It is possible to “pair” a potion with an individual such that it will only have an effect on that specific individual. Being consumed by the “wrong” person would neutralize the potion’s magic, causing it to be little more than a refreshing drink.
At Soda’s Potion Bar, each potion is automatically paired to the customer who orders it. This is accomplished by the special pens used for filling out the order forms. In addition to being the only ink that our machines can read, a small trace of magic is placed on whatever marks are made that identifies who made said marks. Therefore, the one who fills out the form is the only one who can be transformed by the resulting potion.
The primary reason for this is to prevent pranks via our potions, or, to be a little more extreme, the weaponization of our potions. As disappointing as it may be to hear that we don’t provide the means to administer such “surprises”, it simply isn’t what Soda’s Potion Bar is for. We make it possible for individuals to take on new forms for purposes of experimentation, exploration, and recreation, and there are plenty of other ways to get potions that serve purposes other than those if one so desires.
An unfortunate side effect of this is the fact that a customer can’t place an order for someone else’s sake, even outside of pranks and surprises. As it stands, the person who wielded the pen is the only one who can be transformed by the potion. This raises further accessibility concerns that we are not yet sure how to approach.
Speaking of things we aren’t sure how to approach, if we ever end up with an app for placing orders there’d need to be some system other than the magic pens for placing the customer’s identifier on the potion. Something like a fingerprint, but more conceptual, perhaps? Some piece of information shareable only by the person using the app, that is unique to that person no matter what…
Oh, one more funny thing about our current system: If the body of the customer placing the order happens to contain more than one person, the potion will still only work on the individual that filled out the form. So no pranking your headmates! It won’t work. As for times when one switches while filling out the form, or is feeling like a blend between two or more people, or doesn’t feel like anyone at all… this remains to be seen. Magic is tricky business, after all. But it’d probably be fine…
