Calliope music played: a Strauss waltz, stirring and occasionally discordant. The wall as they entered was hung with antique carousel horses, hundreds of them, some in need of a lick of paint, others in need of a good dusting; above them hung dozens of winged angels constructed rather obviously from female store-window mannequins; some of them bared their sexless breasts; some had lost their wigs and stared baldly and blindly down from the darkness.
And then there was the carousel.
A sign proclaimed it was the largest in the world, said how much it weighed, how many thousand lightbulbs were to be found in the chandeliers that hung from it in Gothic profusion, and forbade anyone from climbing on it or from riding on the animals.
And such animals! Shadow stared, impressed in spite of himself, at the hundreds of full-sized creatures who circled on the platform of the carousel. Real creatures, imaginary creatures, and transformations of the two: each creature was different. He saw mermaid and merman, centaur and unicorn, elephants (one huge, one tiny), bulldog, frog and phoenix, zebra, tiger, manticore and basilisk, swans pulling a carriage, a white ox, a fox, twin walruses, even a sea serpent, all of them brightly colored and more than real: each rode the platform as the waltz came to an end and a new waltz began. The carousel did not even slow down.
“What’s it for?” asked Shadow. “I mean, okay, world’s biggest, hundreds of animals, thousands of lightbulbs, and it goes around all the time, and no one ever rides it.”
“It’s not there to be ridden, not by people,” said Wednesday. “It’s there to be admired. It’s there to be.”
A place of power and possibility, of gods diabolical and celestial: glowing amber and heady cinnamon, the green of growing things and the white of thunderclaps, sweet myrrh and sacred styrax, forest moss and blood-soaked battlefields, papyrus and clay, rose petals, wildflowers, abbatoirs, and honey.
skjaere –
This was the first BPAL scent I invested in a bottle of. I bought 5 ml in 2006, and 15 years later, the scent is still rich at true. Fresh, it is rich, bittersweet, and chocolatey. It fades to something sweeter, with a dark, rich undertone that can only be described as “purple”. An excellent scent for any time of year, though I associate it most strongly with summer. 5/5.
teagrrs –
My husband and I tried this on together. On me it smells more cocoa-y with maybe coffe/spice wine notes. On him the other notes were there but definitely more spice rum forward. Fun!
satsuma.rat –
Four stars for the concept and how it smells in the bottle (heady cocoa and hot, rich coffee). On my skin, it smells like sun-warmed hay and alfalfa with a hint of iced red wine. So, yes, it smells like drunken rabbits on me – but probably not in the way that was intended! I’m jealous of all the folks who get the intended scent, because it sounds amazing.
Gloame –
The most delicious purple-fruited chocolate, with a touch of coffee. I swear, coffee never shows up on me, even when it’s the first listed note (wahh), but this smells so good. It reminds me of the new American Gods blend, The Jeweled Spider, but less dirty. This smells happy and it makes me hungry for some non-existent tart. (Isn’t it weird how sometimes you crave a food that doesn’t exist, except in fantasy novels?)
Where I’d wear it: Picking out sweets from Honeydukes on the first Hogsmeade Weekend of the autumn term at Hogwarts
littlejackal –
A scent that perfectly compliments my bakery job! Extremely dessert-y, yet with a sophistication that renders it entirely separate from cheap sugar cookie spritzers a la Bath and Bodyworks. I wouldn’t recommend the scent for formal, refined events, but as an everyday fragrance it’s fun and appealing. I’d be careful wearing it to work however, the alcohol notes are apparent. My only complaint is that “blood” was in the description and I certainly do not detect any coppery or salty notes.
littlejackal –
Smells just like an old fashioned candy store! not picking up on much of the red wine or blood though.
lookingglass –
Dark, delicious and evil! Really chocolatey in the bottle, but as soon as it hits the skin it is zingy red wine, and spicy incense. On the dry-down it is kind of fruity, but dark and warm, cocoa adding depth. One of my partner’s favorites.
VetchVespers –
I like this one! Wine notes tend to go too sweet on me, b/this one has enough depth it works. Spicy, dark wine, w/a soft touch of raw cocoa. Those rabbits are really live’n it up!
I’ll enjoy having an imp around for the fall and winter festivities.
nephil9 –
I found this scent repulsive from the bottle, but very interesting when on the skin. On my skin it smells like bitter chocolate and Palo Santo incense. It’s a very potent combination that I wouldn’t personally use for daily wear, but would totally wear on special nights. Something about this scent feels very wild and magical… I feel it should be worn while dancing around bonfires as opposed to doing things like going out for a quiet dinner.
Nataliya Vladimirovna –
One of the best scents I’ve ever come across, sweet, touching and attaching.
To me it smells like cookies. Ginger Christmas cookies, to be more exact, with some cocoa and insence notes. I can say this fragrance is completely mine, I want to smell of those four hundred mexican rabbits all day long. Got the sample and will surely order a 5 ml bottle.
unicorngoth –
This is a very warm scent, with strong cocoa notes. It won’t make you smell like a chocolate bar, but it is fairly sweet. Unfortunately, the cocoa overpowers everything else. The rum and wine notes are too subtle for my tastes. It’s not a bad scent, but I don’t think it’s for me.