Ever since taking a new job in the city, Craig had been taking the tube to work every weekday. Usually he was bored to tears by the travelling but for the past two weeks his journey had improved noticeable. And that was thanks to the inclusion of a new regular passenger, her name was apparently Raven, and she was a goth.

She always wore black clothing, typically a short sleeve top, long lacey skirt and a wide leather belt. She had pale flawless skin with long silky black hair and usually wore blue lipstick with dark mascara. To accessorise she wore a silver pendant, dock martens, fingerless gloves and carried a large black shoulder bag.

She wasn't the type of woman that Craig normally fancied but there was just something about her that intrigued and excited him. So, after a fortnight, he finally plucked up the courage to ask her out. She looked at him in his corporate suit and tie and he felt his hopes die. But then she reached into her bag and taking out a marker pen, wrote her number on his shirt.

* * *

Craig had given the number a call that evening and Raven had suggested meeting up at a nearby nightclub that weekend. Craig had instantly agreed and then spent the next few days considering what he should wear. He wasn't a goth and knew he'd look stupid if he pretended otherwise, so in the end he went with a dark suit paired with a black shirt and dress shoes.

The nightclub wasn't one he would have chosen but it clearly suited Raven's tastes. It was a former church and was surrounding on two side by a graveyard. There was a noticeboard outside advertising the club and its events, but it was currently obscured by a small crowd of obvious regulars with their dark clothes, multiple piercings and heavy makeup.

Craig was looking round for Raven when suddenly he sensed someone at his shoulder. Turning around he was expecting to find gothic bogeyman standing behind him so was pleasantly surprised to discover Raven standing there.

"You made it" Raven stated in greeting.

Craig didn't know whether she'd appreciate being hugged or kissed, especially as this was their first date, so instead settled for simply asking if she ready to head into the club. She nodded and they entered past the bouncer dressed as a Victorian gentleman.

Inside, the club was dimly lit and there was dirge-like rock music playing with an emphasis on strong baselines and deadpan vocals. Whilst Craig had assumed that everyone would be wearing black that wasn't the case and red, blue, purple and even white were in evidence. It also seemed there were various subcultures of goth that he wasn't aware, including some with an industrial vibe to them and others who appeared to be as extras from Harry Potter.

They made their way to the bar and Craig ordered a red wine for Raven and an imported bottled beer for himself. They then found a free table and sat down. Raven wasn't much of a talker, so Craig carried most of the conversation until everything in the club went quiet.

"Children of the night!" a female voice rang out.

Craig turned to see a red headed woman dressed in a black corset with fishnet stocking standing on a small stage at the front of the club. She was covered with more tattoos and piercings than Craig had ever seen on one person before. The woman introduced herself as the Queen of Spades and it was clear from their reaction that she was known to and respected by the regulars.

The Queen went on to announce some entertainment, a special quiz and asked for a couple of volunteers. Craig looked around the room to see who would step forward to accept the challenge and was stunned when he turned back to Raven to see she had raised her hand.

Craig found himself reluctantly following Raven up on to the small stage as the Queen asked the pair to join her. Things then got a little kinky as the Queen produced two sets of cuffs and one by one secured their hands behind their backs and connected to fastenings at the rear of the stage, so they were rendered immobile.

"And tonight's subject, the works of Edgar Allan Poe" the Queen announced.

There was a subdued round of applause at the Queens words. She then went on to explain that for the first half of the quiz Raven and Craig would each be asked three questions with the contestant getting the fewest answers correct taking a forfeit. Craig didn't like the sound of doing forfeit and wondered what it might be.

The Queen asked them alternative questions. Raven being a goth knew the subject matter pretty well and got them all of them right. Craig hadn't read any Poe since he was in high school and so unsurprisingly failed to get even a single answer correct. So, by the midpoint of the quiz, Raven was leading three points to zero.

There was a pause in the questioning whilst the Queen popped to the side of the stage and returned moments later with a devil's food cake in hand. She presented the rich layered chocolatey confectionary towards Craig and stood there waiting for his response.

"How is winning a cake a forfeit?" Craig asked confusedly.

Without warning the Queen took the cake and smashed it into Craig's face. He was stunned at this unexpected turn of events and could do nothing to protect himself, secured as he was to the rear of the stage, as the Queen kept on smearing the gateau around and around across his facial features.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, but was in reality only a minute or so, the Queen removed the cake from Craig's face and resumed her questioning. Predictably Raven got all hers right and despite his best efforts, Craig got all his wrong. The Queen released Raven from her cuffs and presented her with a cash prize and the opportunity to gunge Craig.

Craig saw the barest hint of a smile play briefly across Raven's blue stained lips as she stood next to a lever and after giving Craig a fleeting glance, gave it a good yank. Craig heard a loud creaking sound come from above him and instinctive looked up only to be met with a deluge of think red gunge which covered his head before flowing over his shoulder and down his body.

* * *

The Queen escorted Craig to a backroom where he could change out of his messy clothing and clean himself up a little. She also provided him with some clean clothing, a pair of Hawaiian shorts and a black t-shirt emblazoned with the legend "Gunged by a Goth" across the chest.

Craig quickly got dressed into the embarrassing clothes and went to find Raven. The clubbers gave him a subdued cheer as he emerged just in time to see his date walking out. He quickly dashed over to the exit to catch her up. Despite completely humiliating him with the gunge, he still found herself fancying her.

"When can I see you again?" Craig asked.

"Nevermore" said Raven.

And with that she disappeared into the night.