Moon's Rite

Samhain

"You know, when you said you were going to get me into costume, I didn't think you were going to be quite so hands on."

Tony grinned, eyes never straying from the face paint she was applying to Alistair. "You got me out of my pants. I call this the least you can do in return." She leaned back to take in the full effect and was quite satisfied. The white face paint on his dark skin was a striking contrast. Her personal artistic skills had turned his handsome face into the visage of a bony faced demon. The coiling brown horns she had affixed on either side of his skull added to the dramatic costume.

She had picked out clothes as well, finding the perfect balance of sophistication and warrior god. A silk dress shirt in a rich forest green and black vest were off-set by the worn leather bracers strapped around his forearms. Fitted jeans had been picked out for comfort mostly. The tall boots were also geared towards comfort and ease of movement. The leather sheath that belted around his waist and thighs had been fully outfitted with a short blade and several daggers, because Tony believed in both function and form.

Alistair's misgivings on the sharp blades had been noted and ignored.

For her part, Tony had dressed in black long sleeves, black leggings, and knee high black boots. The costume part of her outfit were the bone white ribbons that had been artfully wrapped and knotted and braided to give the semblance of a skeleton. She had done up her own face paint to continue the theme, using black to define and shadow until her visage was one of a grinning skull.

All in all, she was quite pleased with the way their costumes looked, especially given the short notice. They had crossed Old Obie off the list and crashed for a couple hours sleep, then spent three hours travelling north on an old motorcycle Alistair had pulled out of storage. The little town they had stopped in hadn't had much in the way of shopping, but Tony had made do with what she'd found. She nodded her satisfaction and checked the time. Sundown was a few minutes away. If they hurried, they would make it just as full dark fell and the festival really kicked off.

"Come along mon petit four. Don't want to miss the party."

Alistair rolled his eyes, still not enthusiastic about the pet names. "Where exactly is this Samhain festival? This place looks like it's into old traditions, but you make this festival sound like it's a tourist attraction."

Tony shrugged, stepping out of the room they had rented for the night in a rustic little inn and waiting for Alistair to shut the door behind them. "Little of both? The local Druids host it but people come from all over Europe for it. I think all the drinking and dancing and fornicating that goes on helps power up spells and things so the magic folk don't mind extending an open invitation. I've been twice. The ringfort gets pretty lively no matter who attends."

Alistair skidded to a halt. Tony turned back with a raised brow, taking in the horror and panic on his face. "Ringfort?! You mean a fairy ringfort?! Are you daft?! We can't go to a fairy ring after nightfall!"

Tony did her very best not to laugh or even grin at the superstition falling out of Alistair's mouth. After all, the fear was very well founded. Had he been Human.

"You haven't been a Vampire for very long, have you."

Alistair swallowed, glancing around the empty streets. He stepped a little closer and whispered. "I've been a Vampire for ten years. Got turned when I was nineteen."

Tony smiled sympathetically, jerking her head to coax him along, continuing to walk down the single road out of town. "Yeah. That's not very long, all things considered. Rules change for those of us who can become ancient."

"Like you would know?"

"I've lived through World War Two. I might not be ancient yet, but I'm certainly old." She grinned when Alistair looked at her in surprise.