Maria-sama ga Miteru Novel Vol 19 "In Library"

[kj1980]

The nineteenth series of the Marimite novel series.

This novel is basically a compilation of Ms. Konno's Marimite short-stories that was published this year on Cobalt Magazine, similar to "Variety Gift."

Contents include:
"Chocolate Coat" (from February 2004 issue of Cobalt Magazine)
"Sakuragumi Densetsu" (from April 2004 issue of Cobalt Magazine)
"Toshokan no Hon" (from August 2004 issue of Cobalt Magazine)
"Shizukanaru Yoru no Maboroshi" (from December 2004 issue of Cobalt Magazine)

plus:
insert stories that ties these short stories together (written for this novel)
"Joanna" short story written for this novel

Summary:

In Library I
The story takes place just a few days after Lillian's Culture Festival. Yumi was handed down a tough assignment from her beloved Sachiko-sama to "go find your petite soeur." In addition to the excitement from the Culture Festival, this huge task left Yumi having a tough time getting to go to sleep every night.

The Yamayurikai was just going over their post-Culture Festival meeting when the discussion suddenly turned to the attention of when Yoshino and Yumi will find their petite soeur. Yoshino, of course, is quite sensitive to this subject due to a deal she made with the previous Rosa Foetida (Torii Eriko) and the deadline is looming over the horizon. Yumi, on the other hand, also became sensitive because she was recently handed down this assignment from Sachiko-sama just a few days ago.

quoting from the novel:
"Why does everyone think that Kanako-chan and Touko-chan are the obvious candidates for Yumi's soeur? Yumi has never appointed neither of them as her candidate, nor had they come up to Yumi to declare their candidacy."

Hmm...is this Ms. Konno's way of asserting to us readers with some sort of sarcasm?

Yumi begins to ponder how she should find her petite soeur.

"Maybe if I barge out from this room right now, there will be a first year student that just happened to be on the other side of the door..."

"...or maybe shall I go to the St. Mary Statue among the ginkgo trees and fix the tie of a first year student...?"


Shizukanaru Yoru no Maboroshi (The Illusion in the Quiet Night)

If you notice from the title, "Shizukanaru~" (Quiet) is also a pun on the main character of this story - Kanina Shizuka-sama. Hence, while it can be read "The Illusion in the Quiet Night," it can also be pun-read as "The Illusion in Shizuka's Night."

I'm sorry, I do not know the English title, so care to help me out. There is this fairy tale (obviously of western origin) about a little girl who sells matches in the winter. No one buys her matches, and she gets cold. In despair, she lights up those matches, and in the flame she sees visions (illusions). In the end, she sees an illusion where she is sleeping warmily on the lap of her deceased grandmother. Story ends with her dying in the freezing winter, but with a warm smile on her face.

Anyway, "Shikanaru Yoru no Maboroshi" is based (somewhat) upon that story...in which Kanina Shizuka-sama herself even mentions.

It is Christmas. Shizuka is walking in a department store with nothing to do. She is stopped by a fortune teller who reads her palm and tells her "you will have a great turn of events when in the new year."

Shizuka, left pondering, returns home. A note was left on the table from her mom which read "Going out for a few moments to get the Christmas cake I reserved."

Bored with nothing to do, Shizuka sat down on the sofa. Then, she noticed a lump inside her pocket. "Six books of matches for 100 yen..." Pondering why she bought that, she remembered it was because of the fairy tale (see above) she had recently just re-read from the recommendation of the Lillian school library. When she re-read this story, she realized that it wasn't so tragic that she had remembered it from when she was a child. While the adults see the young girl frozen to death and feel sorry for her, at least the young girl passed away happily and warm on the illusion of her deceased grandmother's lap.

Just for the heck of it, Shizuka lit up a match. Nothing happens. "Perhaps I shouldn't have eaten that Chocolate bon-bon. The young girl who saw it was hungry..."

Shizuka lits one once again. This time she sees two happy soeurs walking side-by-side and hand-in-hand. There is no conversation between them, but their bond is shown with the black ribbon that the younger soeur wears to bind her hair into two parts. (Obviously, Shizuka is seeing Sachiko-sama and Yumi).

Shizuka ponders why she just saw that. There was no jealousy there, nor was there any feeling that she wanted a soeur relation like that. Shizuka snugged it off as "I probably saw that because I though that scene was beautiful."

Shizuka lits the match once again. This time, she sees a vision of a frail-looking but strong-eyed first-year student waiting for someone in front of the St. Mary Statue. When the person arrived, the first year student suddenly said "please let me become your petite soeur [once again]." (Obivously, Shizuka is seeing Rei-sama and Yoshino)

Shizuka wasn't there when that happened. She probably read it on the Lillian School Newspaper whose editor-in-chief has an articulate sense of reporting which makes the readers believe that they actually witnessed that in a grand scale. Of course, "Yellow Rose Revolution," and its climax sent shockwaves across the Lillian campus - which of course includes Shizuka-sama.

Shizuka lits the match again. She sees the illusion of a young first year student whose features is portrayed by her melancholic beauty. (Obviously, Shizuka saw Shimako) Shizuka immediately blows out the flame.

"Why did I just see that? What do I wish to see?" Questions encircle within Shizuka.

As Shizuka falls into despair, crying out for some plea to help her, she suddenly has a relapse into the past when she was a first year student.

"Oh how I wish we had someone like Shizuka-chan in the Yamayurikai" said the previous Rosa Chinensis (Super Rosa Chinensis, Youko's grande soeur)

"Oh? You already have a nice petite soeur - Youko-chan." said the head of the chorus.

"No, what I mean was we need a first year student in our Yamayurikai who is strong-willed just like Shizuka-chan." replied [Super] Rosa Chinensis.

"Oh really? But you can't have her...you don't know when Shizuka will suddenly go off to Italy. She has been denying petite soeur request ever since she joined our chorus group." said the chorus leader.

"Are you sure? Maybe she's just making an excuse because she already has a person in mind who she wishes to be her grande soeur?" said [Super] Rosa Chinensis

"Uh...I never said that I have anyone in mind." countered Shizuka

"Oh really? Well that's not so interesting. Well, how about you take our little white one?" smiled [Super] Rosa Chinensis.

Shizuka jittered slightly.

"You mean Sei-chan? I don't think that possible." questioned the chorus leader.

"That meaning, you're talking about Shiori-san, are you not?" said the [Super] Rosa Chinensis.

Shizuka awakens to her present state

Why. Even that Shiori-san wasn't able to become that person's petite soeur. I believed that that person would never have her own soeur. But now, there is a young first year student beside her. As Shizuka began to cry, with a feeling inside her that this wasn't the way it was supposed to be - that this wasn't the reason why she postponed her sponsorship to Italy.

Shizuka lit the match once again. She clearly saw the vision of the person she had wanted to see.

"Rosa Gigantea...Satou Sei-sama"
"Gokigenyou"
"I....I have always loved you"
"Oh really, thank you."
match goes off

Shizuka lights the match once again
"Sei-sama, I have always adored you"
"Oh really, thank you."
match goes off

"Sei-sama!"
and Shizuka lights the match once again
"I really do love you!!"
"Oh really, thank you."
match goes off

Everytime Shizuka opens her heart to tell Sei's illusion, each and everytime, Sei answers "Oh really, thank you." The more and more Shizuka lights the match, the answer is always the same....

And Shizuka realized why Sei's illusion replies back with the same answer. Even though Shizuka tells what she feels deep inside her heart, she is just telling her true feelings toward an illusion - that in which is not a reality which can never go foward that "oh really, thank you."

"Wait! Sei-sama!"
match goes off, lights match

"Come on, Shizuka, follow me"
match goes off, lights match

"Please don't leave me behind! Sei-sama, save me from this spiral!"
match goes off, lights match

"You already know what to do"
match goes off, lights match

"I don't know!"
match goes off, lights match

"Shizuka, what do you desire?"
match goes off, lights match

"You already have the answer in you."
match goes off, lights match

.....

Just then, as Shizuka's mom said "I'm home~" Shizuka awoke from her trance.

Shizuka's mom looks at the pile of burnt matches in the ash tray "What the...were you trying to enact the story of the young girl and her matches?"

Shizuka: "How did you guess?"

Shizuka's mom: "Well you wouldn't ruin your own throat, would you?" (I don't suspect that you were smoking because you are the lead in the chorus)

Shizuka: "That's true"

Shizuka's mom: "So did you see any illusions?"

Shizuka: "I might've, I might not have..."

Shizuka mom: "Hey, cut that smirk off your face....what are you deviously planning this time?"

Shizuka: "What are you talking about?"

Shizuka mom: "I know you. You always get that smirk when you are wily. You've been always the type who gets back at something that has been done to you."

Shizuka: "Sheesh mom, I'm not that big of a troublemaker..."


But, what Shizuka had realized and started planning to do is of such a scale. It will probably cause some turmoil. Perhaps the fortune teller was right...something big will happen when the new year comes along.

"Perhaps, I should start by cutting off my hair."

(Obviously, this story is a precursor to Shizuka's sudden candidacy to run for the Yamayurikai)

[end "Shikanaru Yoru no Maboroshi"]


More chapter summaries to follow when I have the time.

[Sean Gaffney]

Yay! Thanks very much for these synopses, kj1980. As a Touko fan, I'm feeling a little smacked down by the author, but I can deal with it. And a Shizuka story too, nice.

[Takemi_Ikazuchi]

"...or maybe shall I go to the St. Mary Statue among the ginkgo trees and fix the tie of a first year student...?"

Yes please. I approve of this.

[pyu]

The match girl story is "The Little Match Girl" - a Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale.

[LucifersGirl]

Thanks a lot, kj1980. You're the greatest.

[Ialdaboth]

Originally Posted by kj1980

Yumi begins to ponder how she should find her petite soeur.

"Maybe if I barge out from this room right now, there will be a first year student that just happened to be on the other side of the door..."

Lol. I can imagine the scene. Priceless. ^^

Thanks a lot kj1980 !

[dahl_moon]

While waiting for more announcements for the 4th season, I think I'll try and generate some activity on the novels.

As kj1980 mentioned, "In Library" is a collection of short novels. It is also the latest book I have in Korean ("Seour Audition" came out just a few days ago). I don't have the book at the moment, so what I'm writing here is from memory.

Spoiler for Chocolate Coat:

Remember during the fight between Sachiko and Yumi ("Rainy Blue"), where Minako (the newspaper editor and Mami's grande seour) tells Yumi about her friends? One was *cheating* on the other? Well, this is the story about them. A rather bitter story, IMO.

Spoiler for Sakuragumi Densetsu:

Only the 2nd years of Lillian have a Sakura-class (Yumi is in the Pinetree-class, for example). Why? This has been a school mystery that has been unsolved forever. That's why every 4 years, the students of Sakura-class publish short stories of their own version of why it's called Sakura-class for the culture festival (i.e. it's called Sakura-class since a student disappeared under a sakura tree, the door to Sakura-class's classroom is made from sakura tree wood, etc.). This story is an example collection of them.

Spoiler for Toshokan no Hon:

A story that takes place years ago, when (persumably) Sachiko's mother used to go to Lillian. An ordinary girl finds the school icon upperclass lady (Sachiko's mother) taking a nap in the greenhouse. She wakes up, but leaves behind a book borrowed from the library. The girl gets the book (with the cover hidden) signed by the lady, and the girl buys another copy for the library.

Years later, Yumi finds a book in her house that is from the library, and is signed by someone??? Who's autograph could this be? (Yumi doesn't know Sachiko's mother's maiden name, BTW)

"Shizukanaru Yoru no Maboroshi": See kj1980's post.

Spoiler for insert stories:

Yumi falls asleep during Yamayurikai's meeting, and wakes up alone. Sachiko left a note saying she went to the library to return her book, but even after a chat with Touko who stopped by, she still hasn't returned! Where could she be?? A campus-wide search for Yumi's onee-sama!

Spoiler for Joanna:

Spoiler for WARNING!! Season 4 spoiler!:

During the culture festival,

Spoiler:

Touko gets in a fight with a drama club senpai, and storms out. Yumi finds out about this, confronts Touko, and gets her to return back to the drama club. Volume 18, "Tokubetsu de nai Tada no Ichinichi" told this from Yumi's perspective. This time it's from Touko's perspective.