And the cost of the cable that would not be useable afterwards as well. All in all I agree that while it would be better than NO brake I'd be inclined to just take a bus for one day and buy the stuff you need to do the job right.

Or the obvious BF answer is that you need to not only stock up on such consumables as housing and cables but to also shop for a second bike as a "spare" for just such situations where you find yourself fresh out of cables and housings at midnight.....