Natsume Yuujinchou novel translation - The Ayakashi's Tune (4/4)
Well, here we go. As always, thank you very much for commenting. I may not have replied to every comment, but I read and appreciated each one. Your encouragement really helped. ♥
Once again: lady39jane has uploaded scans for the first (part 1, part 2) and third stories in the collection, if anyone else would like to try translating them.
---
Translated from scans provided by the very kind lady39jane.
Corrections are appreciated.
The Ayakashi's Tune
Part I
Part II
Part III
In the training camp that night, I had a mysterious dream.
--It was a swamp somewhere, overgrown with reeds. The full moon was floating in the sky. On the footpath, a figure. It was Natsume-kun. Beside him, someone else, indistinct, such that I didn't know what they looked like; only that they held a cross-flute in their hand. For whatever reason, that was the only thing I knew distinctly.
I heard their conversation.
"I'm sorry about that time, Natsume-dono."
"What are you talking about?"
"It was back when you were still young. Enticed by the cheerful music, I ended up entering that building called a 'school'. There, human children were playing the recorder with all their might. I found that sight unbearably amusing, but they were trying so hard that in the end, I couldn't bear it any longer, and played along with them on my own flute."
--Ah, he's talking about that time.
"I'd never have thought that there would be someone who could see my form. It seems that I caused you trouble."
--I have to apologise, too.
"I apologise."
--I'm sorry, Natsume-kun.
For a while, Natsume-kun looked at the other person in silence. I held my breath and waited for him to speak.
"In the past, I might have gotten angry, like -- "Don't say that now, when it's too late." But now, I'll say 'thank you'."
--Eh?
"For sparing a thought for me, back then."
This is who Natsume-kun is. I'd only been thinking about myself. If I apologise now, it would just be to satisfy myself. How the person receiving the apology would feel -- that hadn't crossed my mind. But he was the sort of person who could take all that into account and accept the feelings of the person who was apologising, and say thank you--
Right then, I awoke with a gasp. In the next bed, Miki was sleeping peacefully, her breathing calm. Straining my ears, I could hear, faintly -- from somewhere far away -- that melody. I leapt out of bed, and flew out of the room with clarinet and score in hand.
Sneaking quietly out of the camp quarters, over which a hush had fallen, I ran along the forest trail.
A brief distance away, I strained my ears once more. I could still hear that melody. But it was somehow different from the god's melody which I'd always heard, a performance full of insecurity that was mixed with regret and hesitation. In that sound's muddiness, I sensed familiarity. That was only to be expected.
--That was my regret and hesitation.
The feeling of guilt that had resurfaced when I met Natsume-kun again. That had spread from my flute to the god's flute1. In that case, I was the only one who could tune it correctly. With my clarinet at my lips, I played with all my heart. For a moment, the sound of the god's flute wavered. I noticed. The god had immediately begun to play in harmony with me. I, too, was getting close to the god's performance. As though shaking the moon in heaven and the trees on earth, the sound of the cross-flute and the sound of the clarinet resonated. We were trying to become one. The regrets of the past, or the hesitation of today-- don't seal those away at the bottom of your heart, but spit all of that out, here and now. And then, beginning afresh, face him. Natsume-kun. With a sense of gratitude.
--Our ensemble became one.
The tuning of our hearts, the god's and mine, was complete.
I lifted the flute from my lips for a moment, then began to play again, from the beginning. An exquisite melody shook the trees of the forest. In the instant that the tune was finished, as though released by a demon that had possessed me, I collapsed right there.
***
It was a performance that shook the heart.
Once Hichiri finished playing 'Niji no Hakaze' -- in harmony with the melody of a clarinet, coming from somewhere unknown -- the trees and animals and insects all fell silent, as though soaking in the lingering echoes. Before long, a section of the overgrown reeds rustled, and a youkai who looked like a workman with his sleeves tied back2 appeared.
"What's this? You're not Reiko. Exactly who--?"
"I'm Reiko-san's grandson. Ashi-no-Takumi, I came to return your name. Please receive it."
He gazed at me for a while, but eventually nodded as if he'd accepted everything. I drew forth the Book of Friends, and cried:
"Ye who protect me, reveal that name!"
The Book of Friends revealed the page upon which the name was writen. I tore it out, held it between my teeth. In that instant, the exchange between Ashi-no-Takumi and Reiko surfaced in my mind.
*
"Well, I've lost, I've lost. We'll take it that I've lost, so please stop."
"Really? Then it's my victory, yeah? Write your name here."
"I've never heard such poor flute-playing. If I hear any more, I may lose my mind. So we'll take it that I've lost."
"How rude! But it's my victory, anyway."
"Yes, I don't mind. But how troublesome. After this, I have to sleep in a swamp a little further up from here. Even if I'm summoned, I might not notice."
"I see, then let's decide on a tune for summoning you. If I play it, you definitely have to awaken, okay?"
*
"Ashi-no-Takumi, I return your name. Take it."
The characters of his name swirled and flowed into Ashi-no-Takumi's forehead.
I told Takumi what the circumstances were, and introduced Hichiri.
"Hichiri, give Takumi the flute."
"No, Natsume-dono, although we did summon him especially, this is no longer..."
"What, I've been summoned already, what are you hesitating for?"
Ashi-no-Takumi seized the flute from the hands of a wavering Hichiri. He scrutinised that flute with the sharp eyes of a master craftsman, and finally said:
"A splendid flute. Nowhere is it damaged. It is rare that I can lay my eyes upon something of this calibre."
***
I can't quite recall how I managed to return to the site of the training camp that night. It seems that I'd managed to wake up, walked back along the forest path, returned to the room before anyone noticed, and fell asleep instantly. Had it all been a dream? Or, perhaps, an illusion to which the doubts in my heart had given rise? Either would have been fine.
"Miyako, what happened? You've got right out of your slump."
Miki looked at me in surprise. The president, too, gave me a thumbs-up and a wink.
After the group practice ended, as I was staring at the sky alone, a rainbow arced faintly across the summer hills. I wonder if I can invite Natsume-kun to the autumn championships? If I can, I'll say it then. I murmured those words as I faced the sky:
"Thank you."
I'll be able to say it for real someday, surely. "I'm sorry about that time." And then: "Thank you." To Natsume-kun, and to my god of music.
Translator's notes:
1At which point I realise that perhaps I should have used the singular 'god' throughout. Whoops. Sorry.
2Specifically, with a tasuki, like this.
Once again: lady39jane has uploaded scans for the first (part 1, part 2) and third stories in the collection, if anyone else would like to try translating them.
---
Translated from scans provided by the very kind lady39jane.
Corrections are appreciated.
The Ayakashi's Tune
Part I
Part II
Part III
In the training camp that night, I had a mysterious dream.
--It was a swamp somewhere, overgrown with reeds. The full moon was floating in the sky. On the footpath, a figure. It was Natsume-kun. Beside him, someone else, indistinct, such that I didn't know what they looked like; only that they held a cross-flute in their hand. For whatever reason, that was the only thing I knew distinctly.
I heard their conversation.
"I'm sorry about that time, Natsume-dono."
"What are you talking about?"
"It was back when you were still young. Enticed by the cheerful music, I ended up entering that building called a 'school'. There, human children were playing the recorder with all their might. I found that sight unbearably amusing, but they were trying so hard that in the end, I couldn't bear it any longer, and played along with them on my own flute."
--Ah, he's talking about that time.
"I'd never have thought that there would be someone who could see my form. It seems that I caused you trouble."
--I have to apologise, too.
"I apologise."
--I'm sorry, Natsume-kun.
For a while, Natsume-kun looked at the other person in silence. I held my breath and waited for him to speak.
"In the past, I might have gotten angry, like -- "Don't say that now, when it's too late." But now, I'll say 'thank you'."
--Eh?
"For sparing a thought for me, back then."
This is who Natsume-kun is. I'd only been thinking about myself. If I apologise now, it would just be to satisfy myself. How the person receiving the apology would feel -- that hadn't crossed my mind. But he was the sort of person who could take all that into account and accept the feelings of the person who was apologising, and say thank you--
Right then, I awoke with a gasp. In the next bed, Miki was sleeping peacefully, her breathing calm. Straining my ears, I could hear, faintly -- from somewhere far away -- that melody. I leapt out of bed, and flew out of the room with clarinet and score in hand.
Sneaking quietly out of the camp quarters, over which a hush had fallen, I ran along the forest trail.
A brief distance away, I strained my ears once more. I could still hear that melody. But it was somehow different from the god's melody which I'd always heard, a performance full of insecurity that was mixed with regret and hesitation. In that sound's muddiness, I sensed familiarity. That was only to be expected.
--That was my regret and hesitation.
The feeling of guilt that had resurfaced when I met Natsume-kun again. That had spread from my flute to the god's flute1. In that case, I was the only one who could tune it correctly. With my clarinet at my lips, I played with all my heart. For a moment, the sound of the god's flute wavered. I noticed. The god had immediately begun to play in harmony with me. I, too, was getting close to the god's performance. As though shaking the moon in heaven and the trees on earth, the sound of the cross-flute and the sound of the clarinet resonated. We were trying to become one. The regrets of the past, or the hesitation of today-- don't seal those away at the bottom of your heart, but spit all of that out, here and now. And then, beginning afresh, face him. Natsume-kun. With a sense of gratitude.
--Our ensemble became one.
The tuning of our hearts, the god's and mine, was complete.
I lifted the flute from my lips for a moment, then began to play again, from the beginning. An exquisite melody shook the trees of the forest. In the instant that the tune was finished, as though released by a demon that had possessed me, I collapsed right there.
***
It was a performance that shook the heart.
Once Hichiri finished playing 'Niji no Hakaze' -- in harmony with the melody of a clarinet, coming from somewhere unknown -- the trees and animals and insects all fell silent, as though soaking in the lingering echoes. Before long, a section of the overgrown reeds rustled, and a youkai who looked like a workman with his sleeves tied back2 appeared.
"What's this? You're not Reiko. Exactly who--?"
"I'm Reiko-san's grandson. Ashi-no-Takumi, I came to return your name. Please receive it."
He gazed at me for a while, but eventually nodded as if he'd accepted everything. I drew forth the Book of Friends, and cried:
"Ye who protect me, reveal that name!"
The Book of Friends revealed the page upon which the name was writen. I tore it out, held it between my teeth. In that instant, the exchange between Ashi-no-Takumi and Reiko surfaced in my mind.
*
"Well, I've lost, I've lost. We'll take it that I've lost, so please stop."
"Really? Then it's my victory, yeah? Write your name here."
"I've never heard such poor flute-playing. If I hear any more, I may lose my mind. So we'll take it that I've lost."
"How rude! But it's my victory, anyway."
"Yes, I don't mind. But how troublesome. After this, I have to sleep in a swamp a little further up from here. Even if I'm summoned, I might not notice."
"I see, then let's decide on a tune for summoning you. If I play it, you definitely have to awaken, okay?"
*
"Ashi-no-Takumi, I return your name. Take it."
The characters of his name swirled and flowed into Ashi-no-Takumi's forehead.
I told Takumi what the circumstances were, and introduced Hichiri.
"Hichiri, give Takumi the flute."
"No, Natsume-dono, although we did summon him especially, this is no longer..."
"What, I've been summoned already, what are you hesitating for?"
Ashi-no-Takumi seized the flute from the hands of a wavering Hichiri. He scrutinised that flute with the sharp eyes of a master craftsman, and finally said:
"A splendid flute. Nowhere is it damaged. It is rare that I can lay my eyes upon something of this calibre."
***
I can't quite recall how I managed to return to the site of the training camp that night. It seems that I'd managed to wake up, walked back along the forest path, returned to the room before anyone noticed, and fell asleep instantly. Had it all been a dream? Or, perhaps, an illusion to which the doubts in my heart had given rise? Either would have been fine.
"Miyako, what happened? You've got right out of your slump."
Miki looked at me in surprise. The president, too, gave me a thumbs-up and a wink.
After the group practice ended, as I was staring at the sky alone, a rainbow arced faintly across the summer hills. I wonder if I can invite Natsume-kun to the autumn championships? If I can, I'll say it then. I murmured those words as I faced the sky:
"Thank you."
I'll be able to say it for real someday, surely. "I'm sorry about that time." And then: "Thank you." To Natsume-kun, and to my god of music.
Translator's notes:
1At which point I realise that perhaps I should have used the singular 'god' throughout. Whoops. Sorry.
2Specifically, with a tasuki, like this.