Chapter 4: An Anticipated Reunion

As soon as the director had said they were free for lunch, Ren had hurried away. Stopping only long enough to tell Yashiro where he was heading. Once he got to his room, he dug through his suitcase and pulled out a shopping bag. He emptied the contents onto his bed: a brand new shirt and pants, and a couple of bottles of very expensive foreign hair dye.

He picked up a bottle that was marked blond. He examined the instructions. "This better work, considering how much it cost me."

He was anxious about trying to dye his hair blonde himself, but there had been no way for him to get help from Jelly Woods for personal matters. So it was all up to him.

He changed into an old tee shirt and moved to the sink to wet his hair. Once it was wet enough he massaged the dye into his scalp, being sure to wear gloves to avoid damaging his hands.

"Now, I have to wait thirty minutes for it to set." He sighed. Thirty minutes felt like forever when he only had three hours. He carefully placed a shower cap over his hair before moving to continue his preparations. He removed his brown contacts and stared at himself in the mirror. It felt strange to see himself with green eyes again after so long.

After thirty minutes had passed he put on another pair of gloves and returned to the sink to rinse out his hair. After several minutes of rinsing, he looked up to see his handiwork.

"Woah," he gasped out. He certainly didn't look like Ren Tsuruga any longer. Now he was Kuon Hizuri.

He quickly dried his hair and dressed into his "Corn" clothes. He knew he couldn't chance Kyoko recognizing any of his own clothes, so he had gone out the day before they left to buy a new outfit. He gave himself a last once over in the mirror before heading out of his hotel room.

Corn was cautious when leaving the hotel, even taking the stairs to avoid running into anyone who might have recognized him. He didn't stop to breathe until he had reached the beach.

"Now to find Kyoko."

He wandered across the beach, ignoring any staring women, as he searched for where Kyoko would've gone. He had told her to explore, hoping she would find somewhere secluded for them to talk. Finally he found a spot where the beach was interrupted by sudden trees. He moved through the trees comfortably until he came to a clearing.

There through the trees he saw Kyoko. He watched her walk up and down the shoreline bending down every few feet to pick something up. What is she doing? He wondered.

He saw her turn back towards the water and draw her arm back before releasing it. He couldn't see what she had thrown but he heard the sound of a rock skipping on the water. He smiled.

Corn remembered a time, twelve years ago, when he had taught a small girl how to skip rocks on a lake in Kyoto. He leaned down and picked up a smooth rock before quietly stepping forward near the water. He aimed carefully, and then threw the stone. He watched as it skipped smoothly across the water's surface.

Near him he heard a gasp.

"Corn!"

He turned and saw Kyoko staring at him with her hands over her mouth, the rocks she had gathered lay forgotten by her feet.

She took a tentative step towards her friend. "Corn? Is it really you?" she asked.

He smiled at her gently before stepping forward to her. He opened his mouth to speak, then remembered what he had done in Guam. He gestured to his mouth then towards her.

Kyoko's eyes lit up and she nodded. She closed her eyes without being told. He reached out his hand and touched her head, then snapped his fingers.

Kyoko opened her eyes and stared at him expectantly.

"Hello, Kyoko-chan," he told her, using Ren's voice.

Kyoko threw her arms around him in a tight hug. "Corn, you came back!"

He laughed as she pulled away, still smiling. Then a curious look crossed his face. He followed it with a look of realization.

Kyoko watched him, unsure of what he was thinking. "What is it?"

"Oh," he looked at her as if surprised, "I had just been wondering why it is that Kyoko-chan didn't mind me borrowing this voice again this time. But then I saw it. You don't mind because now you are dating Tsuruga-san."

Kyoko's face lit up a dark red. "Umm… yes. That is… he's my boyfriend now." She stared at her feet for a moment before looking back up suddenly. "Corn! You ruined my surprise!"

He leaned back, startled. "A surprise?"

She nodded earnestly. "I had been looking forward to seeing Corn again so I could tell you all about it." She stuck out her lip in a pout and Corn almost forgot who he was and reached out to embrace her.

Can't do that… dammit. Instead he looked at her with sad eyes. "Kyoko-chan, please don't be angry. I only saw a little. I still want to hear everything from you."

Kyoko glanced at him, her pout faltering. Finally a smile broke through. "I can't stay mad at Corn. Especially since I've waited almost a year to see you again."

He instantly felt guilty. It was true. He had kept her waiting for nearly a year, but to be fair a lot had happened. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be gone so long. Time feels a little different in the fairy world."

Kyoko grabbed his hand and rubbed it gently. She smiled up at him in a way that made his heart melt. "Well, I have a ton of stuff to tell you about. How about we sit over here and talk." She led him to the rock she had been sitting on before and they sat together as she began to talk.

She told him about all that happened when she had returned from Guam. About seeing her mother (being careful to leave out the embarrassing event of her mistaking Ren for Corn), about the accident that had occurred just a few months later, the events that had led to her relationship with Ren, and finally the drama she had just been working on recently.

"And I have this wonderful co-star, Yukia-kun. He's very sweet and tries to take care of me. And I told him about you, Corn. And he believed me! He believes in fairies!" she shouted excitedly.

Corn chuckled at her outburst.

Kyoko jumped up and grabbed his hand beginning to pull him up from where he sat.

"What's going on, Kyoko-chan?" he asked her.

She turned back to him. "I swore to myself that if I saw you again I'd introduce you to Yukia-kun. And here you are, and it worked out because he's here too." She continued walking, leading him after her.

Dammit, if Yukia-kun sees me he'll recognize me. And if he doesn't surely James-san would.

He pulled back, forcing Kyoko to a stop. She turned and looked at him, her eyes filled with confusion.

"What's wrong, Corn?" she asked, and he could hear the concern in her voice.

"Look, Kyoko-chan. I came here for a reason. It wasn't just by chance that I found you. I used my magic in the fairy world because I needed to talk to you about something." He took a breath, worried how she would react. A million different scenarios played out in his head at once and none of them were good. He felt the fear rising in his throat.

"I- This is the last time I'll be able to come see you." He blurted out.

Kyoko stared at him in shock. "Wh-what do you mean?" he could hear the crack of hurt in her voice.

He sighed. "I can't come to the human world anymore. My father now needs my help ruling the fairy kingdom since you were able to break my curse. But when I am ruling, I cannot leave for any reason."

He watched her face to see her reaction. Her eyes dropped, she stared at her feet. "But…" she swallowed hard, then looked up at him. "I'll miss you."

He could feel his heart breaking as he looked at her. A tear rolled down her face and he reached up and gently wiped it away. "But you see, Kyoko-chan, you don't need me anymore. You'll be fine without me." He smiled down at her sweetly. "You have found so many people who love you. I'm trusting them to watch over you."

A few more tears escaped her eyes, but then Kyoko forced her tears away. Corn was right. She had found everything she desperately needed before. And if he says everything will be all right, it will be.

Kyoko reached up and grabbed his hand that had been against her face. "If this is the last time I'll see you, then there's something I want to do." Her face was serious and it made Corn concerned for what she was planning.

She began to lead him back towards the main beach and then up a pathway towards some shops. Now he was nervous…what if someone they knew saw them? Luckily, Kyoko stopped rather quickly.

Right outside of a photo booth.

"Wha-?"

"I'm worried that when Corn returns to the fairy world, he'll forget about me. This machine," she gestured to the photo booth, "Can take pictures of us that I can give to you."

Corn was touched by the gesture. "Okay, Kyoko-chan. That sounds like fun." He gave her a small smile. And they climbed into the photo booth.

Yashiro was just exiting a small café along the beach shops when he saw Kyoko-chan. He had been going to call out to her, when he'd noticed who she was with.

That looked like Ren… but he had blond hair so it couldn't be. But then who was he? And why was Kyoko alone with this guy?

After taking several different pictures, the pair exited the booth and Kyoko picked up the picture sheet it had dispensed. She smiled at the sight of her and Corn smiling into the camera. She then held it out to him.

"Here you go. Now you can keep these and always remember me." She gave him a sad smile.

He pulled her into a tight hug. "I could never forget you, Kyoko-chan." He whispered into her hair. He pulled away slowly after a minute, if his internal clock was right he only had about half an hour left and he would need that time to become Ren Tsuruga again.

"Kyoko-chan, I have to be going now. My father is summoning me home." He told her solemnly. "I'll always love you." He told her before kissing her forehead.

Kyoko nodded. "I'll always love you too, Corn." She choked out, struggling to hold back her tears. She couldn't let Corn see her cry again, not when he was leaving.

This time there was no balcony to jump off of. He thought quickly about how to make his exit. "I have to return to the forest, since that's where I came through into this world." He gave her another smile and a quick hug, before walking away towards the forest.

Kyoko stood silently, watching him leave her for the last time. As soon as he was out of her sight, she collapsed to the ground in tears.

It took all of Ren's self-control to not turn around and comfort Kyoko. He knew she must be crying by now but things were better this way. She got her closure with Corn, and he didn't have the guilt of ruining her childhood fantasies. Besides, now she had him to comfort her.

He hurried back to the hotel, taking the long way to make sure to avoid anybody who might recognize him. Finally, he made it back to the hotel, and climbed the stairs two at a time in a rush back to his room.

He opened the door from the stairway and peaked into the hallway, making sure the hall was clear before venturing into it. He crept silently through the hall until he reached his door. Ren pulled out his keycard he had kept in his back pocket and slipped it into the lock. It clicked and he pushed the door open. He walked through the door, the excitement of being Corn had faded and now he just felt exhausted.

As he stepped into the main area of his room he froze.

"Hello, Ren," Yashiro greeted him. "Would you like to explain this all to me? Or should I ask Kyoko-chan?"

A/N: I apologize for all of my cliffhangers! II'm afraid I must be obsessed with them. I hope you all enjoyed seeing Corn. He was fun to write. Now what's going to happen with Yashiro? Stay tuned for the next chapter (probably tomorrow lol). Thank you for reading! Reviews are always appreciated! Thank you so much!