[OPEN] Halloween Haunt at The Apothecary

[appetitive]

who: Magnus Bane (appetitive) & anyone who'd like to come!
what: Halloween & Samhain party featuring transformative potions
when: October 31st at dusk through November 2nd at dawn
where: The Apothecary (formerly known as The Quarantine Bar)
warnings: please tag threads individually as needed!

The Apothecary's Halloween Haunt

For the entirety of October, The Apothecary bar has been and will continue to be decorated in deep shades of purple and orange, not to mention a whole lot of black and an array of convincingly grim yet decidedly elegant decorations. The real party doesn't start until the sun sets on Halloween night, stretching past the witching hours and through the following day in celebration of the lesser-known Samhain. From dusk of October 31st to dawn on November 2nd, the bar is alive with magic largely thanks to the menu of six alcoholic potions whose effects are posted on menus around the bar. These menus will be placed in clear sight with moving images of each drink so that guests are fully aware of their magical properties—if someone hands you a mystery drink, you're encouraged (but not obliged) to find out what it'll do to you before partaking. Each potion lasts an average of three hours, or until an antidote is drunk. And though multiple potions can be "stacked" by drinking them without an antidote in-between, party-goers will be cautioned that some potions may mix to create strange results. Luckily, the host will be attending from dusk to dawn in order to sort out any dangerous effects.

While the drink menu is the main event, there will be plenty of other ways to find some ghoulish entertainment. Tables are laden with a variety of both sweet and savory appetizers which all paying customers are welcome to enjoy. Because of the length of the party, the kitchen will be serving a limited menu of main-course items during typical mealtimes throughout the days. And because no party would be complete without music, there will be a "live" skeleton band performing jazz, rock, and the occasional but obligatory Halloween song upon request—please use this power wisely and save your fellow party-goers from two hours of continuous Witchy Woman.

Given that this is a Halloween party, costumes are highly recommended and will be rewarded with a free drink upon arrival. If you come without a costume, bartenders will recommend trying the Monster Mash or Werewolves of London potions in order to get you more into the spirit of Halloween. Though the bar will be dotted with large couches, plush armchairs, and piles of floor pillows, dozing guests will be encouraged to go home and sleep between festivities. If you're unable to handle over thirty-six hours of continuous partying, go enjoy a nap and then return to the bar for another round later on!

◇MONSTER MASH FLAVOR flat, warm; spiced rum, cranberry juice, grenadine EFFECTS Forget your costume at home? Don't worry, because drinking this potion while result in a full-body change into a classic Halloween creature, with a twist: it's either the sexy version, or the scary one. Though the drinker will be partially recognizable beneath it, the change can be a costume of its own. Some common transformations include but are not limited to: vampires, werewolves, zombies, witches, demons, and Frankenstein's monster	◇THRILLER FLAVOR flat, chilled; whiskey, bitters, sugar, orange zest EFFECTS If you're craving a change, this is the drink for you. The potion will bring about a random shift in the color of the drinker's hair, eyes, or both. Differences can range anywhere from natural shades to neon hues, as well as a variety of patterns and multi-colored or mismatched options. And don't worry, any facial hair you may have won't be left out of the fun!
◇TIME WARP FLAVOR flat, chilled; light rum, creme de menthe, lemon juice EFFECTS For those party-goers looking for a whole new perspective on Halloween, this drink offers two unique experiences. When sharing with another guest, knock the glasses together and drink simultaneously for a body swap. Feeling really adventerous? Get multiple people to join in on the fun! If you're drinking alone, you'll find that your biological sex will change from male to female, or vice versa.	◇WEREWOLVES OF LONDON FLAVOR sparkling, chilled; vodka, chambord, sparkling limeade EFFECTS Get ready to howl at the moon, or maybe fly off towards it, after trying this drink. Shortly after imbibing, partakers will manifest any number of animal traits, though all from the same animal. Perhaps it's as simple as a pair of bird's wings, or a full set of cat ears, tail, and eyes. The potion will pick up on any animal-like traits you may have, so snakes and rats beware.
◇I PUT A SPELL ON YOU FLAVOR flat, chilled; gin, vermouth, creme de cassis EFFECTS This potion is for anyone who's ever wanted to live out their dreams of being a teenaged wizard at boarding school. Though it may take a few tries to get perfect certain tricks, drinkers will be able to perform low-level spells with their hands such as: levitation, creating colored sparks, turning items invisible, elemental manipulation, summoning or conjouring items, short-distance teleporation, and a number of other simple tricks. (Any violent abuse of these abilities will result in immediate and forceful administration of an antidote and expulsion from the bar.)	◇HIGHWAY TO HELL FLAVOR flat, warm; absinthe, sugar, heatless fire EFFECTS Though this drink doesn't contain a potion, does it really need to when you're drinking something that's still on fire? This shot of absinthe, though adorned with a multicolored and edible flame, will warm you through and have you breathing the same cool fire for as long as it takes the sugar cube to dissolve on your tongue.

◇DON'T FEAR THE REAPER

FLAVOR
sparkling, chilled; blackberry syrup, cola
EFFECTS
These shots are free of alcohol and provide an antidote to every other drink on the menu. One splash of this delightfully chilled and refreshing drink will reserve all transformative effects as well as void all magical abilities. And though it is non-alcoholic, it does not provide any sobering qualities.

Comments

[franciscoramon]

True.

[ Most of the cool shit that Taako is probably referring to had only been around for the last year or so, but that's besides the point. There are other things, besides metas and superheroes, that make up a little for Earth's lack of magic and human-only population. Science. Movies. Video games. Still, Cisco wonders how different it would have been, growing up somewhere where humans weren't the default. ]

Or unless you're future me, from what I've heard. Apparently that shit's gonna be child's play someday.

[ He's mentioned this to Taako before - he's one of the few people that Cisco has told about that aspect of his powers - but it's not something he brings up very often. ]

Hey that reminds me I've been meaning to ask, can you drop by my workshop sometime so I can measure what frequency you vibrate at?

[ That's a normal request to have for a friend, right? ]

[spellslots]

[Taako makes a point to roll his eyes very dramatically, gently teasing because Cisco's clearly so awesome and powerful!!!

But he's distracted from saying anything about it by the question, nearly spluttering at how ridiculous that sounds.]

Sorry, you wanna what? Shouldn't you be buying me a drink first?

[franciscoramon]

[ Cisco doesn't really know if there's a term for a spit-take, where instead of a drink it's a cupcake, and instead of spitting it out you nearly choke. But that's what happens, when Taako responds how he does, right after Cisco has taken a bite. He inhales bits of cupcake crumb and has to cough for a few seconds, throat burning. At least that gives him an excuse for how red he's gone in the face, though most of that is from embarrassment. His voice is croaky as he insists, hastily: ]

It's not- I didn't- get your mind outta the gutter!

[ Once he's coughed a few more times and regained some tiny scrap of his composure, Cisco explains: ]

I've got this theory that different universes and maybe planes, and all the people and stuff from them, vibrate at very slightly different frequencies. That's what keeps them separate, most of the time, except it doesn't change for YOU when you cross from one to another. So you'd vibrate at 0.8, and maybe I'd be 0.2, and stuff from this moon is a 0.5 or whatever. The real numbers would be way more complicated than that, I'm simplifying. So basically, I'm thinking, since I can manipulate dimensional energy, maybe the way to make a breach between universes is to learn how to alter the frequency of the vibration. But to do that I gotta have some targets to work towards.

[ The usual process of boiling down and simplifying the kind of science he does is even harder, when he's drunk and out of breath from coughing, but Cisco does his best. ]

[spellslots]

[Really, the only thing he can do at that is laugh, watching Cisco nearly death via cupcake because he got embarrassed.]

Uh huh, sure, pumpkin, whatever you say. [He's trying to sound skeptical while still laughing, which is hard to pull off, but he's doing his best.] I always knew you were into some kinky shit.

[Will he ever stop tormenting Cisco?

All signs point to no.]

[franciscoramon]

[ There is another reason, that Cisco doesn't mention, that he wants to make sure he records the particular vibrational frequency of Taako's universe. If he and Lup and Magnus and Lucretia end up going back, Cisco wants to be able to find them. Even if they do before he can open breaches, he'll have that data there and ready for when he can, so he can go and find them and visit.

But that's all a little too complex and heavy to explain right now, especially when Taako is giving him shit. So instead of explaining any of that, he just flips Taako off with his free hand, which it turns out is immensely satisfying. ]

Wow, stop projecting, dude. Besides, I don't know how many times I gotta tell you, my powers are like, the opposite of sexy, unless you're into nosebleeds or getting blasted fifty feet through the air.

[ Look at Cisco, joking a little bit about his powers, without it being entirely anxiety-based! Character development! ]

[spellslots]

[Oh, Taako knows the reason behind all this; Cisco made it clear he was going to try to visit and Taako is sure that every single member of the IPRE will be happy when he does. But that's like, gross feelings and shit. Tormenting Cisco is way more fun.

So he grins, when Cisco flips him off.]

Hey, maybe I am into that shit, you don't know my life.

[He's also glad that Cisco seems to have reached a point where he can make stupid jokes about his powers.]

[franciscoramon]

I just wanna say, from the bottom of my heart: yuck.

[ He thinks about joking that he's going to to tell Rin, but Taako would just threaten to turn him into a bug again, probably. Besides, Cisco knows there's some actual uncertainty and maybe even some Emotions wrapped up in this new and tenuous thing between Taako and Rin, so he should probably lay off the fake threats and teasing, at least for a very brief period.

So instead he just finishes scrounging food and moves off with Taako to an out-of-the-way corner where he can eat without people bumping into him, and where they have a good vantage point from which to examine the room and see who is dressed as what, catch up on the recent gossip, and people watch in general. ]