...am a vampire."