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 11 – The End of All Things
Fuwa Sho traversed sharply back and forth as he waited for the appearance of a certain golden-eyed girl. He ignored the glares of other skiers as they passed him to the right and left. Skiers loved pristine, virgin snow and didn't appreciate someone turning the choicest run on the mountain into corduroy. Sho didn't care. He had chosen this location for two reasons: first of all, very few people came up this high. Secondly, it was too difficult a run for Kyoko to ski down on her own. Once she was on this slope, she would essentially be a captive.
That was what Sho wanted, though not all that he wanted. He wanted her to remain alone with him long enough that she would have to listen. In his mind he played back one scenario after another as he tried to figure out a way to pull Kyoko away from Tsuruga Ren and back to his side. What was frustrating was that in every scenario, Kyoko would become one of her frightening alter egos, spit in his face, and slide down the hill of her own accord.
He growled at a scowling foreigner who slid by almost over the tail of his skis while yelling out imprecations in some unknown tongue. "Go back where you came from, foreigner!" He yelled. He pulled one coat sleeve back to look at his watch. She should be here by now! Why did I trust that woman. This is probably some plot to keep me out of the way. The sky's getting darker too, which means that they might shut down the run.
On a clear, snowless night skiers and snowboarders would be allowed to stay on the slopes until late, but during this heavy snowfall it was never advisable. Despite his arrogance in most things, Sho understood that principle well. After all, the instructor who he had paid so much to teach him drilled him about the safety rules often enough. Sho glanced up the ridge where some snowboarders had once again climbed. That was a foolish idea on such a day as this, but then snowboarders seldom listened. Probably more foreigners.
His hand sought out the thick document stashed protectively under his coat and he smiled a Cheshire cat grin. Reading the local newspaper had been like an early Christmas present. The great and mighty Tsuruga Ren; Japan's Number One Most Popular Man; the great gentleman, was a liar, and a fake, and worse. Sho had only skimmed over the first article, which described him as a once up-and-coming star athlete, but he devoured the other articles. One article described his disappearance and suggestions that he had fled from punishment. It went on to list his many brushes with the law, mainly due to fighting. Another article focused on his failed attempts to follow in his father's footsteps, often losing his temper on-set, until directors didn't even want to work with him.
Sho had laughed like a man possessed as he read the articles earlier that afternoon… and then he had thought of Kyoko. This is it! This is what I needed to yank Kyoko away from that long-legged poseur! When that dragon-lady had appeared in his hotel room earlier, he had agreed to her idea without any clear plan. He would see Kyoko. He would try to talk to her. She would lose her temper and stalk away. But this newspaper changed everything.
He turned back downhill and saw a figure struggling to maintain balance under the steady pull of the pommel tow*. He started to sneer, but then realized that an amateur coming up this far could only mean one thing. Immediately he began to carve an arc towards the small figure, once again ignoring the curses of a skier who was forced to catch an edge just to avoid him. As he came closer, he recognized the blond hair from the previous day, and smiled triumphantly.
Tina's face was anguished as she said, "Kuon, I was wrong to say what I did. I knew it even when I said it, but…"
Ren smiled sadly and pulled out a chair for Tina to sit in, "I know, Tina… we were both in shock. Still, if I hadn't…"
"NO!" Tina shut him off immediately. "You were fifteen. You were upset. You ran. That was all. You didn't ask Rick to follow you and you didn't ask him to run out into the road without looking and you certainly didn't ask that car to hit him… I know that now… and I hope that you know it too."
Listen to her, Kuon, Rick's voice invaded Ren's mind once again, She's being sincere. You have both tortured yourselves long enough.
Ren frowned and Tina misinterpreted the expression, "I'm being sincere, Kuon. I can tell that you've tortured yourself of this too. Haven't we both suffered enough?"
Startled at the similarities, Ren blurted out, "That's what Rick said." As quickly as he said it, Ren realized that he had made a huge mistake. It was bad enough to be haunted as he was with this imaginary image of Rick, but to speak of it… and to speak of it in the presence of the one person who would be hurt the worst by such flights of fancy…
Tina's expression became set and unreadable as she examined Ren's eyes. Ren tensed, waiting for an explosion, but Tina softly said, "He talks to you too, doesn't he?" She spoke quietly, but there was a need in her voice that begged for understanding. She watched his expression change into one of surprise, and her face melted into a secretive smile, "I was broken after what happened, Kuon. For a while I didn't know if I could survive, or if I wanted to. Rick's presence was there with me. For a while I thought that it was just his memory. Later, I thought that I was going mad. Now I realize that Rick had unfinished business… you… and me." Tina stood and started pacing. "Rick always said…" she deepened her voice into a surprisingly accurate facsimile of Rick's "…Time isn't something that's limitless. If you have the time to stand and mope, you may as well get on with your life."
She looked at Ren's eyes, which grew wide with… with what? Shock? Amazement? Then he spoke, "Does he really… I mean… I thought that it was only my imagination…"
Tina smiled tenderly, "Yes, he really does speak to me… mostly about getting on with my life… and about you. I think he knew that if I didn't resolve what happened with you, I would never be able to fully move on. Kuon… will you please forgive me?"
Ren felt something happen inside of his chest; as if something that had been broken was suddenly made whole again… as if he was made whole again. He nodded, stepping up and wrapping the woman in his arms. They stood that way for a minute, and then both jerked as Rick's voice broke in urgently, "Kyoko's in trouble, Kuon! You need to go now!"
"What are you doing here?" Kyoko growled.
"I wanted to meet with you. I'm here to protect you," Sho declared, not fully able to keep a knowing smirk from his face. He had to admit that his childhood friend looked amazing with her blonde hair and makeup. Lately he had been noticing that Kyoko had been becoming prettier. He could no longer call her plain and boring, even if he wanted to.
Kyoko had tried to use the long trip to the top of Hirafu to clear her mind, but nothing had been resolved and she only felt worse than before. She tried to deny it, she'd tried, but the truth was inescapable and her heart felt like it had been ripped out of her chest and fed into a meat grinder. I'm in love with Tsuruga Ren. Why? Why did I let myself fall in love again? Why him? Of all people, why someone who every girl wants?
When she saw Fuwa Sho approaching her, it was like pouring gasoline on the fire that was consuming her heart. She stood there now, oblivious to the snow or the cold breeze, and tried to process what Sho had just said. "What do you mean, 'protect me'?"
Sho attempted to paste on a caring smile, but it came out as a sickly sneer instead, "I want to protect you from your wonderful Tsuruga Ren… or should I say Hizuri Kun? Kyoko-chan, have you read about what your precious sempai did before he ran away from home?"
"What do you mean?" Kyoko felt tired, exhausted even, and too worn out to handle this annoyance. "Look, I don't have time for you. I'm supposed to be delivering a message…"
Sho grabbed Kyoko's arm as she tried to turn away, "Kyoko, I'm the one who called you here. There isn't anyone else; just me."
"I… I don't understand. What are you talking about?" Kyoko felt her control slipping and she needed to get away from Sho before she started crying. "I need to go."
"Kyoko! I'm the reason you're here!" Sho was becoming frustrated. He couldn't understand why Kyoko was acting so… odd… so lost. "That Ashida lady sent you up here because I told her to!"
Kyoko froze as the shock of having been deceived gave her the strength that had been failing her. "You – told – her – to?" She said slowly and deliberately, emphasizing each word. "You and that woman?" It didn't surprise her that Sho would associate with that type, since Ashida had the body type that he was always crazy about. Still, how could he not see the woman's true character?
Sho heard Kyoko's tone, saw her expression, and misinterpreted her reaction as jealousy. He felt a surge of hope for the first time since seeing her coming up the pommel tow. He also felt a chill run down his spine as he saw the same Mio creature who had first confronted him at Karuizawa… beautiful yet deadly. This time he didn't intend to surrender the high ground, "YES! I told you, I wanted to protect you! Kyoko, you don't seem to understand how dangerous Hizuri Kuon is…"
Kyoko advanced on Sho now, her anger rising and her grudges circling, "I know how dangerous he is, Shoutaro. He's dangerous enough that I thought he was going to kill the mop-haired man, and the others! And yesterday, when the two men who grabbed Moko-san and me I thought he was going to tear them to shreds! But when they were only attacking him he never touched them... and he never let them touch him... and he was amazing…"
Kyoko suddenly realized that she didn't care how dangerous Tsuruga-san was… because he only became that way whenever anyone tried to hurt her. Both times she had seen him fight, it was to protect her… It made her heart feel warm... and then Kyoko saw the vision of that woman again, and tears began to form in her eyes… and then the noise, the deafening, rumbling noise in her head was driving out everything else…
"Run Kyoko! For God's sake, RUN!" Fuwa Sho grabbed at her hand and she pulled away again as the noise in her head became painful. She looked up at his face and saw terror. She saw his mouth moving but she couldn't hear any words… but she turned in the direction he had been pointing and she saw the wall of snow…
… and then Kyoko's world became a chaos of rolling and spinning and crushing light and darkness until everything went black.
Two of the snowboarders had climbed the ridge just one more time before evening was to set in. One more opportunity to experience the thrill of near-freefall for almost eighty feet before the cliff became a more gradual slope. This time they had moved slightly to the west where the snow seemed thicker and yet more jagged. The stood like kings, above it all and prepared for the ride of their lives. This time they would go together and race to the end… a perfect end to an already fun day.
The two friends spaced themselves ten feet apart, lined up, pulled their goggles down, and after exchanging thumbs-up, they jumped. The first ten feet were everything that they hoped, but then everything began to seem unstable, as if they were sliding down a mound of Jello. It was only after another fifteen feet of fall that either realized that what they were on was a moving mass of ice and snow. One looked over in his terror and saw the ground open up and swallow his friend. The remaining snowboarder tried to focus, to react, to stay upright, lest he also be swallowed.
The mass was moving quicker now, fast than the young man had ever gone on a stable surface, but he somehow remained upright and in-control. He felt a wave of exhilaration when, for the first time, he began to believe that he might actually survive this ride.
He never even saw the chunk of ice that kicked up from behind and smashed him into the tumbling mass.
Without a moment's thought or hesitation, Ren and Tina burst out of the room and into the hallway. Ren saw Kanae and Chiori riding the elevator past the third floor toward the fourth and he slammed the stairwell door open and rocketed up the stairs, taking four or five at a time. Just as the elevator door opened he exploded out of the stairwell, making both of the young ladies jump back in momentary fear. The fear heightened for a moment as Kanae felt the tall, gray-haired man grab her shoulders and haul her out of the elevator.
Ren tried desperately to catch his breath and fight off the feeling of panic, "Kyoko… where… where is she!"
Kanae fought off her own feeling of panic as she recognized Ren's eyes despite the gray hair, "Tsuruga-san?"
"YES! Please tell me: Where is Kyoko!" Behind him, Tina stepped out of the stairwell and saw the scene. "You're scaring the poor girl, Kuon!"
"Mo! I don't know. I assumed that she went up to talk to you. She disappeared as soon as we got back here." Kanae sensed that something was terribly wrong, but she couldn't understand what.
Chiori stepped in, "Tsuruga-san, what's wrong? Kyoko's probably somewhere here in the hotel…"
Ren shook his head, but he released his death-grip on Kanae's shoulders, "Something has happened. I just don't know…"
His words were interrupted as the avalanche siren went off in the streets of Grande Hirafu.
It was seven thirteen in the evening when the avalanche began. A shelf of snow forty-meters long shifted under the impact of the two snowboarders. The shelf, which weighed tons and was only held in-place by gravity, began to slide. The heavy mass drove into the slightly shallower slope below, causing the lower mass to buckle and displacing the top layer. Once that mass began to slide, there was nothing stopping it.
Due to the lateness of the hour and the heavy snowfall most of the skiers and snowboarders had already gone down to the mountain to enjoy the nightlife of Grand Hirafu. Other than the two adventurous snowboarders, there were seven skiers and three other snowboarders… and the two childhood friends/adult enemies. Of the skiers and snowboarders, only eight heard the movement above in time. They immediately took the fall line* down the mountain. Of the eight, five were good enough to hold the line. Three were not, and they fell, only to be consumed by the onrushing wall of snow.
Fuwa Sho and Mogami Kyoko were three feet apart when the wall caught them. Had they been struck by one of the solid masses, they might have been killed instantly. Instead they were struck by the roiling mass of softer snow that was being pushed ahead of the greater solid mass. In an instant the two were rolling and twisting with moving chaos. Due to the vagaries of the terrain the two childhood friends were quickly separated, with Sho being pulled to the right of the downhill slope and Kyoko to the left. Before they had travelled twenty meters they were ten meters apart. Kyoko's body followed a smaller mass that split off and dumped into a ravine, while Sho's body continued down the hill.
When the avalanche ran out of momentum, Sho's body had come to rest in a mercifully shallow pile, almost seventy meters from where he had been picked up.
Kyoko was buried deep, in a small ravine which, covered in snow as it now was, looked much like the rest of the surface.
Ren never bothered with the elevator, choosing instead to hit the stairwell with bounding strides which carried him down four flights of stairs and into the lobby, where people were already beginning to gather. He spotted the person he was looking for and pushed through the people to overhaul the smaller Japanese man as he was heading out the door, "Hatchi! Wait!"
Hachiro was all business now as he turned to see Kuon bearing down on him, "I have to go, Kuon. We need to take a rescue team up the mountain."
"I know! Look, take me with you. I can't explain, but I know that Kyoko's up there!"
"No-go, Kuon. You said that she's a bunny-sloper. There isn't any way that she'd be up there past the tree line. Now, I have to…" His progress was arrested as Ren grabbed his arm. He was about to jerk back agrily, but Tina ran up as well, yelling, "He's telling the truth, Hatchi! His girl's up there; Rick said so!"
"What! Look, I don't have time for this nons…" Hachiro couldn't explain what stopped his retort, perhaps it was something in their eyes. Whatever the reason, he sensed that they were speaking the truth. "Fine, Kuon. You have three minutes to grab your gear and haul your *ss back down here. Someone's bringing my snowmobile right now."
Kyoko groaned in agony and opened her eyes to pitch blackness. Never before in her life had she experienced such terror as the terror she felt when the wall of snow had engulfed her and turned her world into a roiling chaos. She tried to move now, but her breath hitched in pain as her leg told her that it was most-certainly broken. Her other leg hurt as well, as did her arms and ribs, but not as much as the leg that seemed to be twisted at an odd angle behind her back.
Kyoko's head throbbed as she tried to control the panic that threatened to overwhelm her. I have to stay calm. I have to stay in-control of myself. Fuwa-Okami-san came to her mind, and the image of stern-faced, beautiful woman helped Kyoko to exert control. "A lady must always control herself, Kyoko-san. To appear flustered or to show strong emotion is inappropriate and uncivilized. No matter how you feel inside, you must always project an aura of calm and serenity on the outside.
Kyoko breathed deeply once, and then again. Concern for her oxygen supply mad her try to take shallower breaths, but thinking about this only made her lungs hunger for more. Perhaps its better this way, Kyoko thought. I'm a useless person anyway. What good have I ever done in this world?
Nonsense!
Kyoko jerked, causing her leg to moving and wracking her body with pain. This voice was not Fuwa-Okami-san… it was another voice, a voice that she had heard several times recently. She told herself that she was losing her mind, or that her imagination was running away again. I suppose it's fitting. I've spent my life fantasizing about a life that I will never have. I chased after love and affection from my mother, and then from Shoutaro. And now I've let myself fall in love with the one man I can never hope to have. So maybe this is better…
NONSENSE!
"You don't have to shout!" Kyoko said crossly, though she had no idea who she was talking to. Her head was throbbing and she was beginning to feel the cold again.
I'll stop shouting when you finally get your head on straight and stop throwing this pity-party. It was a female voice, cross, but still melodic and pleasant. What makes you think that you're so useless? What makes you think that someone like Tsuruga Ren, or Hizuri Kuon, or Corn, if you prefer, can't love you?
"Nobody loves me. I'm plain, and boring! I've got the body of toothpick. I'm always making mistakes! I have no talent! I make no contribution whatsoever to this world and I only cause trouble for those around me!" Kyoko felt warm tears streaming out of her eyes and rapidly chilling on her cheeks. "The world would be a better place without me."
There was no reply for a long time and Kyoko began to think that it had all been her imagination. And then the voice spoke again, more softly this time. Do you really believe that the world would be a better place without you, Kyoko-chan?
Kyoko almost felt relief at hearing the voice again. "Yes… I do."
Then so be it. Kyoko's world turned white in an instant. The pain was gone. The cold was gone. Everything was…
She was on the roof-top patio of the hotel, standing beside a smaller woman dressed in a long, flowing, light-blue dress. The woman had a classically sculpted Japanese face, like pictures she had seen of a beautiful geisha from a period drama. What was the most striking about her though was the twinkle in her eye. She seemed like a woman who truly enjoyed life to the fullest.
Kyoko would have warmed to the woman instantly if she hadn't felt so disoriented.
"Where am I?"
"You should know this place. You and Ten had a nice conversation here just last night… or rather… you would have had the conversation if you had ever existed."
"I don't understand. How did I get out of the avalanche?"
"You were never in an avalanche, Kyoko. You were never on that mountain. You never ran away from Tsuruga Ren. You never spoke with Fuwa Sho. You have what you wished for: You never existed."
"How can that be possible! You're not making any sense! I'm going to go find Moko-san!" And then Kyoko ran.
Notes: Yes, yes, I know that this last part sounds like a remake of a certain 1930's movie, but it seemed like the best way for Kyoko to become aware of how her life impacted those around her. I hope that you will enjoy the following chapter.
* Fall line: The most direct path down the mountain. The fall line on an advanced run usually involves going off of ridges, coming close to trees, and hurtling down the mountain much faster than most skiers are capable of handling.
** Pommel Tow: a rope tow with a plastic plate that you put between your legs to drag you uphill on the snow.