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Natsume should never have told them about Natori’s new movie. In his defense, he didn’t think they’d want to go.
“Oi, Natsume! Get over here and buy me popcorn! And candy! Hmm, and probably a large soda….”
“Natsume! Why is such a beautiful woman standing next to that male exorcist in this large picture? It’s not fair!”
“Natsume-dono, this theater doesn’t seem large enough to hold all of these plays they seem to be showing today—is the Natori exorcist really performing here?”
Natsume wanted to march right back outside, back to his quiet calm home, and wait for Natori’s movie to come out on dvd and watch it with Nishimura-- but he couldn’t subject this poor theatre full of people to three annoying human disguised yokai without Natsume there to chaperone.
“Sensei, I don’t have enough allowance left to buy tickets and three persons’ worth of snacks, Hinoe, that’s Natori’s co-star and I can assure he is not dating her, and Misuzu, Natori is not here, this is a recording of his movie.”
Misuzu raised an eyebrow at Natsume, an eerie look with his ever-present grin, “We spent all your money to watch a recording?”
Natsume, ignoring sensei’s indigent crying at him for food, sighed and patiently explained the concept of movies to Misuzu and Hineo. He pretended not to notice as Nyanko-sensei fished Natsume’s wallet out of his jacket pocket, knowing it would cause a scene in the small theatre if Natsume actually denied sensei his snacks.
Natsume really, really, shouldn’t have told them about Natori’s new movie.
He hadn’t thought too much about it, at the time, as he politely turned down Hinoe’s offer to spend the day with her and Misuzu, explaining that he wanted to support Natori’s acting career by going to see his new romance movie. Apparently, Hinoe and Misuzu didn’t know that Natsume’s exorcists friend doubled as an actor, and Natsume got overwhelmed by various questions about what kind of roles he plays, how famous is he, and is that why he’s always so arrogant?
Nyanko-sensei put an end to the questions with a simple suggestion, “Why don’t you just go see the movie yourselves?”
Looking back on it, Natsume could easily blame the damn cat.
“We’re not going because we want to see him act, or anything,” Hinoe had insisted as she touched up her makeup, ignoring Natsume’s requests that she not wear a kimono to the movie theatre, “We just want to figure out what makes Natsume’s rude exorcist so annoying.”
“I’ve never been a modern theatre,” Misuzu commented cheerfully, checking his human appearance in one of Hinoe’s mirrors, “Will this modern ‘suit’ I chose fit in with the humans?”
It wouldn’t, but it was better than Hinoe’s kimono so Natsume let him be.
They must have made an interesting sight, Natsume thought in embarrassment, between Hinoe, Misuzu, and Nyanko-sensei’s human form clad in a high school girl’s uniform. Which, by the way, he did not have to be in as Natsume had successfully smuggled in his cat form plenty of times before.
“Why do you always choose that form?” Hinoe hissed as Natsume quickly ushered the three of them to theatre seven, smiling awkwardly at all the families and couples giving his group looks as they go by, “Reiko’s beautiful face is ruined on you!”
“It’s not my fault Natsume gets all uncomfortable when I use his appearance!”
“I don’t want to have to explain to the Fujiwaras why everyone thinks I have a twin,” Natsume grumbled under his breath, remembering the last time sensei used Natsume’s face to enter a “no pets allowed” café with him.
Misuzu, at least, was acting relatively well behaved as his head swiveled slowly so he could observe the behavior of the passing humans and mentally catalogue of the differences in human theatres over the years.
Settling the group into their seats was whole other affair as Misuzu took a small affront at being expected to squeeze into the tiny aisles, Natsume reminding him that he, at the current moment, was not the size of a small house. Hinoe kept asking when Natori would show up during the previews and sensei kept accidently kicking the chair in front of him—gracefully reminding Natsume that he had to teach all three of them to be quiet during movies.
“You can talk sometimes, just whisper, okay?”
Misuzu leaned in from across Hinoe and asked in a stage whisper, “Is this quiet enough?”
The ensuing glares from the people around them confirmed that, no, it wasn’t. Natsume told them, never mind, just don’t talk.
Natsume let them whisper questions during the preview, figuring it best they get out all their curiosities before the movie started and people would be really mad, but he shushed them hard when studio names started popping up. They were well behaved until Natori came on screen.
“That's how he talks? He's so pompous!” Natsume didn’t have to see in the dark to know that Hinoe had a disgusted expression on her face—just like he didn’t have to see in the dark to know that the people behind them were glaring at the back of her head, “That’s the man all these poor women are being swooned by?”
Misuzu leaned in across Hinoe again, “Natsume-dono, are those roses real or some exorcist trickery?”
“They’re CGI, Misuzu,” Natsume hissed, sliding down in his seat in embarrassment, “Now shush.”
“What is ‘CGI’--?”
Sensei didn’t even bother to lower his voice as he spoke around a mouthful of popcorn, “He said shush, Misuzu.”
“Sensei!”
The girl on front of them turned in her boyfriend’s arm to shush angrily at them, and Natsume whispered out an apology as he shoved Misuzu’s face back towards his seat and elbowed sensei in the side—only receiving a light hiss in response.
They got through the whole movies with only a few more bad attempts at whispering, a least three more couples angry at them, and one dropped soda incident that was resolved as soon as Natsume promised sensei some manju after he got his next allowance.
The movie was just okay, something Hinoe remarked upon every chance she got, continuing on as the credits rolled and they left the theatre, “He’s so dramatic, Natsume,” Hinoe lamented, dramatically, “Please tell me you haven’t fallen for his charms!”
Misuzu leaned in between Natsume and Hinoe from behind, his grin less disconcerting than usual and more amiable and curious, “Natsume-dono, how did they use this ‘CGI’ to grow flowers behind the exorcist?”
Natsume kept a firm grip on sensei’s arm to keep him from darting away and back to the snack counter and used his other hand to steer Hinoe towards the door, “I’ll tell you when we get home, okay?”
“You never answered my question, Natsume!” Hinoe whined, clinging to Natsume’s arm and pressing against his side, “That exorcist isn’t trying to take you from us, is he?”
“I’m not in love with Natori-san!”
By the time he brought Hinoe and Misuzu back to the forest, explained what ‘CGI’ was and how they filmed Natori fall off a cliff half way through the movie without actually throwing Natori off cliff, then finally dragged a tired and annoyed Nyanko-sensei home with only a few odd detours, Natsume didn’t get home until dark. After a quick greeting to Touko and Shigure and an apology for being out so late, he headed upstairs for a little rest before dinner.
Natsume immediately let himself collapse bonelessly against the tatami mats, whishing his futon were already laid out and waiting for him, and watched from the corner of his eye as sensei waddled past him and found a warm corner under the window where the sun had surely been shining when it were out.
Natsume narrowed his eyes at the oversized pig-cat, “You guys suck at pretending to be human, you know.”
Nyanko-sensei huffed, setting his oversized head on his paws as he settled in for a pre-dinner nap, “Who the hell said we wanted to be human, anyway?”