At 09:07 PM 10/20/00 -0400, DB Sommer wrote:
What happened next is well-known, for the princess came to
discover the what darkness dwelt in the shadows of the prince's
bright castle. Some say that her horror was great as it was
because what she saw reflected the darker desires of her own
heart.
For in truth it was said Nanami craved sex with Anthy as well.
Well, who doesn't, deep in their hearts?
But some say otherwise, and none can know the truth.
Which is, perhaps, for the best.
Well, certainly so from a fanfic perspective. Go ambiguity!
There was another princess, one who wished to be a prince,
and the two princesses were adversaries. Some might call them
opposites, for one was cruel were the other was kind, one was
magnanimous where the other was selfish, one was petty where the
other was forgiving.
But enough about Utena's numerous faults...
Fortunately, Nanami is kind and generous enough to forgive them and be
Utena's dear friend anyway.
"Since the day I first returned to the Council after my...
absence." He pulled down a small tin and put it down on the
table. "I baked cookies yesterday. If you wish, you may have
one." He gestured at the tin.
Hmm. Saonji baking cookies. Interesting. Seeing him in a chef's hat and
apron is an interesting picture as well. :)
Well, he does wear an apron in Episode 27, and offers to make Nanami eggs. :)
He looked at her flatly. "Why should I have? It's no
concern of mine if you or Miki or Juri go blundering about making
fools of yourselves. And, really, do you think any of you could
have avoided your part in these rituals even if I had told you?"
Nanami: Of course. All I would need to do is 'fix' the breaks on the
Akiomobile, and a lot of people would lead a whole lot simpler lives.
Please. Akio's got more than enough spares of those, as Episode 36 showed.
:)
"Ow! Stop it!" He put up his arms and managed to take most
of the hits upon them, but she slipped one little fist through
and nailed him hard in the ribcage, robbing him of breath.
"Nanami," he gasped, "stop it, you crazy little bitch!"
Surprised he didn't slap her. He seems fond of that against women.
Well, the only person he ever slaps in the series beyond Anthy is Miki, in
Episode 25. And even though half the people I've shown the series too have
thought Miki was a girl at first...
He didn't have any idea how to deal with an upset woman.
He has difficulty with women period. Just look at his 'diary' :)
Saionji just has difficulty with human relationships in general, though
he's hardly the only member of the cast to have that. :)
He laughed. "You ought to be more gracious towards your
host, Nanami-kun."
"You're a shitty host," she muttered.
She has a point. :)
Hey, he gave her cookies. For Saionji, he's being _nice_. :)
"There's a saying about beggars and choosers, isn't there?"
He set down her teacup before her; it had turned a pale brown
from the amount of milk he'd added. Out the window, night was
oncoming,
'oncoming' doesn't sound quite right. I think just plain 'coming' would flow
better.
I'll have to disagree. "Oncoming" has the sense of malice (a la "oncoming
train") that a mere "coming" lacks.
His laughter was harsh and sharp. "Right. You're so
pampered you won't last a day without someone else to rely on.
And, if I understand you right, you've already tried Miki and
Juri."
Hmm. Wonder who told him.
Putting two and two together from her statement about having nowhere else
to go. If she came to him, it must mean she's already exhausted her other
options.
"Don't act self-righteous. You hate her as much as I do."
Nah. Nanami's jealous. There's a difference
Yeah! Damn Utena, hogging Anthy all to herself!
She went a little pale. "No. I don't think I would be.
Set fire to Touga. Run over the Akiomobile with a steamrollar. Seduce
Utena.Knee Akio in the groin everytime you see him. I think if she takes
that tact she'll be allowed to leave soon enough.
Or they'll just turn her into a cow permanently and serve her in the
cafeteria.
"Bastard," she half-stuttered, slowly removing her arms
and stumbling away from the bike. "I'm going to be walking
funny for days," she said, wincing and rubbing her hips.
I can see how that would turn out.
Keiko: Nanami, why are you walking funny?
Nanami: I got a ride from that jerk, Saoinji.
Keiko: A...ride? One that makes you walk funny?
Nanami: Yes.
Three hours later, Wakaba beats Nanami up for no apparent reason. :)
Well, this is past the time where Nanami basically breaks with her
henchwomen, and they're never seen together again, but that could be
amusing, yes. :)
This was the same room, was it not? But, if so, why was the
window unbroken? If you drove a car through a window, it should
stay broken, he thought. It was not right for it to be another
way.
Err, didnt' he realize the damage from the other car crashes healed
themselves as well?
Perhaps. But none of those took place in his own house, and he's far more
disturbed over what's going on now then he was at the beginning of things.
Mr. President, just what are the ends of the Ends of the
World? Do you know? Do you?
Does it really matter at this point?
Touga would like to think it does.
The blow was dirty and unexpected, and it left Touga
gasping on the floor for air that simply would not cooperate and
allow him to draw it.
Heh. Thought he would do that
Well, he definitely didn't just come to talk.
The first movement allegro of the Dvorak swelled to a
crescendo. Saionji stepped forward, clumsily jabbing the air
with his fists in wasted aggressive motions; Touga retreated,
trying not to smile. His stomach still hurt like hell, and his
head was aching, but he felt oddly good.
Well, you know he's going to win. He never loses to Saionji, which is made
all the worse since he's the measure Saionji seems to judge himself by.
Mmm. Saionji does claim to Utena in Episode 9 that Touga's defeat of him
in their kendo match was a fluke. The big thing for Saionji seems to be
that Touga apparently witnessed whatever "eternal" thing made the girl come
out of her coffin, and he didn't.
our freshman year, Saionji-kun," he said. "I found them very
informative."
Can KO a boxing kangaroo with one blow, yep.
President T is helluva tough.
The first movement ended; the second--adagio ma non troppo--
began. Touga shifted in his chair; Saionji glared at the floor
between his legs. The music filled the silence like water in a
vessel.
"Izanagi and Izanami, though brother and sister, fathered
all the gods of Japan,"
Well, each was the only other game in town, too, if I remember correctly.
Actually, as I remember it, there were more gods in their family, but it
was Izanagi and Izanami who were sent down to earth from the heavens and
created the world.
Touga nodded, tried not to smile. "Saionji's not the most
pleasant of men, but he's a saint compared to me."
In many ways. He doesn't know how to be as cruel.
And his cruelties take place out of bad temper and flashes of rage rather
than calculation. Whether that makes it any better...
"Is there anything you want to talk about? I mean, you're
"Really? No boys at all?" Her mother appeared somewhat
disappointed. "What about Kyouichi? It was nice of him to bring
you home; he's a nice boy, isn't he? And very handsome."
She doesn't think the age difference matters?
Mrs. Kiryuu is an absentee mother to the point where it's quite likely that
she can't even remember what the age difference is. :)
"Wishing never did anyone any good. You can't make anything
happen just by wanting it enough."
Heh. Akio's philosphy, which Utena pokes holes in eventually.
Well, corrected, "You can't make anything happen just by wanting it enough
unless you're currently in a place that's utterly surreal."
Very nice work. I enjoyed it immensly. Now I still have Sonata for Duo to
get too. Hopefully within the next month or so.
Well, the commentary is always appreciated, as is the riffing, but I always
feel rather guilty, since I've generally sent the stories to RAAC by the
time you comment on them. ^^;;
Ciao,
-Alan Harnum