Hi, and I'm finally back after having a massive writer's block and homework. This story is inspired by Chapter 9: Household of China from A Chinese History by SonnyGoten. Blame them if you end up in tears.
Disclaimer: If I owned Hetalia, it would be a lot, lot more serious.
Warning: This is labelled angst and tragedy for a reason, honey. Plus, highly political topics. If you disagree with my political views, please do not leave flames. The following story also takes place in a highly hypothetical situation. This may not be how it will all turn out.
Now, onto our regularly scheduled programme.
Nearly Midnight, 30 June 2047
Tick, tock; tick, tock.
The seconds trickle away, like water drops from a leaky tap. The clock reads, 23:56.
Less than 4 minutes 'til the loss of his status.
In 4 minutes, there will be no more Hong Kong SAR. For Hong Kong will be an SAR no more.
Fifty years since 1997. Everything has changed.
1997 – Handover.
2003 – Security is over. Article 23: Anti-Subversion Law. Failed to pass, but his people are safe no more.
2014 – Umbrella Movement. No success for universal sufferage.
And his people do not know that, throughout the years, their freedom is slowly slipping back into the CCP's grasp. Some do, of course, but they cannot do anything about it. Neither can he.
23:57.
He remembers being home to the Punti, the Hakka, the Hoklo, the Tanka (1); a simple trading port and pirate hideaway. He remembers having his custody signed over to the British Empire (2). He remembers racism, a plague, basic development (3). He remembers entrepot trade falling because of some nasty stuff going on 12 time zones away (4).
He remembers built warships, sent halfway across the world to fight against the Nazis. He remembers fighting for the Allies, in a short, brutal fight that could not be won, and wasn't won (5).
He remembers his first Olympics, not even a hundred years ago. He remembers manufacturing, factories and a dangerous airport (6), now moved over to Chek Lap Kok, as well as the famous Lion Rock Spirit (7). He remembers development in tertiary industry, being the last Crown Colony, a British Dependent Territory.
23:58.
He remembers the British flag going down, and two flags with red backgrounds rising (8). He remembers a virus, sweeping across the city (9). He remembers financial crises and more, umbrellas shielding from tear gas (10), Mainlanders taking over the streets with materialistic wishes (11), an 18-year pedestrian area in the bustling and crowded neighbourhood of Mong Kok being closed down without force (12).
He remembers ancient characters, written from his pens and pencils like art, a story to tell for each symbol (13). He remembers a language, sounding rough and loud and complex, but still his native tongue (14).
He remembers light shows across a harbour (15), fireworks exploding in the night sky, the smallest Disney park in the world (16), the mix between a conservation zoo and a theme park (17). He remembers temples, hills and country parks not far from the busy urban areas, over 200 islands and pink dolphins, malls and famous cuisine, the housing prices higher than the Empire State Building. He remembers the famous Peak Tram and its main destination, being home to double-decker trams and the Star Ferry and the MTR, having the most skyscrapers in the world.
Asia's World City.
Pearl of the Orient.
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.
23:59.
Things have changed. Drastically. Despite everything, will one day he return to his former glory? He has come so far…beneath it all, he honestly hopes so, even if everything that makes him him is fading.
Fireworks are launched. Then they burst into the beautiful sparks of colour for the world to see. Then they fade into the night sky, smoke dissipating into the clouds…
Tick, tock; tick, tock…
7 July 2047
He paces around his room.
It has been a week since his little brother has disappeared, as though from the face of the Earth altogether. No returned calls. No texts back. No sign of him, at home or anywhere else at all.
He returns, for the seventh time this week, to his missing brother's domain. Frankly, shouldn't China and the other provinces have reported that Hong Kong is missing? This makes no sense whatsoever…
In the streets of Central, he finds a lone child, appearing about eight years old…this child looks exactly like a younger version of his little brother! Only with shorter hair and without the scars…and without the mischievous, competitive, broken glint in his eyes.
"Xiānsheng, nín jiào shénme míngzi? (18)" the boy asks. He freezes. Does the child have amnesia or something? Why is he speaking in Putonghua (19) and not Cantonese?
"Have you forgotten? (20)" he replies in Cantonese. "I'm your older brother, Vicente, or Macau."
The boy raises his abnormally thinner brows – why didn't he notice that before? – and shrugs. "Wǒ bù zhīdao nín zài shuō shénme. (21)"
"O que? (22)"
"Wǒ bù zhīdao nín zài shuō shénme," the boy repeats.
He shakes his head. "Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi?"
The boy points at himself, and answers, "Xiānggǎng. Zhōngguó de Xiānggǎng. (23)"
1-The Four Major Dialect Groups.
2-The three unequal treaties: Treaty of Nanjing, the Convention of Beijing, the Convention Respecting an Extension of Hong Kong Territory.
3-There were some pretty racist policies for HK, even in the early 20th century. They gave us Chinese more equality later on. The Plague of 1894. We also had that basic development – law enforcement and government, hospitals, schools, etc.
4-The Great Depression.
5-The Battle of Hong Kong.
6-Kai Tak Airport.
7-Something along the lines of our Core Values.
8-The Handover.
9-SARS.
10-The Umbrella Movement.
11-Mainlanders come down here all the time to buy stuff. Seriously.
12-It happened recently.
13-Traditional Chinese characters.
14-Cantonese.
15-A Symphony of Lights.
16-Hong Kong Disneyland.
17-Ocean Park, Hong Kong.
18-Polite Putonghua for "Mister, what is your name?"
19-Mandarin Chinese.
20-Cantonese is much harder to translate.
21-Putonghua for "I don't know what you are talking about." Or "I do not understand what you are saying."
22-According to Google Translate, Portuguese for "What?"
23-Putonghua for "Hong Kong. Hong Kong of China."
A/N
This is my greatest fear when concerning my dear city: losing all of the things that make us Hong Kong. In other words, being just another city in China. And I'm scared that this might actually happen, with politics and stuff going this way.
I do not want my City to end this way.
Anyways, thanks for reading, and please leave reviews. If you're crying, here's a tissue. If your heart is broken, here's a needle and thread to sew it back together. See y'all later.
-Talons