TIMEWARP: Let's Talk Glitter (Devon)

[Kateri Rivera]

Kosher, Early Summer of 1999

This was going to be epic. And one hell of a sendoff. The young eighteen year-old red-head placed her hands on her shiny, blue-clad hips and surveyed the room. Kosher was crowded, as always, and warm. Kateri was making it so with subtle applications of wind magic, carefully keeping all wind away from the windows. She was graduating in two weeks and she thought this would be the perfect sendoff.

Even if she was bound to get into trouble for it. At least she had a partner in crime. Although in truth, she felt more like the plucky assistant. It had been the younger man’s idea, after all. She’d just provided the extra hands, the ladder—Kateri could bat her blue eyes at any janitor to let her sneak into the supply closet and steal a ladder for a “project”—and some glitter. Oh, and some little wind support, but that would mostly come in later.

As this was her last dance and her last shot, she’d actually dressed nicely. A long, pale blue prom dress clothed her slim and not particularly curvy body, with frills trailing along the bottom of her dress. It went over one shoulder only, trying to emphasize what little figure she possessed. Her long red hair draped down her back, and she was actually wearing makeup for once. She looked…pretty. Different than she normally did, but as her normal attire included jeans, a blouse, and plain tennis shoes, that surprised no one. She had, however, refused to wear heels, which was why she had a plain pair of white vans underneath her dress. Fashion, yes. Making an entrance, yes. Discomfort? Hell no. And her date wasn’t too much taller than she was, so she was safe.

Speaking of grand entrances, where was her date? He had better not be late, or she’d…

Well, torment him mercilessly, of course. She wasn’t that heartless.

[Devon Wentsworth]

Devon hadn't really wanted to go to the ball at first. As much as he loved socialising and parties the ones thrown at Kocher were always so monitored and moderated, with seemingly just as many staff as students and no real chance for any hijinks. Plus the music often sucked, not like the festivals he got to go to with his big brother when he was home over the summer. At the last ball he'd managed to get away with a little mischief but nothing grand, nothing worthy of the skills he was working so hard to develop.

This time, however, it would be different.

The sixteen year old with floppy black hair double-checked that his navy jacket was neat and tidy, making sure that his tie was straight and knotted properly. He hadn't planned on making an effort with his appearance, but considering how friggin' lucky he'd managed to get with regards to who he was meeting there he'd made sure to look good. And he wasn't covered in paint or charcoal stains, which made an incredibly rare change.

Excitement churned in his stomach as he made his way down to the hall to meet Kat, taking a little longer than he'd planned because he wanted to make sure that everything was set up and ready. This would be the grandest plot he'd put together since he'd arrived at the Swiss school, and he was determined it would be perfect. Having the help of such a hot redhead to set it up had been the icing on the cake.

Grinning ear to ear, the bold and slightly cocky teen approached Kateri, offering her the paper flower that he had made earlier that day. He could feel the eyes of one of his classmates on the back of his head; no one had believed him when he'd said who he was taking as his date to the ball. He knew he was the luckiest person in the room. Tonight was going to be epic. “You look real pretty.”

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri had always liked going to dances. But then, it was mostly because she had a lively social life. She liked to dance, she liked to be active, she liked to go out--

And God, she loved to prank people. Which was why she’d been all too happy to go with Devon’s idea. If he hadn’t been late, she would’ve been extremely happy with her current situation. As he was not and she was all decked out, attracting attention—the Irish girl almost always stuck to jeans and t-shirts and rarely if ever wore makeup—she was inclined to be a little grouchy.

But it did help that he approached her with a flower. That, and Kateri could never hold a grudge. She accepted the flower with a grin.

“Real pretty? And you’re real articulate, Devon.” She tucked the flower into her hair and carefully wove a thick strand into a braid to keep it there, then did one on the other side so the look would be symmetrical. If she was going to put in the effort, she might as well keep it up, right? Then she took his arm. “It almost makes up for the fact you’re late.” She leaned in to kiss his cheek, because she knew people were watching, then winked. “Is everything ready? Shall we go in?”

[Devon Wentsworth]

Devon knew that, if this went to plan, there was an incredibly high chance that he would be caught and take the brunt of the punishment for it. No doubt the punishment would be long and boring, but gods it would be worth it. Kat would likely mostly get off the hook; she was merely an accomplice and was graduating very soon anyway. Devon was fine with the aftermath being laid on his shoulders. There was also no doubt that this would well and truly be a night to remember.

Kateri's grin caused the one on Devon's lips to brighten, but it turned into a slightly shy smile as she gently berated his word choice. He knew he was hardly the most well-spoken person in the school, and the tiniest hint of a blush coloured his cheeks as he held her bag while she fastened the flower into her hair. Pride swelled up in his chest and his ego grew as he watched her adjusting the red rivulets. “Shall I compare thee to a summers day? It is... freaking hot, and so are you.”

He laughed lightly, beaming like a torch in the night as she linked her arm with his and placed a kiss on his cheek. Yep, tonight was a night to be treasured. “I was late because I was making sure everything's still in place. It is, we're great to go.” He gave a little bow, indicating to the doorway into the hall. “Into the merriment we go, my dear.”

[Kateri Rivera]

Oh dear, he was smiling shyly now. Devon was so full of guile and charm and jokes that it was easy to forget how young he was, but she’d made him shy now and she felt bad for that. She also felt bad that he might catch the blame for what was going to go down, but well….she had a plan for that too.

Maybe.

“Much, much, much better,” Kateri said with a grin. “I never liked Shakespeare anyways. Yours is much better and a lot more sincere.” He was really cute when he beamed. She brightened immediately. “So everything’s in place? Excellent. I can’t wait to see.” The smile that lit her face was full of unholy glee. “I’m afraid I forgot my umbrella. I thought it might look suspicious if we were the only ones prepared anyways.” She led him inside, fetched him a punch and offered it to him with a slight wiggle of her eyebrows. “Spiked or not spiked?” She was Irish. She always carried some alcohol with her and was an expert at smuggling it and keeping it down, even at eighteen. Besides, unlike what she’d heard of from America, it wasn’t that hard to acquire here when you were eighteen. Some definite perks of being across the pond. “What else do we have to do?”

[Devon Wentsworth]

It was remarkably easy to make Devon's pride swell; he'd never been particularly modest and his grin took on the tone of a puppy being praised as she approved of his butchery (or improvement, he thought) of Shakespeare's sonnet. “Thanks! I meant it.” He had indeed been sincere, the Brit never in a million years ever being able to guess he'd get to attend a ball with one quite so pretty as Kat. It didn't really matter to him that she probably wouldn't have looked at him twice had she not caught him sneaking glitter out of the art supply cabinet, nor that she was graduating very soon and he'd probably never see her again. He was going to make the most of the moment while it lasted.

And if doing so would make some of the other boys jealous in the meantime, so much the better.

He smiled and nodded as Kateri mentioned that she'd forgotten her umbrella. “It'll be fine, it'd probably just block your view anyways.” He laughed brightly. “'Sides, in a year when you're still finding glitter everywhere it'll remind you of this.” Devon waited patiently while Kat fetched the punch, chuckling as she handed it to him. “Thought I'm meanta be the one bringing the drinks to you.” He thought on her question for a moment before asking quietly “what ya got?” It had been two years since the incident with the gin and the ear piercing (something Cade never let him forget) but since then Devon had drank a few times without any major disasters. The thought of gin, however, still turned his stomach. “Now we get to just chill and wait for the room to heat up.”

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri laughed. “And that makes it all the sweeter.” She’d gotten a few looks, she knew, for going with Devon to the dance. But she’d had her reasons. For one, she was engaged (okay, Chris hadn’t actually ASKED yet but it was just a matter of time, she was sure of it) and for another, he was funny, cute and charming. It didn’t matter that he was younger. She wouldn’t have enjoyed herself with any of the boys her age anyways.

Besides, she would’ve looked twice at him even if he hadn’t been planning an epic prank. It had just helped that she’d caught him in the act.

“Exactly.” She grinned. “Besides, I rather like the idea of coming out like a Fae of old, all covered in glitter. Think it’ll still be there in a year? Oooh.” She shivered slightly, then rolled her eyes. “What, all that nonsense? I’m a modern woman. I can open my own doors and get my own drinks and be quick about it too. As for alcohol, I have whiskey—“ of course “—and rum, as that goes better in the punch anyways.” The whiskey was because, well, it was tradition. And she liked it once she could cough the first sip of the stuff down. She poured some rum into hers—carefully—before making the flask disappear somewhere on her person as she looked around. “Should be pretty soon. I have been adjusting the temperature outside.”

[Devon Wentsworth]

Despite their difference in age and standing (what a pretty classy girl like her was doing so openly associating with a common as muck rogue like him Devon would never know), it was remarkable how well they had instantly gotten along. When she had first caught him sneaking out the glitter Devon had been certain she was going to report him, but once she had twisted his tail for the details he had been surprised by her willingness to take part. Their shared love of hijinks and adventure had brought them to this point, and he could not have been happier with how this part of his story was going.

The Brit nodded quickly. “Glitter gets everywhere, you'll still be findin' it when you're sixty.” His grin was bright as he cast grey eyes around the room, watching everyone milling about in the centre of the great hall. A few people were just beginning to start dancing. “You'll be like Cinderella, only prettier and without the whining.”

As Kateri poured the rum into her own drink, Devon offered his out to her as well. Only one or two wouldn't hurt, it'd just give a nice buzz on top of what was already there. “Thanks. Good to see you're prepared for everything.” Once the bottle was once more stashed away Devon took a long drink, perhaps quicker than he should have done. Partly because he hadn't quite got the hang of pacing himself yet and partly because he knew that very soon it was likely going to become undrinkable. He grinned brighter at her announcement, nodding towards a door on the other side of the hall where a staff member had just disappeared. “The controls are in there. Any second now.” Quickly downing the punch and placing the beaker on a nearby table, Devon hiccuped as he gently attempted to twine his fingers with Kateri's.

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri also couldn’t be more pleased. He wasn’t that much younger than her, he had a wonderful sense of humor, he had a great streak of inventiveness, and he had a great head for pranks. That made her perfectly pleased with him and disinclined to be anything else. She did want to make sure he didn’t get into too much trouble. And based on her experience with pranks, her reputation and her age, she thought she had a chance to turn the attention away from him.

After all, what were friends for?

The Irishwoman grinned at the idea. “I like the sound of that. Even if Cinderella was sickening in her sweetness. Putting up with that awful stepmother and cleaning the whole house. I would’ve kicked them all out with a shotgun.” Because Kateri was not afraid of conflict, that was for sure. “Glitter in my hair when I’m sixty? I like the sound of that.” She sipped her spiked punch thoughtfully, then winked at him. “Keep that up and you might get a kiss by the end of the night. And that’s the important part of being Irish. Always be prepared.”

She turned her head to look at the staff member, then giggled at the hiccup and let him twine his fingers in hers. “Not bad, not bad,” she murmured. “Let’s see if it works..”

The fans turned on. And it was beautiful. The glitter showered down like a storm, causing the students to yell and run away. Kateri was laughing as it drenched her, covering the long length of red hair and her dress and shoulders. Solemnly, she offered her other hand to Devon. “Shall we dance before they shut it off?”

[Devon Wentsworth]

The teenage boy grinned bright as the sun, grey eyes flicking from his date to the people on the dance floor to the fans on the ceiling and back again. A little bit of punishment was usually worth the pay off, as much as his mother and brother were inclined to disagree, and this would be one epic pay off. He was ready for the punishment, knowing there was no way he'd get away with it for very long, he was just thrilled that it seemed to be all set to go ahead without any interruptions at all. Kateri had proven to be a fantastic partner in crime, and despite Devon's absolute joy about what was about to happen, there was a part of him that was sad that he hadn't run into Kat sooner. They could have had so much fun, but this would likely be their only adventure together.

At least it was going to be something that the entire school would remember for a long time to come.

Laughing lightly, Devon looked to Kateri. “I bet you would've. Maybe if the lazy cows had bothered to look after their own shit the prince would've looked at them twice.” The mention of a potential kiss caused a boyish grin to split Devon's lips, and he gave what he thought was a noble bow as a bare hint of colour clouded his cheeks. His excitement at the prospect was clearly obvious despite his attempts to keep it subtle, and he stumbled his words for a moment before he could spit out what he was trying to say. “I uhh I Umm Only if that is what my sparkly princess so wishes.”

The colour deepened slightly as Kat let their fingers twine, and he could feel butterflies swarming in his stomach. Between what was about to happen, Kateri's presence and the little bit of alcohol he'd consumed, it was all beginning to get a bit overly intense for the sixteen year old and he rocked from heel to toe as he waited for the staff member to get this party moving.

And then it happened. The fans in the ceiling above came to life and the piles of glitter that had been so carefully stacked on them showered down like holographic rain. Some of it came down in great glittery heaps, the rest shimmered down slowly as it twisted and swirled in the rising heat and lowering breeze. It was the single most impressive thing Devon had ever seen, and arguably the proudest moment of his life so far.

As people ran from the sparkly shower Devon laughed along with Kateri, shaking his head as the glitter covered him and glued itself to the gel in his hair. A girl nearby shrieked as it got into the lace of her dress and Devon rolled his eyes melodramatically. Taking the proffered hand, Devon grinned at Kateri and placed a soft kiss on the back of her hand before starting to lead them in a slow dance in the swirling silvery rain.

[Kateri Rivera]

It was probably going to be their last adventure together, sure, and Kateri regretted that a little. She hadn’t really been able to prank anyone during her years at the school, too distracted by, well, all sorts of other ridiculous things. But tonight had been fun, and a great sendoff. She just really hoped that he didn’t get into too much trouble for it. Oh well. It was fun while it had lasted.

“Exactly!” Kateri beamed at him, pleased with the mention, then she laughed. “Then again, if I wasn’t too busy with cleaning, I guess I wouldn’t get the cool dress from the fairy godmother. Food for thought, but you definitely know the right thing to say, Devon.” And that blush was adorable, even if it was barely visible in the dim light. She grinned at him and squeezed his hand. “Mmm, you’re doing marvelously, Devon. And the stuttering is adorable.” Because it was. And she rather liked being called a sparkly princess, but that might’ve been just the ego talking.

Glitter was EVERYWHERE. It clung to her lashes and her long sheet of red hair, making it sparkle all the way down her back. It kept raining down in sheets, and Kateri wondered if she should’ve gotten something for her mouth. She watched as a girl went racing by them, then grinned at him, swirling into the dance with as much grace as she could muster. More people were running by, and there were teachers yelling to get the fans shut off and it was wonderful.

Kateri grinned at him, then rubbed her mouth to try to get rid of the glitter. “This. Is epic.” And wonderful, although to her disappointment the fans were getting turned off, and the staff seemed to be cycling through. She glanced up, then looked back up at him—although only slightly, which was another nice thing. “I guess we should’ve been running if we didn’t want to get caught,” she said wryly. “But that’s all right. How could it be fun to miss the glitter?”

[Devon Wentsworth]

Creaking fans overhead showered the glitter down on them, the little band having stopped playing due to the holographic onslaught, and Kat's words caused the hint of colour on Devon's cheeks to bloom darker. He was not the sort to blush easily and was unused to feeling quite so flushed, but he couldn't deny that it was a rather good feeling. She kept repeating his name and it sounded so good rolling off her tongue. Despite the swarm of butterflies and his combined flustered state and slowly mounting teenage hormones, Devon's confidence and attitude remained high. “Your dress is prettier. Hers looked like a bog roll cover.”

Devon was far from a brilliant dancer but he knew the basics well enough to not stumble or accidentally step on a Vans-clad foot. He gently twirled her in the shimmery rain, grey eyes watching the sparkling waterfall of red hair and she spun in front of him. There was no music now, just the sounds of hurrying feet and staff barking orders, and Devon was blissfully happy as he twirled with Kateri on the very quickly emptying dance floor.

Glitter coated Devon's clothes and hair and floated from his long lashes as he blinked and smiled at Kateri, nodding his head to touch their foreheads together with his eyes closed. “It's perfect. We couldn't have done all that and missed the finale.” There was a low hum as the fans finally halted, and Devon's eyes slowly opened. Mischief shone in them like stars in the night, and he subtly shifted the gentle grip of his hands from a dancing hold back to just holding one hand as he whispered into Kat's ear. “Run!”

[Kateri Rivera]

“Different time period,” Kateri pointed out with a grin. “If I had been in Cinderella’s situation—“ And she never, ever, ever would have been because Kateri didn’t put up with that nonsense, no sir, not in her lifetime, and she wouldn’t go running away from a ball at midnight if the boy was hot even if the dress had disappeared, nope “—I would have been wearing that. I believe it’s called a hoop skirt. Whatever it is, it’s disgusting. But…” Despite her attitude and her flirtatious nature, here she smiled and ducked her head, looking shy for the first time all night. “I’m glad you like it.”

Kateri, in turn, was no great dancer, but she didn’t step on his feet and was grateful that he didn’t get on hers. She had to blink a few times to get the glitter of her eyelids, but it was a kind of cool effect if you looked at it the right way. It made everything look sparkly and beautiful, like in a movie or one of those corny TV shows.

“Damn,” she muttered as the fans halted, glancing up slightly, but not moving from the contact. “But I guess the glitter was gone anyways.” She looked back at him and grinned to see the mischief, then squeezed his hand, hiked up her dress, and ran with him. There were shouts from the staff-members and Kateri knew she was in for quite a lecture, but she didn’t care. This. Was. Awesome.

“Closet or outside?” she called to Devon, albeit breathlessly. What? The dress was heavy!

[Devon Wentsworth]

“It was a bad time for clothing.” Devon could never claim to be a history buff, or indeed to have any real knowledge of fashion throughout the ages. He just knew that he had never been able to understand the appeal of a dress that was the inspiration for the kind of loo roll covers that his nan used to be so fond of. All poofy and ridiculous and giving no hint as to what the person underneath the dress was actually shaped like. Maybe in some cases that might have been a good thing, but wasn't Cinderella meant to be practically perfect in ev-- No, wait, that was Mary Poppins.

“Those French ones got it right. All the fancy sewing and rich colours and corsets that made their bo-” Devon checked himself quickly, suddenly realising that whilst that line of conversation might have been funny with his brother, a lady such as Kateri might not quite approve of talk of period cleavage. A quiet nervy laugh left his lips, the teenager giving a small shake of his head as his neck turned scarlet. “Nothing, never mind.”

Devon kept a light grip on Kat's hand as they bolted from the hall, internally thanking that she had worn sensible shoes. If she had been a typical girly-girl and worn heels they likely wouldn't have made it more than a few meters before she'd have stumbled or had to take them off or given up. Clearly she had common sense as well as an adventurous mind and a pretty face.

As they ran down a corridor Devon could tell by Kateri's breathlessness that they wouldn't make it all that much farther if they kept running. Grey eyes flicked around, catching sight of a cleaning closet, and Devon let out a quiet curse as he tried the handle and found it was locked. “Shit.” Glancing around he saw no one else in the corridor, but he knew that wouldn't last long. Clearly there was only one option left... “Gimme a sec.”

Focussing all his energy inwards, Devon bit his lip hard to avoid yelping in pain as flushed skin was replaced by brown and white fur, the lanky teenager shrinking down to the smallest form he could manage. The tiny least weasel was easily small enough to wriggle under the door and disappear, and after a few moments there was a click as the door catch was unlocked from the inside. Devon, having shifted back, opened the door and beckoned for Kat to get inside. “They'll never look in here.” He moved to the side so Kateri could get in. The speed of the shifts had hardly given him any time to concentrate on getting his clothing back the right way, and he shrugged off his jacket and let it fall to the ground so that he could put his shirt back on the right way around, and began trying to unknot the tie that had somehow ended up tangled around his left arm.

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri nodded in heartfelt agreement. “Yup. Definitely a truly terrible time for clothing. I prefer our styles much better.” Although, of course, once she was older she’d grow to detest the cut-off shirts and the waist-high jeans as much as she claimed to hate poofy dresses. At least hating the poofy part would never change. But she could understand why they’d done it. Sometimes girls didn’t WANT the guys to see what shape it was underneath. Sometimes it was just a little too…flat. Kateri could sympathize with that.

Her lips twisted into a grin. Kat was many things, but a lady wasn’t even in the cards. “Make their boobs be pushed up to their chins, you mean?” she teased. “Oh, yes, because that’s very comfortable. I preferred the fashion for men at the time. A man with a nice set of legs can do as much for a girl as a nice set up-top can for a boy.”

Kateri had grown up around her father’s pilot friends and had learned all the right words so she could teach her brother them. Besides, this wasn’t a topic she was afraid to get into.

Kateri berated herself for not picking a lighter dress—she’d known she was going to do this running, of course, but the thing had been so pretty. She was about to open her mouth to ask what exactly Devon was planning on doing when he shrank into a very tiny animal. Her mouth opened, then shut. She pondered her response, decided that squealing with delight was too girly and a bad idea anyways, and so determined that the best solution was just to keep her mouth shut.

She couldn’t help grinning as he opened the door. “Genius,” she said. Which was about the highest compliment anyone could get from her. She slipped inside the room, shut the door, then rolled her eyes as he tried to fix his clothes. “Here. Let me help.” She undid the tie with an ease that said she had experience in these things, then retied it around his neck and stepped back to examine her work. “Much better.”

Her head spun to look at the door as she heard footsteps outside, and she held her breath, edging a little closer to Devon, until they walked away. Then she began to giggle, a bit helplessly.

“Oh my God I can’t believe we’re getting away with this.”