I see trouble on the way.

[lacquers]

Characters: Everyone! Yes, you too!
Summary: Mandy's Masquerade hosts a fantastic Halloween party with a costume contest, some very special cocktails, and a few other surprises.
Date(s): Late in the month of October.
Warnings/Notes: Please mark any threads that need content warnings.

Mandy's is looking a bit festive this evening. Arrayed with spiderwebs, pumpkins, and other ghoulish decorations, the interior resembles a spooky haunted house. Spooky, not scary! Everyone's invited to stop by and celebrate All Hallow's Eve with spirited drinks, excellent company, and a lot of that Magnus flair.

You can loosen up on the dance floor to Monster Mash, Thriller, Dead Man's Party, or maybe something from this list. The spooky sky's the limit! Visit the bar for one of several special drinks you won't soon forget. You can also sample some tasty and holiday-appropriate baked goods, courtesy of the other Mr. Lightwood-Bane. Finally, stop by the table with the MAGIC 8 BALL to learn a little more about your fellow partygoers.

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Potions.
drink list

Siren Song
If you're a little tone-deaf, don't fret. This drink will turn you into a master at serenading. It won't actually give you the ability to influence anyone via magical means, but maybe if your song choice is apt, you'll woo someone either way!

Firework!
A drink that comes with a portable fireworks show hovering over its surface. Drinking it will give you the sensation of ingesting liquid pop-rocks.

Blacklight
Does what it says on the tin and makes the drinker glow under a black light. It's also kind of sour.

Frankenstein's Monster
This drink is quite shocking. Not dangerously so, but when you drink it, you'll have the impression of getting a tingling little jolt of electricity down your spine. It's aliiiiive.

To Be or Not To Be (A Daemon)
Drink this and you will find you've been magically swapped with your daemon. It only lasts ten minutes, but hey! You'll get to see how the other half lives. A note: you won't inherit one another's abilities!

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Who Wore It Best?
costume contest

Congratulations to our costume contest winners!

In first place for individual costumes...

Rafa wins for his devilish costume and he'll be awarded 2 potions: the first of which will up his luck stat, granting him good fortune in an endeavor (it says "Deal with the Devil" on the bottle) and the second will up his persuasion stat, helping him to be more successful in an argument (it says "The Devil's Advocate" on the bottle).

In second place for individual costumes...

Nico plunders the second place spot and will be given a treasure chest full of chocolates that are rum flavored. Careful, they pack a bit of a punch and when consumed, they'll make whoever eats them feel especially happy. No sad drunks here!

In third place for individual costumes...

Zeke and his amazingly sunny costume are in third and he wins a sunflower plant that will never cease to bloom and seems to have a bit of a glow about it. Plus, perpetual supply of sunflower seeds?

In first place for couples costumes...

Magnus and Alec came first for their portrayal of... each other... and they win a pair of seemingly mundane t-shirts that say "Bennet" and "Darcy" on them. What's that about?

In second place for couples costumes...

Vex and Kenzi delighted with their take on the Addams' family patriarch and matriarch and won second place. As a prize, Kenzi will be given a shampoo and conditioner set that seems pretty innocuous until you check out the writing on the bottles: 'Have YOU ever wanted hair like Cousin Itt? Are you ever in luck!' Just a small amount will make her locks lustrous and smooth. Vex will be given a very lifelike and animated hand in a box.

In third place for couples costumes...

Rose and Kaz were drop dead gorgeous in their mafia-inspired garb. As prizes, they will receive the following: for Rose, a pair of magical die that make music when thrown, and for Kaz, a set of playing cards that are intricately illustrated with astonishing art that seems to move. Watch out for the face cards, they get very opinionated about your playing. They both also receive a chip that can be relinquished to Magnus for a small magical favor.

Comments

[astralera]

My name is Era, and I suggest that you use it. [ Her expression smooths out to something more neutral and difficult to read. ] Perhaps I am simply tired of people trying to judge and compare my world to theirs when there is no comparison. Hydaelyn is Hydaelyn, not any variation of 'Earth'.

And the Mothercrystal is most certainly sentient. She birthed my world and the ones parallel to it. For all intents and purposes she is my mother, so refer to her with respect.

[ ...Ew. A food waster. B( ]

Focus on breaking down Xistentia's reality then, and leave my world out of it. Perhaps you believe magic and science are synonyms but from my experiences they are not. There is an overlap, but they are not the same thing.

[servomotor]

Seeing Hydaelyn as a variation of Earth isn't my problem. Believing magic and science are 'synonyms' isn't my problem. It's your problem with me, [Tony tells her, brightly.] Era. As far as I'm concerned, Earth could be a variation of Hydaelyn. Or both of our worlds a variation of some raw template that's the basis for many discrete realities in the multiverse. Or there's no template, only a spectrum.

Either way, it's pretty obvious you don't have an interest in jack outside your own sphere of understanding. [He doesn't look irritated, and nor is he particularly hard to read. He is vastly accustomed to people being disapproving, offended, or defensive— whether at a congressional hearing or in a party between universes.] 'Reveling in our differences' is a cute story. In real life, you sound as sick of them as you are of anything besides your homeworld and your preference of magic. Fun conversation. I always have ten minutes for an incurious pie-eater.

Good luck with all that, Era. [He offers her a blithe, gauntleted hand to shake.]

[astralera]

[ Era shrugs. She has had more important people than mere intoxicated strangers think little of her, and though condescending tones and assumptions irritate her (and she's aware this is somewhat hypocritical, as she has made assumptions of her own) this man's opinions of her really don't matter at all.

So long as he is not insulting the Mothercrystal or her home she has nothing to add, for she's quite certain that this man won't see her world as anything more than something else to pick apart. Perhaps if she had any interest in visiting any one of the various versions of 'Earth' she had heard of she might think differently - even similarly to this man - but as it is the way she views worlds is certainly not the same.

She spares a glance for the gauntleted hand but does not take it. While whatever he's wearing is clearly capable of being delicate Era does not trust it. Instead she inclines her head politely. ]

If you find a tall man named Aymeric you would likely have more luck with whatever it is you wish to know. As a politician he likely has more applicable knowledge.

And ten minutes is fair enough to give to a condescending food-waster.

[ Her tone is not hostile but simply... polite. For the sake of being polite. It's obvious she doesn't think very highly of him, dismissing him as she would a pompous Ishgardian noble. ]