Hi guys, this be chapter six! Thank you to everyone who reviewed!! I know, one day late again...

By the way, I've changed the genre of this story from Romance/Humour to Romance/Drama. It just suddenly occurred to me... I'm not funny. Nor is this story. Thus the change. Also, if people hadn't realised, the italics indicate scripted lines, or parts from the movie, or thoughts.

Disclaimer: Skip Beat isn't mine; The Scarlet Pimpernel isn't mine.

CHAPTER SIX!!

Director Shinkai Seishi stood and watched the performance. Once Ren entered, you could say it all came together. He and Kyoko worked perfectly with each other. Of course, as Ren was playing the pretty young actresses husband, he suspected it was easier for Ren than it would have been for some other actor. He'd have to ask Yashiro about it later. The change in casting did not seem to have affected Mayui-chan; she was actually acting better than he'd ever seen. Maybe this role did suit her better? Again, he'd have to check.

He sat back in his low chair to analyse the piece more critically. The parts of the Comtesse and Vicomte were done passably; not excellent but not bad either. He watched as the young man playing the French aristocrat, the vicomte, turned and challenged Ren to a duel, as per the script. In real life, no one would have dared to challenge Ren, physically or otherwise. Although there had been that one time with that singer, Sho Fuwa... Arrogant guy, he seemed to remember. This young actor seemed quite brave while facing Ren; he'd been very happy to have scored even a minor part in such a production. Ren, as Sir Percy Blakeney, easily diffused the situation with a particularly inane laugh. Shinkai was glad that Ren didn't make a habit of that laugh in real life; it was singularly annoying.

"Damn uncomfortable things, duels." Said Ren, looking around the room with a lazy expression on his face. It was a novelty. Ren never looked like that.

"Sir Tony, please play the peacemaker." That was Kyoko, also looking disinterested, "The young French bantam is excitable and may do Sir Percy and injury."

The last line was added with the barest hint of contempt. Perfect acting. Marguerite was meant to be in disdain of her apparently useless husband. He watched as the scene went on, and Kyoko excused herself, saying that she had to go and farewell her beloved brother, Armand, before he left for France. Ren, in a display of affected gallantry but little real emotion, held the door for her and bowed her from the room. A small look of longing through the open doorway Kyoko walked through, apparently noticed by none of the other characters. A blink, and the look was gone. Perfect. Again, the Director mused on the sincerity of that last look.

"Cut! That's a wrap!" He called.

Shinkai stood and moved to the cameramen to watch the playback from different angles. That last scene had run for seven or so minutes; the actors still onstage went to their dressing rooms to touch up on makeup and other minor adjustments. Under the stage lighting, actors got quite hot and it was necessary for a touch-up. He watched the screen as Ren made his entrance. There were two camera angles possible for this part; he'd have to decide which one was better. All in all, though, it seemed like this scene was done. The Director got Mayui's manager, that Saku-san lady, to go and tell her charge and the other actors that this scene was complete, and they could change their costumes. She walked off.

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Kyoko left the set to return to her dressing room. As she walked along the empty white corridors, she could hear the swishing of her dress and many petticoats, and the faint clicking of her high heeled boots on the vinyl. As she walked into her dressing room, she noticed something. There was an envelope resting on the floor; if must have been pushed under her door. Feeling curious, she picked it up. Maybe it was a letter from someone? Moko-san, maybe? But even as she thought that, she knew it was wrong. Moko wouldn't send her a letter. It was probably just addressed to her, so someone put it in her room. Maybe it was one of those flyers you always get. She opened it.

Quit this project you evil girl no one likes you Warning!

Kyoko sat down hard. Not what she had expected. The note was made by cutting and sticking newspaper letters. For a second, she went into Natsu-mode. The bully-girl recognised the crudeness of the letter and felt disdainful of the childish and unimaginative person who made this. She could have thought of something better. Her next thought was that she'd like to talk to the person who made this happy little welcome gift. Fortunately, Kyoko snapped out of it before she started plotting to destroy people's mental states, and went into her own type of thought. Firstly, she didn't know what to do with it. Should she keep it? Or destroy it? Kyoko didn't know. Maybe she'd ask Ren.

Then it hit her. Ren is a professional actor. He must get hate mail every now and then. And since she has been playing all these nasty roles, it's possible that someone was actually sending this hateful note to her character. Probably Mio. Everyone seemed to hate but love Natsu. Anyway, it's a normal thing for actors, she thought, so I shouldn't let it bother me! That said, Kyoko let go of her worries and put the letter in her desk drawer, forgetting about it. After all, it was time to prepare for her next scene; a confrontation between her character, Marguerite, and a slightly older man playing the villain, Chauvelin.

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Ren left his dressing room in normal clothing, as he had finished his part for today. Now that Yashiro was back, Kyoko was no longer his temporary manager, so he could have left to go home. However, he'd decided to stay for the next half hour or so before leaving, so he could see Kyoko's part. He told himself it had nothing to do with the fact that the man she would be acting with was a notorious womaniser. Rather, Ren justified himself with the fact that Kyoko had left her things at his apartment, something the press would love to know, and he should really take her there to get it back. As such, he was now standing against one of the walls in the main room with his scheming manager by his side. They'd yet to talk about that.

"Yashiro," Ren began, "Did you purposefully beg off work to force Kyoko on me?"

"Of course not!" said Yashiro with an all too innocent look on his face, "My aunt wanted me! I had to leave to take care of her. I'd never do something so unprofessional as lie to get out of working!"

Ren glared lightly at him. "You didn't answer the second part of the question."

Yashiro pursed his lips, thinking. Ren already knew that his manager had done it on purpose, to try and get him to do something about his little crush. Okay, his full-blown major one-sided love interest. Not that Yashiro would ever say that straight out.

"Well, you've already had Kyoko once before and she proved she was capable. We weighted the benefits of finding someone new who may or may not be more suited to the job against the advantage of already having someone who'd get you to your job on time. And feed you." He added under his breath.

Ren almost snorted. Why did everyone want to feed him? On Valentine's Day, he got so many chocolates he could've opened a chocolate factory. And not just from female admirers.

Daijiro Tanaka, the man who played Chauvelin, walked over to Ren. He was tall, with brown-black hair, but not a good personality. They had never got along. Unfortunately, although he was a good actor, Daijiro had very different morals than Ren in regards to both women and alcohol. He was one of those people who appeared in every magazine, for all the wrong reasons. Daijiro didn't like Ren because he was younger, taller and more famous than him. More talented too, Yashiro would argue. The two men greeted each other with civility, but there was an undercurrent of dislike that somewhat strained the meeting.

"So," started Daijiro, "I haven't worked with you on a major movie before, Ren."

Ren didn't say anything, he just nodded.

"But you've worked with Kyoko-chan before, haven't you? You two were in Dark Moon together."

Inwardly, Ren fumed. How was this man, who'd never met Kyoko before and had barely any morals, already calling her 'Kyoko-chan'? It suddenly occurred to him that as a responsible Sempai, he should inform his Kohai, who didn't read magazines, of this man's reputation.

"Yes, Tanaka-san, I have. She is very professional with her acting."

"Hmm. She's quite pretty too."

Ren twitched. "Isn't she a little young for you?"

The other man seemed untroubled. "Well, she's seventeen, isn't she? She's legal."

Again, Ren had to hold in the urge to punch the promiscuous actor. Kyoko was seventeen. She'd never even had a boyfriend before, and he was thinking about...?! He let out a small breath, before turning to look Daijiro in the eye.

"Tanaka-san. I advise that you act in a strictly professional manner with Kyoko. She's not that kind of girl, and she's too young for you. "

The other man shrugged.

"I'm a famous actor." He said, as if that explained everything, " She's still a newbie, you know. You don't know how to have fun."

With that happy thought, Daijiro Tanaka left to do and talk to the director and flirt with some poor makeup artist. Poor woman, she looked flattered. She had no idea. Ren closed his eyes and decided to work on calming himself down. At least one thing was for sure; Kyoko would have absolutely no idea if Daijiro tried to pick her up. That would actually be funny to watch. He opened his eyes. Miracle of miracles, Yashiro wasn't sniggering at him for losing a piece of his mask. Actually, he looked a little anxious. Ren glanced a question at him.

"Ren, I'm thinking that Kyoko and Tanaka won't mix..."

"That's a good thing." Ren stated.

"No, I mean... well, he's not exactly the greatest guy, right?"

"He's most defiantly not."

Yashiro turned around fully to stare at him.

"Ren, aren't you worried?"

Ren sighed. "Okay, I am a little. But Kyoko will be fine, if it's her. She's never anything but professional and she'll mistake everything for friendship only."

I know, because it happens to me all the time.

"You'd better hope so," Huffed his manager as Kyoko walked onto the set, "because they're on right now."

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Yay, the end of another chapter!! I was late again this week, because I actually got home this morning yesterday (Okay, that was a weird sentence; you'll get it if you think about it). Anyway, now we have an antagonist who just happens to be playing the antagonist.

Please review this chapter!! ^^