[Open on an exterior shot of a school building. The clock reads just after 3:30, and the class bell can be heard chiming in the air.]
Asami: Hmmm...
[Asami sits at a desk in an empty classroom, scowling intently as she reads a book.]
Asami: As I thought--this month is really in the red, too...
[She sits back and smiles.]
Asami: ...ah, well--it'll be all right, though! Somehow, it'll work out!
[We see the cover of the book Asami is reading: "Household Account Book."]
5. Negative-Positive
Shiratori: Thank God...THANK GOD!
[Shiratori looks just a little stressed out as he shuffles, zombie-like, into Narutakisou.]
Shiratori: [thinking] Thank God last night's party didn't drag on!! Thank GOD my project is done!! And now, at last...
[He begins to weep, overcome with emotion.]
Shiratori: [thinking] At my leisure! For as long as I want!! I CAN SLEEP!!!
[He trembles in anticipation as he walks toward his room.]
Shiratori: [thinking] All right--today, I sleep to the end! I'll lock the door properly so Momono-san and the others can't get in...and then, on my futon--at my leisure! For as long as I want!! [out loud] ...hm?
[What's caught Shiratori's eye? Sayoko, walking through the courtyard.]
Shiratori: [thinking] That's Kurosaki-san...isn't it...? What's she doing out there?
[Shiratori looks on, puzzled, as Sayoko walks over to a tree. A length of rope, with the end tied in a loop, hangs from a branch, with a chair sitting underneath. Sayoko climbs up onto the chair, then begins to stick her head through the loop...or, rather, through the noose.]
Shiratori: [thinking] She isn't...?! [out loud] D...DON'T BE SO HASTY!!!
Sayoko: ...
[She turns to look briefly at Shiratori--then turns back and sticks her head through the noose again.]
Sayoko: ...Don't stop me...
Shiratori: Wha...wai...CALM DOWN!! Why are you trying to kill yourself...?!
Sayoko: Because...it looks like tomorrow's job (1) isn't going to get done...
Shiratori: Huh...?
Sayoko: It's impossible to make 500 more artificial flowers by tomorrow...but I have to, or my boss will get mad at me...I don't want that...so I'll die...
Shiratori: [thinking] FOR A REASON LIKE THAT?! [out loud] A-anyway, suicide isn't right! Calm down, and think this through again, (2) OK?
Momono: Oooh...what's going on...?
[Momono looks like she just got out of bed. She's wearing a midriff-baring tank top, very short cut-off jean shorts, a thin black choker, and little else; her hair is in disarray, and one eye is still squinted shut.]
Momono: What's all the racket about, Shiratori-kun...?
Shiratori: Momono-san... [thinking] She was sleeping at this time of day...? [out loud] Um...Kurosaki-san is...
Momono: Nn...Ah, that? You're doing it again, Sayo-chan?
Sayoko: ...
Shiratori: ...again?
[Momono yawns.]
Momono: Let her be...this happens all the time. Anyhow, she doesn't really intend to die...
Sayoko: Hey...I'm serious...
[Sayoko kicks away the chair.]
Shiratori: Is this really all right?
Momono: It's fine, it's fine! Even if, for argument's sake, she was serious, Sayo-chan has abnormally strong bad luck. She won't die so simply.
[And, sure enough, the tree branch snaps, sending Sayoko--and her noose--tumbling to the ground.]
Shiratori: ...
Momono: See?
[A brief time later...Momono and Shiratori sit on the edge of the walkway. Sayoko stands before them...with the noose still tied around her neck.]
Momono: Hm...I see. Your job's not done--that's a problem.
Sayoko: ...That's right...if he gets so angry at me, it would be better to die...
Voice: I'm home!
[The three look over as Asami comes into the courtyard.]
Asami: Huh? Mom, what are you doing out here?
Sayoko: Asami~!
[Wailing, she runs over to her daughter.]
Asami: The job?
Sayoko: 500 left...
Asami: What?! That's almost no progress! What did you do all day?!
Sayoko: It's no good, Asami...let's run away to someplace far away...
Asami: What are you saying? It's all right! If we do our best, it'll get done!
Shiratori: [thinking] Somehow, this sounds like a problem...
Momono: Now, now, you two--it's not something to be concerned about! After all, there's a kind person here who can't leave people in trouble alone! ...Right, Shiratori-kun?
Shiratori: ...eh...?
[A little later, inside the Kurosaki apartment...]
Shiratori: [thinking] Wh...what's with this apartment...there are stacks of cardboard boxes (3) as far as the eye can see...that is to say...
Asami: Onii-chan, thank you! You're a big help!
Shiratori: Is...is that so...? [thinking] What's going on here...? [out loud] Um, Asami-chan...these stacks of boxes...could they possibly be all...
Asami: Yep, they're for work! Those are artificial flowers, and those are bag labels. (4) And that stack over there is direct mail address labels.
Shiratori: ...I don't see any furniture, or...
Asami: Oh, we don't have anything like that.
[She beams.]
Asami: After all, we're poor!
Shiratori: [thinking] So...so cheerful...?!
Asami: Even if we don't have furniture, there's no problem! If we can substitute cardboard, it's all OK! (For a desk, or for bedding, or for a chest of drawers...)
[She picks up one box, embracing it lovingly.]
Asami: Cardboard is really useful!
Shiratori: [thinking] An all-around cardboard theory...!! It's the same as people living in the park...
[He looks on as Asami puts together a flower.]
Shiratori: [thinking] ...hm? That reminds me, I haven't seen Asami-chan's father...perhaps, because of divorce or bereavement, she doesn't have one? If that's so, then I can understand this destitute life...
[He glances over at Sayoko.]
Shiratori: [thinking] At any rate, the mother, who should have to work...
[As he watches, the head of the flower Sayoko is working on falls off. She leans over, picks it up, sticks it back on--and it falls off again. She weeps despondently.]
Shiratori: [thinking] This useless person...I don't think she has any life skills...
Asami: Look, Mom, like this!
Shiratori: [thinking] A dark-natured, habitually suicidal, negative mother...and a cheerful, positive daughter, undiscouraged by poverty...what a contrast...Asami-chan must take after her father...
[Sayoko's stomach rumbles.]
Asami: Ah! Shall we have dinner soon?
[She stands up and walks to the door.]
Asami: After all, if we don't have a proper meal, tonight will be a bloody battlefield! (5)
Shiratori: [thinking] A bloody battlefield...?!
Asami: Well, then, I'll go shopping for a little bit. You two keep working, OK?
Shiratori: Ah! Is it all right if I come, too? I want to see where the supermarket is.
Asami: All right, let's go together!
[At the supermarket Marukatsu...]
Shiratori: Whoa...so many people...
Asami: That's because "time service" isn't too far off.
[Let the shopping begin!]
Asami: The cartons further back are newer.
Shiratori: That's standard, huh?
[Further on, a woman in store uniform standing behind a samples table offers Asami a bag.]
Woman: Take some for your mother, too--keep this a secret from the store manager, OK?
[Asami's eyes go sparkly.]
Asami: O...Onee-san...
[A man in store uniform lifts a megaphone to his lips.]
Asami: Ah, it's the half-price oji-san!
Shiratori: Half-price oji-san?
"Half-price Oji-san": Thank you for shopping! From here on it's "time service!" All goods are half-price!
Asami: I'm going to go look for a bit.
[Shiratori can only watch as Asami ventures into the wild. She stumbles as one shopper bumps her from behind, then falls as another backs into her. Before she can get up, a third shopper actually steps on her.]
[A little while later...back outside, Shiratori and a somewhat-battered Asami make their way home.]
Asami: You really helped me, Onii-chan! Thanks to you, I didn't get stepped on as much as usual.
Shiratori: [thinking] She usually gets stepped on more...?
Asami: Now, then! We have food for the week, and I got out alive, (6) so I should hurry home and make dinner! Right now, Mom's probably holding her stomach and crying.
[Shiratori looks at the tiny bag Asami's carrying. (He isn't carrying anything.)]
Shiratori: For the week...? [thinking] Is this person a child...?
Asami: Onii-chan, you eat with us too, OK? It's the least I can do to thank you!
Shiratori: Ah...OK... [thinking] ...that she'd make extra food for me, even though she's so poor...
Asami: Ah! Look, look! There's grass growing here!
Shiratori: Yeah...that grass must be strong, to be growing out of the asphalt like that... [thinking] Huh...so she has her unexpectedly childlike parts, as well...
[And that assumption lasts the few seconds it takes for Asami to begin pulling the grass out of the ground.]
Asami: WAAAAI!
Shiratori: ?!
Asami: This grass is edible!
[She beams.]
Asami: I'm so lucky to find it growing in a place like this!
Shiratori: [thinking] S-such a bright smile, but...such a sad smile...!!
Asami: I'll have to thank Kozue-onee-chan later. That book has already been so useful!
Shiratori: That book...?
[And then, he remembers Kozue, in the bookstore, reading "Survival Cooking"--and one line in particular on the cover: "100 VARIETIES! THESE GRASSES ARE EDIBLE!!"]
Shiratori: [thinking] You've got to be kidding...THAT?! O...Ooya-san...!
Asami: Gruel...soup...salad...what shall I make?
Shiratori: Is...is your life so difficult that you even have to eat grass from the road?
Asami: Eh...
[There is a long pause...and then...]
[Box: "Instant Negative Mode ON"]
[A cold wind sweeps the area, and Asami is abruptly covered in shadows as she glances off to the side.]
Asami: Well, you know...having no money is the same as having no head, so...
Shiratori: [thinking] Ah... for the first time, I really feel like she's that person's daughter...
[The pair arrives back at Narutakisou.]
Asami: Mom, we're home! ...Mom?
[They enter Room 5...]
Asami: AAAH?!
[...where they find Sayoko, sitting against a stack of boxes, fast asleep.]
Asami: M...Mom...
Sayoko: ...
[Sayoko's eyes flutter open, and she stares blankly at the two for a moment. Then, as they watch, she crawls over and picks up a flower. She wipes an imaginary bead of sweat from her brow, then glances over at them.]
Sayoko: Ah...welcome back...
Asami: M...Mom...
Shiratori: [thinking] Is she intending to fool us with that...?
[A little later...]
Asami: Thanks for waiting!
[She sets up three cardboard boxes as food trays, and lays out meals for each of them.]
Asami: Now, let's eat before it gets cold!
Shiratori: ...
[He picks up some of the greens on his plate with his chopsticks.]
Shiratori: [thinking] These...on first glance, they just look like fried vegetables, but...this green body--no matter how you look at it, these are from earlier...
[He glances over at Asami, and freezes as he sees her eager smile.]
Shiratori: [thinking] She's watching me...SHE'S STARING AT ME...!!
[He looks at the fried grass for a moment longer...]
Shiratori: [thinking] ...oh, what the heck! It's fine if I die!
[...then screws up his courage and takes a bite.]
Asami: How...how is it?
Shiratori: ...hm?
[He blinks in surprise.]
Shiratori: It's delicious...
Asami: Really?!
Shiratori: Yeah, this works. [thinking] It's unexpected, but... [out loud] It's really good!
Asami: Thank goodness!
[She claps her hands in delight.]
Asami: I'm so glad to hear that! This is the best moment in cooking!
Shiratori: ...really?
Asami: Yeah! Knowing that all your effort was worth it.
Shiratori: [thinking] Aaaah...somehow, I feel calmer...
Asami: Incidentally, the ingredients cost 36 yen. (7)
Shiratori: [thinking] It would be nice to have a younger sister like her...
[He watches as, to Asami's chagrin, Sayoko swipes some of the greens off his plate.]
Shiratori: [thinking] I don't need a mother like her, though...
[Later...]
Asami: All right, then! Now that our stomachs are filled, let's get started!
Shiratori: All right! I'll give this my all and see it to the end!
Asami: There's a lot, though, and it won't end so simply. With what you've already done...
Shiratori: What are you saying? This is in thanks for the meal! I'll be with you guys to the very end!
Asami: But...
Shiratori: It's fine, it's fine! Let's hurry up and get started!
Asami: ...all right! Thank you, Onii-chan!
And thus, a long, long night announced itself...
8:05
[Asami, ready... FLOWER COUNT: 0]
[Shiratori, ready... FLOWER COUNT: 0]
[Sayoko, ready... FLOWER COUNT: 0]
8:15
[Asami reaches into the boxes for some more supplies. FLOWER COUNT: 8]
[Shiratori examines a flower he's just assembled. FLOWER COUNT: 3]
[Sayoko stares at the flower in her hand. FLOWER COUNT: 0]
8:20
[Asami stares at Sayoko in dismay. FLOWER COUNT: 14]
[Shiratori stares at Sayoko in dismay. FLOWER COUNT: 8]
[Sayoko kneels in place, fast asleep and snoring. FLOWER COUNT: 0]
11:10
[Asami's arms are a blur as she assembles flowers and puts them in boxes. FLOWER COUNT: 175]
[Shiratori carefully places a flower he's just assembled into the box next to him. FLOWER COUNT: 76]
[Sayoko slowly wraps the stem of a flower. FLOWER COUNT: 3]
1:25
[Asami seals a box she's just filled. FLOWER COUNT: 175]
[Shiratori wipes the sweat from his brow as he seals a full box. FLOWER COUNT: 105]
[Sayoko stares at her flower. FLOWER COUNT: 3]
3:55
[Asami places her fourth filled box in a stack. FLOWER COUNT: 214]
[Shiratori stacks his third box. FLOWER COUNT: 138]
[Sayoko, asleep--again--leans back into a stack of boxes, triggering a cardboard avalanche that buries all three of them. FLOWER COUNT: 3]
[Asami looks over at Sayoko in exasperation.]
Asami: Mom, what are you doing?!
Sayoko: ...a little of that...
[She looks over at Shiratori and smiles.]
Sayoko: If the three of us go to sleep side-by-side (8) like this...wouldn't it be like a child and two parents...?
Shiratori: [thinking] What is this person saying...
[Shiratori and Asami get free and stand up.]
Asami: Sheesh...don't add to our work, Mom!
[Sayoko, still under the boxes, reaches out to Shiratori.]
Sayoko: Pull me up...
Shiratori: [thinking] Tamami-chan said it the other day...this person is a genuinely worthless human.
[Shiratori grabs Sayoko by the hand and pulls...but, even after the boxes are only covering her feet, she's still being dead weight.]
Shiratori: Ku...Kurosaki-san...if you don't intend to stand on your own, then...
[Just then, stepping back, Shiratori trips over another stack of boxes, triggering a second avalanche.]
Asami: O...Onii-chan, are you all right?
[Shiratori can only groan in response as he sits up.]
Asami: Mom, again you're doing someth...
[She and Shiratori watch as Sayoko sits up, with a box upside down on her head.]
Sayoko: ...?
[Sayoko stands up, and, rather than take the box off her head, walks forward, blind.]
Sayoko: ...??
[She steps into another box, trips, falls on her back...and then begins to wriggle like a worm.]
Thus, in this way and that...
Asami: Mom...
...more and more time flowed by.
[Asami gently closes a box.]
Asami: All right. And with this...WE'RE DONE!
[Shiratori thrusts his arms into the air.]
Shiratori: Banzaaai! (9)
[Asami high-fives Shiratori.]
Asami: We did it, Onii-chan! YAAAY!
Shiratori: YAAAY!
[Box pointing to Shiratori and Asami: "Natural high from all-nighter"]
[They stumble out onto the courtyard walkway.]
Asami: Waaaai, it's morning! Great weather!
Shiratori: Great weather!
[...and then, the high dies.]
Shiratori and Asami: ...I'm exhausted...
Shiratori: [thinking] ...I didn't think it would be that bad...
[He glances at his watch.]
Shiratori: Ugh...already 5:00... [thinking] I got swept away by the mood and made a promise without thinking...
But...
[He looks over to where Asami, laughing, has grabbed her mother's hand.]
...It looks like it made those two very happy...
[He smiles and shakes his head.]
Ah, well...
Asami: Onii-chan, thank you! You really, really saved us!
Shiratori: [laughing] What are you saying? I'm just glad I could be of help.
[He yawns as he turns away.]
Shiratori: [thinking] Now, then...there's still some time until school, so for the time being, I'll go back to my room and take a nap... [out loud] ...huh?
[He looks down and sees a flower head fall to the ground...out from under Sayoko's robes.]
Shiratori: ...
Sayoko: ...
Shiratori: Banzai!
[Sayoko thrusts her arms in the air with him--and more and more flower heads fly out from under her robes.]
Asami: AH?! Wh...what is this, Mom! This mountain of half-made flowers...?!
Sayoko: ...It's as you see...
[Shiratori and Asami stare at her in horror.]
Sayoko: Now that I've been exposed, I'll tell you--this isn't all of it...do you want to see?
That day...
Asami: No...NO WAY?!
Sayoko: Really...here, look...
I was late, and Shirogane-sensei severely punished me.
Momono: Now, then! What's up in the next volume of Mahoraba?
Asami: This is Asami! I'll be playing hide-and-seek with everyone! I'd better hide if I don't want to be found!
Tamami: Tamami speaking! The ban on my "serious mode" is finally lifted?! Also, I'll have my perfect report on Shiratori-san and Kozue-chan's date!
Sayoko: I'm Sayoko...On the night of a snowstorm, Narutakisou is rocked by bizarre serial murders...Who's the culprit? And who will survive...?!
[The others look at her.]
Asami: Mom, don't lie...
Sayoko: ...
Momono: WATCH FOR IT!!
[Asami and Sayoko kneel on cushions before us.]
Asami: On behalf of the author, I'd like to tell all our readers: Thank you for buying this book! (10)
[The two get up, and Asami takes a microphone in hand.]
Asami: Now, then, for the first afterword, let's find out what kind of human our creator, "Kojima Akira," is!
[We see a small rectancle with wide eyes and stick legs (11) peering at them from around the corner. He looks at Asami in alarm as she extends the mike to him.]
Asami: Author-san, yoroshiku--ah! He ran away!
[He runs, but he doesn't get far before someone grabs him and hauls him in the air...]
Saki: [laughing] What're you sneaking off for? Calm down, why don'tcha!!
["Akira" struggles frantically to get away...but with no success. We can now see that he isn't much bigger than a book.]
"Akira": But--but talking about yourself is embarrassing! Can't we just say that I don't really matter?
Asami: We...well, at least tell us what you've been up to recently...
"Akira": ...recently? I drew manga all day. The end.
Saki: ...WHAT WAS THAT SHORT CRAP!!
[Saki hauls back and punches him in the gut.]
Saki: Tell a more interesting story!
["Akira" staggers back onto his hands and knees, looking back at Saki in a strangely familiar pose.]
"Akira": Even if I could tell a more interesting story...
Saki: There's got to be at least one thing more interesting than that!
["Akira" looks up in thought.]
I always barely make my deadlines.
Angry editor: You're late!
"Akira": I'm sorry...
I can't draw well, and stay in bed out of spite.
[We see "Akira" sobbing in bed.]
A car accident.
[We see one car rear-ending another.]
"Akira": ...
[Asami looks on with a sweatdrop. Saki looks on with a vein pulsing in the back of her head--then goes charging after him, as a terrified Sayoko hides behind her daughter.]
Asami: Well...for the time being, we'll see you next time!
(EXPLANATION: Each volume of the Mahoraba manga comes in a dust jacket. Underneath the dust jacket--on the physical front and back covers of the book itself--there is a section called "Subcharacters Heaven," where--as the name suggests--we have the antics of minor Mahoraba characters.)
Front cover: ~Daybreak~
Ponytailed Boy: WAHAHAHAHAHA!
[Ponytailed Boy laughs triumphantly. In the background, we see Shiratori's other two classmates, as well as the maid from chapter 4.]
Ponytailed Boy: We supporting characters have claimed this place! (12) We're always pale shadows, but just for today things are different!
[Everyone cheers.]
Ponytailed Boy: Now, everybody--let's go crazy! (13)
[Everyone freezes.]
Ponytailed Boy: ..."Desu~"?
Tamami: Desu~
Short-Haired Girl: MAIN CHARACTERS AREN'T ALLOWED HERE!!
Ponytailed Boy: This is our Arcadia!!!
Tamami: I'm going, desu~
Ponytailed Boy: Really...we let down our guard for one second, and... (15)
[Tamami peeks back around the corner.]
Tamami: Pitiful...(desu~)
[Ponytailed Boy throws a can, hitting her in the back of the head.]
Ponytailed Boy: GO HOME! GO HOME!
On the spine
Short-Haired Girl and Long-Haired Girl: We've claimed this spot too!
Back cover: ~Revolution~
[The woman from "Akandou" sighs heavily.]
Woman: Supporting characters, huh? You guys are still better off than me...I've only had one appearance so far...I wonder if I'll get another appearance... (Want an Oobanyaki? [16] )
Maid: Fuehh....cheer up, Onee-san...
Woman: You've got plenty of appearances, so it's fine...AH?!
[The maid has turned into a wavering, indistinct figure, identifiable only by her hair.]
Maid: Fight, fight...
Woman: Th...this is...!! Because we're supporting characters, our existence even extends to the way we're drawn...! Terrible...!
Ponytailed Boy: That's cruel...
Long-Haired Girl: Yeah...
Maid: Fuehh?
Woman: You guys, too--if your spirit's extracted, you'll be drawn halfheartedly just like this! Look sharp!
Ponytailed Boy: R-Roger!
[The three classmates clench their fists and tense up..........and then, with an exhausted sigh settle back into indistinct blobs.]
All Three: That's our limit.
Woman: OI!
~Nothing to see here, folks...~ (17)
1 内職 ("Naishoku"): Side job/home industry. (Sayoko, a "freelancer," works from home.) BACK
2 もう一度考え直して ("Mou ichido kangaenaoshite"): Lit. "Reconsider again." BACK
3 ダンボールの山 ("Danbooru no yama"): Lit. "Mountains of cardboard." BACK
4 袋貼り ("Fukuro-hari"): "Fukuro" is "bag," and the base verb for "hari" means "to paste/stick/attach." Hence, something pasted or attached to a bag--that is, a label. BACK
5 修羅場 ("Shuraba"): A scene of fighting and/or carnage/bloodshed. BACK
6 無事確保できた ("Buji-kakuho dekita"): Lit. "Was able to secure safety." BACK
7 36 yen = roughly 31 cents. BACK
8 川の字になって ("Kawa no ji ni natte"): Lit. "Become the character for 'river' (川)" BACK
9 万歳 ("Banzai"): Lit. "10,000 years old." Traditional Japanese celebratory exclamation, meaning "long life" or, more simply, "hurrah." BACK
10 この本を手に取ってくださってありがとうございます ("Kono hon wo te ni totte kudasatte arigatou gozaimasu"): Lit. "Thank you for taking this book in hand for us." BACK
11 For those who've seen the anime, this is the dancing rectangle from the start of the OP. BACK
12 乗っとった ("Nottotta"): Contracted/slurred version of 乗っておいた ("Notteoita"). The verb means "to get on board," while this particular tense indicates it was done in preparation. BACK
13 暴れてやる ("Abarete yaru"): Lit. "To get violent and do (put action here)" BACK
14 I usually leave Tamami's distinctive "accent" out of my translations--but here, it's what gives her away, so I'm leaving it tacked on where she says it. BACK
15 油断も隙も ("Yudan mo geki mo"): Lit. "Both negligence and an opening." BACK
16 大判焼き (Oobanyaki"): Lit. "Large baked food." Later in the series, we see her selling taiyaki--a fish-shaped pancake filled with bean jam--but it's called "taiyaki" at the time, so it's unclear whether that's what she's offering here, as well. BACK
17 オチなし ("Ochi nashi"): Lit. "No punchline." Each back-cover edition of "Subcharacters Heaven" ends with this line. It translates as "No punchline," but it's given in the form of a reason (with the implications that there are other reasons as well). What is it a reason for? The unspoken implication is that it's a reason for the reader to move on and read something else. BACK