And kick into the theater room.
Kris and I normally use it to dick around between Christmas events on various multiplayer games. But as I hold the door and step aside, I see a lot of our court give the room looks ofWow, I had no idea this was here.
It’s not quite the size of a real movie theater, but it has tons of recliners and a massive screen at one end and a popcorn machine.
As everyone pours in, I clap for their attention. “Take your seats. The feature will begin shortly. Note your emergency exits, and—”
Dad stops in front of me. “What are we doing, Nicholas?”
We.Okay, not too bad.
I nod at the chairs. “Let me prove myself. Sit. This will be good, I promise.”
He’s studying me. Considering.
He walks away without a word.
Kris is on me immediately. “What’s your plan?”
“Something fun.” I shrug. “That dinner was killing my soul.”
“How is that any different from our usual court dinners?”
“Because they’re capable of feeling the joy we felt today too. And I’m fullysickof pretending we’renot.”
Iris slips over, Hex in tow, but they give us space, remembering my dad’s none too recent reprimanding of us all. The rest of the crowd is busy trying to figure out how to sit in recliners while basically wearing evening gowns and tuxes.
There’s a door off the theater room that holds the projector equipment, a hookup to streaming services, extra popcorn and such. I back into it with pleading eyes at Iris, Hex, and Kris, and a few seconds after I slip in, they stagger in with me.
The walls are black, sound-deadening carpet, and the low light throws everything in a dreamlike haze that’s hard to shake after coming out of that godawful elevator music in the dining room.
I yank off my suit jacket, unbutton my cuffs, and roll my sleeves to my elbows so when I start flipping through the streaming services, I’m all business. “Okay. Someone in the square mentioned they were doing a Christmas movie marathon and it sounds like the sort of normal-person activity to make everyone out there remember that our Holiday is supposed to bring joy to us too. So we’ll need popcorn—last time I tried to run that machine, I burned it all within an inch of our lives. Someone else should take that task. And we need to bring that birthday cake here, I feel bad.”
There’s a pause.
I throw a glance over my shoulder to see the three of them gaping at me.
“Oh, come on, my taking charge can’t be that shocking still, can it?”
Iris scrunches her nose. “Yes. It will never not be shocking. And I am not making the popcorn.”
“I’ll do it.” Kris lifts a jar of kernels. “I can let a member of staff know about the cake too. What movie?”
I scroll through a list. “Rudolph?” It’s the first to come up and I have a vague memory of watching it when I was younger.
“Absolutely not,” Iris snaps.
“What? It’s listed underClassics.”
“And it’sclassicallya misogynistic mess. One of the lines is literally ‘This is men’s work.’ Pass.”
I flip farther down. “Like half of these are calledSanta Claus.Oh,It’s a Wonderful Life?”
“Isn’t that one sad?” Kris asks. “He dies, right?”
“We need a few with like actual Christmas cheer. Why isDie Hardon this list? Wait, something calledSilent Night? Look, there’s a family on the poster.”
“You have got to be kidding me.”
