Here is the next chapter for your enjoyment. Please let me know if you see anything that needs correcting. Thank you for your support.
Note: I do not own Skip Beat!
The next few days went about the same. Catherine spent most of her time intimidating the troubled fans and paparazzi into behaving so Kyoko could get on with school and work. The bit part Kyoko was doing for Ren's drama wouldn't be needed for filming again for a few more days, so they didn't have the opportunity to meet up with Ren and Yashiro. When Catherine went to have the stitches removed, the doctors were happy with her progress. It looked as if her cut was healing well and the scar would not be too visible. This news made Kyoko very happy.
Having left Kyoko to finish a special LoveMe project, Catherine stopped in to visit with Lory for his update on Kyoko's situation. Today's visit was also to let him know how her recovery was going. She only paused a moment to take in the view as she walked into the door of president's office. Today Lory had jungle vines hanging from the ceiling and a live orangutan eating bananas next to the desk. The man himself was dressed in skins like Tarzan. Catherine shook her head and went to sit on the vine covered chair.
"Don't you think you have overdone it a little today?" She looked at the scantily clad president. "I mean, this is Japan and they do have very sensitive morals here." Lory considered her for a moment.
"You have a point." Lory clapped his hands and Sebastian brought in a tan safari suit. As the president pulled it on over his leather loin cloth, Sebastian picked up the young orangutan and took it out of the room. Catherine laughed when the silent servant returned a few minutes later with a young tiger on a leash instead.
"You really know how to take it over the top." She reached down and petted the big cat settling itself near her feet. The tiger turned his massive head to her so she could scratch under its chin. She pulled back when the tiger started to mouthing her hand. Even though the cat seemed somewhat tame, she didn't want to be anywhere neat those big teeth when they were exposed. "So, have we found out where the rumors are coming from?" Catherine leaned back into her chair.
"I think we have." Lory pulled a folder from his desk and handed it to Catherine. She opened it and frowned at the contents.
"Are you sure this it right?" Catherine read the material again before closing the folder and handing it back to Lory's outstretched hand.
"It was really hard to believe, so I have had this information checked several times." Lory placed the folder back into his desk drawer. He leaned back in his chair, steepled his fingers, and lost himself in thought for a moment.
"The question is how do we go about stopping this person from spreading more rumors?" Catherine turned her mind to the problem at hand. "I don't think we should tell Kyoko about this development."
"Absolutely! It would only upset and distract her." Lory sat up and leaned on his desk. "In fact, if she never found out about this it would be better." Catherine nodded her agreement again. "I think the best thing to do is what we have been doing. Give official statements when the rumors hit and make sure she is protected. That is all we can do at the moment." Lory sighed and then looked at Catherine. "How is your head doing?" Lory inquired, trying to get a better look at the left side of the manager's face. Catherine angled her head so he could see and pushed the concealing hair back to expose the angry red line on her temple. Lory grunted his approval of her progress.
"The headache is gone and it has healed fairly well." Catherine let the hair fall back. "Once it has healed a little more, it should be no problem to hide. The bruise on my arm has almost faded completely." She pulled her sleeve up to show the slightly yellowish-green area on her forearm.
"That is very good. It will make getting a dress easier for you." Catherine dropped her arm and tilled her head to contemplate what the president said, confusion clear on her face. Lory smiled, "I have made arrangement for Ren to take Kyoko to a benefit tomorrow night." Catherine's eyes widened in disbelief, 'Was he being serious?' "I think it would be good to have her make a public appearance with someone other than Sho." Lory continued to explain. "Maybe then his fans would believe the statements that have been made." Catherine's face lifted as she understood.
"But couldn't that possibly start rumors about her and Tsuruga-san?" Catherine puzzled. This could be a two edged sword, yes it would draw the press from her and Sho, but it could cast her in a completely different light. If this was not played carefully, she could look like a player, and that was never a good role for an up and coming talent.
"Not at all. They are both members of LME. If there are any questions we simply state that they took the tickets for another real couple that could not make it." Lory smiled. He pulled out an invitation with his and Maria's name on it. "They can use these." Two tickets stuck out from the card. "I can't go and it would be a shame to waste this opportunity." Catherine grinned at the cunning man, this was a perfect plan. Lory pulled another two tickets from his desk and added them to the first set. Kathern looked puzzled. 'Why two more tickets?' she wondered. "These are your and Yashiro's tickets." He handed the lot over to her. "Please make sure everyone has proper attire for the evening's activities." Catherine took the offered items and looked at them.
"Umm… Why are Yashiro-san and I going? Kyoko should be safe enough with Tsuruga-san." Catherine rubbed the embossed paper with her thumb.
"Double Date!" Lory laughed. Catherine glares up at his mirth and he sighed in his happiness. "Seriously, Kyoko needs you. And it would be improper to make you go by yourself." Catherine let her face go blank and nodded her head. The last thing she wanted to be to Ren and Kyoko's evening was a third wheel. She placed the passes in the envelope and stowed it in her coat pocket.
"Do Tsuruga-san and Yashiro-san know that they will be attending this event with Kyoko?" Catherine asked suspiciously.
"Not yet, but I have cleared all of your schedules for tomorrow. Please make the proper arrangements. You can use the LME account for anything you need." Lory smiled evilly.
"Alright, then I need to get back to work. Kyoko is relatively safe here, but I don't want to leave her alone for too long; especially with this development." Catherine prepared to leave.
"There is one other thing that needs to be addresses." Lory picked up three folders from the corner of his desk. "These are offers for Kyoko. I have looked over them and think they would be a good move for her. Please make sure that she considers each one carefully." He hands them to Catherine. "And if there is anything that I can do for you, let me know." Catherine tucked the folders under her arm and bowed slightly to the man.
"Have a nice day." She called to him as she slipped out the door. She rolled the gravity of the situation over in her mind as she made her way to the LoveMe locker room. If the rumors were coming from that source, it would explain why they were being taken seriously by the public. But why would that person want to ruin either Sho or Kyoko's careers? She could only hope the president could take care of the problem. Her mind turned to the pressure he just placed on her. A benefit was the last thing she wanted to think about right now. She tried to put off thinking about that by pulling out the three offers and looking at them. The first one was an ongoing police drama Ren was staring in. They wanted Kyoko to play a criminal for a few episodes. A bit part, but still, it was good work. The second was a commercial for a hotel chain. She would get to be someone checking in, nice and easy. The third was for a music video. Catherine nearly dropped the file when she saw the name of the singer. Even with all the drama in the news, Sho was asking her to be in his pv? Catherine closed the folders and went to find her charge.
Kyoko was manhandling a large stack of folders out of a conference room when Catherine finally located her. Kyoko could not see past them and was only guessing on how to navigate the hallway. Catherine came over and relived her of half the pile before Kyoko realized she was the.
"How did you meeting go with the president?" Kyoko asked as she led the way to deliver the papers.
"Good. He gave me some new offers for you." Catherine followed her down the stairs and into an office. "I looked over them, and I think you will like most of them." Kyoko placed the stack of papers on the table. Catherine sat hers next to Kyoko's before pulled the three files out and handed them to Kyoko. She took a few minutes and looked over the first two with a smile, but she froze when she opened the third folder.
"The first two are fine, but I can't do this." She closed the third folder and started to hand it back to her manager.
"Alright, I'm not here to force you into anything you don't want to do, but Lory did ask me to have you think about these offers very carefully." Catherine took the folder from Kyoko and looked at it again. "It is a simple part and these people did help you get your first real role." Kyoko stopped and considered what her manage was saying. Haruki Asami was directing this PV and she was grateful to the woman for showing Director Ogata the Prisoner PV early. It had ensured her the role as Mio. Kyoko reached out to take the folder back.
"I will think about it." Kyoko placed this folder with the other two. Catherine smiled, she was sure that this would help with Kyoko's image.
"Good, I will make arrangements for the first two while you think about the last one. Now, if you are done here, we have other work that needs done today." Catherine turned before Kyoko could answer and headed out to the locker room. Kyoko stepped quickly to catch up to her manager.