MASQUERADE PARTY, 33 Apocalypse Ave, Friday Evening

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

Party night. The best of nights. An ornate sign on 33 Apocalypse’s door invited all to knock and make themselves known.

The space inside was bigger than it looked from the outside, stretched and displaced by magic. The wallpaper was green and textured, hinting at the English countryside. On one side of the room sat a significant bar offering food and drinks, while the other gave ample space to sit. A large Jenga tower held prominence in a corner.

It was easy to miss it, though, in favor of the little streams of water that ran across furniture and floor. Tiny glass gondolas, animated by magic, made their way back and forth across each stream. The gondolas were real, though the water itself was an illusion. It called attention to the ceiling, doubly enchanted: both to draw all cigarette smoke to itself so it wouldn’t blow in anyone’s face, but also to mimic the starry sky above Venice.

You could watch the stars twinkle, or see the occasional cloud go by. Magical fireflies added to the illusion, dancing through the air like tiny lights. If you listened closely, you could hear the sea rolling in across an invisible beach. Even the air smelled faintly of it: the sea, warm food and good wine.

Welcome to Eliot and Margo’s pad, people. They’d make damn sure you had a good time.

[ocd up, come party!]

Comments

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"Sort of my brand. The red, not the drama," Wanda said with a smile. "Yes, I'm Wanda, nice to meet you."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“Red’s always dramatic,” Margo pointed out. She held up a hand. “No judgment. You’ve got a brand, it works for you.”

She lowered her hand. “I’m Margo. El’s best friend. Also a magician.”

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"And I'm sure another magician who knows way more than I do," Wanda said lightly. "Which is a relief, I've been living in fear of someone coming into the store and asking me a legitimate question ever since it fell into my lap. I'm glad Eliot is there now."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“Eh, every time you think you know everything about magic, something pops up and fucking zaps you in the ass,” Margo said dismissively. “Assume anybody who asks you questions doesn’t know what they’re talking about either.”

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"I like that logic," Wanda said with a nod. "I'm going to use it. Thank you for throwing this party, by the way. It's nice for the opportunity to meet people when you're not stuck in a giant hole with them."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“No problem,” Margo said, smiling. “I know I go fucking insane without a social life, so. . . here’s to trying to have one, right?”

Wait.

“Wait, did you say giant hole?”

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"Oh, god, it was a whole thing. No pun intended," Wanda said. "A bunch of us got sucked into a hole by raccoons for a couple weeks so you really had a lot of time to get to know your neighbors."

"Or ignore them and get really drunk, whichever you preferred."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“You ever just have one of those moments where you really wish you weren’t too fucked up to be weirded out by something, but you are?” Margo asked.

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"So, so many times, you have no idea," Wanda said with a little laugh. "This place's weirdness is actually kind of cute and charming compared to what I'm used to."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“As long as it’s not trying to kill or maim you, right?” Margo said. “Fuck our standards are low. I blame magic.”

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"It really has been a double-edged sword kind of thing," Wanda agreed. "On one hand, you can do cool stuff. On the other, horrible things tend to follow."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“Death and destruction everywhere, but hey, I can break things by moving my hands just right,” Margo agreed. “Not that I’d give it up.”

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"You know, I need to get you and Eliot to talk to my teammates sometime," Wanda said. "I get teased about my hand movements all of the time."

Though Wanda could get a little overzealous with it.

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“How else are you supposed to be magic?” Margo asked. “Fuck.”

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"It's not really common where I'm from. Basically just me and one other guy," Wanda said. "So it looks weird when you have all these buff people shooting lasers and throwing punches and I'm to the side waving my arms around."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“I think you’re the classy one and the rest of them are just fucking embarrassed that all they can do is shoot lasers and throw punches,” Margo told her, without any evidence. Handwavy magic user solidarity, right?

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[scarlet_chaos]

"I really like you," Wanda said with a grin. "Your thinking is amazing."

Re: Arrive and Say Hi

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“Thank you,” Margo said firmly. “I’m fucking smart.”