“How do I look?” Alex asked his sister, nervously tugging on his bow tie. They were on their way to the Quest Masquerade, the big cosplay party where the winners of the Quest would be announced. Alex didn’t really care that much about celebrities—besides Adrianna Tack and a few other comic-book artists—but even he had to admit that the idea of seeing Corwin Blake and all his Paranormal cast members in person was a little exciting.
He would never tell Cat as much. But yes. He was a little excited.
“You look great,” Cat reassured him. She had changed out of her cape and into a party dress. The fabric was printed with AC Comic strips from the ’60s. Alex’s bow tie was made out of the same material. They didn’t feel like dressing up in full costumes after the day they’d had, so they decided to go geek stylish instead. But Alex wasn’t used to wearing anything other than jeans and a T-shirt, so he still felt a little awkward.
“Is Mom already there?” Fi asked from behind them. She was walking beside Rowan and had finally ditched the coffee-stained blouse, donning a dress color coordinated to match Rowan’s purple hair. They were holding hands.
Alex supposed that if he was going to have to put up with his sister dating someone, it might as well be someone as cool as Rowan.
“Yeah,” Cat responded. They were walking down the streets of San Diego, the restaurants and shops all just as decked out in GeekiCon gear as they were. Alex saw Cat check her Google Maps and then her texts. Alex didn’t need the map—he knew the restaurant right on the corner in front of them was the one they were aiming for. “Mom and Dad are—”
“Sme tu!” Alex’s mom stood up from one of the tables outside the restaurant excitedly. Their dad stayed seated but looked just as happy to see them.
Alex watched as Cat launched herself into their mom’s arms. While hugging, his mom waved over at him. Alex smiled and waved back. Moms always knew what to do.
“Mom, this is Rowan,” Fi introduced, and Rowan and Alex’s mom shook hands around Cat’s head.
“Mrs. Gallo, I’m such a huge fan—”
“Thank you for taking care of my family today.” Alex’s mom laughed. “I hear you like Ducky McFowl?” They seemed to get along right away.
“Come on,” their dad said, standing up. “Let’s get inside. How did the Questing go?”
Cat started chattering away about their day while their mom spoke in rapid Slovak to Fi. She was getting dressed down but only a little. And Fi took it in stride. After all, she still had Rowan.
“You ready for this?” asked Rowan, as the six of them found a booth inside and sat down.
“I think so.” Alex nodded. “We did our best today.”
Rowan smiled. “You really did.”
Alex looked around the restaurant and took in the full scope of the Masquerade. The costumes here were just as impressive as the ones he’d been seeing all day at GeekiCon, and everyone looked equally happy to be here. Old friends, new friends, internet friends, con friends—people ran excitedly over to one another to compliment their cosplays and Quest successes. Kids were taking tons of selfies, adults were gossiping, and the noise of the chatter in the place was almost as loud as the din in Hall M. Most of all, Alex just noticed the big smiles on the faces of every single person in the room. He wore one to match, without even thinking about it.
“Are you Team DoubleTrouble?” A girl had rushed over to their table dressed like a companion from Whom, M.D.
“Yes—I love your costume!” Alex responded.
“Thanks, I love Delaney sooo much!”
“She’s my favorite companion!” Alex said excitedly.
“Me, too!” The girl did a twirl, her skirt floating up. “I just wanted to say I saw your item twenty-five on the Quest app. So sweet!”
Alex frowned. “We didn’t get to item twenty-five.”
“But we did.” Alex’s mom leaned over in the booth to join in the conversation. “‘Pass a hat around a crowded panel and collect donations for charity. The panelists must sing until the hat has reached every person in the room.’ We did it in the Ducky McFowl panel. But by then, you and your sister had already … absconded.”
Alex blushed. He would have to look that word up later. “Thank you,” he said to his mom. He turned back to the Delaney cosplayer. They exchanged social media handles and vowed to get in touch later.
So maybe the crowds at GeekiCon weren’t all bad. At least, not the people in them.
25. Pass a hat around a crowded panel and collect donations for charity. The panelists must sing until the hat has reached every person in the room. (83 points)
27
Fi
Fi squeezed Rowan’s hand under the booth. Yeah, she’d gotten chewed out by her mom, as anticipated—but really, it wasn’t so bad. And her mom had been stoked to find out that Fi was finally gaining an appreciation for the nerdier things in life, also as anticipated. Plus, Rowan had babbled so many compliments about Ducky McFowl within, like, the first thirty seconds of meeting her mom that there was no way she had been able to stay angry. It was perfect.