Discover Top Posts Tagged with #no04

Nov 16, 2014

LMWC - NO.04 - Everything that you've ever dreamed of...

Warnings: Cursing, drinking, time travel, one-sided zouis

Louis really, really hates halloween.

or, the one where Louis gets drunk and wakes up somewhere he's pretty sure he's not supposed to be.

As a rule, Louis very much does not enjoy halloween. The idea of kids ringing his doorbell for candy every other minute when he's trying to watch the bloody Manchester United game he recorded last night is not a favorable one. Most years, Louis spends Halloween in one of two places: his basement, hiding with all the lights turned out, or in a bar getting drunk off his arse.

So when Niall asks --no, begs-- Louis to attend a Halloween party with him, the answer is an automatic "no". Halloween parties are simply a reason for (usually) respectable adults to dress up in outrageous costumes in order to relive their childhood years of trick-or-treating, and Louis will have no part in it, thank you very much.

Yet, on Halloween night Louis still finds himself in the passenger seat of Niall's car on the way to a party hosted by who-knows-who, dressed in some outrageous costume that he’s fairly sure Niall pieced together from the back of his mum's closet, no doubt. The thoughts of what tonight might bring-- girls in slutty cat costumes, men dressed in spandex and drunk out of their minds-- cause him to shudder, and he checks to make sure that he's got his phone in his jacket pocket. Chances are, he'll be calling Zayn to pick him up no less than two hours from now.

"'Ere we are," he hears Niall say as they pull to the side if the street to park. Louis lifts his head to see where they are, and holy shit.

Instead of the apartment building or run-down house Louis had expected to see, they are parked in front of a large -- excuse him, huge-- house. It’s more than a house really, mansion is probably a more suitable description. Apparently Niall knows people--rich people.

“Niall, whose party is this?” Louis asks as they both get out of the car. He adjusts whatever the fuck it is he’s wearing, now a little concerned that he’s under-dressed for this party. Then again, Niall is dressed up in a ketchup bottle costume, so who knows.

“Um,” Niall pauses for a moment. “I t’ink it’s Jaymie’s sister’s best friend’s cousin’s daughter’s party? Can’t remember, find out when we get inside, I guess.”

And well. Louis supposes he shouldn’t be shocked, as social as Niall is. But, his jaw still drops a bit and his brain fogs over a mo’ because anybody could be at this party. And fuck, but that’s terrifying.

By the time Louis’ brain does kick back into gear, Niall’s already in the front door and Louis’ still standing in the street like an idiot. This party may be sketchy, but Niall has the keys so. Better to go in than stand in the street and risk getting frostbite or summat. He can call Zayn from inside.

If Louis had been impressed by the outside of the house, he was a little less so when he entered. The grand images he had held of elegant wallpaper, shining wood floors and glossy banisters were dispelled as he looked at his surroundings. Obviously, the building was old-- no doubt built in the mid-nineteenth century-- but it was not kept up to pristine condition. Everything appeared to be covered by a thin layer of dust, like the place hadn’t been inhabited in ages. The wallpaper was torn and faded, and reminded Louis more of a haunted house than a fancy old mansion. Which, yeah that oddly fits.

As if Louis wasn't disappointed enough by the decor of the house, the party looked like even more of a disaster. Or at least it did to the brunet. So many people were stood around the main room, none of them dancing to the music blaring through the speakers set up, and even fewer were actually conversing with each other. With a quick scan around the room, Louis discovered an even worse aspect to the party-- no alcohol. Though, that could work in his favor, because there was no way that Niall would last long at a party without alcohol.

"Hey, Lou." Louis jumped, looking to see that Niall had popped up right next to him. Where did he come from? "Enjoyin' the party?" Louis could barely hear him over the music ringing throughout the room.

Louis looked back out at the party, looking to see if there was something exciting Niall had found that he hadn't. There wasn't. "No, Niall. This party blows." He practically had to yell to be heard.

“Wha’ d’ya mean?” Niall shouted back. He brought a bottle of some sort of dark-colored liquor to his lips, taking a swig. “This party’s great!”

Louis watched, eyes wide, having not seen the bottle before. “Where the fuck did you get that? Give me some!” He reached out for the alcohol, plucking the glass bottle right out of the blonde’s hand.

“I brought it with me-.”This time it was Niall’s turn to watch with enlarged eyes as Louis threw back the bottle and began to take gulps of the amber liquid. “Whoa there, mate. Slow down, Lou.” He reached for the container as Louis sputtered and pulled the bottle away from his lips, a bit of alcohol dribbling onto his chin.

“Shit.” Louis wheezed, coughing. He wiped a few drops from his lips with the back of a hand. “What is that stuff?”

“‘S Irish whiskey.” Niall threw back another drink. “Had Greg send me some last week.”

Louis chuckled, “You’re crazy, mate. That shit’s strong enough to kill a horse.” He smiled fondly when Niall laughed his crazy laugh.

“Cheers, mate.” Niall lifted the bottle again, and took a swig, passing it to Louis, who took a drink as well.

The drinking continued, Louis had no idea for how long-- he’d lost track after about eight or nine swallows of the strong beverage. He did, however, know that the party had gotten quite a bit better after the two had started.

He could feel the beat of whatever song was playing on the loudspeaker thrumming through his bones as he swayed and grinded against Niall. The bottle was passed back to him, and he pressed the mouth to his lips and tipped it back but was startled when nothing poured onto his tongue. He dropped the hand holding the bottle only to realize that there was nothing left. He pouted. “Niall!”

When he didn’t get a response, he turned around to get the Irish lad’s attention. His eyes were shut as he swayed to the music, head tilted back with a lazy grin.

“Niall!” Louis yelled, pushing a bit against the other’s chest to get his attention.

The blonde opened his eyes and looked at Louis, gaze glassy and dazed. “Lou? Whassit?”

“‘S gone, Nialler,” Louis whined. He raised the glass bottle to eye level sadly.

“Everything alright, guys?” A voice came from behind Louis. They both looked in the direction that it had come from to find a tall brunet male with warm brown eyes. He was wearing a batman costume, spandex and all. Louis likey.

“‘S gone,” Louis repeated, hoping that the handsome lad in spandex could maybe get them some more.

Realization filled the man’s eyes. “You’re drunk.”

Louis whined, “No we’re noooot.”

Batman rolled his eyes, “Right. Let’s get you sat down and get you a ride home, alright.”

Louis pouted as the man took the bottle from his hand and began to lead he and Niall off of the dance floor and into a hallway just off of the foyer. “Batman’s supposed to be sexy and nice. You’re just sexy.” He plopped down onto a plush loveseat, slouching and crossing his arms like a little kid. When Niall sat down next to him, Louis looked over to him. “Batman’s a dickhead,” he whispered loud enough for the guy in costume to overhear. He could hear him sigh.

Niall nodded solemnly. “‘e’s a cunt.”

“Where’s your phone at?” Batman asked. “Is there someone you can call to give you a ride home?”

Louis ignored the question. “Shouldn’t your voice be like-- lower?”

Batman sighed and began feeling inside the pockets of the jacket Louis was -shockingly- still wearing.

“‘ey!” Louis groaned as a finger poked into his side. “Shouldn’t you, like, buy me a drink first? I’m not that easy, y’know.” He swiped at the hand, but it was already gone since Batman had located his iPhone.

"What's your passcode?"

Louis blinked at the screen that had been shoved in front of his face. He took it, entering the four-digit code--six-nine six-nine, ha-- before passing it back to the 'dark knight'.

"Who can I call?" The man asked, scrolling through Louis' contacts. He couldn't help but notice four missed calls from a "Zeee?? Who's that?" He clicked on the call icon without waiting for a response. The calls had been made less than an hour ago, chances were good that whoever it was could still be awake. He put the device on speakerphone.

The phone on the other end rang three times before a male picked up on the other end. “Hullo?”

"Zayniekins!!" Louis squealed, drunk-happy.

“Lou? Y’alright there, mate?”

Batman cleared his throat and answered for the drunk brunet. “Hi, um. My name’s Liam and I’m here with your mates at a party? And well, um, they’ve gotten pretty drunk, so um--could you come pick them up?”

The man on the other end groaned tiredly. “What time ‘s it?”There was some rustling and then a soft curse. “Fuck, two in the morning. Ugh, give me half an hour, mate?”

“Yeah, sure.” Liam said before hanging up. He looked over the two drunk lads before him. “Now, what to do with you two?”

Louis scoffed, “Don’t let us ruin your night, Batman. Go be disgustingly sexy somewhere else.”

Liam rolled his eyes, but left the room nonetheless.

Louis sighed in relief. “Thank fuck, Nialler. Bat-prick is gone.” When there wasn’t a reply, he turned his head to see that Niall had fallen asleep, his head fallen to one side. And well-- that actually didn’t look like such a bad idea. “Good thinking, lad.” Louis muttered, laying his head on his mate’s shoulder and allowing his eyes to flutter to a close.

Louis is very used to sleeping in his quiet, pitch-black bedroom, therefore the loud music and bright light that accompany his awakening are a shock. Remembering the party he had attended that night, Louis huffed quietly and shut his eyes to fall back asleep.

Before he could re-enter his slumber, however, he realized that something was out of place. After a second of thought, he realized that his blonde-haired friend was missing. Louis opened his eyes, sure that the Irish lad couldn’t be too far off. Upon opening his eyes, Louis discovered a whole slew of new problems.

The house, for one, was far nicer than Louis remembered it being when he arrived. It could have just been the large amount of alcohol he consumed, but the wall across from him did not have such bright wallpaper when he fell asleep. He stood, startled, from the couch he had previously been resting on, jostling the thing that -he now realized- sat upon his face.

Louis carefully pulled off the object, holding it in front of himself for inspection. It was a mask -a beautiful one, at that- a deep-maroon-colored velvet with intricate gold stitching of flowers and vines. He traced the edge of it with his left forefinger, which he now realized was encased inside of a snow-white glove. Surprised, Louis dropped his gaze down to his costume, which he now realized was replaced with much finer attire. What the hell...

Louis stepped in front of the ornate mirror that now hung on the wall in front of him. The person that he saw in the reflection was definitely him, but not the version as he’d been when he fell asleep not that long ago. His face had an almost older quality to it, but not really old as in age but more of old as in experience. The bit of scruff that had covered Louis’ chin from not having shaved that morning had vanished, leaving behind smooth skin. The messy fringe his hair had been in had also disappeared-- now it was expertly slicked back.

The shirt and waistcoat -velvet, to match the mask he guessed- he was wearing were much nicer than any costume Louis had ever seen before. He even had a fucking cravat on! Now that he thought about it, these clothes were really fucking tight-- and itchy. Shit. Before he could think any more about the odd changes both he and the house had undergone, a voice broke into his musings.

“M’lord!”

Louis turned to look at the woman who was now bustling down the hall towards him, hefty skirts in hand. She stopped in front of him, huffing a bit for breath.

“M’lord,” she curtsied. “Your husband, Lord Malik, requires your presence, sir.”

Louis’ sight began to spin. Lord Malik? My husband? Oh fuck.. His legs nearly gave out from under him, but the woman who had been speaking to him hurried to assist him.

“Sir!” she shrieked, catching him before his knees could touch the hard floor.

He quickly caught his bearings and got his legs back underneath him. Louis muttered a curse under his breath as he brushed himself off. “Sorry, don’t know what came over me.” He looked up to see the woman who had helped him standing there looking near-traumatized. Oh great.

“Could you take me to him? My husband? Please.” Louis asked her, uncertain of what else he could do.

“Yes, m’lord,” the woman curtsied again -strange, that- before turning and walking down the hall in the direction she had come from. Louis followed close behind, brown boots clacking against the hardwood floors.

The further that they went into the house, the louder the sounds of people and music got. When the two entered the grand room -the largest one in the entire house- Louis’ steps faltered at what he saw inside.

In the place of the trashy party Louis had fallen asleep at, there was -what appeared to be- a ball of some sort. All of the people in the room were dressed elegantly-- the women in long, flowing dresses while the men looked dapper in their sharp waist- and suit-coats. Like the hallway, the room was no longer in disrepair and shone in the light of the glowing chandelier hanging from the painted ceiling.

A man approached him, the woman following close behind. As he drew closer, Louis recognized him, even with the longer hair slicked back similar to his own. Zayn. He couldn’t help but stare a little.

“Are you alright, darling?” this Zayn asked, concerned. “Martha said that you nearly collapsed out in the hallway.” Louis nearly had to physically jerk himself out of his head to answer. Instead, he discreetly pinched his thigh. “U-um, yeah. I’m alright, just felt a little light-headed I suppose.” He saw Martha give him a disbelieving look from behind Zayn’s back. He would so sass her out if he knew what the hell was going on right now.

Zayn still looked unsure. “Are you absolutely sure, love? I know you said you didn’t feel well earlier, but I was certain that your nap would remedy that..”

Louis’ brain trailed off as Zayn continued speaking. So I’d been sleeping when the change happened. Interesting, but I sort of already had that figured.

“Louis?”

He blinked out of his daze. “Yes?”

“Do you need help with your mask, my love? We must begin soon, it is nearly ten o’clock.” Zayn asked, tying his own mask -a black silk creation adorned with small pearls and silver stitching- over his features.

Louis looked down, surprised that he actually was still carrying his mask. “Yes, please.” He held the piece over his face as Zayn stepped behind him to tie it in place. Louis was surprised when Zayn finished and pressed a warm kiss to the back of his neck as he rubbed a hand down his right arm to his waist.

Before Louis could respond, Zayn was back at his side, holding out his right arm for Louis. Tentatively, Louis placed his arm in the crook of his friend’s and then he was being led out into the middle of the crowd that had formed in the large room.

Everyone that had been mingling now fell silent as they all stepped back to form a large circle around what Louis now realized was a ballroom floor. Fuck, I don’t know how to dance.

Louis’ lack of skill, however, didn’t seem to matter as Zayn got them into position-- one hand on Louis’ side, the other holding his hand gently in his own upturned one. Nervous, Louis placed his unoccupied hand on Zayn’s shoulder and swallowed harshly. This is going to be interesting. He let out a quiet, shaky breath.

“Follow my lead, love. You’ll be alright,” Zayn whispered into Louis’ ear and then the music began and they were dancing. Louis tried not to look down at their feet, attempting to just feel the way Zayn moved to the tune that the orchestra played as they waltzed across the floor.

It felt odd to look into Zayn’s eyes as they danced and see love and admiration and all sorts of feelings that his best mate shouldn’t have for him. Yet, it felt nice -even though he would never feel that way about Zayn- to be cherished, even if he still had no idea where he was or what was going on.

When he felt a bit more comfortable with the movement of the dance -there was an easy repetition to it- Louis looked out at the crowd over Zayn’s shoulder. Most of the guests were busy conversing with each other, drinks in hand and smiles on their faces. A few people watched the couple as they danced, but Louis’ eyes fell on them and quickly swept away as he was led through the dance.

After one particular spin, Louis was struck with an unexplainable feeling as his eyes fell on one certain person in the crowd of bystanders. He only saw the man for a second, but the image was burned into his mind in a fraction of the time.

Like most of the guests -this was a masquerade after all- the man wore a mask, but this particular mask was quite...peculiar. Unlike the various other masks displayed throughout the room, each with a unique design, this man’s mask was a plain ivory white with gold filigree lining the entirety of it. Also, the mask did not stop a the nose like most, but rather turned into an oblong beak that reached far past the wearer’s chin.

A chill went through his spine as dark, green eyes shone at him from behind the eye slits of the terrifying mask in his memory. He searched out the man as Zayn turned him again but was surprised to find that the man was no longer in the spot Louis had seen him in earlier.

He tried to brush it off as they continued their waltz, but the worry remained in the back of his mind and he stayed tense. Louis nearly slipped up in his footwork, so he put his mind wholly on the task at hand, unwilling to mess up again. Zayn looked into his eyes again, having noticed the mistake, but Louis merely smiled at him.

Louis could have collapsed with relief when the melody, along with their movement across the floor, slowed to an end. He responded with a small grin to Zayn’s proud beam down to him when they finally swayed to a stop.

“I am so proud of you, Louis.” Zayn whispered, leaning down to place a chaste kiss on his lips. “Happy Birthday, love.”

And, oh. Well then. “U-um, thank you darling,” Louis stuttered. He swore he could feel the eyes of all of their guests watching him-- watching both of them. He felt as though they knew that he didn’t belong. Hell, Louis knew that he didn’t belong in whatever or wherever this place was. He didn’t belong with this Zayn, who loved him so fucking much that his eyes shone with it every time he looked in his direction.

His hands shook as he and Zayn made their way off of the floor. The music started up again, this time couples made their way onto the floor to begin a new dance.

The two stopped near the entry to the room. Louis resisted looking into Zayn’s loving eyes as he asked, “Will you excuse me for a moment?”

He turned away quickly, but was stopped by a gentle grip on his wrist. He turned back to look at Zayn, whose eyes still gleamed through the darkness of his mask. “Hurry back, darling. There are some guests we need to greet.”

Louis swallowed and nodded. Zayn released his wrist with a nod of his own and Louis made his way out into the hall, where the air felt vaguely clearer. His mind automatically fell back to the man with the strange mask. Who was he?

For a moment, Louis considered going back into the ballroom to search for the fellow, but he quickly threw out the idea. This is a masquerade, the bastard could have simply just changed masks and I would never know it was him. He also considered asking Zayn who it was, but chances were rather high that the man would have no idea who it was either.

A distinct click sounded from behind Louis, causing him to turn around only to find none other than the ivory-masked man exiting the ballroom and striding down the hallway in the direction opposite of where Louis was stood. The brunet watched as the figure walked all the way to where the corridor turned to the perpendicular before stopping and turning to look back at Louis almost expectantly.

Mentally, Louis shook his head, astounded. I swear this place only exists to fuck with me, honestly! Despite the voice in the back of his head telling him to turn around, Louis followed the mysterious being. As soon as Louis stepped foot towards him, however, the man began to continue walking, even once he was past Louis’ view he could hear his footsteps clicking down the hall.

Louis hurried his gait, almost at a run as he turned the corner. He could already see the black-cloaked figure at the end of the lamp-lit hallway. The man stood with a hand on the knob of a door at the very end of the room. When he saw Louis, he opened it with the flick of a wrist and entered, leaving the portal opened behind him.

“Hey!” Louis called, trying to catch up before the man could get farther away. “Wait!” His breathing was heavy as he reached the door and nearly threw himself inside, eyes already searching for the direction the spectre had gone in.

He didn’t have to look far, as the man was stood in the middle of the room, eyes watching him from behind the mask. Now, Louis was able to get a better look at the person he had been following. Above the strange ivory mask, brown, wavy hair was slicked back -much like everyone else’s, as Louis had noticed- and it reached down past his collar. The man’s shirt was snowy-white with a white tie and lace cravat holding it high and tight to his throat. The small amount of skin that Louis could see from between the mask and shirt was pale, on the verge of being considered opaque. Even in the darkness of the room, he could see the edges of pink lips nearly curved into a smile with a slight dimple in the left cheek.

Over top of his clothes, the figure wore a black cloak, complete with detailed black stitching. One hand stuck out from inside the cloak, just as pale as the skin Louis had seen on the face of the man. The fingers on the hand were long and thin, the nails darkened-- whether it was with dirt or disease, Louis didn’t know. On the man’s fingers sat two gold rings, and clutched in between was a dark red rose.

Louis stood still, uncertain of what to do. The cloaked man remedied that.

He stepped forward, “Lou..”

Louis’ mouth dropped open. “How the fuck do you know my name?”

“I-” the cloaked man began to respond again, but Louis cut him off.

“You brought me here, didn’t you?” He pointed an accusing finger at the figure as he strode forward angrily. He stopped right in front of the taller man. “Why? Why did you do it?”

“I- I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The voice from behind the mask cracked a little. The man cleared his throat meekly.

“What the-” Louis reached up and pulled the mask off of the fellow. Oh. Green eyes outlined by long, long eyelashes looked down at him bashfully. Pale cheeks blushed and the plump pink lips that Louis had gotten a peek at smiled a bit.

Louis dropped the mask. “You’re a-- you’re just a kid!” he breathed.

“Heeeyyyy,” the man -no, the kid- frowned. “‘M nineteen!”

Louis chuckled harshly, “Right, ‘cause that makes you a man.”

The kid pouted again. “I got you this,” he held out the rose hesitantly.

The shorter brunet sighed before taking the flower in his gloved hand. “Thank you. Now. Could you please explain how the fuck I got here and how I can get back? I’d very much like to go home now.”

Curly -as Louis had taken to calling him at the moment- gestured toward a fancy loveseat alongside the nearest wall. “Can we sit?”

In response, Louis strode over and plopped himself down onto one cushion, placing the rose next to himself gently. Curly sat tentatively on the other one. He fidgeted for a minute or two, sneaking little peaks at Louis every couple of seconds-- not that Louis didn’t catch him.

The boy cleared his throat. “Could you at least take off the mask so we can talk face to face?”

Louis just looked at the boy a second before acquiescing. “Alright.” He reached up and untied the strings with one hand as the other reached up to bring the piece away from his face. He placed it onto his lap, looking back up at Curly. “Better?”

Curly blushed and nodded, looking back down at his hands in his lap.

The two sat quietly for a moment before Curly smirked a little and raised his hand in front of Louis’ to shake. “Hi, ‘m Harry.”

Louis blinked. Alriiiiiight… He reached out and shook Harry’s hand. “Hello, Harry. I’m Louis, though I think you already know my name.”

Harry bit his lip. “Yeah… Um, this is gonna sound really crazy, but just listen, okay?”

Louis chuckled, “My night’s been full of crazy, I don’t think you could do much worse, mate.”

“Okay,” Harry breathed. “So, I’ve seen you around at uni, and-”

“Wait,” Louis cut in. “You go to my university?”

The taller lad sighed, “Yes, now if you’d allow me to explain myself.”

Louis had the courtesy to look ashamed, and allowed Harry to continue.

Harry began his story, explaining how he’d seen Louis at uni-- had even been in one of his classes. He’d automatically fallen in love, but had never gotten up the guts to ask the older boy out. Harry had been at the same party Niall and Louis had attended that very night, and he knew exactly what he had to do. He-- well, this is where it got wierd.

“You can time travel?” Louis asked, shocked.

Harry rubbed at the back of his neck. “Kind of, I guess? Mostly I go to places sort of like historical ones and make them more my own, really. So like-- time travel, but not really.”

Louis thought on that one for a second. “You brought me here… for Zayn?”

Harry sputtered. “No, NO!” His hands waved crazily in the air; Louis almost laughed. “That was not supposed to happen! You were supposed to hate him and fall in love with me, the mysterious and handsome stranger.”

“Oh, so you think you’re handsome?”

Harry’s face faltered for a second. “I- I, um-”

Louis laughed and rubbed Harry’s back gently. “It’s alright love, you’re gorgeous.”

Jesus Christ, could that kid blush a lot. “Thanks.”

Louis smiled gently before clapping his hands onto his knees. “So. How do we get home?”

Harry sighed, “It’s simple, really. Just-- hold my hand tight and close your eyes.”

Louis grabbed his hands. “Harry, before we go-- this really was a nice gesture. And maybe… maybe we can go out sometime, alright.”

Harry grinned. “Now, close your eyes.”

Louis closed his eyes and gripped Harry’s hands like his life depended on it.

“Lou? Louis, wake up, mate.”

Louis groaned as he was jostled, unwillingly being pulled from this great dream…

His eyes shot open. Zayn was stood in front of Louis, pushing against his shoulders to get him awake. Behind him, Louis could see Batma- Liam, sorry- helping Niall get out the door, presumably to Zayn’s car.

Louis stood quickly -maybe a little too quickly, Zayn had to help him so that he didn’t drop to the floor- and fished around his jacket pockets for his phone. Liam better have put it back. He found it in the front pocket and began to make his way back into where the party was going on. It wasn’t hard to find Harry in the crowd-- his height and curly hair were an advantage. Louis walked up behind him and tapped the lad on the shoulder.

He turned. “Can I help you?” he asked, eyes unsure as he gave Louis an easy escape.

Louis didn’t take it. He handed Harry his phone. “I need your number.”

“What for?” Harry asked, typing in his number before passing the phone back.

Louis smirked. “I’ve always wanted to visit Italy.” He winked, pecking Harry on the cheek before walking away. He didn’t miss the grin Harry had on his face when he stopped at the doorjamb to turn and look at the lad one last time.

“You ready to go, Lou?”

The brunet looked back at Zayn. “Sure mate, lets go.”

Later that night, Harry recieved a text from an unknown number. He smiled, opening it up.

It’s not my birthday, you know. -Lou xx

He grinned as he typed the answer into the phone and hit send.

You always deserve nice things, even if it’s not your birthday. -H xx

#no04 #LMWC

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