Spocks-evil-godmother wanted me to follow up with the Contessa's opinion on National Treasure

"What is this about again?" the Contessa called from the other room.

Lucy slipped the disc in the DVD player and grabbed the remote. "I don't want to spoil anything, but basically the main characters are looking for a treasure, and they need to steal the Declaration of Independence to get it." She flopped back onto the couch, far too old and ornate to be cozy, and shifted around until she was moderately comfortable.

"How on earth does that help them accomplish anything?"

She sighed, fast forwarding through the previews to the menu. "I just said I don't want to tell you anything yet, but… there's a treasure map on the back of it."

The Contessa entered at last holding a large silver tray. "That's preposterous," she said bluntly.

"It's a movie, it's supposed to be fun," Lucy retorted. She was beginning to half regret suggesting they have a weekly movie night. It sounded harmless at first, an easy way for them to spend time together, but now she couldn't help but wonder if her grandmother would find none of the films entertaining and make snarky comments the entire time.

As if to confirm these thoughts, the older woman harrumphed "We'll see" as she set the tray on the coffee table and took a seat beside her granddaughter.

Lucy began to respond but was quickly distracted by the sight of the colorful pastries now set in front of her. "Uh, what are those?"

"What do they look like," was the brusque response.

"I mean, what kind of movie snack is that? What about popcorn?"

The Contessa shrugged one shoulder. "You requested I bring a treat. I did. I fail to see what difference it makes that I chose this."

Lucy groaned overdramatically and tossed her head back. "You have a lot to learn about movie nights."

"Oh, I'm sure," she jokingly agreed. They pressed play and began to watch.

/

"Riddles? How charming."

"I'm glad you think so, because that's basically the whole movie." Lucy reached out for one of the pastries; while they weren't what she thought of as a movie snack, they were delicious nonetheless.

The Contessa hummed thoughtfully. "I like this Ian character."

"But grandmother, he's the bad guy." As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized how silly they sounded considering who she was speaking to, which was further made clear as the Contessa gave her a look that could only be described as, 'duh.'

"Well, I'd hire him," was all she said.

/

"You ever see an invisible map?" Lucy joked, nudging the Contessa with an elbow.

"Only once," she replied casually.

Lucy stared at her for a moment. "I… can't tell you're kidding or not."

Eyes never leaving the television, she only smirked in response.

/

A character in the film began to detail the numerous and nigh impenetrable security measures surrounding the Declaration and how stealing it would be practically impossible.

"Eh, that's nothing," the Contessa said with a wave of her hand.

"Uh, really?"

"Not for the people I know, no." She took a snack off the tray, which was now half empty, despite Lucy's initial complaints on having them. "It would be fun to go undercover like they're doing though, to a gala. I wouldn't mind doing that again."

"Again?" Lucy exclaimed. "You mean you've done it before?"

"Quiet down, I can't hear."

/

"Sloppy, but effective," the Contessa muttered to herself as she watched the antagonists break past security with brute force, knocking guards unconscious and blowing through walls. "Now this method has a certain elegance to it," she continued, complimenting various aspects of the protagonists' hacking skills as Lucy listened in mild interest.

"I think you're analyzing this more than we're supposed to," she laughed.

/

When the credits began rolling, Lucy picked up the remote and switched off the television. "So, what did you think? Great movie, isn't it?"

"Oh yes, very entertaining. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would."

"The real question is, what did you think of the villain? Or actually, what would you have done in his place?" While she still hesitated to encourage any evildoings, Lucy had to admit she was curious in this case.

"Well, I would have gone about it in a completely different way, actually." Her tone became that of a lecturer. "Why bother going on a treasure hunt in the first place when you could have simply waited until it was found and then stolen it? Being the one to take it as opposed to the one that rediscovered it has much more flair. Think about it, the greatest treasure known to man is found again after all these centuries and distributed to museums around the world. And then, all in the same night, in a series of heists all orchestrated by one person, every single piece of it is taken once more. Now that would bring far more glory and mystique to someone, would it not?"

Lucy blinked. "Oh. Well, yeah, I guess. That would be pretty impressive." She tucked a strand of hair behind an ear and shifted around again, her back hurting from sitting on the hard couch for so long. "Thank you for watching it with me, by the way. I had fun."

The Contessa smiled at her. "This was a delightful idea; I look forward to the next movie night."

"Me too." Lucy smiled back. She reached out for the last pastry and split it in two, handing half to her grandmother. "Let's get real movie snacks next time, though."