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'Finding Alice', Rayne no Akai Hinageshi
Chapter Four: Midnight
Author's note: I here by disclaimed the ownership of Ranma ½, the property of Takahashi Rumiko as well as Haou Airen, the property of Shinjo Mayu. They are not my anymore than there are dancing tomatoes on my plate… too bad really, although dancing sausages are different story entirely…
"…text…" Normal
"…text…" Sound effect or alternate language
"…Text…" Thought or something I wanna point out
…melancholy… a sad melody you love to hate; I don't want it but would I still be me without it? I won't give up but ... please give me sometime… Rayne no Akai Hinageshi
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It was darker now. Yet, the panorama below held the same visage of millions firefly that she saw in Tokyo.
But it wasn't Tokyo.
The maelstrom of towering skyscrapers were like a thousand shining hands reaching upward yet there were patches of darkness amongst these dazzling lights, they weren't nearly as visible as the immense buildings around them but they were there non the less, and Ranma knew what they were.
Slums…
To Ranma, Hong Kong's architecture held an ironic undertone that fills her with melancholy every times she thought about it. On one hand you have the rich and the powerful, living a life of luxury in exclusive apartment, on other you have the poor, living… no, struggles to remain alive, day after day in the crowd street.
Yet, it was the rich that were dying.
Yet it was the rich that were in constant turmoil… always struggling against one another… always desiring more regardless of how much easier they already had it…
So maybe it seemed oddly fitting that they live in such high towers… to her, it was them, and not the poor, that needed saving.
They were the true hands that reaches skyward in vain hope of savior.
It was them that needed salvation.
"Welcome to Hong Kong…" A rather husky voice said from behind her, pulling her away from the introspective line of thought.
Although it wasn't necessary, Ranma turned around to see who it was.
Hakuron… the man, the paradox.
Paradox…you know, Nabiki had once used the exact same word to describe her. When Ranma asked her what it means; the short hair girl simply laughed, saying it was a lot like love and that she should look it up for herself.
It's kind of funny really; she couldn't remember a lot of things, especially unambiguous thing like that.
She guessed it because she learned it herself.
Whatever the reason might be, she remembered it.
Paradox, and apparent contradiction, that's what the dictionary said, impossibility… the end of logic… something that simply didn't make sense.
The perfect word to describe her Hakuron.
Her Hakuron?
Ranma looked away; her cheek began reddening as she realized she'd been starring at the man for a long while now.
The man smiled at her knowingly, it seemed he had that affect on a lot of women and was quite used to it. That was somewhat arrogant of him but, for some obscure reason, she couldn't help but felt like it suited him.
Like he reveled on the image of the handsome prince, the type of man that swept girls off their feet with a flick of his hand.
Ranma turned away; she couldn't believe she was starring at him… again! It hadn't been a minute since she looked away, what is wrong with her?
A soft chuckle of amusement rang out from behind her, making her blush worsen by ten folds.
Damn it!
Fixing her gaze on some distant building, she began thinking about the seemingly haphazard turns her life had been taking lately.
She knew she should be angry… no, furious… furious at Hakuron for taking advantage of her and left her. But she couldn't even muster an ounce of animosity toward the man and when she looked at him…
…when she looked at him, it was all she could do to stop swooning.
'But that doesn't even make sense!' Ranma thought angrily. 'There's no reason what so ever of why I should even like the guy… or any guy for that matter!'
Yet… every time she thought about him… every time the very image of him appeared in her mind…
Her heart ached.
"Ranma."
The pig tailed girl turned around. Hakuron was standing beside the door which was now opened. Ranma stood up and walked over to him, feeling somewhat disorientated. She thought she should act coldly toward him; after all, he deserved it for putting her through all that.
But…
"Shall we?" He said questioning, offering her a hand.
The red head looked at him and then at the escalating platform which were slowly being rolled toward them. It was still some distance away yet. She turned back at him and opened her mouth to ask what he meant.
A mischievous glint…
That was the only thing she saw flashing across his eyes. It was her only warning.
"Eekk!" Ranma shrieked in surprise as Hakuron suddenly picked her up, bridal style, and leapt the four meter gap separating them and the ramp.
She managed not to scream out anymore as they descended down the walkway at a rapid rate, Hakuron taking three or four steps at a time. Of course, that didn't mean she could've kept from showing on her face.
It was exhilarating.
While nothing like the roof-hopping she remembered doing in her distant past, the experience still excited her in many differing ways…
…and one of them was the feeling of being held in Hakuron's strong, protective arms…
Thud Thud
Ranma's face was doing a fairly good imitation of a setting sun.
Hakuron looked down at the blushing red-head cradled comfortably in his arms and smiled; it was a lovely sight, one that he would be getting used to seeing before too long.
Mine…
The pig tailed girl blushed even harder, looking away. His eyes… they were so possessive… so full of desire… of hunger…
It awoke something inside of her, something she wasn't prepared to deal with…
…yet…
Hakuron let her down, to which she promptly thanked him with a glared. How could the stupid jerk pick her up like that?
"Easily; you so light, I could probably run around with you in my arms all day" The Chinese man declared rather smoothly.
Did she say that out loud?
Ranma had the decency to blushed even more, if that was some how possible, before looking away.
The man just smiled winsomely and led her into another black limousine that was waiting.
"Welcome back to Hong Kong, Mr. Ryou-Oh. Where do you want to go this time?" The driver called out to Hakuron; he was speaking in Chinese, too fast for her to make out the words.
"To my mansion in Victoria's Peak." was the handsome Chinese's reply.
The subsequence ride had been a blur. She tried to remain haughty, to make Hakuron feel somewhat sorry for doing that to her, she guessed. But it hadn't work.
Her cool composure melted the moment he even so much as to look her way. Even the smallest glance sent shivers down her spine. In wasn't long before she had given up on it and just stared out the window.
Hong Kong was… lively.
Like Shibuya in the nighttime, thousand of faces flew by her window. The streets were bustling with pedestrians of every ethnicity, merchant with wheeled-carts and just about everything else you could imagine.
Ranma gaped. She stared, she boggled, she blinked, she gawked and she gawped. And she did it all over again, letting her earlier tension washed away by the simple joy of sight-seeing.
She went to Hong Kong before but she had never actually been there… not really.
That trip, apart from evading Shampoo, the Chinese city had been nothing but one big bore. The martial art orient mind-set that was firmly in place prevented her from taking any real interest in all the foreign and exotic things around her. Her best memory of that trip was a particular kung fu school that taught pressure-point based style of Tai Chi Chuan. Compared to that trip, this little drive around had her seeing a lot more of Hong Kong than she ever thought possible.
The luxury car slowed to a stop next to a particularly affluent mansion.
The inside was even more opulent.
And more lavished still were his actually resident.
With each step she took, Ranma became more and more convinced that this was just a crazy dream. Her real self was probably lying somewhere in a desolated junkyard, starving to death.
Then she saw the view.
Ranma always thought of herself and a rather prosaic person. She could never understand Nabiki's needs for sumptuary or Akane's constant demand for romanticism. To put it simply, passion was never in her blood.
At least, she never thought so.
…
"This has to be a dream…" The girl whispered, spellbound by the magnificent sight before her.
Hakuron, he must be some sort of a prosperous businessman.
She turned around and looked at the said person. He was watching her with an unreadable expression. He looked every bit like a royalty, from his regal clothes, his posture and his distinguish face.
He's in a world so far away from my own.
A person I could never be with.
Before she realized it, he was right in front of her. He must have approached while she was deep in her thoughts.
"H… Hey, w... wait what are you doing?" Ranma stammered as Hakuron suddenly grab onto her shirt.
"I have decided to undress you." He said simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, before started working on undressing her.
"Wa… wait, why?" The red head protested weakly, trying to stop him from undoing anymore buttons.
"…" Hakuron didn't answer her. He undid the last button and slipped thee shirt off, leaving her in all her naked glory.
"Hakuron…" Ranma pleaded. She instantly turned crimson, holding her in front of her breast to provide some form of cover. It was rather pointless because for him to pull her shirt down, he must be standing very close to her, which he was.
The embarrassed girl looked up, feeling his eyes roaming over her bare contours. Suddenly, a thought came into her mind.
Why should I feel this way? After all, hadn't he done a lot more than this already?
Hakuron took a step back, making Ranma felt confused. He walked over to where he was sitting before and returned with a dress.
"Wear this, we're going to a party." He said, handing her the expensive-looking garment.
Dress? A party?
Ranma compliantly lifted her arms up and allowed him to put the elegant outfit on her. Wearing a feminine and provocative dress like this one still irked her a little bit but it was a lot easier to deal with than what she was expecting with him pulling her cloth off like that.
"It's silk, it'll look very good on your white skin." He said, taking her silent as her wondering about the dress.
The pig tailed girl didn't attest him, she thought she wore silk clothing before but this material felt impossibly smooth against her skin.
"Tonight…" He began, leaning even closer than before.
Thud Thud
"Tonight with the magic that I wield..." He whispered in her ear, his hands slipped down to her waist and undo her string-draw black pants. It fell away as easily as her shirt.
Thud Thud
"…I'll make you the Cinderella of Hong Kong."
Me? A Cinderella?
Ranma looked into Hakuron's deep blue eyes.
It only a dream isn't it? Then what's wrong with just enjoying it? Tonight, just one night, I'll be Hakuron's Cinderella.
The red headed girl glanced at the old style clock by the wall behind them. It was nine o'clock; three hours until midnight.
For three hours, Hakuron, for three hours, I'll be your Cinderella.
She smiled
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Author's note: This actually wasn't going to be written to day. I'll explain.
This morning, an in experience writer posted a note as a story, saying that he's quitting because of the harsh review he received. He said not naming any name
…then he put my name in a bracket next to it.
Obviously, I was quite shocked. I mean, I honestly thought what I gave him was a constructive criticism and a rather light one at that.
But he quits. And he blames me for it, in this way.
For hours, I was quite over-whelmed with melancholy, after all, won't you be if someone says they're quitting because of you? Because of something you wrote in good will?
Then I realized something, with the help of my good friends, A Radical Dreamer, Vex the Warlord and JSB…
I was being just like the poor sod…
I was being a thin-skinned weak, whining, EMO-like ingénue.
So I re-attack this with vigor of love-starved fan girl in a room with her idol and completed this.
Anyway sorry about the rant, but it's really cathartic, more so than punching concrete walls and skinning your knuckles or breaking the calluses. I hope you enjoyed it.
Review please… and you flamers too, I'm actually beginning to want flamers now… it's scaring me out but… yeah, I actually don't mind you guys anymore.
See ya tomorrow!
Rayne no Akai Hinageshi.
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P.S. Oho ho ho, no one noticed me stealing idea from my favorite movie, V for Vendetta, in the last chapter…