9398/They did the Mash

They did the Mash
Date of Scene:	28 October 2019
Location:	Bushwick (Mutant Town), Brooklyn
Synopsis:	Around Halloween, Beast Boy and Vorpal get into an odd situation in a costume shop. They find they aren't the only ones caught up in it.
Cast of Characters:	Beast Boy, Nemean

---

Beast Boy has posed:
It was early afternoon in New York City. The weather was unseasonably warm, pushing 80, which has had a number of people out and about. Over in the main part of the city across the river, Central Park was bustling. A quick check of a couple camera feeds led to an alternate idea for something to go out and do.

This is how Beast Boy and Vorpal wound up in Mutant Town, strolling along a sidewalk like it was perfectly normal for two like them to be seen the way they were. That's because in Mutant Town, the abnormal /is/ normal. Most of the stares are not ones of concern, or disdain, or anything negative like that. More than anything else, it's...welcoming. Maybe even admiring.

Gar's gone out in a plain purple shirt and white shorts, sneakers over his feet. "See anything interesting around here that you'd like to check out? Do you come here much, even?" he asks.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Anything I'd like to check out?" Vorpal says, grinning slyly, "Why, I believe I already am!" He slips his hand into Gar's- he is not afraid of holding hands in public, he just doesn't do it very often because most of the time that he is seen in public, he's doing things that are a lot more dangerous than holding hands. "Speaking of which, have you had your day with Miss Pryde?" he asks, grinning, "I'm curious to see what trouble you got up to."

Tommy has been to Mutant Town frequently, "Things do change a lot here quite frequently. I see there's that new café... but it might be for telepaths. Or their logo needs work. I tend to give telepaths a headache, so we can rain check on that one... how about you?"

Beast Boy has posed:
"You know what I mean, you dummy. Focus," Gar chides in a lightly teasing manner, glancing down at the hand that turns just enough to fit more neatly in Vorpal's. A lot of what they do is more dangerous than this, and sometimes there's that feeling of needing to look over shoulders just in case trouble isn't far behind. It usually is.

Shaking his head, he explains, "We're still trying to set it up. We met once at a burger place a while back, and I guess she's even a fan! No wonder she wanted to win me." His hand begins to slip free before he pauses, clearing his throat. "If I didn't forget to wear something that could change with me, I'd have gone full peacock right there." Gar's brows knit together. "Maybe I should look into doing something about that. I've got the costume, but most of my other clothes are just normal."

They near and pass the cafe, and he adds, "Yeah, let's keep moving. There's enough baggage in my head that they'd probably charge me extra for skimming through it."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Well, we /are/ in mutant town. Maybe they have something that caters to people with powers that tend to shred clothing?" The Cheshire himself is only dressed in a tank top and shorts... but then again, he's covered in fur. Autumn does nothing to him. "Well, why wouldn't she be a fan? Tell me a little more about her, since you have previous acquaintances. I am curious, let's just say..." He grins and trails off as they turn the corner.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy gestures around with his free hand. "Well, it looks like they have the usual kinds of places, but they probably have 'alternative' types too, for those of us with more special needs," he says, glancing over the distinctly colored fur Vorpal sports, contrasted against his own green skin. It's not the skin, either, but the shifting.

"I think I see some kind of costume shop. Is that a Halloween one?" he asks, pointing ahead before he rubs at the side of his face self-consciously. "Oh, Kitty? To be honest, I don't know much about her yet. I don't even remember if she told me what she does for a living. Nice memory, huh?"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"You're going to have to do some research before you two do your day thing, you don't want to end up with egg on your face." Vorpal smirks and hmms, looking at the store. "Why don't we go and find out?"

Beast Boy has posed:
"Yeah, but that's how everyone does it these days. What's wrong with just getting to know someone better by talking to them instead of seeing what's online?" Gar asks, thumb subtly shifting places over the back of Vorpal's hand. "I know pretty much my whole life is out there for everyone to see and I knew I'd be getting into that when I chose to do the movie career, but...you know?"

He sounds like he genuinely just wants to talk to someone instead, just wants to be a social creature. "Besides, egg on my face hasn't stopped me before. Why start now?"

Suddenly, he freezes. "Um, that reminds me. Whatever you do, don't look up Cloak and Dater, and don't look up Raven. I had nothing to do with that, but I'm prety sure she won't see it that way. I don't think she'd /ever/ use that site." Fortunately, they're just about at the front door of the shop in question now.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Well, I just mean in case she's told you something and you've forgotten about it, not look up her entire life you stalker," Vorpal sticks out his tongue and winks. But his ears perk as Gar admonishes not to look up something.

Gar must not know cats very well. Even as the door to the shop looms before them, his free hand is deftly navigating his smartphone "So.... Cloak and Dater, hmm? What is this thing about Raven?"

Worst boyfriend ever.

Beast Boy has posed:
"If I forgot, we can just find out about it again. It's cool," Beast Boy suggests. "But it's kind of ironic someone named Kitty won the auction for me, isn't it?"

Then comes the facepalm. That's Gar right now, hand rubbing over his nose and the rest of the area. "Even when I'm innocent, I'm really not. That's how this stuff works, you know." It won't be long before Vorpal's found the profile in question, and before any particular reactions can escape him out on the sidewalk, he'll feel Gar tugging him along to at least get inside the shop first.

It does look to be quite focused on costumes. Not so much the heroic/villainous types, though. This is more Halloween-based, though it isn't even the usual kind of setup that one chain store has. "Weird. This isn't what I expected," he says, looking around. Most of the costumes are full suits of some kind or another, but very realistic looking. Mostly monster types.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Oh wow... Gar, maybe you should avoid the tower for a while," Vorpal says, scrolling through the profile. "Yeeouch... yeah. Maybe you should stay in my apartment for a couple of weeks until she's found another soul to devour. I spent way too much effort finally getting you to date me only to have Raven eat your soul..."

He looks up from his phone and scans the inventory at the store, and raises an eyebrow. "Huh... well, it's definitely... different." He turns his head this way and that , and points, "Hey... there's that creepy eyes-in-hands monster from Pan's Labryinth... isn't it?"

Beast Boy has posed:
"And here I'm just trying to get back in everyone's good graces and be a more active Titan. Plus you guys have that weird copycat group out there and I don't know a whole lot about that, and...yeah, maybe I'd better hide out at your place for a little while, just in case." Gar both looks and sounds a little concerned. "She doesn't know where your apartment is, does she? Am I going to have to go into witness protection?" he wonders. "And I said witness, not witless."

The place has a variety of movie-style monsters like werewolves, Creature from the Black Lagoon, alien types, but other fantasy-based things. He holds a hand up to shield himself from the direction Vorpal's pointing out. "Don't know, don't wanna know. That weirded me out, man. Wait. Is that...you?" He's spotted something that, while not exactly Vorpal, isn't quite /not/ him either: it's a Cheshire Cat costume.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Pfff, Raven doesn't know where I live. Just you, my cousin April, a few friends, and of course Nemean." He winks at Gar at that last name, but then he is quickly distracted by turning around and...

"... I see I gotta sue some people for unauthorized use of my image!" the Cheshire cat jokes, taking a few steps towards that costume, looking all judgy about how accurate it may be.

Beast Boy has posed:
Gar's response to one of those mentions is a light swat at one of Vorpal's shoulders. "She could still probably find me by sniffing out my fear or something," he suspects, though the costume becomes more of his focus. It's more like a sports team mascot look than not, with an oversized, grinning head and a fuzzy suit to go with it."I dunno. It's not a bad likeness, but it feels outdated for some reason. And the proportions are all off," he grins.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
The cheshire cat glares at it. "It's... it's... it's me. But from *that* movie. You know. THAT one. As if I would ever let me have a paunch that size..." he huffs, turning the costume over this way and that. "Can I buy this? Just so that I can burn it? What indignity..."

Beast Boy has posed:
"It /could/ be you in about five years if you let yourself go," Beast Boy muses, putting on a thoughtful look complete with the rubbing of his chin. "But it's your money. If you think you need to save the world from seeing it, I'm sure there aren't thousands more out there just like it. You'd just have to find and buy every last one," he adds with a Chesire-like smile of his own. Or..maybe this is the only one! "What do you think? Should we try a few on and think about something for Halloween at the Tower?"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal gives Gar one of his death glares at that. "Sure... maybe there's a Beast Boy costume around here somewhere..." he says with a certain lilt in his voice and a raised eyebrow. He starts rummaging through the costumes. "There's got to be one here. You're helluva famous." Not jealous at all!

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy doesn't even look bothered by the glare, nor the prospect of there being a costume around that looks like him. "I hope so! I hope it got my good side!" He turns in one direction to show that side off to Vorpal, then switches around to another pose. "Or was it this one..." he muses, waving it off with a shrug. "It looks like there's some pretty weird stuff here. Some of them look almost /too/ real. Check out this dragon costume." It's scaly, green - good color - with big-looking wings tucked in back.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"HUH... now that is a thing... hey," he sets the Cheshire costume aside, "Help me get into that! I want to see what it looks like on me. It definitely looks like it's high quality while at the same time looking a bit on the cheap make. It's weird, isn't it?"

The Cheshire reaches for it, finding for a way to slide into it. "Where's the shopkeep anyways?" he muses.

Beast Boy has posed:
"Aww. All right, you first then," Beast Boy answers, losing out, for now, on his chance to say 'Rawr I'm a dragon!' except for the fact he, well, /could/ be one. Has been one, too. Picking it up, he turns the thing around in his hands. "It looks a little large for you, but the scales feel pretty good. I don't see any zippers, though." He peers inside the mouth, which stretches open enough that he raises a brow back at Vorpal. "You know, I don't see anybody around. But I think you have to sort of..climb in through here." After a moment he adds, "You should pick one out for me next."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Climt in through... okay. Just hold it steady for me, I don't want to trip and fall..." the Cheshire reaches over to get a good handhold, at first puzzled about how he may be able to get in there. He's not sure if this is a good idea...

Beast Boy has posed:
So far, it just reacts like a normal suit might, though the mouth and head of the dragon frames Vorpal's and the suit itself sits a little baggier on him than it ought to. "Maybe we should have checked to see if they had one in kids' size," Gar snickers, holding his hands up once he's let go of the costume. Hands and feet fit into place, the tail has some heft to it, and the wings are enough to be felt in back. No sign yet whether this is a good idea or not.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Ha ha, very funny, might I remind you that you're also not allowed to ride Space Mountain?" the Cheshire looks... well. It's definitely a look. He tries moving around, only for the tail to seemingly overweight him and tip him over to the side.

"Gah! I'm gonna..." he waves his arms, trying very very hard not to tip over.

*FLAP*

He blinks. Suddenly he is stabilized after the gust of wind... "Did I just..."

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy ducks under the wings that spread out to help Vorpal with his balance. The suit also doesn't fit as loosely as it did before, now that he's looking back at the feline. Further, the mouth is even more closed, giving more of a look of an actual, if still short, anthropomorphic dragon. "Whoa, dude. Look at you!"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Wait, what's wrong with me-" Vorpal reaches up to touch his face, and frowns. His hands go around the mouth, and he touches one of the scales very slowly. He then tries to pull at one-

He flinches. Looking rather frightened, he says "Gar... something's happening..."

Beast Boy has posed:
"Hold on, hold on. Wait.." Green hands reach out, touching green dragon shoulders. "What are you feeling?" Gar asks, a hint of worry showing. Around him, he feels like multiple pairs of eyes are focused on not just Vorpal, but himself as well. "Just keep calm. I'll find whoever's working here and we'll figure this out, all right?" This is not what he expected, and he reaches to seek out one of those clawed hands. Cute as Vorpal may look as a smol dragon, there's more to this going on than first thought.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"I don't like this. I don't feel like myself..." Vorpal says. He stays very static, though, afraid to knock anything over with the rather sizeable wings that are now a danger anytime he moves. "Go get someone... I want out of this thing..." what he hasn't told Gar is that he doesn't quite seem to be able to summon the power to animate the thing off him. That was concerning.

Out of one of the stacks of costumes, however, something leaps at Garfield as he starts moving towards the back of the shop in search of a clerk. Something large, and likewise winged, but with feathers. "Gar!" Vorpal calls out, darting forward, but bringing down a whole set of clothing items with his large wings.

Beast Boy has posed:
"I never feel like myself when I shift. Well, I sort of do, but it's different too, and.." Beast Boy shuts up at that moment, for he's picking up some actual distress in Vorpal. That is, before a sense of calm attempts to wash over the cat/dragon, to quell fears, to lessen anxiety, to suggest this is not so bad.

Then there's a sound and a warning. "What?" At that moment, there's a big racket and ruckus around them as the gryphon-like costume lands atop him! It's a very authentic-looking thing at that. "Whoa!" He turns around onto his back.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Gar,what is-?" Vorpal tries get a better view, but trying to move around with that unexpected bulk is of no use. Those large wings knock about several stands of clothes, and he ends up in the pile, trying to right himself as the Gryphon suit begins to move onto Beast Boy. Vorpal isn't panicking anymore, but he is flailing under all the clothes. "I'm drowning in plaid!"

Beast Boy has posed:
While Vorpal may be freaking out, and he certainly does seem to be, Beast Boy's reactions are, while not exactly to the point of panic, certainly not calm, cool, and collected. "What are you..hey, that kind of..ack..tickles..!" He's squirming, and it's sort of like the gryphon costume is trying to /eat/ him, which should be pretty freaking /weird and scary/ and..and yet, he isn't resisting a whole lot. The costume doesn't have much weight to it - he could easily push it off if he tried - but his reactions are not on the same level as Vorpal's. Is there a reason behind it? The thing is, after all, attempting to stuff his legs through the open beak.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal finally manages to get loose, and slowly gets to his feet. He realizes, of course, that *he* hasn't been harmed, so there is very little likelyhood that Gar is being harmed, either.

"Okay... this is certainly weird." He looks down at his draconian claws, and essays moving around a bit. "I think I could control those wings if I tried..."

He frowns and looks around. "I am beginning to suspect something..."

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy looks up from his spot on the floor as the gryphon looms partly over him, still trying to 'eat' him whole. "Uh..what's that, Vorpal? I'm a little tied up over here right now."

It's hard to talk and hold a conversation when a seemingly living costume is grabbing at his arms to try to drag him further in, and yet the expected feeling of fear and surviving isn't registering. Why would that be?

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Well, there's obviously magic afoot. And these things aren't trying to hurt us..." the cheshire cat stretches, trying to test how flexible the costume is, "So why on earth are we getting targeted? And what is the meaning behind all this?" He turns around to look at Gar and frowns, "That thing obviously wants you to wear it... we might as well oblige it and try to get to the bottom of this..." He sneezes. And then he blinks. Was that smoke?

Beast Boy has posed:
"Ya think?" Gar retorts, now up to about the waist having been swallowed up. It feels sort of weird and tingly inside, but Vorpal may already be hearing a second voice in his head now that he's merging more fully with the dragon, bonding. It is not really an aggressive voice, but one that further seeks to soothe and express joy at having a wearer. How odd.

He looks up from his back, then squints at the puff of smoke. That's familiar. "I guess there's only one way to find out," he says. "If this is it, not the way I would have expected to go out, but nice knowing ya." He gives up on resisting.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"If I thought for a moment these things would kill us, Gar," the Cheshire Dragon says, raising a reptilian eyeridge, "I'd have blasted them out with a chaos wave. Really, like I'd let anything happen to the guy I love."

Reptilian tail flicks, knocking down a clothes rack.

"Oops... I have to be careful with this... um... hello?" he blinks, feeling that second voice.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy coughs once. "You know I could just turn into any of these if I focused hard enough," he says, shivering as the costume gets further along with the whole..eating thing. The connection isn't made yet, and Gar would be damned if this wasn't one of the weirdest feelings he's had in a long time, but he closes his eyes. He can feel it up past the neck now. Any minute...

The voice Vorpal gets is kind of less of an actual one now, more of a feeling or sense he's getting, an added presence in there. It's..pleased. Content. Happy, even.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Okay... you're sapient. Somehow..." Vorpal mutters. Knowing that Gar is not in danger allows him to focus on this part of the enigma, tapping a claw to his chin, "What could your purpose be?" he tries to empty his mind, maybe give the room for that other voice to be stronger, and that way get more clues.

This could also be a terribly bad idea.

Beast Boy has posed:
The dragon's purpose appears to be largely singular: to be worn, to have 'bones' to support it, to be made more 'real' in comparison to being just an empty suit on a rack. From there, not much else. It is certainly magical in some way, however. Vorpal may feel it more easily than Gar.

Speaking of Beast Boy, he finally disappears into the thing, then there's no real evidence he's even there. The shape of the gryphon begins to rise onto its lion-like legs, eagle-like arms spreading out, hands flexing. It has wings as well, a full eagle's head, and of course a lion's tail. Very feathery torso, too.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Okay... that's a little disturbing..." Vorpal muses, and he turns to Gar. "Gar, are you in there?" he asks. He feels there is no threat... but you don't get to be a Titan without making sure you double check. "Tell me something only you know about me..."

Beast Boy has posed:
"You're a massive dork," the gryphon says, and it's mostly Gar's voice if a little more rumbly. "Nice wings." He reaches up to touch his face, feeling over the feathers, the beak. "This is..really interesting," he confesses, and soon some of those similar feelings are beginning to pop up on his end as well. "Hey, I think I can hear this one too," he realizes.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"The only purpose of clothing is to be worn, but at least my jacket doesn't jump on me when I don't wear it for a couple of weeks," Vorpal says, smoke rings now coming out of his beak every time he speaks. He pauses and stares at them as they float towards the ceiling. Then he resumes.

"So we have some needy garments that are going desperate with neglect. And who is responsible for them?"

Beast Boy has posed:
"I..don't know yet," Gar the Gryphon admits, looking around the shop. They've made a bit of a mess around them, and as he takes a few careful, almost coltish steps closer, his wings unfurl and add to the mess, the tail also swiping some items to the floor. "Oops. It could be worse. We could both be bulls in a china shop."

The beast's eyes close and he stands there like he's swimming in the good feelings. "Dude, this thing is happy. It's like it already knows me on some level. I can turn into any animal I want, it's a cross of two different ones..it's sort of nice."

Just as he reaches out to see what the dragon's chest feels like...the door to the back room swings open.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal draws himself up to his full height-- which is not much, to be honest. He strides past Gar, eyes narrowed with curiosity. "Okay, I can identify a quest marker when I see one. Wanna follow, feathers?" he calls over his shoulder, striding to the door. It takes a little while to get used to the balance of tail and wings, to be honest.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy's hand pauses in midair, then the dragon is already on his way past by the time he's noticed the door. "Eh? Oh..yyyeah, sure thing, scales. Let's just go through the dark door that could transport us to some hell dimension full of more of these things, and.." They're going that way, aren't they? He steps gingerly for a larger gryphon, definitely still getting used to the change in body shape and size.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"One hellscape or another doesn't make much difference. Besides, I can always portal us back... have some faith in me, hmm?" the Dragon Cat smirks and strolls towards the door.

Beast Boy has posed:
They both go through the door..into a room that is filled with more costumes, many of them works in progress. There are all manner of beasts, such as a werewolf, a unicorn, a minotaur, even a centaur. Another door lies beyond at the far end, across from a couple workbenches and tables. It seems otherwise deserted, but they could both feel a magical tingle given their current bond with the costumes.

The gryphon walks over to touch the werewolf suit. "The fur on this thing feels real," he says, adding, "But I can't feel anything else, like it's not the same as the others." Yet.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"So this is where the enchantments are worked, I guess? That costume may not be enchanted yet." the Dragon pads around the room, inspecting the costumes, and hmmmming. " The question is... why is anyone doing this? I can't be the only one to think this is a little... well. Insane." He hasn't thoguht about how to get the costume off. There will be time for that soon. Right now it might come in handy being able to breathe fire of sorts. He starts walking towards the door.

Beast Boy has posed:
"Dude, I have no idea," the gryphon says. Still sounds like Gar, mostly, mixed with some deeper animalistic-like rumblings that filter through. The face and head doesn't even show who's inside. "You sure about that? Do you really want to find out what's behind Door #2?" he questions, a taloned hand reaching out toward a dragon shoulder.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Well, I am part dragon and part cat right now. Each one of me is known for being curious, so what do you think, my love?" He turns and the dragon face smirks at Gar, reaching up to pat the taloned hand. "We're in this far, might as well get the whole tour, no?"

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy looks around the room. "It's probably a good thing nobody can see us right now, because if some people have a problem with same-sex relationships, I think a same-sex inter-monster-species relationship would really weird them out," the gryphon explains, nudging at the shoulder a moment later. "So.."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Then they shouldn't go onto the internet," Vorpal says with a chuckle and, with one decisive moment, he reaches for the door and tries to swing it open. "Titans, onward!"

Beast Boy has posed:
"What do you see?" is all the gryphon can ask as the door opens, showing darkness at first. No real light, but as he bumps into the Vorpaldragon they both find no floor beyond, just a dark abyss of no light whatsoever, both of them beginning to fall! "Whoaaaaa! Oh shhiiiiiiii--!"

Behind them, a figure appears in the first doorway, a hooded cloak drawn low over the head and face, hands clasped together. "Oh, you little fools. Cute, but fools."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
As he falls, Vorpal tries to grab Gar and to flap his wings for all that it is worth, "I've got you, I've got you, I've---" he frowns, as he hears the voice coming behind him as they both start to fall. He catches a glimpse.

"Oh god, Gar. He's actually wearing a *hood*..." he says, meaningfully.

Beast Boy has posed:
Gravity..grabs them, but as they fall away from the door that gets smaller and smaller, they find the fall isn't as life-endangering as it seems it ought to be. Fortunately they both have wings, and they work for both of them. "I didn't see him!" Gar blurts, an arm out to one side, the other still in contact with the dragon as his own wings beat to further slow their descent. "Where are we going? I can't see!"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Well, we're pointing down, so we might as well just keep going that way. It's giving me flashbacks to Wonderland," the Cheshire Dragon smirks and tries to control his flight so that they are gliding downwards, easily. "How are you feeling? Any more voices in there?'

Beast Boy has posed:
"I don't feel any real danger from my..other half," Gar admits. "It's like it knows we're safe, but I still don't understand where we are or where we're going. But I feel kind of like I'm more than I usually am..and I'm a little jealous you got the dragon." There's a grimace and a flinch, then he quickly adds, "But the gryphon is really cool too!" He whispers to it, "Sorry!"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Well, so far we haven't met any drastic impediments or dangers, only strangeness. WHich makes me wonder about the nature of this place... or the nature of the food we had before we came in." The cheshire Dragon looks down, trying to discern if there is an end to their fall. "The Gryphon looks suits ya. You should wear it to battle some time... you can shift into mythics, if I recall..."

Beast Boy has posed:
"Yeah, but if I do that all the time, it becomes normal," the Gar-gryphon says, gesturing with a paw-like hand. It's so..them, to talk about things like this while descending to who knows what, who knows where, and if there's anything about him, it's that he's not normal. "Besides, it'd be good for a surprise." The eyes of the beast close, and after a few more seconds of freefall they reopen. "I think..we're in a place with others like us."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Well, then I am determined to find out the purpose of this place, and our circumstances," Vorpal says casually. Yes, very much like them. "I could try to Rabbit Hole us out if things get too weird. Unless the dragon is dampening my powers... I don't quite dare to try yet, just in case..."

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy confesses, "I already tried to change, but it felt like it was blocked or, like, I just couldn't focus enough on it." As if the costume - the very realistic and seemingly sentient costume - is preventing him from being able to do it. Could be a side effect of whatever's happened so far. "I think I can see something below. I'm getting this feeling there's someone else like us here that we have to stop."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal narrows his eyes, "That we have to stop? Okay... you pounce, I breathe." he flexes his feet in order to prepare for the landing, but due to how gentle the fall has been he really doesn't think it's necessary. "We do this like we trained with Colette and the little guy. I'll be the distraction, you'll be the flanker."

Beast Boy has posed:
Eagle wings spread out to further slow the gryphon for a soft, safe landing once they reach a field of green, bordered by deep forests at the left, a sheer cliff face to the right, and some kind of castle straight ahead. "I swear, this is like just out of the last book I read," Gar says, testing his balance and footing as he looks around. "Do you think our princess is in that castle?" he asks, gesturing ahead. "But we don't even know who we're supposed to--" A glance is shared with the dragon, as something is shown to their thoughts at the same time. "The minotaur. But we can't kill him. I don't get it. Is it someone else like us?"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"You know, either the Mutant Town underground is a lot weirder than I thought, or we are somewhere else entirely...." the dragon huffs, letting out a little pufff of smoke.

"Minotaur? They've got the wrong people, they should've gotten Diana to join us, that's her bread and butter. But if I recall correctly, it was Theseus who slew the minotaur. Since neither of us is cosplaying as Theseus, then we obviously are not here to slay him."

Vorpal begins to pad off towards their destination at a quick clip, "It may be someone like us, but we won't find out by staying put. Come on, Garfield, I want to get to the bottom of thisQ"

Beast Boy has posed:
"Maybe we have to save the minotaur too. Maybe someone's controlling it," Gar speculates. He's played many a game where things are not what they seem. People can be brainwashed, magically controlled, corrupted by power, or any number of other things beyond their control.

He adds, "I think this one is up to us, for better or worse. I kind of feel like this is all some big dream, but if I didn't know any better I'd say I really was...me." He gestures at himself, but as the gryphon, of course. "And you were really a dragon."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"There is magic at work, so states of being will naturaly be in flux. You'll get used to it, that sort of thing happens around me quite frequently..." He pauses and looks over his shoulder at Gar, "That is, if you decide to stick with me. C'mon, it's time to adventure."

He takes a leap and tests his wings. To his delight, he actually takes off and flies!

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy subtly tries pinching his arm. No luck. Didn't wake up. This must be real, or a very, very good hallucination. "I haven't even had any Halloween candy yet.." he laments, but he soon finds he's able to fly as well in this form. "Can you, uh, feel yourself inside this, or does it just feel like you're a dragon right now? Because it's getting harder for me to tell the difference." Seems he's chosen to adventure, at least.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"My love," Vorpal answers, gliding with surprising expertise for someone who has only had wings for a brief time, "When in the midst of an adventure, it is poor form to ask existential questions. They get in the way of staying in the moment, which is important when you need to duck, say, catapult projectiles in mid-air. See any catapults at that castle? Asking for a friend." He pulls himself in tight and begins a dive towards the castle.

Beast Boy has posed:
"Catapult projectiles? What catapult--oh!" Suddenly, evasive maneuvers on the part of the gryphon are required and pulled off naturally thanks to a little shift of the body and wings, a flaming object screaming right past the spot he'd just been in. Following a loop, the creature that may or may not be entirely Gar deadpans, "Catapults straight ahead. Do watch out for them." Make that two beings diving for the ramparts.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Do try not to get hit. I would be absolutely heartbroken if I lost you." Vorpal takes a deep breath and tries to direct a tightly-focused jet of flame at any visible siege equipment, avoiding hitting any operators whatsoever. He tries to zig-zag this way and that towards the ramparts and clear the danger zone.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy scoffs. "Don't worry. You aren't getting rid of me that easily," he calls out as he watches in surprise as the jet of flame actually shoots out of Vorpal's dragon maw. "Super effective!" He finds his flight becoming more natural as well, and as he makes a pass of the top of the castle a big paw extends outward to knock some of their attackers down like bowling balls or dominoes. "Maybe we should just find our way inside and see what we have to deal with!"

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"Roger Wilco, Garfield Logan," Vorpal-Dragon smirks and narrows his eyes, looking for the likeliest place that he can break through and... "After me!"

He prepares for another dive, shooting another blast of pure fire ahead of him as he speeds towards one of the more accessible rooftops of the castle, perhaps he will land in one of the grand halls.

Beast Boy has posed:
"I've got a better idea," says the gryphon. There is a large stained glass window set into the front-facing wall of the castle's largest interior building, and Beast Boy flies in that direction before tucking his wings and body in. Yes, he sends a shower of shattered glass around him as he busts through landing in an upright position in the middle of the grand hall room. There comes with it a combined screech and roar.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"But I already..." Vorpal glances at the roof. Oh well. That section is smoldering. "I'm sure they are prepared for that..." He follows Garfield through the hole where the window was, and lands with a thump next to him.

"Showoff," he smirks, "What now?"

Beast Boy has posed:
Suddenly, dozens of eyes are all on them, each pair belonging to some kind of creature. Most are mythical, but some are normal-looking animals. There is a centaur near the throne area, and a very surprised-looking satyr nearby with a pan flute in hand. The centaur looks...like a threat.

"Uh, well. This is totally unexpected. I guess it wasn't a minotaur after all. I always get those two mixed up," Gar-Gryphon says sheepishly.

Nemean has posed:
The centaur is clearly the one in charge, because he's the big one in the middle. The creature turns towards the pair of them, head tilting slightly. While his lower body resembles a large equine, his upper body is human, wearing leather armor of some sort. He thinks he briefly recognizes the voice from the gryphon, but reaches down to the side of the throne and grabs his spear.

"You must be the interlopers that I was warned about. Fair enough. Come and face me!" No doubt the satyr will resume bplaying his flute again very quickly after the surprise entrance.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"You need to brush up on your mythology. You of all people," Vorpal says with a scolding tone. He then turns to look at the Centaur. "Face you? I don't even know ya. Say, if I said you had a nice spear, would you not throw it at me?" He does a poor approximation of Groucho Marx's eyebrows and cigar ash dusting. It's hard to pull off when you don't have eyebrows. He shoots Beast Boy a quick glance, hopefully he remembers what they said earlyer. Vorpal is the distraction.

The dragon takes a few steps forward, hands on his hips.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy's eagle wings fan out behind him, lion legs tensing to help propel him forward at the centaur's challenge and the Vorpaldragon's look his way. Oh, he remembers, but something gives him reason to pause. "Vorpal, I know that voice. Don't you?" Then he makes his attack. Not at the centaur, but rather the satyr just as the flute is being brought up to his mouth!

Nemean has posed:
The centaur moves to defend the satyr, since the flute is commanding him to do so. He places himself between the gryphon and the smaller satyr, taking the full impact of the gryphon's strike against his flank. He grunts, and reaches out to try to grab the gryphon, "Why do you sound familiar? Who are you?" For the moment the spear has not been used, though there's two of them and only one of him, so they may well be able to use that to their advantage.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal begins to flank the Centaur while he tries to block Gar, "I don't know, even though this guy clearly wants to be the centaur of attention!" The dragon lets out a puff of smoke and repeats the Groucho gesture. He keeps his eyes on that spear. "We mean you no harm, we just want a word with the pann-ish pied piper over there."

Beast Boy has posed:
"I'm - oof - serious for once! This is--" Well, the gryphon slams into the side of the centaur, who barely budges somehow. That's when the upper arms are taking hold of opposites that have the look of an eagle's, those big hybrid paw-hands grappling at the one trying to slow or stop him from reaching the satyr. "I..know I look like something else right now, but I'm Beast Boy of the Titans! The dragon is Vorpal! There's something weird going on here!" No kidding.

Nemean has posed:
Hypnotized by a pan flute or not, the centaur recognizes those names, and lets Beast Boy go, "Gar?" He asks, looking confused. Of course now is a perfect time to try to get that flute away from the satyr. He's starting to scramble away, trying desperately to play his notes to regain control.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal takes one deep breath, and tries to spit a long, thin tongue of flame- all the better to incinerate those panpipes, or at least cause the Satyr to drop it from his hand. "Getting a little... hot hoofed?"

Beast Boy has posed:
The flames sure don't leave the satyr looking like he's long for sticking around. Doubt he signed up for that! It also begins to break the immediate hold on the centaur, who is...

"Nemean?" the Gar-gryphon asks, sounding as surprised as his eagle-like face looks. The attempts to tussle with the centaur come to an end as he lands and hops back out of reach of limbs or spear. "How?"

Nemean has posed:
"Uh.." Nemean shakes his head a bit as the hypnotism breaks. He definitely still looks like human Nemean, or Cody as it were, "I was out on patrol and heard this music...Next thing I knew is..You woke me up here.." He seems really confused, he's not sure how he wound up here, "How'd you get here?" He stops, and turns to glare at the satyr, "You!" He stomps towards him, trying to snatch the goat-man up.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
The dragon leaps into the air and tries to fly after the Satyr. "Now now, no more kid-ding around here, you ain't hoofin' it without giving us some answers here!" he tries to glide down and swoop onto the Satyr, hoping to capture him, or at least slow him down.

Beast Boy has posed:
"Dude. Like, magical costume shop. Don't you remember?" Beast Boy asks, still looking very much not like usual. No green at all, for starters. Was it different for Nemean? Did the hypnotism cause it? He watches as the satyr tries to veer out of the path of the dragon, not to mention the centaur, and another big swipe sends the little man reeling, dazed, and much easier to get to.

Nemean has posed:
"I don't remember any costume shop." Nemean replies, as he finally manages to grab a hold of the satyr, "Why did you do this to me?!" He yells at him, pinning his arms to his side and holding him up in the air. He wants answers.

Vorpal (87) has posed:
Vorpal finally reaches his target, but Nemean has beat him to it. "Calm down there, kitty, he can't do anything without his pipes, so... let's not shake him up too much. We still need to find a way out of here. Right, Greenie?" the dragon says, turning to the Gryphon.

He turns back to the Satyr, "But not to make too fine a point of it... but the lion does have a point. What gives, Mr. Tumnus?"

Beast Boy has posed:
"Just to point out, you're the green one this time for once," the gryphon says to the dragon, approaching to poke at the creature costume's scaly arm. A talon-tipped hand is felt at the side of the Cody-Centaur and he says, voice almost too gentle for the mythical beast Gar looks like, "Give him a chance, just in case. We can always launch him into orbit afterward." A pointed look past the beak follows, just for that satyr.

That's when the little thing blurts and babbles, "I-it was supposed to be f-f-fun! Harmless fun! N-nobody really hurt! Adventures!" But it doesn't explain the sentient, seemingly living costumes. Doesn't explain the hypnotizing of Nemean.

Nemean has posed:
"You could have asked." Nemean replies, putting the guy back down at the urging of the others, "I"d have probably been more than happy to go along with it if you'd asked nicely."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"There is a lesson in here somewhere about not getting carried away," Vorpal says, hands on his hips. "And I want you to know just how terrible you are for making me be the voice of reason. Still..."

He looks around, and humphs, "Nobody got hurt... and we do look like a Narnia reenactment troupe. I mean... as long as we're already dressed up and there isn't any danger... we could see what else is out there before getting back..." he looks at the other two.

Beast Boy has posed:
"S-s-sorry! Needed a King of Beasts first! You were already a lion!" the satyr says, giving Nemean the centaur a wide berth, as if still expecting to get stomped or kicked or perhaps eaten by one of them. Others in the room look on in silent wonder and worry. Were they hypnotized as well?

The gryphon looms overhead, bending over enough to get eye-to-eye with the satyr, hands at his hips, his own lion's tail lashing behind in agitation. "What else should we know? How many others are stuck here? How do we get back where we belong?" He's also being much more serious than normal.

The satyr backpedals on his tiny little hooves further. "Wears off..another hour or so! Would have a-anyway! The costumes are magic and like t-to be worn! Will remember you n-next year too!" Next Halloween? It leaves Gar to glance sidelong toward the others, but the satyr adds, "Look a-around! Play! Pretend! At midnight it ends!" The shop...would it still even be there?

Nemean has posed:
"Look." Nemean says, taking a few deep breaths, "Next time, just ask. And maybe give some of us a choice in costume." He offers a smile, albeit a faint one, "Not that I mind looking like my old self, at least for a little while."

Vorpal (87) has posed:
"I'm fine as I am. I've always wanted to see what it feels like to fly." The dragon flexes his wings, and smirks. "Well, then, since we've got a few hours left, how about we go and explore this... make-believe land? I saw a cool glade out there where we can pow-wow and decide on what adventure to go on next..."

A mischievous look comes across the dragon's face. "RACE YOU!"

And he leaps, becoming a blur of green as he flies out the hole where the stained glass window was.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy's eagle head tilts in a very eagle-like way. "It /did/ kind of leap on me without warning and gobbled me up, but it kind of tickled," he admits. If Nemean himself is all right with it in the end, and Vorpal is...well. He throws up his hands and takes to the air, darting off after the dragon. At least he's flown before. Nemean will have to gallop.

The satyr just runs and hides. He wasn't lying, but perhaps he wasn't being entirely truthful about the whole story, either.

Nemean has posed:
Without much choice but to run, Nemean gallops off after the two flying friends. He admits that if he'd been able to pick his costume, he might have gone with one that coudl fly as well. So at least he could keep up.