Zane walked around in his vampire costume, his fake fangs now readjusted as to not make his voice sound more mumbly or anything of the like. "A shame, truly. You're much more tolerable while ineligible." Beelzebub wittingly commented, Zane letting a sigh from his blood-sucking mouth in return.

People crowded the streets of Samhain. It had only just reappeared a week or so ago. Tourists were turning your average block into a rather competently packed tin of sardines. "Wonder if I'll see anyone I know here." Zane wondered aloud, perhaps intending to hold some sort of conversation with Beelzebub as the two of them passed by a million and one different faces. "Depends on who. I could definitely imagine us spotting that skeleton of a guildmaster you have rather easily. Your average Earthlander, however? I think not. Especially in this crowd." It wasn't just that people were all over the place, it was also that everyone was heading in just about the same direction. There was no way Zane could recognize his guildmates, friends or acquaintances off of the back of their body alone. It simply wasn't possibl- "Oh, there's Atani!" Zane gleefully noted to himself. It was obvious he was happier to see her than he would be of most of his other friends. "...Where? How in the world could you even spot her?" Beelzebub was puzzled by his ability to do as such.

Because of the nature of this crowded street Zane would most likely remain undetected by the elven women until he actually spoke to her. A perfect chance to scare her! It was around the season for that kind of thing after all and he had a perfect idea for just how he'd do it. Zane approached Atani from her back, eventually giving her rear a rather notable smack with his right hand. "Uh huh. For scaring her, right?" Beelzebub asked in a dry tone, his host's arm quickly wrapping itself around the woman's shoulder soon after. "Good to see you here, Atani!" Zane smiled, his bright white teeth practically blinding anyone who looked their way. While his hair had changed dramatically, Zane's other features remained the same - his voice was still cheery in his way of greeting Atani. The hand that had just finished giving her a scare(?) was the same shape and size as it ever was. His eyes still contained the same goofiness hidden inside their blue color, perhaps with a hint of genuine cunning in their black pupils. "You've come to Samhain too, huh?" He asked, looking at her little devil horns. Cute. "You've gotten dressed up for the occasion too, though perhaps not as elaborately as me."

Casually sliding his arm off of Atani, Zane stepped a couple feet away from her in order to show off his garments. His cloak did indeed look like Dracula-esque, his black dyed hair only enhancing the darkness one would associate with a vampire. Culturally insensitive towards the fine patrons of blood bank? Perhaps. Well put together? Definitely. Zane spread his arms out a little as he let Atani take in his Transylvanian vibes. "So, what do you think? You'd let me drink your blood, right?" Zane asked, his insistence in showing off having made him forgot about that time an actual vampire drank his blood. He was rather pissed off about that at the time. Thankfully for Zane, pretty girls were an absolutely amazing way to forget about important things!

"Yes, the hair is part of the co-" Zane was about to finish that sentence until the moment he noticed the tone Atani took with her voice. That's odd. Atani didn't usually sound like that. She sounded... annoyed. Angry, even. But why? "Zane. You need to face this. My host isn't a coward." Zane looked down, the smile disappearing from his face. All the memories he had been spending so much effort to repress all returned. Zane lied to Atani. Atani felt betrayed. She walked away from him. The night in Stella flashed before Zane's eyes in a mere moment. His eyes went from the floor towards Atani's own, remembering Beelzebub's words. Zane was no coward. He was better off facing this while he could. "I apologize. I was trying to forget how I felt that night." There was a certain tone to Zane's voice that felt more... genuine. It wasn't as though he wasn't always being himself, but this time he was being himself in a different kind of way. He was clearly speaking in a more serious manner than usual.

"At first I didn't tell you about Eternal Nightmare because we didn't know each other." Zane explained, crossing his arms as he sighed. "We had only recently formed. I was scared of the Rune Knights showing up or something." This was the truth for the most part: not even Zane's massive confidence was enough to stand up to the militia of Fiore. "After that, well..." Zane paused for a long while, thinking of the right words to say. Thinking about if those words were true. It was clear from the expression on his face that he was putting in a good level of effort here. "I don't want to admit this, Atani." He declared, sighing in a frustrated manner. His hands rubbed his head on either side. "But I will anyways."

"I didn't want you to think badly of me." He chuckled to himself as though that was the most stupid thought he could have. "I mean, it's me we're talking about. I do all this crazy stuff and yet I still walk forward with nothing but confidence, but you..." Zane pointed at Atani in a rather casual way, thinking of the words he'd like to say once again. "I... don't know. There's something about you. I can't treat you like just some random girl I'm hitting on." This was the first time Zane had really spoken about his more playboy side to Atani, though perhaps she might've guessed it existed already. "You're just..." Zane stepped forward, racking his brain for ideas on what to say. "Just..." He looked Atani straight in the eye, trying to find an answer there. What was it? What about her was so different than every other girl out there?

"Ah, I dunno!" He exclaimed, throwing his hands up and sighing. He wasn't going to figure it out anytime soon. "You're smarter than I am." Zane remarked. It was rare he'd admit such a thing. He usually would've claimed he was a genius who was always one step ahead of people. "Do you have any ideas why?"

Atani's guess was right. Zane didn't know why he had such a hard time admitting that. Perhaps it was just part of his greedy, noncommittal nature. Thinking of Atani certainly helped push that nature back however. "Ah. I see why you don't want me around her now!" Zane remarked in his head, Beelzebub letting a hum in return. "Indeed. I've no intention to stop you now, however. This is a mistake I once made as well. You will most certainly learn a lot from this." Zane tried his best to ignore Beelzebub's words. Atani wouldn't just be some sort of stepping stone for him. He'd prove that stupid fly wrong.

"Yes..." Zane closed his eyes, the tiniest of blushes on his cheeks. It wasn't like him to blush. He was usually the one makings OTHERS blush, it be through genuine charm or just second-hand embarrassment. "Much more than I expected from a friend." Atani seemed to have softened on him now given the changes in her demeanor. Telling the truth could be important sometimes. He still liked lying better, but for Atani he'd at least try to speak honestly...

"Oh." Zane opened his eyes at Atani's words, his face a bit blank. He had finally connected the dots. "In other words you would've been just fine if I had only told you..." Zane slowly slumped his shoulder a little bit. He was indeed a genius, but his occasional bout of next-level stupidity really was depressing. Perhaps this wasn't even an issue of intelligence. Perhaps, like Atani said, it was one of trust. Besides Beelzebub, did Zane truly ever trust anybody? Hell, did he even trust Beelzebub? He liked acting like a clown, but did he often take it too far? Straightening up his posture, Zane crossed his arms and tapped his foot. He needed to work on his trust, huh?

"Atani. You really are smart." He'd remark, a wide smile coming on his face. He was starting to look more like himself again, though this time not as zany. Zaney, if you will. "I think I finally see what my problem is! My biggest weakness! Not just when it comes to pursuing you, but for my life in general." It was clear by his facial expressions that some sort of grand idea was popping into Zane's head. But what was it? His eyes scanned the area, the thoughts racing through his mind. Until, finally, it arrived. "You need to see me scared." Zane came to that conclusion thanks to the very town they were in. "Samhain has a million different ways someone could scare themselves half to death, right? It's half the point of this town! So..." Zane held out his hand towards Atani. There was always something special about the way he held hands with her. Ever since their first date back in Hargeon he always could communicate with her through holding her hand, though he still hadn't realized it himself. His body was sometimes more honest than his mind. "Will you head there with me, Atani? Oh, and if there's anything else you wanna ask - anything at all, even like, the color of my underwear - I'll trust you and answer honestly."