This is Halloween!

[we_bring_hell]

The Bar loves her holidays, but she is also capable of respecting religious strictures. That's why she put a lot of thought into finding a Halloween costume for Harrow that works with her face paint and general insistence on the monochromatic.

Harrow, for her part, is baffled by the white-pinstriped black suit and the oversized bow, but the gloves are very cool, and the buckled shoes suit as well. She has no idea what's going on but she can live with this.

The Bar seems even more unusually populated than usual, and there are a lot of gourds around. Hm.

Comments

[acrookedpath]

He beams. "Thank you," he says again, tapping his glass to Ingress's, then (more gently) to the side of Lan Zhan's cupcake.

Considering it is even smaller than a typical wine cup, Wei Wuxian has to fight every instinct to toss back the entire glass in one gulp. Surely it isn't as strong as Ingress claims, is it? It doesn't taste particularly strong when he ventures a sip. But it does taste...

His eyes widen in awe.

[lightamidchaos]

He lifts the cupcake to Ingress's toast, then nibbles a small bite of it, but his attention is on the two of them as they take the first sips.

Wei Ying's expression surprises him, and he lowers the cupcake entirely.

[herald_ingress]

“I told you,” she says, smiling with her eyes closed, savoring the taste and the feelings that come with it.

“You can only get this here now. In my world the last bottle is long gone.”

[acrookedpath]

It is sitting on one of the docks at Lotus Pier, wedged between shijie and Jiang Cheng, laughing as he kicks water at his brother and Jiang Cheng threatens to tackle him into the river. It is the way the sunlight glints off every drop that spatters them all; the warmth in shijie's voice even as she tries to admonish her younger siblings.

It is the first time he felt his golden core ignite like a miniature sun in his belly. It is spreading his arms, soaring into the sky, the wind tangling his hair.

It is the nights he shares now with Lan Zhan.

There is no way to put it all to words, and he wishes, desperately, that he could, just so Lan Zhan could know even if he will never drink a drop of it. "Wow," is all he can breathe as the wave of warmth crests over him.

Eagerly, he takes a second, larger sip, inadvertently draining three-quarters of the shot glass.

[lightamidchaos]

“Wei Ying—“

He reaches out to try to catch his hand.

[herald_ingress]

Ingress glimpsed the ancient meadow in London Below, their special family place, where she so often snuggled in Door’s embrace as Tom took them up and up on his broomstick.

She opens her eyes just in time to see Wei Wuxian drink. She giggles.

“Maybe I’ll take that third glass back to Bar,” she manages after she fights the laughter down enough to speak.

[acrookedpath]

"Nooooo, no no no, don't!" he exclaims. He lets Lan Zhan catch his hand to pull the mostly-empty shot glass away, but counters it by trying to drag the other shot glass toward him protectively. "You said! You said. It's very rare. We can't waste it, Ingress, what will Madam Bar think?"

Just like their evening in London Above, Ingress's laughter is catching: he's beginning to snicker midway through his words, too.

[lightamidchaos]

"Sip," he reminds him. Reminds them, now. "Small amounts."

He does not snatch the other glass away, although he is sorely tempted.

[herald_ingress]

Ingress does, patting Wei Wuxian on the shoulder in consolation right before her hand snakes past him.

“It won’t go to waste, I promise. Bar will take it back for later. Tom’s potions don’t touch Atlantean hangovers and I can’t get more drafts from Serpentine. You will thank me in the morning, I promise.”

She giggles again, spare glass in hand, but she’s careful not to let a precious drop slosh.

“So will Lan Wangji!” She sweeps over to the bar to return it, and when she comes back, she stands in front of them for a moment, her eyes sparkling, and sighs. “You’re beautiful together. I’m so happy for you both.”

[acrookedpath]

Wei Wuxian lets out another sad noooooo as Ingress pulls the shot glass out of his reach. He stares longingly after it like she has just cruelly yanked the smallest, fluffiest, most adorable rabbit out of his arms, drooping visibly as she returns it to Madam Bar.

All of this is swiftly forgotten once she returns.

"Me, too," he says cheerily. Wei Wuxian slings an arm around Lan Zhan's shoulders as best he can despite the wings, planting a kiss on his temple. Fond, "He puts up with so much from me. And! Lan Zhan, did you know, when I went drinking with Ingress -- "

He's punctuating every few words with a small poke to Lan Zhan's side.

" -- she helped convince me I should say something to you?"

[lightamidchaos]

"Mn."

He patiently endures each poke, and puts his arm around Wei Ying's waist to support him.

With his other hand, he takes Ingress by the elbow, and tugs her gently toward the nearest barstool.

"I am glad." To them both. "Very much so."

[herald_ingress]

Ingress is doing fine, she thinks, as she sits down, and then slides over a little because she wasn’t quite aimed the most accurately. She repositions herself and sits straight and prim.

Or as prim as a woman in a skin tight superhero costume can be.

“You’re so sweet, thank you.” She takes a tiny sip of Atlantean and sighs.

“I wish I still had birthday parties here because you’d both be invited, and we’d have such fun.”

[acrookedpath]

Wei Wuxian would also argue that he doesn't need the extra support. He's not drunk yet, just -- happy! How can he not be happy when the drink stirred up such wonderful memories? And really, it was such a tiny amount, no matter what Ingress said about its potency, and it tasted no stronger than ordinary wine.

(The way his head is slowly listing to meet Lan Zhan's voices the lie to literally all of this.)

"Why don't you?" he asks earnestly. "You could still have one! When's your birthday? We will celebrate, I promise -- "

[lightamidchaos]

It is a good question, and he looks over at Ingress, waiting for her answer --

-- but he does so carefully, so as not to dislodge Wei Ying.

[herald_ingress]

“Oh, it’s not for a long time, not until May. But I’d like that. But oh! You’ll both come to Valdemar with me and we’ll go to my favorite bakery in Haven and have cake anyway.”

[acrookedpath]

"Yes!" he declares, straightening up -- or straightening up as best he can when his legs seem to have gone a little wobbly. Just a little. "I will make that my next great adventure. Alcohol from every world and cake from every world."

A thought strikes him, and he suddenly frowns.

"Wait. There was..." Worlds. Ingress. Visiting different worlds. What was it? He spins his free hand, trying to recall. "Lan Zhan, we needed to ask Ingress about that -- "

Oh. Right.

"That thing, with -- ?"

[lightamidchaos]

"Not tonight," he says, very firmly, and kisses Wei Ying's temple.

"Instead, we need to plan for visiting Ingress's Haven. And the Collegium. And-- wherever else we should see? Ingress?"

He glances back and forth between them.

"Wei Ying. You will come? You did not seem interested, when I tried to tell you of it, before--"

[herald_ingress]

Ingress’ eyes go wide. “No, but you have to go. You said! Please come with us.”

[acrookedpath]

"I will! I will," he promises swiftly. "I want to go, I was only -- "

Unsuccessfully, he smothers a laugh.

"You asked me when I was distracted, Lan Zhan, before I'd said anything to you, and you looked so excited when you said you'd meet this Vanyel. I was jealous! I thought I'd missed my chance to say anything at all!"

Which was clearly, absurdly the wrong thing to think, and he is struck so hard by the humor that he starts giggling all over again.

[lightamidchaos]

Lan Wangji just stares at him in disbelief, and then looks to Ingress for support.

[herald_ingress]

“I didn’t know either when I first invited Lan Wangji. All Vanyel knows is I have friends who are interested in musical cultivation who’d like to visit. That’s it!”

[acrookedpath]

"I know that now," he protests through his laughter. "But I didn't then! That's all. That's all."

He hugs Lan Zhan tighter.

"I know you love me. And I love you, too. So much."

[lightamidchaos]

"My Wei Ying. Yes. I love you."

He presses a kiss to his hair, openly, unapologetically, unashamed of showing affection in the middle of the inn's common room.

He wants everyone to know that Wei Ying is his, that he loves him.

To Ingress, he adds,

"So. It is as with Mianmian. I see."

[herald_ingress]

She has no idea who Mianmian is, but she’s too busy dying from the adorableness to care.

“Just a misunderstanding but he’s brilliant, really, and worth meeting no matter, and oh, gods, you're so sweet together and in love and-“

She sniffles and wipes away happy tears, but she’s smiling hugely as she gushes.

“I love you guys. I do.” She reaches out to grab a hand, anyone’s will do. “I’m so happy I came back to Milliways and found you both.”

[acrookedpath]

"Ingress. My friend!" She'd grabbed Wei Wuxian's hand, and now, beaming -- and perhaps a little misty-eyed himself -- he tugs her off the barstool to drape his other arm around her. "I'm so glad I met you, too. I'm so happy this is how I'll spend my afterlife."

Wait. Wait a moment. Lan Zhan has a hand free, doesn't he?

...Lan Zhan does not have a hand free: he's still holding the remaining fraction of Wei Wuxian's drink. Interesting. With what he believes is a craftiness to rival the finest spies of the Great Sects, Wei Wuxian scoots his arm lower to circle Lan Zhan's waist.