Halloween Parade Part 1

Posted on Tue Apr 11th, 2023 @ 6:49 by Phoebe Hunter & Matteo Beneventi

Chapter: All Hallow's Eve
Location: New Cresthill
Timeline: Saturday 30th
5152 words - 10.3 OF Standard Post Measure

One unique Halloween tradition in Scotland was "guising," which involved dressing up in costumes and going door-to-door to perform a song, dance, or other act in exchange for food or money, it was the only thing about Halloween in Scotland she could not get her head around. It was a simple Halloween in America; it has been cheap and over-commercialized in Salem but it had been simple. She just dressed up as a little witch and went door to door and get sugar drunk.

Halloween and the whole week between Halloween and Guy Fawkes night were just strange, the whole country was odd but she just could not figure out why. Maybe it was the excitement or maybe something magical in the air but it left her on tenterhooks and her abilities desperate to escape her control. She shoved her hands into her pockets and looked around for Matt in the midst of the crowds that were forming for the Halloween parade on the streets of New Cresthill. She should have said meet at the pub or something when they had spoken last night on the phone.

Halloween had always been lost on Matt, who didn't really understand the concept of it outside kids wanting free sweets. The slow domination of America's obsession with the holiday on pockets of the country were more mystifying when one stopped to consider that a lot of the ethos and history had got lost in translation, which was ridiculous because the yanks had inherited the whole kit and kaboodle in the first place. Scotland seemed better prepared and, having watched preparations unfold, Matt had been willing to concede that he'd likely just grow up in the wrong areas for a more culturally-diverse celebration, but the holiday still screamed of cheap costumes and sugar-crashes to him.

Unaware that his stance mimicked his intended company's entirely, Matt wandered with hands shoved into his pocket, hair pulled up into a messy arrangement that made it hard to hide behind. Once in a while, someone bumped into him and spun, surprised as if only just noticing that the path was already occupied. It was such a common occurrence when it came to crowds that Matt didn't even register most of the apologies anymore.

Phoebe gave the crowd one more glance before closed her eyes and took a step forward using her abilities in a small way to find the correct route in her future to find her date for the evening. It felt selfish when her abilities felt so much wild around Halloween but it was a small price to pay when within moments she literally bumped into him. Instead of apologising she grinned and declared. “Found you.”

And with two simple words, she dredged out of him the first smile of the evening. "You and half a dozen others on this stretch alone." Turning to glance back in the direction he'd come, Matt added, "I don't think I realised there were this many people in the town and surrounding area." He followed the chaotic sprint of a very short ninja turtle and then lifted his gaze to meet Phoebe's, a hand settling on her waist as a pursuing Darth Vader forced him to step quickly towards her to avoid being barrelled into yet again. "Definition of insanity, sugar and kids."

“Well I am glad that you waited for me instead of one of the half a dozen others then.” She giggled as a fairy chased after the mini Darth Vader. “They all want to see the parade and it’s a good way for the local lions club to find raise for local charities.” Phoebe said grinning. “Just like America and my childhood. Think of one of the those kids as a red head and you have me twenty years ago.” It was hard to imagine herself like that seeing the transformation she had been through but there she was.

"Nah, I bet you were cuter."

It had taken a couple more dates, squeezed in around the mayhem, for Matt to reach a point where initiating something as simple as an embrace didn't involve a heap of second-guessing. Against all expectations, Phoebe had kept showing up, had kept in contact, had pursued in a way that was entirely alien because usually, by now, he was nothing more than a figment in someone's overcrowded imagination. Now that the school term had started, there had only been an opportunity for a few dates but the phone calls had been constant and, honestly, a revelation. Lying on his bed late at night talking to someone only twenty minutes away had been a test of resolve at times but it had also proven to be an exceptionally easy way to connect. He couldn't remember the last time he'd ever just talked to someone as much as he talked to Phoebe.

Leaning forward, he placed a kiss on her forehead. "Well, you got me out here, now what?"

“Was not exactly hard to get you here. It was more ’hey Matt want to come to the parade with me’ and you went ‘sure’. “ she teased him looking up at him grinning at the gentle kiss on her forehead. It was gentle and kind and made her pause in her thought track. “Well I thought we could watch the parade and enjoy the atmosphere.” She squeezed her arm around him for a moment before sliding her hand down to weave her fingers through his.

"So, no actual plan at all." The grin on Matt's face was a bolder expression than had been risked quite so easily during their first conversations. Once in a while, it occurred to him not to get too comfortable, but in the aftermath of increased social pressure, it seemed important to stay present and involved. He couldn't very well leave Leo to fend for himself, fading into obscurity was less of an option even if it did feel inevitable. A tug on her hand bumped him gently against her side. "I'm starting to suspect you like an excuse to be impulsive, Ms. Hunter."

“Quite possibly. I like to live in the here and now.” Phoebe said leaning up on her tip toes to kiss him. Always trying to avoid the future was a necessity somethings and she thought that it might be something he did too. She had over heard Leo commenting about his brother and how it was hard to remember his face sometimes that it made her think on what his abilities could be more and more. “Now that is impulsive.” She teased him.

Spinning her gently around so that he could wrap her in a hug from behind, Matt settled his chin against the top of her head and considered the claim. "I'll allow it, even if it's starting to become your favourite attempt at distraction." Permitting the embrace for a moment longer just to enjoy the freedom of finally being able to see her again, Matt then realised they were in danger of taking up the pavement and unwound his arms to take up her first offer, hand slipping into hers as he prompted her to lead the way to a better vantage spot.

Over the past few weeks, the pair of them had been discreet as was likely in a small town, and though this was likely the most ostentatious display of affection they'd put on display, it was also hard to believe anyone was actually paying much attention. Matt took some credit, finding some use for his passive abilities even if he lived with the concern that they would eventually affect Phoebe herself. Weaving through the crowd, following the shock of auburn hair as best he could whilst his hand held hers fast, Matt did his best to use a slight height advantage to steer them towards a less populated spot. "You know, we could have just climbed out onto the roof at the pub." He'd discovered the phone cord stretched that far and, though he didn't tend to smoke all that often, there was certainly no way he'd get away with it inside the room itself.

“I have much better ways to distract.” The woman flirted over her shoulder as she passed a group of older people who were taking up the pavement making her step into the road around them. Phoebe had not considered that as an option in the slightest but maybe they could for Guy Fawkes night to watch the fireworks. “If I’m not on pastoral duty that night could watch the fireworks from there.” Phoebe offered as a compromise as they stepped into a spot to watch the parade as it would be coming down. It was just nice in her opinion to get out among people and not have anyone care if she was human or mutant or what her ability was.

It was a nice sentiment but Matt didn't trust it. Where he was concerned, he had little fear, he was pretty sure none of the town even knew he was a mutant and, as such, it was only those who knew enough to realise where Leo was that had any reason to sneer in the bartender's direction. That required caring enough about his existence to be disgusted by it though and that wasn't really a consideration most of the time. Phoebe was a different matter altogether, front and centre and easily recognisable. There was no easy way to broach the fact that his natural instinct was to protect, to cast outwards the sense of vagueness that always followed him to create a shroud that included her also. They'd made a pact, of sorts, to leave discussion of powers out of it for the time being and, whilst Matt felt like he probably should have been transparent about using his on her behalf, he hadn't found the words yet to articulate any of it. It was harmless, such was his justification. All it did was make sure that nobody looked her way twice, to keep her safe.

To keep her to yourself.

The internal battle with his conscience threatened a brooding silence that was going to be swiftly out of place if he allowed it. Pushing the self-doubt aside, Matt made the most of the view from over the top of Phoebe's head and wrapped her up once more in a hug around the shoulders. "If you are, I'll watch it from up there anyway and wish you were there."

“Better watch them. I have heard the displays around here are good. Though I’m not sure that penny for the guy is a good way to get cash.” She had tried to get someone to explain to her the concept of Penny for the guy but it was lost on her even when some of the younger students had tried to explain it was something that went straight over her head. It was banned at school after a previous year it had gone wrong and she was under the impression it might not be a good idea to ask to get some understanding.

"I haven't figured out many of the local customs. Some of them are odd enough that I'm too scared to ask."

She shrugged when the silence settled again and she wiggled a little to get comfortable against him. It was not an overly cold evening but it was getting cold enough to bring out the big coat. “How is Leo getting on this week?” She only saw Leo once a week for a history class and occasionally at tea time and she was not his form tutor or anything so he was not a child she knew well.

"He seems to like it." It was always hard to tell with the kid, who was genuinely happy as long as he had access to resources for his endless projects. "I'm not sure he's making many friends yet, which was the whole point of bringing him up here but it's early days." Matt tracked a group of kids with monster masks. "He's just used to being on his own."

“Whenever I have seen him he has people around him. He has not struck me as a lonely boy unlike his brother.” Phoebe said putting her hands over his to soften her words. It was not something that she had considered until tonight that he never seemed to speak to anyone other than her when they were around each other and even that day in the pub people seemed to almost be surprised when he appeared.

"You think I'm lonely?" A warm hand escaped the confines of hers to offer shelter instead, wrapped around her fingers to shield them against the cold. It was true that he was alone a lot but that had always been the case, it was a function of the way he interacted with people and for the longest time had been something he'd struggled to have any control over. Coming through the foster system did that to kids anyway, a unique kind of invisibility where the world around you made all the decisions that impacted you without ever once stopping to talk to you about it. He'd loped along, been angry about it for a long while, and then just found peace in resignation. A foster father who got it, a foster brother in need of an advocate. It wasn't much of a purpose but it was more than he'd had.

“Very much. It shows around your eyes sometimes and in your voice on the phone.” She said quietly. Staring ahead at the other side of the road had the welcome respite in that she was not staring directly at him and allowed them a little more intimacy in talking.

There was never much arguing with her, he'd learned that already. Instead, Matt skirted around agreement by offering a diversionary reassurance. "Maybe coming up here will make both Leo and I some friends then." He ducked his head to press his cheek against her ear. "I think I'm actually doing better in that regard than I usually do, unless you plan on going anywhere."

“I do not foresee it.” She said smirking at her own joke. It was ironic and almost idiotic but it made her smile more than she should that she had made a power joke and he would not get it in the slightest. Maybe one day she would let him in on her secrets and abilities.

It was still spoken with a conviction that Matt desperately wanted to believe. Quite apart from anything, the notion that there could exist anyone who retained a natural capacity to remember him without explicit intervention on his part was a revelation that warranted exploration. As a general rule, it would have made him unsettled, he'd relied too long on being able to slip away quietly. In her case, it was at least allowing for a gentle interlude that he found himself wanting more than he'd realised. With the acceptance of his own desire, however, came the fear of eventual abandonment, or worse, that this would somehow lead to her being hurt in some fashion. The slip of an arm across her chest held her protectively as Matt straightened and dropped his chin into her hair. "No reason to be so lonely then, huh?"

“Nope. Definitely not.” Phoebe nearly turned around to kiss him but stopped herself as there were children and others around. She did not want to make a spectacle of herself or them especially with some of the unease still felt around the train station and what it had done to the local community. She already heard several whispered conversations around what that kind of person was doing in their town.

It was a problem that existed as a cycle. The only thing that Matt had been able to settle on was riding it out to see how long it would take to start looping back. He was reasonably sure, despite her uncanny retention so far, that he'd be able to slip away unheeded if the need presented itself and though it would likely make him more miserable than any goodbye had for quite a while, it still mattered that he retained that control. He could get out of her life if he needed to and, as long as he could convince himself of that level of protection, it felt okay to just sink into her for now.

He planted a kiss into her hair.

"Though this is much nicer than the phone."

“It is.” Phoebe had not dated since before she had started in MI13 and she had been living with Robert very quickly as the attraction had been all-consuming so dates had quickly turned into more. They had not taken things slow but this was slow and steady and an almost shy process. It was hard to date as mutant let alone a pairing like this seemed to be with the abilities she suspected he had. “But I do enjoy our conversations. Been a long time since I have dated like this. I guess it is part of becoming a grown up with a proper job and responsibilities.”

"I'm not complaining about the phone calls." They astounded him more than anything, since reaching out to him on the phone required a level of focus on him as a fixed point that Matt didn't think anyone in his life had ever managed. That she anticipated them as much as he did, seemed to prepare space in her night for them, curled up in bed as he did in what was fast becoming a nightly ritual, was staggering. "And I don't know know if I've ever dated quite like this." He tightened his hold just long enough to squeeze her affectionately. "Bossed into it, really, seduced by strategic Greggs temptation."

Phoebe could not help but laugh loudly at what he was saying about how they were dating and shook her head. Every time they got together he was being more and more comfortable. “I do a much better job at seducing whe…” he words were lost in the sound of a sudden burst from a bagpipe further up the road that signifies that the parade was getting closer.

"You're going to finish that sentence later," he raised his voice to be heard. The temptation to delve deeper was thwarted by the appearance of the procession as it rounded the corner, and the wail of the pipers gave Matt pause to close his eyes and fight back a grimace. It wasn't that he minded the instrument, he certainly understood the history behind it and its significance as an instrument of ceremony, but he'd been listening to his boss practise for weeks now and there was a lot to be said about a lone bagpipe inside a small room by comparison to a group of them outside where their notes could roam free.

Phoebe laughed at his statement and nodded. She certainly would finish it whenever he wanted to. She ducked her head to kiss his wrist as he was wrapped around her attempting to keep her warm. She loved bagpipes, they reminded her of another time and the way the hush came down across the street was a reflection on how others thought on them as well.

As the parade moved past, Matt realised that he'd hadn't really paid a lot of attention to the point of it. The pub had been abuzz with expectation all week, and there had been calamity after calamity involving costumes that wouldn't be ready in time, and a flooded basement ruining a vital piece of a float, but he'd never been directly involved in any of the conversations. As usual, his understanding of a situation came from the peripheral observations he managed whilst the world ignored him. He bent so that his mouth was level with her ear. "What's that supposed to be?"

Phoebe watched the first float start to pass them by and watched intrigued as everyone started to have conversations over it. “Celtic festival of Samhain. It symbolised the boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead. Quite spooky for the first float.” She said watching as a couple of children hid behind their mum across from her and Matt.

The entire holiday was a little spooky in Matt's opinion, not because he really bought into any of the mysticism but because the town had just endured an attack that proved monsters actually existed. It spoke to their spirit and strength that the residents were still willing to go ahead with such a large public event after everything that had happened. Matt still found himself watching the shadows more than the procession itself.

"At least people seem to be enjoying themselves," he murmured, wincing slightly as the high-pitched squeals of children greeted the next float's generosity in flinging sweets into the crowd. Reaching up, he caught several and then offered them to the woman pressed against him, palm spread.

Phoebe, in the interest of not getting hit, ducked a little to avoid several sweets hitting her and settled back as he offered her one. She took one of the boiled sweets popping it in her mouth wincing for a moment as the sour taste before it settled back down. "Oh... this is the one I saw practising that I was telling you around." It was a float based around the kids' cartoon show Family Nessie. It had been an ear worm in Phoebe's head for weeks after watching one of them when she found some of the kids up really early just after the railway attack.

If the parade had made no sense to Matt before, it completely lost all sense of gravitas now. A snort of laughter was promptly smothered, though he bent his face forward into her hair as a means of controlling his mirth. "Is this the show you've been watching over breakfast?" She'd sung the theme song down the phone to him too many times and as childish and silly as it was, Matt had found it endearing. She was, after all, part of a group of mutants who had brought down an entire military robot and here she was, bopping along to a child's tune.

“You bet.” Phoebe said grinning and turned a little to catch him laughing and trying to hide it. “Kids absolutely love it. Look around, everyone loves it.” Phoebe was in no doubt that it appealed to the local community living pretty much on loch ness.

“Not me… foolish program almost as ridiculous as those mutants up that school.” An old lady said from beside them. “False idealism.”

The awkward frostiness that settled left Matt uncertain of how to react. Random conversation in the street were not his forte, he had long ago capitalised on his ability to slink through crowds unnoticed and tended not to engage in provocation, even if it was technically warranted. This was different though. Off-the-cuff remarks about mutants might have rolled off his back had he been the only one present but his arms tightened around Phoebe as he frowned faintly at the old woman. Opinionated bigots came in all shapes and sizes but he'd noticed New Cresthill had a particular talent for breeding interfering old biddies. "Anyone would think that kids having fun was against the law," he muttered, more for Phoebe's benefit than to address the old woman specifically.

Phoebe just nodded and turned her attention back to the parade. It was one of the nicer things that had been said about mutants in her presence. “Seems so.” She finally decided she needed to say something so the woman did not sap all the joy from the world around her. It seemed the tone from the old woman had struck a few people as they moved away.

"I think you'd make a beautiful swamp monster," Matt smiled, leaning down to set his chin on her shoulder. "Though, before you get any ideas, I am not dressing up like one." He had no idea if there would be an opportunity for her to expect a costume out of him, he hadn't been game to broach the subject.

“I would not assume…” Phoebe assured before lowering her tone so the old lady close by could not hear. “My my costume is a Greek goddess but very modest as supervising kids Halloween party tomorrow.” She had agreed to supervise to get this night free for the parade as she thought he might be working Halloween so it seemed like a good idea at the time three weeks ago.

Matt took a moment to consider this, having fallen into a gentle sway back and forth that proved the insidious nature of the tune's catchiness. His work schedule was usually fairly easy to manipulate, providing he didn't try to take Friday and Saturday nights off too often. Given his lack of other pursuits, he tended to build up overtime that was far easier for the publican to pay out in time off than extra wages, which Matt didn't require anyway. It was hard enough work to get the man to remember he owed any. "Do I at least get a photo?"

“When they come back sure.” The woman laughed as she listened to his determined voice. Phoebe looked over her shoulder and grinned at him. “It’s nothing special.”

“Not even married.” The woman said making Phoebe sighed. It was definitely that kind of woman. But she was not moving when they had a good spot.

Irritation caught Matt off-guard and, for once, he retaliated enough to shoot an annoyed look at the woman. It was hardly an option to start bickering with an octogenarian in the middle of a parade, however, and instead a far more typical instinct took over. Moving to stand between Phoebe and their critic, he put an arm around the redhead's shoulders and pulled her in to snuggle against his chest, an act that shifted the old lady's view and gave time for her perception to succumb to Matt's effortless rearranging of detail. It only took a minute, the glazed expression of docile confusion lasting barely any longer before the interfering battle axe sank into blissful obliviousness, no longer aware that there was anything worth disapproving of. Taking other people with him wasn't as easy as removing himself from other's radar but it certainly made it easier when the person in question was happy to pick another target, an egalitarian when it came to her wealth of prejudice.

"You okay?," he asked softly, more interested in the woman in his arms than the muttering biddy currently wandering off.

“Certainly.” The woman replied looking up at him and smiled. She glanced to their left to see the woman had gone away muttering by the looks of the people in her path. “Do not get people like that in London or in my previous line of profession.” She commented quietly with a shrug hovering a kiss to him chin before she turned back to the parade.

"I think there's people like that everywhere, just some of them keep it inside their head. At least until they get around other people they know agree with them." He'd worked bars too many times to have that amount of faith in people. Normally it didn't bother him, but the older Leo got, the more the anti-mutant sentiment seemed destined to punch a hole in the anonymity Matt so carefully cultivated. It was no easier watching Phoebe become a target of it, and only served to remind him that she had been in the direct firing line of an actual threat.

The arm around her tightened.

"She'd have a heart attack if she overheard some of our phone conversations."

The gentle tease was a sneaky insertion, delivered with the man's usual capacity to hide his mischief behind a reserved tone.

“Matt!” Phoebe commented hitting his arm for bringing that up with a grin. “I think she would to be fair. Oldies do not know what they are missing.” She said giving him another quick kiss before turning back around to see another spooky float passing by.

"I'm not sure I knew what I was missing." It was impressive, really. He was far from an innocent or inexperienced ignoramus and yet they'd already strayed into territory he'd never even thought of. It wasn't a difficult decision to stop talking about it, however; he spent most of the week frustrated that she wasn't in the same room as him and was in no rush to embarrass himself now that she was.

The next float to drift past had taken shares out in a glitter factory, apparently. Squinting as a whirlpool of sparkles and confetti scattered down into his hair, Matt carefully repositioned several larger pieces to create a makeshift tiara in Phoebe's hair, doing his best to move so that she didn't realise what he was doing.

“Well I am never going to get get that out of my clothing.” She commented. “Or hair…” she added feeling a subtle change in her hair. She grinned as she saw William further up the road stood with some of her colleagues. “Some of my colleagues are here.”

There was an imperceptible pause. The notion of meeting any of the other teaching staff hadn't really come up yet. The weeks had flown by and it had been enough to try and carve out some time to talk to each other. Couple that with his desire not to ruin Leo's adjustment by hovering and Matt hadn't been in a rush to completely join her world, content instead to just wait until she had a chance to step back into his. "You want to go say hello?" He was, more or less, expecting her to leave him there whilst she mingled.

“Um… not overly. They are lovely but I do not want to leave you.” She said looking over her shoulder. “I am content here with you.” She admitted before blushing.

A long moment passed and though Matt had never really thought to ask what it felt like from another's perspective, the world around them blended together as a coalescence of colour and sound, the clamor of hundreds of separate realities all colliding at once. He didn't have much to offer, hadn't planned much for the future beyond how to get through what was immediately pressing, but he could do this for her. Surrounded by people, in full sight of those who would recognise her, he hooked a finger beneath her chin, lifted her face to meet his and kissed her within the blurred space between existence and oblivion. It wasn't much but if he could offer her refuge, even for a minute, then perhaps he had found a way to make sense of Matteo Beneventi after all.