The Potter Premiere
It was also near the start of January that two married men finally managed to get together alone for a coffee for the first time in months. Artie's role as a director on the big Harry Potter film had kept him busy even with all the filming done, as there was a need on his part and that of the backers for near perfection. The release date had been set back more than once, but it had finally been ready to be shown to the critics between Christmas and New Year, and they had all been fulsome in their praise for the direction and cinematography. Some of them had questioned why they had not rushed things a little to secure a festive release for a much anticipated film, but Artie had explained that the new film was an altogether more adult proposition than the ones that had proceeded it….
The film would be released to the cinemas of the world at the start of February, at a time when there were no other big releases scheduled, and by which time the big films released before Christmas would have a waning appeal to audiences. There was to be a premiere in New York, as well as one in Leicester Square in London. Artie was of course to be at both, and as a result, Kitty had spent a large part of the last three months preparing for her first ever trip across the Atlantic, something that excited her no end. They would travel without their daughter; Artie's mom would be coming to stay in their West Village home and look after her grandchild whilst they were away…
And then, five days before, Kitty had run from the breakfast table, feeling unwell; she had done the same each morning since. Artie had a good idea exactly what that implied, recalling just how much of a martyr to morning sickness his wife had been during her first pregnancy. She had not mentioned anything, however, and he had kept quiet about it as well. That did not sit easily with him, as he was anxious for her health, and also very keen to find out if his hunch was correct…
Now that he had a chance to sit down with Mike, he decided he needed to confide in someone, and he knew he could trust his oldest friend. Mike had been talking about Harry, and he had been sharing tales of Meghan, and it had just slipped out that he thought Kitty might be expecting again. Having done so, he realised that Kitty might not exactly be happy about them talking about her, and his face paled slightly, something Mike noticed at once…
"Don't worry," the dancer responded with a laugh, "I know better than to mention anything to anyone until I hear it from the lady herself, and I can do surprise as well as any actor, trust me! From what you have said about her being sick in the mornings, I think you are probably right. Now, since we are sharing secrets…" Mike paused to get out his wallet, and then pull out a small image from it, and showed it to Artie.
The film director looked, then said to Mike, "Wait, is that what I think it is? Is Tina pregnant again too?"
"She is, but she wants to keep it quiet until she is halfway through; she will be 20 weeks gone at the start of next month. I am absolutely thrilled if I am honest. Tina and I were both only children, and there were times when I so wished that I had a sibling as I grew up. Harry will have one now, and that makes me so pleased."
"It was the same for me and Kitty, of course…. My only fear is the age gap between them will be too great and make things awkward. We both know that it can; look at the way things were between Blaine and Cooper when we were at high school…"
"Ah, but then look at the way that Nick and Grace are together. It will just be a case of wait and see, my friend, as everything is in life really. However, if Kitty has any say in the matter, your children will be the best of friends…"
Artie nodded, then mused, "I would like a son, if I am being totally honest…"
"Whereas I would like a daughter. I can't help but think that having one child of each sex makes for a better family, makes the household balanced, with nobody feeling outnumbered. I also have a strong suspicion that my dad would love to have a granddaughter to spoil. Whatever sex my child happens to be, they will be loved."
"Same here. My immediate worry for now is Kitty though. I just hope that she will be over the worst of it by the time that we are due to head to London. I would never hear the end of it if she was so sick that she had to miss that trip…"
The New York premiere of the film would take place on the last Monday of the month, and all of the main stars of the film were present in the city for the event. Thankfully by then Kitty was feeling much better, the urge to vomit every morning much diminished. She had spent half a day in the Vogue closet with Isabelle, taking her advice on what would be the right outfit for her to wear to such a prestigious occasion. It had to be practical for the time of year, and therefore long sleeves were a given, and had to be made of a fabric that was stout enough to keep out the cold, and capable of hiding layers underneath it as well, should the temperature drop really low.
Isabelle had already selected a few choice items before Kitty arrived, but in the end it was a dress from much deeper back in the closet that captivated the blonde… It was modestly cut, classic in style, and in keeping with the whole style and ethos of the Harry Potter franchise. She paired the dress with a warm coat, which contrasted perfectly with the dress below, and a pair of low heeled shoes that were both stylish and practical. Kitty was not going to be the focus of all of the attention of the media after all; that would be for those that had appeared in the films in front of the camera.
As they talked that day, Isabelle was sure she saw a certain glow in Kitty's face, and although she did not give voice to her suspicions, she was nonetheless pretty certain by the time that she left that the younger woman was expecting another child. That fact explained her desire to have a loosely fitting dress in part, not that there was any evidence of a bump yet. However, as Isabelle knew, there would be some press focus on the wife of the director, and those people had the annoying habit of being blessed with a sixth sense when it came to noticing that sort of thing, as she would know…
The Monday night event went well, and although none of the reports would yet make the media, embargoed until the London premiere, the reaction of the critics was again positive; one went so far as to say that for a first major feature film, Artie Abrams had exceeded everyone's expectations, managing to capture the feel of the original films, but at the same time putting his own distinctive stamp on the production. There was a party to attend afterwards, and the camera crews were out in force, snapping away as the journalists shouted out their questions to each new arrival. Kitty was glad that she was able to head in and leave Artie and his co-director to answer the barrage of questions themselves. She had to admit to feeling tired that night, partly because she had been awakened early by Meghan, and then had a busy day of work to cope with. That was before she had to greet her mother-in-law when she arrived in the city…
The following day would be more of the same, culminating in heading to the airport for the overnight flight to London. They had a premiere to attend there again on the Wednesday night, at which Kitty intended to wear the same outfit, another benefit of not being so noticed. The reviews would finally be allowed to be released the following morning, so that the world had a preview of what they would see in the cinema on Friday night, the tickets for which were in many cases already sold out…
The fact that she was on such a hectic schedule worked to her advantage, as it gave her a valid excuse to decline the champagne, and to eat sparingly. It also provided a good excuse to leave the party early, with Artie happily at her side. He was not a great fan of these kind of events, but he accepted the fact that if all went well with the film, he could be looking at having to go to many more of these parties in the foreseeable future. There had already been a number of offers on the strength of what insiders knew about the film, and he had even heard a quite ridiculous rumour that he was going to be approached to direct the next Bond film. He had refused to even speak about that idea when he was asked outside the party. What he had not mentioned to anyone, even Kitty, was that he had a meeting scheduled in London with those very people. His concern was that he could not do that genre justice…
Their departure to London the next day would end up roving harder than either of them could have imagined. It was the first time that they would both be parted from their daughter for any length of time since she was born, and although they both knew that Mrs Abrams was more than capable of taking care of her, it was still a wrench to leave her. Of course, the young lady in question had no issue whatsoever with her mom and dad being absent for a few days. Of course, Tina was also close by in an emergency, and she was also present when they headed out to the waiting cab. She came over to hug them both, expressing her jealousy at their trip, and then, as she hugged Kitty, she whispered in her ear… The words brought her a squeal and a tighter hug, and Artie was smart enough to guess that their old friend and neighbour had just confided in his wife that she was expecting…
Kitty did not say anything to Artie about what Tina had told her, a secret shared and being kept. They were prioritised through security and then into the front cabin of the plane, where they were soon joined by a number of the people that they had been in the company of the previous night, although they all stayed apart, given that this was a night flight…
On arriving at Heathrow, Artie was a little taken aback to discover that the car waiting to take them to their hotel in London was a limo, but it was a nice touch, and it soon took them through the traffic of the city and to their hotel, which actually faced out into Leicester Square itself; in fact, it was the same one that many moons ago, before he had taken on the role of Willy Wonka, had accommodated Cooper and Grace on his fact finding trip… From the window of their room, they could actually see the cinema where the premiere was to happen that night, the red carpet and all the crush barriers already being put in place in preparation of the big moment…
They had both slept well on the plane, and so, after quickly freshening up, they headed out to see Trafalgar Square, which was just round the corner. They continued on down Whitehall, past the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, to end up in sight of Westminster Abbey. It was a quite whistlestop trip, but a necessary evil in the time frame they had, and their return via Horseguards Road, with its view across St James' Park to Buckingham Palace sealed the day. They returned to the hotel for a quick bite to eat, and then headed back up to their room to change into their finery once again. In no time, they were back on the red carpet, joining the happy throng and marvelling at the size of the crowd, as they prepared to watch the film again, this time with a different audience on another continent…
Artie had omitted to say one thing to his wife before they attended the premiere in London, but then again, he felt that she should possibly know. He had always been aware that when a film was premiered in London, the audience would not only include the stars of the film, they key members of the crew and various celebrities, but also royalty. Artie had been advised who it was likely to be, and had at once turned to Jeff for advice. The blond had smiled, and said, "You just need to relax; they are really lovely people. He might be destined in time to become the King of the United Kingdom, but he is one of the most amiable and kind hearted people I have ever met, and of course, the Duchess is wonderful."
Artie had smiled, and replied, "It isn't meeting them that worries me in all honesty; it is Kitty meeting them that has me stressed. She is normally a strong and vocal personality, as you know, and that is normally a positive. However, between us, when she was at a conference last year, one of the guest speakers was someone she has admired for years, and when she was introduced to them… well, she froze up, and then ran for the door. That was a senior female business leader, not the future King of England. Can you imagine what the press would say if she did the same thing when she was introduced to him?"
"Can I ask - did she know that she was going to be meeting the woman in question in advance, or was it sprung on her?"
"She knew that it was highly likely it would happen, but it still spooked her so much!"
"Okay, based on that, you need to do what I did with Sebastian when I took him to meet the Queen at the Buckingham Palace art exhibition that first time; say nothing. That way, she doesn't have time to imagine all of the worst case scenarios that could happen beforehand. I would guarantee that was why she panicked at the conference, because she had already pictured all of the disasters!" said Jeff sagely.
"I'm not sure that is the case, but I guess it would be worth a try."
"I will also let the Duchess know, so that she can make it as stress free as possible…"
As a result, Kitty had no idea what was going on when she found herself being ushered into a long line alongside her husband, his co-director and the main cast in the foyer of the cinema, and was confused when she overheard someone say that it was a line up. She had only ever heard of such things when identifying criminals, but then she decided it had to mean something else in Britain, and that it was for a photo shoot. That was until she heard the sound of cheering outside, and saw a Bentley drawing up at the kerb outside. She turned to her husband, then bending down, hissed in his ear, "Artie, what on earth is going on? Why are we all standing here in a row?"
"Well, you know that we are currently in a monarchy…" her husband began in a low voice. "Well, with a big film like this, it isn't just a premiere, it is a Royal Premiere…"
Kitty stared at him for a moment, then turned her attention to the door. It now framed the Duchess of Cambridge, with her husband standing right behind her. Her eyes widened, and she hissed at Artie again. "Oh, my, God! Why didn't you warn me?"
There was no chance on him replying, for which he was grateful, as the royal couple were already at the start of the line up, talking to the main cast. Kitty just had to breathe deeply as they moved on to the producer, who then introduced them to her husband. It fell to Artie to introduce her. A dim memory of the correct procedure from an old documentary made her curtsey, then she found herself shaking the Duke's hand…
"It is a delight to meet you both," he said with a smile. "Jeff has mentioned you both to us on several occasions, and it was unfortunate that you were both busy last year when we came for tea in the West Village…"
Kitty nodded, recalling that Artie had been on set, and she had been in a meeting; one that she had not needed to attend, but had chosen to go to so she could excuse herself from meeting the royal couple on home territory… Then looking up, she saw that the Duke had now been replaced by his wife.
"I hear from our mutual friend that you have a great talent for financial matters, and an excellent eye for the stock markets. I wondered if it would be possible to talk to you about that after the film? I support the work that the Princes' Trust is doing to help get more women into finance and in improving their financial skills in general, and I think that hearing your story would be an excellent and inspiring example for those young women. Plus you can tell me more about the wonderful dress you are wearing…"
Kitty found herself saying yes, disarmed by the Duchess' smile, and the compliment on her outfit, and then the royal party moved on, leaving the foyer to take their seats. She turned back to Artie, who looked at her with contrition….
"I know, but I suspected that you would over think it and panic, so I said nothing."
"We will discuss how you reached that decision later," said Kitty sternly, but then she continued in a softer voice, "but only so I can thank you. Had I known, I would never have come…"
The gathering after the premiere was the usual kind, people wanting to talk to the stars, the producer and the directors; that allowed the Duchess to make a beeline for Kitty straight away. "Do you mind if I kidnap your wife for a short while, Mr Abrams? I would like to talk to her about a project we are involved in, and this is an excellent opportunity; the management here will find us a quiet spot where we can be left undisturbed," said Kate with a smile.
"I have plenty here to keep me occupied, and it is not Kitty's kind of thing, your highness," Artie replied. "As long as she is okay with it, then I will manage here on my own."
Kitty nodded, and followed where the Duchess lead. In no time, she found herself alone with her in a small ante room, with a pot of coffee and a plate of high quality biscuits to share. "I remember the first time that I met William's family," Kate began as she poured Kitty a cup. "It was the most terrifying day of my life, at first, but then I realised that, like all of the great and good, they were just human beings with the same feelings and frailties, the same fears and hopes."
"I realise that is true now that I have met you, but it is a scary prospect. I am usually so confident…"
"I have been told as much by Jeff, which is why I am so keen to hold you up as an example to the young women in the program…" As the Duchess explained what they were trying to achieve, Kitty found herself forgetting that she was in the presence of a woman that would one day by a Queen consort. Instead, she was with another strong woman like herself, and of course, a mother of three…
The next morning would see Kitty wake up still not quite believing that everything that had occurred the previous day had actually happened. Never in even her wildest dreams had she imagined herself swapping personal e-mail addresses with a member of royalty. To have then gone on to confessing to the Duchess that her time might be restricted as she thought she was expecting her second child, when she had not even talked over that with her husband was also unlike her. She had immediately felt guilty, but the Duchess had smiled, and responded, "If I am right, then he already knows. You just told me how much he looks after you when you are feeling unwell; if you really have been sick every morning, as you were during your first pregnancy, then he will have worked that one out. William knew the second and third time before I was even certain that I could be…"
Kitty had paused to think then, and she realised that her new friend was correct. Artie had been even more solicitous towards her than usual in the last few weeks, checking that she was okay, making her a light breakfast, offering to take care of Meghan every morning too, and all whilst she had been feeling the worst symptoms.
"If you want to check for certain now, the I know a very discreet and professional doctor, who will conduct a test for you happily, and free of charge. She is an old friend, and if I ask her on your behalf…" said the Duchess quietly.
"I wouldn't want to put you to any trouble," replied Kitty.
"You wouldn't be," came the reply, before Kate checked her watch, and pointed out that they probably needed to get back to the main party. Kitty nodded, then on a whim, asked if the Duchess thought that her friend would be able to see her the following afternoon. By the time that she left that night, the appointment had been arranged…
For know, though, Kitty knew that there was a more pressing task to deal with. The reviews of the film would now be out in the media, and they had to be checked. Poor reviews would destroy all of her husband's dreams, as it would make it unlikely that he would ever be trusted with a film on the same scale again. Yes, she knew that the critics had been warm and kind at both of the premieres, but that meant nothing; they were well known for their duplicity, and were known throughout the industry for stabbing people in the back.
Artie was still asleep, so she climbed out of the bed carefully and made her way over to the chair, switching on her phone. She went on line, and tapped in the necessary words, waiting for the results of her search to load. As the various reviews began to appear, her smile began to widen, as each of the reviews on the list had the coveted five gold stars that meant success, apart from one where the reviewer had actually awarded six. She did not bother to go in and read them, as she knew that no-one would give a film top marks if the director was not admired and praiseworthy.
She sat now and contemplated what such success meant for her life, and that of her husband. He would now be offered the chance to direct more major films, and to work with some of the biggest names in the business, both in front of and behind the camera. The Bond franchise was no longer a wild dream, the meeting he had for dinner that night possibly coming with an offer; that was a distinct possibility. It would not be the only offer either, and the sums of money he would be offered would be ridiculous…
But there was a negative side to all of that as well. Not all of the films he would be offered would be made in New York, and there would be little chance in those cases for him to commute home even at the weekends. If he was offered the Bond franchise then there was a distinct possibility that they would have to relocate to England. Much of the studio work could be done she supposed in New York, but the location work couldn't be, as Bond was a British agent. The idea of leaving their New York life behind and moving thousands of miles to a place where she knew nobody, with not just one but two children was frightening. However, she knew that if it came to it, she would make the move. If Nick and Jeff could manage it, so could she; and of course, she did have a very powerful new friend in the country, plus a doctor…
By lunchtime, it was clear that the film was a massive critical hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Not one of the critics had failed to score the production with less than those five stars, and that was a feat without precedent in this day and age. It had managed to outperform all of the previous films in the franchise, and the main actors were all praised for their acting in the new instalment. The greatest of praise though had been heaped on Artie though. There had been one reviewer that had compared him to Spielberg, another to Hitchcock. That praise, along with all of the congratulatory messages they were receiving from their friends at home as they woke up to the news, full of good wishes, had made Artie more than a little emotional, and that was before his mom called…
After that, Kitty had taken him into her arms, and said, "I guess that I will have to be making it clear soon enough to each and every one of those Bond girls that you are my husband, and that if they so much as try anything, even batting their eyelashes…"
"The simplest solution would be to have you cast as a Bond girl. I mean, you are attractive, intelligent, alluring; you have all of the characteristics required," Artie replied.
"You couldn't afford me," said Kitty with a laugh.
"I have made one decision on the whole Bond franchise though, and any other offers that come my way. I will only accept them on the sole condition that Leonie is there as my co-director. Abrams and Sanmarco are the team that earned all of those stars; I could not have done it alone, and for that reason, I will not have something that works so well broken up."
"Now that is something that we can both agree upon," replied Kitty. She then changed the topic. "So, I think we get dressed up, head out somewhere wildly expensive for lunch, and then we actually have an appointment that we both need to keep…"
Artie was quiet after lunch, and allowed Kitty to take control. In no time they were in a cab and heading up Park Lane, with Hyde Park stretching off into the distance on the left hand side, and all of the five star hotels and expensive car showrooms of Mayfair on the right. Artie looked over at them, recognising names like The Dorchester and The Grosvenor House, both of which had hosted film galas and the stars that attended them in recent times. They soon arrived at Marble Arch, which these days was a busy traffic junction, and alongside which was the area known as Speaker's Corner. In the past, people had come there to make their point, and indeed as they passed there was someone making a speech to a small crowd, standing on a specially built platform, which had replaced the traditional soapbox…
The taxi then took them north up the Edgware Road, before turning off in the direction of Paddington Station. Momentarily, Artie wondered if they were heading to catch a train, as he recalled from Nick and Jeff that it was the main station for the line towards Windsor, and his wife and the Duchess had been chatting like friends, but then they took the right hand fork in the road, the railways station being to the left, and in a few moments they pulled up outside a building that looked vaguely familiar from somewhere…
Kitty paid the driver after he had pulled out the integral ramp off his vehicle and allowed Artie to roll out, and as she did so, her husband looked at the sign over the door, which proclaimed it was the Lindo Wing. It was surrounded by more modern buildings, which housed a hospital, and the glazed walkway over the street from the adjacent building suggested a connection. Then it came to him, where he had heard that name before. He took a breath and prepared to use all of his acting skills when the moment came when Kitty announced they were there because she believed she might be pregnant.
They took a moment to find the side entrance, as the steps made the main entrance unusable for Artie, but then it was plain sailing. They were soon at the reception desk, and Kitty was giving her name. Artie pretended not to listen as the receptionist confirmed her appointment and that the Duchess had called to arrange everything. They were then directed to a room just along the corridor, and then left alone to await the arrival of the doctor. To Artie's surprise, Kitty said, "You don't need to act worried or surprised that we are here; I think that my morning sickness recurring was enough of a clue that I am expecting again. I don't need to test again to confirm that either; one home test can be wrong, but not half a dozen, and not when the other symptoms are taken into account."
Artie did not get a chance to reply as the doctor arrived, an older woman that had looked after the Duchess herself during all three of her pregnancies. She shook hands with them both, then admitted that her own children, now in their early twenties, were all looking forward to seeing Artie's film when it arrived in the cinema the following day; that lead to him signing a piece of headed hospital notepaper with his best wishes, as Kitty shook her head.
"Now," said the doctor then, "let us return to the more important task. The Duchess told me that you were more or less certain of your pregnancy, given all of the symptoms, but wished a firm confirmation that you are indeed expecting, about how far along you were, and that all was well. So, I think we should begin with the easiest of things, and that is a sonogram…"
Artie held his wife's hand as they prepared for the relatively simple task to be carried out, only letting go as the sensor was placed upon her. In no time at all, the room was filled with the rhythmic sound of a heartbeat, and then the evidence they required was there on the screen too. "Well, you are indeed pregnant, and judging by the size and development stages that I see, and that you are not experiencing morning sickness now, I would estimate that you are around 16 weeks. Now, I can also see something else, but not every parent wishes to know what the gender is of their child at this point…"
Artie and Kitty looked at each other, both nodded, and asked the doctor to tell them.
"The Duchess tells me that this is your second pregnancy, and you have a little girl. Well, she is getting a brother…" That news made both of the parents smile, as it was something that they both had hoped for if this moment came, a perfect completion of their family. They accepted the offer of a photo of the sonogram happily, and then Artie was banished from the room so that the doctor could carry out some more rigorous tests. The waiting room was luxurious, and once there, Artie for a moment considered sending a text to Mike to share the news, but he resisted the temptation. He decided the news should be given in person, and when Kitty was ready. He sat there, smiling, feeling happy as a sandboy, a combination of all those five star reviews and becoming a father again officially. He would never forget this trip to London for both of those reasons…
It would be another four weeks before Kitty was ready to share the news with the world that she and Artie were expecting a second child, by which time Mike and Tina had already made their own good news known; the two women were due a fortnight apart. Everyone was delighted for both couples, although some saw that there could be trouble ahead if by some fluke both women went into labour on the same day. It was possible, as a due date was only ever an estimate…
On that same day, Artie would receive a letter from the people behind the Bond franchise, in which he was officially offered the chance to direct the next instalment after their meetings in London. They had sent a letter as it was a formal offer, and also had a response to the conditions he had mentioned during those conversations. They made it plain that they accepted his family situation, and that as a result, they were prepared to film the bulk of the next film, if necessary, in the United States. They believed that Artie could being something new to the genre, and that he could make the series even more appealing to the younger audience.
Reading the letter, Artie found himself feeling a great deal of pride. This was the big deal, but his services were now highly sought after, and he had another two offers on the table. The fact was that the Bond franchise was the most high profile, and now he had thought on it, it did have the greatest appeal. He was to be given virtually a free hand, and his remit was quite simply to bring 007 into the more equal society of the day. That would be an honour, and of course, the immediate thought was a female mastermind behind the drama. That they had agreed to move the filming so easily to the United States was a shock, but that could also allow for an interesting storyline. He wondered if perhaps Bond could have been asked to assist the United Nations. If that was agreed on, then the filming could be even closer to home than it might otherwise be…