Disclaimer: The standard applies.

Sorry for the obscene delay. My laptop died because it couldn't take it anymore. I have since moved on and ordered a new one.

As usual, to quench your thirst for updates (yeah yeah), I chopped away one third of the new chapter and decided to upload it first. Enjoy.

Chapter 20 – Let's Talk About...: Part One

Seireitei Morning Tribune

Saturday, 9 October 2009

Entertainment News: Shinji Hirako confident of resounding success for new movie

(Tokyo) Acclaimed director Shinji Hirako has promised his latest movie, Autumn Chrysalis, would move everyone from the embers of 2006 to an invigorating 2010. This bold statement came during the film convention held in Tokyo over three days.

Autumn Chrysalis is adapted from the bestselling quasi-historical novel by Unohana Retsu. It chronicles the destiny of a young samurai who left his hometown at 16, choosing to live a life he can proudly call his own. There, he ran into another man, and circumstances had them become friends then lovers, despite their apparent social standings.

Movies touching on previously taboo subjects such as homosexual love, often accompanied by shadowy sex scenes, have become the new standard in the industry. Actors wishing to make a name for themselves often take up the roles of gay men, and the industry in return rewarded them for their bravado and intensity with numerous accolades. Lee Ang's Brokeback Mountain in 2006 kickstarted the fever, and in 2010, Shinji believes that Autumn Chrysalis will take over and spearhead the genre.

The movie, scheduled to be released in October 2010, has seen its progress slightly derailed by a ban imposed on all ongoing film productions in Tokyo. This comes as a calculated measure to prevent the spread of a rumored influenza virus stemming from poultry in the region.

The two lead actors, Ulquiorra Schiffer (24) and Kurosaki Ichigo (23), are also widely rumored to share a troubled working relationship. Insiders said this has indirectly caused a delay in the schedule too, and the studio's top management is keeping a tight watch on the budget.

The studio's previous project, Terra:2050, saw its budget soar to astronomical levels with delays in its production. Reasons for the delay had been attributed to poor communication between the action and planning aspects of the project, as well as the growing rifts between an ensemble cast of mostly A-listers. Their high pay brackets, alongside hefty computer-generated imagery (CGI) effects, had weighed heavily on the studio's finances.

When asked of his opinion on the actors' relationship, Shinji was his usual snarky self.

He said, "Call me a dumb blonde, but I think they secretly love each other."

Shinji Hirako is one of the 12 handpicked to headline the selection panel for the convention. A total of 149 movies would be viewed and 10 would be chosen to represent Japan in international film festivals come early 2010.

The famous director has always advocated the idea that love is a force of nature, and has expressed delight at the influx of media in recent years, even praising them as portals to opening the minds of many.

"A new dawn for these movies, previously shunned by actors who didn't want to be wrongly perceived as barking up an unorthodox path, is awakening. What we need now is the push into an ecumenical belief that true love comes in forms unbeknownst to us, and we have to learn to accept them. It can also be formless, say, in the form of shoujo manga bubbles or even pink plumes," he said to a room of reporters.

Shinji went on to say, "Heterosexual love, homosexual love, bisexual love. Some are open to it. Some find them, for lack of a better word, disgusting and use various affiliations to demonstrate their intolerance towards people who are different from them. They are merely labels man stick onto the physical manifestation of their wants, struggling to classify them so they can feel at ease and seek justification behind their actions. That way they would be able to sleep soundly at night. How delightful!"

He then added with his trademark toothy grin, "Whoever said that love between two men cannot be tender? Shakespeare, when questioned about his sexuality back then, referenced it to no less than two lambs bleating under the sun."

His opinion was unanimously chorused by several contemporaries in the movie industry.

The inaugural convention was attended by many distinguished members of the industry and chaired by Yamamoto Genryuusai, Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications.

"So Shinji's talking about the movie. What's new?" Kurosaki Ichigo yawned. "Did you come all the way here just to wake me up for this?"

Renji sat on the foot of the bed and crossed one leg over the other. "Are you always this stupid? Of course not! Don't act as if I have no need for sleep. When I do and it's on a weekend, rest assured it's something earth shattering which involves you."

"Me?" Ichigo rubbed his eyes. "What has anything got to do with me? Yeah, I'm in the movie, but ain't that established way back in March? You deserve some of the credit, obviously," he said dryly.

The redhead sighed and flipped his long, auburn fringe to the side. "Oops. Got you the wrong paper." He removed the newspaper from Ichigo's lap and replaced it with a rolled up paper in his hand. "Read this."

Seireitei Nine Daily - Sunday Special

10 October 2009

BEFORE LUNCH, COMES BREAKING NEWS!

- Your Daily Blind Item (Guess who? Guess what?) -

FROM REEL TO REAL: ONSCREEN LOVERS CAUGHT EXITING A ROOM TOGETHER!

Hard to believe as it is, this pair was seen leaving a motel room together at around 2am on Saturday morning. Out on a night when there's filming the next day? What would their director say? That doesn't matter - for now. The big budget movie production which they are currently working on together has been delayed by certain unforeseen circumstances.

Two people and a couple of beers. Nothing surprising. What's wrong with grabbing a drink with your co-star as and when you like? Absolutely nothing, unless both actors already have bad blood churning between them, made known to the world with their very public spat back in August.

According to our sources, these two actors normally wouldn't go within a yardstick of each other, much less head out together at night. And when they get together, it would be an exhibition of insults and even fists. Seeing them drink together in one of Tokyo's top nightspots would be rarer than finding a needle in a haystack.

Could their notorious working relationship be just a smokescreen for their underground liaisons?

We can't tell, especially with one party having won an award recently for his work.

Actor A, who is infamous for his silence and fancies a rather eclectic make-up style, was spotted in the passenger seat. Actor B, whose name can also be interpreted as a fruit, was behind the wheel. Harmless stuff? But there is more to come, especially given the scintillating love scenes between them in their movie.

More people are stepping up with eyewitness accounts on how they saw these two actors leave the club, only to snuck into a motel together, one after the other in an attempt to bid secrecy. They were seen coming out just after 30 minutes or so. Perhaps they could try harder the next time; this couple's appearance ain't exactly conspicuous.

"It was a quickie," said a housekeeper at the motel. "Their clothes were messy when they left the room."

Another witness - the motel's receptionist, also declared she saw the actors with her very own eyes, and claimed she couldn't believe it.

"This is absolutely crazy. I mean, them, indulging in a hotel rendezvous? The taller actor I might believe, but the other one? In the olden days he would have been thought of as a monk or something!"

A valet at the nightspot gave a similar account and provided details on how they planned on sneaking out via the backdoor.

With comments like this, the talented Actor A sure had us all fooled.

No doubt both camps will strive to deny it, but our source has photographic evidence. Will it be revealed before their agencies snuff it out? Sure, if you can see past their disguises and the foggy windscreen.

Our ratings for this blind? Five upon five. We guarantee rife media speculation over their identities the next few days, or even more.

Oh, and one more thing. Did we forget to explicitly mention they are both men?

Hint: Green and orange are both ends of a double tipped color pencil.

Ichigo stopped reading at this point. Green and orange? What was this about anyway? He needed not undertake 'Literary Discourse' to dissect this piece of garbage; anyone with half a working brain would. Not only was it full of subjective bollocks, it was intentionally misleading as did all tabloid articles. He didn't need the paparazzi breathing down his neck. What he wanted was another week of peace to complete the impromptu practice sessions at Ulquiorra's place.

"Pretty damn smoking, huh?" Renji gave a sardonic grin. "The most obvious piece of blind I'll ever find in the tabloids. Know what? Everyone is scrambling to find out who these two actors are, and duh, all clues point to you and him! Especially the part where it hinted at 'a very public spat'. The whole world knows how you threw up on Ulquiorra some two months ago."

Ichigo shook his head. "We didn't do a thing, you crimson bozo."

"Tell me, when did this begin? Always knew you would cave in to your primal urges and fight your so-called foe in the bedroom. All the signs were streaming in, even from way back. So much for your endless protests on how 'straight' you are."

The actor frowned at his friend, half in irritation and the other half in clipped surprise. "You dare even smile? If not for you and that idiot who's all up for a permanent brawl, none of this would have happened!"

Abarai Renji pushed his friend's feet off the bed and lay down on the freed up space. "Don't be crazy. What have I got to do with this grand mess you've stepped into?"

"Right." Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "I wonder who's the one who got himself all drunk dancing to retro pop and felt up by some crazy blue haired alien in a teacup which spins endlessly? Must be really nice waking up next to a man of your build. Care to do it again?"

"The central question in this hullabaloo is," Renji interjected, waving a hand about, as if to ward off an incoming stream of questions. "How the heck am I going to handle the goddamn press for you? Think Renji, think! PR strategies. Oh--thank god for me."

Ichigo felt like hurling abuse at the redhead, but stopped short of it. Sunday mornings had always been a favorite of his, and he could already make out the aroma of freshly made waffles, drowned in maple syrup wafting into his room.

"Count yourself lucky," he griped as he made his way to the bathroom and washed up.

"Holy motherfucker of all shits," Grimmjow cursed as he read the back pages of Tokyo's most notorious tabloid paper. "Fucking little fuckers on a fucking morning."

His famous cousin glanced at him. "Have you rinsed your mouth?"

Grimmjow placed both feet on the coffee table and crossed them. "Am I still stuck in that fucking teacup from hell?"

"For others, it is temporary. For you, it is permanent."

The television was switched on, but no one paid any attention to it. A music programme was airing currently and a pop singer had just finished an energetic song and dance routine. The presenters went on to discuss the latest tabloid blind. A phone line was also set up for viewers to send in their guesses. Ulquiorra found the show incredibly obnoxious and reached for the remote control. He turned the television off and took a sip of his coffee.

"Hey boring bastard. Don't behave as if nothing is worth your fucking attention." Grimmjow flipped through the paper again, not bothering to notice which page his large hand was rambling through. "The impossible just happened. And like those cunts on TV were saying, everyone's guessing who's this illicit couple who did fuckity times in a motel room."

Ulquiorra Schiffer glared at him sharply. "At the age of 25, I would have expected you to display the littlest trace of intelligence, to discern between fact and haphazardly constructed myths, and to form your own line of thought. Not to mention be accountable for your own well being."

Grimmjow returned to the newspaper with a deep frown and tunelessly hummed a song. He gave the article another look, taking in each and every word as if they were drops of precious whiskey. At last he came to a sound, if not incredulous conclusion.

"So you fucked him? Or did he--oh fuck this. Do I need to know this fucking mess?" Grimmjow returned his cousin's glare. "Spare me the shit."

A tiny twitch appeared between Ulquiorra's eyebrows. "Did you not hear what I just said?"

"So he was bang on. Fuck. Get me a Jim Beam or a fucking defibrillator. I think my heart just stopped beating."

Ulquiorra sighed quietly. "If you want to die, go find a spot by the trash bin downstairs and remain there. Don't ever return to this house. I am not fond of supernatural entities." He made his way upstairs to the study, his pet cat trailing after him dutifully, but not before throwing Grimmjow Jeagerjacques some feline shade.

When the phone rang at 7.30 Kurosaki Ichigo was sound asleep. He was having a dream almost identical to the one he had months ago. From the unfriendly looks his co-star gave him right down to the way he threw a glass of wine over his head, leaving the both of them to paddle furiously in a sinking pool of alcohol. Except this time, they held onto each other out of desperation, struggling to survive against all odds. Sea waves crashed violently against an unseen shore line, and the skies were dark. So dark that he couldn't see a thing, and Ulquiorra's gleaming green eyes became his guiding light. A tiny beam of moonlight shone on their wet bodies, carelessly tossed about in nature's rage. Heavy rainclouds gathered overhead. A huge storm was imminent. Thunder rumbled, and before the last bout of lightning struck the churning waters, their mouths joined together in a kiss.

That was when he woke up. He looked around in the fuzzy morning light filtering through his window, and saw no traces of water on the floor. He heaved a sigh of relief. The catastrophe was now only a distant dream. The darkness, the foreboding sense of doom. They were all gone. He was safe and dry and on solid land, but he was alone. Gathering pieces of his consciousness together, he then realized there was no Ulquiorra Schiffer kissing him.

"Shit, I don't need such crappy thoughts now," he mumbled to himself.

The phone was still ringing, not his cell phone but the one downstairs in the living room. Convinced no one was going to pick it up, he pushed the covers off of himself and slid down the bed clumsily. It took him a while to get there, but the phone never stopped ringing.

"Yeah?" he answered in a groggy voice.

"Oi. It's about time you get off your bed," said Renji.

"Just did. Now what?"

"Got some plans lined up for you today."

Ichigo scratched his head. "Today? It's Monday, isn't it?"

"Duh. Don't talk to me about Mondays or Sundays. They are all the same to me," Renji sulked from the other end of the line.

"Why? Hey wait," Ichigo slapped his forehead. "Don't you think it's a bit too early to have me play Aunt Agony to whatever problems you have?"

"My problem? Your problem is my problem, dude. And when your problem is causing me serious insomnia at night, I'm gonna make sure we rectify this as soon as possible!"

"Anyway, I've something on today."

"Strike that off then. We're gonna go on a wild PR spree today! With your ahem, girlfriend, of course. Have to say she's one hell of a busy woman these days. New perfume, new movie, in the talks to co-design a fashion line."

"It's important," Ichigo countered.

Renji let out a loud sigh. "Nothing's more important than trying to salvage the rumors of you and Ulquiorra flying all over the place. Look, the best way to shut the paps up is by feeding them with what they've forgotten in the first place. You're well, I don't know, I guess, supposedly straight and with a girl, right? We have to nail that to the back of their heads. And, tonight's the premiere of her debut movie. The tabloid item has kinda damaged her standing, you know that? Her management doesn't want the gossip and possibly the downfall of your relationship to threaten the ticket receipts. They have been hounding me like crazy since yesterday, saying I gotta do this, I gotta do that. Arrange this, that, whatever. I'm not asking for much, friend, just that you come along on this media circus ride, treat it as a movie, and act the part of a devoted boyfriend. You can even make up your own lines! Thought you hate memorizing? So this should work, right? Then we can all wrap up and go home, or in your case, prepare to attend the premiere as her date."

"The premiere?"

If Renji could travel via optic fibers he would reach into the mouthpiece and strangle the heck out of his friend. "Yeah," he spat harshly, "don't tell me you cleanly forgot about it. It's part of your contract, remember?"

"Nah, I didn't," Ichigo laid a finger on the red button. "Just, well...just not today."

A pause on Renji's side. "Don't tell me you're gonna...?" he asked in suspicion. "Everyone's waiting to catch you redhanded now, I bet. Your names are thrown up in the air like juggling balls and I suggest you could lie low for a bit. You don't have to brave every single storm. Sometimes, just let it pass and die down."

Ichigo needed to end this conversation in the fastest time possible. "Don't worry, I'll be at the studio this evening for the premiere. 7pm sharp I guarantee. As for the rest, sorry, pal. I really have something important later," he said, and hung up before Renji could say anything else.

A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing. One thing of note, I'm not here to do a typical yaoi story. There are no kidnappings, no gangster scuffles, no M-rated stuff (not for this anyway), no dramatic turn of events, no angsty sex. Just normal, day to day stuffs between two actors in a real environment laid out in quotidian detail and pitiful attempts at romance and humor. It's supposed to be a pretty carefree AU story anyway. I don't know how it is, but there's great difficulty for me to express a 'romcom' style plot without going down the typical chick flick/lit route. There, I've already laid out what's in store for you. No apologies. This story is, I admit, messy and when I reflect upon it, I see a lack of shape. Ah...I'll still strive to finish it. It's all about my favorite BLEACH pairing. All feedback are welcome!

P.S. Part 2, aka Chapter 21, will be out sometime this week. Seems like this story is going to hit 30 chapters in total. Yikes!