Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Page #6

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Lo rides on as she charges after her horse.

EXT. DESERT BLUFF - DAY

A group of bandits is dividing up the loot, as Jen rides up,

keeping a respectable distance. They notice her and rise as

she dismounts.

One of them saunters over to her and stands, grinning, a few

feet away.

In a second, she's slammed his balls into his stomach and

knocked his nose into his face. He crumples to the sand.

The other bandits stop laughing, quickly exchange glances,

and charge her at once.

In a matter of seconds, they're either on the ground or

dragging their fallen comrades back.

Lo calls out and stops the fight.

LO:

She's mine.

EXT. DESERT - DAY

Lo and Jen ride, if not side-by-side, then parallel, about

20 feet apart. Their pace has slowed considerably. In

fact, they're dead tired.

LO:

Let's stop a moment.

JEN:

Give it back!

LO:

(shouting a bit)

You're tired. You need rest. Your

horse needs water. There's a creek

up here.

He dismounts, looks down at the dry creek bed.

LO:

Well, there used to be! What's

your name? I'm Lo. The Hans call

me Dark Cloud. I'm not that tall

or big, but I'm quick as lightning.

JEN:

My comb!

She kicks him. They fight ferociously until Lo, exhausted,

collapses. She kicks him a few times, then collapses too.

INT. CAVE - DAY

Jen comes to and finds herself wrapped in a blanket of

animal fur. She sits up with a start and checks her clothes.

Looking around, she realizes she's in a cave. Next to her

are a lamp, some hunting equipment, and a neat row of sharp

arrows. She quickly grabs one of the arrows.

LO:

If you like that arrow, I can make

you a bow. Great for hunting wild

chicken. They're delicious.

Jen raises one of the arrows, going on the attack again, but

her legs betray her and she falls.

LO:

You need to eat, understand? Then

you'll have the strength to fight.

Understand?

He helps her up, then pours her some horse milk from a sac.

He hands her a small chunk of food, which she first accepts

grudgingly, then, her hunger getting the better of her, she

starts to wolf it down.

LO:

You're eating too fast. Slowly.

EXT. CAVE - DAY

Lo walks out into a barren mountain landscape. A chicken

roasts over a fire. Lo whistles.

Jen appears suddenly with a rock and knocks it over his head.

Lo passes out as Jen scurries away.

EXT. MOUNTAINSIDE AND DESERT - DAY

Jen tries to find her way among the treacherous stony

terrain, her lips chapped and fingers bloody and blistered.

But soon she passes out.

INT. CAVE - NIGHT

Jen again awakes inside the cave. Lo tries to feed her some

water, but she chokes, and tries to push him away, only to

find that her legs and hands are tied up.

LO:

You've got quite a temper. It's

better this way.

JEN:

You coward!

LO:

Still in a bad mood? At least

you're speaking. What's your name?

Jen spits at Lo.

LO:

I didn't think the Hans had names

like that.

Later:
She weaves in and out of consciousness. In the

flickering lights, she sees Lo sharpening his arrows.

Later, he pulls back an opaque curtain to reveal a makeshift

bathroom -- a water-filled cavity serves as a tub.

He rises as Jen sobs at the sight of her imprisoned and

dishevelled body. He comes over and unties her.

LO:

Relax. If I had wanted to, I would

already have done it. You must be

dying for a bath. Fresh water's

hard to get here. But I managed to

bring some up. You can wear my

clothes when you're done. They're

clean. Don't worry. I'll sing, so

you'll know where I am. After the

bath, you'll be calmer.

Jen nods and the bandit releases her. He starts to sing as

he walks out. Jen waits until the sound recedes before

closing the curtain behind her and dipping into the pit.

While she bathes, she listens to his singing, a loud

rendition of a tribal song. Lo apparently doesn't remember

all the lyrics, and la-las his way through more than a few

passages. Jen smiles.

INT. CAVE - NIGHT

Jen grimaces as Lo pulls the last of some cactus needles

from the soles of her feet.

LO:

No more hitting on the head! All

this trouble for a comb?

JEN:

It's mine. It means a lot to me.

A barbarian like you wouldn't

understand.

LO:

Not true. I can use it to pick

fleas from my horse.

JEN:

By the way, I'm a real Manchurian.

LO:

I'm sorry... I guessed wrong. I

though you were a Han.

JEN:

Give me back my comb.

LO:

I don't take orders from anyone.

JEN:

Give it back.

Jen impulsively grabs an arrow and stabs Lo, drawing a

little blood from his chest. Furious, Lo lunges at her and

they tussle briefly. Finally, Lo gets on top of Jen, and

the scuffling becomes more like foreplay. Violence turns

into unleashed passion.

EXT. DESERT OASIS - DAY

Lo and Jen ride across the desert. Jen holds tightly to him.

EXT. CAVE - NIGHT

Lo and Jen lie in the bath together.

LO:

When I was a boy, one night, I saw

a thousand shooting stars. I

thought, where did they all go?

I'm an orphan. I used to look for

stars alone. I thought if I rode

to the other end of the desert, I'd

find them. I've been riding in the

desert ever since.

JEN:

And so, the little boy became a

fearsome bandit. He couldn't find

the stars, so he stole my comb.

Lo pauses.

LO:

Out here, you always fight for

survival. You have to be part of a

gang to stand a chance. Slowly,

your gang becomes your family. All

that Dark Cloud stuff is just to

scare people and make my life easier.

JEN:

So you're still that little boy

looking for shooting stars.

LO:

I am a man. And now I've found the

brightest star of all.

EXT. DESERT - DAY

Lo sees uniformed men through his binoculars.

LO:

Your father's men are looking for

you.

Jen doesn't respond.

EXT. DESERT - DAY

Lo and Jen ride through a mountain pass.

EXT. CLIFF - DAY

Lo and Jen stand at the crest of a cliff. Lo looks over,

viewing the desert valley below, as Jen joins him. They see

a troop of uniformed men riding by in the distance.

LO:

Your father's men are still looking

for you. They're still out there,

circling closer.

JEN:

Let them look.

LO:

It is trouble for me.

Jen bites her lip.

JEN:

Don't send me back!

LO:

You must decide. You might get

tired of this life. You might

begin to miss your family. If it

were our daughter, we'd look for

her too. She would miss us. Jen...

I want you to be mine forever. I

will make my mark on the world. I

will earn your parents' respect.

We have a legend. Anyone who dares

to jump from the mountain, God will

grant his wish. Long ago, a young

man's parents were ill, so he

jumped. He didn't die. He wasn't

even hurt. He floated away, far

away, never to return. He knew his

wish had come true. If you believe,

it will happen. The elders say, "A

faithful heart makes wishes come

true."

INT. TENT - DAY

Jen and Lo kiss. Jen takes the jade comb out of her hair

and presses it into his palm. Jen starts to cry. They

embrace.

JEN:

Keep it safe. Return it to me when

we are together again.

LO:

I will.

JEN:

(smiling painfully)

If you don't, I'll come after you.

And I won't let you off so easy.

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