Now and Forever...Itsumademo... - Chapter 21C
Title: Now and Forever…いつまでも…
Author: Unare Haineko
Pairing: [Juntoshi] Matsumoto Jun x Ohno Satoshi
Rating: R-ish, but NC-17 for this chapter
Summary: [Revised] Three years after the ending of ‘Kodoku kara Umareta Ai’ (which you can read here), we have Juntoshi trying to raise their son Ayumu while the demons from the dark shadows that ( Read more... )
(01) is whether Iago will find out about this switch in loyalty and what Iago will do to the boy or to Nino when he finds out.
It should be noted at this point that Miyazono chose not to question Kei on who Gima and Tsukishima are, nor did Miyazono choose to question what Iago ordered Gima and Tsukishima to do. Interestingly, despite kei’s claim that he would not reveal any information beyond that which was asked of him, he actually volunteered this bit about Gima and Tsukishima Daisuke. In case readers cannot remember, there was a section some chapters ago where Kakia, Kei, Gima, Daisuke and Reiya were in the same room and talking to Iago via teleconferencing. This is why Kei knows about this. Readers should recall that this occurred in the morning of the same day Nino was at the ryokan place shooting the music video and the same day on which Nino gave Daisuke the pastry school sponsorship vouchers and some act of physical intimacy took place between them. So, my question at this juncture is:
(02) What will it take for Miyazono to look into the two young men named Tsukishima and Gima who have been ordered by Iago to spy on the Arashi members etc? Miyazono already knows Aiba is being followed by Tiny, and it would not be a far stretch of imagination for Miyazono to realise that Ohno, Jun and those associated with them (such as Mr and Mrs Ohno, and Ayu) would be followed as well. So, has Miyazono uncovered that yet? Gima is easy enough to spot when he spies on Ayu, and it would be simple for Miyazono and/or Sawaguchi to pick him out. But getting hold of Daisuke who boards with Nino and who is hiding in plain sight would be a much more difficult task, especially since the young man has legally changed his surname. Ah, but then again, if he has changed his surname, there would be legal documents to that effect, wouldn’t it?
Suffice it to say, everything happening in this section is premeditated on Nino’s part. He went in, assessed the situation, thought about the matter for 10 seconds to a minute and then decided to act. Nino’s principle in so doing (i.e. being kind, choosing to conveniently acknowledge Daisuke as Daisuke instead of Oh-chan) is entirely selfish of course. The acknowledgement of Daisuke as Daisuke is not so much to stir the boy’s sense of loyalty or to bolster boy’s flimsy sense of self-worth. Rather, it is a means of Nino getting a feel as to who his personal assistant is. The papers in the puzzle box declare the boy as Tsukishima Daisuke and with a different face. Nino’s a smart truffle and very quick on the uptake. He already knows there is something amiss with Daisuke. So in murmuring Daisuke’s given name when the boy was at his most emotionally vulnerable point (right when he is tottering over the cusp of surrendering his loyal and himself physically), Nino is in actuality sending out a subtle sign akin to saying “I know you are Daisuke. You are Daisuke, aren’t you? Then why are you in this outward form which I know is not really you? Show me who you really are.”
Reply
Qui jacet in terra, non habet unde cadat.
In me consumpsit vires fortuna nocendo,
Nil superset ut jam possit obese magis.
This quote from Thomas Kyd’s Spanish Tragedy translates into, “When one is lying on the ground (has one’s face smashed into the ground), one cannot possibly fall or be smashed any further. Fortune has exhausted everything it can do to hurt me (because it has already beaten me, used me, hit me and smashed me into the ground into little pieces), and accordingly, there is nothing more that can possibly hurt/harm make things any worse than they already are.” Put into context, this means Nino is dangerous not because he is selfish and nihilistic, but because he is a man with nothing else to lose. As an strategist will tell you, battling against someone who has been kicked about, shunted aside and crumpled to the point where they have nothing left to lose, they are dangerous. They are dangerous because such people have no pressure points with which to squeeze or blackmail or hold against them. And this is exactly Nino’s situation. And in cases like these, using might never works. One must use cunning, and Nino does not disappoint.
A final question before I close my observations on this section:
(03) From the description of Nino’s entrance into the scene, he is mentally rather than physically exhausted. It is more than work woes running around in his head. What happened that he’s mentally drained instead of physically tired from a day at work? Where was Nino after work and before he went home? Did he find out something? If so, what? Did what he see or learn or figure out or uncover have anything to do with the split-second decision he made to seduce Daisuke and wear down the boy’s defenses?
[NB -- More commentary to come. I'm slowly working through things.]
Reply
As for the Nino-Daisuke dynamics, it was a shorter section, but a very important turning point for dear Kazu. There was indeed physical consummation of the "change" in their relationship (but I did not feel it was necessary to spell it out for readers--who knows if they even made the connection though. There's no feedback aside from you, so I don't know what my readers are thinking). Also, you hit it right on the nail on Daisuke's loyalty for precisely the reasons I had in mind. Feeling unappreciated and undervalued go such a long way in motivating people to act on their dissatisfaction...
Kei does tell Miyazono he's not volunteering anything, but you are right that he does volunteer quite a bit. This is intentional of course (on my part, not Kei's). Kei thinks he's in control, but Miyazono is just biding his time. Miyazono, like my lovely Isabelle, likes to do some of the research himself. By expressing interest in some things of lesser importance in the grand scheme of things more than others and feigning lack of interest in others despite being extremely interested, Miyazono can investigate at his leisure while keeping Kei from discovering what Miyazono's true intentions are. Don't you just love the man? XDDD
And in response to selfish, calculating Nino. You are absolutely right, my sweet. I was wondering if a reader (other than you) was going to call me on this cruel development. Since no one has tried to flame me for it, I'm sure at least one person will cry foul when Nino's intentions become more obvious. I loved the Thomas Kyd reference, btw. I was thinking about my blood orange chocolates when I read it. Trying to hurt Nino to bleed him for our chocolates would be pointless, wouldn't it? I mean, the whole reason why we love chocolates made from Ma-chan's blood is because there's so much anguish and torture that must go on in order to obtain the blood, right? With Nino there's nothing to enhance the flavor of the blood--no Sho-chan to harvest it in the most painful way possible either. *cackle*
Reply
I am glad my dissection did not awry in the Nino-Daisuke section. There is actually a fair bit going on there. Fear not, the cudgels and "how could Nino be so cruel" will surface later from readers when you make things more explicit. I, however, am very proud of the truffle. Now that Daisuke has been "turned" so to speak, things will get interesting on that front vis-a-vis Iago. I await to see what else you have up your sleeves.
Reply
Reply
Leave a comment