✅ My Cousin's Keeper [NaNoWriMo 2021]

24. My Family on Display

When we got to the Grand Theatre, I was pleasantly surprised that the staff there asked our names, and then offered refreshments without any hint of prices. It wasn't like any movie I'd ever been to, but the unusual time had already proved that. There was a large lobby area, where people were milling around talking to each other, and the majority of those present seemed to know everyone else. It felt like I imagined a celebrity party must, but the people in this room weren't big names in any sense the man in the street would understand. I felt very alone, and I wondered if it had been a good idea to bring a child to this kind of gathering; but it was too late to back out now.

Before I could turn around and remind Tess to be on her best behaviour, there was an elegantly dressed man at my elbow, commenting that we hadn't met before. I was a total fish out of water, or my usual confidence deserting me. But Ffrances recognised him after a few words, apparently. Someone connected to a certain comics publishing company, which only reaffirmed her opinions on the story we were going to be watching. She happily introduced me, identifying my corporate affiliation and my connection to Claughton Innovative, and then followed up with the information that she had been trying to give me a better insight into the world of those comic books. The way she said it, it sounded like I was going out of my way to find out even tangentially relevant information that could help with understanding a client; it made me sound a lot more informed than I was.

The gentleman, whose name I somehow managed to miss, whisked me away to introduce me to all of his friends. There were several Claughton representatives there, from media consultants to heads of department, and image consultants to heavy hitters among the shareholders. This was a very big deal for them, apparently, and several said that they were happy to see that I was interested in the arts and culture of the company rather than just the bottom line. I was overwhelmed, taking in more information than I could process, but I agreed that my work would be very different now I really understood their corporate culture. They weren't just sponsors; the company saw themselves as creators, and took a great deal of pride in making sure that everyone attached to this movie from their side was a bona fide fan of the comics. I wasn't, of course, but I was putting in the effort to understand what it was all about; which seemed to earn me a lot of points.

Every time I managed to pull myself back to Ffrances and Tess through the morning, they were continuing their debate about which series of comics the movie would be based on. But rather than standing out, many people were joining in their debate, and after an hour I felt like I was the only wallflower here. I didn't need to worry about Tess; she conducted herself with maturity and grace, and I knew there would never be any problems bringing her along to corporate functions in future; at least as long as she could keep her inner child under control.

The movie itself was incredible. I wasn't sure if I was missing anything, not knowing anything about the characters beyond what was presented on the screen, but it was a rich and detailed story. Towards the end, I didn't think I had heard any of the character names that those two had been talking about on the drive over, but I think I enjoyed the show just as much as anyone else there. After the performance people were milling around, discussing a twist ending that had really taken our breath away.

"I guess Jackson wasn't who you were expecting?" I asked as I managed to get Tess's attention for a while. "I heard you gasp in his first monologue."

"No," she shook her head. "I don't know the series that well, but that was not Goldstein. Think we were all completely stunned there."

"We both lost that bet," Ffrances chuckled. "As did ninety-nine percent of the people speculating about which characters we were going to see. Nobody ever expected Cerberus Shark."

"Wait, Detective Shark? Isn't he in some kids action-adventure show on TV?"

"Yeah, but the original comics are a lot darker. And a narcissist vigilante, not a cop. Millhouse Underground is not one of the more popular universes, and even if they were doing that series, Shark wouldn't be the first character you'd pick. Especially not after he had his own adaptation that's virtually unrecognisable. But to throw him in near the end like that..."

"He never mentioned his name," Tess pointed out. "I've seen the TV show years back, think I was a bit too old for it. I don't think anybody will even recognise him from that. Not unless they know those comics. Are they setting up another wave of speculation for a stealth sequel?"

"I'm out of my depth with you two," I said with a smile. "I never thought knowing less than everyone around me could be so much fun. But you're really going to have to bring me up to speed; it looks to me like Claughton Innovative isn't just into all this stuff as a sponsor. They're making movies, making stories, and I think they'll be a lot more satisfied with my work if I can understand their artistic output as well."

"Right," Ffrances said with a smile. "I'll have to dig out my copies of the 80s movies on VCD. If you want to take in the world and the relationships between the characters, that's where you start. And then you can borrow the comics. I'll test you if you want, see how much you're understanding. There's so much subtlety that you might not get on a first reading, and I just love poking someone to ask the right kind of questions until they start to notice that not everything is as it seems."

The way she was bubbling over with enthusiasm now, it seemed strange that she hadn't tried to get me interested in this fandom before. But then I thought about how long I'd gone without even mentioning Captain Kairo to the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Maybe it was the same for her, more recent obsessions capturing her attention, and never even realising that I'd missed out on something she considered a classic. Or perhaps, and this guess seemed a little more likely, she'd brought it up before and I'd brushed it aside without thinking. I promised myself that I would do better in future, and try to understand the things she was interested in, at least until I could say for sure that they weren't for me.