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Critically he looked at himself in the mirror and turned from side to side to see his costume from all angles. Cohen really had some nerves putting him into this.
From afar it wasn't as bad, it looked like just a normal suit but the closer you got the more you noticed how not a single piece of fabric was coloured exactly like the other and his waistcoat was even a mismatch of blue and red. Where buttons should be were little bells which rang whenever he moved only an inch and if he wouldn’t have chosen to wear his own shoes he probably would have gotten pointy ones too. It was besides being horribly tasteless also very annoying and Fontaine wished he hadn't agreed to coming to the artist‘s halloween event. Sadly he had only later found out that Cohen personally chose who had to wear what to his little masquerade and backing out now would push him only even further out of the high society than he already was thanks to his upbringing.
Sighing, the man turned away from the mirror and went to his bed where his bodyguard and best friend sat waiting for him. He was dressed in greens and browns looking like a huntsman even though the mask on his lap suggested something different.
The face of a wolf. A much better choice than Cohen had made for Fontaine himself and looking at Reggies smug face did his best friend know that all too well.
“Did you know that back then, in the medieval times, jesters were the only ones who were allowed to make fun of the king without consequences?” He asked him grinning slightly and the businessman raised an eyebrow questioning as he picked up his own porcelain face for the night.
“So you’re saying I can make fun of Andrew Ryan all night without getting in trouble? Well that might make this a bit more bearable.” Fontaine grumbled still in a rather bad mood and shook his arms making the bells ring to underline his statement.
“Aren't you doing that already enough?” Reggie joked, chuckling and got his boss to smile at least a little.
“Not publicly.” Fontaine winked and then stretched his hand out. “Now come, get your ass up. We have to leave.” Groaning, the bodyguard took the offered hand and got up to follow his best friend to the bathysphere near their apartment that would bring them to fort frolic.
What would Reggie give to just stay home instead, sit down on the sofa with Frank and watch a movie and eat candy until they felt sick like they had done before on Halloween. He would even be up for watching Dracula even though he hated scary movies more than anything. But there was no way around today and he knew that. Being social and showing themselves at public events was part of their life down here now and important for Fontaines following plans. So he would go with his friend without a fuss and get through the night until they were allowed to leave.
Entering fort frolic today felt like entering another world more than on any other day before. Every column and shop, door and window was decorated in a creepy but still glamorous way and only lanterns illuminated the rooms. Spiderwebs hung between corners and ghosts appeared in the flames of the candles. Everyone wore costumes and masks which made it difficult sometimes to recognise the people under them and the only way to identify them was by directly talking to them or making wild guesses who Cohen possibly could have assigned what creature to.
It made Reggie a lot more uneasy than he would have liked and he immediately stepped closer to Fontaine to protect him from any possible dangers that could use the anonymity of the porcelain faces for their gain. His friend however didn't seem to share his worry one bit. He was simply amazed by what he saw and the atmosphere that surrounded him. Theaters always had been what felt the closest to home for him and tonight fort frolic finally felt like that as well. His mood only got better when they entered the makeshift ballroom in one of the halls and he spotted the buffet.
Most people wouldn't believe it even if Reggie would have sworn on it with his life but Frank Fontaine had a huge sweet tooth and would take a hot chocolate over coffee any day would it keep him just as awake. So seeing three long tables filled with various spooky looking desserts formed immediately a pleased smile on his lips and the bodyguard knew where he would find him would he ever lose his friends between all the other guests.
They never had gotten many sweets as children and so it still felt special whenever they did now.
“Don't overdo it.” Reggie whispered to Fontaine knowing that look on his face well and made him huff playfully offended at his comment. “I'm an adult, I can control myself.” He told him overly confidently which made the other man laugh. “That's the biggest lie I ever heard of you and I heard many.” His boss only snorted at that and waved him off, deciding that they first should announce their arrival to the host and some other guests before they could get themselves anything sweet.
Reggie followed along like a loyal guard dog but referred from talking. This was his friend's domain and he simply was here to make sure he would stay safe while playing around.
Sadly introducing yourself often came with getting trapped in annoyingly long conversations and Fontaines costume alone easily gave the other person something to talk about. The businessman however knew how to use the advantages of said costume to simply avoid questions or people he didn't like by gesturing so much that the noise of the bells tuned out anybody who spoke until they left him alone. That especially pissed off Mr. Ryan and Reggie had to hold himself together to not laugh at the clearly annoyed face of the man that suggested that only the other guests around him and his image held him back from snapping.
After they had effectively worked their way through all important people Fontaine walked straight to the buffet and took himself three small glasses with different puddings inside and a drink before sitting down on one the tables at the side of the room to enjoy his treats and watch the spectacle from afar. Reggie took himself a dessert too and joined him letting his eyes wander.
Like this it was actually nice. When they weren’t in the center of the attention and could just enjoy themselves even though the bodyguard still thought they would do better at home. There at least he could have held Frank in his arms while they sat on the comfy couch and they could have shared their desserts as cheesy as possible to make each other laugh. Here he only could rest a hand on his thigh under the table as a sign of affection and talk with his friend about boring business since anything else wouldn’t be suitable for the public. The newspapers would eat up every little detail they would manage to figure out about the mysterious businessman and his protector and they couldn't allow anyone to know any weak spots.
So they just chatted about this and that and watched the performance Cohen presented after everyone had found a spot at the side to watch. Neither of them could really tell what it was about, it felt more like a ritual than a dance or play, but it was fitting the atmosphere and actually entertaining to watch. Afterwards a band started to play music and the first couples started to dance.
Fontaine emptied his drink and fixed his suit making little noises through the bells before he turned to Reggie and smiled at him. “Care for a dance?” He asked and held his hand out to his friend who looked at him surprised. He hadn't expected him to ask, more to just look for someone else to join the fun but a certain warmth spread through his chest at thought that he had chosen him over all the other people.
“You're sure?” He asked nonetheless, a little hesitant and Fontaine shrugged. “It's just a dance.” He told him but they both knew it was more than this.
Softly smiling, the bodyguard took the other man’s hand and let him lead him to the dancefloor. They got into positions and once they recognised the rhythm they joined the crowd in their movement. They didn't know the steps perfectly, not even the name of the dance but they wouldn't be where they were now wouldn't they be able to copy the behavior of others around them perfectly to not stand out.
It was strangely nice to move to the tune and give up partially control. From the outside it may seem like Frank was leading them but they both knew they were depending on each other. Sometimes Reggie initiated a step and Fontaine followed, trusting him that he knew what he was doing and the other way around. The music made them both surrender and work in perfect harmony until at some point it felt like there was nobody else but them in the room. Just them in their strange costumes hiding their true selves behind a facade of colours and their gaze focused only on each other.
At that moment Reggie wished it was true. Wished he could just cross the distance between them and kiss Fontaine. Hold him tight and kiss him on his pale lips pushing the mask away to see his true face.
But it was just an illusion. They weren’t alone. They were in a room full of people who only waited to see the walls crumble to hurt them and make them fall and Reggie would never allow that to happen. He would never let anybody hurt Frank again.
The band stopped after a few songs to take a break and the people applauded. Fontaine then decided he had enough. It was nice to dance but being so close to Reggie always brought up so many conflicting feelings in him especially in public that he wanted to push him away at the same moment that he wanted to pull him closer. It was stressing him out and he could only deal with it so long.
The bodyguard seemed a little upset about their dancing session ending so soon but followed without complaining as always Fontaine back to the buffet where the man decided to distract himself from his feelings with some chocolate fruits.
After that they stayed only a little longer talking with the few other guests that were interesting until the moment it felt appropriate to leave and they could excuse themselves feeling like the event wasn’t worth throwing them into such a strange mood.
On their way home they stayed silent, both lost in their thoughts until Fontaine opened his mouth. “Still up for a movie tonight?” He asked and looked over to Reggie with a rather natural expression but the bodyguard could see the glimpse of hope in his eyes. “Only if you don't torture me with a scary one.” He answered, sounding stern which made his friend laugh and his bells rang through the motion. “It's Halloween, we can't watch anything else.” Frank established like any other genre would be obscure and shook his head amused over his friend as he opened the door of his apartment. How could the strongest person he knew be such a scaredy cat when it came to the supernatural?
“You can sleep with me in my bed when you're too scared afterwards.” He then offered with a smirk but his voice sounded soft instead of teasing and it felt like he wanted to say more than the words could. He had been scared of his feelings earlier and had torn a nice moment between them apart which had clearly hurt Reggie but he wanted to make up for it. Luckily his friend seemed to be able to read between the lines and smiled, sighing defeated. "Alright but I'm sleeping on the right side.”