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As night fell on the island, The Red Bull's windows lit up with an orange glow.

A cardboard skeleton was hung from the bar door. Orange and black streamers were hung from the windows, along with glow-in-the-dark plastic ghosts. A hastily-drawn poster advertised "COSTUME CONTEST", but there weren't any established rules. Supposedly something would happen some time during the night.

The jukebox played a stream of Halloween hits like "Monster Mash", "Thriller", and "Witchy Woman".

A sexy pirate was just finishing up her half of the decorations while her partner did Halloween science to make things 10x cooler. The decorations were a mix of old school and modern, with a dash of uniquely Deus Ex Machina thrown in for flavor. Paper chain garland met science experiments and small strobe lights met minipets in borrowed carriers, all wearing tiny pet costumes. On one end of the bar, an ancient projector played old black and white horror reels against the wall, and in another corner was a huge spread of Halloween treats and an actual coffin full of candy.

The bar was, of course, open.

Grinning, Peyton finished straightening her hair with a borrowed flat iron. It was a slow processes, since she'd never attempted it before, but she was just about finished now.

She was thankful, as she admired herself in the mirror of her bathroom, that the climate on the island was perpetually warm. If not, she'd have definitely needed to pick something else. As bad a** as the outfit was, it was entirely impractical for actual day to day wear, she'd almost gotten rid of it, it just wasn't functional, but now she was glad she hadn't.

When she was finished with the flat iron she unplugged it, pulled her hair up as best he could to mimic the picture she had, and headed off to the bar.

There'd been discussions.

As was not uncommon with discussions between Taym and America these had largely taken the form of Taym digging in his heels and sulking and America by turns wheedling and dismissive. Taym was firmly of the opinion that celebrating Halloween was treasonous, which he said, and he remained uneasy and sick in the context of large social occasions without chemical assistance, which he didn't.

But he was aware, always, that although they were both making sacrifices here, his were for his ego--and so were hers. So he'd said "I'll think about it" long after he'd already thought about it, and he showed up early so that he could bail before it got crowded. Later when he noticed Peyton he'd corner her to ask her what the hell she was wearing, but for the time being he gravitated immediately to a certain sexy pirate (it had the appearance of someone looking for a human shield, and was, especially given that it was the bar and everything that implied), nervously threading an arm around her waist and with the other hand reaching out to pointlessly straighten a dangling plastic bat.

"Good work, Meri," he said, and it was the first time he'd used the name; the first time he'd had reason to; and it felt strange. "Very--uh." He touched a streamer, fumbling to right the plastic spider he'd dislodged. "Festive. And thorough. And treasonous."

He had glasses on, and a pen tucked behind the non-mutilated ear, and a tie and a cardigan and a jacket with elbow patches.

When Zeke had seen the twitter post he'd immediately switched windows to fire a text off the Ever--before pausing, and shooting a quick message to someone else before putting his phone away. Then he'd pulled a black t-shirt from his closet and pulled it on before heading out the door and down the hall. Instead of an annoying text, Ever would instead be getting his invite to the party in person.

Three knocks, then Ezekiel's voice floating through the door. "Hey, we're going to a party at the Bar. Cee's gunna paint our faces like skeletons." It didn't leave much room for debate, but his tone was mild, and if Ever really didn't want to go, he wasn't going to drag the other man.

Although, it would be quite a bit more enjoyable with the blonde there. So, he sweetened the deal. "I'll buy you drinks."

He would have gone either way -- although, there was some surprise all the same at the fact they celebrated here, here where Halloween was quite literally the enemy personified. Ever remembered halloween at the bar, wild costumes, the noise and just how violently drunk people got, and he tried to shoehorn the hunters he knew here at Deus into that image.

"Um. Give me a minute." Zeke could stand in the hall while he changed into black on black, combed fingers through the mess of his hair. He'd come back out impossibly skinny in his layered dark clothing, hauling on the last of his fingerless gloves. Ever grinned. "Let's go."

And no hesitation, then: he caught Zeke around the shoulders to haul him along. It was his first time at Rep's bar, so for just a moment he'd stand blinking at it, still hauling on Zeke's shoulders, coming slowly into focus. "...Cee'll paint us up? Is that part of the deal?"

Tracey had come around with a tray of shots, and Jordan took one without really paying much attention as to what he'd picked up. "Thanks," he said cheerfully. "Ferros says to tell you that you are lovely, but that he would have chosen a different costume."

A quick, flickering glance at Rep, a smirk that would have looked more at home on another self's face, and then Jordan's smile modulated into something more like his own, quiet, a little self-deprecating. "I didn't think of golems tonight. Sorry."

Cee sauntered in dressed like a sexy sock monkey and pulling a small piece of rolling luggage. She rolled right past Ever and Zeke, "Heeeeyyyy..."

The tiny brunette snagged a corner stool and snapped the handle back into her bag. "Paaaartaaaayyy!!"