1294/Cinema Club: Second Meeting

Cinema Club: Second Meeting
Date of Scene:	16 March 2024
Location:	Four Clover Mall
Synopsis:	The second meeting of Radiant Heart's new cinema club! This month's film is The Moonlit Cat Cafe, a romantic comedy about a college student who discovers a cat cafe, whose magical residents help her find love!
Cast of Characters:	Ren Morimoto, Yuuto Shiraishi, Coco Kiumi

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Ren Morimoto has posed:
    The cinema club meeting for a weekend matinee had been due to a scheduling issue, which has since been resolved. Ren's not surprised if they have a low turn out because of it though, but that's alright. The reduced number means their seats are still good ones, right smack dab in the middle of the theater, and ultimately that's the most important thing, isn't it? A proper movie-viewing experience.

    He's not one for rom-coms usually, but the promise of adorable cats had been enough to sway Ren (maybe with some pressure from his spirit guide Umeboshi, who rides along in small keychain plushie form), so The Moonlit Cat Cafe was the picture he selected for this outing.

    And the main stars really sell it. The cats, that is... nearly a dozen different feline actors grace the silver screen, some big and chunky, some little bitty kittens. Honestly, Ren can't even remember the names of the two main human stars!

    It's still daylight when they emerge from the cinema, and rather than stay inside on such a beautiful day, Ren decides that their order at the nearby cafe is "to-go" when he ushers them all through the queue. "Why don't we sit outside near the fountain?" he suggests, nodding towards the open-air area past all the restaurants in the food court.

    It's quite busy out, given the nice weather, but they manage to snag a table with an umbrella for shade. Ren sips on his mocha, legs stretches out as he sits sideways, and then he asks, "So, what did you think of the movie?"

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
With the movie coming to an end, Yuuto is carrying a bucket for some upcoming sci-fi movie that he impulse bought because he wanted all the popcorn and all the butter. The movie had gone well, especially when shared with his girlfriend, and he's tossing away his empty drink, glancing at the popcorn bucket. "Wonder if I can get them to refill it for free?" he asks, a small grin. "I'm a sucker for movie popcorn."

But then Ren's asking about the movie and he perks up. "You know, I almost expected that the love story would be about the cats." he admits with a chuckle. "Like, straight up, thought at some point we'd find out the cats were actually humans under a curse - but, I liked the way that they kept knocking things over in front of the shop owner every time the main character visited so that she would have to stop whatever she was doing to come visit him."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
One has to wonder how these movies are picked exactly, considering both of them so far have had a focus on things that Coco definitely resonates with, that is to say the sea and romance (although the first one was too focused on strife for her tastes). Definitely a coincidence, but a curious one for sure. Today's movie, The Moonlit Cat Cafe, was definitely one that is ended up holding Coco's attention in full (to Yuuto's disadvantage, since not as much of Coco's time was spent fluttering her eyelashes at Yuuto, although she was still was leaning on his side for the duration, so maybe that was enough compensation for him).

The cats were as attention-grabbing as the love portion of the movie, and sometimes she wished she had brought Cora with her, so she could have her own pet to, well, pet, for the duration. They were too adorable, but luckily for Coco a time in which she had to decide whether to focus on the kittens or the romance never actually came despite some close calls.

"I really liked the movie, the cats were adorable, and the main couple was really cute together, but I think it's for the best the cats ended up being normal cats", Coco observes. "A curse would have made this an entirely different movie. I am glad it was as fluffy and lighthearted as it was. I liked especially the times the cats slid among the main couple's feet to make them stumble into each other's arms, even if they hadn't been enough to make the two uncover their hidden feelings."

Ren Morimoto has posed:
    "Movie popcorn is the best!" Ren enthuses, because he practically grew up on the stuff. He's like, at least 75% movie theater snacks at this point. He'd finished his own popcorn and candy, which had been a lot for one person to eat, but even now he's eyeing up some of the nearest food stalls as they sit. The obvious longing in his eyes as he looks in through the tall windows of the mall to the food court is probably enough of a hint of his interests, but then his stomach growls, and he laughs as he pats it.

    After a moment, he adds, "Sorry," a little embarrassed.

    Settling back in with just his mocha for now, he nods at Yuuto. "When I saw the trailer I thought it might be something like that, the cafe came off so mysterious. In the end it was magical but more... simple, I guess? Like you could tell the cats knew what was going on, but somehow they still seemed like cats."

    Ren laughs a little bit when Coco mentions the cats tripping the main stars up. "I think that was it, that's what made them seem like cats. Even when they were helping out they were still being so cat-like about it. My cat Ume tries to trip me up all the time!"

    The keychain attached to one of his belt loops jangles at his side a little bit, but he must have just shifted his weight on his chair. It's definitely not Umeboshi in his transformed shape throwing a fit at the aspirations being cast upon his character.

    "I really liked Hime-chan, she was always so regal even when she was getting up to mischief. I think my favorite cat was definitely Mr. Momo though! He was so grumpy, I loved him."

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
Yuuto was just fine with Coco leaning against him as she watched the movie. Boyfriends make the best arm rests, after all. But at the stomach growl and Ren's glance out, he laughs. "No no, totally a mood. I could never fill up on popcorn." Admitted with a chuckle, his hand slips against Coco's side, holding her arm lightly.

"I thought Sprinkles was pretty neat, even his part was small. Especially when he was responsible for locking the door when those catnappers showed up!" There's a sage nod, and a shake of his head. "I couldn't believe the shop owner's ex was so... so... petty!" he mutters, a shake of his head.

"Just because he had allergies and was upset that she wouldn't give up the cats or the cafe because he was jealous. What a hare-brained idea. When that other cat..." he's trying to remember the name... "The one that left the cafe to warn the owner and her date of the trouble at the cafe, I had to hold my breath!"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco hadn't really been in the mood for popcorn, so she had left all of it to the two boys (more for them, she bets was their line of thinking with a very small thinking), and of course, she had avoided soda and other carbonated drinks, perish the thought of her actually getting some. Which is why if some had been offered to her, it was politely declined. She never really explained it to Yuuto, and of course not to Ren, so they might or might not have offered some.

"Hana was my favourite of the whole group, with how she was first in line to fill the café's clients with her affection and joy. The absolute sweetest", Coco remarks, with a wide smile. "Maybe your cat is trying to help you in his own way too", Coco jokes when Red shares the behaviour of his cat.

"One part of the movie I didn't expect is the local strays having a partnership of sorts with the café's cats that up informing them of the catnappers' arrival. That was a great amount of foresight on the pets' part."

Ren Morimoto has posed:
    "That whole storyline was so funny. You're right, his plan was so ridiculous! All because of allergies..." The mocha Ren's been sipping on is gone in short order, and he crosses his arms on the table, half-twisted so he can face both Yuuto and Coco.

    When Coco mentions Hana, he nods. "She was really sweet," he agrees. "Definitely sweeter than my cat. Sometimes I think he's out to get me!"

    Then his eyes widen as he goes "Ow!" and reaches down to rub the side of his leg. That was a hard poke from Ume, but Ren just says, "Must have pulled a muscle or something."

    He cups his chin in his palm, eyes faraway as he reviews the movie's scenes in his head. "I always get sad when I see strays, I want to adopt all of them. But it was nice seeing the cafe start putting out food for them in the end. They definitely deserved it!"

    And then finally the name Yuuto was looking for nearly comes to him, "It sounded sort of like that cat from that one movie... not Jiji but like... ie-ie," he makes the noise, and then snaps his fingers, "Riki!" After, he rubs the back of his neck. "It made sense in my head."

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
"Riki! That was it!" Yuuto grins, a snap of his fingers and a point at Ren. "Thank you, so many cat names." A chuckle. And no, he learned early on to never offer carbonated drinks to Coco, and in fact, he's cut it out of his own diet since the pair of them started dating.

"I did like the ending scene, where the new couple were running an adoption event for all the strays. I thought for sure they were going to end with a wedding with all the cats there, but it was way more socially conscious to show something that the audience could do in their own communities. Though with all the pets running around the school, sometimes you have to wonder if we are our own menagerie."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"That was definitely socially conscious, but I was looking forward to the wedding ceremony, especially with how many times they teased it with Kirika coincidentally passing in front of a bridal shop", Coco complains a bit, disappointed in those particular segments of the movie. "At least those peeks at her aspirations were very sweet", she comments, looking at the silver lining.

"I have to say though, that if there is one thing the romance did right is the fact not a second of the movie's runtime was wasted on pointless love triangles", she nods in approval. "And even then with the watchful eyes the cats had on the two lovers, I am sure the start of any love triangle would have only made them triple their effort to get the two together."

Coco slides her arm under Yuuto as he comments on the school's menageries. "My otters are very well behaved, at least. I have been sure to stress it to them not to cause trouble. And they are quite cuddly, you know?"

Ren Morimoto has posed:
    "I liked the ending too, I thought it was really inspirational. I wish I lived somewhere on my own so I could adopt all the animals!" Ren's enthusiasm shines through in the glint in his eyes, and the warm smile on his face. His hand briefly drops to his side to touch the mini-plushie hanging with his keys, mostly hidden beneath the table.

    Hopefully Ume wouldn't mind brothers and sisters! Ones that can't talk, at least.

    He looks distracted a little bit, maybe thinking about food judging by the way his eyes have once again strayed towards the restaurants, but it's something Coco says that draws him immediately back to the conversation. "You're so right. I know people like 'will they or won't they' scenarios but if it's going to be romance I'd rather they just take the dive and start actually romancing people. So I was really glad this movie was like that, even if they didn't really kiss until near the end."

    One of the scenes that reminds him of makes Ren laugh, eyes crinkling. "Well, aside for the time the cats tripped them into an accidental kiss, that part was really funny."

    The mention of otters has him tilting his head, but before he can ask, Ren winces and puts a hand to his stomach as it growls again, louder and longer. "I'm gonna go grab a snack, do either of you want anything? Or maybe another drink?" he asks as he stands up from his seat.

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
"It's called a sequel, Coco. And when the ex escaped from police custody, it was totally setting up for that." Yuuto points out with a mote of amusement, pressing a kiss to Coco's cheek. "You have weddings on the brain." he teases her, before his attention returns to the subject at hand. "Your otters do put on an adorable parade." he admits fondly.

His attention turns back to Ren and laughs. "The set up on that was really good. I mean, usually these type of movies aren't my cup of tea, but this was a lot of fun." And then Ren is talking about getting food, and he ohs softly.

"I'm good!" he offers, "Maybe next time we can do a sports movie." Offered in suggestion, he figures the meeting is probably winding down since they're talking about grabbing food.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"How many animals would you be aiming for", Coco asks to Ren when he reveals his wish. At least, she is assuming he is not being literal when he talks about all animals. Well, if he is, it makes sense why he is talking about it like a fantasy that won't come true. "There is nothing wrong with adopting even 1 more, though. You may want to be careful with introducing the new arrival to Ume, but other than that, it shouldn't be too problematic."

And her eyes glow with intense light when Ren shares her opinion. "See, you totally get it, and this movie was awesome for that! I wish more people thought the same way. Maybe some will find it boring, but I think a fluffy slow and steady progression towards the moment of romance is the best."

Coco looks pensively at Ren when he talks about his proposal. "Maybe still water, please? I am a bit thirsty. It not being carbonated is important, please. I am allergic."

Then Yuuto pokes fun at her. "Guilty as charged. And you are a positive contribution to that", Coco grins, making sure to highlight the ring on her hand. "But this time you can't blame me, with all those scenes meant to induce the thought of a wedding into Kirika. Even the producers clearly couldn't stop thinking about them!"

Ren Morimoto has posed:
    "Oh I don't know, I've never thought about it. I'm technically not allowed to have any, but Ume is a special case." A special case that can be invisible at will and shapeshift, so it's pretty easy to keep him secret. Not that Ren shares any of that, though!

    He gets out of his seat and nods at Coco's request for still water, taking her comment about her allergy in stride. "Sure, I'll make sure I get you regular water!" he promises. Though he isn't moving yet, as he's distracted by the conversation. "They were definitely hinting about a proposal at the very least but I do think they're going to try for a sequel. I mean, they barely got into the backstory of the original cafe owner, and I want to know how the magic was started."

    With that note, though, he excuses himself with a quick wave and scurries off towards food!