Beatrice (and so on) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
boxupallthebutterflies) wrote2012-01-04 02:54 am
boxupallthebutterflies) wrote2012-01-04 02:54 am
Memory 33 - Trivial Positive; Memory 34 - Significant Negative
THE MEMORY:
[Setting: The rose garden, in the heavy rain and strong wind. Maria is crouched, searching among the roses miserably. Beatrice holds an umbrella over her, and she turns, surprised.]
MARIA: ...Uu--? Beatrice...!!
BEATRICE: What are you doing so frantically in the middle of all this rain? You could catch a cold like this. Even witches have to care for their own health.
MARIA: Maria... can't find... her rose... Uu--. No matter how many times she searches... even though it should have been here... can't find it...
[Maria tells Beatrice about how they had marked an unhealthy rose.]
BEATO: Hoho. So you can't find it. ...If you are a witch's apprentice, you should use magic to search for the rose. I believe that searching with just your eyes won't be nearly enough.
MARIA: ...Uu--. ...Can't find it. ...Maria's done her best, and tried to search with magic, but can't find it...
BEATO: I think that practicing your magic is a very good thing, but it might be a little too much for you with all of this wind and rain. ...Allow me to lend you some special power. Being concerned for their disciples is also one of the duties of a teacher.
MARIA: Th... thank you--. Beatrice!! [expression changing suddenly from sadness into a grin]
BEATO: [closing her eyes lightly, listening for something before opening her eyes] ...Hmm. All things in this world are transitory. Too bad, Maria. ...It seems that your rose couldn't withstand all of this wind and rain.
MARIA: Uu--... Then, Maria's rose...?
BEATO: It was uprooted by the wind, and is no longer of this world.
MARIA: ...Uu--... [moaning, bitter and low] ...No.
BEATO: Hoh?
MARIA: ...No no no! Maria's rose!! Maria's rose won't come back, no! Maria will bring it back to life with her magic. Beatrice, teach me how to revive a rose with magic...!!
BEATO: Ha! It's much too early for an apprentice like you to learn the hidden art of Endless Magic. Know your place.
MARIA: ...Uuuuuu. [wiping the tears from her eyes]
BEATO: [shrugging her shoulders, laughing] Very well. I will lend you power for the hidden art that can revive a rose.
MARIA: Really?!
BEATO: Hmm. ...Well then, concentrate the power of your heart. Close your eyes, forget the rain, forget the wind, search for the soul of the wandering rose with the eyes of your heart.
MARIA: ...Uu--. [closing her eyes]
BEATO: [song-like] Come, try to remember. Rose, what form did you have?
MARIA: ...Come, try to remember. Rose, what form did you have...?
BEATO: Don't look. Don't listen. And believe. ...Release the power of your soul from the cage of flesh that imprisons it. ...That's it. ...Good...
[Golden butterflies start to dance around Maria as she keeps her eyes tightly shut.]
BEATO: Lost soul of the rose. Gather into one, and remember your form. ...Come, gather, remember...
[The butterflies glow brighter and increase in number. Beatrice points a finger to the sky, and they gather there, condensing into a single golden seed, which then buds into a golden sprout, which opens into a golden leaf. It falls from her fingertip slowly, sinking into the mud of the flowerbed, growing steadily into a rose. Beatrice pokes it with her finger, and the gold color pops away like a soap bubble to leave a normal rose.]
BEATO: ...Hmm. It looks like you've remembered a splendid rose. ...However, if we just leave it mixed in with these other roses, you won't be able to tell it apart. Shall I perform one last service?
[Maria continues to moan in concentration. Beatrice snaps her fingers, and a single gold butterfly appears and lands on the rose. It bursts open into golden lace marking the rose.]
BEATO: That is sufficient. ...Maria. You may open your eyes now.
MARIA: ...Uu--? Where's the rose? Not here. Not here.
BEATO: Not over there, over here. ...Look. I've marked it with golden lace.
MARIA: Wah... you did...!! Awesome awesome awesome awesome!! Thank you Beato, thank you Beato!! Maria wants to become a witch quickly, a Great Witch like Beato!!
BEATO: And you can. Long ago, I too wished for that innocently, just as you do, and I have attained that level.
[Maria jumps around and claps her hands, ecstatic. Beatrice also smiles, pleased. She pulls out an envelope with the family crest on it, and hands it to Maria, which only causes her more joy.]
SUMMARYISH:
So, Beatrice has known about the true nature of magic for a while, relatively. But when she first started learning about it, it was from a memory of Erika looking down on magic and exposing cheap sleight of hand tricks, so it left her with sour defensive feelings about the whole thing. She adopted more of a defensive standpoint of "I have to protect these secrets," and she was made to feel more than a little foolish for sticking by magic.
Lately she has been getting a few more Maria memories though, which reinforce the opposite side of things--they make her realize the more basic, positive side of magic! She knew that magic was originally meant to make people happy, and that obviously she became a witch for a reason, but so far it hadn't really been demonstrated in her memories in a really clear and easy to understand way. With memories of Maria it's really easy to see... hey, with just a little bit of magic, this girl can be happy! Even when straightforward approaches fail! It gives her a little bit more hope in magic and in herself.
So she is starting to drift closer to canon in how she deals with people's issues. Previously with Peridot exploding, she's tried very hard to tolerate people and relate to them on a more straightforward, honest level. She has been very aware that she sucks at that, but what else can she do... BUT NOW SHE IS REMEMBERING! What she does instead! Which is drape a veil of magic over everything and try to brighten perspectives a bit. So she will be trying this approach instead, and trying to figure out how she can tackle individual members of Peridot in this way. IT WILL BE A BIT TOUGH since she doesn't actually have her skill for more practiced trickery, but she'll be thinking about it more :B!!
THE MEMORY:
[Setting: The rose garden at night. Jessica is lost in her thoughts as Kanon sneaks up on her.]
KANON: ...Milady.
JESSICA: Wah... Kanon-kun. D-Don't scare me like that, hahaha...! *cough*cough*! [flustered and surprised] What? Something to say...?
KANON: ...umm.
JESSICA: ...Yes? [expression returning to normal] Ah... about today's cultural festival... well, thanks for coming with me so I could show off. You really helped.
KANON: ...That song. ...You were good.
JESSICA: Wha?! ...Ah... ahahahahahaha?! R-Really, I'm embarrassed... [shy]
KANON: ...I cannot sing. And I don't know how to play any instruments other than the harmonica and the recorder, which I learned in elementary school. ...So I had just assumed that Milady was the same. ...I am furniture. ...So I didn't believe there was any need to sing songs or play instruments. [unsure, though]
JESSICA: ...Seriously, Kanon-kun, enough with that phrase "because I am furniture"... That's some kind of understanding amongst the servants, right...? That thing about servants being living furniture. ...Genji-san says it a lot.
KANON: It isn't an understanding... Because we really are... furniture.
JESSICA: I know that the kids from the Fukuin House... receive assistance from Grandfather in various ways, and I realize that you feel gratitude for that. ...But that doesn't mean... you should call yourself furniture. Aren't you a human like us?
KANON: ...
JESSICA: Kanon-kun, when you saw me singing... what did you think?
KANON: ...It looked like you were having a lot of fun.
JESSICA: That's probably wrong.
KANON: ...Huh?
JESSICA: It didn't look like I was having fun... you were jealous, weren't you?
KANON: ...That isn't... [recognizing the truth, though: he was jealous, and tried to suppress it by calling himself furniture over and over]
JESSICA: I know I'm the successor to the Ushiromiya family or something... and, well, I'm sure there'll be a lot of annoying stuff to do from now on. As far as that goes, I can't do anything but give up, since I was born under an unlucky star. ...Probably, just like you had to live at the Fukuin House, I don't have a choice either. I couldn't choose the stars under which I was born. ...That may be true. But there's one place where you and I are completely different. ...Know what that is?
[He thinks: I am furniture, and Milady is not. But he decides against saying it.]
KANON: ...I do not know.
JESSICA: Kanon-kun, you think that your own fate is everything and you gave up. I can't accept this kind of fate, so I do the best I can. ...So in addition to the constrained part of me that must act as the daughter of the Ushiromiya family, I've created another part of me that can do everything I like.
KANON: ...Another part, of yourself.
JESSICA: Yeah. ...Kanon-kun, you've been instructed to say "because I am furniture". ...I'm sure there's been many things that have been tough just because you've been instructed that way. ...I think that's... really unfortunate. ...But the thought that your entire life will be decided by that, I think that's just sad.
KANON: ...
JESSICA: You know, people are always making another part of themselves inside themselves that they can really like. This isn't escaping from reality, okay? ...When I'm that other part of myself, I can really feel like I'm living a great life. So no matter how constrained and boring everyday life is, I can definitely live without suffocating.
KANON: ...To make... inside yourself, another self that you can really like... [thinking of Shannon and her relationship with George, surpassing her status as furniture]
JESSICA: Yeah. ...Well, I don't know anything about your private life, Kanon-kun. But... I can sorta guess. Your private life is probably, nothing at all. Bulls-eye...?
[He silently agrees.]
JESSICA: ...Kanon-kun, Kanon isn't your real name, right?
KANON: ...Certainly... that name of mine may be a temporary thing. [thinking distantly of a time before it]
JESSICA: So even for you, it should be alright to have times when you're Kanon-kun, and times when you aren't. ...Maybe the Kanon-kun you are when you act as a servant calls himself furniture and strictly limits his own will. ...But when you aren't Kanon-kun, I think it's alright to live much, much more freely. You know, I'm called by this nickname Jessie in school. So when I'm Jessie, I live life honestly and to the fullest. And because of that, I can do my best when I'm Jessica too. ...I wonder if it would be alright for you too, to have times when you live as Kanon, and times when you live as, umm... your real name. ...When you aren't Kanon... can't you become another part of yourself that you can like?
KANON: ...A time when, I am not Kanon.
JESSICA: ...Kanon-kun. If you don't mind, tell me. ...What is, your real name?
KANON: ... [silent for a long time, hesitating over whether or not to tell her, finally swallowing it back down] ...I forgot. ...My name doesn't matter anymore. No matter what kind of real name I had... the only truth now is that here, I am Kanon. The past has nothing to do with anything. ...The materials with which furniture is made, whether it was originally the trunk of a tree or not, in the end, it's all the same.
JESSICA: ...I told you to stop that! You aren't furniture, you're human, right?!
KANON: I am not human! [with clear rage, as Jessica is struck silent] ...You are a human, Milady. So you are free to live any way you like, and any kind of future is possible for you. It's almost like you have wings and can dance through the sky like a bird. But I am not like that. Even if I looked like a bird, I'd be nothing more than a domestic duck. ...Even though they have wings, they cannot fly. But despite that, to speak of that dream in the sky... that's just... too cruel...!
JESSICA: ...Furniture and ducks!! What the hell is all this!! ...No... [trying to regain her calm, swallowing her words] ...I don't know anything about you. I don't even know your upbringing, and I don't know the hardships you've been through. ...So I can't even imagine why you started calling yourself furniture. ...But know this. You aren't furniture or a duck. You're a real human.
KANON: ...
JESSICA: If you want to say that the Kanon-kun working as a servant is furniture, that's alright. ...But... in that case... don't you think that you can make a part of yourself for when you aren't furniture, when you're human?
KANON: ...Only a human like Milady can embrace that possibility. ...I am not like that. My future and possibilities, aren't even a dream I am supposed to see. ...So, Milady. Please don't... say any more... cruel things...
JESSICA: Why... Why... are you saying that...
KANON: Because it seems that you are making the mistake that I am a human, just like you are, Milady. We are different beings. I just wanted to make that clear. ...I heard from Shannon. Something about Milady starting to like me.
JESSICA: Huh... wha?! Ah... no, wahaha...
KANON: ...I look almost identical to a human. Therefore... like Shannon, maybe I could delude myself that I am human, and for a time, pretend to love. ...But that would surely be fooling myself. No, it would also be fooling you, Milady. Shannon and George-sama will definitely fall apart. ...Even though Shannon herself probably realizes that day will come... such a stupid thing...
JESSICA: Th... There's nothing stupid about it!! And, George nii-san's a wonderful person, and he's bearing both of his parents' expectations. ...Yeah, when it comes to marriage, I'm sure Eva oba-san will interfere in various ways, and, umm, I think their future prospects look like they'll be full of trouble, alright?! ...But you know, George nii-san isn't the kind of person who'll surrender to all that! Shannon isn't Juliet, he'll definitely bring her happiness!!
KANON: People cannot love furniture. ...I am trying to say that even if Milady can love furniture, I cannot love Milady.
JESSICA: ...nn-- [...frozen into silent shock]
KANON: ...Milady, if your feelings for me are due to my conceit, then please forgive me.
JESSICA: ...N... No. Well... I won't deny that.
KANON: ...Thank you very much.
JESSICA: Huh...?
KANON: For thinking of me as a human... thank you very much. Just those feelings truly make me happy. ...And, anything more would be too cruel, so...
JESSICA: No, th... that's enough. ...Umm... sorry. [scratching her head, trying to keep sounding bright] ...I just kinda... ran on ahead by myself... and was a burden on you. ...I'm honestly sorry. I'm really sorry... for using up your whole day off.
KANON: No. ...I was also... happy that I could see Milady having fun.
JESSICA: ...Then, let's be done for the night. ...If I don't go back to my room and turn off the lights, Mom will get mad at me again. ...Hahaha.
KANON: That would probably be most appropriate. ...I wish you a good night, Milady.
JESSICA: ...Yeah. ...Good night...
[Kanon watches Jessica leave from behind, as she first looks disheartened, and then suddenly starts dashing recklessly towards the mansion. He feels guilty, but he is resolute in his decision that this is the most painless time to reject her.]
BEATO: ...Nice going, making a woman cry like that. *cackle*cackle*. I didn't expect you to refuse her that strongly. ...If you had answered normally, another pair of lovers would have been born with my magic.
KANON: How long have you been there...? ...You're just horrible.
[He turns around to see the witch suddenly there. She looks like she has been there the whole time, enjoying the performance.]
BEATO: I shall forgive your reckless words towards me just this once in deference to that pleasant show. ...Even after one thousand years, no more interesting show exists than complications between boys and girls. To me, it's a pleasure with a sweetness harder to resist than opium. ...Nn?
[Kanon pulls out the butterfly brooch--the crystallization of the witch's great magic--and slams it against the ground, stomping on it without hesitation.]
BEATO: ...Hoh? What is the meaning of this, when you know that was something given by me?
KANON: Just now, I figured it out. ...What you are doing isn't as tasteful as being a cupid of love. You are just a demon who enjoys showing love to those who can never be joined, and deceiving them.
BEATO: ...Hmph. ...You are free to think that. Most humans I have lent my power to have said the same thing.
KANON: Don't play dumb!! You didn't lend Shannon your power because you felt sorry for her. ...You found a weak point in Shannon's heart as her chest burned with love, and you made her break the mirror that sealed you. And that's not all... you planned this out until the end, and you're toying with her! Am I wrong?!
BEATO: Fuffufufufufufu, *cackle*! Furniture is a thoroughly pitiful existence. So you have no dreams, no future, and even no love? Good, good, there is nothing better than knowing your place. *cackle*cackle*!
KANON: ...Gah...
BEATO: Just as you've noticed, there is a faint love in Jessica's heart. I had hoped that you would punch a hole in that and harvest it. ...But did you know? Trees grow thicker branches if you thin out and prune them. ...A girl who loves furniture, interesting, truly interesting! Shannon and George will also eventually reach a stalemate with their love, which cannot be fulfilled, and ripen as the kind of large fruit I like. However, regretfully, it wouldn't be interesting if they didn't go too far, right? If that happens, I think you all would entertain me greatly, *cackle*cackle*!
[She laughs. Even though she knows they cannot be joined, she had lent magic to join them together. Even if they still cannot escape the fate that makes it impossible for them. She knows that even if they are joined, the relationships of Shannon and George, Kanon and Jessica will fail, and as they wander through the eternal desert in the hell of love, they will be tormented by eternal thirst...!]
BEATO: Did I not lend them that power without asking for compensation? I'll lend a hand in love. So that as compensation, I can enjoy watching the cruel fate that the two of them will eventually meet. Even after one thousand years, no better show exists...! Just look at Kinzo. See how he ended up, an old, pitiful man who knew the taste of love and was thrown out of paradise! Look at how he lives, like a dead man that can't fully die. *cackle*cackle*!!
KANON: You really are a witch. Disappear and get out of my sight, you demon...!!
BEATO: ...I shall disappear without being asked. My power still hasn't returned. It is still tiring to continue showing myself. ...I overdid it when I gave you lovers my power. ...As I am now, it will not be easy to maintain that power without that brooch as a catalyst.
[Kanon grinds his foot even more into the stomped brooch. It breaks under his foot, then evaporates like water, changing into butterflies that sparkle gold and flutter away.]
BEATO: I also find it painful when I tend to preserve this form. But as you ask, I will erase this form for a brief period. Just like a low tide without the moon, my magical power will surely rise. ...And I will surely visit, at a time that is appropriate for my revival. ...I cannot imagine whether that will be tomorrow, next year, or even one hundred or one thousand years in the future. But as long as there are those that entertain me, I will surely gain power and revive. ...I will erase this form for a short while, until that time comes. The bruise on the palm of your hand is already gone, so if you wish, tomorrow morning, you can let my existence disappear like an illusion or a dream. ...I won't be saddened just by you forgetting about me. However, I will definitely be revived. Make sure that you won't regret that day's coming at any time. I will surely have my second coming and control everything as this island's true master. ...That is the time when the door to the Golden Land will be opened again. ...I will surely wake the greedy dead...!
KANON: ...You talk too much!! Disappear, now, Golden Witch...!!
[The witch leaves with a scorn-filled laugh, becoming a group of gold butterflies and scattering away. The whole area sparkles like a gold blizzard in a snow globe, a fleeting fantastical scene that disappeared in a heartbeat. The witch is gone, but Kanon feels like he can still hear that shrill, unpleasant laugh...]
...Aahh, how pleasant, how pleasant. Why is the human world, which I haven't seen in a long time, so pleasant?! Go insane with love. Go insane with gold. Those that don't go insane from those are not human! I see, so that's why the word furniture is fitting, *cackle*cackle*! Furniture is created to serve humans. And I cruelly treat humans as playthings during my thousand years of boredom. What a truly pleasant three-way deadlock, that I cannot control furniture! You fool, Kinzo, do something truly interesting! You, furniture, try and see if you can hit me...! Tonight, two seeds of love have been sown. ...Including the one already sown, that makes three!
TOO BRAINDEAD FOR SECOND MEMORY WRITEUP EVEN IN THE LAZIEST TERMS; it's something that's been referenced in other memories and it gets better later but it's still like lolol. Also Jessica, girl, you don't even know.
[Setting: The rose garden, in the heavy rain and strong wind. Maria is crouched, searching among the roses miserably. Beatrice holds an umbrella over her, and she turns, surprised.]
MARIA: ...Uu--? Beatrice...!!
BEATRICE: What are you doing so frantically in the middle of all this rain? You could catch a cold like this. Even witches have to care for their own health.
MARIA: Maria... can't find... her rose... Uu--. No matter how many times she searches... even though it should have been here... can't find it...
[Maria tells Beatrice about how they had marked an unhealthy rose.]
BEATO: Hoho. So you can't find it. ...If you are a witch's apprentice, you should use magic to search for the rose. I believe that searching with just your eyes won't be nearly enough.
MARIA: ...Uu--. ...Can't find it. ...Maria's done her best, and tried to search with magic, but can't find it...
BEATO: I think that practicing your magic is a very good thing, but it might be a little too much for you with all of this wind and rain. ...Allow me to lend you some special power. Being concerned for their disciples is also one of the duties of a teacher.
MARIA: Th... thank you--. Beatrice!! [expression changing suddenly from sadness into a grin]
BEATO: [closing her eyes lightly, listening for something before opening her eyes] ...Hmm. All things in this world are transitory. Too bad, Maria. ...It seems that your rose couldn't withstand all of this wind and rain.
MARIA: Uu--... Then, Maria's rose...?
BEATO: It was uprooted by the wind, and is no longer of this world.
MARIA: ...Uu--... [moaning, bitter and low] ...No.
BEATO: Hoh?
MARIA: ...No no no! Maria's rose!! Maria's rose won't come back, no! Maria will bring it back to life with her magic. Beatrice, teach me how to revive a rose with magic...!!
BEATO: Ha! It's much too early for an apprentice like you to learn the hidden art of Endless Magic. Know your place.
MARIA: ...Uuuuuu. [wiping the tears from her eyes]
BEATO: [shrugging her shoulders, laughing] Very well. I will lend you power for the hidden art that can revive a rose.
MARIA: Really?!
BEATO: Hmm. ...Well then, concentrate the power of your heart. Close your eyes, forget the rain, forget the wind, search for the soul of the wandering rose with the eyes of your heart.
MARIA: ...Uu--. [closing her eyes]
BEATO: [song-like] Come, try to remember. Rose, what form did you have?
MARIA: ...Come, try to remember. Rose, what form did you have...?
BEATO: Don't look. Don't listen. And believe. ...Release the power of your soul from the cage of flesh that imprisons it. ...That's it. ...Good...
[Golden butterflies start to dance around Maria as she keeps her eyes tightly shut.]
BEATO: Lost soul of the rose. Gather into one, and remember your form. ...Come, gather, remember...
[The butterflies glow brighter and increase in number. Beatrice points a finger to the sky, and they gather there, condensing into a single golden seed, which then buds into a golden sprout, which opens into a golden leaf. It falls from her fingertip slowly, sinking into the mud of the flowerbed, growing steadily into a rose. Beatrice pokes it with her finger, and the gold color pops away like a soap bubble to leave a normal rose.]
BEATO: ...Hmm. It looks like you've remembered a splendid rose. ...However, if we just leave it mixed in with these other roses, you won't be able to tell it apart. Shall I perform one last service?
[Maria continues to moan in concentration. Beatrice snaps her fingers, and a single gold butterfly appears and lands on the rose. It bursts open into golden lace marking the rose.]
BEATO: That is sufficient. ...Maria. You may open your eyes now.
MARIA: ...Uu--? Where's the rose? Not here. Not here.
BEATO: Not over there, over here. ...Look. I've marked it with golden lace.
MARIA: Wah... you did...!! Awesome awesome awesome awesome!! Thank you Beato, thank you Beato!! Maria wants to become a witch quickly, a Great Witch like Beato!!
BEATO: And you can. Long ago, I too wished for that innocently, just as you do, and I have attained that level.
[Maria jumps around and claps her hands, ecstatic. Beatrice also smiles, pleased. She pulls out an envelope with the family crest on it, and hands it to Maria, which only causes her more joy.]
SUMMARYISH:
So, Beatrice has known about the true nature of magic for a while, relatively. But when she first started learning about it, it was from a memory of Erika looking down on magic and exposing cheap sleight of hand tricks, so it left her with sour defensive feelings about the whole thing. She adopted more of a defensive standpoint of "I have to protect these secrets," and she was made to feel more than a little foolish for sticking by magic.
Lately she has been getting a few more Maria memories though, which reinforce the opposite side of things--they make her realize the more basic, positive side of magic! She knew that magic was originally meant to make people happy, and that obviously she became a witch for a reason, but so far it hadn't really been demonstrated in her memories in a really clear and easy to understand way. With memories of Maria it's really easy to see... hey, with just a little bit of magic, this girl can be happy! Even when straightforward approaches fail! It gives her a little bit more hope in magic and in herself.
So she is starting to drift closer to canon in how she deals with people's issues. Previously with Peridot exploding, she's tried very hard to tolerate people and relate to them on a more straightforward, honest level. She has been very aware that she sucks at that, but what else can she do... BUT NOW SHE IS REMEMBERING! What she does instead! Which is drape a veil of magic over everything and try to brighten perspectives a bit. So she will be trying this approach instead, and trying to figure out how she can tackle individual members of Peridot in this way. IT WILL BE A BIT TOUGH since she doesn't actually have her skill for more practiced trickery, but she'll be thinking about it more :B!!
THE MEMORY:
[Setting: The rose garden at night. Jessica is lost in her thoughts as Kanon sneaks up on her.]
KANON: ...Milady.
JESSICA: Wah... Kanon-kun. D-Don't scare me like that, hahaha...! *cough*cough*! [flustered and surprised] What? Something to say...?
KANON: ...umm.
JESSICA: ...Yes? [expression returning to normal] Ah... about today's cultural festival... well, thanks for coming with me so I could show off. You really helped.
KANON: ...That song. ...You were good.
JESSICA: Wha?! ...Ah... ahahahahahaha?! R-Really, I'm embarrassed... [shy]
KANON: ...I cannot sing. And I don't know how to play any instruments other than the harmonica and the recorder, which I learned in elementary school. ...So I had just assumed that Milady was the same. ...I am furniture. ...So I didn't believe there was any need to sing songs or play instruments. [unsure, though]
JESSICA: ...Seriously, Kanon-kun, enough with that phrase "because I am furniture"... That's some kind of understanding amongst the servants, right...? That thing about servants being living furniture. ...Genji-san says it a lot.
KANON: It isn't an understanding... Because we really are... furniture.
JESSICA: I know that the kids from the Fukuin House... receive assistance from Grandfather in various ways, and I realize that you feel gratitude for that. ...But that doesn't mean... you should call yourself furniture. Aren't you a human like us?
KANON: ...
JESSICA: Kanon-kun, when you saw me singing... what did you think?
KANON: ...It looked like you were having a lot of fun.
JESSICA: That's probably wrong.
KANON: ...Huh?
JESSICA: It didn't look like I was having fun... you were jealous, weren't you?
KANON: ...That isn't... [recognizing the truth, though: he was jealous, and tried to suppress it by calling himself furniture over and over]
JESSICA: I know I'm the successor to the Ushiromiya family or something... and, well, I'm sure there'll be a lot of annoying stuff to do from now on. As far as that goes, I can't do anything but give up, since I was born under an unlucky star. ...Probably, just like you had to live at the Fukuin House, I don't have a choice either. I couldn't choose the stars under which I was born. ...That may be true. But there's one place where you and I are completely different. ...Know what that is?
[He thinks: I am furniture, and Milady is not. But he decides against saying it.]
KANON: ...I do not know.
JESSICA: Kanon-kun, you think that your own fate is everything and you gave up. I can't accept this kind of fate, so I do the best I can. ...So in addition to the constrained part of me that must act as the daughter of the Ushiromiya family, I've created another part of me that can do everything I like.
KANON: ...Another part, of yourself.
JESSICA: Yeah. ...Kanon-kun, you've been instructed to say "because I am furniture". ...I'm sure there's been many things that have been tough just because you've been instructed that way. ...I think that's... really unfortunate. ...But the thought that your entire life will be decided by that, I think that's just sad.
KANON: ...
JESSICA: You know, people are always making another part of themselves inside themselves that they can really like. This isn't escaping from reality, okay? ...When I'm that other part of myself, I can really feel like I'm living a great life. So no matter how constrained and boring everyday life is, I can definitely live without suffocating.
KANON: ...To make... inside yourself, another self that you can really like... [thinking of Shannon and her relationship with George, surpassing her status as furniture]
JESSICA: Yeah. ...Well, I don't know anything about your private life, Kanon-kun. But... I can sorta guess. Your private life is probably, nothing at all. Bulls-eye...?
[He silently agrees.]
JESSICA: ...Kanon-kun, Kanon isn't your real name, right?
KANON: ...Certainly... that name of mine may be a temporary thing. [thinking distantly of a time before it]
JESSICA: So even for you, it should be alright to have times when you're Kanon-kun, and times when you aren't. ...Maybe the Kanon-kun you are when you act as a servant calls himself furniture and strictly limits his own will. ...But when you aren't Kanon-kun, I think it's alright to live much, much more freely. You know, I'm called by this nickname Jessie in school. So when I'm Jessie, I live life honestly and to the fullest. And because of that, I can do my best when I'm Jessica too. ...I wonder if it would be alright for you too, to have times when you live as Kanon, and times when you live as, umm... your real name. ...When you aren't Kanon... can't you become another part of yourself that you can like?
KANON: ...A time when, I am not Kanon.
JESSICA: ...Kanon-kun. If you don't mind, tell me. ...What is, your real name?
KANON: ... [silent for a long time, hesitating over whether or not to tell her, finally swallowing it back down] ...I forgot. ...My name doesn't matter anymore. No matter what kind of real name I had... the only truth now is that here, I am Kanon. The past has nothing to do with anything. ...The materials with which furniture is made, whether it was originally the trunk of a tree or not, in the end, it's all the same.
JESSICA: ...I told you to stop that! You aren't furniture, you're human, right?!
KANON: I am not human! [with clear rage, as Jessica is struck silent] ...You are a human, Milady. So you are free to live any way you like, and any kind of future is possible for you. It's almost like you have wings and can dance through the sky like a bird. But I am not like that. Even if I looked like a bird, I'd be nothing more than a domestic duck. ...Even though they have wings, they cannot fly. But despite that, to speak of that dream in the sky... that's just... too cruel...!
JESSICA: ...Furniture and ducks!! What the hell is all this!! ...No... [trying to regain her calm, swallowing her words] ...I don't know anything about you. I don't even know your upbringing, and I don't know the hardships you've been through. ...So I can't even imagine why you started calling yourself furniture. ...But know this. You aren't furniture or a duck. You're a real human.
KANON: ...
JESSICA: If you want to say that the Kanon-kun working as a servant is furniture, that's alright. ...But... in that case... don't you think that you can make a part of yourself for when you aren't furniture, when you're human?
KANON: ...Only a human like Milady can embrace that possibility. ...I am not like that. My future and possibilities, aren't even a dream I am supposed to see. ...So, Milady. Please don't... say any more... cruel things...
JESSICA: Why... Why... are you saying that...
KANON: Because it seems that you are making the mistake that I am a human, just like you are, Milady. We are different beings. I just wanted to make that clear. ...I heard from Shannon. Something about Milady starting to like me.
JESSICA: Huh... wha?! Ah... no, wahaha...
KANON: ...I look almost identical to a human. Therefore... like Shannon, maybe I could delude myself that I am human, and for a time, pretend to love. ...But that would surely be fooling myself. No, it would also be fooling you, Milady. Shannon and George-sama will definitely fall apart. ...Even though Shannon herself probably realizes that day will come... such a stupid thing...
JESSICA: Th... There's nothing stupid about it!! And, George nii-san's a wonderful person, and he's bearing both of his parents' expectations. ...Yeah, when it comes to marriage, I'm sure Eva oba-san will interfere in various ways, and, umm, I think their future prospects look like they'll be full of trouble, alright?! ...But you know, George nii-san isn't the kind of person who'll surrender to all that! Shannon isn't Juliet, he'll definitely bring her happiness!!
KANON: People cannot love furniture. ...I am trying to say that even if Milady can love furniture, I cannot love Milady.
JESSICA: ...nn-- [...frozen into silent shock]
KANON: ...Milady, if your feelings for me are due to my conceit, then please forgive me.
JESSICA: ...N... No. Well... I won't deny that.
KANON: ...Thank you very much.
JESSICA: Huh...?
KANON: For thinking of me as a human... thank you very much. Just those feelings truly make me happy. ...And, anything more would be too cruel, so...
JESSICA: No, th... that's enough. ...Umm... sorry. [scratching her head, trying to keep sounding bright] ...I just kinda... ran on ahead by myself... and was a burden on you. ...I'm honestly sorry. I'm really sorry... for using up your whole day off.
KANON: No. ...I was also... happy that I could see Milady having fun.
JESSICA: ...Then, let's be done for the night. ...If I don't go back to my room and turn off the lights, Mom will get mad at me again. ...Hahaha.
KANON: That would probably be most appropriate. ...I wish you a good night, Milady.
JESSICA: ...Yeah. ...Good night...
[Kanon watches Jessica leave from behind, as she first looks disheartened, and then suddenly starts dashing recklessly towards the mansion. He feels guilty, but he is resolute in his decision that this is the most painless time to reject her.]
BEATO: ...Nice going, making a woman cry like that. *cackle*cackle*. I didn't expect you to refuse her that strongly. ...If you had answered normally, another pair of lovers would have been born with my magic.
KANON: How long have you been there...? ...You're just horrible.
[He turns around to see the witch suddenly there. She looks like she has been there the whole time, enjoying the performance.]
BEATO: I shall forgive your reckless words towards me just this once in deference to that pleasant show. ...Even after one thousand years, no more interesting show exists than complications between boys and girls. To me, it's a pleasure with a sweetness harder to resist than opium. ...Nn?
[Kanon pulls out the butterfly brooch--the crystallization of the witch's great magic--and slams it against the ground, stomping on it without hesitation.]
BEATO: ...Hoh? What is the meaning of this, when you know that was something given by me?
KANON: Just now, I figured it out. ...What you are doing isn't as tasteful as being a cupid of love. You are just a demon who enjoys showing love to those who can never be joined, and deceiving them.
BEATO: ...Hmph. ...You are free to think that. Most humans I have lent my power to have said the same thing.
KANON: Don't play dumb!! You didn't lend Shannon your power because you felt sorry for her. ...You found a weak point in Shannon's heart as her chest burned with love, and you made her break the mirror that sealed you. And that's not all... you planned this out until the end, and you're toying with her! Am I wrong?!
BEATO: Fuffufufufufufu, *cackle*! Furniture is a thoroughly pitiful existence. So you have no dreams, no future, and even no love? Good, good, there is nothing better than knowing your place. *cackle*cackle*!
KANON: ...Gah...
BEATO: Just as you've noticed, there is a faint love in Jessica's heart. I had hoped that you would punch a hole in that and harvest it. ...But did you know? Trees grow thicker branches if you thin out and prune them. ...A girl who loves furniture, interesting, truly interesting! Shannon and George will also eventually reach a stalemate with their love, which cannot be fulfilled, and ripen as the kind of large fruit I like. However, regretfully, it wouldn't be interesting if they didn't go too far, right? If that happens, I think you all would entertain me greatly, *cackle*cackle*!
[She laughs. Even though she knows they cannot be joined, she had lent magic to join them together. Even if they still cannot escape the fate that makes it impossible for them. She knows that even if they are joined, the relationships of Shannon and George, Kanon and Jessica will fail, and as they wander through the eternal desert in the hell of love, they will be tormented by eternal thirst...!]
BEATO: Did I not lend them that power without asking for compensation? I'll lend a hand in love. So that as compensation, I can enjoy watching the cruel fate that the two of them will eventually meet. Even after one thousand years, no better show exists...! Just look at Kinzo. See how he ended up, an old, pitiful man who knew the taste of love and was thrown out of paradise! Look at how he lives, like a dead man that can't fully die. *cackle*cackle*!!
KANON: You really are a witch. Disappear and get out of my sight, you demon...!!
BEATO: ...I shall disappear without being asked. My power still hasn't returned. It is still tiring to continue showing myself. ...I overdid it when I gave you lovers my power. ...As I am now, it will not be easy to maintain that power without that brooch as a catalyst.
[Kanon grinds his foot even more into the stomped brooch. It breaks under his foot, then evaporates like water, changing into butterflies that sparkle gold and flutter away.]
BEATO: I also find it painful when I tend to preserve this form. But as you ask, I will erase this form for a brief period. Just like a low tide without the moon, my magical power will surely rise. ...And I will surely visit, at a time that is appropriate for my revival. ...I cannot imagine whether that will be tomorrow, next year, or even one hundred or one thousand years in the future. But as long as there are those that entertain me, I will surely gain power and revive. ...I will erase this form for a short while, until that time comes. The bruise on the palm of your hand is already gone, so if you wish, tomorrow morning, you can let my existence disappear like an illusion or a dream. ...I won't be saddened just by you forgetting about me. However, I will definitely be revived. Make sure that you won't regret that day's coming at any time. I will surely have my second coming and control everything as this island's true master. ...That is the time when the door to the Golden Land will be opened again. ...I will surely wake the greedy dead...!
KANON: ...You talk too much!! Disappear, now, Golden Witch...!!
[The witch leaves with a scorn-filled laugh, becoming a group of gold butterflies and scattering away. The whole area sparkles like a gold blizzard in a snow globe, a fleeting fantastical scene that disappeared in a heartbeat. The witch is gone, but Kanon feels like he can still hear that shrill, unpleasant laugh...]
...Aahh, how pleasant, how pleasant. Why is the human world, which I haven't seen in a long time, so pleasant?! Go insane with love. Go insane with gold. Those that don't go insane from those are not human! I see, so that's why the word furniture is fitting, *cackle*cackle*! Furniture is created to serve humans. And I cruelly treat humans as playthings during my thousand years of boredom. What a truly pleasant three-way deadlock, that I cannot control furniture! You fool, Kinzo, do something truly interesting! You, furniture, try and see if you can hit me...! Tonight, two seeds of love have been sown. ...Including the one already sown, that makes three!
TOO BRAINDEAD FOR SECOND MEMORY WRITEUP EVEN IN THE LAZIEST TERMS; it's something that's been referenced in other memories and it gets better later but it's still like lolol. Also Jessica, girl, you don't even know.