Ge-ge-ge no nyobou 6/12

[mbarker]

aka a home run for the knockout?

Fumie was hanging clothes in the morning sunshine, humming "be it ever so humble, there's no place like home."

Inside, she started to iron, with Aiko on her back. She was still humming. Shigeru looked over from the workroom and asked, "How's Aiko?" Fumie said, "I think she's better." Shigeru said, "That's good. But I think we're going to fall down." Fumie looked up at him. "What do you mean?" He turned around and faced her. "That guy last night. They're going to take the house away. Aren't you worried?" Fumie smiled. "Yes. But sometimes things happen. You have to just keep going. We can do it." Shigeru chuckled. "You're right. I guess we can do it. For Aiko, then. Okay, I better get to work." He turned back to his desk and started drawing again.

In the entryway, Fumie and Shigeru both looked stunned. Shigeru said, "A mistake?" A nervous looking round-faced man stood in the entryway. "Yes, I'm afraid we made a mistake. It's not your house on our ground." Shigeru said, "But it was just last night that your man told us about it." The man nodded, quickly. "Yes, I'm very sorry about that, but sometimes these mistakes happen. Please accept our apologies." He fumbled at the door handle, and let himself out, bowing.

As they walked back into the kitchen, Shigeru said, "Can you believe that? Last night they are going to take our house, this morning it's just a mistake?" Fumie said, "I couldn't sleep. But it's such a relief." Shigeru chuckled. "So what was that stuff this morning about you just have to keep going? You were worried, too." Fumie shrugged. "Of course I was. It's natural to be worried." Then Shigeru said, "You know, I wonder if that was really someone from the government last night?" Fumie said, "What do you mean?" He nodded, slowly. "Maybe it was just the ghost of poverty, trying to beat us."

Fumie said, "A ghost? Salt!" She grabbed the jar of salt from the kitchen shelf and ran outside. She tossed a pinch of salt out the door, saying "Go away, ghosts!" Then she winced, and mumbled, "Don't waste it." She took another pinch of salt, and dribbled it along the line of the gate. [In Japan, salt is used in temples and after funerals to ward off ghosts.]

Shigeru came out behind her, and said, "No, go ahead and throw it." She turned to him and said, "I think you're right." He looked at her. "Well, sometimes it seems as if we can't win. We keep fighting, and fighting, and running into bad fortune." "Yes?" "But, we just have to keep on going. Work hard, it's boring, but... you're a real manga artist, you can do it. So, go ahead and do something with Inui." She punched his shoulder. "I've got confidence in you." Shigeru chuckled. "Okay. I'll keep working. Boring, but we'll beat the ghost."

In his workroom, Shigeru had a book on devils and one of his Goethe books open. He read from Goethe. Then he pondered. "Praying to... praying to demons?" He suddenly started sketching, a face with hair poking up in a horn. He mumbled, "And he prays at night..." He sketched a whirlpool, with a five-pointed star in the middle. "Yes! And a devil answers him..." He sketched a strange man with a top hat, long nose, and whiskers. He muttered, "Devils, devil.. devil boy? Yes, that's his name, devil boy." He sketched more figures on the pad.

Later, Inui, the fan turned publisher, sat in Shigeru's workroom and looked at the sketchpad. Shigeru described the story. "I really think this could be great." Shigeru pulled out a notebook. "Look, I've got lots of material for this. So I could do lots quickly." Inui bounced. "Yes! I really think this is great. I think.. a series. No, five books. Then five more, and five more." Shigeru picked up his notebook and closed it. "Wait, wait. Not as an artist, but speaking as your advisor... well, really, I think a five book series is too much for your company to do right now." Inui said, "I can borrow money, and we can do it." Shigeru shook his head. "It's a lot to take on."

Fumie came in. She set a cup of water down. "I'm sorry, but we're out of tea." Shigeru said, "What about the radish leaves?" She grimaced. "We're out of those, too. Then she said, "But I could fix some pumpkin seeds? Those are pretty tasty. I'll just toast them a little."

Inui looked at Shigeru. "Mizuki. I know it's a little company, but if all I ever do is little stuff, then the company will never grow. What I need is a home run." Shigeru nodded. "And i really think Devil Boy could be that home run." Shigeru smiled. "A home run to knock out the ghost of poverty? Maybe..."

Later, after Inui left, Shigeru sat in the kitchen, eating pumpkin seeds. Fumie said, "He's really excited, isn't he?" Shigeru nodded, "Yes, but maybe he's right. Maybe this is the home run. It'll be hard, but I can work, and... we don't dare fail, though."

Shigeru started drawing. He was working on five books, but he had lots of ideas. So the books came quickly.

At Inui's home, he was looking at the draft pages from Shigeru. He suddenly slapped the pages down, grabbed the stack, and stood up. He said, "Mizuki? I'm going outside." He picked up the stack of pages and walked out. Shigeru jumped up and followed him.

Outside, Inui paced beside the old waterpump in the yard. Shigeru said, "What's the matter?" Inui turned to him and said, "I don't know how to say this. Yes, I do. I feel like I did when my first book was published. Look." He took his hand out of his pocket and held it up. He was shaking. Shigeru said, "You're shaking? Did you drink too much?" Inui said, "No, this is just excitement." Shigeru said, "Are you really that excited?" Inui shook the stack. "This, this is a home run. No, more than that, this is great! I think it will save the manga!" Shigeru said, "Well, I drew it myself, so... do you really think it's that good?" Inui raised the stack. "With this, I think my company will pay your rent next month. Yes, it's that good."

On his way home, Shigeru walked his bicycle past the stores in the shopping center. He stopped and looked at a model in the model store. Then he got the envelope of money out of his bag.

At home, Shigeru walked in, exulting. "Inui paid me 30,000 yen! And he says we'll get more next month!" He hung his bag up, and slipped a package out of it. He walked into his workroom and unwrapped a box. "I got this, too!" A model battleship. Fumie walked in from the kitchen. "You bought that?" She shook her head. At last they were getting money to pay the rent, and he bought a model? She didn't understand his thinking at all.

The show ended with clips from the upcoming week. Shigeru working on the model. The censors again. Haruko. Shigeru announcing to Fumie that he was going to quit manga. Shigeru's brother angry about something. Shigeru in his army uniform, sweating somewhere. Fumie sneezing on the model.

Comments

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Slight correction -- apparently Shigeru only drew one book, so far. Although he was making notes about ideas for the others.