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Maybe someday he and Nandor will have a proper movie night.
Guillermo tugs Nandor along by his sleeve as the two of them are escorted out of the theater by a severely underpaid manager - the purple-haired employee grumbling about “needing to implement a stricter curfew for the weirdos”. They got kicked out right before the ending of the film, when Nandor forwent his newfound movie theater etiquette and began asking Guillermo too many questions about the plot.
“Yeah, well, cats don’t even wear boots! Believe me, I have tried and they do not like it!” Nandor yells into the manager’s face as he’s shepherded to the exit.
Guillermo shoots them one last apologetic look before leading a still-complaining Nandor onto the sidewalk outside of the theater. He throws away his empty popcorn tub and tilts his head up towards the sky, breathing in the warm night air. This isn’t quite how he imagined he’d be spending his night. But still, Guillermo relaxes, savoring the moment.
After weeks of avoiding Nandor - partially in order to prevent him from discovering his half-vampiric secret, and partially out of guilt over said secret - Guillermo was thrilled when Nandor invited him to the movies tonight. He’s perfectly content to listen to his Master’s inane ramblings if it means they can spend a now-rare evening together.
“Movies are too long nowadays,” Nandor declares, pulling Guillermo out of his thoughts and leading him towards the bus stop. Nandor had insisted on joining Guillermo on the trip, rather than just flying on his own and meeting him at the theater - another aspect of the evening Guillermo is allowing himself to enjoy. “The first movie I ever saw was less than a minute long and was way scarier and way more interesting than anything you humans try to come up with now!”
“Of course, Master,” Guillermo obliges, walking a little faster to keep up with Nandor’s passionate strides.
“Even the next one I saw was only about twenty minutes long, and that one was at least interesting !” Nandor continues, throwing his arms out for emphasis. “Though I can say from my own personal experience that our moon does not have an actual face, nor does it have a giant spaceship stuck in it.”
Guillermo perks up, his polite, content listening turning into genuine interest. “Wait, are you talking about A Trip to the Moon ? You saw that in theaters?”
“Yes, that is the one.”
“That’s so cool, Master!” Guillermo gushes. As a kid, he'd spent hours researching old movies, obsessed with the creepy, almost ethereal quality many of the classic silent films possessed.
Interview With the Vampire wasn't the only movie Guillermo watched growing up, after all.
Nandor halts in his stride - nearly causing Guillermo to speed right past him - and looks down at him, the vampire's eyes lighting up. “ Yes ! It is cool!”
Guillermo blushes under the attention, a surprised smile spreading across his own face. He can't help but feel warm when he pleases Nandor, when he says something right.
Especially now.
Nandor beams at him for another moment and then coughs, composing himself. “You know, Nadja was actually in that one.”
Guillermo's eyebrows shoot up. “Wait, really?”
“Oh, yes. At the end of the eighteen hundreds Laszlo insisted that we leave England for some fucking reason. Something about the law, I think he said? Who knows. But anyway, from there, we traveled to Paris, where Laszlo befriended Mr. Méliès and started lounging around his studio while he worked.”
“Wow...” Guillermo imagines it, his vampires relaxing amongst the maze of scrims and lights and hand-painted props.
Nandor preens at Guillermo’s wonder, then continues. “Laszlo suggested that Nadja be cast in his latest endeavor, and the director felt compelled to oblige . Nadja's the one who came up with the idea for sitting on that moon swing. She said it would ‘increase her allure’ or some shit,” he explains, waving his hand in the air.
Guillermo laughs. “That does sound like her.”
Nandor hums in satisfaction then glances down at Guillermo’s empty hands. “You are done with your popped corn? Are you sure you didn’t want more?”
“No, Master. One was plenty.” In truth, Guillermo could barely stomach the small amount he had, the popcorn settling uneasily in his stomach. It was pointless for him to eat something like that anyway. All it did was make his cravings for meat more apparent and demanding. His mouth waters at the thought of the rare steak waiting for him in his minifridge at home.
“I have a rapport with the merchant of the establishment, you know," Nandor says, puffing out his chest. "You could have had as much popcorn as you desired. When I was here with Alexander earlier this week, we nearly emptied the building of its supply.”
"Ah, right,” Guillermo says with an airy chuckle, turning his eyes towards the sidewalk before glancing at Nandor. “And… Alexander didn't want to see this one with you?"
"Why, Guillermo,” Nandor croons, a wry smile playing on his lips. “Are you jealous?”
Guillermo opens his mouth to defend himself, to explain that he isn’t jealous - at least, maybe not fully. He’s mostly sad that he isn’t able to spend as much time with Nandor as he used to, lest his secret be found out. He’s still trying to get the hang of his new powers, and more keep popping up unexpectedly during his experiments with Laszlo.
The last thing Guillermo wants is to alert Nandor of his change before he even knows what that change is .
He’s about to tell his Master this - well, everything except for the vampire stuff, obviously - but then he stops himself. Nandor looks almost… happy . It’s the first time in weeks Nandor has seemed like his old self - ancient and worldly and a little bit silly, underneath it all.
A small part of Guillermo is irritated that Nandor only started showing interest in spending time with Guillermo when he became too busy for him. But the larger part of him, the one that still carries an embarrassingly resilient torch for Nandor, softens.
Maybe Nandor needed this night just as much as he did.
“Maybe I am a little jealous, Master.” Guillermo allows. Nandor’s smirk spreads into a warm smile, and Guillermo feels his heart melt a little bit more.
“That is quite sad,” Nandor remarks, not looking or sounding sad about it at all, “but it is nothing to be ashamed of."
Guillermo shifts away, hiding his eye roll, before turning back to Nandor and looking him in the eye. “You know, I meant what I said earlier. It was nice to spend some quality time together with my friend.”
Something in the air shifts, and Nandor stares at Guillermo with an unreadable expression. Panic slices through Guillermo's chest. Did he go too far? They’ve called each other friends before, even if the admission itself is a recent development in their relationship. Things are kind of strained between them now, but the two of them are also closer than they’ve ever been.
The corner of Nandor’s mouth turns up, and he says softly, “Yes, perhaps it was.”
Nandor gazes at him with those intense eyes for just a moment more before he turns away, popping the bubble of tension to resume his previous stride towards the bus stop. “When we return home you must dig through the attic to find our old film reels. Somewhere hidden amongst Laszlo’s porn collection I am certain we have more of Georges’ films. It appears you require further education on classic cinema. Just wait until you hear the stories about The Impossible Voyage ."
Guillermo grins. Maybe they’ll get their movie night after all.
"Of course, Master, anything for you."
