508 The One Who Experienced Metempsychosis in the Imagined Landscape (1/2)
Chapter 508: The One Who Experienced Metempsychosis in the Imagined Landscape
Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
”Famous?
”Famous, are you inside?”
Numerous angular diamonds gradually blurred, and when they became clear again, they had turned into countless teardrop shaped drops of water on the mirror. Zhang Zian knocked on the door to the bathroom and kept calling Famous's name.
Famous was summoned back to reality. It suddenly came back. It had almost lost itself in its maze of memory again. Having successfully played certain roles in movies, Famous had won the audience's heartfelt affection and felt a great sense of accomplishment. Famous was obsessed and enjoyed such a feeling. Since Famous had to play so many fictional characters in movies and be another dog in real life, it had gradually lost itself, forgetting its identity, and why it even existed.
”Coming!” Famous cried, looking at itself in the mirror for the last time. In that moment Famous thought that it was looking at a different dog. It shivered. Maybe to other people, that dog was a superstar, but that dog was a nightmare to Famous.
”Famous, are you okay? You've been in the bathroom for a long time, and the second half of the movie is beginning immediately,” said Zhang Zian with concern from outside the door.
After a moment of turmoil, Famous calmed itself down. It had already gotten its memory back and decided not to run away. Famous smiled at itself in the mirror and said softly, ”Goodbye, brother.”
The dog in the mirror also smiled at Famous and said clearly, ”Goodbye.”
The long lasting nightmare that had been haunting Famous finally ended.
Famous jumped off the sink and opened the bathroom door. Water drops were still on its head and neck.
”I'm fine, I just washed my face,” it explained lightly.
Since Famous was safe and sound, Zhang Zian smiled sheepishly. ”I know. But just now, I suddenly felt a little flustered, as if you had gone some place far away. This feeling was quite strange. If I didn't come to see if you were safe, I wouldn't have been able to ease my mind.”
Famous was silent for a few seconds and denied it. ”No, I've been here the entire time. I never left. I just...couldn't find a towel after washing my face.”
”Oh, it doesn't look like there is a towel in here. You can use the hand dryer. Would you like to dry your fur under the dryer?” said Zhang Zian, pointing to it in the bathroom.
Famous shook its head. ”No, I'm fine.”
”Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?” Zhang Zian still felt it would be safer for Famous to blow dry its fur now that winter had arrived.
Famous ran to the leather sofa, and answered without turning its head. ”It doesn't matter. We're staying indoors for a while to see the second half of the movie anyways.”
Zhang Zian looked at the bathroom again and closed the door.
As Famous and Zhang Zian returned to their seats one after another, Richard fluttered its wings and cried, ”Told you! It was only sh*ting in the bathroom, where else could it have went? And you insisted on checking it out! Did you want to watch? You're so perverted!”
Damn it! You b*tchy bird! I don't have a rope with me today, but I'll hang you when we get back to the pet shop, thought Zhang Zian.
Fina also said scornfully, ”Even though you're a man, you're even more foolishly sentimental than a woman is.”
”Your Majesty, if he wants to be a woman, I can help him there.” Snowy Lionet evilly looked at Zhang Zian's pants.
Just when Zhang Zian was about to sternly stop their crazy ideas, the lights in the screening room were dimmed, and the second half of the movie began. The elves all stared at the screen attentively. Now, nobody would listen to whatever he was going to say. He had no choice but to bite his tongue, sit on the sofa, and wait for the second half of the movie to finish. Famous also jumped into its seat and laid down quietly. The leather sofa was soft and expensive, but was incomparable to the sofa in that luxurious office.
As a prelude to the main plot, the first half of the movie had moved slowly. But when the second half of the movie began with a military vehicle carrying a troop of armed policemen and police dogs towards the wild western border of China, the atmosphere and scores suddenly changed. The plot finally reached its climax. When the border guards were trapped in the snowy plateau with a scarce amount food, and had no way to communicate with the outside world outside of dispatching the police dogs to trek through the snow for aid, even the elves in the cinema felt the tension of the movie.
The police dogs ran through the wilderness covered in snow and ice. Famous was in the front, while Red Dragon and Prince were running behind it on its left and right side. The three dogs formed the shape of an arrow. The sun was half set and crimson. It was sinking below the horizon on the western plateau. Darkness and despair were about to cover everything.
The camera zoomed in on the three police dogs, and even the reflection of the sunset could be seen in their eyes. Through this scene, the audience could clearly feel the firmness and perseverance in Famous's eyes, while the look in the eyes of the other two police dogs were rather ordinary.
Later, the tension overwhelmed the audience in the scenes where the police dogs had to cross the dangerous minefield and then were ambushed by the lethal Tibetan Mastiffs.
Time always passed very quickly when watching a good movie.
The police dogs finally arrived at the headquarters of the garrison. After giving the precious help letters from the trapped police officers to the sentinels, the police dogs collapsed onto the ground. The trapped police officers were rescued in time. The police dogs received the highest level of recognition at the assembly hall. First Class Merit was given to the police dogs collectively, while Lightning, the police dog played by Famous, also received Second Class Merit individually.
Three police dogs sat side by side on the stage. The moment the camera light flashed to take pictures of the dogs, the movie ended. A lot of behind the scene footage, along with the closing credits continued to play on the screen. The lights were still dimmed, and the elves were enjoying all of the funny bloopers.
Famous was also still watching the screen, looking for its own name. However, Famous didn't see its name in the closing credits. It was silently dejected. It looked at Zhang Zian and said, ”The director said that our names would be in the closing credits.”
Zhang Zian responded to its gaze and nodded. ”He did.”
”But no, neither of our names were on the screen,” Famous pointed out.
”Because I asked Director Feng not to put your name there, at least for now,” Zhang Zian explained calmly. ”There is still a while before the film is officially released. I want to wait for you to recover your memory, then we can put your real name in the credits.”
Famous murmured, ”My real name...”
”I know that 'Famous' is the name that you have given yourself temporarily. But you want your real name to appear in front of a national audience, don't you? So, I asked Director Feng to wait, and he agreed. In any case, the film needs to go through several stages, like post production, reviewing, and scheduling before its release. You don't need to worry. You'll have enough time to remember your real name.”
Famous lowered its head and said in a deep, husky voice, ”Famous, or any other name, is just a term to address me. It doesn't matter which of my names actually appears on screen.”
”No! It does matter!” Zhang Zian's sounded especially serious. ”This is the movie you've played in. I was practically useless at the studio, but you were different. I know that you've been performing diligently on the set without complaint and have even risked your own life. Although I have limited abilities to appreciate the arts, it seems to me that this is a great movie that will not only be likely to succeed in the box office, but is also carrying a heavy social responsibility. It's a movie that can become a classic. You, the star of the film, have the right to leave your name—your real name—in the history of film.”
”My real name...my real name...” Famous was incredibly emotional by that point. It had worked in many films. However, in the closing credits of those movies, it was always the name of the other dog that had appeared on the screen. It would be the first time Famous used its own name for a movie.
Famous's name had a very important meaning to itself. Names had nothing to do with fame or fortune, but it represented Famous's very existence. From now on, Famous was no longer one of the eighteen understudies, it was no longer number 13, and it could finally use its real name proudly.
”Yes, your real name,” Zhang Zian asked gently, ”Famous, have you remembered your real name?”
Famous raised its head. It was so glad that it washed its face before. The water drops would cover up its tears perfectly.
”I have. My name is Famous,” it said, with a lump in its throat.
Zhang Zian was surprised. Previously, he thought that he had figured out Famous's real name because there were few well known dogs with excellent acting skills in film history. And among those dogs, there were even fewer German Shepherds. So, it was very easy to guess Famous's identity. However, when Famous said that its real name was Famous, Zhang Zian could not help but doubt his own intelligence.