My boots echoed in time with Grace's heels as she led me down the narrow stairwell. The first platform we came to was passed up in favor of descending to the bottom level that was supposed to hold the bar we were headed to. Once again she neglected to use any keys, but this time I had a much better view of the door handle as she grabbed hold. A small blue runic circle appeared for a brief moment around the door handle and faded away from sight as the door clicked open. Grace, noticing my stare, spoke up to explain. 

"It's a simple identification seal. Once someone is programmed in, they can just grab the door and it will unlock. It operates on a basic scrying spell that looks at your aura and then matches that against the ones included in its whitelist. If it finds a match, the array turns the locking mechanism. Nobody has exactly the same aura, not even twins, but it can change over time and the seal doesn't work very well for a large number of people. As long as you only have a few people using it though, it's great. Me, my partners and two of our employees are the only ones that can do that on this door and the one outside for the apartment can only be opened by the three of us. Anyone else has to use a key like a normal lock. Nifty bit of security for ease of use, don't ya think?" I had to nod in response. It really was, and the way she described it, this identification seal thing was more foolproof than a biometric lock like I had assumed she was using before. 

“Now then, hope you’re ready, my friend.” Grace grinned at me, almost playful. “Welcome to the Witch’s Cauldron! Hottest magical bar and club this side of Manhattan.”

The music is what hit me first. Some kind of amped up jazz rock that was pleasing to the ear but not too soft or too hard so as to put nearly any listener off. It was upbeat and the volume was low enough that you didn't need to yell for the person across from you.

As the door opened further, I caught sight of the bar room itself. It was huge for a simple bar, but I could tell that this was no such thing. Elements of a traditional bar were melded seamlessly with elements of a night club in a way that felt both roomy and comfortable, all contained within dazzling ethereal neon lights that lit up the entire place in shades of blue, purple and green. The lights weren’t static either, long streamers of it moved along the ceiling, carrying the light with them. 

The walls were covered in eclectic art that all seemed to be rather witchy in some way or another. Bits of runic circles, pentagrams and crystals were placed in strategic places and accentuated the paintings that hung on the walls depicting impressionistic portrayals of potioneering and astrology charts alongside other art of flowers and the occasional animal from the natural world.

The bar area took up one side of the room and looked incredibly well stocked with all manner of bottles the likes of which I had never seen. There was even a setup that looked like an alchemist’s potion table straight out of fantasy novels. What looked to be a satellite bar sat in the middle of the floor across the room and seemed to have many of the same bits of equipment on a smaller scale. It also held a large black cauldron though that contained a bubbling bright green concoction. That felt so stereotypical to me that I nearly laughed at the sight. I could smell the alcohol from both bars alongside hints of spices and florals that were being used in the various mixes.

And then there were the people.

Despite the evening rush apparently not being yet started, the place was already filled with people much like I had seen on the streets the night before. Races that I could recognize seemed to have jumped straight from the reels of any number of movies I had seen and yet others were completely unknown to me. I could recognize what appeared to be elves and a couple other fae-like people, but the guy sitting at the satellite bar was nearly six foot tall while sitting down and possessed an extra set of arms and a pair of wings that reminded me of a much darker and twisted version of a dragonfly’s. Another person currently walking towards a set of side doors that were likely bathrooms had white fur covering her exposed legs and hooves replacing feet. Twin horns jutted out from her head just like a sheep and her ears stuck out to either side of the horns. 

Plenty of others lounged about the room and the amount of individual races represented just in this one place was insane to me. Impressively, this place seemed to be designed with these people in mind. Doors were taller and wider, the seats that sat around the tables and bar were varied in construction to support different types of body and some of the booths that lined the wall even had well padded cushions on the floor for those who didn’t care to or couldn’t use a chair.

As we walked in, one of the nearby patrons, a wolf-like man with tall ears and a silvery furred tail, caught sight of us. His voice called out in a flirtatious and lilting Bostonian accent as he stood and faced us.

“Ah! If it isn’t my favorite bartender! Ready to come down and give me one of those famous kisses of yours yet?”

My companion’s response held none of the motherly warmth I had witnessed earlier. It was instead replaced with a sassiness that only a woman with experience in a place this could have. 

“Shek, you know I don’t give my lovin to just anyone, and you still aren’t either of my partners. Now, if you want the other kind of kiss I serve up, take a seat at the bar. I’ll be working it shortly. Until then? Keep your damn paws to yourself before you lose ‘em wolf boy!” Her accent was stronger than I had heard before as she spoke and despite her harsh words, Grace’s face held a small smirk. This guy must have been a regular. 

“Ah, you know me, Gracie girl! I see the lady in the moon comin down the stairs and I get to howlin!” The man put his hands up in mock surrender. “But I’ll behave for now. Wouldn’t do to get myself kicked out before I can get my drink on after all.”

“You do that, Shek.” Grace pulled me away from the guy as he turned and took his seat again. She led me to the bar and allowed me to take an open seat as she walked around the other side and grabbed an apron from behind the counter. “Shek over there is one of the regulars. He’s a shameless flirt, but he doesn’t mean any harm really. Despite what you may think he has never actually made any real advances on any of my staff or myself. Don’t pay him any mind and he won’t bug you too much.”

Of course, to me, there was a glaring weakness in her argument. However, the retort that came out of my mouth was incorrect twice over. “Yeah, well I’m a guy, so I doubt I’ll have problems with him anyways.” It’s somewhat embarrassing looking back at my past self now, knowing what I do at this point.

Grace laughed at me. “Oh that doesn’t bother Shek. He swings both ways.” She got a hard look in her eye and looked across to me. “That doesn’t bother you, does it, him being bisexual? Because if so, you can find somewhere else to sleep tonight.”

I spluttered at the threat, confused as to the reasoning behind it. “Uh… no? I guess not. Just haven’t really dealt with anyone like that before. My parents were rather judgemental of that kind of thing, but I try not to let their views cloud my judgement.”

It was Grace’s turn to splutter in confusion when she heard those words leave my mouth. “What else do you think I am doing with Krystal and Ace?”

“Your business partners? I mean, I get that you are married to Ace and all. You have your kids. Where does Krystal come into that, though? She must be a good friend since you were letting her take your kid to school this morning.” Did I mention that I embarrass myself with these memories?

Poor Grace looked gobsmacked at my question. I swore I could hear some snickers coming from nearby patrons as she struggled to pull her sanity back together in the face of the dense idiot sitting across the bar. “You thought….? No!” Her hands rubbed at her face before they were once again held out in an almost pleading position. Probably begging the universe to give her relief from my oblivious ass. “All three of us are in a relationship with each other. Krystal had Ari this morning because she is Ari’s second mother. I love both Ace and Krystal. Equally. We all share the same bed. They are my business partners, yes, but it's a family affair.”

My eyes went wide in realization. All of that made sense and I finally became aware of how much of an ass I had just been. “Oh shit. I’m sorry. I didn’t know. Damn it, I am such a dunce…” No lies there, buddy. 

In spite of it all, Grace laughed. “All forgiven, hun. You are definitely pretty oblivious though, I’ll give you that. I suppose you ought to know then that one of the things this bar is lesser known for is being an accepting place for LGBT folks to hang out at. We have lots of people around here that identify somewhere under that spectrum. So don’t be getting weird about it or we’ll have problems, hear?” I nodded. That mom voice was back. There was still no arguing with it. “Good boy.” 

Her expression softened considerably as she leaned over the bar in front of me so that she could look at me at eye level. Her voice came out in the same motherly tone she had used with her daughter this morning, full of care. “Now, I know that there are plenty of people even in this world that are less than accepting of our type of people. You just told me that your parents thought pretty badly of that kind of lifestyle too. Remember that you are in a new world now though, and amongst accepting people. Try and be open minded about it, okay? And if you come to any conclusions about yourself, let me know. We will be the first to support you around here.” She placed a hand over mine and gave it a squeeze before smiling and standing back up. 

My thoughts began to explore my feelings on the matter when she spoke again, interrupting them. “Now then, I assume you were of legal age back wherever you are from?” I nodded. “Great! Can I get you a drink? First one’s on the house for my clueless guest. I’ll keep a tab open for you until you can pay me back for anything after that. Though I suppose I’ll let you order some food too.” She winked at me, obviously teasing.

“Oi! You don’t even treat your employees that nice! What gives, boss?” One of the waitresses had walked by and apparently overheard our conversation. The woman I saw when I looked over was beautiful. She had a slim build that stood at average height and her messy black hair was in a pixie cut that accentuated her pretty face and overall gorgeous body. A silver chain necklace hung from her neck, supporting a shimmering green gem inside of a black wire cage. Molten emerald green eyes sowed mischief everywhere they looked and I nearly shivered as they passed over me. “And who’s the cutie?” A toothy smirk flashed my way and I knew danger was in my future if this woman ever got her hands on me. 

“His name is Allan, Ivy. He’s a stray I picked up. I’m taking care of him until he can get back on his feet.” Grace seemed in good humor about all of that, but I was less pleased with being called a stray, even if it did fit.

“Ian currently actually. I was on my way to tell your male third that when I saw you walk in with this one. I’m going to take a quick break to change into the other uniform. Think you can grab another Lake shore Special for table 27 while I do?” I wanted to give the apparent girl a weird look, but kept my expression schooled for fear of the wrath of either of the people talking. I wasn’t too old to learn new tricks after all. 

“Sure Ian. I’ll grab that as soon as I tie my apron on and wash my hands.”

“Thanks, Grace. I’ll be right back.” The employee slipped into the backroom before her (his?) boss could think twice about the decision.

Grace grabbed a laminated menu and slid it over to me. “Sorry hun. I need to take care of this, but I’ll take your order when I’m done.” I watched as she quickly tied her apron around her waist and moved over to the small sink and used her magic to coat her hands in water like a pair of liquid gloves. Soap joined the mix after a moment and I could see the water agitate without any motion from her. A few seconds later the water splashed back into the sink and Grace walked over to the shelves and started grabbing bottles. 

It was amazing watching her work. She was clearly a professional, just as her shirt humorously stated. She didn’t do all of the showy bottle flips, but her hands were deft nonetheless. There was not a single twitch of wasted movement as the five different bottles I counted cycled through her hands, pouring small amounts of the alcohol within into her jigger and almost immediately into the shaker. A stream of seltzer poured into the cup from a handheld fountain gun and she closed the shaker to mix the contents. The entire concoction, now a murky light blue, was then poured into a tall glass and topped with an orange coloured liquid that didn’t mix with the rest of the drink. A slice of lime topped the glass before Grace put the finished drink on a tray and rushed it out to an awaiting table. The entire process had taken less than a minute.

 I was impressed. I pulled my attention away from the bartender and to the provided menu. I didn’t recognize some of the dishes, but I was certainly interested in the possibilities. My options included everything from standard bar fare to more bizarre choices like the dragon tail soup that was apparently on special tonight. 

My choice for food ended up being the safe bet of the house nachos that were topped with marinated and shredded chicken along with many of the usual suspects for nacho toppings. I did decide to go a bit wild on the drink choice though, I figured ‘‘why not?’’ I was in this crazy place after all. I could handle a single drink. The patron from before had practically recommended it too. I would order a soda as well to go with my meal, so there wouldn’t be any harm if I didn’t like the drink. 

Grace reappeared a couple minutes later right about the same time a tall and well cut man walked out of the back room, running his fingers through his longer black hair. A green gemmed necklace hung around his neck. His emerald green eyes caught my look and his eyebrows waggled before he continued walking out to the dining area. I was confused, but also realized who that likely was. 

My suspicions were confirmed by Grace, who had apparently caught my look as well. “Yes hun, that was Ian. They are genderfluid and highly pansexual. That necklace you saw allows them to physically change back and forth pretty much at will, allowing them to take the form that best matches their feelings at any given time. Theirs is a bit more complex than the usual charms that do so, but it functions much the same. They go by the name Ivy while in more feminine presentation, so try to remember that. If you are unsure which side they are leaning towards, just ask. It may feel awkward, but it is much better than assuming wrong.” 

My mind mostly glossed over the details of the situation unfortunately. It was stuck hard on the idea of that necklace. The concept was simple. The operation of the thing also seemed simple. Magic could probably do anything if the user had the correct knowledge, and the evidence was right in front of me so I knew that it worked. I just couldn’t get over the fact that someone had just changed their entire body on a whim. “That can’t be just that easy.” I thought, and yet, apparently it was. 

I finally resurfaced into reality a few moments later with Grace looking down at me, a searching look in her eyes. They narrowed for an instant and then the kind and motherly look was back, covering any thoughts her expression may have revealed before I could read into it. 

“So what would you like off the menu?”

“I uh, I’ll have the house nachos. I think I’ll get a lemon lime soda with it if you have that. And… get me a ‘vampire’s kiss’ too. Might as well try a specialty drink since I’m here.” I tried to give off an air of confidence as I ordered. 

The bartender’s eyes flickered wide before she nodded, looking subtly amazed. “Well, well, color me impressed. You come in here fresh faced and inexperienced but immediately go to the big guns when given the choice. Alright. I’ll submit the food order and get right on that drink.” 

True to her word, she called the order into the back room, which I assumed to be the kitchen, and stepped back over to the bar. There were fewer bottles involved this time, but soon a small tumbler of clear liquid with a layer of blood red floating on top sat in front of me. Grace stood, watching me with curious eyes. I even heard some whispers off to the side about “the newbie that got a kiss”. 

The cup was actually made of solid ice that made my hands shiver at the touch of it. The drink was steaming lightly as it came up to my lips. Not wanting to make myself look like a coward in front of these people, I knocked the double shot worth of drink back in one gulp. I could hear the cheers from other patrons as they celebrated my drinking of the cup. 

The first flavor that hit my tongue was metallic and somehow thick. Blood, my mind told me. It was almost hot as it passed over my taste buds. Just as quickly as it came though, the taste of blood was replaced by what I can only describe as seriously minty liquid ice pouring down my throat. 

It was all I could do to curse and grab on to the bar as my vision swam at the feeling of the incredibly potent alcoholic drink alternating between searing and freezing my esophagus on its warpath down to my stomach. I let out a breath and frost puffed out of it like breath in the cold winter air.

“Oh shit. I’m going to feel that in the morning.”