Adeorange Theatre

Adeorange Theatre
adeorange

The Adeorange Theatre is tucked away in the outskirts of the village and is surrounded by the lavish forest. It has a concession stand near the front entrance and only one theater, which rotates movies on a regular basis. Most visitors sit on top of blankets near the front of the cleared field, but there are some spots for those visiting in flying cars closer to the entrance.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Zach has known ever since he was very young that his family is indescribably wealthy and that most everyone in the magical community already knows this, but he is still too humble to flaunt it or make a big deal of it. That does not mean that he does not use his family's wealth to his advantage from time to time. Just the other day, he called the Adeorange Theater asking if they could put on Suspiria this weekend so he could come see it with Nikki. It was not even that expensive, but he is embarrassed nonetheless when the owner of the theater comes to greet him and makes a big deal of saying that she hopes he and his friend enjoy the movie that Zach chose for the screening. Zach had told Nikki it was a coincidence, too, which makes it all the more embarrassing. Now that the old witch is gone, the pair walk to the concession stand as Zach rubs the back of his neck awkwardly before running a hand through his hair. "*Technically*," he begins, "I never said it was a *coincidence* that they were showing Suspiria. I just said they *were*." It makes more sense, probably, given this context, why they would be showing a horror movie in the middle of a dark forest at night. It is considerably more empty than it is on other nights, probably because people are not too enthused by the idea of something that might be considered terrifying. Zach personally does not see the big deal. They live in a world of magic! Surely whatever demons that might come to haunt you can easily be fought off with a spell or two.

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

When it comes to light that this is Zach's doing, she simply smiles and nods happily at the witch, reassuring her that she is bound to love it. However, her grins starts to spread the moment they are turning and heading for the concession stand. His embarrassment is obvious, so she resists the urge to laugh from amusement. It becomes more difficult when he begins to defend himself, which isn't entirely necessary. She would've been fine pretending that it hadn't happened. "It's fine," she tells him, a gentle hand falling behind his shoulder as she briefly leans in closer. A small laugh slips then, but she turns to focus on the concession stand. Her mind is drowning with thoughts as she considers the fact that this has happened, what this could mean, and the fact that he is even allowed to do this in the first place. "Now it might not be *destiny*, but it's still nice," she comments casually, bringing her gaze up to his. After she's done searching his face, she glances over his shoulders (then slipping her hand off of it) and down to his hands before her gaze rises to focus on the stand in front of them. She fishes out some coins before ordering two soft beverages and some popcorn for the both of them, passing the coins across the counter before he can even attempt to. "Honestly, I should have been more suspicious, but this is awesome. I- Wow. I can't believe you." She laughs, face full of amazement as she grins up at him. "Seriously. Wow. How will I ever beat this?"

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Zach is so distracted by his embarrassment that he isn't quick enough to pay before she can. It's fine, he concedes and is very easily distracted by her hand touching then leaving his shoulder. "You don't need to beat this," he insists. He does not see gifts and gestures like this as something to get even over; that defeats the whole purpose of doing them out of love. "Besides, who said I was doing this for you?" he teases, taking one of the drinks on the counter so that Nikki's hands won't full. He takes a sip before continuing. "Maybe I just wanted to watch Suspiria and didn't feel like just watching at home." Admittedly, it would've been pretty fun watching a movie at his apartment too. The TV is huge. It's fine – there are many movies in the world and there will be many more opportunities for them to watch another together. "So *really*, this is just me being selfish." He shrugs as the two of them navigate their way around the few other groups and couples that are in attendance tonight. Finding a spot for them that's the perfect distance of the screen (though it really can't be called *finding* if it was reserved for them), he gestures for Nikki to sit first before he joins her on the ground. "It *is* awesome, isn't it?"

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

Her mouth falls open as she stares at him, scoffing in faux offense. It completely tramples over the love she feels when he reassures her that she doesn't have to try to beat it, but she can return to that feeling later tonight when she's alone. "Oh, *please*," she starts, following after him with the rest of their things. Her face is screwed together in the middle, but watching how nonchalant he is creates a fracture in her act and she can't manage to not grin at him. "Zach, come on. It's fine to admit you love me," she teases, winking as she begins sipping from her cup. A smile appears as her lips fall from around the straw, pleased with herself. Maybe it's too late for her to care, but this has to be out of some sort of love, right? "We all know you do." Whoever *we* is, they do think that. It's not difficult to tell that there's something between them whether that's just buried in the past or something still flourishing now. At least on her part, she is still interested in him today. And to her knowledge, there was never a point in which he was interested in her even in hindsight. Sometimes hindsight is actually 50/50. "Damn, this spot is great," she comments quietly, turning around to see what the rest of the field looks like. "Your selfishness has paid off."

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

"So presumptuous." Zach scoffs playfully when she makes that comment about him loving her. It is true; he *does* love her but he is bad at verbalizing it and instead opts to do things like pay outdoor cinemas to have a screening of her favorite movie. Somehow, to Zach, that is far less complicated. "Who is this 'we'? I will have you know, I'm not *that* predictable." He laughs at the thought of this mysterious 'we', but knows it to be correct. *Everyone* has known he and Nikki were a unit ever since they were eleven. Until now, that bond is still strong and it should be painfully obvious to most that they love each other. He looks at her as she surveys the field, thinking rather absent-mindedly about what his intentions were when doing this for her. Admittedly, he *knows* but it is still difficult to fully wrap his head around it. It *is*, however, definitely very romantic to him that the stars have aligned and they circled back home at the same time. He will not deny that, but he will also not confront that by actually having a conversation about it just yet. "How has work been?"

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

When she whips her head around to face Zach again, she's grinning at him with brows arched up in amazement. "You're ridiculous," she comments with love, laughing as she hears him do the same. His laugh is different now, but it's just as warm to her ears as it was decades ago. Wow, decades ago. Of course she loves him. "Work's been interesting," she answers, shifting her tone and shaking herself from her wispy thoughtfulness. "We have been developing different flames, which was the whole point of bringing me on... I don't know if you remember, but—" She immediately laughs, a little embarrassed though she can't particularly shame her younger self too much. "I was a little pyromaniac. I know it's charmed to Hell, but I'm surprised I didn't accidentally burn Adeothorne down back in the day." Her mouth stretches into a brief grimace before she reaches down for some popcorn. Her mind races to when they would watch movies together and their hands would brush and her foolish fourteen year old self would die before teasing him. She wonders if he knew or if he at least knows in hindsight, but doesn't mention it. "What about you? How's repairing elevators?"

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Zach chuckles at the repairing elevators joke, checking the time quickly as she talks. The movie is not due to start for a while, and while he is excited to watch, of course, he is glad they have this time to focus on each other. It is obvious by how he hangs off of every word she says, really listening and looking genuinely enthralled by what she has to share with him. "We were *both* little pyromaniacs," he says. It is embarrassing in retrospect, but at least he did not make it his entire personality. If he recalls correctly, there was this girl at Adeothorne in one of the other years who would bring matches around with her constantly. He doesn't believe it ever got that out of hand with him. "How could I forget?" Though in general, Nikki and all parts of her are very hard to forget. "It's awesome that you ended up actually doing something related to that!" He is genuinely amazed by this, half because Nikki is really that wonderful and half because the idea of pursuing any childhood hobbies that seriously was never an option for him. It's fine, he likes where he is in life. "You should show me what you're working on sometime. Or is it top secret? I can bribe you." He teases her before continuing. "Work is... busy. It's much easier for my father's associates to bother me now that I'm in the country." He makes a face. "But it's also much easier to oversee things. It's less stressful than worrying from an ocean away. And I get to be close to you and to the rest of my family, which is wonderful, of course."

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

She laughs, hand falling into her blonde locks. "Now I'm a paid pyromaniac. It's actually really interesting! I could— *Oh*," she stops and laughs again, leaning forward as her hair falls in front of her face. Her hand pushes it out of her face when she faces him again, smirking. "How *much*? 'Cuz you better watch out. I'll take your whole fortune." Obviously, she has no intention to, but it's fun teasing him. It used to be overwhelming how wealthy he was, but she had adjusted a long time ago. It's a little weirder facing it now as a working adult who has a better grasp on finances, but still he's not an obnoxious twat. God, it warms her heart knowing he is still the nice person she left at King's Cross long ago and not some cold-hearted, careless businessman. He can rest assured knowing he isn't his father in any capacity, or at least not as far as her eyes can see. "It is wonderful," she shadows. It doesn't float past her how he said it's wonderful being closer to her too. The feeling is returned. "It's nice being closer to family. I still have some of my father's family out in Adeorange, but not much." Arguably, reuniting with him has been the best part so far. Nothing has compared to that, she wants to add. She doesn't. She isn't sure where to begin really or if that would be too serious.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

His whole fortune is *a lot*, so he laughs and almost says there are easier, more romantic ways to stealing away all of it but he holds his tongue in case that may be too forward. Obviously, he is interested in Nikki but would also be very content just reuniting with his best friend. If he were younger then he would think *she* doesn't seem interested, but it's ridiculous to come to such a conclusion so soon so he doesn't put a pin in the idea and instead is waiting to see how this all plays out. "You already know I'll give you anything you ask for. Name your price." he says, grinning. If she actually does want something, he can probably get it anyway. "It's kind of boring now because all of Clarence and Cressida's kids are already off at Adeothorne." Zach is quite confident, actually, that he is the favorite extended family member of all his nieces and nephews. "Cress is abroad so that leaves me with Clarence and Cedrica which... I don't understand half the things they're saying most of the time. It's always work stuff with them. Too much science. Not very fun." He makes a face to drive home his point before laughing again. There are other reasons, of course, for why he does not like hanging out with the pair. Incredible, massive disappointment, for starters. "Then of course, I see my dear old dad nearly everyday." Zach rolls his eyes. He does not have the best relationship with his father but he is old enough to no longer angst about it.

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

Her face scrunches up, staring off to the side as she considers what she could *possibly* want from him. Everything on the tip of her tongue is too suggestive for what their current situation is and she too doesn't want to push buttons she can't quite see yet. Nikki laughs instead, stopping it there. When she's done, her nose scrunches up again, but this time in a more genuine sense of disgust. "I can't imagine having teenagers." But then again, she was nowhere near secure enough to have children so young. Even now, she would have to battle for that security. "I can't imagine a world where working alongside my mother would be great either." Her expression is more concentrated, questioning for a moment if she should inquire about his relationship with his father. It's obviously not stellar, but she wonders if they were ever able to sit down and resolve some issues or... something. It quickly becomes obvious that this is not the time or place, but it never really is. She resolves to silence on the matter. "I can just *hear* her explaining to me that I'm doing something wrong... when she has no idea what she's talking about." She huffs before smiling slightly. "At least one day he will retire and you won't have to see him as much."

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

He remembers Nikki's relationship with her mother and wonders how that is going as well, but it doesn't seem to have drastically improved so he doesn't probe. "At least." he agrees. When Zach was younger, he used to fantasize about the day he would inherit everything so he could do something insane with the family business or fortune that would surely give his father a heart attack. He is less petty now. There's no point in doing that. He is already content in just knowing that he is nothing like his father, or at least he hopes he isn't. "I have a pretty good idea already of what it would be like to have teenagers. I'm not looking forward to it." He chuckles just thinking about it. "My niece keeps messaging me asking for help with a girl she likes," Zach personally cannot imagine going to anyone in his family for tips even back when he was a teen. Maybe that's why Lexi – and Leighton now, too! – are going to him. It makes sense; he can't imagine what advice Clarence would have to offer. "It was just her for a while but my nephew just transferred to Adeothorne from an *all-boys school* and now he's asking me for help too." This will never stop being funny to Zach. Teenage boys are so ridiculously predictable. He should know, he was one once too. "I don't even have that much wisdom to offer. Do you remember how awkward I was in Adeothorne?" He laughs just thinking about it. Zach was never really aware of anyone's interest back in school. He didn't see the need to; he had one girlfriend and was loyal to her.

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

All-boys school... Chilling. "Who would've guessed they would want *your* help?" she jokes. Zach was a charmer many reasons. He's charismatic and sweet. His humor perfectly complements hers. It's no wonder her fourteen year old self swooned. She doesn't wonder why he didn't. "Kidding. I don't know what you're talking about." She laughs, a bit confused. To her, it was obvious that people loved Zach. She certainly loved him — still does. "I thought..." Her words fall off before her mouth turns into a little 'O' and eventually she smiles sheepishly. Attempting to defeat her thoughts for a brief moment, she distracts herself with the sucking noise of her straw. "Were you? I don't remember that," she says after a moment, furrowing her brows as she smiles. "I didn't notice. I thought you were *charming*. Everyone loved Zachary Bishop." She laughs. "Or at least Clarence's children are lucky someone else to go to. He's the last man to go to." An all-boys school... Wow, imagine that.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Zach tries to look back more objectively on his teenage years but it is still so cringe-worthy to him that he cannot imagine ever having been *charming*. "It would have been useful to my fourteen-year-old self to know you found me charming." he muses out loud. Perhaps, then, he would've done something. He doesn't elaborate, continuing, "I actually *considered* telling him to talk to his father before realizing it was a terrible idea. What would Clarence even say? Invent her something, probably." Zach chuckles just thinking about it, then he remembers what he's about to say next and it turns into full on laughter. "Well, whatever I say won't be of much help. The girl he likes is into a half-veela boy. Merlin, *so* unlucky." Leighton will be fine and get over it, he's sure. "At sixteen, I think I would've simply given up."

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

"Would it have been?" she quips, laughing at the thought. It's ridiculous to think that that would've changed a *thing* about their friendship. She teased him endlessly as is, so it should've been obvious. "Whoa. Whoa. Inventing something *is* romantic." She invents and tests spells for a living. Of course she would find it romantic except it's also a chore and something she wouldn't do just to woo someone. When she processes this information about his nephew and his crush, she tosses her head back to chuckle. "No *way*! Oh, that poor boy." Her head falls into her hands, fingertips running over her forehead as she imagines being a teenager again. She wouldn't have quit, but she would've really grumbled and moaned about it. "At least if they're meant to be, they will find each other eventually. Veelas can't actually induce true love." His nephew has something on his side in that case, but she doesn't know him. Perhaps he's a miserable person.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Zach nods at her question, before continuing. "Would've asked you out, probably." he says, without really thinking. He doesn't say it too seriously because it is simply not that serious to him. In fact, he continues with another train of thought quickly after. "Maybe it is romantic," he concedes, "Depends on who you're trying to... I don't know, woo?" The word makes him laugh. It is a bit too formal and that makes it a bit ridiculous to him. "It doesn't matter. I'm not creative *or* intelligent enough for that." Though he is resourceful and thoughtful, and he has an unlimited budget for most things, which he would argue is just as effective. "What would you want someone to invent for you?" he asks, "If you could have *anything*." It's a fun question and he also immediately begins thinking of his own answer. "Since it's *so* romantic." He is certain he would be able to find something along the lines of what she wants. If he doesn't, well, it would be easy to ask Cedrica and Clarence to make it for him.

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

Her brows raise before furrowing in confusion, staring at him in awe though it's swiftly swept under the rug by the way he moves on. It doesn't seem to faze him, so perhaps she shouldn't be fazed by it either. Nikki smiles, pleased by the concession. "I thought creating a mirror that is similar to the two-way mirror communication system would be interesting," she begins to explain. Most of her ideas have been passed over to coworkers, but this is more convoluted than that. "Do you remember those slideshow goggles that Muggles have?" Her fingers raise to her face, clicking and mimicking an old fashioned camera as if that explains it. "With pictures. If children especially could have those, but in the mirrors, so you move and see your surroundings... I thought that would be neat." She's well aware that Muggle technology has advanced beyond this, but there's nothing beautiful about staring into a screen. "As in, they would hold the mirror," she begins again, holding her hands out to demonstrate. "And as they move, the other side— whatever that might be— it would move with them and they could hear the birds or the water. Hopefully, it would be in live-time and could serve as a safer alternative to zoos." Quiet for a moment, she contemplates her words for a moment and comes to the conclusion that she could've been more eloquent, but this isn't a pitch. "Figuring that out wouldn't be romantic though. It would be more thoughtful if anything."

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Zach listens intently to Nikki, obviously very interested in what he has to say. True, it isn't very *romantic* but it is amazing to him that she has so seriously considered this idea and some of its nuances especially given how practical and useful it would be. "That would be fantastic." he agrees. Zach is not very good at words, but it is plain from the expression on his face that he is thoroughly impressed with how her mind works. "You're so brilliant. If you could make something like that, then it'd have loads more applications too in different fields." He does not share his own dream invention because he is nowhere near as creative, and continues, "I'm sure you can come up with a spell for that." he tells her, "I would suggest maybe taking it to Wizco to see if they've got any ideas but they'd probably take credit. I'm kidding!" He laughs, but actually *does* glance at his phone very, very quickly (because he does not put it beyond Clarence and Cedrica to have everyone bugged), "You're better than them anyway."

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

At first, she believes he's serious, but he clarifies and laughs and she quickly laughs along with him. His compliments do flatter her, but not much. He is just being nice as always. "Thank you for thinking so." His dart toward his phone causes her to glance down too, not being able to help the curiosity considering it visibly didn't illuminate with a notification of any kind. "It would be interesting trying to figure it out. I wouldn't want it to require having an intrusive object in those habitats, so that would have to be avoided... It would require a lot of research." Not that she minds. It's nice getting to exercise her brain so much instead of just droning on in some boring office. She would die having a regular old office job. A quip about not wanting to do all of that to just make the richest even richer is on the tip of her tongue, but she holds onto it. "It would be worth it," she says, smiling and content. Imagining her child (should she ever have one) walking around her living room and watching wild creatures roam through their natural habitats in sheer awe... So precious.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

Similarly, Zach is also thinking about how nice it would be for his future child to have such a device to allow them to experience what she is describing. He understands that there are more practical uses for it, like in medicine or education probably, but Nikki mentioned zoos so a toddler running about with goggles of some sort trying to interact with the wildlife is what is at the forefront of his mind. "It would be," he agrees. The magical flames that hover above the expanse begin to dim, which he takes as a sign that the movie is about to begin soon. True enough, the screen goes dark before starting a short countdown. "It's starting." he says, smiling at her. He moves the popcorn so that it is closer to her and she can have an easier time reaching for it. Zach looks over at her to admire her one more time before the film begins, then turns towards the screen to watch properly.

Zach has seen Suspiria before more than once, and one of those times was with Nikki actually when they were a lot younger. As a result, he didn't feel the need to focus very heavily on the film, instead exchanging commentary with them the whole movie. He has also looked over to watch her watching the movie a lot more times than he would care to admit; it is so nice to him being able to see her so captivated. He is almost certain that she enjoyed himself, but he has to be sure. "Merlin, I forgot how good this movie was." he says, prompting a conversation as the lights begin to brighten again.

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

When the lights begin to illuminate again, she slowly turns towards him, wanting to admire him for a moment before he can notice. She isn't afforded much of an opportunity to, but she won't complain about the eye contact. Nikki smiles. "It's such a beautiful film. I could watch it a thousand times over." Of course it would become less thrilling after that, but the visuals are amazing. They're what truly sells it as such a masterpiece of the Italian horror genre. "You chose wisely," she adds, laughing as she gives him a small nudge in the arm. He did, and she's honestly flattered that he bothered even if he won't admit it's because he *loves* her. Pfft. "We should try to watch more movies together again. Maybe we can make it a routine- once a month or every other month?" she suggests, eyes lighting up at the thought. It was such a staple of their friendship before, and even though they are far older and busier now, she's sure they can find time in their schedules somewhere. It isn't as if they have families to tend to.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

He gets up after she shoves him, extending a hand to help her up as well. "We should! I agree." he says. He's glad that she brought it up even though he had been planning to and was quite confident that she would appreciate the invitation. It is so fantastic that they are able to continue their little tradition from when they were in high school. "We can watch movies as much as you like." he says. He has learned that the higher you climb up the corporate ladder, the less time you have to dedicate to actually being present, though he still tries to be as hands-on as possible. Besides, he will always be willing to make time for Nikki and for this. "Next time, though," he begins, not very nervous. He is not feeling very anxious because he cares about Nikki and their friendship, and however she responds to him will be something he'd graciously accept. "Maybe it could be more of an official date." he finishes. He gauges her reaction before continuing. "This is me asking you out, so I hope I'm still as charming as you thought I was when we were fourteen." He chuckles a bit, before continuing. "It's fine if you'd rather not. I don't mind doing this *platonically*." He exaggerates the word, laughing so that she knows he will not hold it against her if he is rejected. "You're still my best friend no matter what. I just thought this could be something worth trying."

Nikolette Sutton

spellmaker
ateleia

His gesture is welcomed and she lifts herself up using his support, tapping her other hand on his arm as she quietly expresses her gratitude. When he agrees, she grins and nods excitedly, but it slows when things begin to seem more serious. Her heart slows too, smile dimming before curling into a smirk. "Some twenty years later and you are still plenty charming to me," she tells him, crossing her arms as she brings a hand to her chin. Her smirk is rapidly forming into an impressed grin and she can only dim her embarrassment because of the fact that this is Zach she is speaking to. He's so nice and the time they went without each other hasn't defeated how naturally comfortable she is around him. "We should get dinner in and watch another movie together, but *romantically* this time." Mimicking his exaggeration of the opposite word, she laughs. "I don't see why we shouldn't give it a shot. It's about damn time we did..." It prompts a moment of reflection, bringing back all of the times she teased him over crushing on her. She laughs again. "And we're best friends no matter what. Our poor red string has gotten so used to being short. We can't pull it taut again. It wouldn't be fair." Nikki frowns dramatically, tilting her head and holding her hands to her chest before grinning at him again.

Zachary Bishop

cfo and heir of bishop hotels
paintedred

It is impossible for Zach to keep from grinning, even when she frowns. In fact, he lets out a laugh at her expression, as he smiles down very fondly at her. He wants to kiss her, but the moment is not right and he comes to the conclusion that it can wait for their date, which will *have* to be soon or else he will implode. "It wouldn't be fair at all." he agrees, offering his arm for her to take as the two of them walk back to the entrance of the theater. "Don't worry," he says, "It will take a *lot* for you to get rid of me, so I guess you'll be stuck with me for a long time." He is rather certain though that she would not have it any other way, and neither would he. Zach glances down at her again, still smiling as he muses over how it's been twenty years and the two of them are still watching horror movies together like they used to. It's a good feeling; everything is as it should be, and he is perfectly content.