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"Do you like movies?"

"I'm a huge cinephile!" Kairo lied. "I wouldn't be applying to work at a movie theater otherwise."

"What are some of your favorites?"

"Oh, I love 2001: A Space Odyssey - Stanley Kubrick is a genius. The Godfather, although the third one took a nose dive in my opinion. And, of course, Citizen Kane is an absolute classic."

"Well, sure," said Marco, the hiring manager. "Those are, you know, the kinds of titles that come up when you search 'top 100 best movies.' However, Archway Film Center mainly shows new releases from the indie and arthouse world."

"Right. Of course."

"So, do you have any favorites that are more on the obscure side?"

Kairo had already exhausted their prepared response, and began to panic as they struggled to remember what the term "arthouse" meant. The rabbit certainly loved horror movies, but "Ju-On: The Curse" felt like the wrong answer. Meanwhile Marco, a raccoon with small, dark eyes, looked on with an unreadable expression.

"I like Hereditary a lot," the rabbit answered. That seemed like a good midpoint. "The supernatural stuff in it is totally inaccurate, but it's still creepy and fun."

"Sure," the manager said neutrally. He flipped his clipboard back to Kairo's resumé. "Actually, let's talk about that for a moment. I see you earned your Bachelor's in Phasmology two years ago, and since then you've been with a ghost-hunting company called Spectrex."

"I know it's not the kind of background you're looking for," they admitted. "But it's given me a lot of experience with complex equipment, and I think those skills would be transferable to being a projectionist."

"Can you tell me what brought about your decision to make such a dramatic career change?"

Kairo remembered the New Mexico debacle and, before that, the nightmare in Wisconsin that had left them locked in an ectoplasmic chastity cage for weeks. Coming back to Columbus, Ohio after all these years to work at a movie theater wasn't exactly a dream come true, but at least here they wouldn't be at the mercy of some monster of the week.

They answered, "Ghost-hunting requires a lot of traveling, which no longer meets my lifestyle needs."

"Understandable." The raccoon flipped the pages of the clipboard back and set it down in his lap. "Well, I think I'm prepared to make an offer right now, with one stipulation."

The rabbit's ears lifted. "Sure!"

"Actually, two stipulations," he amended. "The first one being to broaden your film knowledge."

"Absolutely. What's the second?"

He cleared his throat and began, "As you can see, this is an old building."

Marco gestured around the lobby as though that didn't go without saying. The carpet, unchanged since the 90s, had psychedelic splotch patterns that would better suit an arcade; the salmon-painted walls had rectangular patches of discoloration, marking where movie posters had hung for decades before being auctioned off to collectors; and the smell of stale popcorn was permanently etched into the air. Yet, somehow it all had a certain charm. It made Kairo nostalgic for an era they had never experienced.

Marco continued, "Because of its age, we have more than our fair share of haunts, yet our budget doesn't leave enough left over to hire an exorcist. If you could keep an eye out and do what you can to contain the spirits here, it would be much appreciated. We don't want them bothering our customers and giving us a bad reputation."

Although Kairo had hoped to leave their ghost-hunting days behind them, they were in no position to turn down a paycheck. "I would be happy to help."

"Great." The raccoon stood, and the two shook paws. "Welcome aboard, Kairo."

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Over the first few weeks, the rabbit watched every new release the theater put out, not only to check for defects as part of the job, but also to stay knowledgeable. The artsy types that frequented Archway had conversations that referenced seemingly endless directors and micro-genres, and Kairo felt ten steps behind no matter how much they watched.

Still, the job left them with plenty of free time for remedial education. Marco had not lied about the theater's strained budget, and if anything had undersold it. Based on the number of showtimes which were canceled with zero ticket sales, Archway seemed to be in dire straits indeed.

It was also definitely haunted. The ghosts usually manifested around the popcorn machine, where they could ruin an entire batch with various vile substances, but they were easy enough to deal with. Kairo brought in their hobbyist ghost-hunting equipment and, like all low-level haunts, the spirits dispersed as soon as they were observed.

Soon, even these manifestations stopped, and Kairo was left with even more time on their paws which they spent getting to know their new coworkers. Both of them were some flavor of queer, and the three spent a lot of time in the theater's small café chatting over coffee.

"It was probably the worst movie I've ever seen," said Gemma. "Don't get me wrong, it was well-made, it looked great, and the performances were outstanding, but the concept was just so gratuitous. I never felt like its story justified it."

"It was really fun though," Kairo protested. "I feel like that's the most important thing."

"You both would probably enjoy the director's older stuff," said Bix. "She was way better when she had at least some studio oversight."

The three went back and forth like this during their extended lunch break. At a certain point, Kairo started responding automatically and spent more of their attention just looking at the other two.

Gemma, a slightly chubby sloth, wore brightly-colored facial piercings that contrasted with the black markings around her eyes, and she usually dressed in some combination of stripes and fishnets. She liked to refer to herself as a "goth sloth."

Bix was a spectacled bear, whose fur patterns would be nearly identical to Gemma's if xe didn't dye the light parts of xer face electric blue. Whenever xe wasn't at the theater or in computer science classes at OSU, xe was hitting the gym. Xer bulky body, stuffed into plaid flannel and jeans as usual, looked almost comical balanced on the café's small chair, huge paws enveloping a tiny coffee mug.

It went without saying that Kairo was down bad for both of them. Inappropriate as it might be, they had had endless fantasies about how it would go. Bix grinding xer powerful hips under the rabbit's short tail, or Gemma moaning as she rode Kairo's cock, or Kairo and Bix taking turns filling each of Gemma's holes.

Besides these, Kairo's irrepressible paw fetish was aroused at the thought that both their species had footpaws with long claws, and the rabbit couldn't help wondering how those claws would feel gently raking their muzzle.

Kairo found themself always on the verge of asking one (both?) of them out on a date, but never quite had the nerve.

Suddenly emerging from his office, Marco cut in, "Lunch ends at 12:45, you three. Don't you all have things to do?"

As Gemma and Bix stood to go, the rabbit considered asking whether they wanted to continue their conversation after work that night, but they had already gone.

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A new shipment of films arrived later that day and, eager for a break in the monotony, Kairo started reviewing them right away. Most were from studios they had come to recognize - A24, NEON, and Utopia among others. All were on digital, located on the distributors' private servers or on physical hard drives received via snail mail.

All except one. Buried among the other mail was a single canister of 70 mm film, unlabeled aside from one word scribbled on a torn piece of tape: Wisteria.

Kairo knew that Archway had a compatible projector because Marco had mentioned showing The Hateful Eight in that format. When he went on to say it had been the last time the theater had played to a full house, Kairo had known better than to ask how long ago that had been.

After setting everything up, the rabbit turned off the lights in the projectionist booth and sat down to watch the strange film on the small screen on the wall.

It started with a studio logo Kairo didn't recognize. Against a black background, two white snakes intertwined in a figure-eight like a double ouroboros. Underscoring the strange symbol was the text "Argent II." Kairo made a mental note to ask Gemma or Bix about it later, as well as to ask what happened to Argent I.

The snakes faded out, and the next studio logo faded in. This one was more abstract. A yellow diamond emerged from the darkness and expanded until its edges left the screen. A concentric blue diamond appeared inside the yellow, and a green one appeared inside that. Saturated colors continued blooming out of the center and passing out of frame.

Although it was only a simple geometric pattern, the gentle movement was arresting. Kairo couldn't look away. The center of the pattern swayed to the left, then to the right, swinging back and forth like a pendulum. The rabbit's eyes followed, and their mind relaxed under the light of the soothing colors.

They noticed the backing sound - a low sine wave that chirped in time with each diamonds' appearance, making it even easier for Kairo to keep their eyes on the screen.

Whatever studio this was, their logo was doing its job - Kairo would not be forgetting it any time soon. Strangely, though, the name of the company never appeared, only the continuous flow of concentric diamonds, only that rhythmic sound which massaged Kairo's long ears and made them droop sleepily.

At some point, the movie proper began, and it was just as absorbing as the logo had promised. Kairo watched every frame with rapt attention. They only had to change reels once, and this was so easy that it was like it happened on its own.

When the movie ended, Kairo felt an intense urge to watch it again right away. It was, by far, the best of the new movies they had been exposed to in their time at Archway. They couldn't exactly describe the plot, only how it made them feel: content, relaxed, and utterly immersed. Submerged, as if in a warm and scented bath that they never wanted to leave.

Moreover, the movie was hot. Granted, the rabbit was easily aroused, but Wisteria contained scenes that seemed especially written for them. At several points it had been difficult to keep their paws off their stiff cock.

Now that it was finally over, Kairo knew they had to relieve that urge. They locked the projectionist booth, unzipped, and easily worked themselves back up to full mast while remembering scenes from the movie. They couldn't recreate them in their mind exactly, so they found themself picturing those pretty diamonds instead.

Color after color blossomed before their eyes, and soon they were panting and racing for the finish. With nothing available to clean up the mess, they lay down on the floor and threw their footpaws over their head.

Climax washed over them like a tidal wave, and salty cum fell on their tongue in hot ropes, pulse after incredible pulse. The rabbit imagined them happening in sync with those comforting pulses of sound from the studio logo, and could have sworn the thought alone made them cum a second time.

When it was over, they swallowed, flopped their legs back onto the floor, and waited to catch their breath. There were still a lot of unanswered questions about the movie, not least of which where it had come from, but there was one thing Kairo knew for sure: they had to show it to others.

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"Wisteria?" Bix asked. Xe frowned. "Like the show Lynch was supposed to direct?"

"No, no," Kairo said. They had watched Eraserhead on Gemma's recommendation, and they knew Wisteria was a million times better than that. "It's a movie. Argent II?"

"Argento? Like Dario Argento?" Bix was now thoroughly confused. Xe scooped some popcorn and, in a gesture that would have worried the customers if they were paying attention, reflexively checked it for ghost spoor. Satisfied, xe handed over the bag with a wave. "Enjoy your movie!"

Kairo sighed. "You just have to watch it. Come up as soon as you can." A full day had passed since they had first seen it and, unable to stop thinking about it, they were getting impatient.

"Will do, little bunny." Little bunny? Kairo's brain unexpectedly short-circuited at being addressed that way. The bear grinned, then continued, "I haven't seen you get this excited about a movie before, so I'm definitely curious."

Kairo went up to the projectionist booth and waited eagerly for Bix to start xer break, every minute fighting the urge to roll Wisteria on their own. When the next matinée ended up canceled, Bix arrived with a fresh cup of coffee in xer paws. Finally.

"Pretty tight in here," xe observed, bending slightly so xe wouldn't bump xer head. "We might have to snuggle up."

"Yeah, well..." Kairo couldn't come up with a response that felt remotely appropriate.

"I don't mind if you don't." Xe flopped down on the stool, which creaked in loud protest, then picked up the film canister. "Wisteria," xe read, then frowned as xe turned it over. "No other information?"

"I know, it's weird. But it's really good, I promise."

"Have you checked whether this thing is haunted? I've heard of films like this showing up at theaters and doing crazy things to people."

"Who's the ghost expert here? Of course I've checked it." Kairo hadn't actually taken any readings but, come on - Wisteria was a masterpiece, not some poltergeist's prank.

"All right." Bix took a sip of xer coffee. "Let's do it."

Not needing to be told twice, Kairo dimmed the lights and started the projector. As the reel spun up to speed, they pulled the other stool beside Bix. As xe had said, there wasn't enough room in the booth for space between them, so xer fur brushed against their's, soft and warm. If such a small touch felt so good, Kairo could only imagine how it would feel to have the bear's strong arm wrapped around them.

The Argent II logo faded out, and the rabbit practically bounced with excitement in anticipation of what came next.

As the first diamonds faded in, Bix said, "Hey, what is this?"

"Right? Isn't it pretty?"

"I don't know." The sound kicked in, and the bear said, more softly, "This doesn't feel right."

"Sure it does. It's so nice and relaxing."

"I think...we should stop it..." Xer voice was slow and beginning to trail off.

"Just keep watching. The image is so crisp, the sound quality is so crystal clear, it's so easy to just fall into."

"Yeah, but..." Xer eyes glazed over. Even as xe tried to turn xer muzzle away, xer eyes stayed locked to the screen.

"Just trust me."

"Okay...little bunny..."

The two watched in silence as the pretty diamonds washed over them. Kairo swore the colors were even brighter than before, and the pulsing sound resonated even more pleasantly in their head.

Soon, they reached the first sex scene. The scene was so close to Kairo's fantasies that it felt almost too intimate to watch with Bix, and they could only hope that the bear found it hot too.

"Whoa!" xe exclaimed.

"Right?" Kairo said, relieved at the positive reaction.

"That's so good. I can't believe someone put that on screen."

"Keep watching. It gets better."

The two of them stared in dumbfounded silence. When the next sex scene played, Kairo's pants grew tight and they couldn't help shifting position to generate friction against their sensitive cock. In doing so, they leaned farther into Bix than intended but, to their surprise, the bear leaned back, raised xer muscular arm over xer head, and draped it over the rabbit's shoulders.

The touch was electric, and a shudder went through Kairo's body. The bear must have felt the same way, because xe gripped Kairo and pulled them in close. Glancing down, the rabbit noticed the huge bulge between the bear's legs.

In a brief glance away from the screen, xe saw them looking and grinned. "Like what you see?"

The movie had gotten Kairo so worked up that they couldn't respond, only swallow and nod.

"God, I need some relief after a scene like that," Bix said. "I'll be honest - I think you're cute, and I've caught you staring at me enough times to know you feel the same way. Can you put that muzzle to work for me, little bunny?"

Without waiting for a response, xe unzipped xer pants and dropped them to the floor. Xer briefs were the same electric blue as xer fur dye, and a wet spot had already appeared where xe had been leaking. When the smell of all that precum hit Kairo's nose, they couldn't resist.

They got on their knees and nuzzled xer bulge, shuddering at the feel of it against their muzzle. Without waiting, the bear pulled the fly aside, slipped out their throbbing cock, and pulled Kairo in.

With xer gaze fixed on the screen, xer aim was off, and Kairo had to struggle in the bear's grip to get their muzzle at the right angle. Then the shaft slid over their tongue, the taste of precum filled their nose, and they felt the bear's heavy paw settle on the top of their head. Scritching between their long ears, xe kept a strong grip and thrust roughly into Kairo's mouth.

Looking up at the bear, they were pleased to see that xer attention stayed fixed on the screen. In xer brown eyes, they saw a reflection of the familiar diamond pattern swaying back and forth, back and forth. That was odd considering the studio logo had finished some time ago, but it wasn't worth thinking about.

Instead, Kairo focused on bobbing up and down on Bix's cock, pumping xer shaft with one paw and caressing xer heavy balls with the other. They desperately wanted a free paw to stroke themselves, but the big bear's pleasure was more important. Not only because xe was such a dominant presence, but also to ensure xe had the best viewing experience possible.

Soon, Bix strained in xer seat and tightened xer grip on Kairo's head. "Oh, fuck," xe groaned. "You're going to make me cum, little bunny."

Kairo quickened their strokes, not giving Bix the slightest chance of pulling out as the telltale pulse travelled along xer shaft and xe poured xer heavy load into Kairo. When the bear finally let them go, the rabbit swallowed it all down and fell back on their elbows, licking their lips in satisfaction.

Eyes still on the screen, xe murmured, "Wow. Really good movie. Really good." Glancing down, xe caught sight of Kairo's own needy cock.

Kairo was too desperate not to ask for what they wanted. "Can you...use your footpaws on me?"

Without replying, Bix pressed on Kairo's bulge with both footpaws and stroked up and down with incredible skill. Had xe done this before? Xer pads were leathery and tipped with those long claws that occasionally snagged on the denim - a predator's claws, Kairo thought with a shiver.

In less than a minute they were close, and barely managed to get their cock out in time to release on their belly fur instead of in their jeans.

Neither of them bothering to zip up, Kairo resumed their seat beside Bix, who pulled them into a close cuddle as the pair returned their full attention to the screen. Kairo managed to tear their eyes away for a moment to check how much footage was left on the reel. With a grin, they saw that the movie wasn't even half over.

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"This room is definitely not meant to hold three people," Gemma said. "Especially not when one of them is Bix."

"It'll be worth it," Bix said. "It might be the best movie I've ever seen."

"This coming from the bear who cried over Joker."

"That was back in college!" the bear protested, ears folding back in embarrassment. "And Joaquin's performance really holds up."

Gemma mimed the clown prince of crime's iconic dance, outstretched paws barely missing the low ceiling.

"All right, all right," Bix said. "Kairo, can we get this going?"

They were already reloading the reel as fast as they could. As they did, Bix took a seat on one of the two stools, and Gemma sat on the floor in front of xem, leaning back against xer legs. When the projector was finally ready, the rabbit practically hopped back to the other stool with undignified eagerness.

When the Argent II logo faded in, Gemma frowned. "I've heard of that studio before somewhere. Maybe in a Nyx Fears video? Or maybe..." Before she could finish the thought, the snakes faded out and the diamonds faded in.

The sloth's bristle-like fur stood on end. "This doesn't seem right."

"Just keep watching," Kairo urged.

"I don't know. There's something really freaky about this."

Bix chuckled. "This coming from the sloth who made me watch Mermaid in a Manhole. It's transgressive. You like transgressive."

Gemma closed her eyes. Shaking her head, she said, "I don't like the way this looks, or the way you two are acting. I think I want to leave."

She started to stand and anger descended over Kairo. They didn't know what they were going to do, but they knew they had to keep Gemma in the room.

When the sounds began, she threw her paws over her ears, but curiosity made her look at the screen to see what was causing it. To Kairo's satisfaction, they saw her face grow slack in a way that was becoming familiar. Her paws had surely been ineffective at muffling the sound, but as her muscles relaxed they fell away completely. If her ears were on top of her head, instead of buried below her fur, Kairo was sure they would see them at full alert.

"There you go," said Kairo. "Isn't it good?"

"Yeah, but..."

Bix put a paw on Gemma's shoulder and squeezed gently. "It's okay. I felt the same way."

"Bix?"

"It's okay," xe repeated. "Just give in."

With that, Gemma's resistance collapsed and she now stared blankly at the screen. Without her to worry about, Kairo and Bix were likewise able to focus on the movie.

"Wow. That's filthy," Gemma said approvingly. "They're really going for it, aren't they?" Her paw slid down her chest to her belly, coming to rest just above her waistline.

"Going to make it through the movie?" Bix asked.

She leaned her head back and pressed against the bear's erection, which Kairo could see throbbing even through xer jeans. She grinned. "Now I see why you wanted to show me this so bad." Turning back to the screen, she said, "I've never seen something this hot."

"It gets better," Kairo and Bix said simultaneously.

"I...actually don't know if I can make it," Gemma confessed. She confirmed that the door was locked with a glance, then said, "Bear, could you...?"

Bix, who had obviously been waiting, hooked xer arms under the sloth's shoulders and lifted her onto xer lap as she laughed in delight. "Want to help us out, little bunny?"

Kairo eagerly knelt in front of them, and the rabbit's gaze immediately went to Gemma's footpaws at eye level. Below her long claws, she had a single large, pink pawpad which Kairo barely resisted exploring with their muzzle.

"Eyes on me, little bunny," Bix said.

Kairo looked up at the bear. Once more, they found themselves at the perfect angle to see those colorful diamonds reflected in xer eyes, which made it feel so nice and so easy to listen to xem.

"Get our pants off so we can have some fun," xe said, and lifted Gemma higher for the rabbit's access.

Kairo removed her jeans, followed by her lacey purple Hot Topic underwear, and saw her pink pussy already glistening and ready for the bear's cock. Bix rose to a slight squat to let Kairo pull xer pants around xer ankles, and they watched that huge, gorgeous cock spring free for the second time that day.

As Bix lowered Gemma down, Kairo held xer cock in position and watched as her pussy easily slid over it. They felt xer cock throb in needy desire when it entered her, and felt the heat come off the sloth's pussy in waves.

Gemma groaned. "It's been too long since I've felt that."

The bear shifted xer arms to hold Gemma by her thighs and forced her legs open. As the bear began to thrust, the pair's position put them at the perfect angle to continue watching the movie, and Kairo watched in awe as the two coworkers they had crushed on for weeks fucked in front of them, mesmerizing diamonds flashing in their eyes.

"I think the bunny likes what they're seeing," the sloth said.

"Especially your footpaws," Bix said. "I think you should give them a taste, what do you think?"

With Bix pounding into her, her footpaws flopped up and down so much that Kairo couldn't do much more than hold their tongue in place and let the pink pawpad run over it until it was slick and wet. Even that was enough for them, and they were soon too worked up to resist pulling out their cock and stroking.

"Hey, little bunny," Bix grunted, breath growing ragged. "Get over here and watch me breed her."

Kairo pulled themself away from Gemma's paw and lowered their muzzle to the heavy balls slapping against her. They watched the balls tighten, and then the bear and sloth simultaneously moaned with pleasure as xe buried xemself deep. Xe erupted xer virile load into her, cock visibly flexing with each rapid pulse.

When it was over, Bix asked Gemma sheepishly, "You're still on the...?"

"I would have stopped you if I wasn't."

"Okay, good."

The bear's arms were starting to shake in exhaustion, but xe managed to lift Gemma off xer cock with a slight popping sound. A trickle of thick, rich cum rolled down Bix's shaft and down to xer balls.

"Clean us up, little bunny."

By that point, Kairo would have obeyed anything the bear ordered them to do. They ran their tongue up the shaft to collect every drop, then slurped up the remainder that dribbled out of Gemma's pussy. One glob fell and splattered across their muzzle, and the smell clinging so close to their sensitive nose made their head spin.

"Now that's a movie," Gemma said.

Just then, someone knocked at the door.

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The three barely managed to get dressed by the time a key turned in the lock and Marco entered the room. Kairo quickly switched off the projector. They did plan to show Wisteria to Marco eventually, but they sensed he wouldn't be receptive to it right this moment.

The raccoon crossed his arms. "Where exactly have you three been? I know things have been slow around here, but that doesn't justify you all disappearing for hours."

"It hasn't been hours," Kairo protested.

Marco tapped his watch. "I can tell time, you know."

An idea struck Kairo which almost made them gasp in excitement. "For your information, we've been watching the movie that is going to save this theater."

"The theater is fine," Marco said, a touch too defensively.

"Just watch five minutes of this thing," Gemma said. "Seriously, it will change your life."

Marco laughed. "I know the kind of movies you're into, Gemma, and I'm not about to put myself through another Martyrs." He frowned, then returned to addressing the full group. "Look, let's go downstairs, get some coffee, and talk about whatever's going on with you all."

Bix took Wisteria's film canister and handed it to Marco. "This is what's going on with us."

Kairo sensed that this was the wrong move, and their suspicion was confirmed when Marco stiffened. "I see," he said slowly. "This is very interesting, and I'll have to give it a watch another time."

"Watch it now," the bear said, aggression creeping into xer voice.

"I have too much work to do. In fact, I should be getting back to it."

Kairo sighed. "Marco, we don't have time for that. We need to screen this tomorrow. Trust me, it's going to get tails in seats."

"Tomorrow," Bix agreed. "Great idea, Kairo."

"You won't regret it," Gemma promised. "Come on, the spreadsheets can wait for a couple hours."

As Marco struggled for words, Bix quietly slipped around him and closed the door. Xe backed xer heavy body against it and crossed xer arms.

Marco's striped tail bushed up. "Listen," he said, voice straining. "On some level, you must know that you're not acting normally. I think you've all been affected by a haunted film - a haunted film which wants to spread to as many people as possible."

"Don't be ridiculous," Gemma said. "Wisteria isn't haunted, it's just good. Tell him, Kairo. You know all about ghosts."

Kairo frowned as they considered Marco's words. They had, of course, heard of similar things happening before, but...

"Kairo?" Gemma repeated.

"It's not haunted," they said. Of course it wasn't. Kairo wasn't sharing Wisteria because of some hypnotic influence; it was only the normal, healthy desire to share good movies with the people in your life. Maybe Kairo had been a little insistent about it, but that was only because they were new to cinephilia and easily excited. Really, Marco should have been happy about their enthusiasm.

"Please," Marco begged.

"Enough," Bix said, and grabbed Marco by the shoulder. "You're going to watch it. We need your approval fast if we want to screen it by tomorrow, so we don't have time to argue."

"It's for the good of the theater," Gemma added.

"Dammit," Marco said, defeated. "I'm sorry. I should have done a better job protecting you kids."

Without another word, Bix steered the raccoon to a stool and sat him down as Kairo went to the projector. When the diamonds faded in, Marco tried to turn away, but Bix wrapped xer paws around his muzzle and pointed it back at the screen.

"Stop resisting," Bix growled. "It'll be over soon."

Bix was being a bit more aggressive than Kairo would have liked, but they knew it was for the best. When the sounds began to play, Marco's ears flattened in a futile attempt to muffle them, but he inevitably began to soften. The bear let him go and he continued watching the screen of his own accord.

"Wow," he said. "Wow."

"Good?" Gemma asked.

"Really...good..."

"Not haunted?" Kairo asked.

The raccoon slowly shook his head.

"Start stroking," Bix ordered.

Marco removed his belt and pulled down his slacks, and Kairo saw that despite all his protests he was already fully hard. It was odd to see their straight-laced boss acting like this, but it just went to show that Wisteria really was that good. Before long, the raccoon's eyes clenched shut as he neared climax.

"Use the rabbit's muzzle," Bix snapped.

Kairo was unsure at first, but they could hardly restrain themself around a needy cock. They knelt down and opened their mouth for Marco, who spurted inside without waiting.

For the rest of the movie, Kairo remained in their familiar kneeling position, performing whatever services the audience required. When it was over, Marco blinked and looked around.

"You all were right," he said dreamily. Standing, he said, "Let's go. We have a lot of work to do if we're going to get this on screen by tomorrow."

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"Can you tell me anything about Wisteria?" the customer asked. "Film twitter is going crazy about it, but I can't even find it on Letterboxd. Was it a surprise TIFF release or something? I feel like I'm getting Goncharov'd."

Kairo didn't understand anything after the first sentence, so they fell back on a reliable formula they had discovered. "It's best to go in knowing nothing about it."

The customer nodded sagely. "Ah, I see. I'll take three, thanks!"

The Archway Film Center website had been down for days due to unprecedented traffic, so they now took all ticket sales in-person. Between that, the fresh coat of salmon-colored paint on the walls, and the brand-new film projector, it was like it was 1999 again.

Kairo had never seen Marco happier. With the success of Wisteria to subsidize anything he wanted to show, he dedicated the theater's other two screens to local filmmakers who wanted to promote their work - under the condition that they watch Wisteria first. It was an odd stipulation, but one any struggling artist would be happy to agree to.

Marco had also tried selling copies of Wisteria to other theaters in the area, doing so at a deep discount out of a belief in its artistic merits. Oddly, the copies all had a defect in which they only showed geometric patterns of diamonds over harsh sine waves for ninety minutes, rather than the gorgeous cinematography, stellar performances, and unbelievably hot sex scenes which audiences agreed made up the film.

Even so, the theater was making more than enough money in direct ticket sales. They even had enough money to finally hire an exorcist, though that was unnecessary now that Kairo had their new job title of Head of Custodial Services, Supernatural. There hadn't been any ghost activity in weeks, so the title was really just a formality (albeit one with a hefty pay raise) as they continued to run the projector.

Through the window of the booth, Kairo saw that the audience was enjoying the film, just as they did night after night. A wolf in row E had mounted the bunny girl beside him, and worked his knot into her as the fox on the other side of him came in his muzzle for the second time that night. Two rows behind them in row G, two deer girls and a tigress ate each other out in a line, with well-endowed males at each end of the line stuffing any unused holes they could find. In the front rows, silhouetted figures blended together in writhing pleasure, all moving as one. It was wonderful to see so many people interested in the theater experience again.

The rabbit's ears swiveled to the sound of someone entering the projectionist booth. When the heavy padding told them it was Bix, they assumed their usual position against the window where they would both have a good view of Wisteria. The bear tugged down their pants, bent them over, and took them from behind.

When the movie was over, the audience below chatted excitedly as they left the theater. Kairo smiled at the thought of all those happy new converts - customers, they corrected themself.

Now on break, Kairo left the projectionist booth and was immediately confronted by a team of six agents wearing black suits and black anti-hypnotic goggles. Two of them pushed the rabbit against the wall and cuffed their paws behind their back while the others waved scanners over Kairo or talked rapidly into wrist mics.

"What the hell?" Kairo demanded.

Gemma appeared in the middle of the agents. "That's Kairo, the projectionist. It all started with them."

"Gemma? What's going on?"

"Someone from the Occult Affairs Bureau came to me last week and set my head straight. I've been feeding them information since then. This whole thing's over, Kairo."

"What thing?" They noticed two other agents leading Marco away in cuffs, and Bix close behind him.

"Think for a second!" she said. "Do you think it's normal for orgies to break out in the middle of a movie?"

"No, but..." Kairo frowned. "Wisteria isn't a normal movie."

"You're right, it's not. It's a haunted movie - a parasite. And they're going to destroy it."

The rabbit's eyes went wide. "They can't!" How could they do that? That would be like burning the Mona Lisa or, rather, some equivalent work that Kairo actually cared about - The Get Up Kids' discography, maybe.

"Sedative going in," one of the agents said. Kairo struggled in their grip, but couldn't get away as the needle went through their fur and skin and forced them into a deep sleep.

[center]-[/center]

After two days in an exorcism hospital, Kairo came to their senses with a sheepish sense of embarrassment. No one blamed them for their actions, nor were they criminally liable, but they couldn't shake the sense of guilt when they remembered how they had acted.

The Archway Film Center closed down for a month while it underwent deep purging. It turned out that Marco had never purchased haunting insurance so, after paying an exorcist out of pocket, the theater came out barely ahead of where it had been before Wisteria. He even had to sell the new projectors.

Kairo sometimes considered reconnecting with Bix or Gemma, but ultimately decided it would be too weird. The rabbit sometimes saw them around the gay bars and coffee shops, and even noticed Bix in the crowd at Archway's reopening (though it took them a moment to recognize xem because xe had re-dyed xer fur from blue to neon yellow). Also in the crowd were a number of customers Kairo recognized from Wisteria screenings and, judging by the way they avoided eye contact, they recognized Kairo as well.

These occasional chance meetings led Kairo to decide to leave Columbus for the second time. The rabbit reached out to Spectrex, who, as it turned out, still wanted them back at their old job and, soon enough, they settled back into the old routine of six days a week on the road.

Despite everything, Kairo's appreciation for movies stuck, and they continued to dive into cinema. They had an extensive watchlist now but, with so many options on streaming services, often found themselves unsure what to watch. During these times, they sometimes caught themselves typing, almost automatically, W-I-S-T-