Sapporo in the Moonlight

Disclaimer: SkipBeat: don't own it, probably couldn't afford it, really like it, 'nuf said

LME Hits a Landmark 25th Anniversary. To celebrate, Lory leases an entire resort in Sapporo and sponsors a company vacation for the holidays. With Kyoko turning eighteen, will Ren finally make his move? And why do mysterious things keep happening?

Chapter 7 – A Trick of the Late Afternoon Sun

Author's note: In order to make the distinction clear, I will have the times that anyone speaks in English in bold.

In order for this chapter to make any sense, it seems necessary to provide a brief explanation of stunt-jumping. If you find this boring or mundane, then please skip ahead. Also, I am not an expert on this, and therefore I may make mistakes in my narrative that may irritate true experts. If you find an error, please let me know and explain in detail so that I may fix the error.

A stunt jump slope is not a single ramp, but a series of ramps and rails of varying degrees of difficulties. The entire run could be treated as a series, but usually each separate obstacle is treated as an individual venue. Stunt jumping ramps are usually built of snow and in pairs, with a launching ramp and a landing ramp. Degrees of difficulty are based upon several variables: the distance between the ramps, the degree of angle of the launching ramp, and the degree of decline of the slope on which the ramps are constructed. I have never been to Sapporo, and my information is spotty; so for this story I will presuppose that there are three ramps categorized by difficulty: moderate, intermediate, and advanced.

For years there were bitter rivalries between snow boarders and skiers for access to the best slopes and the best ramps. This seems to have settled down to the occasional trading of insults. In fact, most stunt-jump runs can be used by both snowboarders and skiers. Several factors are used to judge a jump: the difficulty of entry, the height of the jump, the rotations and difficulty of the maneuver, and the landing. Another factor which has an impact is aesthetics; a gifted stunt-jumper can make his or her jump beautiful to the eye while at the same time making the audience catch their breaths. This is referred to as the Awe Factor. All of the other factors are important, but this final factor is usually what really drives stunt-jumpers… because a good stunt jumper seems almost superhuman.

Stunt jumping, classified as an extreme sport, for obvious reasons. Like any sport, as the degree of difficulty increases, so do the dangers involved. A simple jump, if landed poorly, may result in a twisted ankle. As the difficulties, elevations, and distances increase there are the possibilities of broken bones. But extreme jumps often require the jumper to turn upside-down, take off or land backward, and spin or flip repeatedly in the air. As always, it is the final second, the moment when the jumper loses his fight with gravity and returns to the ground, where everything can go wrong. If the spin, or flip, or some other crazy maneuver is not completed by the time that the jumper and the snow meet again, then something is probably going to break… and snow doesn't break.

That is why stunt-jumping is classified as an extreme sport. Despite the momentary thrill of breaking the bonds of gravity and flying through the sky, and despite the pleasure of appearing almost superhuman to those lesser mortals who chose to keep their feet firmly planted on the ground, eventually everyone has to pay their dues in the form of broken bones and busted pride. Yet the promise of exhilaration and notoriety usually outweighs the inevitability of pain. Naturally, those two factors were also what drew two men like Hizuri Kuon and Fuwa Sho to the sport.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these jumps, nor do I own Stomping Ground Park (but wouldn't that be fun?)

The Stomping Ground Park, however, is a very popular and hence very crowded place. Individual competitions are not easily organized because everyone behind the competitors is also waiting for a turn. In this case, however, Fuwa Sho's name had its value. A few words, spoken in the right ears resulted in a quick call. Before the two scowling competitors had even made it to the top, a snowmobile powered up to the line and pulled to a stop. A short, stocky man in his mid-twenties climbed out and frowned at Fuwa Sho.

"So, Fuwacchi," he had a smile on his face, but his tone was caustic, "I hear that you want to hold a competition."

Sho colored at the insulting nickname that he hated the most. Behind Ren, Kyoko had to quickly suppress a laugh. Finding herself unable to completely stifle it, she buried her face into Ren's thick coat to muffle the sound. Ren felt his whole body warm to this spontaneous touch, and his face morphed into a dreamy smile. Sho heard the muffled sound and he turned to see what appeared to be an amused smile on his tall rival's face. It made his blood boil worse, and he whipped back around to the new man. "That's right, Fujioka," he rudely gestured back at Ren with an extended thumb, "I need to teach this foreigner a lesson."

Kyoko, who was still touching Ren's back unconsciously, felt him tense up and assumed that it was because of Sho's rude actions. Fujioka Hachiro looked over at the tall blonde man, examining him. Suddenly his eyes grew wide and his mouth opened, but a quick shake of Ren's head made him stop. He continued to look at Ren, seemingly lost in thought, and then he chuckled. "Hello, my name is Fujioka Hachiro, and I'm the ski pro for the resort. Have you accepted Fuwa Sho's challenge?" When Ren nodded, Hachiro turned back to the young singer who seemed to cause problems whenever he showed up at Niseko, "Okay, I'll approve the match. You'll each get three runs: two intermediate and one advanced. I'll judge, with the help of the crowd, and all decisions are final. By the way, what's the bet?"

Sho sneered, "When I win, this tall loser's little friend has to spend the evening with me."

Hachiro noticed the pretty blond standing mostly behind her tall companion for the first time. He smiled at her in an appreciative but kind manner, and then looked up at Ren, "I admire your taste, K… ummm, what is your name?"

Ren began to speak, but Sho spluttered in laughter, "She called him 'Corn.' Can you believe that? What sort of name is that, anyway?"

Hachiro looked back at the rocker with an expression that said, You are such an idiot, and then turned back to the couple, "Is Corn your name?"

Ren met the shorter man's eyes with a meaningful expression and answered in English, "My name is Colin Richards. I'm honored to meet you, Fujioka Hachiro." Hachiro, looking amused, "I'm pleased to meet you… Colin. And who is this beautiful creature?"

Kyoko blushed as Ren placed a hand over her shoulder and moved her forward. She had been deliberately trying to stay out of Sho's direct line of sight in order to lessen the chance of him recognizing her. She also didn't like the way that he seemed to be undressing her with his eyes. It made her want to rip him limb-from-limb. She almost bowed but stopped herself and slipped back into character. Extending a gloved hand, she said, "Hello, Mr. Fukioka. My name is Sherrie Richards…" She blushed even deeper once she realized that she had just taken Tsuruga Ren's last name, but it was too late. Hachiro's eyebrows lifted as he looked back and forth between them. Ren, trying to hide the smile that wanted to stretch from ear-to-ear, coughed and started to say something else, but was interrupted.

"Are we going to do this, or what?" Sho demanded with an irritated sneer. Then he let his eyes fall on Kyoko again. "I'm ready to start my date."


Takarada Lory, dressed in very flashy snow gear, stepped into the lobby expecting to find Jelly Woods waiting for him. He had chosen snowboarder's gear because it was so much more individual and loud than traditional ski gear. He scanned the wide lobby twice, but she was nowhere to be seen. Then he walked into the bar area, expecting her there. Again, she was nowhere. He described Jelly to the barkeep, and he smiled, "Oh yeah, the miniature doll. She's a real cutie. Let me think… oh yeah, this handsome dude came in and asked her out for a late lunch. They left about twenty minutes ago."

Jelly had always been an independent woman who did her own thing, but "her own thing" usually included doing something with him. Lory found himself feeling irritated and concerned. In fact, he was feeling very disgruntled as he stalked out of the resort hotel. You can't expect her to wait for you forever, Lory. She's still a desirable woman and it's not fair to expect her to go through her life lonely. Lory didn't know where that thought came from, but it irritated him even more.

Lory walked down the hill towards the restaurant area without any clear plan. I'm just hungry, that's all. He had given Sebastian the week off with very clear instructions for the man to go and have fun. What does that man do for fun, anyway? He checked the first two restaurants to no avail, and then saw her sitting in a window seat in a third restaurant. Moving carefully so as not to attract attention, he slinked from pole to pole and behind cars until he could see who she was sitting with.

Inside the restaurant, Jelly lifted her napkin and covered her mouth to hide her laughter. "He's just like a little kid sometimes."

Sebastian smiled and took a sip of wine. He had decided that he wanted to spend his vacation among the people that he knew, "Sometimes? Two months ago he wanted me to contact Fuji, Boeing, Lockheed, and Airbus to find someone to build him a jet-powered, air-worthy sleigh in time for Christmas. Should we invite him in or should we let him keep pretending he's a ninja?"

Jelly giggled, but Sebastian could see the pain behind her smiling eyes. "Let him have his fun just a little longer, Sebastian. He left me waiting for two hours. He'll come in eventually."

Sebastian looked at the tiny lady sadly, "Ten, are you really leaving after this vacation?"

She nodded unhappily, "I have to, Seb. I'm not going to wait any longer. I loved Jun, but I can't compete with her shadow." She glanced back out the window again and saw Lory standing on the sidewalk, pacing back and forth. "I haven't told him yet. I'll wait until this vacation is over."

She saw the tall executive flinch and reach into his pocket. He pulled out a phone and listened for a moment. Both Jelly and Sebastian saw the alarm on his face. They started to rise, but he was already moving toward the restaurant door. They met in the lobby, concerned about what might have happened. As if he knew that they were expecting him to be there, Lory gestured for them to wait and then he looked at the two people who were his closest friends, "That baka really did it this time. Did you finish your meal? We need to go."


Kyoko tried to ignore the men who repeatedly approached her while she stood on the sidelines to watch the match. She had been blushing furiously when she joined the spectators, and she was completely unaware of how beautiful she looked with those rosy cheeks. Even if she had been interested in conversation, it wouldn't have been at that particular moment. Right before the trio had reached the end of the line, Ren had turned to her and whispered, "Well, my dear wife, you should probably go and stand where you can get a better view…" she had nodded and started to leave, but he had stopped her by grabbing her hand, "But not before I get my good-luck kiss."She had blanched as she saw the Emperor of the Night looking at her. Sensing this, Ren had toned down his expression and turned his cheek to her. Trying to stay in-character, she had stood on tip-toes to reach his face and give him a peck on the cheek… but at the last moment he had turned and their lips had met.

Instantly, despite her embarrassment, every part of her body had been on fire. Even before she could react or analyze this strange feeling, one big, strong hand had touched the small of her back and pulled her close, deepening the kiss. When his hand relaxed and his lips left hers, she had remained on her tip-toes for a long moment as the sensation lingered. When a chill breeze blew between them she suddenly recalled herself and stepped back, alarmed and confused. She might have fled, but Ren's hand still held hers. He held her firm as he leaned over and said, "Now go and watch me fly for you."

She was still standing there on the sideline, confused, when Kanae, Yashiro, and Aki joined her. All three instantly started asking questions, but they hushed instantly as Fujioka Hachiro stepped onto the ramp and held up both hands for silence, "Ladies and Gentleman, thank you for your patience. We have a challenge match between Fuwa Sho and Colin Richards. Three runs; two intermediate and one advanced. This will be a follow-the-leader competition, with the second jumper copying the stunt of the first. The first round will be led by Fuwa Sho, as our challenger. The winner of each round will then choose the next jump. Let's give them both a round of applause." The crowd responded wholeheartedly. Kanae leaned over and said, "Isn't that Fujioka?"

Kyoko turned to her, "Yes, that's right. I think that he's the sports-pro here. Do you know him?"

Kanae rolled her eyes, "Mo, Kyoko! As in Fujioka Hachiro, the Olympic contender? He's an internationally known skier and snowboarder." Kyoko was deeply impressed, but there was something else nagging at the back of her mind. Now that the embarrassment of that kiss had worn off, her mind was reviewing the meeting of Hachiro and Ren… It might have been her imagination, but she had the distinct feeling that the two men knew each other.

All thoughts of that were set aside as Fuwa Sho started down the hill for his first jump. Like everyone else, she held her breath and started yelling he hit the jump and flew into the air. His skis crossed and he spun in a corkscrew, once, then twice around before landing almost perfectly on the second ramp. For a moment she forgot all about her anger and slipped back to the days when she and all of the other children from her school would watch him perform stunts. Kanae scowled at her when she clapped, and Kyoko grimaced. Fuwa Sho gathered his skis and walked by her, smirking triumphantly until he saw his manager standing close by. Frowning, he headed back up to the top.

Then it was Ren's turn. Kyoko held her breath, hoping beyond hope that he wouldn't be hurt. He was so tall that the distance from the top to the ramp seemed shorter, and he was airborne. Fuwa Sho's jump had been good, but there was something spectacular in Ren's jump. Whether it was his size or his power, everything seemed perfect as he twisted through the air with a brilliant smile on his face. Kyoko was roaring her praise even before his skis touched snow, and she didn't even think about the possessive pride that suffused her as she watched her man turn sideways and skid to a stop. Wait… my man? He's not… Her mind froze on that thought, and she stood there like a mannequin until suddenly Ren's handsome face loomed in front of her. "Are you okay, dear?"

Kyoko made an "eeep!" sound and jumped back, but there were people right behind her and she bounced off of them and into Ren's arms. He hugged her close with a genuine smile on his face and said, "How am I doing so far?"

Kyoko blushed and trembled, but her eyes sparkled as she said, "You flew like a faerie prince, Colin." Ren wanted to steal another kiss, but he was afraid that she would overload and short-circuit. His plan was working, and she was slowly beginning to make connections in her brain.

"Well, for the next jump, I'll be your Superman." He gave her one more quick-squeeze and headed back up the hill. Kanae watched the entire interaction with wonder, surprised at how far the couple seemed to have progressed in just one short hour. "What's going on, Kyoko-chan?"

Lory, Jelly, and Sebastian had just arrived as Ren made his first jump. Jelly turned to Lory and said, "He seems to be very good. Why were you so worried?"

Lory looked down at her, "He is good, Ten. In fact, he is more than good. When he was fourteen he was already a serious contender in both snowboarding and skiing… that's the problem. He has returned to his blonde hair and he is surrounded by ski enthusiasts. Someone is going to recognize him… probably a lot of people… especially if he does the jump he's famous for."

All further discussion stopped for the moment as Fujioka Hachiro stepped back onto the ramp and called for silence again, "Okay, ladies and gentleman; I have my own opinion; now I want yours: Which man won the first event? Is it Fuwa Sho…" the crowd cheered lightly, "…or Colin Richards?" The crowd roared as they made their choice clear. Hachiro signaled for silence as he smiled, "I thought so too. Okay then, Colin Richards wins round one, which means that he gets to choose the next stunt."

Kyoko had been saved from answering Kanae's question by Hachiro's interruption. Now, as she stood watching with clenched fists and shining eyes, Kanae decided to drop the issue. Whatever was happening, it was clear that this little vacation was going to result in some major changes. The crowd hushed and then grew louder as Ren hurtled down the hill and hit the ramp as if he was going for a distance run rather than a stunt. He flew with his arms above his head, like Superman, and then, at the last moment, he executed a perfect front-flip and landed easily at the bottom of the second ramp. Yashiro, who had scooted up next to Kyoko, said, "That was a Superman Front Flip. Is there anything that he can't do?"

The Superman Front Flip does not look too hard, but the difficulty lies in elevation and timing. If the jumper has too shallow a jump, or if he begins the front flip at the wrong instant, then the result can be a very bad landing. If done right, however, it looks stunning. Kyoko was giddy with pleasure and beaming with pride as Ren trudged up the hill the second time. Had the rope not been there to check her, she might have thrown herself into his arms to congratulate him. As it was, her beaming face alone was all of the reward that Ren ever needed.

Sho went next. He did everything right, but he under-rotated the flip and ended up touching his bottom to the ramp. He recovered without falling, but the die was cast: Ren had won jump number two. Sho knew it even as he trudged by Kyoko. This time he saw Yashiro, and his irritated mind suddenly started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Golden eyes… golden… d*mn it, That's Kyoko! And that probably means… He stopped ten feet past the girl and turned around to glare at her just as Fujioka Hachiro called for silence. As expected, Colin Richards, a.k.a. Tsuruga Ren, had won the match. Sho whipped back around and headed up the hill.

It was customary in these types of challenges for the contenders to make all three jumps, even if the contest was already decided. Everyone was moving towards the advanced jump, so Fuwa Sho had no other choice but to head there as well.

While they were walking, Lory groused, "He's going to make the jump. Right now he's reverted back to Kuon… and this is Kuon's world. I can't even stop him!" Sebastian and Jelly looked at the man sympathetically, but there was nothing else that could be done.

Several sports reporters were also on the slopes that day, doing early prep-work for an upcoming event in late January. When they heard that Fuwa Sho, Japan's Number One Musician, had thrown down a challenge to some unknown foreigner, they immediately headed towards Stomping Ground Park. They arrived just in time to hear the results of the second stunt, and were disappointed. If Fuwa Sho had won it would have been great news and a big boost for their readership. Nevertheless, they trudged up the hill with everyone else to watch the last jump.

Hizuri Kuon was in full control as he watched Fuwa Sho walking towards him with a glare in his eyes. As Sho approached, he sneered and said, "Nice hair, Tsuruga Ren. Are you imitating me now?"

Kuon looked at the little flea disdainfully and smiled like the alpha-male he was, "Hello, Fuwachii, I didn't think that you had recognized me. Next time, you might want to think before you start throwing out challenges. Even someone as brilliant as you should know that it's always wise to know your completion. By the way, I think Kyoko and I will dine on steak tonight… this little contest has given me the taste for raw meat."

Sho knew that he was being insulted and it made his blood boil, but he couldn't change the fact that he had made himself look like a fool in front of Kyoko. He remembered that Kyoko had introduced herself with the same last name as this man, and he wanted to kill someone. "Fine… eat your d*mn steak and pretend to be married! But don't think for a moment that I'm going to let you have Kyoko. She's my property, and she always will be."

Up until that moment, Ren had intended to do something less spectacular. But now, after those hateful words, Kuon was determined to put this little punk in his place. He stepped up close enough that Sho had to look up to meet his eyes, and then he replied, "You lost your chance when you treated her like dirt, you little sh*t. Now I intend to treat her like the princess she is, and I intend to give her my name for real. So watch my jump and just try to imitate it."

Kyoko, unaware that any of this was taking place, watched with breathless anticipation for what was to come. This new pair of ramps seemed much further apart and the launch ramp seemed to point much further in the air. Despite her confidence in Ren, she couldn't help but worry as she saw him begin his run. Everyone watched this stranger with interest as he hurtled towards the ramp and then suddenly twisted around so that he hit the jump backwards. Instead of cheering they watched in awe as he shot up into the air and executed three spectacular flips while helicopter twisting, finally coming down, still backwards, in the middle of the landing ramp. The crowd roared their approval, amazed by this rare jump… but there were three pockets of silence.

The first pocket of silence was around Takarada Lory, as he rubbed his forehead in frustration. He had worked so hard to disguise Kuon's true identity until he was ready to reveal it. True, he had told Ren that men in love sometimes act foolish, but this was the height of stupidity. He pulled out his cell phone and shit speed dial for a long-distance number.

The second pocket of silence was around the two reporters. They had both been in the business for many years, and they knew that signature jumps of every top athlete in extreme sports. There was only one person who was that tall who did the Backward Triple-twisting Helicopter… a young amateur who had vanished six years ago: Kuon Hizuri. Looking around quickly to ensure that nobody was close enough to hear them, they leaned into each other and began talking quietly and urgently… this was the scoop of the decade!

The third pocket of silence was around one young blonde-wigged woman. She had been cheering with everyone else until, at the top of the jump, the sun had shone on Ren's beautiful golden hair. In an instant a flood of memories had flooded through her mind… memories of a blonde ten year old… the prince of the faerie kingdom.


Notes: First of all, thank you to everyone who has volunteered to Beta for me. I am in the middle of going back and forth from two hospitals where family members have been admitted, so I'll try to get back to you as soon as I feel that I can think straight… Right now you're wondering, If you can't think straight, then how can you write this chapter? Believe me, this can't really be called thinking straight.

I'll try not to leave this as a cliffhanger for too long, but I'm typing these chapters while people are sleeping in hospital beds, and its getting hard on the back. Before you ask: Both people should leave the hospital just fine. As you may suspect, my home-relocation has been put on-hold for the duration.

Now, concerning the stunts: I hope that these make sense. The first was the Cork 720. The second was a Superman Front Flip. The third, which I've seen but couldn't find an example of, was a Backward Triple-twisting Helicopter. I saw it executed by a sixteen year-old, so it is possible for a fourteen or fifteen year-old to do it.

If you feel that Ren is acting OOC, remember that with his blonde hair and in this familiar setting he is reverting back to his old self.

I know you're curious about Sho's third jump. That information will be presented in the next chapter